Chapter 25 Jealousy
"Say it again." Veins bulged on Lu Weiqing's forehead and he crushed the teacup in his hand.
Eleven bowed his head and reported, "Miss Jiang went to Fuxingju to see the Yongqing Marquis's son today."
Lu Weiqing's face was as gloomy as water, and his aura was terrifying.
He had no idea that the Marquis' Mansion had such a conspiracy, and dared to covet his little girl while he was away.
He had to go to Gusu specifically to pick up the prince and his sister Lu Zhaoyang and bring them back to Chang'an. He deliberately chose a time when Lu Yu could not cause trouble, and left Eleven to protect A Ran. Unexpectedly, this gave other bastards an opportunity to take advantage of the situation.
"Why report it now?"
"Miss Jiang has been quiet for the past half month, going to the woodcarving workshop every day. Yesterday, the third son of the Jiang family returned to the capital, and a meeting was arranged today. I was negligent, and I ask for your punishment, Master."
Eleven knew he was in trouble this time. He wanted to report it, but the young lady had been pestering the master all day, so he couldn't find a chance to speak.
He looked at his master and felt desperate.
He deserved to be punished. He had been telling his master all the time, every day, every day, and then suddenly—we met. Who could have thought that after being away from Beijing for half a month, his house would be robbed? No one could accept this.
There was no way he could escape this beating. Eleven didn't know whether to feel sorry for himself first or for his master.
"Got it. Go and watch over her."
Lu Weiqing waved his hand and motioned him to go out.
Eleven was overjoyed. "You're not going to beat him anymore? Are you really not going to beat him anymore?"
"Aren't you leaving yet?"
Go, go, go, we must go. Eleven "shua" performed a flash of disappearance.
The next time he gets a chance, he'll definitely catch that prince and give him a beating, lest his master remember this incident someday. Then, he can turn the tables and say to his master, "You can beat him, but you can't beat me."
That night, Lu Weiqing was so angry that his heart ached. If he hadn't found someone more capable than Eleven at the moment, and was worried about what might happen with Ah Ran, how could he not punish him?
Jiang Ran, on the other hand, had a good night's sleep. Perhaps exhausted from all the hairpins and jewelry, he collapsed on the bed, closed his eyes, and fell asleep.
The next morning, she went to the wood carving workshop as usual. She came there every day and it had become a habit.
However, when she was carving, the image of Lu Weiqing and the girl holding hands always appeared in her mind.
Seeing that she was distracted frequently, the master took away her carving knife and urged her to go back and rest.
Jiang Ran walked out listlessly, and unexpectedly ran into the prince.
"Miss Jiang, I didn't expect to meet you here. It's really fate."
"Prince."
Jiang Ran saluted and couldn't help but complain in his heart. This young master of the Marquisate was elusive, wandering around in a dazzling aqua brocade robe, holding a folding fan in the middle of winter. If he didn't look so honest, he would have been mistaken for a scoundrel.
"I heard that a chef specializing in Chaozhou cuisine has come to Jiangyunlou. I was just about to go there. Miss Jiang, would you be so kind as to come with me?"
Jiang Ran subconsciously wanted to refuse, but then he thought, since the two families were considering a marriage, there would be no harm in getting to know each other better.
"I haven't had lunch yet, so let's go together."
"Very good, very good. Please come in, Miss Jiang."
Jiang Ran followed his instructions and walked side by side with him, keeping a distance of one person between them. They did not speak to each other along the way.
As she walked, her thoughts began to wander uncontrollably.
The prince seemed to be about the same height as his second brother, but not as tall as Lu Weiqing, but he looked stronger.
He had a woody scent on him, which was too heavy and not as refreshing as the citrus scent that Lu Weiqing had.
She secretly thought that the prince was also a gourmet with a keen sense of food, and perhaps if they spent more time together, they would have some common topics.
Looking back, Lu Weiqing's taste was quite similar to hers. She had previously dreamed of becoming a dining partner with him, but she had a nightmare that night after returning home.
Jiang Ran shook her head, driving Lu Weiqing out of her mind.
Why did I think of him? It's really strange.
Just as they were about to turn the corner to reach Jiangyun Tower, a passing waiter's casserole suddenly broke open, and the hot soup spilled all over the prince.
Jiang Ran was so startled that she forgot to hide. At this moment, a pair of hands grabbed her shoulders and pulled her to the side, narrowly avoiding the soup from splashing on her.
Jiang Ran was about to thank him when she found out that it was Lu Weiqing who helped her.
"Thank you... Lord Lu."
"Lord Lu." The prince wanted to greet him, but his face was covered in soup and he couldn't open his eyes at all.
He took out a handkerchief from his bosom and found that it was also soaked. Seeing that he was in such a mess, Jiang Ran wanted to hand him the handkerchief. But before he could raise his hand, Lu Weiqing tore a piece of cloth from Eleven's body and said, "Use mine."
The prince wiped his face before greeting, "So Miss Jiang and Brother Lu know each other."
"Yes."
"Just an acquaintance."
The two gave opposite answers at the same time, and neither of them explained tacitly.
Lu Weiqing clenched his fists and said, "The weather is cold, Prince, you should go back and change your clothes."
The prince seemed to have just realized that he did not look very good. He smiled innocently and said casually, "In this world, the only things that cannot be wasted are delicious food and beautiful women."
"No problem, Jiangyun Tower is where I go often. I'll just go and borrow some clothes from the shopkeeper."
Unfortunately, Jiangyun Tower was full, and the prince slapped his thigh regretfully.
Jiang Ran breathed a sigh of relief. She didn't want to experience the awkwardness of sitting at the same table with three people again. Lu Weiqing was also very frugal with words, so she would have to rely on him to have an awkward chat with the prince.
It's embarrassing, really embarrassing.
She pretended to be regretful and said, "What a coincidence! I'll have to come back next time."
"It's okay. I've booked a private room on the third floor. We can go together."
"Thank you, Brother Lu. I won't be polite then!" The prince agreed without hesitation and urged the shopkeeper to lead the way.
Having said that, Jiang Ran didn't want to say much more and just said, "Sorry for bothering you."
Lu Weiqing's eyes never left Jiang Ran. He hadn't seen her for a long time, and after just a few glances at her, he couldn't help but feel longing for her.
But this thing next to him kept flashing into his field of vision, and it was an eyesore no matter how he looked at it.
Eleven understood and quickly stepped forward to hold the prince back, offering to take him to change his clothes first.
Jiang Ran could only go upstairs with Lu Weiqing first.
She didn't notice at all that Lu Yu and Xu Qingwan were sitting at the table she just passed by.
Lu Yu noticed Jiang Ran from the very beginning and was secretly delighted that what his mother said was indeed true. He had just coaxed Xu Qingwan and asked her out for a meeting when Jiang Ran chased after him.
Seeing Jiang Ran walking towards their table, his heart beat even faster. He looked around and pretended to be indifferent.
It wasn't until she walked over and Xu Qingwan asked him if his eyes were cramping that Lu Yu realized that Jiang Ran didn't say hello to him.
To play hard to get is to play hard to get.
He became more and more certain, and began to diligently pick up food for Xu Qingwan, pretending to touch her white and slender little hand casually.
Xu Qingwan was startled at first, then she stopped moving, tacitly consenting to his closeness.
Lu Yu became more and more aggressive, pretending to be drunk, and put his arm around Xu Qingwan's shoulders, pulling her into his arms.
He was secretly proud of himself. Wouldn't this make Jiang Ran, who was peeking in the corner, jealous to death?
He even smelled vinegar.
"Miss Jiang, how are you these days?"
"Good, but not as good as Lord Lu. Not everyone can be like Lord Lu, walking through a sea of flowers without getting a single leaf on him, living a carefree and easy life."
After being stabbed by her, Lu Weiqing showed a rare look of bewilderment.
He really couldn't figure out when he had offended Jiang Ran since he had just returned to Beijing yesterday.
Could it be that she realized that it was his people who poured the hot soup, and she was angry with him for interrupting her meeting with the prince?
It was unclear whether there was a smell of vinegar downstairs. Lu Weiqing, with a gloomy face, was like a big vinegar jar that had exploded. The entire private room was about to be marinated with his vinegar.
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