Chapter 15 The Quarrel
Yunzhu finished reading all the books.
Then, she was finally able to compile all her questions into a book and began to ask Xiao Mingzhang for advice.
Actually, when she first started reading the book, Yunzhu already had a lot of questions, but she thought that perhaps she could solve these problems herself as she read on, or perhaps Xiao Ming'an could answer her questions, so she wasn't in such a hurry to ask Xiao Mingzhang.
Now that she has finally finished reading all the books and asked Xiao Ming'an all the questions she could, she can only ask Xiao Mingzhang for the rest.
However, perhaps she had chosen the wrong days, because for several days in a row she saw Xiao Mingzhang leaving early and returning late. Every day, either she would wake up at dawn and he would already be leaving, or she would wait for him at night and fall asleep, but he still hadn't returned.
Yunzhu had no idea what Xiao Mingzhang had been busy with lately, and he didn't tell her everything anyway, so she could only continue to wait.
While she couldn't wait for Xiao Mingzhang, Xiao Ming'an was different.
While Xiao Ming'an was quite happy to discuss the issues that Yunzhu didn't understand with her, he also started to ask Yunzhu for her payment for studying.
Yunzhu had no choice but to accept it; since she had promised, she would naturally keep her word.
She then accompanied Xiao Ming'an out twice.
One time I went to Fangjue Temple, and the other time I went to a bustling market.
Yunzhu still pretended not to know her purpose. Every time they arrived at their destination, Xiao Ming'an would try to separate from her for various reasons. She would just pretend to understand and then leisurely go about her own business.
In reality, after separating from Xiao Ming'an, Yunzhu would send Ayan to keep an eye on the two of them every time.
She could allow Xiao Ming'an to meet her lover, but since she was going out with her, she also had to protect her and ensure her safety.
Several days passed peacefully. On this day, Yunzhu finally waited at home for Xiao Mingzhang to return early. She quickly took her notebook, which was full of questions, and went to him.
However, Xiao Mingzhang's expression did not seem very good.
As soon as Yunzhu entered, she saw that the face that was usually gentle and refined now seemed to be covered in ice. His drooping eyebrows and eyes concealed most of his emotions, and the half of his face hidden in the shadows made his sharpness even more apparent.
The study was very quiet, so quiet that only Yunzhu's footsteps could be heard.
She walked to Xiao Mingzhang's side, but instead of asking him to answer her questions, she quietly put down her notebook, raised her hands, and placed them on Xiao Mingzhang's shoulders.
Xiao Mingzhang froze, and then felt a tingling, pleasurable sensation on his shoulder.
From childhood to adulthood, Yunzhu had never served anyone much. The only thing she knew how to do was to massage shoulders, which she learned when she was a child in order to please her father and mother.
Unlike the delicate and boneless hands of ordinary noble ladies in the Central Plains, Yunzhu's hands, which had been learning horseback riding and archery since childhood, were extremely strong.
It's just that it's delicate.
No one spoke in the room, and Yunzhu massaged Xiao Mingzhang's shoulders for about the time it takes for an incense stick to burn before she stopped and lowered her eyes to observe his expression.
It seems to be a little better? Yunzhu wasn't sure.
But even if she didn't, she couldn't massage Xiao Mingzhang's shoulders anymore, because her own arms were starting to ache.
"Xiao Mingzhang, did something happen to you today?" Xiao Mingzhang was a gentleman. In the past, whenever Yunzhu was unhappy, he was always the one to comfort her. It was rare for him to have such an opportunity to ask her to be considerate of him.
"..."
Xiao Mingzhang's mind was still in a state of confusion.
For the entire time Yunzhu had been inside the house, he had never looked up to meet her gaze. It wasn't until Yunzhu stood in front of him that he raised his long neck to look at his wife, with whom he had spent two years.
Yunzhu looked at him with concern, her clear black and white eyes wide open.
Xiao Mingzhang rolled his Adam's apple, feeling a thousand troops blocking his throat, wanting to speak, but ultimately, he didn't know how to begin.
Xiao Mingzhang has been quite busy lately.
But what exactly they were busy with, besides the government office and the army, was also related to Yunzhu and Xiao Ming'an.
Xiao Mingzhang found Yunzhu and Xiao Ming'an's recent interactions quite strange, and neither of them was willing to tell him the truth. So, Xiao Mingzhang ordered someone to investigate all of their experiences since that day at the temple.
Just in case, he deliberately ignored Yunzhu for a few days, leaving early and returning late, so as to give them time to continue going out together and to continue observing them.
Unexpectedly, he actually found out something.
Outside the Prince's mansion, Xiao Ming'an had an affair with a student raised by the Prince Huan's mansion.
Yunzhu may have known about this all along...
Yunzhu and Xiao Mingzhang looked at each other for a long time before finally hearing his first words of the day: "Yunzhu, you and Ming'an have been getting close lately. Have you noticed any difference in Ming'an compared to before?"
"...?" Xiao Ming'an?
Yunzhu blinked, not understanding why Xiao Mingzhang suddenly asked her about Xiao Ming'an.
She replied without changing her expression, "What do you mean by 'different from before'? She used to completely ignore me, but lately she's been very willing to talk to me. Does that count?"
That doesn't count.
Xiao Mingzhang carefully observed Yunzhu's expression, unsure whether she was truly unaware or feigning ignorance.
He pondered for a while, then said, "It's not that. Think about it carefully. Although I am her brother, there is still a difference between men and women. There are many things she won't tell me on her own initiative. You've been in a lot of contact lately. Have you really not noticed anything strange about her?"
What exactly did Xiao Mingzhang want to ask?
Yunzhu felt a growing unease, wondering if he truly knew about Xiao Ming'an and that student.
If she knew, she could understand. After all, Xiao Ming'an was his only sister. If his sister had an affair, and their Central Plains was a place that valued arranged marriages the most, Xiao Mingzhang would definitely be unhappy.
But is this one thing enough to make him so upset?
No, no, no, Yunzhu thought again that perhaps that wasn't the case. Maybe Xiao Ming'an had something else he was hiding that she didn't know.
Just in case, Yunzhu shook her head.
"I can't think of anything..." she said to Xiao Mingzhang.
"Yunzhu!" Unexpectedly, Xiao Mingzhang had already seen through her thoughts from her hesitation just now, and he forcefully interrupted Yunzhu.
Yunzhu paused, the gentle affection on her face vanishing instantly, and she stared at Xiao Mingzhang with a serious expression.
Xiao Mingzhang frowned, no longer bothering with any more riddles, and said directly, "Yunzhu, Ming'an has been associating with a student at Yunzhou Academy lately."
Is this really what happened?
Yunzhu gasped, cautiously observing Xiao Mingzhang while simultaneously feeling both astonished and delighted.
She wanted to ask Xiao Mingzhang what he thought after discovering the truth, but before she could speak, Yunzhu noticed that Xiao Mingzhang's gaze was very complicated.
From the stern interruption just now to the undisguised disappointment now, Yunzhu went back and forth, finally realizing Xiao Mingzhang's helplessness.
Yunzhu stood there blankly for a long time before she realized what Xiao Mingzhang meant.
“Xiao Mingzhang…” she belatedly realized she wanted to explain.
Xiao Mingzhang continued, "I sent people to investigate that student. You were present at every meeting he had with Ming'an recently."
"..."
Yunzhu had nothing to say.
She thought she finally understood why Xiao Mingzhang had such a stern face today.
"But that's not how it is..."
Yunzhu didn't know why she was in such a hurry all of a sudden. She wanted to explain to Xiao Mingzhang that she did want to give Xiao Ming'an and that student a chance, but she meant well and thought that the students of their Huanwang Mansion would all be good, and who knows, they might become outstanding people in the future... But she didn't know how to explain it to Xiao Mingzhang.
Xiao Mingzhang waited for Yunzhu for a long time, watching her gesture wildly for a while, but in the end she still couldn't explain a single word. He impatiently pinched the bridge of his nose.
This action finally calmed Yunzhu down completely.
As if deflated, she asked Xiao Mingzhang, "Are you angry with me, Xiao Mingzhang?"
"..."
yes.
Xiao Mingzhang didn't speak, but every wrinkle on his face answered Yunzhu for him.
Xiao Mingzhang couldn't understand what Yunzhu was thinking. She had clearly discovered these things long ago, yet she chose not to tell him, her brother, a single word? In fact, she even aided and abetted the wrongdoing, actively helping Xiao Ming'an and covering for her?
Ming'an is his own sister, a county princess of the prestigious Huanwang Mansion. How could she be having a close relationship with a poor student who has nothing? What kind of nonsense is this? Even if she weren't a poor student, she should still be at home waiting for her parents' arrangements, given the marriage was arranged by them. Instead, things have turned out like this.
What Xiao Mingzhang dared not even think about was something he had not yet asked Yunzhu.
Is it because she feels that Xiao Ming'an has found a man she likes and therefore doesn't want to stop him, or is it because she feels she has finally grasped Xiao Ming'an's weakness and can use it repeatedly, and therefore doesn't tell him the truth?
Having grown up in the treacherous court, Xiao Mingzhang never hesitated to use the worst possible intentions to speculate about people's hearts...
"..."
Yunzhu waited for Xiao Mingzhang for a long time, but did not receive his reply.
Finally, she felt that she had once again understood Xiao Mingzhang's meaning.
"Xiao Mingzhang..."
But she still didn't want to argue with him, so she couldn't help but grab Xiao Mingzhang's sleeve and lower her body.
Xiao Mingzhang, however, directly avoided Yunzhu's contact.
The brocade sleeve slipped from Yunzhu's fingertips. Yunzhu paused, and in that instant, all the bitterness and sorrow welled up inside her.
She didn't understand, she didn't understand what she had done wrong.
Yes, it was wrong of her to keep it from Xiao Mingzhang, but isn't it a good thing that Xiao Ming'an has a husband she's satisfied with? She hasn't chosen some good-for-nothing, but rather a promising scholar nurtured by the Wangfu Academy, someone with a bright future. He's just a little poor now; who knows, he might amount to something someday. Aren't people from the Central Plains the most adept at grand pronouncements, saying things like "Are kings and generals born with a special destiny?" Why is that no longer acceptable now?
Or was he angry that Xiao Ming'an had a lover and that she disregarded her parents' arrangements? But arranged marriages were the norm in the Central Plains, not in the Western Regions. As long as two people were in love, even a princess and a guard could get married.
Yunzhu felt more and more wronged. She had been happy today, but Xiao Mingzhang was angry with her because of this.
"Xiao Mingzhang!" she said angrily, "You'd better never speak for the rest of your life! You'd better just watch over your sister for the rest of your life, and tell her never to leave the house or have any contact with anyone!"
After she finished speaking, she ran out without looking back, and Xiao Mingzhang tried to stop her, but it was too late.
A note from the author:
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A little bickering can be good for the relationship. [Let me see]
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