Chapter 30: Clouds and Breeze
Xu Chuchu was too lazy to pay attention to Shao Zhi, but after thinking about it, she raised her glass.
"Okay." She clinked glasses with Shao Mingjie, "Then let's work together well in the future."
Anyone with a discerning eye could see that Shao Mingjie had a fierce temper.
To put it nicely, he is carefree; to put it bluntly, he has low emotional intelligence and does not care about other people's feelings. He is the complete opposite of his thoughtful sister Shao Zhi.
But Xu Chuchu was not the kind of person who would fuss over trivial matters. Since the other party was willing to let it go and apologize to her, she could accept it calmly and would not implicate him because of Shao Zhi.
"Hmm..." As a result, a big mouthful of wine went down his throat, and it was so spicy that Xu Chuchu almost spit it out. He forced himself to swallow it for a long time.
She didn't like drinking and only drank fruit wine and sweet wine in modern times. She didn't expect that the alcohol content of ancient wine was so high that she couldn't handle it at all. She felt her face turn red instantly.
Before she could put down her wine glass, Shao Mingjie reached out with the wine jug and filled it for her.
"Come on, Master Xu, let's get drunk today!" He took the initiative to clink glasses again.
Fortunately, this guy seemed to be quite drunk, and he didn't care whether Xu Chuchu had drunk or not, and just drank one sip after another.
After drinking, he ignored Shao Zhi's advice and insisted on becoming sworn brothers with Xu Chuchu.
"Brother!" Shao Zhi hurriedly apologized to Xiao Yu and helped Shao Mingjie leave.
She had been unable to sit still in such a situation for a long time, but she was worried about leaving Xu Chuchu alone with the two men she cared about, so she had to endure it patiently. Now she really couldn't bear it anymore.
Hearing Shao Mingjie calling out "Brother Xiao, Brother Xu" reluctantly as he left, Xu Chuchu finally understood how someone as awkward as Xiao Yu could become so close to Hu Zi.
"What a talented person." Finally able to eat in peace, Xu Chuchu served herself another bowl of rice.
Xiao Yu also took a sip of wine: "Brother Shao is indeed arrogant and often looks down on others, but he always admits his mistakes and is willing to correct them. It's not impossible to make friends with him."
Shao Mingjie has been friends with him for many years, and Xu Chuchu is also someone he admires. Seeing that the two of them could put aside their grudges, he felt relieved.
"You also have a pretty sister, right?" Xu Chuchu added with a smile.
"Even eating can't stop you from talking." Xiao Yu said angrily, "And why are you still eating? The food is cold. Go ask the chef to heat it up for you."
"No, it's still hot." Xu Chuchu picked up some more dishes.
"Then take your time eating. I'll go back first. Don't stay out too late. We have to set off before dawn tomorrow." Xiao Yu reminded.
"Okay." Xu Chuchu nodded.
Xiao Yu took the fan from the table and was about to leave when the faint sound of conversation outside floated in through the half-open window. He subconsciously stopped.
"Chen the Governor!" This was the drunken Shao Mingjie's voice. "I can't even meet you here, in this godforsaken place!"
"Haha, Lord Shao is here too, what a coincidence. If you can come, why can't I?" The voice on the other end didn't sound very old, but it sounded like he was drunk and in a daze.
When Xiao Yu heard his voice, he seemed to hesitate for a moment and poured himself another glass of wine.
Seeing that he wasn't leaving, Xu Chuchu casually asked, "Do you know him?"
Xiao Yu did not answer.
Xu Chuchu didn't care about that and continued to clean up the dishes, never wasting any food.
The sound of talking outside still drifted into their ears intermittently.
"...The inn at the foot of the mountain is so awful, why don't you stay in the county town?" Shao Mingjie said, "If you had gone a couple of days earlier, I'd be there too and could have hosted you."
Governor Chen said, "It's not because I don't want to go to the county town that I took a detour."
"Why?"
"You're asking even though you already know the answer... Tailing is such a big deal, who wouldn't know he's in Tailing?"
"Him? Who are you talking about?"
"That Xiao Si."
…
The more Xu Chuchu listened, the more she felt something was wrong.
At this time, she "should be under the car, not in the car", secretly regretting that she was greedy and made mistakes, but it was too late to retreat now.
She stole a glance at Xiao Yu and saw that he looked quite calm. Suddenly, she blurted out, "Are you the fourth child in your family? You have quite a lot of children."
There was a moment of silence in the private room. As expected, Xiao Yu still ignored her.
She was wrong. Four children were not too many in ancient times.
"...Are you still unclear about what's wrong with Xiao Si?" Governor Chen's voice drifted over again. "Wouldn't it be better for me to pay him a visit in the county town? I brought my women with me this time. If anything were to happen, hey... I'd rather sleep in the wild than go into the city."
"Why do you always bring this up!" Shao Mingjie became annoyed. "Xiao Si doesn't want to get sick!"
"You know he doesn't want to? Maybe he enjoys it, and can do it whenever he wants. Unlike us, when we get older, sometimes..."
“That’s enough!”
"Why aren't you allowed to speak... Take my advice, don't have anything to do with him. You know how the higher-ups feel about him, so what good can it do... Besides, you have such a beautiful sister... Hey, stop hitting me, stop hitting me!"
There was a burst of noise and clamor outside, but it soon quieted down. It sounded like Shao Mingjie, who had started the fight, was pulled back.
However, Governor Chen did not leave immediately, but kept complaining outside.
"Hmph, so stubborn, no wonder he's still hanging around in the Dali Temple for all these years. It's a waste of his old lady's good relationship with the Queen Mother."
"You dare to bring your sister to that Xiao Si? Aren't you afraid of anything happening?"
"Pfft, tell me, who would dare to marry a woman from their family to Xiao Si? With his illness, wouldn't he be embarrassed every day? Giving birth to a son is fine, but giving birth to a daughter, for a daughter..."
"That's enough!" Xu Chuchu couldn't stand it any longer and deliberately pushed the cutlery to make a bang, trying to drown out the vulgar and disgusting noises outside.
However, it seems too late.
Xu Chuchu didn't know how much Xiao Yu had heard. He said nothing, and the private room was so quiet that it seemed as if only the two of them could hear their breathing and heartbeats.
The rare relaxed atmosphere that had just been created by Shao Mingjie's apology was now gone, leaving only tension and depression.
Xiao Yu remained calm and drank his wine calmly, as if the unpleasant discussions outside had nothing to do with him.
But if you look closely, the violent shaking of the wine in the glass has cruelly betrayed him.
He was shaking, shaking uncontrollably.
Trying hard to hide and suppress the trembling underneath.
Xu Chuchu suddenly realized that for most people in this world, Xiao Yu's strange illness was something they avoided and hated, something they laughed at after dinner. It was only because no one around her had shown any concern these days that she thought things were going well.
Moreover, even though these malicious acts dare to be brought out openly, there are still many behind the scenes.
As a bystander, she would get angry if she heard such words once. How many times has Xiao Yu heard this over the years? Or has she suffered even greater insults?
No one can take such an insult lightly.
As if possessed by a ghost, she placed her hand on Xiao Yu's trembling wrist.
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