When he came, Cheng Fang specially brought out a set of fine writing implements from his home.
He figured that a poor man like Zhao Yan could never afford such a nice thing in his entire life. If he offered it as an apology, wouldn't Zhao Yan be eager to curry favor with him?
Especially after he saw Zhao Yan wearing a drab, patched-up outfit, Cheng Fang became even more certain of his suspicions.
He looked smug. "These are top-quality writing implements. Consider it a reward from me. Hey, now you can forgive me, right?"
The way he said it made it sound as if Zhao Yan forgave him was a must, something he should do.
He Tiantian glanced at Cheng Fang, feeling utterly annoyed with this spoiled brat.
Zhao Yan didn't even glance at the congratulatory gift in Afu's hand, and said coldly, "I have forgiven you, Young Master Cheng, please leave."
"Hey... My young master has been so kind and has come all this way to apologize to your wretched village. Don't be ungrateful!" Afu was very displeased.
As a servant, it was his duty to protect his master in critical moments.
Zhao Yan felt a surge of anger, but he remembered what Aunt He had told him.
She took a deep breath. "I've forgotten about that incident, and I won't bring it up again. Let's all move on."
Cheng Fang also felt uncomfortable. He had put aside so much pride to come here, yet he was not valued at all.
“Hey, Zhao Yan, you said it yourself. Then accept the apology gift, and I'll take it as your forgiveness.” Cheng Fang insisted on giving the gift, afraid that if he didn't handle things well, he would get a beating when he got home.
"I cannot accept this apology; please leave."
"You have to do it today."
"I don't want to."
Seeing that both sides were quite insistent and stubborn, He Tiantian quickly stepped forward to mediate, "Young Master Cheng, you probably don't know Zhao Yan's temperament. The fact that he didn't accept your gift means that he has forgiven you from the bottom of his heart."
"Young Master Cheng, rest assured. I will testify to what happened today. Zhao Yan has forgiven you. Isn't that right, Zhao Yan?"
Zhao Yan nodded quickly, his tone softening.
"Brother Cheng, scholars don't care about these external conditions. I'm very pleased that you've come to apologize today. Why don't you come in and have a cup of tea, and we can consider this matter settled?"
Zhao Yan was speechless at Cheng Fang's behavior, but he knew that offending this young master would not do him any good.
"Yes, yes, come in and have a cup of tea." He Tiantian gestured for Cheng Fang and the others to come inside.
Cheng Fang thought about it and agreed.
He'll go in for a cup of tea, and when he gets back to the city, he'll have something to say to his father, something to explain.
So he stepped into the courtyard.
The small courtyard was quite clean, and Cheng Fang was somewhat surprised when he and Zhao Yan entered the house.
There was nothing in the room except a bed and a table.
Moreover, the muddy ground was uneven and pitted, making it difficult to walk on.
Zhao Yan cleared a small space on the table by tidying up the books, and said apologetically, "Brother Cheng, our home is not well-off. Please sit down first, and I will go get some tea."
There was only one stool in the room, so Cheng Fang sat down, leaving Afu and He Tiantian to stand.
Cheng Fang was indeed very tired from walking so fast. As soon as he sat down on the stool, he let out a scream.
"ah……"
Ah Fu quickly stepped forward, "Young Master, what's wrong?"
Cheng Fang rubbed his sore bottom and pointed to the broken stool in front of him.
"The stool came loose and pinched my butt, ouch...it hurts so much."
Afu looked at it, then took out a stack of papers from his pocket and placed them on the stool.
"Young master, please sit down. Now your butt won't be pinched."
He Tiantian glanced at the snow-white, clean paper. Such a precious thing was being used as a seat cushion. What a waste!
Zhao Yan brought in three bowls of hot tea and placed them on the table.
"Brother Cheng, we only drink coarse tea in the village, please don't take offense."
It was indeed just boiled well water. The villagers couldn't afford tea at all, and they didn't even know about that precious stuff.
Even the tea bowls were the cheapest kind, coarse bowls, and it was unclear how long they had been used; there were even small chips around the rim.
Cheng Fang suppressed his anger, picked up the teacup, and took a small, pretentious sip.
He Tiantian had just had tea at Madam Song's place at noon, so she wasn't thirsty. She put the bowl aside.
Seeing that his master had drunk it, Afu gritted his teeth and frowned as he took a small sip as well.
As soon as he finished his tea, Cheng Fang couldn't wait to get up.
"I've had your tea, so Brother Zhao, you must remember what you said. And you must testify for me before the magistrate."
Zhao Yan nodded.
"Alright, it's getting late, I should head back now." After saying that, Cheng Fang led his servant Afu out.
He Tiantian and Zhao Yan hurriedly followed.
Widow Zhang and Cheng Taotao are no longer at the door; they've probably gone back.
He Tiantian and Zhao Yan didn't intend to see them off any further. They politely escorted them to the door, and once they saw Cheng Fang and the others leave, that was the end of it.
The area in front of the house suddenly became quiet. He Tiantian originally wanted to pat Zhao Yan on the shoulder to comfort him.
But after thinking about it, it might not be appropriate.
So she sighed and changed the subject, "Yan'er, who is the other girl next to Cheng Taotao?"
“Auntie, I heard that she is Miss Cheng’s younger sister…” Zhao Yan frowned.
He Tiantian nodded and asked casually, "Do they often come to your door to talk?"
Zhao Yan remained silent, which was taken as tacit agreement.
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