Chapter 123 [VIP] Lifesaver (10)
It turns out that what Xiao Feihe meant by venting was taking her to the suburbs to race horses. He is indeed a very knowledgeable and interesting person. He can touch people's hearts with just a few words. He knows how to make people happy and how to comfort people who are heartbroken.
Nan Yan was angry at first and turned away, refusing to pay any attention to him. However, under his incessant persuasion, she was a little moved. But she was too angry and couldn't save face for the moment. She could only look at him impatiently and hesitantly. Finally, she gave in at the other party's very considerate request.
——I still couldn’t help but follow him out.
Neither of them took any maids or servants with them. They just hired a carriage and went to the suburbs.
There was a stable near the city. Xiao Feihe was probably a regular customer here and was familiar with the servants of the stable. He just walked over with a smile and said something to the young man, and then the servants of the stable led out two shiny red-maned horses.
Nan Yan looked at the docile little mare and subconsciously reached out to touch its head. The little mare was not afraid of people and rubbed its head against her palm. Nan Yan blinked and naturally a long-lost smile appeared on her face.
Xiao Feihe, who was standing beside her, had been secretly watching her. Seeing that this difficult-to-please person finally smiled, his eyebrows moved slightly, and the corners of his mouth involuntarily revealed a smile.
"Well, I'm right, isn't it a relaxing and fun thing to go horse riding in the suburbs?"
Hearing this, the smile on Nan Yan's face disappeared again. She turned her head away and snorted, obviously still thinking about what he had said before.
Seeing this, Xiao Feihe was not angry, but smiled very gently. It is better to be angry. It is most troublesome if a person has no reaction to you at all.
The fact that she is angry just shows that she cares!
Afterwards, the two of them rode their horses together and started running towards the suburbs. Nan Yan could ride a horse, of course. Noble ladies from aristocratic families and children of officials would all have some knowledge of riding skills. After all, children of the aristocratic class emphasize all-round development, and they would have some basic knowledge of the arts of music, chess, calligraphy, painting, singing, dancing, and riding.
Li Nanyan also understood this, but her understanding was more superficial than the basics.
Only the riding skills are slightly better.
The two men rode their horses for more than half an hour, galloping all the way, and they didn't know where they were going. They only knew that there was a crescent-shaped lake nearby.
The grass by the lake is still green, and the water is sparkling. The water is so clear that even the fish swimming at the bottom of the lake can be seen clearly. Especially when a breeze blows by, ripples appear on the surface of the lake.
Such a scenery makes people feel much better.
Finally, even the horse was tired from running. It raised its head and blew out a puff of white air. It neighed loudly, then stopped and kicked its back to eat grass by the lake. It refused to run anymore.
Nan Yan also jumped off the horse and trotted all the way to the lake. She was in a much better mood at the moment and smiled more often.
Especially after riding for such a long time, a thin layer of sweat appeared on her forehead, which just happened to smudge the makeup she had applied earlier. She walked directly to the lake, scooped up some lake water and washed her face. Now, even her skin complexion became rosy.
Xiao Feihe, who was behind him, also caught up. He seemed to be breathing steadily, with no red face and no panting.
This man was sitting on a tall horse, with a pair of sparkling peach blossom eyes, and a bright red riding suit. His red clothes and black hair made his skin look as white as jade, but his lips were very red and thin, and when he smiled, there was a sense of elegance and nobility between his brows.
He really has a face that is born to play.
Xiao Feihe curled his lips, jumped off the horse swiftly, walked to Nan Yan's side, took out a cotton handkerchief from his sleeve and handed it to her, "How is it? Do you feel much better after running a lap? I'm right, aren't you? If you're in a bad mood like you, you shouldn't stay at home. Go out and relax more often and you'll find that being rejected is not a big deal! The man doesn't like you because he has no taste. You're so beautiful, are you still worried that you won't be able to get married?"
Nan Yan glanced at him with a strange look in her eyes.
This person seems to be a chatterbox. Once he starts talking, he never stops and keeps nagging, which is not consistent with his elegant and refined appearance at all.
Seeing that Nan Yan still refused to pay attention to him, Xiao Feihe chuckled and went over to continue talking.
"Besides, what does reputation mean? They are shackles that the world puts on you to restrain you."
"It doesn't matter if you have a bad reputation. It won't kill anyone. Besides, doesn't it just help you filter out those useless bastards?"
He patted his chest, a rather smug look on his face, "Look at me, my reputation is terrible, but I am still popular when I go out, so why do you have to hang yourself on that crooked tree?"
Nan Yan finally couldn't help but speak. She pretended to be angry and glared at the man.
"You are the crooked tree!"
Isn't this person asking for trouble?
If she doesn't react when someone slanders her former nominal lover in front of her, will that be worthy of her image as someone who has just been heartbroken?
Xiao Feihe was not bothered by being scolded. He snorted twice, raised his eyebrows slightly, and looked romantic and amorous. "So what? Even if I am a crooked tree, there are still many people rushing to be hanged. Are you not convinced again?"
As expected, these words were met with a pair of beautiful eye rolls.
Xiao Feihe found that this young lady was quite pretty when she glared at people. Her eyes were round and bright like almonds, especially the corners of her eyes which were a little red. When she glared at him, there was a hint of coquettishness in her eyes, which was quite interesting to look at.
Thinking of this, Xiao Feihe couldn't help laughing out loud again.
This smile of his attracted the eldest lady's puzzled look. Her eyes were a little subtle. She looked him up and down, and suddenly her eyes became a little strange and wandering.
Xiao Feihe felt a little uncomfortable when she stared at him. He looked at himself to make sure there was nothing wrong with him. He stopped laughing and asked, "What are you looking at? Why do you look so weird? Is there something dirty on my face?"
Nan Yan's expression was a little subtle. She suddenly reached out and grabbed his collar, her eyes narrowed, "You approached me on purpose, didn't you?"
Xiao Feihe's expression paused, feeling a little guilty for a moment, he didn't expect that he would be discovered as soon as he approached the other party. It seems that this young lady is not as stupid as the rumors say. Who said that she is beautiful but stupid?
Just when Xiao Feihe was trying to gather her thoughts and find a suitable excuse to fool him, the man in front of her suddenly let go of her hand. She glared at him with an expression that said, "I've seen through you a long time ago." "It was the same thing on the street before. You bumped into me on purpose and gave me money. And today at Li's house, you gave me a candy man. Xiao, what are you planning? To be honest, have you been in love with me for a long time?"
Miss Li was born with confidence. Although her reputation was ruined by the broken engagement, it did not hinder her confidence. She looked around the man and did not forget to turn the tables.
Xiao Feihe: “…”
Xiao Feihe was speechless for a moment. What was she thinking?
Well, it seems reasonable to think this way.
But he can guarantee that he really didn't mean to bump into her on the street. Who knew that this person suddenly appeared from nowhere and cheated him out of a silver ingot.
Xiao Feihe looked at the strange expression of the man opposite him, considered his words, and was about to speak, "I..."
Before she could finish her words, she was decisively interrupted by the man opposite her. Nan Yan looked at him seriously, then turned her head away and said with a very disgusted tone, "No, don't say it, I already know what you are going to say! Although I was rejected by someone, my requirements are also very high. I will not fall in love with a guy like you who looks like a scoundrel."
Xiao Feihe: “…”
Are you kidding me, you idiot?
Xiao Feihe's expression suddenly became speechless, his eyebrows were almost knotted, he was really mad at this person, where did she get the confidence to say such things, it was simply bragging!
Everyone in Yanyun City who knows him, judging by his appearance alone, would praise him as a handsome young man. Not to mention that he is as handsome as Pan An, but his appearance is definitely one of the best in the entire Yanyun City, and second to none.
If it weren't for his slightly bad reputation, there would be many more girls who admired him than the girl who admired Jin Lili's dead face. He was such a handsome man with a handsome face, but she dared to say that he had a mean look. Was this young lady blind?
Also, did she really know what he was going to say?
Xiao Feihe took a deep breath and suppressed the anger in his heart. Finally, he couldn't help but reply, "I have a sly eye? Miss, when did you become blind? I am such a handsome man, and you actually said I have a sly eye?"
It seemed that this person was really angry. He repeated it several times and stared at people with a gloomy look.
Nan Yan wanted to laugh, but luckily she held it back.
But after hearing what he said, her expression became even more disgusted. "Why do you, as a man, care so much about appearance? I'm not that kind of superficial woman. I like those who are both beautiful inside and out, which is different from you!"
Xiao Feihe: “…”
So, he is still a shallow-skinned person, right?
I'm so sorry that he is not a good man with both inner and outer qualities. Xiao Feihe was speechless. He thought to himself, before you say this, Miss, can you take a look at yourself first?
Not to mention that he is not good-looking inside and out, it is obvious that this young lady is not much better than him, and I don’t know where she gets her confidence from. Is she so blindly sure that he likes her?
蕭非鶴深呼吸一口氣，他發現跟這大小姐在一起就很容易被氣，也不知道當初靳厭離那厮是怎麽忍下來的？
不行，不能生氣。
蕭非鶴：他還就不信了，憑他的手段還拿不下這個腦袋空空的大小姐了。
……
看到對方憋着臉色，最後只能忍着心哽的模樣，南嫣心情頓時舒坦極了，典型的那種，只要你過的不好，我就開心了。
跑完馬之後心情果然放松了不少，而且發洩過後胸口也沒那麽郁悶了。
蕭非鶴調整調整心情，看到大小姐那副氣死人不償命的模樣，決定不跟她計較！
兩人圍着湖邊又走了一圈，這郊外附近蕭非鶴來過很多次，路線都很熟，也不知道他騎着馬兒去哪兒溜達了一圈，再回來時，手上就多了兩只紙糊的竹風筝。
看到風筝時，南嫣眼睛頓時一亮，蕭非鶴自然也瞧見了這人歡喜的模樣，又笑着把風筝遞過去，之後兩人又在湖邊放了一下午的風筝，可這風筝也不是那麽好放的。
尤其是這大小姐的技術還不太行，這風筝放不起來也就算了，還特容易卡在一些奇奇怪怪的地方，不是樹梢就是落在屋頂上，位置還總是那麽的恰到好處，不上不下的。
結果就是這蕭世子又給人爬了一下午的樹、翻了一下午的牆、漫山遍野的到處給她撿風筝，來來回回跑了十幾趟，最後累到完全不想動彈。
太過分了！是哪個混賬說的，說陪女孩子出去散心最适合跑馬、賞花放風筝了？這大小姐放的哪是風筝啊，這分明是在放他！
兩人在郊外停留了一下午，這一天可真是把蕭非鶴累夠嗆，本想早點把人送回府裏就算完事，偏偏這大小姐興致來了，要麽就小半月不出門，一出門就要去逛個夠，大小姐心情好了就要去集市上湊湊熱鬧了。
蕭非鶴忽然覺得膝蓋有些發酸，不過轉頭一瞧這人滿臉興致的模樣，那到嘴邊的拒絕又咽回去了，想了想還是陪她去了算了。
畢竟自己是別有目的，而且她願意出來玩不正說明她心情也在慢慢恢複了嗎？努力一把說不定就能成功了，這可是好事。
……
眼見天色漸晚，兩人又駕着馬車回到了城內，秋日天昏黑的早，晝短夜漸長，集市上的燈火也亮的比較早。
集市上還是一如既往的熱鬧，攤販吆喝、客人講價的聲音不絕如縷，空氣裏都是食物的香氣，還混合着胭脂水粉的味道。
車夫扯着缰繩，馬車漸漸停了下來。
蕭非鶴踩着杌凳，利落地下了馬車，轉身又去掀開簾子，準備扶着這位大小姐下馬，不過卻被人一把拍開了手指。
蕭非鶴眉梢微挑了下，擡眸看她，大小姐哼他一聲，很是得意的自己跳下了馬車。
這下倒輪到蕭非鶴愣住了，随後實在沒忍住搖頭輕笑出了聲，也不知道這大小姐在得意個什麽勁？
兩人在外頭玩了一天，此時腹中都有些饑腸辘辘，不過此刻客棧吃飯的人都比較多，而且瞧着那路邊攤販賣的的馄饨酥餅比客棧的飯菜似乎更香，兩人也不講究了，對視一眼後直接就在馄饨鋪前的空位坐下了。
吃完混沌，兩人瞬間都覺得滿足多了。
不得不說，這一天相處下來，蕭非鶴瞧着這李家大小姐确實沒有傳聞中那麽嬌縱任性，還別說，就這路邊吃馄饨的架勢，稍微有點身份的世家貴女都不願意做這事，她們寧肯餓着肚子也不會做這種有損身份臉面的事。
就連李清柔也不例外，每次出門都心有顧忌，寧願不吃也不願意折損形象半分，他有時候瞧着都覺得心累。
也就這大小姐毫不介意了。
兩人填飽肚子就開始一路朝前走着，看見什麽好玩的、好吃的就停下來賞玩一番，還有那不遠處耍雜技噴火的，瞧着還挺有意思的，這逛集市逛的不是買東西，而是為了熱鬧，剛好兩人又都是愛湊熱鬧的主兒，這一來二去，倒頗有種志趣相投的感覺。
蕭非鶴白天在郊外跑了一天累夠嗆，這會兒氣勢也沒那麽張揚了，往日裏那副散漫不羁的模樣也收斂了個徹底，渾身上下倒有了那麽幾分世家公子的穩重成熟模樣了。
周圍時不時地有瞧過來的目光，蕭非鶴也不在意，目光基本上都在身旁的這位大小姐身上，這兩人走在一起，容貌又都是個中翹楚，倒顯得格外的登對。
眼見南嫣停在一處攤子前挑挑揀揀，一會兒點頭一會兒又是搖頭的，顯然是陷入了困境，不知道該選哪個好？
蕭非鶴瞅着她臉上那生動的小表情，不免笑出聲來，他心想，這人一張巴掌大的小臉上怎麽就有那麽多有趣的表情呢？
心中不免也來了幾分興致。
蕭非鶴眨了下眼睛，他自問眼光也不錯，于是三步并作兩步很快走上前去，在攤子前駐足賞看了一番，然後挑起一只很小巧的抱着鯉魚的童子木雕遞過去，表情很是自得，“這個吧，看你挑那麽久了一個也沒挑中，不如就買這個吧。這個好看，你瞧這小鯉魚的眼珠子還能動呢，是不是很精巧？”
南嫣下意識地看過去，只見他那兩根修長的手指輕輕撥動了兩下，果然就看到那童子懷裏的大鯉魚随着動作調轉了身子，眼珠還轉動了下，雕刻的活靈活現的，南嫣瞧得實在有趣，便下意識伸手去拿。
結果那人又開始使壞，手指下意識地舉得老高，然後挑着眉梢，故意逗她，“嗯，偏不給你……”
他說這句話的時候，餘光不經意間瞥到了對面的首飾鋪子，也就是這時，對面那兩道熟悉的身影猝不及防地映入視線中。
蕭非鶴的動作一頓，一時間竟忘記躲開。
而在另一邊，李清柔正站在靳厭離面前，她手上正拿着一支碧綠的桃花簪子，臉上的神情微微有些溫柔羞澀，然後微微仰着下巴，目光有些期盼卻又十分不自在地望着他，很明顯是希望他能替自己戴上。
那眼裏的愛慕是蕭非鶴從未見過的，也讓他胸口一時有些微澀。
偏偏對面的靳厭離神情有些平淡，他眼眸落在那枚桃花簪子上，也不知道想到了什麽，目光一時有些微怔，直到身旁的女子伸手扯了扯他的袖子，靳厭離這才回了神，然後伸手拿起簪子，正要替她插入發髻時……
也就是這一下，另一邊兩人嬉鬧的動靜突然傳過來了，那聲音有些耳熟，熟悉到他前幾日還曾在夢裏聽見她在他耳畔吵鬧個不休，結果睜開眼睛時，卻發現只是一場夢。
那幾日也不知是怎麽了？每晚都會不停地做惡夢，醒來時只覺得胸口那種空蕩蕩的感覺令他有些心悸，此後便再難入眠。
他不明白，他喜歡的人不是李清柔嗎？他不是信誓旦旦地說過自己心動的女子只有李清柔一個嗎？
為什麽還總是夢到她，惦念着她呢？
他甚至不敢上門，怕見到她哭泣的樣子。
靳厭離有時候甚至會在心裏問自己：
現在的這一切真的都是他想要的嗎？
他只覺得如今的自己好像陷入了一個困境，一個由自己親手締造出來的死胡同，讓他掙脫不開。
所以在聽見那道熟悉的聲音時，靳厭離幾乎是下意識擡頭去看，這一下也正好看到了南嫣笑着撲進另外一個男子懷裏的動作。
靳厭離表情瞬間就僵住了。
那一瞬，一種莫名的恐慌感突然從胸口蔓延開來，讓他險些控制不住自己的情緒。
靳厭離幾乎是下意識地就攥緊了手中的簪子，銳利的簪子更是瞬間就刺破了掌心，但此刻靳厭離卻像是感覺不到疼痛一樣，目光死死盯着不遠處的兩個人。
她怎麽會……
她這是跟別人在一起了嗎？
還是說，她已經……喜歡上別人了？
靳厭離真的不知道自己此刻是什麽樣的情緒，可只要一想到這個結果，一想到，從今往後，她會對着另一個男人撒嬌，會笑着撲進對方懷裏，也會哭着鬧着在被欺負的讓另一個男人幫她作主，她所有的情緒都因別人而起，她的哭和笑也是徹底屬于別人的。
兩人從此泾渭分明，再無關系！
只要一想到這些，他便覺得胸口好像被什麽蟄了一下似的，一開始是細微的刺痛，緊接着便是密密麻麻的鑽心的痛苦，直到後來幾乎将整個胸腔都覆蓋了，讓他連呼吸都有些不順暢了。
而那邊的南嫣還不知道這一幕已經被人瞧見了，她一把抓住了蕭非鶴的手腕，然後拽下來，将手心裏頭那枚童子抱鯉魚的木雕搶進懷裏，這才露出滿意的笑容道，
“哈，怎麽樣，還是被我搶到了吧。”
As she spoke, she imitated him and reached out to pick up the carp in the boy's arms, but this time the carp didn't move. Nan Yan blinked and immediately asked in confusion, "What's going on, Xiao Feihe, why doesn't it move when I pick it up?"
After she finished speaking, she didn't hear any reply, so she subconsciously looked up at his face, only to find that he was distracted. She then looked forward along his line of sight, and at that moment, she happened to meet the slightly changing gaze of Jin Linli opposite her.
At that moment, Jin Lili took a step forward almost subconsciously, but Li Qingrou beside him reached out and grabbed his sleeve, which made Jin Lili stop immediately.
He unconsciously lowered his head to look at her face and saw a slightly nervous look in Li Qingrou's eyes.
It was as if a bucket of cold water was poured over my head, and I instantly became much more sober.
When Nan Yan on the opposite side saw him, her eyes instantly turned red, and she kept staring at him without blinking.
At first, I was looking forward to it when I saw him approaching. But when I saw him finally stop and look at Li Qingrou beside him, the mist in his eyes became thicker and thicker. In the end, I couldn't help but shed tears.
This made Xiao Feihe who was beside him very worried.
It was at this moment that he noticed her movements, and immediately suppressed his previous emotions. If he had known earlier, he would have taken this person farther away. There were so many streets for them to walk on, but they had to bump into these two people. Especially when Xiao Feihe turned his head and saw her red eyes from crying, he suddenly felt a headache.
The thing he feared most in his life was a woman crying.
The most important thing is, he had spent a whole day coaxing this young lady into a better mood, running errands and acting as a servant. But now, that bastard showed up and all his efforts for the whole day were wasted.
However, seeing Nan Yan crying with her nose slightly red, he couldn't ignore her. He could only roll up his sleeves and approach her, then start to coax her frantically, "Stop crying, okay? My dear, little aunt, I'll buy you whatever you want, Miss Li, okay?"
"Don't you want to know how this fish turns? Let me show you... Hey, look, there's a small wooden bead in the fish's mouth. When I pinch the fish's tail, its mouth opens. Isn't it interesting?"
Xiao Feihe patted her back and coaxed her, making ugly faces from time to time. After coaxing her for a long time, she was so tired that her saliva dried up. Finally, Miss Li stopped crying, turned her head to look at the two people not far away, then turned back to look at him, and asked in a hoarse voice:
"Are you really going to buy me everything?"
Xiao Feihe immediately patted his chest and guaranteed, "Of course, buy whatever you want. We have plenty of money! Come on, this place is unlucky, how about I take you to eat something delicious?"
But he paused slightly when he caught a glimpse of Li Qingrou's figure.
Nan Yan pursed her lips and didn't say she agreed, but she didn't say she disagreed either. Her eyes were still lingering in the direction behind the two people, as if she was expecting that person to do something.
But this time she was disappointed. The man opposite her was motionless, with no expression on his face. His eyes were like the depths of an ancient well, without any emotion at all.
He just stood there, staring at the two of them coldly, as if he didn't care at all about what happened between them.
But only Jin Lili himself knew that for a moment, he even felt that his chest was so stuffy that he was about to suffocate.
The palms of his sleeves were already covered in mud, with even drops of blood dripping onto the ground through the fingertips.
Jin Lili thought that he might just be uncomfortable with it for the time being. After all, they had been engaged and had been together for so long, so it was normal for him to have a little possessiveness towards her.
But this is not love, this is just possessiveness. The person he loves is Li Qingrou. As long as he is given a little more time, a little more time, he will definitely be able to adjust himself...
Yes, that's right!
He just couldn't react for a while. After a while, he would calm down. The person he liked was Li Qingrou, not Li Nanyan. From the beginning to the end, it was only Li Qingrou...