Seeing Li Qingchen make a few more marks on the table, Wei Shuwan quickly looked up and saw that he had written: "Don't worry, I can protect myself."
Yes, he knows kung fu, Wei Shuwan knew that, but she was still worried: "Even if you are highly skilled in kung fu, you can't fight against four hands with two fists."
"It's alright."
Upon seeing these two words, Wei Shuwan knew that he was determined not to move away from this place, so she stopped trying to persuade him and instead asked, "Does my benefactor know where the fish he catches every day go?"
Li Qingchen shook his head, and Wei Shuwan pressed further: "Sold in bulk?"
Li Qingchen nodded.
Wei Shuwan then said with a smile, "I have lived in Jiangzuo since I was a child and I love to eat fresh fish. However, after we moved to Shengjing, the fish that the servants in my household buy from the market are not so fresh anymore. It just so happens that you, my benefactor, make a living by hunting fish. Why don't you do us a favor and sell all the fish you catch to our Wei family in the future?"
Since we can't persuade him to leave, it's only right to send someone to check on him every day. There's no better excuse than buying fish.
As Wei Shuwan was pondering this, she saw Li Qingchen reach for the tea again, so she immediately interjected, "Since my benefactor doesn't find it inappropriate, then I'll take it as an agreement. I'll send someone to collect the fish starting tomorrow, so I won't bother you any longer today!"
After speaking these words at a rapid pace, she turned around and quickly left the room, politely closing the door behind her.
Ziqiao and Miaoxiang, who were guarding outside the door, were both taken aback. "Why are you running so fast, young lady?"
"If we had been any slower, he would have politely declined again." With that, Wei Shuwan led her people away in a flash.
When Li Qingchen walked to the window and looked out, he only saw the receding figures of a group of people.
Once they saw that the people had gone far away, Yuan Que and the others came out of their rooms one after another. They immediately saw the word "dog" on the table, which was still wet. Some looked up at the sky, and some looked down at the ground. For a moment, the atmosphere in the room became awkward.
Finally, Yuan Que spoke up first, breaking the deadlock: "If Your Highness really doesn't want to kill her, why not just move her to another place, so she won't bother you every day?"
"The weapons in the pool are the result of many years of accumulation, and it would be too risky to move them rashly."
"Then... what should we do now?"
Li Qingchen sighed and said helplessly, "Let's go buy some fish first."
Otherwise, what will the Wei family take when they come tomorrow...?
*
As the sun began to set and the distant mountains shrouded in darkness, Wei Shuwan returned to the Wei family home by carriage at what was usually dinnertime.
Wei Shuwan nestled against the silk cushions, feeling drowsy from the bumpy ride. Half asleep, she heard Zi Qiao complain, "The gatekeepers are getting more and more unruly, gathering together to chatter so early in the morning!"
Wei Shuwan opened her eyes and, sure enough, saw several servants huddled together through the carriage window that Zi Qiao had opened, excitedly whispering something as if something exciting had happened in the manor.
At first, she didn't think much of it, but after the carriage drove into the courtyard and stopped next to two unfamiliar carriages, she became a little curious.
So he asked Miaoxiang to summon the gatekeeper and inquired, "Have we received any guests?"
The gatekeeper nodded excitedly at first, then shook his head: "Someone has arrived, but they can't be considered guests. It's the old lady from Jiangzuo!"
"Grandmother?" Wei Shuwan was slightly surprised, then asked, "Has Uncle arrived?"
"Of course I came with the old lady."
Where is your aunt?
"They've arrived too! They're all waiting for you in the warm pavilion to have dinner together!"
Wei Shuwan: "..."
Ever since the Wei family's huge secret was exposed two years ago, the relationship between my father and grandmother has become very delicate. It was precisely because of this that my father moved to Shengjing with her and my mother, and left all the property that my grandfather had divided between him and my eldest uncle to my eldest uncle's family.
Before she got married in her previous life, her grandmother had never been to the capital. It wasn't until winter that her grandmother used the excuse that the humid air in Jiangzuo had caused her to suffer from paralysis to drag her eldest uncle's family to the capital for a short stay. However, they never went back after that short stay.
At that time, although she guessed that something must have happened in her hometown, she was constantly being hindered by the Song family and could not get involved in her family's affairs.
But why did it come so early in this lifetime?
Wei Shuwan couldn't figure it out for a moment, but she really didn't want to see these people, let alone eat at the same table with them. So she instructed the gatekeeper, "If Grandmother sends someone to ask, just say I haven't returned yet."
After saying that, he gave Ziqiao a wink, and Ziqiao immediately understood and instructed the coachman to quietly drive the carriage and horses into the courtyard.
Just as Wei Shuwan was about to head towards her Fuqu Pavilion, a flash of light streaked across the corridor, followed by a beautiful figure emerging from behind a pillar, accompanied by a string of silvery laughter.
"Third sister is clearly back, so why is she hiding? It's been two years since we last met, and she's become even more mischievous!"
As she spoke, the young girl, dressed in gold and jade, walked towards Wei Shuwan. She stopped two steps away, looked her over carefully, and clicked her tongue, saying, "Indeed, the auspicious atmosphere of the capital is nourishing. Third Sister is even more radiant than when she left Jiangzuo."
"Brother Song is really unlucky."
If it were only the first half of the sentence, Wei Shuwan would pretend not to hear the sarcasm beneath the praise, but the second half was really not to her liking.
Her lips slowly parted, revealing a calm and gentle smile. Although she was only half a year older than Wei Shuyao, her tone carried the air of an elder sister:
“Song Zichen is indeed unlucky. He can’t let go of his cousin, and he’s also thinking about me. He’s hoping to have the happiness of having two wives, but in the end, he’s got nothing. Unlike my cousin’s husband, Ning Lang, who is obviously a lucky man. Last year, before they were even engaged, his maid gave birth to a big, healthy boy. After my cousin marries him, she will definitely have a harmonious marriage and many children.”
Festive and auspicious red lanterns hung high on the eaves, casting a warm red glow, but Wei Shuyao, standing in this light and shadow, gradually turned pale.
Her breathing grew heavier, and her anger surged to the top of her head. Just as she was about to lose control, Wei Shuwan smiled, walked past her, and went away.
Seeing Wei Shuyao's pale face, the maid carrying the lantern quickly comforted her, "Miss, don't be upset. The old lady and the first lady are still waiting for you in the warm pavilion. After all, we need their help this time."
Wei Shuyao pursed her lips, suppressing her anger, and said indignantly, "My third sister has always been jealous of me. In the past, when scholars praised my sister and me as the 'Twin Beauties of the Wei Family,' she was not satisfied and insisted on creating the title of 'Number One Beauty of Jiangzuo,' making it all her own limelight!"
Mentioning this, Wei Shuyao was both angry and amused: "She always tries to outwit me with her words, but it's just because she's jealous that I'm more beautiful than her!"
"Yes, yes, yes, the young lady is much prettier than the third young lady!" The maid chimed in, though her words didn't quite reflect her true feelings.
In their younger days, the two girls of the Wei family, who were of similar age, were indeed quite different, each with their own unique charm. But after they reached marriageable age, for some reason, they gradually drifted apart. The third daughter grew more and more beautiful, radiant as a lotus, while their own daughter…
It gradually grew crooked.
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