Book Synopsis
Book Tags
Donation Rankings
Comment
0 Comments
You May Also Like
墨書 Inktalez
In order to maintain a friendly and approachable image while worrying about the stability of the Liu family, Liu Wen could not just jump up and point at Ye Xiaohan's nose, telling her to get lost.
On the contrary, she had to pretend to like Ye Xiaohan. This way, she wouldn't provoke the Liu siblings' resentment, and under the guise of caring for the Liu family, she could make Ye Xiaohan suffer more in silence.
In Liu Wen's mind, Ye Xiaohan was nothing but a shameless woman who disregarded her marital duties. Such a woman did not deserve to enter the Liu household, nor did she deserve Liu Bei's kindness towards her.
Fortunately, she arrived just in time; it wouldn't be so easy for Ye Xiaohan to return to the Liu family.
Invisible blades flashed around the room, but no one noticed.
Liu Wen held Ye Xiaohan's hand and exchanged a few words with her, while Ye Xiaohan responded with a bright smile. Meanwhile, Liu Yang felt a chill run down his back before he could even react.
"Aunt Wen." Just as Liu Wen and Ye Xiaohan were locked in their silent battle, a soft voice interjected.
Liu Wen exclaimed, "Oh dear, my memory! I completely forgot everything else when I saw Xiao Han. Come on, everyone should meet; we are all family now."
She waved towards the voice: "Juanjuan, come over here."
A graceful figure stepped out from behind Liu Wen and sweetly greeted everyone, "Greetings to the Liu brothers and Sister Ye."
Liu Wen patted the girl's hand and introduced her to everyone: "This is your uncle's daughter, my niece. Her surname is Yang, and her full name is Juanjuan. She has been taking care of me throughout this trip; she's really worked hard."
Ye Xiaohan observed that Liu Wen's smile was genuine; it seemed this niece had won her favor. However, when she looked at Yang Juanjuan, she found the girl staring intently at Liu Bei with eyes full of longing.
That blatant gaze seemed as if it wanted to devour him whole, sending a shiver down Ye Xiaohan's spine. It appeared that Yang Juanjuan noticed her gaze and turned to look at her. Their eyes met briefly before Yang Juanjuan threw a provocative glance when no one was paying attention.
Ye Xiaohan felt a flurry of thoughts racing through her mind, filled with vague insults. Yang Juanjuan's action was reminiscent of an old-world duel where rivals would toss down their gloves as a challenge.
It was clear that she was being looked down upon!
Ye Xiaohan shifted her gaze to Liu Bei, who was still smiling and listening to Liu Wen praise Yang Juanjuan with delight. A surge of anger welled up in Ye Xiaohan's heart as she shot Liu Bei a glare.
Liu Bei noticed her stare and quickly lifted his head, still wearing a residual smile. This only made Ye Xiaohan more displeased; she huffed and turned away, choosing to ignore him.
Liu Bei felt inexplicably scolded and didn't understand why. With so many people around, he couldn't ask for clarification and could only endure it for now.
Yang Juanjuan turned her head again, putting on a shy demeanor as she hid behind Liu Wen, fidgeting and not daring to look at Liu Bei. After Liu Wen finished her praises, Yang Juanjuan added, "Aunt Wen always does this, praising me in front of so many people. I’m really not that great; it’s all Aunt Wen's exaggeration."
She clutched her handkerchief, a blush creeping onto her face. "Liu Bei Gege, please don’t take it seriously." She then clung to Liu Wen's arm and acted coyly, saying, "Aunt Wen, in front of Sister Ye, such a capable woman, I feel so embarrassed."
Who is your sister? Do you really have to flatter yourself like this? I don’t have a scheming sister like you! Ye Xiaohan wanted to spit at her but managed to hold back.
No impulsiveness; that would ruin everything.
After mentally preparing herself, Ye Xiaohan decided to ignore them for now. She had already gotten a rough idea of what kind of people they were; for the moment, she would stick to the strategy of not provoking them unless provoked.
Just as she was about to remind Liu Bei that they had business to attend to, he spoke up before her.
"Auntie, you’ve traveled a long way; please rest at home. Xiao Han and I have some matters to attend to in Lin Town. If we seem neglectful, I hope you can forgive us. If there’s anything lacking, just let Liu Yang know; he will handle it."
Liu Yang immediately chimed in, "Just call me if Auntie needs anything. Older brother, sister-in-law, you need to get going; leave early. I’ll take care of things at home."
Liu Bei apologized again, "You still have homework to do; older brother is adding more work for you. When he returns, he’ll bring back Pine Nut Candy for you."
"Pine Nut Candy, this is my favorite, thank you, big brother." Liu Yang felt no burden at all; instead, he proudly puffed out his chest, happy to help his family.
In truth, he didn't particularly like Pine Nut Candy, but if it was offered as a reward for his efforts, he was more than willing to accept it.
Liu Wen asked with concern, "Liu Bei, what's going on? Why the rush?"
Only a few people in the Liu family knew the real reason behind the trouble at the shop. This matter couldn't get out; otherwise, with Liu Yuan's identity alone, no one would dare to collaborate with them again.
He simply replied, "It's just some issues at the shop. The journey is too far; I don't feel comfortable letting Xiao Han go alone."
Ye Xiaohan thought to herself, at times like this, you're not pretending to be clueless. Aren't you afraid of exposing yourself?
Liu Wen expressed her worries, "Why are there so many problems at the shop? Don't you have any staff? Just hire someone to go. You can manage, but Xiao Han is a woman; she might attract unwanted attention."
Liu Bei defended Ye Xiaohan, "The shop has always been supported by Xiao Han alone. The Liu family owes its current standing to her. I can't help much; if I can ensure her safety and lend a hand, that's good enough. I wouldn't feel comfortable sending someone else."
"Alright then, just make sure to return quickly. Don't worry about home; Auntie is here to look after things," Liu Wen said, seeing Liu Bei's determination and knowing further argument would be pointless.
Yang Juanjuan looked at Liu Bei with envy and said, "Sister Ye is really lucky; Brother Liu Bei is so considerate. If my future husband could be like him, I'd be completely satisfied."
The room fell silent as everyone reacted differently.
Ye Xiaohan rolled her eyes internally. Girl, your words don’t match your innocent face at all. Acting shy while boldly expressing such sentiments in front of everyone—have you forgotten your persona?
The perceptive Liu Yang sensed something was off. Generally speaking, daughters from respectable families were matched through arrangements made by their parents; how could an unmarried girl openly express her affection for a man in front of others?
Moreover, this man was a married man! Liu Yang became vigilant; this woman couldn't possibly have her eyes on his older brother, trying to break them apart, could she?
That absolutely wouldn't do. His older brother had finally grown closer to Sister-in-law after such a long time, and he was waiting for Sister-in-law to be moved by his brother and stay with the Liu family forever. He couldn't let a woman who suddenly appeared ruin that.
Liu Wen smiled brightly, "Juanjuan really has good taste. Our Liu Bei is a great man. He's not like those who only know how to drink and hit their wives; he knows how to cherish people. Whoever he marries will be blessed."
As for Liu Bei, he showed no reaction to these veiled comments. He casually followed Liu Wen's lead and urged Ye Xiaohan to hurry up.
Receiving the raw materials was crucial for Peach Blossom Studio's survival, and he wanted to resolve it as soon as possible.
Liu Bei remained as unresponsive as a block of wood, which eased some of Ye Xiaohan's frustration. She glanced back at the quail-like Yang Juanjuan, feeling a sense of victory.
Yang Juanjuan followed the group to see them off, softly saying, "Brother Liu Bei, take care on the road." After an imperceptible pause, she continued, "Sister Ye, please take care as well."
After helping Ye Xiaohan into the carriage, Liu Bei took the driver's seat and cracked the whip over the horse-drawn cart.
Ye Xiaohan lifted one corner of the curtain and looked out from the window of the carriage at the group seeing them off. Liu Yang was waving at them while Liu Qi stood by his leg, mimicking him.
Liu Wen and Yang Juanjuan stood together; their expressions were unclear, but Ye Xiaohan could sense that their gazes on the carriage were anything but friendly.
Ye Xiaohan felt that she had been quite unlucky lately; otherwise, she wouldn't have attracted so many oddities.
"Go," Liu Bei's voice came from the front. The sound of hooves and the whip cracking against the cart wheels was very clear. As these sounds reached her ears, Ye Xiaohan gradually calmed down again.
Forget it; when soldiers come, they fight; when water comes, they cover it with soil. There would always be a way to deal with it.
They had delayed quite a bit in the morning, and as a result, they hadn't covered much distance. While on the road, Ye Xiaohan gradually learned about the situation here from Liubei.
This place was sparsely populated, with towns spaced far apart. Even though it was Lin Town, it still took time to reach it.
If they were like others who took their time to enjoy the scenery along the way, they would have been even slower.
Ye Xiaohan complained that Liubei was driving too slowly. Although Liubei wanted to speed up, he was also worried that the bumpy ride would make Ye Xiaohan uncomfortable, so he insisted on maintaining a steady pace.
By evening, they still had quite a distance to their destination.
“How much longer until we arrive?” Ye Xiaohan asked, chewing on the dry rations he had packed from last night, finding them tasteless.
While eating, Liubei replied, “We’ll be there in about an hour. Are you tired? Do you want to stop and rest for a bit?”
“No need,” Ye Xiaohan said as he swallowed the dry food and poured himself a bowl of water. He then poured another bowl and handed it to Liubei. “Since we’re this close, we might as well push through and get there in one go. If we keep stopping, it’ll be dark soon. If we can’t make it before the city gates close, we’ll have to camp out in the wild, which would be even more troublesome.”
Liubei agreed and quickly finished a simple dinner before driving forward.
Once the sun set behind the mountains, darkness fell swiftly. By the time the last rays of light faded away, they could barely make out distant shapes—only vague outlines remained.
Having spent so much time in this ancient world, Ye Xiaohan had hardly taken a moment to appreciate its pristine beauty. At first, he had been preoccupied with poverty and the mess left by the original owner; later on, he was busy with business.
Now, as he watched the sunset over the countryside, he noticed that without air pollution, the view was much broader than in modern cities. He could even faintly see crows returning to their nests in the distance.
Comment 0 Comment Count