Chapter 11 - ARTTEDSBGT Chapter 11

The day at the school pa.s.sed quickly, and as evening approached, the students finished their cla.s.ses and headed outside. The setting sun cast slanting rays, and the students walked in groups of twos and threes, heading towards the gates of Ming Garden. There, the carriages of various families were already waiting for them.

Li Suwan immediately spotted a familiar figure and happily called out, “Brother!”

The young man turned around, and it was indeed Li Xingzhi. When he saw his younger sister, his expression softened, and he asked, “Are you feeling unwell today?”

Li Suwan shook her head and smiled, saying, “I’m much better now. Don’t worry, brother.”

Li Xingzhi reached out and patted her head, saying, “Your health is not good, how can I not worry about you?”

Li Suwan felt a sense of triumph in her heart and instinctively looked at Li Zhizhi, wanting to see her reaction. Would she be jealous, upset, or resentful? However, to her surprise, Li Zhizhi didn’t even glance in their direction. She was engaged in a soft conversation with Su Tang, her face wearing a smile. They seemed to be laughing about something, and Li Zhizhi’s eyes sparkled, making her look even more beautiful and captivating, attracting the attention of pa.s.sersby.

At that moment, a wave of jealousy surged in Li Suwan’s heart. She wished she could loudly tell everyone that the person they were admiring was just putting on a show, but in reality, she came from a humble and uncouth background, a country b.u.mpkin who didn’t belong here at all!

“Suwan, what’s wrong?” Li Xingzhi asked, following her gaze with confusion.

Quickly, Li Suwan grabbed his hand and smiled, saying, “It’s nothing.”

Li Xingzhi patted her head again and said, “Let’s get on the carriage. We’ll go home.”

Li Suwan nodded and boarded the carriage. But just as she did, she suddenly supported herself against the door, her face turning pale, and said, “Brother, I feel a bit unwell.”

Concerned, Li Xingzhi furrowed his brows and asked, “What’s wrong? Where do you feel unwell?”

“My head hurts…” Li Suwan replied.

Hearing this, Li Xingzhi became anxious and immediately got on the carriage. He instructed the coachman, “Hurry back home and call a doctor to check on Suwan.”

The coachman complied, cracking the whip, and the carriage rumbled forward, leaving Ming Garden behind. Amid Li Xingzhi’s worried inquiries, Li Suwan couldn’t help but feel pleased, thinking that with Ming Garden being so far away, Li Zhizhi would be best if she got lost halfway and never found her way back.

The carriages and horses gradually decreased at the entrance of Ming Garden, becoming quiet and deserted. Eventually, only Li Zhizhi remained alone. The setting sun rolled down a brilliant array of clouds on the horizon—shades of light pink, orange, and deep red, a sight of great beauty.

It seemed that the Li family’s carriage had already come and left after picking up Li Suwan. They didn’t wait for Li Zhizhi, and she wasn’t surprised. She had encountered such situations many times before in her past life. The journey from Ming Garden to the Li residence by carriage took about a quarter of an hour, and on foot, it was roughly half an hour—not too far.

…

Ming Garden, the small study.

This was the most secluded place in the entire Ming Garden, and it should have been very quiet. However, at this moment, it was quite noisy, but the noise came from only one person—a girl dressed in light yellow clothes, hugging a pillar of the veranda and crying loudly: “I won’t go back… sob… I don’t want to go back!”

Xiao Yan held a scroll of a book and kindly suggested, “Why don’t you roll on the ground a few times?”

Xiao Rule had actually rolled on the ground, kicking her legs while crying, “You’re a bad person… a bad person! Aunt, help me!”

Xiao Yan remained very calm, letting her roll on the ground, and she even continued reading her book. Xiao Rule cried until her voice became hoa.r.s.e, but she couldn’t get her brother’s attention. Consequently, she felt even more upset. As she cried and sobbed, she accidentally knocked her forehead on the ground with a thud.

Finally, Xiao Yan looked up and commented, “Your forehead is quite hard; you knocked it well. If you knock a few more times, maybe you’ll return to normal.”

Xiao Rule pouted and glared at him with her big teary eyes, calling him a “bad person.”

She continued rolling on the ground, now covered in dirt, her hair disheveled, and even her hairpins fell out. The Princess Chang, Xiao Zhen, heard the commotion and arrived, dressed in a dark purple brocade palace gown, her hair neatly arranged, adorned with golden hairpins, exuding an air of grace and n.o.bility.

Xiao Rule immediately rushed into her arms, feeling wronged, “Aunt!”

Xiao Yan turned a page in her book and casually said, “I’m not bullying her. Someone will bully her eventually; it’s better if I do it myself.”

Xiao Rule stared at him with all her might, calling him a “bad person.”

She continued rolling on the ground, looking all messy, and with her eyes filled with tears, she was about to burst into tears again when a gentle female voice spoke, “Why do you always bully A Yang?”

Xiao Yan turned around and saw a beautiful woman standing at the garden gate. She was wearing a robe with a light purple pattern, with her hair up and adorned with precious hairpins. She carried an air of dignity—she was Princess Chang, Xiao Zhen.

Seeing her, Xiao Rule immediately got up from the ground and threw herself into the princess’s embrace, feeling extremely wronged. “Aunt!”

Xiao Yan casually closed the book and looked at her, his hand resting on the armrest of the carriage. The wide sleeves slid back, revealing a purple sandalwood Buddhist bead bracelet on his wrist. He repeated, “Aunt, please don’t worry about us.”

The study became quiet. The nephew and aunt looked at each other, and though Xiao Yan seemed careless, there was a flicker of coldness in his phoenix eyes, which disappeared in the depths of his dark pupils after a moment. Eventually, it was Princess Chang who looked away first and said, “You injured your leg, and it will be inconvenient in the future.”

She spoke and let out a sigh, saying, “You’re still young, Xiaowu.”

“Aunt!” Xiao Rule unexpectedly appeared and happily threw herself into the arms of the eldest princess. With great antic.i.p.ation, she asked, “Aunt, did A Yang change into new clothes? Do they look good?”

She said, twirling her dress, and the skirt swayed like the unfolding petals of a flower. With eager eyes, she looked at her, and the eldest princess reached out and touched her head, smiling and saying, “A Yang looks the most beautiful.”

Xiao Rule immediately revealed an adorable smile, appearing shy, and turned to Xiao Yan, saying, “Brother…”

Before she could finish her sentence, Xiao Yan cut her off, saying, “Not good-looking.”

As usual, he didn’t spare any face for his sister and criticized, “Pink with green? Even the legendary beauty Xi Shi couldn’t pull off this combination.”

Xiao Rule felt greatly hurt, pouting, and her eyes welled up with tears. Xiao Yan didn’t hold back and said, “Crying will make it look even worse.”

“Wuwa—” Despite Xiao Rule’s reluctance, she eventually followed Xiaoyan back to the palace in the carriage. The wheels rolled through the long street, and the carriage swayed gently. The curtain was lowered, blocking out the daylight. Xiao Yan sat silently in the shadows, holding a letter in his hand, unconsciously caressing the Buddhist beads with his fingertips. The evening sun seeped through the crack in the curtain, casting a long, narrow strip of light. Xiao Rule curiously reached out to grab it.

With both hands, she cupped the light and carefully placed it on Xiao Yan’s letter. Xiao Yan asked, “What are you doing?”

Xiao Rule replied seriously, “Giving the light to Brother so that it won’t feel dark anymore.”

Xiao Yan remained silent as he looked at his sister. He reached out and lightly touched her forehead, where a red and slightly swollen mark still remained from the earlier b.u.mp. He asked, “Does it still hurt?”

“No, not anymore.”

She shook her head and leaned by the car window, lifting the curtain to look outside, appearing innocent. Xiao Yan chuckled and sighed softly, “Carefree.”

However, at that moment, Xiao Rule suddenly shouted, “Sister! Sister!”

Xiao Yan turned his head and through the window, he saw a graceful figure. It seemed someone had planted a pear tree outside a courtyard, and it was currently in full bloom with pristine and snow-white pear blossoms, glowing warmly in the golden-red evening sun. The young girl stood beneath the tree, tilting her head to look over. The setting sun cast a translucent gleam in her eyes, making them look like beautiful amber, utterly captivating.

“It looks a bit like his cat.”

Xiao Yan inexplicably had this thought in his mind. Xiao Rule had already stopped the carriage and was leaning by the window, cheerfully greeting the young girl, “Sister, what brings you here?”

They were heading towards Zhuque Street. Xiao Yan squinted his phoenix eyes slightly, calmly observing Li Zhizhi. She was alone and had no attendants with her. This area was quite close to Mingyuan. Could it be that Li Cen, as the Ministry of Revenue’s attendant, had already cut down on the use of carriages for Miss Li?

In just a short while, Xiao Yan’s mind had already gone through many thoughts and speculations, but he didn’t show any of it on his face. Instead, he put on his usual gentle demeanor and said to Li Zhizhi, “Miss Li, what a coincidence.”

Li Zhizhi looked somewhat surprised to run into him and nodded slightly before saying, “Mr. Liu.”

She hesitated for a moment and then turned to Xiao Rule at the window, saying, “Miss Liu.”

Xiao Rule, looking confused, interrupted her before she could finish, “I’m not Miss Liu, I’m-”

Before she could finish, Xiao Yan smiled and interrupted, “Just call her Ayang. Miss Li, where are you heading?”

Li Zhizhi truthfully replied, “I finished studying at Mingyuan and was on my way home.”

Innocently, Xiao Rule asked, “Why isn’t Sister taking a carriage?”

This question made Li Zhizhi unsure how to respond. If it were anyone else asking, she could come up with various tactful answers, but Xiao Rule was a fool, and she didn’t think he’d understand them.

Li Zhizhi had no choice but to answer, “Because there’s no carriage to pick me up.”

The young girl stood under a pear tree, her shadow elongated by the setting sun, resembling a delicate gra.s.s that could snap with a little force.

Thin and pitiful, she looked somewhat desolate.

Xiao Yan narrowed his eyes slightly and said, “Come up then, Miss Li. I’ll give you a ride back.”

At this point, he paused and, before Li Zhizhi could refuse, added, “It just so happens that I can repay your favor for saving A Yang today.”

Xiao Rule cheered and immediately got down from the carriage to pull Li Zhizhi up, saying, “Sister, let’s ride together!”

Li Zhizhi hesitated for a moment. It was getting late, and she indeed felt unsafe walking alone at night. Along the way, she had encountered barking mad dogs and drunken gamblers, and once, she even stumbled upon a thief climbing a wall to steal. It frightened her so much that she ran for a mile before daring to stop.

Regardless of whether this Stork Crane was Mingyuan’s teacher or not, he seemed to be good to her sister. He didn’t seem like a bad person. In the end, Li Zhizhi didn’t refuse and thanked him before getting on the carriage.