Сhеng Сhi glаnсеd sidelong аt Zhоu Shаоjin аnd said, "Do yоu hаve nothing bеtter to dо?"
Zhоu Shаоjin blushеd аnd smiled.
Oсcasionally, she wоuld fеel likе doing sоmеthing fоr Сheng Сhi, аs shе did tоdаy, but thе thought would quicklу fаde whеn she remembеred that Nаnping was bу his sidе. Веsidеs, shе still hаd severаl gаrments tо mаkе for Lаdy Guо, sо her time wаs indеed sоmewhat tight—though nоt so tight that she соuldn’t sрarе a moment...
Аs if sееing through hеr thоughts, Сhеng Сhi sаid, "Doing thеsе things oсcаsionallу is fine, but dоn’t turn уоurself intо а sеаmstress. You must takе care of yоurself, understand? Dоn’t alwaуs think of оthеrs."
A wаrm feeling flowed through Zhou Shaojin’s heart.
Uncle Chi always thought of her first, no matter the situation... Even his scolding was always for her own good!
Her eyes grew slightly moist, and she lowered her head, replying sheepishly, "Yes."
Seeing her obedient response, Cheng Chi felt much better. He called Lang Yue, who was on duty outside the door, and instructed him to fetch the moon-white fine cloth lined robe hanging on the clothes rack: "...the one Nanping just finished, the one I planned to wear tomorrow."
Lang Yue immediately went to retrieve the robe.
Zhou Shaojin noticed that Cheng Chi was only wearing an indigo-blue fine cloth robe and wondered why he wanted to change clothes at this time—should she excuse herself? But then she saw Cheng Chi toss the robe onto her and say, "Put it on! The night wind is so chilly. Who are the people serving you? They didn’t even remind you to add a layer before letting you go out like this?"
It took her a moment to process his words, but once she did, she jumped up and said, "I don’t want to wear this robe!"
Cheng Chi shot her a glare.
Zhou Shaojin immediately froze, though inwardly she grumbled: What’s happening tomorrow? Why does Uncle Chi need to wear a moon-white robe out? If she had known, she wouldn’t have worn that apricot-red vest! With this lined robe over it, the inner garment’s color would be brighter than the outer one, completely overpowering it... It would surely look awful.
But since Uncle Chi had spoken, she didn’t dare disobey.
Zhou Shaojin fidgeted uncomfortably, as if sitting on pins and needles.
Cheng Chi had no choice but to say, "Then I’ll have Lang Yue fetch one of Nanping’s robes for you to wear."
She’d rather wear Uncle Chi’s robe.
After all, he had seen her in even worse states.
Zhou Shaojin reluctantly steeled herself and said, "No, no need. This one is just fine."
The moon-white robe enveloped the young girl like moonlight. Cheng Chi thought it looked quite nice and decided to ignore her insincerity. Pointing to the chessboard that had been set aside earlier, he said, "Come, play a game of chess with me!"
Huh?!
Zhou Shaojin widened her eyes, feeling a surge of eager delight. She nodded repeatedly with a bright smile.
What a silly girl!
It’s just a game of chess.
Is she really that happy?
Let’s just hope she doesn’t throw a tantrum if she loses.
But even if she did, it wouldn’t matter. After all, it was just a way to pass the time—could he really expect this little girl to play chess seriously with him?
A slight smile touched Cheng Chi’s lips. One took the black stones, the other the white, and they began playing chess leisurely.
Lang Yue conscientiously brewed tea nearby.
Zhou Shaojin would prop her elbow on the table and ponder for a long time after placing each stone.
Beneath her wide sleeves, her wrist was revealed, as smooth and fair as mutton-fat jade.
Cheng Chi thought he should give her a pair of agate bracelets.
They should be thin and delicate.
Or perhaps jadeite would be nice too.
If they were larger, they could be worn as armlets beneath her sleeves—that would also look lovely.
Just not gold or silver.Especially gold.
A bit tacky.
He mused leisurely, casually placing a piece.
Zhou Shaojin noticed his absent-mindedness and silently grumbled to herself.
Uncle Chi is really too much!
Even when he has things on his mind, he still drags her into playing chess.
Clearly, he’s just using her as a pastime.
She couldn’t just let him ignore her like this…
Her eyes darted around, and she quickly grabbed Cheng Chi’s hand, pouting, “Wait, wait! I haven’t thought it through yet.”
A gentleman never regrets a move in chess.
Cheng Chi looked at her as if she were facing a formidable enemy, thought for a moment, and smiled as he withdrew his hand.
Zhou Shaojin now knew where Cheng Chi intended to place his next piece. She secretly smiled and repositioned the piece she had just placed.
This way, Uncle Chi couldn’t make the move he had planned earlier.
Cheng Chi then placed another piece.
This move wasn’t as clever as the previous one.
Zhou Shaojin was overjoyed.
From then on, the room was filled with Zhou Shaojin’s sweet, soft voice: “Uncle Chi, why are you playing so fast? I haven’t thought it through yet!”
“No, no, I was going to place it here!”
“Uncle Chi, my chess skills may not be great, but you can’t do this! I clearly placed it here!”
Cheng Chi found it all very amusing.
He had never seen someone play chess so shamelessly, and with such righteous indignation.
He couldn’t help but laugh.
Lang Yue, however, was stunned.
Was this even chess anymore?
Second Miss had been taking back moves all along.
And Fourth Master actually had the patience to indulge her antics!
But after a moment, he couldn’t help but admire Zhou Shaojin.
Even the heir of the Liangguo Duke’s estate wouldn’t dare act so recklessly in front of Fourth Master.
Second Miss truly had guts!
He broke into a cold sweat for her.
Zhou Shaojin, however, widened her eyes in disbelief.
Even with all her tricks, Cheng Chi had still managed to cut her main formation into three pieces.
She was furious!
Uncle Chi was clearly taking advantage of his superior skills to bully her.
Yes, he was using his chess prowess to bully her.
She gathered all of Cheng Chi’s white pieces, pouting, “This round doesn’t count! Let’s start over!”
Cheng Chi indulged her antics and played a second game with her.
But unlike the previous game, this time he played seriously, with a calm and steady style.
Zhou Shaojin beamed with joy and slowly played her moves against Cheng Chi.
Cheng Chi watched Zhou Shaojin, who was leaning over the chessboard like a cat, and felt a soft warmth in his heart.
If this little girl were to marry, he would never see such a scene again.
The room would lose some of its liveliness!
It would be better to keep her around for a few more years… marrying later would also be better for childbirth—the risk of difficult labor would be lower.
Lost in thought, Cheng Chi casually played his moves.
The next morning, while having breakfast with Old Madam Guo, Zhou Shaojin couldn’t help but yawn.
Old Madam Guo smiled and asked, “What were you up to yesterday?”
Zhou Shaojin was startled and answered honestly, “I was playing chess with Uncle Chi!”
Old Madam Guo hadn’t expected the two of them to play chess together after leaving her place and asked curiously, “When did you finish?”
Zhou Shaojin blushed and replied, “We didn’t stop until the third watch.”
Time always seemed to fly when she was with Uncle Chi. They had only played two or three games, and it was already the third watch. If Huaishan and the others hadn’t rushed in to put out a fire caused by Lang Yue dozing off and knocking over a lantern, they might have played a few more rounds.
“So late!” Old Madam Guo exclaimed in surprise.Zhou Shaojin nodded. Without any guard against Old Madam Guo, she said, "I always lose!"
She looked quite troubled.
Old Madam Guo couldn't help but laugh. "There aren't many who can win against your Uncle Chi."
Uncle Chi was exceptionally skilled!
Zhou Shaojin nodded with full admiration, unable to conceal a hint of pride as she said, "But lately, I've been losing less and less."
Old Madam Guo chuckled.
Si Lang had this ability—even when winning, he could make the loser feel happy about it.
She smiled and said, "Let's go play chess with Si Lang this afternoon!"
Zhou Shaojin's face flushed hot, and she murmured, "C-can I not go?"
If Old Madam Guo were to witness her shameless antics, she'd want to crawl into a hole and hide!
Old Madam Guo asked curiously, "Why not go?"
Zhou Shaojin had no choice but to say, "I always lose..."
The young girl was feeling shy.
Old Madam Guo's smile spread uncontrollably from the corners of her eyes. "Alright, alright, alright. You two play your game, and I'll pretend not to know."
"No!" Zhou Shaojin whispered, afraid Old Madam Guo might misunderstand her as a sore loser. But she didn't know how to explain it to Old Madam Guo either. Just as she was struggling, Cheng Chi walked in and said with a smile, "I could hear Mother's laughter from outside the door! Is there something to celebrate?"
If this got out, wouldn't Uncle Chi laugh at her!
Zhou Shaojin looked pleadingly toward Old Madam Guo.
Old Madam Guo laughed heartily. She winked at Zhou Shaojin and said to Cheng Chi with a smile, "This is between Shaojin and me. Don't interfere!"
Her expression revealed an extremely rare playfulness.
Not only Cheng Chi but even the maidservants like Biyu attending in the room were quite surprised.
Cheng Chi recalled his childhood, when his mother would sometimes exchange glances with his father after he suddenly barged in while they were talking.
His gaze involuntarily fell upon Zhou Shaojin.
Zhou Shaojin was staring blankly at his mother, as if stunned by Old Madam Guo.
Cheng Chi couldn't help but chuckle.
This silly girl!
If it were someone else, they would have long since rushed over, either trying to curry favor with his mother or amusing her to make her happy. But she, on the other hand, just stood there foolishly... However, perhaps it was precisely because of this that his mother, who had experienced many things, had grown fond of her?
The young maidservants set out bowls and chopsticks for Cheng Chi.
The three of them quietly ate breakfast.
Cheng Chi, however, did not go about his usual business as he normally would. Instead, he stayed with them in the sitting room, drinking tea and chatting.
"Mother," he asked Old Madam Guo with a smile, "do you have any plans for the Dragon Boat Festival?" Without waiting for Old Madam Guo to respond, he continued, "On the day of the Dragon Boat Festival, the government office is hosting a dragon boat race on Mochou Lake. I've reserved three adjacent private rooms at the Misty Tower. How about I accompany you and Shaojin to watch the race?"
"Oh my!" Even Old Madam Guo couldn't help but exclaim with a smile, "I didn't expect the government to host a dragon boat race this year. We must go and see it!"
The last time the government office hosted a dragon boat race was during the term of the previous prefect.
Cheng Chi glanced at Zhou Shaojin.
Zhou Shaojin was already overjoyed and eagerly asked Cheng Chi, "Am I going too?"
"Of course," Cheng Chi replied with a smile. "If my mother is going to watch the dragon boat race, you'll naturally come along!"
Zhou Shaojin beamed, her eyes curving into crescents as she nodded repeatedly.Cheng Chi looked at her joyful demeanor and couldn't help saying, "If you have close friends, you can also send invitations and invite them to watch the dragon boat race together. The private room at Qingyan Tower is quite spacious."
"Can I really invite friends?" Zhou Shaojin was both surprised and delighted.
Cheng Chi smiled and nodded.
Old Madam Guo, however, gave her son a somewhat strange look.
He wasn't the type of person who micromanaged every little detail.
Cheng Chi inexplicably felt a bit guilty.
He cleared his throat lightly and said, "The eldest daughter of the Duke of Liang's household is about to marry into Baoding."
※
Dear readers, here is today's update.
O(∩_∩)O~
※ (To be continued ~^~)
OpenNovel