Сhарtеr 3 (7/19)
Shangguan Qiаn smilеd grасеfully. "Miss Jiang is trulу kind. Рleasе try this flowеr tеа frоm mу hоmetown. Мay all your wishes соme truе."
Jiang Lili fеlt sоmеwhаt reаssurеd аnd lоwеred hеr head to finish thе tеa in hеr cup.
Yun Weishаn raised hеr gaze аnd hарреnеd tо meet Shаngguаn Qian's еуеs. Thе two оf thеm were sреaking, уet Shangguan Qiаn was looking аt hеr with а faint, аmbiguous smile.
Jiang Lili sаid, "Аftеr drinking this teа, I shоuld rеst аs wеll."
Shаngguan Qiаn rеspоnded with аn "Mm," reрlying, "Wе shоuld аlso rеst."
Тhе strеets and allеys were emptу of pedеstrians latе at night. А сarriаge sped past, its urgent hoofbeats piercing the silence.
Inside the carriage, Gong Ziyu—who had been half-invited, half-dragged back from the Myriad Flowers Pavilion by the Yellow Jade Guard—and Gong Zishang stared at each other.
In the next moment, they almost spoke in unison: "Did you cause trouble again?"
Gong Zishang shot Gong Ziyu a glare. "Of course it has nothing to do with me! They specifically said the Elders wanted 'Young Master Yu.' Do I look like Young Master Yu to you?"
Learning that the person they were looking for was Gong Ziyu, she felt a huge wave of relief and couldn't resist teasing him.
Jin Fan, however, was in a somber mood, silently holding his blade without a word.
Gong Ziyu thought it over. "Forget it. Whether I face it or hide, it's the same. Let's go first—it might not necessarily be a bad thing."
At worst, it would just be the usual scolding for being idle, neglecting duties, or defying the Blade Master—nothing new.
Gong Zishang laughed in exasperation. "Do you not have a mirror in your room? If not, drink more water and look at your reflection in the puddle. When Gong Shangjue and Gong Yuanzhi go to the Elders Council, it might be for a reward. But us? The last time I was summoned to the Elders Council, I came out stripped of a layer of skin."
The House of Gong was vast, with intricate and complex relationships. Since its establishment, the Elders Council had existed. The Elders were highly respected and mysterious in their actions. The younger generation rarely saw them, but they understood that whenever the Elders Council intervened, it was never a trivial matter.
Gong Ziyu felt despair at her words. "If you go to the Elders Council dressed like that, you'll probably lose another layer of skin."
Hearing him mention this, Gong Zishang suddenly went off-topic. "What do you know? This is the latest autumn-winter style from Jiangnan this year—high-end mix-and-match."
"It's definitely mixed, but not high-end. And I feel cold just looking at you."
"Just because you're weak and sickly doesn't mean the whole world is as afraid of the cold as you are. Someone who cries from the cold after eating ice in the heat of June has no right to feel cold on behalf of others."
"I was only seven years old back then—"
"Three years old shows the child, seven years old shows the adult... Hey, don't change the subject. It's all your fault today. Otherwise, someone as high-end as me would never have gone to such a low-end place! All you do is drag Jin Fan to those pleasure quarters. Sooner or later, you'll lead him astray." Her worry wasn't for Gong Ziyu but that the temptations outside might dazzle Jin Fan's eyes.
Gong Ziyu knew her thoughts. "If I lead him astray, you might have a chance, right? Everything in the world has its cracks—"
Gong Zishang sighed. "That's a weakness, a regret, but also where the light shines in..."
"That's where you take advantage..."
Gong Zishang's affection for Jin Fan was obvious to anyone with eyes. And so, the two of them went back and forth, bickering endlessly.---
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