Chapter 28 – “Little Uncle, Why Are You Alone? Where’s Pei Ziye?”

Zhou Jingshen exited the private room and headed straight for the stairs, but just as he stepped onto the third floor, two men who looked like guards suddenly appeared and blocked his path.

“The Grand Tutor and the Grand Tutor’s wife are dining here. No unauthorized persons allowed.”

Zhou Jingshen’s eyes bulged like copper bells. “Who and who?”

Whose wife?

Grand Tutor’s wife?

What an uncommon phrase.

The name of Grand Tutor Pei was thunderously famous—everyone in the capital knew it. Of course Zhou Jingshen did too. But “Grand Tutor’s wife”? What did that mean?

Since when had Grand Tutor Pei gotten married? How had he not heard about it?

For a moment, Zhou Jingshen completely forgot why he had come up in the first place. His mind was full of those four words: “Grand Tutor’s wife.”

He couldn’t resist craning his neck to peek toward the private rooms on the third floor. The entire floor was eerily quiet—clearly a grand gesture by Grand Tutor Pei, who had booked out the whole level.

Zhou Jingshen clicked his tongue in amazement and no longer harbored any doubts.

There wasn’t a soul in the capital who dared impersonate the Grand Tutor to dine in such a way. Whoever was in that room had to be Pei Che himself.

Feeling like he had just uncovered a shocking secret, Zhou Jingshen quickly ran downstairs.

“Luchu! Did you know? Huge news! Pei Che—the Grand Tutor—he! Got! Married!”

Inside the private room, the dishes Luchu ordered hadn’t yet arrived, but he had already started drinking alone.

“He and his wife are upstairs having a meal right now. Can you believe that?” Zhou Jingshen said, both excited and thrilled to share the news.

He waited expectantly for Luchu’s reaction—eager for him to be just as shocked. But Luchu kept his head down and drank in silence, showing no reaction at all.

“Mm. I know,” Luchu said listlessly. “Technically, she hasn’t married in yet. The wedding’s next month.”

“What? You knew? When did you find out?”

Zhou Jingshen cried out in disbelief and even looked a little annoyed—how could Luchu keep such a bombshell to himself?

“A few days ago, I was in the palace and ran into them in the Imperial Garden.”

Zhou Jingshen leaned in curiously. “Then did you see the Grand Tutor’s wife? What does she look like?”

“No,” Luchu took another sip of wine and recalled the scene, “but judging by Pei Che’s expression, he must be quite taken with her.”

Zhou Jingshen looked disappointed, but his curiosity had been completely piqued.

“So you’re telling me, even though she hasn’t officially married in, Grand Tutor Pei’s already calling her ‘wife’?”

He imagined the scene and suddenly broke into a grin, face full of “I ship it, I ship it” expression.

“Whose daughter could she be, though? How come there’s been not a single rumor? Grand Tutor Pei really kept this under wraps.”

“For someone to pull the Grand Tutor off his pedestal, she must be extraordinary. Now I’m even more curious. Wonder when we’ll get a chance to see her, just to satisfy the curiosity.”

Zhou Jingshen kept chattering on, while Luchu ignored him and continued to drink in silence.

Then an idea suddenly struck Zhou Jingshen—why wait for another day? Wasn’t the Grand Tutor and his fiancée dining just upstairs?

If he simply waited here, wouldn’t he get to see her when they came down?

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Meanwhile, in a private room on the third floor, Pei Che sat with his usual calm composure. Across from him, the so-called “Grand Tutor’s wife”—or rather, fiancée—looked a little embarrassed.

“I was the one who invited the Grand Tutor, and yet you ended up paying,” Jiang Shiyuan said, clicking her tongue at the extravagant gesture of booking an entire floor.

Pei Che didn’t mind in the slightest. His thin lips curved. “It’s fine. Just charge it to Pei Ziye. He deserves to be penalized anyway.”

Jiang Shiyuan immediately caught his meaning, and a subtle sweetness bloomed quietly in her heart.

She wanted to laugh, though she felt a bit bad. Still, she couldn’t suppress the upward tug of her lips.

“It was only a hundred taels. You’ve already compensated for that earlier.”

“That was monetary compensation. Now I’m compensating his little aunt for a sleepless night. Pei Ziye wouldn’t dare refuse.”

Pei Che looked directly into Jiang Shiyuan’s eyes and spoke slowly, as if it was the most natural thing in the world.

He said Pei Ziye “wouldn’t dare”, not “wouldn’t.”

That completely indulgent and affectionate tone made Jiang Shiyuan’s heart go haywire. It was even more overwhelming than hearing “Grand Tutor’s wife” at the rice cake shop earlier.

Her cheeks flushed hot, and she instinctively grabbed her wine cup and downed it in one gulp.

The cool fruit wine slid down her throat, easing the heat in her face. Its sweet, refreshing flavor was delightful, and Jiang Shiyuan poured herself another cup.

Pei Che glanced at her wine cup and hesitated slightly.

“Do you like fish?” he asked.

As soon as Jiang Shiyuan nodded, the tenderest, most succulent piece from the fish belly had already been placed into her bowl.

Jiang Shiyuan felt she had to return the favor. So, from the spicy beef stew in front of her, she picked up a piece and placed it in front of Pei Che.

“You should have some too, Grand Tutor.”

Only when she picked it up did she realize—it was a slice of raw ginger.

Jiang Shiyuan froze completely. She could’ve just put it back, but instead she doubled down and said with a straight face, “Ginger dispels cold, warms the lungs, and promotes circulation. It’s perfect for fall and winter.”

Pei Che didn’t object. He raised his bowl to accept it and even said, “Thank you.”

The Grand Tutor was unusually agreeable today.

Jiang Shiyuan pressed her lips together, and a mischievous spark lit up in her eyes as another thought occurred to her.

“So today, no matter what I offer you, Grand Tutor won’t refuse?”

Pei Che paused in removing fish bones, looked up at her, and nodded. “Mm. After all, I’m also part of the compensation today.”

Thump-thump— Jiang Shiyuan could hear her own heartbeat pounding in her ears.

She didn’t know whether it was his gaze that was too intense, or his voice that was too gentle. But her cheeks, which had just cooled down, flushed all over again—hotter than before.

She lowered her head and took another drink.

She stopped speaking—and truthfully had no time to speak. Pei Che was very committed to “compensating,” and kept feeding her. Jiang Shiyuan didn’t refuse a single bite, but the flush in her cheeks refused to subside. In fact, it only deepened.

Pei Che thought she simply loved Sichuan cuisine, until he noticed that she had been treating the fruit wine like water. In less than fifteen minutes, the whole pot was gone.

“Slow down—”

Pei Che had just spoken when the person across from him suddenly looked up. Her starry eyes blinked at him in confusion, and a rosy flush had already spread across her pale cheeks.

“Huh? Little Uncle, it’s you? You actually came to eat too?”

“Hehehehehe.”

Jiang Shiyuan giggled, glanced around in a daze, and then her gaze returned to Pei Che.

“Little Uncle, why are you here alone? Where’s Pei Ziye?”