Chapter 55

The dappled shadows under the trees, the two stood within sight of everyone, separated by two or three feet.

Sang Yao still held the minced meat cakes her father had given her, which seemed a bit informal.

At this moment, facing Yang Wenchuan, she didn’t know what to say, feeling embarrassed. She took the initiative to ask, “Brother Yang, have you eaten?”

Yang Wenchuan nodded, saying, “I have.”

Sang Yao responded with an “oh,” and Yang Wenchuan asked her, “Yao Yao, are you feeling better?”

Sang Yao vaguely remembered Yang Wenchuan appearing yesterday, presumably knowing about her being chased by the little eunuch. She nodded and said, “I’m fine now.”

“Xie Yun said—”

She paused halfway. How did Xie Yun’s name slip out so easily?

But Yang Wenchuan didn’t show any abnormal expression. Sang Yao lowered her voice and continued, “He said I just need to rest for a while.”

She showed no resistance towards Xie Yun in her expression.

Yang Wenchuan hesitated, “Yao Yao, do you remember what happened last night?”

Sang Yao nodded, “I remember some of it. I know you came.”

She looked up at him, “Brother Yang, did you come?”

Yang Wenchuan hmmed and added, “I saw that you were safe, so I left.”

Sang Yao sincerely said, “Thank you, Brother Yang.”

Yang Wenchuan said, “I didn’t do anything.”

Sang Yao wasn’t good at chatting, and now that the conversation had reached this point, she didn’t know what else to say.

Moreover, for some reason, Yang Wenchuan seemed different today from usual, but she couldn’t pinpoint why.

After thinking for a moment, she took the initiative to ask, “Brother Yang, do you have something to tell me?”

Yang Wenchuan pursed his lips and did not answer immediately. He didn’t know how to start.

The scene from last night seemed to be vivid before his eyes.

The charming girl was held in a man’s arms, and he was initially convinced that Xie Yun was taking advantage of her vulnerability.

But just as he was about to step forward to stop it, the girl, who was leaning affectionately against Xie Yun’s chest, called out Xie Yun’s name softly while they kissed.

Suddenly, he remembered that, under the daylight, Sang Yao, standing in front of him, had looked at Xie Yun from a distance, beyond him.

He even stepped back.

But now, after a night had passed and he had escaped from that situation, he began to think that things might not have been as he imagined.

He started to find excuses for himself and to find suitable reasons for that scene at that time.

He wasn’t sure if Sang Yao remembered what happened yesterday.

He was also trying to reassure himself that even if Sang Yao called Xie Yun’s name at that moment, it didn’t prove that she did it willingly.

But now, with Sang Yao standing in front of him, he didn’t know how to ask.

If she didn’t do it willingly, or if she didn’t remember, then reminding her now would not be a good thing for her.

If she did it willingly, then asking like this would also offend her.

After a while, in the girl’s puzzled eyes, Yang Wenchuan finally spoke, “Yao Yao… what do you think of Xie Yun?”

Sang Yao was stunned. She didn’t know why Yang Wenchuan suddenly asked this, and in the eyes of outsiders, she and Xie Yun should have had no interaction at all.

Sang Yao asked, “…Brother Yang, why are you suddenly asking about this?”

Yang Wenchuan said, “Yesterday, I saw you with Xie Yun and didn’t know if you knew him, so I wanted to ask.”

“Are you… friends with him?”

This question caught Sang Yao off guard. She didn’t know if she could be considered friends with Xie Yun.

At first, in her eyes, she had only spoken to Xie Yun a few times, barely knowing each other. But now, just describing it like this felt wrong.

She didn’t want to lie to Yang Wenchuan, so she tried to find a fitting word to describe her relationship with Xie Yun.

While Sang Yao hesitated, not far away, under a tall camphor tree, two important officials were looking at her and Yang Wenchuan.

Xie Huanzhi had his hands behind his back, scrutinizing Yang Wenchuan, and said, “Is this your proud student?”

Chen Ke nodded. He always praised Yang Wenchuan whenever he had the chance. He hmmed and said, “He is indeed outstanding and talented.”

Xie Huanzhi had seen Yang Wenchuan a few times before, but he didn’t remember clearly. Now, he could finally see Yang Wenchuan’s appearance clearly.

He nodded, and a hint of admiration appeared on his stern face as he said, “To achieve such remarkable results at a young age, he is indeed remarkable.”

Chen Ke said, “Not only that, I have been with him for some time. This young man seems gentle but decisive, modest and courteous, and has the demeanor of a gentleman.”

Xie Huanzhi nodded and said, “Indeed, it’s no wonder His Majesty praises him so much.”

Chen Ke, as he looked, suddenly noticed the girl in front of Yang Wenchuan, feeling a sense of familiarity.

He frowned, took a deep breath, and pondered.

Xie Huanzhi casually asked, “What’s wrong with you?”

Chen Ke remained silent for a while, then said, “Why do I feel… that I’ve seen that girl somewhere?”

Xie Huanzhi didn’t want to stand there discussing a young girl with Chen Ke.

He said, “You can think about it slowly. I’ll go first.”

Chen Ke grabbed him and said, “I remember now. It seems that my disciple has talked to her before. Could he have some intentions?”

Xie Huanzhi dismissed it, saying, “Indeed, she is charming.”

He pulled his sleeve, showing no interest, and prepared to leave.

Chen Ke continued, “Hmm, something’s not right. Xie Yun seems to know this girl too.”

Xie Huanzhi stopped in his tracks, his gaze slightly narrowed. “What?”

Chen Ke continued leisurely, “You don’t know, but last night, for some reason, this girl got Xie Yun and my disciple anxious.”

He sighed and continued, “Youth is truly wonderful.”

Xie Huanzhi looked at Sang Yao, then at Chen Ke beside him. He said, “Are you sure A Yun knows her?”

Chen Ke nodded, saying, “Don’t you know?” This father really didn’t know.

Looking at the two who were talking to each other, Xie Huanzhi’s originally indifferent expression became more serious.

He felt somewhat uncomfortable under Chen Ke’s admiring gaze and couldn’t help but say, “Young people should be more patient. Yang Wenchuan is too high-profile, which is not a good thing.”

“As I see it, being just a top scholar, Xie Yun is only twenty years old.”

“He can easily pass the exam, its just that he’s not interested.”

Chen Ke’s smile became more strained. If it weren’t for Xie Huanzhi’s status, he would have argued back a bit.

It was really something for him to call someone “just a top scholar” with a straight face.

He decided to ignore him.

Xie Huanzhi looked at the two people in front of him who were speaking, feeling that they were mismatched.

He waved his hand and said, “Forget it, he is after all your proud disciple. Have someone call him over, I want to test him.”

★

When the little eunuch came to find Yang Wenchuan, Sang Yao was still trying hard to explain her relationship with Xie Yun.

But after talking for a long time, she didn’t really explain anything, and instead made things worse.

Yang Wenchuan didn’t leave immediately. Instead, he asked the little eunuch to wait aside while he patiently listened to Sang Yao.

When Sang Yao gave up explaining, Yang Wenchuan asked her softly, “Yao Yao, does Xie Yun… like you?” Sang Yao was suddenly stunned.

She instinctively wanted to say no, because over time, she had gradually started to forget that Xie Yun liked her.

Whenever she faced Xie Yun, all she saw was Xie Yun himself, not the lecherous scoundrel who was obsessed with her in the book.

Moreover, most of the time, others would only ask her “Do you like Xie Yun?” and not “Does Xie Yun like you?”

So when Yang Wenchuan asked like this today, it made her feel inexplicably uneasy.

But that wasn’t the point.

The point was, why did Yang Wenchuan think that Xie Yun liked her? She asked in surprise, “Yang ge, why do you ask?”

Yang Wenchuan’s expression was complicated.

He probed, “Yao Yao, do you remember what Xie Yun did to you last night?”

Sang Yao didn’t understand what Yang Wenchuan meant.

She looked puzzled, but when she tried to ask again, the little eunuch beside her urged again, “Lord Yang, look at Elder Xie over there…”

Yang Wenchuan pursed his lips and ultimately didn’t say anything.

After hurriedly bidding farewell to Sang Yao, he went in Xie Huanzhi’s direction.

Sang Yao was still holding a pancake in her hand.

She stood there in a daze, carefully thinking about what Yang Wenchuan had said.

She didn’t understand why Yang ge would ask that. Could it be that Xie Yun really did something to her?

Before she could figure it out, Sang Yin, who was closely observing the situation, came over again and said with a smile, suggestive and low, “Yao Yao, how did it go?”

Sang Yao snapped out of it.

She looked at Sang Yin, stuffed the pancake back into Sang Yin’s hand, and scolded, “Dad, don’t do this next time.”

Sang Yin was puzzled, “What’s wrong? Don’t they seem to be enjoying the pancakes?”

Sang Yao said, “Stop trying to match me up with others.”

Sang Yin clicked his tongue and said angrily, “I’m doing this for your own good. Look at Yang Wenchuan, he obviously has feelings for you. Didn’t you say you liked Jiangnan before?”

Sang Yao didn’t want to hear this.

Although she was mostly indifferent to her own marriage, she didn’t like being forced into intimate actions in front of others.

She felt embarrassed.

Yang Wenchuan might also feel embarrassed, but out of politeness, he didn’t say anything.

Sang Yao didn’t bother to say much to Sang Yin.

Sang Yin looked at her, suddenly focused, and said, “Yao Yao, what’s wrong with your mouth? Are you getting a sore throat?”

She casually responded with a sound.

Originally, the swelling wasn’t serious. After Sang Yao applied the medicine Xie Yun had sent her, it got much better. But she didn’t expect Sang Yin to see it.

But she licked her lips and remembered the dream she had last night. To be precise, she remembered her confusion before going to sleep last night.

Although this matter was very absurd and didn’t seem true at all, if it were true, then all the abnormalities on her body would have a reasonable explanation.

She thought, she should go and ask. Asking wouldn’t hurt, at most she would be laughed at.

After all, she had embarrassed herself in front of him more than once.