PaiPai-Romane - Kapitel 90
and……
There are always guards at the entrance, so how did this young man get in?
It's so good you can hardly believe your eyes.
After calming down, the clerk remembered that he recognized the man. He was the same man who had once made a name for himself in the martial arts competition, and who had been kicked out of the court for harassing the imperial harem.
But why does he act so...unusually towards adults?
After much effort, he managed to suppress his emotions, put down the document without looking at it, and then carefully left the room with his head down.
The clerk felt his heart pounding erratically, and his sensitive nose caught a faint, unusual scent.
"Next time you come, don't climb through the window."
"Ah, why?"
After the person left, Chu Zhen pushed the official documents on the table and turned to the person next to him, saying, "Someone saw this. What kind of behavior is this?"
"I climbed through the window because I was afraid someone would see me," Le Yan said.
"Oh? Why are you afraid of being seen?" he asked.
"I...I..." She paused, then finally stammered, "Uncle Zhen, will my coming here cause you a lot of inconvenience?"
"Hmm?" Chu Zhen pondered for a moment. "Why do you say that?"
"It's nothing." She exhaled and slowly squatted down. After thinking for a moment, she sighed again. Finally, she rested her head against his legs.
Chu Zhen found this action quite peculiar. Looking at the little bundle nestled beside his legs, he had the illusion of having a pet, and couldn't help but reach out and pat her head.
“Just say what’s on your mind,” he smiled. “Don’t keep it to yourself.”
"Hmm." She simply reached out and gently hugged his leg. "Don't you find it annoying to have me here?"
"How could that be?" He paused, then asked, "What are you thinking?"
"It's nothing." She rubbed her head against his leg a couple of times, then looked up at him. "Just don't get annoyed with me. Right now, I just want to stay here."
Chu Zhen looked at her face; her eyes were bright and sparkling, looking right at him.
For a fleeting moment, he felt a sense of bewilderment, as if he had sensed something strange. But it vanished in an instant, flying too fast for him to catch.
He could only laugh and say, "You can stay as long as you want, just don't squat here. Get up and go sit somewhere else."
"No," she muttered.
"Leyan, be good, listen to me, and let someone..."
"Hmph. What kind of behavior is this if someone sees us? It's always like this."
"Ha, yes, you know that, so why aren't you getting up?"
"I'm not afraid of people watching."
“Don’t make a fuss. The ground is cold. You’ll catch a cold,” he said, looking down at her.
Le Yan looked up for a moment.
"Oh. Okay." She finally agreed, stood up from the ground, and followed his directions to a long chaise lounge next to her.
At first, she sat, then half-reclined, and finally climbed up completely. But no matter what position she was in, she would always turn her head to look at the person next to her.
Chu Zhen, sitting upright, was very dignified as he reviewed official documents, moving his pen and wrist with every gesture, whether it was a frown or a sigh.
Leyan watched intently, thoroughly enjoying herself.
Chu Zhen stopped writing and, remembering there were still people in the room, turned her head and saw that she was already lying there with her eyes closed, as if she had fallen asleep.
Footsteps sounded outside the door, and Chu Zhen looked up.
Seeing Xue Nuo stepping in, the two met eyes and were about to speak when Chu Zhen stood up and made a shushing gesture.
Xue Nuo stopped speaking in surprise, and following the direction Chu Zhen pointed, saw Le Yan sleeping on the chaise longue, and was startled.
"What is she doing here?" Xue Nuo stepped forward and whispered.
"She probably finds it boring to stay here," Chu Zhen walked over and whispered. "But there's nothing fun here anyway, and look, she's already asleep."
"Hmph, this girl is really clingy to you." Xue Nuo glanced at Le Yan.
He took a step and was about to walk over.
Chu Zhen was taken aback and reached out to pull Xue Nuo along.
"What?" Xue Nuo turned his head. "Protecting the flower?"
“Arno,” Chu Zhen said, both amused and exasperated, “I’m doing this for your own good.”
"How is it?" Xue Nuo raised an eyebrow.
“This child is extremely restless once he falls asleep,” Chu Zhen explained, and then briefly recounted past events to Xue Nuo.
Arno couldn't help but laugh when he heard that.
"She actually injured you?"
"Let bygones be bygones."
"Ah Zhen, you really are..."
"cough."
"However, this girl seems to have a special affection for you. When she sees me and Ah Xin, she is sometimes as fearful as a snake and sometimes as fierce as a tiger. She is never normal."
"How could that be?" Chu Zhen frowned. "It's probably because we just met and we're not familiar with each other yet."
Arno shook his head: "I don't think so."
“Your opinion is wrong… I think it’s probably because we get along better.” Chu Zhen said, leading Xue Nuo to the table. Xue Nuo sat down in the chair next to her, and then Chu Zhen returned to the table and sat down.
"How did you suddenly end up here?"
"I came to tell you that after seeing His Majesty, my mother, and this little girl, if there are no other matters to attend to, it's time to return to the East Sea."
"So fast. You haven't been back for over a decade. What's wrong with staying a few more days?"
"The situation in the East China Sea remains unclear, so I managed to sneak back this time. Luckily, it wasn't a wasted trip," Xue Nuo said with a smile. "However, this girl is really tight-lipped, especially when she saw me and Ah Xin. She didn't reveal a single word. Ah Zhen, it seems..."
"What do you mean by looking at me like that?" Chu Zhen asked.
"She likes to stick to you so much, if you ask her, she probably won't hide anything from you, right?" Xue Nuo winked.
"She was just being affectionate towards her child, and besides, I didn't want to make things difficult for her."
"You've really become unbelievable. You don't want to be ruthless when you should be. Where did your former ruthlessness go? These past ten years have worn away all your sharpness. Sigh."
Xue Nuo frowned, but Chu Zhen smiled and casually changed the subject: "Ha, do you still remember how I made things difficult for A Xin?"
"You think I could forget? You can't forget it either, can you? After all, it was because of this incident that we met Yu Dai."
"Yes, that's right." I can't forget it, of course I can't forget it. But...
He glanced back at the person on the tatami mat.
For some reason, seeing her asleep makes me less irritable.
“I know you don’t want to dwell on the past, but those two just disappeared without any explanation, which is really infuriating. And I’m also very curious about what exactly happened between them back then. I just couldn’t figure it out. Humph.”
"Haha, Leyan is so grown up now, you'll understand when you think about it."
"Alright, I won't make things difficult for you. Do whatever you like. Ah Xin might be coming back soon, that girl..."
"She'll get bored and leave soon."
"I hope it's as you say." Xue Xin gave him a meaningful look.
Chu Zhen was looking at Le Yan and didn't notice.
The two talked for a while, then went out together.
Le Yan slowly opened her eyes, her gaze completely devoid of sleepiness.
Thinking back on the conversation, I feel a bit of a headache.
There was a vague unease in their conversation.
Just as he was rubbing his forehead in thought, a figure flashed at the door; it was Chu Zhen returning from seeing off a guest.
Leyan turned her head.
Chu Zhen saw her at a glance: "Why are you up?" He walked over, flicked his robe, and sat down next to her.
"I'm awake," Le Yan said with difficulty.
"Are you cold?" he asked, then suddenly felt guilty. "I was careless. I should have asked someone to bring you a blanket."
Le Yan lowered her eyes and remained silent.
Chu Zhen looked at her: "What's wrong? Are you unhappy? Or is it too stuffy here?"
She rarely showed such a thoughtful expression, which piqued his curiosity.
“Uncle Zhen…” she suddenly looked up, “Do you want to know the whereabouts of my mother… and father?”
Chu Zhen was taken aback.
His clear black and white eyes looked at the face of the person in front of him. There was a hint of worry between her brows and a slightly confused look on her face. He immediately realized that she might not have been asleep when Xue Nuo came, so she had overheard their conversation.
After thinking for a moment, he shook his head.
"Don't you want to? Or... just don't want to make things difficult for me?" Le Yan asked.
"Le Yan." Chu Zhen's heart skipped a beat.
The answer to Chapter 107 of "Dragon and Tiger Fight in the Capital"
“If you want to know, I can tell you.” Le Yan looked at Chu Zhen.
"Really?" he blurted out, his shoulders stiffening as he lowered his head.
Le Yan felt a pang of heartache, but nodded: "Really."
silence.
The two stopped talking and sat on either side of each other, with only one person's distance between them. Yet, Le Yan felt a sudden and profound distance between them.
“Leyan,” Chu Zhen said.