Einfacher Congee-Roman

Kapitel 38

25. Embracing two women, flirting with them...

When Gongye Bai arrived at the side room, he found it in complete disarray and did not see the painter Jin. Xie Dongfeng, who was sitting opposite Fan Qingbo, propped his head up with his hand after hearing the noise and looked towards the door, chuckling, "The painter Jin ran away like he'd seen a ghost. I knew you were coming, Xiaobai."

Gongye Bai seemed to be deep in thought, "Don't get too close to him."

Xie Dongfeng asked with great interest, "Why?"

Gongye Bai did not answer, but stepped into the house. He looked around, and finally his gaze settled on the unusually quiet Fan Qingbo. He raised his hand and tentatively waved it in front of her eyes, but she still did not react.

"What's wrong with her?"

"I don't know. I was distracted during the meeting. Maybe I'm just thinking about puberty."

Gongye Bai nodded knowingly and sat down between the two. Xie Dongfeng impatiently tapped the table, signaling him to answer his previous question. Only then did he reply seriously, "You know how quickly you learn to be bad. Didn't you become sharp-tongued and full of wicked schemes not long after I let you follow the late emperor?"

"Pah!" Xie Dongfeng spat without any regard for his image, rolling his eyes. "I was born that way, I never learned it from others."

Gongye Bai frowned. "I wanted to say this the day I came back: who taught you to keep using the word 'I' all the time?"

"Grand Tutor, aren't you being a bit too nosy?" Xie Dongfeng couldn't stand his condescending attitude, as if he had been treated like a junior since their first meeting eleven years ago. Was Gongye Bai really that much better than him, just because he was a few years older and held a higher official rank? Besides—"You're still living in my house, so please have some self-awareness as a guest in someone else's home, thank you."

Gongye Bai raised an eyebrow slightly. "I heard that you collected my salary on my behalf during my two months in Jiangnan?"

Xie Dongfeng smiled and said, "We're colleagues, it was just a small favor, no need to thank me."

"Little Fengfeng, you really are as shameless and heartless as ever, just like you were ten years ago."

Gongye Bai glanced at him sideways, his lips and eyes full of mocking smiles. Xie Dongfeng, whose composure was always lacking, felt a jolt in his heart and hurriedly lowered his head to drink his tea, forgetting that Feng Yan had already taken the teapot and that his teacup was empty. Now, even the most shameless and heartless person would be embarrassed.

The atmosphere became eerie, and amidst this eeriness, Fan Qingbo, who had been ignored all along, suddenly let out a scream.

"Ouch, my dog eyes! My dog eyes! What happened to your dog eyes?!"

The two people who were staring at each other were suddenly speechless, their lips twitching as they silently turned their heads away. Fan Qingbo sat up, covering her eyes. "So bright... my eyes are blind. Please, consider the feelings of an older single woman. If you're going to flirt, go somewhere quieter, okay?"

The two exchanged a glance, and seeing the same light in each other's eyes—

"My wife, don't you love your husband anymore?" He held her hands, gazing at her tenderly.

"Little sister, are you disgusted with your brother?" The other held her face in his hands, heartbroken.

Damn. Two devils want to compete with her in shamelessness? Who's afraid of who? Fan Qingbo raised her hand, broke free from Gongye Bai's hand, and cupped his face, giving him a clean and crisp kiss on the forehead. "Oh, my dear beautiful brother, how could I dislike you?" She might as well take advantage of the opportunity.

After finishing her groping, she pushed him away cleanly and then wrapped her arms around Xie Dongfeng's neck, saying, "Husband, how could I not love you?"

"Hmph, I don't believe it. I heard you've recently hooked up with a pretty boy who knows witchcraft, and you're even talking about marriage!" Xie Dongfeng got excited.

"Oh, that's all just for show. It's inevitable for a woman to be out there. Don't worry, my love will always be only for my husband." Yes, Fan Qingbo had a very good grasp of this image of a woman who has two wives, a strong wife at home and many mistresses on the side.

"Is it really just an act? My sister told me herself that he is my brother-in-law." Gongye Bai added insult to injury at the opportune moment.

Xie Dongfeng's expression changed instantly. He pulled her hand away and sat up straight. "Xiao Fan?"

They had an agreement: her "bigamy" would undoubtedly complicate matters further. Therefore, they reached a consensus from the beginning that she could not remarry within five years, and after five years, if she met someone she liked, she must report it in advance to facilitate proper follow-up procedures. Although the five-year period was almost up, her carefree demeanor made him think the deadline would be longer.

The sudden appearance of this pretty boy caught him completely off guard.

Seeing his expression, Fan Qingbo also became serious and earnestly assured him, "Don't worry, if I really want to get married, I will definitely ask for your consent. This whole thing was caused by a series of misunderstandings, so it's not true. Besides... even if it were true, I scared the groom away."

"What did you say?" The last sentence was spoken too softly for him to hear.

"Uh, it's nothing. Anyway, I don't have a boyfriend right now, so I won't act first and ask questions later."

Xie Dongfeng nodded in satisfaction, then added threateningly, "Remember what you just said, or don't blame me for being ruthless later."

Fan Qingbo nodded obsequiously, then her eyes darted around and she saw her handsome brother watching the show with amusement. A brilliant idea flashed in her mind, and a mischievous smile appeared on her lips. "My lord, I've thought of a way to quickly earn back the money and crush the Red Sleeve Pavilion."

Jie Dongfeng's eyes lit up, while Gongye Bai felt a chill run down his spine.

"Let's fight fire with fire. With the most beautiful woman in the capital at our disposal, how can those courtesans at Hongxiuzhao possibly compare?"

With that, Fan Qingbo calmly left Huanxitian. She had complete confidence in Xie Dongfeng and believed he could definitely get her handsome brother to agree. As for what price her handsome brother would demand from him, that was no longer her concern.

Right now, Huanxitian has little business and is enjoying some rare leisure time, so she naturally wants to wander the streets to her heart's content.

I bought a hairpin and two eyebrow pencils, and the money left in my pocket was only enough for a bowl of noodles. So, naturally, I went to a noodle stall, ordered a bowl of scallion oil noodles with a braised egg, and enjoyed eating while watching the street scene and chatting with the people around me.

"Master, two bowls of noodles with braised meat, quick!"

Two burly men sat down behind Fan Qingbo, casually placed their knives on the table, and began to chat as if no one else was around.

"Damn it, wasn't it said that Scholar Yin was in the capital? Why can't I find him anywhere?"

"Who the hell spread this false information, making me come all the way from beyond the Great Wall!"

Fan Qingbo paused, his hand holding the noodles slowing, and the sounds of him eating quieted down as he involuntarily perked up his ears. Hearing them only complaining without mentioning the scholar's whereabouts, he couldn't help but feel a little disappointed. Then, he found this inexplicable disappointment amusing.

Just then, the chef finished cooking the noodles and brought them to the table. Hearing their conversation, he casually asked, "Is the Silver Scholar you two heroes are talking about the Silver Pen Scholar, the second best in the world?"

"It's him! Wait, Master, have you seen him before?" The burly man was overjoyed and urged his master to speak quickly.

The master scratched his head and chuckled dryly, "I haven't seen him, but the new tales of the martial world published by Xiaoyao Teahouse say that the Silver Pen Scholar, who had recently retired from the martial world, seems to have reappeared. Three days ago, someone saw him at Linglong Pavilion in Luanzhou, seemingly looking for the pavilion master, Ye Wuxin."

"Luanzhou? Great! It came to me without any effort!"

The two men burst into deafening laughter, then suddenly slammed their fists on the table, grabbed their knives, and headed outside.

"Hey, hero, aren't you going to eat these noodles?" The master chased after him.