Kiyomi Tsuki et son renard

Chapitre 2

The girl in red grew increasingly pale as she listened. Though she was angry and wanted to lash out, she felt helpless looking at the girl's back, which remained turned away. Seeing that the rain had lessened, she could no longer stay and turned to run out of the pavilion, followed by her two maids.

Heh... Xi Ri laughed coldly!

Her sudden laughter was inexplicable, and only Tian Shuang understood her mistress's thoughts, so she frowned.

Xi Ri turned around and gently instructed Tian Shuang and Tian Yong behind her: "Let's go, the rain has lessened."

"Yes." Tian Shuang held up an umbrella for her. Tian Yong followed her out of the pavilion and gradually disappeared into the rain.

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First Encounter

Since his birth, his illustrious family background and immense wealth have gilded him, and coupled with his family's inherited infatuation and good looks, he has been the center of attention since childhood. He is happy, he is proud, and even arrogant.

He had seen far too many beauties. Since he was about to come of age five years ago, countless women had surrounded him, young and lovely, mature and beautiful, classical, charming, proud, cold as ice, passionate as fire, well-educated and reasonable, and so on... But whether it was truly a family trait or not, he hadn't taken a liking to any of them. He was used to women's tricks. Five years ago, he was unmoved, but now he couldn't be bothered to pay attention. This was why he always took this monkey-like little pageboy with him when he went out. With him around, he could avoid a lot of trouble.

But that day, while sheltering from the rain in the pavilion, the sudden mockery from that seemingly dignified and gentle woman made him glance at her several times. He never imagined she would be so different, so different that she could appear before him three times in one day, three times in a row, and every day for three days. He couldn't help but be convinced it was a ploy of feigned indifference. What a coincidence! He could run into her everywhere he went; to say it was an unexpected encounter was simply unbelievable! Besides, someone had already used this trick five years ago; how could it possibly fool him!

Is Suzhou really that small? Looking out from her elegant teahouse seat, she inadvertently met those clear yet unrestrained black eyes again. Naturally, the area around her was densely packed with sycophants; even a fool could guess who they were: Young Master Long, Lord Long, Young Master Long, Brother Long, Brother Long, Long Ming, Long Yining. He was incredibly famous in Suzhou. If someone hadn't recognized him upon arrival, it would be impossible not to know him within three days. Whenever she walked down the street, it seemed everyone knew this Young Master Long—from the prefect to the beggars on the roadside, he was truly a figure known to all. In the area, there were many influential people, and merchants on the street would greet him when they met. So, she subconsciously learned who he was. She even remembered casually asking an old woman selling rouge who he was, and the kind old woman practically spent the entire afternoon talking to her, forgetting all about business. The old woman's most frequent comment was that any girl who married him was incredibly lucky, a celestial being reincarnated, a woman of the highest fortune on earth. Xi Xi almost collapsed from listening to her. But that wasn't the worst part. What was truly infuriating was why she seemed to be cursed, always running into him. Whenever she went out, no matter where she went, they somehow managed to meet. Even when she hid in the quietest corner of the second floor drinking tea, they would unexpectedly exchange glances. And now! Good heavens, a nightmare in broad daylight!

When their eyes met, they both saw the disdain in each other's eyes. A hint of surprise crossed their faces, and without realizing it, they both simultaneously let out a cold snort and turned their heads away. Xi Ri continued drinking her tea as if nothing had happened, oblivious to the tea leaves stuck to her lips, still lifting her teacup to drink more. Long Shao, meanwhile, was so focused on walking that she nearly bumped into someone coming from the opposite direction, ignoring even the greetings from acquaintances passing by. Both of them were thinking the same thing, the same thing: "She (he) actually dared to look down on me?!"

Suddenly, Long Ming reversed his position and strode in the opposite direction, finding the person in the far east corner of the second floor of Linxian Tower by the window, and unceremoniously sat down opposite Xi Ri.

Seeing that the newcomer was hostile, Tian Yong, who was sitting to one side, suddenly stood up and stared at the person in front of him. He saw that the man's eyes were cold and clear, his face showed a sneer, and his breathing was not erratic at all. Tian Yong was startled and clenched his fists, becoming defensive.

Xi Ri spat out the tea leaves she had eaten, which drew a cold snort from the man opposite her, a half-smile. However, she didn't care and calmly wiped the tea stains from her lips with her silk handkerchief. She got up and poured a cup of tea for him and herself. Long Ming didn't stand on ceremony and drank it without hesitation.

At this moment, the thin and shrewd servant hurriedly caught up. When he reached Long Ming's side, he was panting and eager to speak, but his master interrupted him with a voice: "Speak quickly if you have something to say!" The servant was stunned and realized that the words were not meant for him.

Xi Ri coldly raised her eyes. These words were indeed addressed to her. Seeing his impatient look, she sneered inwardly.

Upon hearing this, the servant who had just come upstairs swallowed the words he was about to say, looked at her warily, and retreated behind his master while still glaring at her.

Seeing her silence, Long Ming impatiently turned his head away, seemingly too lazy to even look at her, and urged, "Speak quickly!"

The more he said that, the more she wanted to brush him off. She slowly picked up the teacup, leisurely opened the lid, brought it to her lips, and gently blew on it, as if afraid of burning herself. She took a small sip, and when she saw his raised eyebrows out of the corner of her eye, she said, "It's not that I don't want to say, it's just that I'm really afraid of Young Master Long's usual practice!"

Look, they even know his last name. They really have ulterior motives towards him! This woman's pretentious and affected manner made Long Ming extremely impatient. "If you're afraid, then don't keep showing up in front of me!" As soon as he finished speaking, he stood up and flicked his sleeve, smashing the teacup on the ground. He had just taken a step when he heard the woman beside him sneer, "You have to pay for the broken teacup."

For a moment, the dozen or so people on the second floor seemed to stop breathing; you could probably hear a single hair fall.

Although there weren't many people on the second floor of the teahouse, there were still seven or eight customers. Ever since Long Ming suddenly went upstairs, it had become completely silent. Everyone held their breath and stared at the corner to the east, secretly watching the show.

Long Ming suddenly turned around, thinking he had misheard.

But then he heard Xi Ri coldly say again, "I will not compensate you."

Long Ming narrowed his eyes, anger rising within him!

It was that disdainful look, that look of disgust, and that excessive gaze, as if he were looking at a pile of cow dung, that made him lose control, speak to a woman for the first time, and even accidentally break a teacup (of course, he didn't break it on purpose)!!

A surge of anger welled up inside me, and I wanted to teach this scheming, pretentious, ungrateful, and annoying woman a lesson!

Without thinking, he suddenly pointed at the two servants who looked like martial arts experts next to the woman, grabbed her, hoisted her onto his shoulder, and disappeared through the window.

Meanwhile, the guests drinking tea on the second floor of Linxianlou were all dumbfounded, including Long Ming's personal monkey servant, Xiaozuzi, who stood there dumbfounded with his mouth agape. After a while, everyone came to their senses, ignoring the man and woman who had been frozen in place by Long Ming, and all crowded to the windows to look out. The crowds coming and going on the street remained the same, but Long Ming had long since disappeared.

The sky is blue and the clouds are white; it's actually a beautiful day. However, under this blue sky, there are two people whose moods are absolutely terrible!

When the wind blew across Long Ming's face, he suddenly realized what he was doing. He had never imagined that he would get so close to a woman, let alone that he would one day carry a woman on his back. He never imagined that he would actually carry a woman and run away in broad daylight, in front of everyone, and that he was currently scaling walls and rooftops!

But now he was in a bind. He ignored the woman's lack of reaction since he carried her on his shoulder, his mind only focused on dealing with this trouble as soon as possible.

Xi Ri nearly fainted. They were moving incredibly fast, the scenery flashing by, and with her head hanging upside down, she was dizzy and forgot to struggle or call for help. When she finally realized that a strange man was carrying her on his shoulder, she couldn't describe the feeling. She gritted her teeth and roared, "If you keep carrying me like this, you'll have to take responsibility for me!"

Clearly, his words had an effect. Long Ming abruptly stopped, flipped his hand, and threw her down. Xi Ri grimaced from the fall, unable to get up for a long time. He looked down at her with a cold laugh, "Fine!" His clothes fluttered, and he left her behind, disappearing instantly into the pavilions and buildings.

Only now did Xi Ri realize that she had been thrown onto the roof of a three-story building by this scoundrel! Oh my god! How was she supposed to get down? Ouch—it hurt so much from the fall.

And so, she stayed on the rooftop of this deserted, unknown stage for several hours, her anger accumulating until night fell.

Night fell, and the stars filled the sky. Xi Ri lay on the rooftop, wanting to cry. But the surroundings were empty and deserted, and the night was truly terrifying, especially the sound of crying, even if it was her own.

She wanted to scream for help, but felt too ashamed. She couldn't climb down, nor did she have the courage to jump. She could only wait for Tian Shuang and Tian Yong to rescue her. Then, her stomach began to rumble. The stars in the sky looked like sesame seeds, and the moon looked like a flatbread—together they looked like a sesame flatbread. Her stomach grew increasingly nauseous. She thought of everything she had ever eaten, even eggs, which she usually disliked, now seemed delicious. Gradually—even the sesame flatbread lost its appeal. She began to feel sleepy. Lying on the rough rubble, her vision blurred. Suddenly, a foot kicked her arm, jolting her awake!

The one who kicked her was none other than Long Ming. Just as she was about to get angry, she noticed that there was another person next to him.

At that moment, the man was blaming Long Ming, who turned away defiantly.

Upon seeing another face from the nightmare, Xi Ri didn't know whether to cry or laugh. Her anger immediately dissipated, transforming into another indescribable emotion.

She lazily got up and saw the culprit still looking impatient, his face turned to the side. She casually brushed off her clothes, stepped forward, and bowed her head to greet him: "This humble woman greets Your Highness."

The other person was none other than Soge, who nodded slightly. "Rise."

"Thank you for your support, Prince Xie."

"You are Tian Xiri, the daughter of Minister Tian?" Suo Ge's voice was low and had a strong sense of pressure, unlike the one he had heard in the main hall two years ago.

"yes."

"My cousin Long Ming has offended me greatly today. I hope you will forgive him for my sake. After returning to the capital, I will definitely go to your residence to apologize to Lord Tian in person."

"No need."

Xi Ri's indifference silenced Suo Ge for a moment. He turned to look at Long Ming, only to see Long Ming glancing at Xi Ri with a puzzled expression.