Zhao Rong felt that Zhu Yourong was absolutely doing it on purpose.
Settling private scores under the guise of public business.
That stumble during the day left him in a complete mess; his waist still hurt.
He, a mighty man from the Fu Yao Realm, had crossed swords with Qing Jun in daylight, defeated by the Sword Immortal Lady’s sword slaying the azure dragon, without even frowning. And yet, he ended up bending over for Zhu Yourong, which was utterly humiliating.
At that moment, at the entrance of the Wutong Street.
In the cold evening breeze, Zhao Rong hastened to the spot and after waiting for a short while, he saw a group of people approaching.
The leader was a Confucian-robed lady with flowing sleeves, carrying herself with an unrushed grace.
At her side, five people followed.
A stern-faced young girl with a stiff demeanor, followed closely by a shy girl who seemed like a delicate jade of the family.
A frivolous scholar in powdery dress, and a simple, yet tidy and reticent scholar.
And then... there was a petite, adorable girl with fox-like eyes, led by Zhu Yourong’s Jade Hand.
Well, actually six people were following, it’s just that one was too short for Zhao Rong to notice at first glance...
Yu Huaijin was missing her snack-loving frail maid beside her, but Zhao Rong didn’t pay any attention to that; he was preoccupied with some worry on his mind.
At this moment, seeing the group approaching, Zhao Rong’s gaze first captured Su Xiaoxiao with slightly swollen eyelids. Their eyes met for an instant before he nonchalantly looked away, no longer lingering.
He greeted Yu Huaijin, Li Xueyou, his two close friends, and Jing Zi, whose wits and stature were equally petite, with a smile and then turned around to lead the way.
Zhu Yourong blinked, watching Zhao Rong’s retreating figure.
He had just greeted Huaijin, Xueyou and the others, deliberately excluding her and the little fox demon by her side.
Hmm, not talking to Su Xiaoxiao, the Confucian-robed lady could understand that, since according to their agreement at the Academy in the afternoon, tonight was just about bringing an ignorant silly girl, oblivious even to a little fox spirit, to meet the Empress; he and Su Xiaoxiao were to pretend not to know each other.
But not greeting her as well...
What a petty man... the Confucian-robed lady muttered to herself.
Zhao Rong, with his sleeves rolled up, led the way, and at that moment his gentle voice came through.
"Ladies and gentlemen, please follow me. My... my wife has prepared a banquet and has personally cooked a few dishes. It’s just ahead at the end of an alley not far from here," he said.
As Zhao Rong finished speaking,
silence fell behind him.
The crowd exchanged silent glances.
Upon hearing certain words, Su Xiaoxiao’s eyelashes fluttered, and the small hand holding Zhu Yourong’s suddenly tightened.
Zhu Yourong kept a calm expression, gently patting the nervous little fox demon’s hand.
"Hmph, scumbag," the blue-clothed young girl commented as her thick eyebrows raised in an adorable fashion, hugging the little fox demon’s arm and softly huffing in indignation for her new friend.
Fan Yushu and Jia Tengying exchanged glances, the former shrugged his shoulders, and the latter sighed.
In the afternoon, when they heard at the East Fence Small House that Zhao Rong was taking Su Xiaoxiao to meet Zhao Rong’s sister, their eyelids twitched, and they couldn’t help but reevaluate the young Confucian Scholar recounting the story calmly in front of them. They had initially been reluctant to come, but ultimately, out of a sense of inevitability, they had reluctantly agreed to come—after all, he was a good brother they had known for a long time. How could they allow their good brother to be left exposed in the wilderness, having promised to help collect his corpse...
Yu Huaijin looked up at the young Confucian Scholar’s tall and straight figure in front, then turned to look at the female companion beside her and the teacher next to her and pursed her lips.
She actually had quite a lot on her plate at the Academy, but she came nonetheless...
At this time, Zhao Rong seemed not to hear the lack of movement behind him and continued leading the way undisturbed.
It was as if he had forgotten about his back pain altogether.
The group proceeded in different states of mind, the atmosphere a bit awkward, as they followed behind him toward a particular direction.
Soon, the seven of them arrived in an old alley that hadn’t been repaired for many years.
The crowd looked around with curiosity,
"Ziyu, where are you taking us? Is there really a restaurant inside? Wow, does East City even have such dilapidated alleys? Right next to Wutong Street?" Fan Yushu looked around the decrepit bricks and tiles of the alley with puzzlement.
He couldn’t help but express his astonishment: "You’re really something, Ziyu, letting your brother see something new. Without you taking me here, I, a native of Du You City, wouldn’t have known."
Seeing his friend’s teasing, Zhao Rong’s lips tugged up slightly in an absent smile, waving his hand, "Let’s just have a casual meal today, I beg Yushu Brother and everyone’s pardon. After the next big exam, I will invite everyone to have a proper meal."
Fan Yushu shook his head, and seeing that the atmosphere remained silent and awkward, he patted his friend’s shoulder to lighten the mood: "It’s alright, it’s the thought that counts. I heard it’s the little sister’s own cooking today. Ah, I must really savor the culinary skills of the Tranquility Mansion’s great Fairy Zhao tonight."
Zhao Rong turned back, his face showing a touch of helplessness, "You better not say that later, or she might get nervous. To be honest, I haven’t eaten much of Qing Jun’s cooking before, ah, except for porridge. She might have just learned it. Cough, so here’s the plan: I’ll taste the food first, then you all watch my facial expressions and act accordingly, haha."
Zhao Rong joked, then everyone exchanged looks, and nobody laughed at all, their eyes even involuntarily glancing at the little fox demon.
"Ha ha... ha..." a certain young Confucian Scholar, "..."
The atmosphere grew somewhat awkward.
Zhao Rong’s smile twitched, and suddenly he felt a bit panicked. What happened to the understanding they had? They should be rehearsing for this, hoping not to give the game away later.
He started to doubt his decision for the evening; he had thought that Zhu Yourong and the others were coming as cover, fulfilling Xiaoxiao’s request to "formally" meet Qing Jun.