Luo Xiu was the first to arrive.
An Yi and Qiao Xi happened to run into each other outside of the woods and walked inside together. The two, of course, made fun of each other on their way in, which made the helper girls at the mansion turned their heads and chuckled.
"Had it not been you, my image in their mind would be smart and handsome," said Qiao Xi as he pulled open the door to the room at the end of the hallway.
"Oh? I didn't know that the Qiao family are such philanthropists."
"What do you mean by that?"
"Hiring a group of helpers who are stupid and blind enough to find you smart and handsome. That's certainly the acts of philanthropists."
"…………"
As the two bickered, Qiao Xi led the way to a semi-open room on the southern end of the house.
Luo Xiu was sitting on the bambooed tatami in the only corner of the room that had some shelter from the sun and was very into reading the notebook in front of him.
In fact, he was so into it that he didn't even look up when Qiao Xi and An Yi entered the room.
Qiao Xi sighed and sat down across from him on the other side of the table. "Just look at how hardworking he is. [Taoist] Priest Chigua, I don't think you should recruit him into your Daoci Temple – had he joined you, I'm afraid that you would be the next head of the temple."
Ai Yi didn't let that bother him. He smiled as he sat. "That would be amaze if that is the case."
"…… Is there no year-end evaluation for Taoists priests? Why are you so unambitious?"
"Oh, so you are ambitious? Is what why you goof around all the time until your dad bring up joining his company and then you headed straight overseas?"
"You won't understand. That's called survival instinct – if I join his company, his purebred son would make me his number one nemesis."
"Listen to yourself."
"Oh yeah? Your dad who married up and finally have his say wanted to groom you up to succeed him. Why are you holing out in that little Taoist temple then?"
"Because I am not like him. I still have a conscience."
"Tsk? You? Conscience? Was I supposed to buy that?"
"……"
It was normal that the two would regress and bicker like grade school children and stab each other where it hurt the most whenever they met up. Luo Xiu couldn't even be bothered to look up.
Qian Xi finally turned his attention Luo Xiu's way when the bickering came to a stop and he was overall on the losing side.
With his head resting on his fist, Qian Xi drummed on the table and asked languidly, "Scholar Luo, studying hard still? So what are you reading today? Tao Te Ching or The Holy Canon of Nanhua?"
Luo Xiu closed the notebook up and looked up nonchalantly. He adjusted his spectacles.
"Neither. It's an essay collection."
"Essay collection?" Qiao Xi was taken aback a little. "When did you start being interested in such things?"
"This month, beginning of the month."
"Beginning of the month? While you were with the Demons' production team?"
"Yes."
Luo Xiu had no intention to delve more into the subject but Qiao Xi's interested had obviously been piqued. He stood up and walked over to the other side of the table. "You are interested in so few things. Can I see it?"
"––"
Luo Xiu, Qiao Xi, and An Yi met by chance when they were young and each one of them was talked about behind their back by those in their circles owing to their oddly similar family background along with their awkward standing within their respective families.
The three of them started hanging out together and they were tight with each other, probably tighter than each one of them with their own family.
As such, Qiao Xi reached out for the brown notebook next to Luo Xiu almost reflexively. Lo and behold, as soon as he touched the notebook and was about to pick it up, another hand had reached over and pressed down on it.
Qiao Xi, stunned for a few seconds, looked up at Luo Xiu.
Behind Luo Xiu's spectacle lens that were reflecting off a hint of lights, the cold brown eyes smiled. "Anything else is okay but not this one."
"……"
Qiao Xi pulled his hand back, still trying to comprehend what was going on.