Yu Qian said, “Let’s go to the town nearby and buy some men’s clothes.”
Li Tong’er immediately understood what he meant. “You want me to dress up as a man?”
Yu Qian nodded. “It’s more convenient to travel as a man. By the way, you need a makeover too.” Her beauty could easily attract lustful gazes from others.
“Anything you say, Big Brother Yu,” said Li Tong’er happily.
Yu Qian sighed inwardly to see her behaving like this.
Both her appearance and personality did not seem like that of a twenty-eight-year-old. She was so naive and unguarded around others; if he left her alone, she would definitely run into danger.
Yu Qian reassured himself that he had only accepted her company because he could not bear to watch her get deceived.
In the imperial holiday home.
When Lu Liangwei woke up and was told by Zhu Yu that Chu Jiu had news to deliver, she said, “Let her in.”
When Chu Jiu came in, Lu Liangwei was eating waxberries.
The sight of her munching on the green waxberries made Chu Jiu’s teeth ache instantly.
Lu Liangwei noticed Chu Jiu watching her silently and thought that she wanted some waxberries too, so she picked up the plate and held it out to her. “Want some? They’re not fully ripe yet, but that makes them all the more delicious.”
Chu Jiu took a glance at the unripe waxberries on the plate and hastily waved her hands. “No thanks, I’m not that fond of them. You can have them all to yourself, Your Highness.”
Unfazed, Lu Liangwei withdrew her hand and continued eating. “By the way, Zhu Yu said you had news. What’s it about?”
At the mention of the matter, Chu Jiu said bemusedly, “I saw Li Tong’er and Housekeeper Yu outside the imperial holiday home just now.”
Lu Liangwei was surprised. “What about them?”
“Li Tong’er left with Housekeeper Yu.” Chu Jiu’s tone was a little strange.
Lu Liangwei raised an eyebrow incredulously. “Li Tong’er left with Housekeeper Yu?”
“Yes. I think I overheard them saying that they’re going to travel the world together,” Chu Jiu continued.
Lu Liangwei paused. “You saw them yourself?”
“Yes. I saw them leave together,” Chu Jiu affirmed.
Lu Liangwei was astonished.
She had actually noticed that Housekeeper Yu was somewhat interested in Li Tong’er, though he had tried to restrain his feelings. However, she had not expected that dismissing him would give the pair a chance to be together.
She chuckled, feeling slightly amused.
There might be nothing going on between them right now, but after spending some time together, they might eventually develop feelings for each other.
Zhu Yu was curious. “Housekeeper Yu doesn’t look that young anymore. Doesn’t he have a family?”
“I don’t think so. I heard from Butler Zhao that he was a scholar who failed the imperial examination. He landed a job in the imperial holiday home by chance and has been working here ever since. Apparently, he doesn’t have any family back in his hometown—he’s a lone man.”
“Li Tong’er got lucky.” Zhu Yu picked up on what Chu Jiu was implying and sighed.
“I disagree. Housekeeper Yu’s the one who got lucky, considering how beautiful Li Tong’er is,” Lu Liangwei commented objectively as she chewed on a waxberry.
Zhu Yu stamped her foot. “Why do you keep sticking up for Li Tong’er, Miss? No matter how beautiful she is, she’s obviously a troublesome person. Just look at what she did before!”
“That’s true, but people change. I can see that she’s realized her mistake.” Looking at Zhu Yu’s petulant expression, Lu Liangwei blinked mischievously and, in a flash, she stuffed one of the greenest waxberries into her mouth. Before Zhu Yu could spit it out, she said in a deliberately commanding tone, “You’re not allowed to spit it out.”