Ye Zhi wiped his tears while explaining nervously, "Come on, come on, wipe your tears. I haven’t been ignoring you. It was you who ignored me. Even when I talked to you, it was so cold and quiet. I was afraid you’d get annoyed with me, hold it against me, so I’ve been bothering you less."
The Little Traitor’s eyes were red, as innocent as those of a red-eyed rabbit, his nose red too, and paired with his crying expression, it was pitiful. In a weak voice, he said:
"I didn’t ignore you."
When it came to beautiful people and things, Ye Zhi always had little resistance.
Moreover, facing the Little Traitor, the protagonist, she immediately voiced her feelings: "Actually, it’s my brother. He said that if I become too close to you, it could lead to you being sent away from the Minister’s Mansion. I’m only seven years old this year, and my brother is fourteen. I’m afraid he’d take it seriously, and at that time, I won’t be able to protect you, so I’ve been worried."
Shen Chen was taken aback, stopped crying, and looked at her with his deep, brilliant eyes wide open, without speaking.
A sense of inferiority arose spontaneously.
Inferiority is a special feeling, born from darkness. Once formed, it’s difficult to cure and will always explode at some moment!
Invisible and formless, unseen and untouchable~
Ye Zhi, soft-hearted, saw that he was scared, and reached out her little hand to pat his small shoulder.
She tugged at his sleeve, sitting together on the railing chair in the pavilion~
Comforting him, she said, "Xiao Chen, don’t be afraid. Even if my brother sends you away, I’ll accompany you. I still have a few hundred taels. Then I’ll take you to Jiangnan to find my uncle. He does business there, and it’s spring all year round, it doesn’t snow in winter there, we’ll attend the academy together there."
"If he doesn’t want to take me in, then I’ll take you to Yangzhou. Huanhuan and Changzhou’s families are in business. I can learn to do business there, earn money for your schooling, read a lot of books, and become an official when you’re grown."
The Little Traitor listened with a naive expression and was amused by her: "And what about you?"
Ye Zhi smiled, as beautiful as pear blossoms, pretending not to care: "Me? I just won’t go. A woman’s virtue lies in her lack of talent. You should just focus on studying hard."
"No, if you don’t go, I won’t either."
For the sake of a good friend, he was very ambitious.
Ye Zhi quickly waved her hand to stop him: "You must go. You’ll become an official in the future, and if anyone dares to bully me, you’ll arrest them. Look at that man in black who kicked me the other day; I still haven’t had the chance to avenge that."
He remembered that person: "I remember him. I’ll help you get revenge when I have the chance."
In the dark night, a boy and a girl sat in the pavilion, having a heartfelt conversation~
The sound of little bugs was clear. In summer, you could hear the sound of frogs in this pavilion, but now, there was none!
When winter comes, there aren’t even the sounds of little bugs.
In Chang’an City, every winter, snow falls thick and white, covering the land, cold and solemn.
Under the flowers and the moon, the night was slightly cool. Ye Zhi’s little face was calm, as she spoke lightly: "Shen Chen, can I ask you something?"
"Hm." The Little Traitor signaled for her to speak.
"If, if one day you rise to power, unparalleled, would you spare the Ye Mansion, and protect its glory for a lifetime? My parents are good people, my brother is not bad in nature, Ah Tao is straightforward, I... I accidentally offended you before..."
Her voice grew smaller towards the end.
Shen Chen didn’t understand why she thought that way, turned to face her, and said seriously, "Ah Zhi, my glory is Ye Mansion’s glory too."
With simple words, his tone was solemn and very convincing.