The young man sat on his seat, dressed in a light - gray long gown. Although he was sitting in an ordinary, even somewhat shabby cottage, his expression was calm, as if he were sitting in a magnificent and well - lit hall, making people not dare to underestimate him.
Li Ergou didn't dare to say much. Big drops of cold sweat trickled down his side face to his chin, where they gathered into bigger beads and then fell heavily to the ground, making a small dent.
He knew that if Song Huaizhi didn't forgive him this time, everything he had now would turn to ashes, and he might never be able to set foot in this place again.
There were too many people eyeing Young Master Song. Li Ergou knew that he was really lucky to be able to stay by his side and work for him. Many people were also eyeing his position, eager to take his place and curry favor with Song Huaizhi.
But could he regret it? If he did, wouldn't he just watch his cousin being bullied and unable to seek justice, living under the shadow of that cruel family for a lifetime?
Li Ergou closed his eyes, wiped the sweat off his chin forcefully with his right hand, and then continued to kneel on the ground, not daring to say a single word.
Seeing that he stopped arguing, Song Huaizhi felt a bit relieved and was slightly satisfied.
However, Li Ergou had acted on his own initiative, and he couldn't just let the matter go. If there was a trap next time and Li Ergou concealed it from him and then walked right into it, it would be a great loss.
So Song Huaizhi still didn't say a word. When Li Ergou had been kneeling for a while and finally began to tremble, he finally said, "Do you regret it?"
"… No, I don't." Li Ergou still kept his head down firmly. His voice was weak. "I know I've violated your taboo, acting on my own and hiding it from you. After it was done, I even had the lucky thought and didn't confess it voluntarily."
"Um." After listening to him, Song Huaizhi continued, "You're right."
Hearing this, Li Ergou buried his head even deeper.
"Then I'll punish you by transferring you to Li Liang's position first. Let him take over your job."
Li Ergou looked up in shock. He didn't expect Song Huaizhi's punishment to be much lighter than he had imagined. For a moment, he felt his tongue tied and couldn't say a word.
After Song Huaizhi finished speaking, he just quietly waited for Li Ergou's reaction.
"Thank you, my master! Today, you've forgiven my great mistake. Next time, I definitely won't dare to do it again. I'll always put you first!"
Li Ergou straightened up, looking at Song Huaizhi with a determined look in his eyes. After saying that, he bowed deeply to him.
Seeing that it was about time, Song Huaizhi got up and left under Li Ergou's gaze. He put on his black straw hat, and his figure was gradually swallowed by the thick darkness of the night.
When Li Ergou saw Song Huaizhi open the door and leave, his body immediately went limp, and he fell to the ground. He was in a daze for a long time.
…
After seeing Gu Ling off, life went on as usual, with no major changes.
Zhang Yunyun would come to the Meng family from time to time, using this opportunity to secretly take a look at Li Yun. Li Yun was unaware. Arranged by Song Huaizhi, he moved into one of Song Huaizhi's small villas and began to take over Song Huaizhi's business under the guidance of Song Huaizhi's subordinates.
After seeing what Li Yun had handled, Meng Ruyi really had to sigh that Song Huaizhi had a really good eye for people. One was Li Ergou, who seemed to come out of nowhere, and the other was Li Yun. Both of them were rare talents, but Song Huaizhi had found two of them, and both were devoted to him.
Sure enough, Song Huaizhi was really amazing.
Seeing Song Huaizhi quickly dealing with matters and looking extremely busy, Meng Ruyi went for a walk on the street with Zhang Yunyun to relax.
It was still early. The morning sun had just started to feel a bit scorching. The two of them went out and then started strolling aimlessly.
"Why have you suddenly become free these days?" Zhang Yunyun took a few steps and looked at Meng Ruyi in surprise. "I remember before Gu Ling left, you were always busy here and there and had no time to rest!"
Meng Ruyi was silent for a moment and then said, "Recently, Brother Song has been busy dealing with his own affairs. My parents felt sorry for me because I was always busy, so they asked me to take a break."
To be honest, Meng Ruyi always felt that Song Huaizhi seemed to be avoiding her recently. But looking at him, he was really busy dealing with matters from the capital, so she didn't even have the nerve to bother him.
[I think Brother Song is avoiding Yu Yu, right?]
[You're not alone, I think so too!]
[Impossible. Why would Song Huaizhi avoid Meng Ruyi? Their relationship is like this. You're overthinking it!]
[The one who says overthinking must be a straight guy. He can't even see this. It's so funny.]
Meng Ruyi quickly glanced at the bullet comments. Although her expression remained the same, her mood was still affected.
"Well, it's good to take a rest. Maybe you'll be so busy that no one can find you in a few days."
Hearing this, Meng Ruyi originally wanted to smile, but her expression looked a bit forced. She turned her face away and looked at the scenery beside her, answering in a low voice.
"What's wrong?" Zhang Yunyun immediately asked when she saw this and cared, "You seem to be in a bad mood?"
Meng Ruyi didn't know how to describe her current mood, so she just shook her head and said to Zhang Yunyun, "It's okay. I'm just suddenly a bit tired."
Seeing that she didn't really want to talk, Zhang Yunyun sighed in her heart and didn't mention this matter anymore. She just chatted with Meng Ruyi intermittently.
"By the way." Meng Ruyi reached out and rubbed her side face and asked Zhang Yunyun, "Do you have any plans for your marriage?"
"Alas!"
Hearing the word "marriage", Zhang Yunyun couldn't help but let out a long sigh. Her look at Meng Ruyi was filled with indescribable melancholy.
"This matter is really troublesome." Zhang Yunyun pouted and looked around. Seeing that there was no one around, she continued, "My uncle and the others also plan to arrange this matter for me, but they're worried that I'm still immersed in what happened some time ago, so they haven't mentioned it to me."
"My father hasn't shown any signs for the time being." Zhang Yunyun said, looking a bit relaxed. She looked at Meng Ruyi and said, "This is also a good thing. At least I'm not like some girls who have no say in their own marriage."
Although she said so, Zhang Yunyun was still eager to get away from the Zhang family, so she would occasionally feel anxious.
Fortunately, there was still Meng Ruyi's care and help, which made her feel much better.
As they were talking, Meng Ruyi noticed a girl in a coarse - cloth dress holding a vegetable basket. There were some fresh vegetables in it, as well as some pure - white jasmine flowers.
They all looked very fresh, and the jasmine must smell very fragrant. It would be very suitable to put in the room as a decoration.
Meng Ruyi thought that she could just buy all the flowers. She would take some, Zhang Yunyun would take some, and she would also leave some for Song Huaizhi.
Just as she was about to walk over, she saw a man riding a horse rushing over, not caring about the pedestrians on the road at all.