"It seems I've come at a bad time."
Chu Yingfeng almost dropped the small teacup in his hand.
Hesitating, he asked, "Is it because of Lord Pei?"
Cui Jintang didn't try to hide it and just gave a soft "mm-hmm".
Chu Yingfeng forced a bitter smile.
After a long while, he said, "I was out of line. I'm sorry."
"Don't worry about the matter of Grand Tutor Pan."
Cui Jintang raised an eyebrow. "As long as you're at the bookstore, no one will dare to make trouble for you easily in the future."
Chu Yingfeng looked at her, his eyes flickering.
He couldn't help smiling at her. "Thank you."
---
At the Cui Mansion on Shili Street.
A few days ago, Cui Jintang went to Qinghe. After she came back, she was poisoned at a banquet. The account books from various shops in the capital had piled up like a mountain.
After two days of busyness, she finally got a moment of free time.
The sycamore leaves in the courtyard had started to turn yellow these days. Occasionally, one or two would flutter down and land on the bluestone slabs.
Just looking at them made one feel at ease.
However.
Cui Jintang was sitting on a stone bench in the stone pavilion, holding a scroll of paper in her hand, looking rather gloomy.
Opposite her, A Xun was sitting at the stone table.
She nervously clutched the corner of her clothes, but couldn't help stealing glances at Cui Jintang with her bright, expectant eyes.
A Xun was timid. She didn't dare to hand in the article she had written to the academy teacher rashly, so she brought it to Cui Jintang.
At first, Cui Jintang didn't understand what this meant.
She stroked A Xun's head, found a comfortable sitting position, and then opened the first page of the paper.
The more she read, the deeper her frown became.
When she turned another page, she couldn't help making a soft "hmm".
A Xun carefully handed her a piece of paper on which was written: Sister, is my writing really bad?
"Well, not exactly..."
She carefully considered how to gently tell the girl that her writing was too superficial.
Suddenly, the bamboo curtain in the courtyard was gently lifted.
"Miss Cui," came a gentle and melodious voice.
Chu Yingfeng stepped into the courtyard, holding an account book in his hand. With a smiling face, he was as gentle and modest as ever.
He was wearing a light cyan long gown today, which made his temperament even more gentle and refined.
Chu Yingfeng paused for a moment, then looked at A Xun and said kindly, "Young Master Xun."
A Xun's eyes lit up. She stood up and bowed to him.
Cui Jintang looked up. When she saw him, it was as if she had seen a savior. "Mr. Chu is here!"
Chu Yingfeng walked over slowly and presented the account book. "This is the account of the bookstore from last month. I've sorted it out and come here specially to check it with you, miss."
"Put the account book aside for now."
Cui Jintang took the account book and casually placed it on the stone table. Then she quickly handed the scroll of paper in her hand to him. "Coincidentally, A Xun has written an article. If you're free, could you please take a look?"
Hearing this, A Xun's eyes lit up. She quickly held the stack of papers with both hands and carefully handed them to Chu Yingfeng.
Chu Yingfeng was a bit stunned for a moment, then he smiled gently and took the papers. "Sure."
He lowered his head to read, looking very carefully.
He also picked up a cinnabar pen from the stone table and carefully corrected the mistakes on A Xun's scroll.
Immediately, A Xun stood up straight. She nervously clutched the corner of her clothes, but couldn't help stealing glances at Chu Yingfeng's expression.
However, the more Chu Yingfeng read, the deeper his frown became. Finally, he simply closed the papers. Looking into Cui Jintang's eyes, he couldn't help smiling.
"Young Master Xun's calligraphy is extremely good. The emotions in the whole article are also very sincere. If you practice more, it will surely become a masterpiece in time."
A Xun, who had been praised, suddenly brightened up. She nodded vigorously and proudly raised her head at Cui Jintang.
Cui Jintang, who had seen what a ridiculous article A Xun had written, was speechless.
She held her forehead and couldn't help shaking her head. "Mr. Chu really knows how to speak."
Chu Yingfeng smiled. "I've made you laugh."
Just as the atmosphere in the courtyard was harmonious and happy.
"Ding dang—"
The beaded curtain in the courtyard was lifted, causing the strings of jade beads to jingle.
Cui Jintang was reclining on the imperial concubine's couch and looked over with a smile.
Pei Zhaolin, who had somehow barged in, was now standing in front of the beaded curtain, looking at the three of them from afar.
Pei Zhaolin's gaze slowly swept over, over Chu Yingfeng with a gentle smile and A Xun who was holding her face with both hands, looking at Cui Jintang with hope.
One, two. There were quite a few people!
From a distance, Cui Jintang couldn't quite see his expression clearly, so she just greeted him. "Why are you here?"
Hearing this, Pei Zhaolin lowered his head and let out a soft laugh.
He almost gritted his teeth as he said, "It seems I've come at a bad time."
Just the tone of his voice made anyone who heard it feel that he was being sarcastic.
Chu Yingfeng noticed the commotion and looked up. When he saw Pei Zhaolin, he was slightly stunned.
Chu Yingfeng slowly stood up and bowed. "This commoner pays respects to Lord Pei."
For a moment, Pei Zhaolin didn't reply. Instead, he looked at Chu Yingfeng with a sharp, knife-like gaze.
He twitched the corner of his lips, with a cold glint in his eyes. "Why is Mr. Chu here?"
Chu Yingfeng said gently, "I've come to present the account book of the bookstore from last month for Miss Cui to check."
Before Cui Jintang could stop him, Chu Yingfeng had already revealed a bit of her secret.
Looking up, she saw Pei Zhaolin striding in.
The look in his eyes when he looked at her was filled with disbelief. "Why didn't I know there was a bookstore of yours in the capital?"
Cui Jintang felt a bit guilty. "Her Royal Highness the Princess bought it on a whim a few days ago. I'm just helping to manage it."
Suddenly realizing that he had said the wrong thing, Chu Yingfeng showed an apologetic expression.
Pei Zhaolin's mind was working very fast at this moment.
"So, he lives in your bookstore and you see each other every day?"
Cui Jintang coughed. "It's the princess's bookstore."
Pei Zhaolin was incredulous. "You didn't deny that you see each other every day just now?"
Seeing that Pei Zhaolin was starting to get obsessive, Cui Jintang quickly called A Xun over. "Take Mr. Chu to the East Courtyard. If you have time, you might as well show all your other precious articles to Mr. Chu."
A Xun immediately nodded.
She turned around and happily pointed a direction for Chu Yingfeng, then skipped away leading the way.
She looked exactly like the hostess here.
Just looking at her, Pei Zhaolin felt his qi and blood boiling.
"You've brought that young lute player from the Jinyu Workshop to live in the mansion?"
Cui Jintang was speechless.
Pei Zhaolin's chest was heaving constantly.
He grabbed Cui Jintang's wrist and blurted out, "If you want to listen to music or find a young lover, why don't you come to me? I can do it too—"
Not wanting to listen anymore, Cui Jintang immediately jumped up and covered his ears.
She closed her eyes, looking completely desperate.
She gritted her teeth and squeezed out each word.
"I took pity on her because she's so young. That's why I redeemed her from the Jinyu Workshop!"
Hearing this.
"I'm also very pitiful," Pei Zhaolin lowered his head, his nose almost touching hers. "Why don't you, Miss Cui, show some mercy and take me in too?"