Chapter 57: Jealousy Clouds the Mind

Gentle waves rippled under the moonlight, creating circles of ripples. Several painted boats were moored by the shore, with the sound of stringed and bamboo instruments playing continuously.

Meng Jun wore a veiled hat, hiding behind a large tree and constantly peeking out. Tonight, he had deliberately worn dark clothing. He watched as several painted boats had already drifted towards the center of the lake, but there was no sign of the person he was supposed to meet.

Strange, could it be that Weidan didn’t deliver the message?

The young man anxiously pursed his lips and put another candied fruit in his mouth. He had rushed here right after taking his medicine, and now the bitter taste kept rising to his nose, making him scrunch up his face.

“Young master, could it be that Master Hu forgot about this? Should I send someone to check at Qingshan Academy?” Zhidong, crouching in the bushes for a while, had yawned several times. It was now completely dark, and he rubbed his nearly stiff legs as he quietly suggested.

“Aning is not a careless man. He must have been held up by something, that’s why he’s late.”

Zhidong’s words made Meng Jun hesitate, but it would take half an hour to go from the shore to Qingshan Academy and back. They still needed to coordinate with Weidan soon, and if Zhidong couldn’t make it back in time, the plan would likely be exposed.

He shook his head, and as he looked up, he saw two carriages arriving one after another. He recognized the first person to alight – it was Lord Qin Rong, the Vice Minister of Rites. The second carriage, however, was not carrying young ladies, but rather some young men wearing thin veils.

Among them, one looked extremely familiar to the young master.

He leaned forward slightly, and as that young man turned to board the boat, he caught a clear glimpse of him in the lantern light from the painted boat.

Qingping!

It was that male courtesan who had been clinging to Li Ruantang, not so subtly, but rather blatantly.

His fingers tightened on the tree trunk, feeling somewhat uncomfortable. He had heard that these days, Li Ruantang had been spending almost every night with him. Although Weidan had explained it was to keep up appearances, this male courtesan was dressed scantily and was quite attractive.

During the long nights, if he were to use some fragrance, wouldn’t he end up completely devouring Li Ruantang?

No, absolutely not!

“Young master?” Seeing the young man in front of him glaring angrily at the painted boat, Zhiqiu pondered for a moment and moved him further behind the tree, “Are you thinking about Lady Li?”

Actually, this question didn’t need to be asked – it was obvious. Over the years, no matter how much fuss Han Fushi made, his young master had never been annoyed or angry.

Others might not know the reason, but as servants who had followed their master for several years, how could they not understand? It was simply because he didn’t care, so he couldn’t be bothered to waste his emotions.

Even when he was naive and appreciating Wei Yunruo, he would only mention her for half an hour when they occasionally met.

But from childhood to adulthood, there was only one person who could make the young master happy or gloomy for a long time, regardless of big or small matters.

When he ate delicious pastries, he would lean over the wall to share; when praised by the teacher, he would also lean over the wall to boast; even when it was about to rain, he would still lean over the wall, watching from afar, worried that the young lady, who was still young at the time, had no one to keep her company.

Until Lady Li accidentally pulled off the young master’s belt, but this couldn’t be entirely blamed on Lady Li. Zhiqiu was old enough to understand then, and could see that someone else had deliberately tripped her. Lady Li had nothing to grab onto, which led to the young master losing face.

Although the young master cried in shame at that time, his small figure stubbornly sat in the corridor, staring at the top of the wall again and again.

Unfortunately…

Zhiqiu sighed. The young Lady Li suddenly left the capital for the border to gain experience, without leaving a single word.

From that day on, the young master never mentioned Li Ruantang’s name again.

A good pair of childhood friends almost became strangers.

Zhiqiu looked at the still pouting Meng Jun with great emotion, and quickly lowered his voice to persuade, “Young master, don’t worry. Lady Li is not the type of woman to dally in the flower gardens.”

“Of course I know she wouldn’t.” The young man sulkily looked away, but he was still unhappy. Especially when he thought of others accompanying her, his heart felt as if he had dipped dumplings in too much vinegar, sour to the core.

“Young master, look.” Zhidong, who was keeping watch in the bushes, brightened up and turned to make a gesture to the two hiding behind the tree.

Meng Jun carefully peeked out, and in the distance, Hu Youning had finally arrived.

“Aning!” When he got closer, the young master suddenly jumped out from behind the tree, his eyes curved in a smile as he waved at him.

It had been a long time since they’d seen each other, and Hu Youning seemed to have grown up a bit, looking more and more like Zhou Fulang. His naturally smiling eyes now had a hint of spring breeze contentment, unlike when he was in Hu Village.

He slightly adjusted his slightly open collar, stopped in front of Meng Jun, and bowed respectfully.

“Young Master Meng.” Hu Youning’s tone was flat, “May I ask why you’ve summoned me so late at night?”

“Aning, what’s wrong?”

Hu Youning bit his lip and remained silent.

The young master was stunned, not understanding why he suddenly became so distant. But at this moment, Fang Zhi was about to arrive, and they needed to board the boat quickly.

Meng Jun signaled Zhiqiu to inform Weidan, who was waiting on the boat. He lowered his voice and said suggestively, “The moonlight is nice tonight, so I wanted to invite you to watch a show.”

“Watch a show?” Hu Youning was puzzled but followed Meng Jun onto a painted boat by the shore.

The water rippled gently, and the moonlight shone through the window lattice, casting a soft glow.

“This is…”

Hu Youning frowned slightly, looking at the gray-blue servant’s outfit that Zhiqiu handed over, “Young Master Meng, this show?”

“Aning, please change into this first.” From behind the screen came Meng Jun’s clear voice, “I’ll take you to another painted boat in a moment.”

He peeked out slightly, saying seriously, “Seeing is believing, hearing is deceiving. There are some things I want you to see for yourself before making a judgment.”

Hu Youning’s heart skipped a beat, “Do you know something?” His hand secretly retreated into his sleeve, his smiling eyes warily surveying the surroundings.

“Aning, don’t worry, I would never harm you.” The young master tightened the gray-blue servant’s outfit he was wearing, and after some thought, picked up a wrapped oilpaper package and hid it in his sleeve.