"Second Young Master, in my opinion, it's not a bad thing if this marriage proposition fails."
Yurou turned her head towards Li Xuan again: "The reason Miss Xi has returned to Nanjing to discuss marriage with you is actually because her reputation has been damaged in Capital City, and she's come here to take refuge. Lady Xi confidently assured the lady of the house that she's as pure as a driven snow, it's just that she was wronged and slandered by malicious people. The lady of the house believes these lies, but I don't. I can't believe she has the audacity to compare herself with a swan."
That pavilion was originally dead silent, not a sound to be heard. But now Li Xuan could faintly hear the sound of heavy breathing coming from inside, and the sound of real wood being scraped by fingernails.
Leng Yurou seized the moment and bowed to Li Xuan: "I may have overstepped today, I hope you'll forgive me, but this woman's mouth is out of line, and she's insulted the lady of the house with her words. It's unbearable!"
"Is that a sin?" Li Xuan waved his hand, feeling greatly relieved and appreciative. He gave Leng Yurou a thumbs up: "Awesome!"
The crucial thing is that his mother's personal maid has clarified the truth; otherwise he would have believed that his family was in the wrong.
Leng Yurou was confused, obvious by the look in her eyes that she didn't understand the meaning of the word 'awesome', although she understood the thumbs up gesture by Li Xuan.
She replied calmly, "Then Yurou will go inform the lady of the house. You can go about your business."
Leng Yurou then picked up the lantern and left. Li Xuan then looked around, determined his direction, and strode towards the exit.
He wasn't interested in this garden party from the start. The only reason he had attended was because of the thousand teal reward offered by Mrs. Liu. Now that his mission was accomplished, Li Xuan certainly didn't want to stay a moment longer.
He was now addicted to practicing, finding the same thrill in advancing his powers as he had found in playing online games. Every growth of Zhenyuan made him feel fulfilled and he was looking forward to the evolution of the 'Hunyuan Celestial Scripture'.
Since the original body was well acquainted with the back garden of Duke Xuguo's residence, Li Xuan chose a quiet shortcut. But after a few steps, he felt regretful.
Just because at that moment, a roar like a lioness came from near the artificial hill: "Jiang Hanyun, I think you want to rebel! I sent you to meet Duke Xuguo's son, not to throw him into the pond for a swim!"
Li Xuan's first reaction when hearing these words was, 'fuck', another victim has appeared in Jinling city. Who could be so desperate to discuss marriage with Jiang Hanyun?
In the memories of the original body, she was terrifyingly beautiful, yet scared the hell out of him, Zhang Yue and Peng Fulai, even no dirty thoughts dared to creep in their minds.
It was rumored that when she was fourteen, she was engaged to someone, but on the day of their engagement, she nearly beat her fiancé to death.
Since then, no one who dared to propose to her had come out unscathed.
Yet, when Li Xuan turned his head to look, he saw the once mighty 'Iron-blooded Shura', 'Blood Hand Butcher', who made Situ Zhong, the iron heart of Ying Tian Government, change color upon hearing her name, was now scolded like a naughty cat by a middle-aged beautiful woman, grabbing her by the ear.
Three young girls were standing by their side, all with mocking smiles on their faces.
"You idiot, do you know how much effort I put into arranging this meeting with Duke Xuguo's son? I humiliated myself to do this favour for you, and see what you did, you punched him right into the pool. Do you want to infuriate your mother until she dies? How in the world did he offend you?"
Jiang Hanyun's face was as pale as ashes, she had lost all her commanding demeanor from Yamen. She answered weakly: "It's not my fault, what kind of a gentleman is Duke Xuguo's son? Who asked him to molest my daughter? Didn't I show restraint by just not breaking his limbs?"
She then gave the middle-aged beauty a pleasing smile: "Mother, please calm down, at least this time I didn't injure anyone, right?"
The beautiful woman's voice ratcheted up several degrees: "That's only because I placed a Vajra talisman on Duke Xuguo's son! You punched him eight feet away even with the talisman! If it weren't for that, wouldn't he have been smashed by you into a meatloaf?"
At that moment, her voice halted, and with Jiang Hanyun, their gaze simultaneously swept in Li Xuan's direction.
Li Xuan, with a wooden face, regretfully retracted the foot that had stepped on a broken branch. He thought to himself that the servants of Duke Xuguo's mansion were really lazy to an extreme degree. Even the fallen branches and leaves on the road were not swept clean. He decided to complain to the housekeeper the next time he came.
At the same time, he apologized to several people on the other side and planned to say, 'I just happened to pass by, I didn't mean to disturb you'. However, he found that Jiang Hanyun was looking at him for help. That look in her eyes was touching, filled with strong longing.
Li Xuan blinked, and then conveyed through his eyes that he was powerless to help. After going home today, he planned to offer incense and paper money to his superior, praying for blessings.
But incredibly, Jiang Hanyun seemed to understand his thoughts. Her face, once delicate enough to inflict calamity on the nation, was immediately enveloped by a menacing light, and her gaze became dangerously sharp.
A twitch jerked at the corner of Li Xuan's eye, and he saw Jiang Hanyun's lips move. She was mouthing the word 'murder'.
Though this was a long story to tell, in reality, the communication between the two was completed in a blink of an eye. Li Xuan's thoughts quickly shifted, and after a little consideration, he decided to give in, let out a sigh, picked a violet flower from the nearby flowers, and walked towards Jiang Hanyun.
"Clouds want to dress, flowers want to be beautiful,
The spring breeze brushes the steps and the dew is thick.
If it weren't for meeting on the top of yu mountain,
We would meet under the moonlight on the Yao terrace."
Seeing a cloud brings to mind her gorgeous clothes, seeing a flower brings to mind her beautiful face; the spring breeze brushes the banister and the dew on the flowers becomes richer.
Such heavenly beauty, not the celestial maiden seen on the top of Yu mountain, would be the goddess illuminated by the moonlight from in front of the Yao terrace.
His clothes fluttering, he strutted with grace, reciting one word with each step, and by the time he said the words 'under the moon,' he had already reached Jiang Hanyun. Then, smiling slightly, he fastened the violet in Jiang Hanyun's hair.
"I wonder if I would have the pleasure of inviting the goddess down for a stroll in this garden tonight?"
Jiang Hanyun stood there with an astonished look, completely unsure of how to respond.
She expected him to extend a helping hand in her distress, which was correct, but the problem was this guy's performance completely exceeded her expectations.
At this moment, Li Xuan, full of apologies, gave a formal bow to the equally stunned middle-aged woman nearby, "Madam, when I saw your daughter in the moonlight tonight, I was entranced by her beauty and couldn't help myself. I beg for your understanding for my rashness."
Upon regaining her senses, Lady Jiang laughed so hard that her eyes crinkled up, her gaze shone brightly, "Rash? Ha-ha! How could it be rash? I understand the thoughts of you young folks very well!"
Then with a hearty pat on Jiang Hanyun's back, she pushed her daughter to Li Xuan's side.
"The night is getting late, and Duke Xuguo's mansion will close the garden after the first watch. While you still have time, stroll around and chat."
As she said this, she shot a hard glance at Jiang Hanyun, who was looking back in shock. Her gaze was fierce, full of warning.