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: The Way of Favors Chapter 13\n
: The Way of Favors Chapter 15\n
Qi Ce knew that Fu Rong had purposely run into him.\n
The garden was luxuriant with flowers and trees, and the line of sight was easily obstructed. When the intersection was approaching, a familiar voice that came from over there could be heard, and the voice was soft like a bird chirping. Qi Ce couldnât help but lighten his steps, but he didnât know what he was expecting. When he got close, he took advantage of his tall height and saw through the branches and leaves that there were only Fu Rong and her servants. There was no Fu Wan, so he walked over to the side of the road to stay far away from them, to prevent them from running into each other.\n
But, he gave room, but the three girls did not. She walked out talking to her maids with her head turned to look at them. After taking her first step, she became stagnant, and it seemed as if she had calculated the distance wrong, so she then pretended to play a ducking game and ran towards him. With that accuracy and speed, he couldnât step away.\n
What did she want to do? Did she start to like him, and planned a coincidental encounter?\n
If she was someone else, Qi Ce would allow her to simply fall, but because of her special status, she would become his sister-in-law if there were no accidents.\n
All pampered girls get angry easily. It was said that Fu Wan loved his younger sisters very much, and Fu Rong was also Fu Pinyanâs most beloved daughter. Qi Ce didnât want to offend his sister-in-law before he got everything settled, so he had to reach out to help. As soon as Fu Rong steadied herself, Qi Ce immediately let go, and asked politely after backing up two steps, âI was walking hurriedly and ran into Lady Fu by accident. Is Lady Fu injured anywhere?â\n
Fu Rong lowered her head, looking at the bluestone road between the two of them. Space was enough to set up the grandmasterâs chair, and her head suddenly stiffened.\n
It shouldnât be like this.\n
Qi Ce had pulled her older sister into his arms in the previous life. The handsome young man and the red-faced girl were hugged together tightly. The scene was as beautiful as a painting, and at that time, Fu Rong forgot to be angry that someone was taking advantage of her older sister. After her sister died, this painting became a nightmare. She hated herself for being so blind, for mistaking a bastard for a polite and talented man, and for not persuading in time.\n
And Fu Rong planned to have Qiao Xing see the scene of Qi Ce hugging her. When Qi Ce came to her house to propose marriage, she would show her dissatisfaction and tell her mother secretly that Qi Ce once did something to her and only concealed it because of embarrassment. With the character displayed by Qi Ce, it would be hard for her mother to believe her, so she would ask Qiao Xing. As long as Qiao Xing admitted that it had happened, her mother naturally wouldnât ask more.\n
Her parents always doted on them, so how could they allow her older sister to marry a hypocrite who had behaved so badly?\n
But now, Qi Ce had only touched her arm in the whole process of helping her. His chest was still far away from her, and she couldnât frame him even if she wanted to!\n
âLady, are you alright?â Lan Xiang and Qiao Xing ran over anxiously.\n
Fu Rong raised her head and looked into Qi Ceâs peaceful eyes. She clenched her fists secretly, saying quietly, âSo itâs Big Brother Qi, why did you come here?â\n
She had a delicate voice, and it was rather irritating that she would say this after being run into. She sounded aggrieved but sounded differently in Qi Ceâs ears.\n
Realizing that the little girl had some thoughts about him, Qi Ce stopped looking at Fu Rongâs eyes and said concisely, âI made a few congratulatory messages with Brother Ling and the others, and I am about to go see my grandmother. If Third Lady is fine, I shall leave first. The others are still waiting for grandmother to choose the winner.â\n
He was too courteous, so Fu Rong had no reason to continue to pester him and walked to the side of the road to allow him to leave first.\n
Qi Ce strode away.\n
Fu Rong stared at his back, deep in thought. She was about to walk forward when she sensed that something was not right. Turning her head back, she saw Qiao Xingâs probing look. Fu Rong was startled. Qiao Xing was her motherâs first-grade maid, and her mind had always been transparent. Just now, she showed some traces because Qi Ce was too far away. Did Qiao Xing discover anything?\n
âOlder Sister Qiao, I ran into Brother Qi Ce because I accidentally tripped. If my mother knows about this, she would be angry about my clumsiness, so Iâm asking Older Sister Qiao to keep this from her.â\n
She tugged at Qiao Xinâs sleeve, begging her.\n
Qiao Xing was a few years older than Fu Rong. They interacted often, and this wasnât the first time that she had to keep matters a secret for Fu Rong. If it was a normal small mistake, she would happily forget about it, but this matter involves the girlâs reputation. Even if Third Lady admired Young Master Qi Ce, she shouldnât be so frivolous. It wouldnât be good for the entire Fu family if this got out.\n
âMy lady, rest assured, this matter isnât worth telling Madam. Iâm not some reporting machine.â Qiao Xing said comfortingly as she smiled, then reminded her euphemistically, âBut after this time, my lady needs to remember to pay more attention to where you are walking in the future. If you fall, it would be troublesome if you get hurt.â\n
She didnât offend Fu Rong and also warned her. If Fu Rong was guilty, she would be able to hear it from her voice.\n
Fu Rong knew that Qiao Xing didnât have any evil intentions, so she hurriedly promised that she would be obedient, like a naive child.\n
When Fu Rong returned to her seat, Qi Ce was standing on the side of Old Madam Qi, reading his congratulatory message to the elder in a loud voice. His posture was as tall as a pine tree, his voice clear and meaningful, pleasing to both the heart and eye.\n
Fu Rong looked around quickly and found that no matter madam or old madam or young girl, all eyes were on Qi Ce.\n
Fu Rong analyzed her older sister.\n
Fu Wanâs eyes looked down, calm as water, but her fingers on her knee were clasped tightly and matched well with Qi Ceâs rhythm.\n
Fu Rong was even more anxious. Even if her older sister hadnât fallen for him yet, she still was admiring him. The marriage had always been the decision between parents. Their parents doted on them and would ask them for their opinions first. But her older sister was different from her. She was most polite, and if Qi Ce wasnât cunning, she wouldnât say a word to a man she didnât know, but if it was her parentsâ decision, her sister will start to appreciate and admire the other person. She wouldnât protest.\n
Madam Qi, who was close by, was also analyzing Fu Wan. Seeing that Fu Wan hadnât peeked at her son, she nodded slightly.\n
In terms of personality, Fu Wan matched her expectations. In terms of family status, Fu Pinyan was an official who was a little lower in position than her husband, but he had become a fourth-ranking official at the young age of thirty-three. He was sophisticated, and his future was limitless. And even though Fu Pinyan was the son of a concubine, he was the second master of Yingyang Marquis Manor. She had also heard that after the first daughter of the Fu family had become the concubine of the crown prince, the emperor had taken more importance in the Yingyang Marquis Manor and promoted him to a third-ranking official.\n
She was definitely for this marriage. It wouldnât hurt to ask her son about it after the banquet ends.\n
In the calm silence, Qi Ce finished his reading, asking Old Madam Qi with a smile, âGrandmother, which one do you like the most?â\n
The females couldnât help but listen. When Qi Ce was reading the poems, he didnât say who the writer was. Now that it was time for Old Madam Qi to choose the winner, the winnerâs name at least needed to be said. And the people who could send congratulatory messages over could only be young masters of high status.\n
Old Madam Qi was smiling so broadly that her eyes were curved crescents. She glanced left and right, saying a little helplessly, âHow would I understand these poems, they all sound good!â\n
Madam Qi said, smiling, âYour daughter-in-law also doesnât understand. I just heard many and would forget every one I heard. Mother, you should pick the two phrases that you remember most clearly. It will be just like us buying jewelry, the most attractive one is your favorite one. Am I right?â\n
Old Madam Qi nodded her head, âThis does make sense, let me think.â\n
The guests also all tried to remember.\n
Fu Xuan asked Fu Rong quietly, âWhich phrase does Third Older Sister like most?â\n
Fu Rong smiled bitterly. She didnât listen carefully at all, but, she did remember two phrases, the two phrases that Old Madam Qi in the previous life had chosen.\n
âI like this one the most, âSudden auspicious clouds fell in front of the gate, the old fairy held out the peach to celebrate longevityâ, who wrote this?â Old Madam Qi said after a short while, âWhen I recite these two sentences, the scene seems so magical and realistic as if Iâve seen the old immortal. I donât know which young master would think like this.â\n
Qi Ce flipped out a piece of paper, looked at the inscription, smiling, âReplying to grandmother, this is written by Yun Sheng. His Highness Prince Kang just married, so Yun Sheng followed the prince and princess consort to the capital, but he still thinks about you and especially sent over this congratulatory message.â\n
When the familiar name entered her ears, Fu Rong lowered her head, rubbing the backs of her hands distractedly.\n
Yun Sheng was Xu Yanâs subordinate. Their prince manor had a good relationship with the Qi family, and Xu Yan and Qi Ce were also friends, so it was perfectly reasonable to send a gift over.\n
Fu Rong didnât listen to the rest of the conversation, but the little girls present all showed traces of longing.\n
Xindu City had two most distinguished and handsome young masters. No matter how good Qi Ce was, he could only rank second, because no matter if it was appearance or status, Xu Jin exceeded him by three points. Truthfully, Fu Chen was more good-looking, but the Fu family didnât have very deep roots in Xindu City, so there werenât many girls that have seen Fu Chen, so his popularity would naturally be behind Qi Ce.\n
Learning that the winner was Xu Yan, Old Madam Qi couldnât stop praising him.\n
Fu Rong was in a daze.\n
If Xu Yan was here, he would undoubtedly smile humbly like the most gentle jade. If he saw her, his eyes would be full of gentleness.\n
He was the man that treated her best besides her father and older brother in the previous life, and also the man she felt she owed.\n
The peony bloomed brilliantly in the sun, and Fu Rong looked towards the purple peony plant as if she had just seen her short-term marriage with Xu Yan.\n
Happy, frustrating, vivid.\n
No one noticed her distracted look, except for Qi Ce, who was about to leave.\n
Qi Ce didnât plan to look at her, as he was looking at Fu Wan, but Fu Rong was sitting at Fu Wanâs side, and seeing that Fu Wan still hadnât looked over at him, Qi Ce glanced at Fu Rong before taking back his gaze.\n
But he saw the little girl staring forward, the autumn-like eyes containing regret and sorrow that did not match her age.\n
Qi Ce told himself that he shouldnât look, it wouldnât be good if someone saw him.\n
But he couldnât help it, because her complexity now was different from the little girl who tried to attract him by clumsy means.\n
Fu Rong was not a sentimental person, but when she heard her ex-husbandâs name, it was inevitable for her to remember some things of the past, and she soon regained her senses. After regaining her senses, she instinctively went to look at Qi Ce but discovered Qi Ce was no longer at Old Madam Qiâs side. She looked around curiously to meet Qi Ceâs inquiring gaze.\n
Why was he looking at her?\n
Yes, he must be secretly looking at her older sister. It was his guilty conscience that immediately noticed her gaze.\n
Thinking of this, Fu Rong gave Qi Ce a fierce look.\n
Qi Ce froze, then smiled, no longer nostalgic, and walked towards the trail ahead unhurriedly.\n
Was it because she caught him secretly peeping at her sister but not her, so she was unhappy? So shallow, sheâs even jealous of her own older sister, sheâs spoiled rotten.\n