Chapter 298: Chapter 294: Ready

Within three days, everyone in the camp heard a piece of news.

The girl who originally followed Miss Qin was nearly insulted by a drunken soldier. After being rescued by Young Master Qin, perhaps out of pity or some other reason, she was transferred to serve by Young Master Qin’s side.

The first to come questioning was Gu Wei.

Though Gu Wei doesn’t have much of a presence, he is the second legitimate son of the eldest branch of the Gu family, Gu Hui’s biological elder brother, and the third cousin of Second Miss Tang.

Even though he doesn’t speak much usually, he is currently the one with the most authority around Second Miss Tang.

Upon entering, Gu Wei gave Hua Jian a cold glance and said, “The blood of Duke Yan and the Gu Family is noble and not to be desecrated. You should take care of yourselves!”

After speaking, he didn’t wait for Li Mu to respond and left with a flick of his sleeves.

Then, Gu Hui and Tao Fen came together.

Gu Hui’s eyes were somewhat like Tang Xiaobai’s, round when glaring and without much presence when not.

“What do you mean by this? Don’t think you can do whatever you want because Xiao Bai favors you!”

Tao Fen sighed and held his forehead.

Shouldn’t you mix a bit of toughness; at least throw in some harsh words?

Li Mu knew these cousins from the Gu family were all fond of Tang Xiaobai, so he adopted a softer attitude, “I have my own plans.”

But Gu Hui couldn’t tell if his attitude had softened. He still felt it was cold and indifferent, and the words were quite unkind, so he grew angrier: “If you dare wrong Xiao Bai in the slightest, I’ll, I’ll snatch her back!”

Tao Fen: “!!!”

Are you here to provoke?

Li Mu’s face instantly darkened, “When was she ever yours, talking about snatching her back?”

Gu Hui responded proudly, “My father once promised that if I pass the provincial examination before my coming-of-age and attain a Sixth Rank official position, he would request to marry Second Cousin Tang for me!”

Li Mu sneered, “Impossible!”

Tao Fen couldn’t help but nudge Gu Hui, “Aren’t you fond of Miss Qin?”

Gu Hui’s face turned red with a “whoosh”: “No, no! You’re, you’re talking nonsense!”

He gave Li Mu another glare and left a harsh line: “You just wait!” With a vigorous shake of his sleeves, he left.

Tao Fen was relatively calm about it.

After Gu Hui left, he watched Hua Jian retreat before speaking: “They do look alike, but we shouldn’t have seen wrong.”

“How could I have seen wrong?” Li Mu was still riled by Gu Hui, his words were still icy, with no hint of warmth.

Looking back at him in this demeanor, Tao Fen smiled reassuringly: “The Gu family sons are too concerned to think clearly; I certainly trust Master Qin would not act in such a way. You and Second Miss have grown up together, facing life and death together; your feelings are deep and intense. How could such inferior means affect them?”

Only then did Li Mu’s expression soften.

“However—” Tao Fen shifted his tone, his eyes flickering a couple of times, moved closer to Li Mu, and lowered his voice, “Master Qin is young, maybe unaware of the tricks of these low paths, especially when sending a woman like this. Some tricks, a decent person wouldn’t think of. If you don’t mind, shall I tell you about them?”

Li Mu suddenly recalled the scene in Tang Xiaobai’s tent that day, and his face flushed.

Tao Fen was about to say more, but seeing him blush, he was taken aback: “You know? You know about those matters between men and women? You’ve learned so much already?” Could he have secretly learned bad things behind Second Miss Tang?

Li Mu didn’t want to discuss such topics with him and picked up the document on the desk to pretend reading.

But Tao Fen didn’t wisely leave. He frowned muttering, “How do you know? Did someone teach you? Don’t blame me for being nosy, but some people constantly dwell on these matters and want to involve others—”

“No!” Li Mu put down the document and said sternly, “It was someone close!”

But his mind was adrift.

So she indeed wants… wants to be with him?

“That’s good! That’s good!” Tao Fen was suddenly enlightened, “Master Qin is also at the age to understand these things—,” pausing, he sighed, “If you return to the Capital City this year, you and the Second Miss should also… That’s wonderful! That’s wonderful!”

Whenever Li Mu thought of that day, he couldn’t suppress his thoughts.

After dismissing Tao Fen, he couldn’t hold back and went out as well.

…

Tang Xiaobai was not in the camp today.

She finally waited until she was presentable and followed Lv Xia to survey the lands.

Li Mu searched for a long time before finding her by the river thirty miles away.

She was still dressed as a boy as usual, but he always felt there was something different about her.

She stood there, appearing thin and fragile.

But he remembered the other day when she placed his hand on her shoulder. Even through the thin garment, his palm could clearly trace the smooth lines of her girlish shoulder.

Her arm that she raised to point forward was delicate, yet he remembered how softly she wrapped it around his neck then, as if to draw his soul out.

And…

Li Mu was so lost in thought that he even forgot to keep walking closer.

Tang Xiaobai suddenly sensed something. She turned to look and caught him gazing at her with a dazed expression, her face turned red. Fearing it would attract more attention, she hurried towards him.

“Why are you here?” Tang Xiaobai asked softly.

Logically, if the little master kept Hua Jian by his side, she shouldn’t be pleased, and it would be best if they had a falling out.

But the little master was unwilling, so she merely reduced the number of meetings.

It was just one day off, and today he eagerly came looking.

“I wanted to see you,” he said softly, his eyes moist, looking harmless yet hiding a longing.

Tang Xiaobai’s face turned even redder.

That day, she just thought, the more a pure-hearted youth who hasn’t even held a girl’s hand, the easier he’ll lose control when faced with temptation.

Since they’re in a relationship, kissing and hugging should be pretty normal, right?

It wouldn’t hurt to give a simple introduction about the differences between men and women, would it?

But before she could even begin to explain, he… started acting weird…

In the end, she could only make an excuse of feeling unwell and casually sent him away.

Originally, she thought she was just speeding up the process a bit, but now it seems she might have pulled the “progress bar” a bit too much.

Since then, every time the little ancestor saw her, he wore a face of insatiability, sticking to her even more than before.

“I’ve seen you, hurry back then!” Tang Xiaobai couldn’t bear to look at him, remembering that day.

“Ah Jiao,” he suddenly grabbed her hand, “Actually, it’s okay if we don’t keep the mute girl.”

For the sake of the so-called plan, having to endure just to see her didn’t seem worth it to Li Mu.

But as soon as he said that, she immediately glared at him, shook off his hand, and said, “Since we already kept her, no abandoning halfway!”

Li Mu was silent for a moment, then asked, “Do you want to go up to Fuyun Heap?”

“Why go there?” Tang Xiaobai was puzzled.

He obviously thought for a moment before answering, “To see the new town.”

Tang Xiaobai thought it over and understood.

Fuyun Heap, due to its high terrain, offers a bird’s-eye view of the camp and the town under construction, so it’s generally not open to everyone.

Which means, there’s not many people up there.

Inviting her to a place with no people for no good reason—

“No!” Tang Xiaobai refused outright, “You better go back! Get some serious work done!” Stop showing off your love obsession to her every day!

Saying this, she directly pushed him, turning him around.

But… he didn’t budge.

Li Mu caught her hand.

It was soft and gentle.

No wonder literati would call a woman’s hand a rosy and delicate hand, truly soft and tender, as if it might melt in his palm at any moment.

He had held her hand before.

Previously, holding it made him feel happy and content.

But now, it felt far from enough.

“Really not going?” Li Mu couldn’t help but ask again, still wanting to try his luck.

She blushed and scolded him with a glance, pulling her hand back, “Are you leaving or not?”

“No,” Li Mu said, “I’ve actually planned to inspect the farmland reclamation today.”

Tang Xiaobai: …

What kind of enticement is this?

Isn’t he still revolving around her?

…

“Even though Qin Xiao has taken Hua Jian into his tent, he still circles around Second Miss Tang all day long.”

“Second Miss Tang is young and lacks allure. No matter how much Qin Xiao admires this flower on the ridge, he can only watch from afar, while the one beside him is a temptress within reach.”

Li Shu remained noncommittal, then asked, “Are all preparations complete?”

“In response to Your Highness, everything is ready.”

“Then let’s return to the Capital City!”

…

“Li Shu plans to return to the Capital City.” Li Mu said.

The letter in his hand was a memorial Li Shu sent to the Capital City to report back.

It was a report on the mandate to build towns.

With the three cities already completed, if nothing unexpected happens, once Li Shu submits this memorial, the court will issue an edict ordering him, Li Xingyuan, and others to return to the Capital City with Li Shu.

“Is he ready?” Tang Xiaobai asked.

Li Mu nodded.

Tang Xiaobai was puzzled, “So what did he prepare for?”

Surely it can’t just be about placing a Hua Jian, right?

Li Mu handed the memorial to Mo Huan, saying, “Perhaps, he’s ready to put a knife in our hands—”

“Just in time, I’m also ready to take that knife—”

His first target had never been Li Shu.

(End of Volume Three)

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep