He stopped in front of a teahouse.
From the dark alley next to it, a large man quickly walked out and bowed beside him, “Sir.”
Wei Yuzhi opened his mouth, but cold air rushed into his throat, making him cough uncontrollably.
The large man saw a strand of white hair scattered on his shoulder and exclaimed in shock, “Has the sir’s condition worsened? Let’s go to Liao to find Doctor Ning!”
“Don’t you know whose man Doctor Ning is?” Wei Yuzhi asked indifferently.
“But…”
Wei Yuzhi interrupted him, “Now it’s Divine Doctor Mo who’s treating me.”
“Really!” The large man said happily.
“Don’t spread this news for now,” Wei Yuzhi took a breath and continued, “including to Mei Ruyan.”
“Yes,” the large man answered solemnly.
Wei Yuzhi said, “Wait for me peacefully at the estate.”
The large man hesitated for a moment, “How about I stay close to protect you, sir?”
Wei Yuzhi turned his head slightly, his faint gaze falling on the man, who quickly lowered his head, “I’ll follow your orders, sir.”
With that, he disappeared into the crowd.
In the endless flow of people, their conversation wasn’t long, and they quickly parted ways without drawing any attention.
Wei Yuzhi heard the sound of gongs and drums ahead and continued walking forward.
He stood in the middle of the road and looked over. The crowd was dense, and a puppet show was being performed on the stage. One of the puppets in luxurious robes was pacing on the stage, and someone was singing: “Morning clouds scatter blue silk strands, tower pavilions fade in spring’s embrace. Willows weep, flowers lament. Nine streets heavy with mud swallows fly late beyond the gate. Now bright sun illuminates golden chambers, spring colors bloom on peach branches…”
Wei Yuzhi sensed a familiar person getting closer. He turned to look, his gaze passing through layers of silhouettes, meeting another gaze head-on.
The singing continued: “Unlike that time. Small tower in the rain, hidden sorrows known to two.”
An Jiu saw Wei Yuzhi standing among the crowd from afar, and her heart skipped a beat. The lyrics that had been background noise suddenly became crystal clear in her ears.
She knew this was how Wei Yuzhi felt.
“What does the song on stage mean?” An Jiu murmured.
Sheng Changying, standing beside her, heard and explained, “The lyrics tell a story about Emperor Wu of Han hiding his beloved in a golden chamber. It generally expresses that the woman once loved is now hidden away by someone else in a golden chamber.”
Among the crowd, Chu Dingjiang accurately found the end point of An Jiu’s gaze and unconsciously tightened his grip on her hand.
An Jiu came back to her senses and pointed at the fried snacks nearby. “I want to eat. Buy some.”
Chu Dingjiang took out money without a word.
Before the vendor could wrap up the snacks, her gaze was attracted by the dragon’s beard candy next door. She tugged on Chu Dingjiang’s sleeve, “Buy.”
Chu Dingjiang continued to take out money, not even asking the price, just tossing silver ingots one after another.
After getting the fried snacks and dragon’s beard candy, An Jiu first pinched one of each and put it in her mouth. The sweetness made her squint her eyes, and she then picked up another to feed Chu Dingjiang.
As they ate and walked, before they had gone ten steps, An Jiu saw sugar figurines ahead and tugged on Chu Dingjiang’s sleeve again, “Buy.”
Zhu Pianpian covered her heart, “Such hard-earned money… I can’t bear to watch. Husband, please take me back.”
Sheng Changying asked Sui Yunzhu to inform Chu Dingjiang, then supported Zhu Pianpian while shielding her from potential collisions. “They only spend this much money once a year, it’s not too much. Would you like to buy some to try, my lady?”
“Ah!” Zhu Pianpian said with heartache, “How come I didn’t see how wasteful you were before I married you!”
Sheng Changying hurriedly comforted her, “I grew up in a place where we didn’t need to spend money, so I don’t understand these things well. From now on, I’ll let you manage all the money, and I’ll listen to whatever you say.”
Hearing him say this, Zhu Pianpian looked up and saw the heavy dark circles under his eyes. She hugged his arm, feeling distressed, and her attitude immediately softened, “Husband, don’t work so hard in the future. Spending money is a small matter, we can’t let it wear you out.”
Sheng Changying blushed slightly and said softly, “I used to think my life was too bitter, but now I think I must have suffered even more in my past lives to be blessed enough to marry you in this one.”
Mo Sigui, hearing their voices getting farther away, couldn’t help but click his tongue, “I thought Changying was a simpleton, but it turns out he’s quite the fox.”
Sui Yunzhu laughed, “In a place like the Crane Control Bureau, being just a good person isn’t enough to make everyone like you.”
“Huh, where did they go?” Mo Sigui craned his neck to look around, realizing they had lost sight of the glutton who couldn’t move when she saw food.
Sui Yunzhu said, “It doesn’t matter, the master is with her.”
“Tch, I’m not worried about her,” Mo Sigui smacked his lips. “She drank so much just now, I just wanted to follow and see if anything interesting happens.”
An Jiu’s drinking behavior wasn’t very good. When drunk, she became a complete madwoman, creating quite a spectacle.
However, although Mo Sigui said this, it wasn’t truly out of boredom. He was curious because this time, An Jiu clearly showed signs of intoxication but showed no signs of going crazy. He wanted to study if it had anything to do with Wei Yuzhi’s heart blood.
Chu Dingjiang and An Jiu had already reached a noodle stall and were about to sit down when a man in black approached, “Master.”
Chu Dingjiang didn’t turn around and said coldly, “Leave.”
The man in black was Su, who had once followed Chu Dingjiang but then turned against him for a woman.
Su said, “I have urgent matters, otherwise I wouldn’t want to see you again.”
The noodles weren’t ready yet. An Jiu stood up and said, “I’m going to buy chestnut cakes from across the street to take back.”
Chu Dingjiang could see a chestnut cake vendor about a hundred paces ahead, so he nodded, “Go ahead.”
An Jiu took a bag of silver and went over.