Episode 90

Song Caitang had failed to avoid Guan Rongrong’s harassing when it came to attending the Gao family’s party.

She couldn’t have, anyway.

Madam Zhang had prepared for this day for a long time and had used every connection she had to secure an invitation. She was the mistress of this house and this was a party that was targeted at young ladies no less, so regardless of whether it was for her own benefit or her daughter’s future, she would definitely bring Guan Rongrong along with her.

Earlier on, Madam Zhang had hoped to use the chance to attend this party to force Song Caitang to listen obediently to her. But when Ling Qianqian’s handwritten invitation reached their doorstep, her entire expression fell.

Her pride was hurt, and she felt hate, annoyance, jealousy and all sorts of negative feelings. But she also started making plans.

She was someone who was willing to do anything for the sake of higher gains, even if she had to behave shamelessly. Such negative emotions only lasted for a while, and she could vent it out by snipping the stalks off a few flowers while arranging them. Once she thought about how she would still have the chance to do Song Caitang in the future, she started planning how to create opportunities for her own daughter.

Her invitation card had been obtained after going through several layers of people and it wasn’t directly from the Gaos. There was no way she could have gotten it directly. But Song Caitang’s invitation had been handwritten by Ling Qianqian, the VIP of this party, so that was very significant in itself.

Guan Rongrong was definitely going to get much better treatment if she stayed close to Song Caitang rather than herself.

Madam Zhang was a very decisive and motivated person, one who was willing to even hurt herself for the sake of getting what she wanted. She used everything within her means to get her daughter closer to Song Caitang, so Song Caitang really couldn’t dodge it at all and had to bring Guan Rongrong with her.

Thankfully, Guan Qing had worked hard to get an invitation herself, and she even got to take Guan Wan along too. She got them a large horse carriage and all four ladies got in.

Guan Rongrong glared hatefully at Guan Qing from the corner of her eyes. She wrung her handkerchief so hard, it almost tore.

If you’re so capable, why bother coming to such a party?

Go mix with the men! Go talk to them about your business! Humph!

Guan Qing threw her an unusually warm smile, “Aww, I think Rongrong’s so happy about going for the party, she can’t even find the words to express herself.”

To avoid saying the wrong thing and losing her chances by making Song Caitang angry, Guan Rongrong told herself that she could bide her time and eventually teach all these girls a good lesson. Her expression concealed all these thoughts as she bent her head to laugh shyly, “I’ve not had the chance to go out there to fight and compete with others before, so I’m not as confident and relaxed as you, Eldest Sister.”

Those words were a dig at Guan Qing, but she didn’t get angry. She touched the bangle around her wrist and slowly turned to look at Guan Rongrong in a “confident and relaxed” manner, “I’m glad you’re aware of that. Watch your mouth, your ears and your eyes, and behave yourself. We’re a family of merchants, but reputation is still important to us.”

Guan Rongrong gritted her teeth angrily.

But she dared not argue back. She couldn’t defeat Guan Qing in an argument, so didn’t say anything and decided that she was just going to follow Song Caitang all the way.

As long as she stuck to Song Caitang, she would get a chance…

She would get all sorts of chances!

Guan Qing frowned and glanced at Song Caitang without saying anything.

Guan Wan felt a little uneasy and tugged at Song Caitang’s arm.

Song Caitang patted Guan Wan’s hand, then smiled at Guan Qing to tell her that she was doing fine.

But reality proved that Guan Qing and Guan Wan were right to be concerned.

They had thought of sticking with Song Caitang, but things didn’t always turn out as planned. When they reached the Gao family residence, Guan Qing ran into one of Madam Bai’s friends who took great care of her and her younger sister, so when the friend waved them over, they couldn’t possibly turn the old lady down.

Meanwhile, Ling Qianqian had already sent someone to receive Song Caitang, and Song Caitang had to go with her. The two cousins exchanged glances and sighed inwardly as they parted ways.

The person Ling Qianqian had sent was the Gao family’s inner house housekeeper. She was very friendly and considerate as she took good care of Song Caitang and Guan Rongrong. She led them to a small private area that was elegantly and expensively furnished, yet well hidden from most guests.

“Miss Ling is still entertaining some important guests and she can’t come over now, so please wait here for a while. The view from here is pretty and there’s plenty of tea and snacks to go around. If you get tired of sitting, you can take a little walk too. Today’s party is an informal one for mostly young ladies, so please feel free to let me know if you need anything.”

After the housekeeper had taken care of everything, she even got a maid to take care of their needs and excused herself.

The Gaos were a prominent family in Luanze with government officials in the family. The Guans had interacted with them before, but the Gaos had never been this polite to them.

Guan Rongrong’s eye was twitching from excitement, but she kept a straight face and remained calm. She even stuck her pinkie out when she picked up the teacup and never looked at the maid when she ordered the maid to refill her tea or fetch her anything.

She made herself seem like she was used to such events and knew how to conduct herself in such places.

When she saw how Song Caitang would smile and speak kindly to the maid, and even thanked the maid for refilling the tea, she furrowed her brows.

She got the maid to fetch her something so that the maid would leave them, then looked intently at Song Caitang and said, “You’re not a girl from the countryside anymore but the cousin of the Guans. We don’t have family members working for the government, but we’re wealthy and can afford a lot. We can order anything we want! Don’t behave like some lower class person and lower our family’s status along with it!”

Song Caitang couldn’t believe her ears.

She was about to say something when she realized she had lost the chance to.

Perhaps lady luck was also shining on Guan Rongrong and Madam Zhang’s efforts to make sure her daughter stuck to Song Caitang had not been in vain. Guan Rongrong was very lucky to spot Wen Yuansi almost immediately after arriving.

Song Caitang and Guan Rongrong were in their little private space, so when Wen Yuansi happened to walk close by, he saw Song Caitang immediately and wanted to go over to say hello. But Guan Rongrong’s eyes were sharp and had spotted Wen Yuansi first. She immediately took action by picking up her skirt and running over to block Wen Yuansi’s way.

Before Song Caitang even realized what happened, Guan Rongrong was already talking to Wen Yuansi in the corner with a sweet smile on her face and her head slightly tilted. She looked so demure and adorable.

It didn’t require many of Song Caitang’s brain cells to figure out that Guan Rongrong had set her eyes on Wen Yuansi, based on the slight blush on her face and the shy look she displayed from time to time.

She had guessed as much, but she was now certain of it.

Song Caitang did not really have that much interaction with Madam Zhang and her daughter, but they lived in the same house after all, so she did notice a thing or two. This mother and daughter were not stupid and Guan Rongrong was certainly at an age where marriage would be on the cards, but Wen Yuanssi… was not their target.

He wasn’t their target before, but he was their target now. Which meant that something had changed.

Something had changed…

Was it her?

Did her involvement in criminal investigations and her friendship with Old Madam Li embolden this mother and daughter duo?

Song Caitang narrowed her eyes slightly as her fingers gently went round the rim of her teacup.

She didn’t know what they were talking about, but Guan Rongrong was twirling her hair with her head slightly bent in a bashful manner, while Wen Yuansi remained as gentlemanly as ever. He kept a faint smile on his face and did not move closer to Guan Rongrong, but did not just walk away either.

Song Caitang was thinking very seriously about what she ought to do in this situation.

Regardless of the reason, Guan Rongrong certainly had her eye on Wen Yuansi, but she didn’t know how Wen Yuansi felt, so… perhaps it wasn’t right for her to step in.

Everyone had different tastes when looking for a partner. For all she knew, Wen Yuansi might really like someone like Guan Rongrong, so she shouldn’t interrupt their conversation. But if he didn’t like her, then she had to be a responsible person and not allow Guan Rongrong to use her to get close to Wen Yuansi.

But Wen Yuansi was a clever man, so even though he was used to being nice to women, he would know how he really felt and would deal with it accordingly.

Song Caitang’s final conclusion was to just observe them without going over to interrupt.

“What poor taste.”

Someone plonked themselves down on the chair next to Song Caitang, then started fanning themselves with a folding fan. She didn’t even need to turn and look. It was obvious who had just sat down.

Qi Yan moved toward the table, picked up a peanut, threw it high into the air, then raised his head and caught it neatly with his mouth.

Song Caitang glanced a little oddly at him.

In her mind, those who liked playing games involving throwing and catching…

Qi Yan noticed her glance and thought she was judging him for what he said earlier and quickly waved his hands about, “I’m not talking about that Wen fellow, because it’s impossible for any man to be so blind as to ignore you and go for some other woman. You’re such a pretty and adorable lady, so you ought to be the apple of everyone’s eye. I think Wen Yuansi just didn’t notice you were here!”

Song Caitang suddenly felt that this guy really had a bad case of chuunibyou.

Qi Yan fanned himself as he pointed at Guan Rongrong, “I’m referring to that woman. I’m sitting right here, yet she ran over to talk to Wen Yuansi? If that’s not poor taste, I don’t know what is.”

Song Caitang was rather curious, “So, you’re the best man among men who should be loved by all women?”

“Yep!!” Qi Yan shut his fan with great flourish and declared confidently, “That’s why you and I make the perfect match!”

Song Caitang was speechless.

After saying that, Qi Yan’s face reddened, much to her surprise. He rubbed his nose awkwardly and grinned as he explained to her, “Miss Song, don’t mind me, sometimes the things I say don’t go through my brain first and I just say what I think. But my respect for you is definitely real! It’s pure and free of any contempt!”

Song Caitang looked down. She had already drunk half a cup of tea, but Qi Yan wasn’t done talking.

She sighed.

And decided to do something to shut him up.

She looked straight at him with her bright, black eyes, “You seem like someone who loves a good show and goes wherever there’s action. You’ve got plenty of stories to tell and you’re ready to show off those stories anytime. It seems like you have the boldness to say just about anything, but actually… you’ve never said anything that you shouldn’t be saying.”

For example, from the time they met till now, Qi Yan only talked about the case, or showed his closeness to Zhao Zhi and his cousin. He didn’t talk about anything else.

This man was not full of nonsense. He knew when to say what.

Qi Yan burst out laughing and used his fan to cover half his face, “Miss Song has observed me so closely. Could it be that you…”

Song Caitang did not wait for him to finish his flirtatious lines and continued, “Folding fans are simple yet elegant, plus they’re light and easy to carry around, and most people wouldn’t be wary of one. But actually, it can serve as a weapon too. One who knows how to wield it will be able to use it to slice, chop, hack; use it as a hidden weapon; use it to hit pressure points on the body to immobilize someone; or defend oneself from harm… Mr. Qi, has this particular fan of yours served you well in this aspect?”

Qi Yan continued to use the fan to cover half his face and his eyes seemed to be smiling, but his voice was serious now, “Zhao Zhi told you?”

Song Caitang shook her head. Her gaze started from his head, then to his shoulders, his waist, and finally his feet, “You are an aristocrat and you love beautiful bright colors, so you look very foppish. But interestingly, you don’t wear any accessories that would make noise when you move.”

His hair was tied with a long piece of cloth. There wasn’t even a wooden stick in it, never mind the usual metal hairpieces aristocrats usually wore. His belt was just fabric with embroidery on it, and the color combination made it look busy enough. He did not wear a single piece of jewelry and even his shoes were plain with no gems embedded at all.

No son of a wealthy and prominent family would ever dress like this. The fact that he did meant that he was dressing like this on purpose.

Qi Yan did not want anything on him to create noise at all.

“Finally, the second and third fingers on your right hand are especially long, plus there are calluses on your joints. That’s a sign that you’ve been training for a long time.”

By this time, Qi Yan had kept his folding fan and was staring at her with a stern look on his face.

Zhao Zhi couldn’t have told her. Zhao Zhi was the most sensible person he knew, so there were some things Zhao Zhi would never tell someone else.

“But judging from your personality, your speech, your behavior and habits, I’m quite sure you grew up very freely and you were never forced into doing anything. So, all of this is out of your own free will. It’s a hobby of yours.”

The tassels on Song Caitang’s hair accessories swayed gently and her clear eyes reflected Qi Yan’s face, “You’re an aristocrat, but you love walking around without making any noise and take things that you shouldn’t take… your family doesn’t mind you having such a hobby?”