Clashing Through Conversation

Uncle Meng hid in a corner of the living room, secretly watching the two men seated across from each other in the dining room, and sighed to himself.

Their young master was noble and precious, but he was very easy to serve. He was not picky about food or clothes, and he was away from home most of the time. As long as they servants did their jobs properly, life was generally quite easy.

Even knowing that their young master was getting married and that a mistress of the house would be moving in, Uncle Meng, who knew the inside story, had not felt much pressure. One more person simply meant one more mouth to feed; they just had to serve him well.

When the time came, with just one word from the master, this extra person could leave whenever told to. He would hardly have anything to do with servants like them!

But even if someone beat him to death, he never would have expected that after one wedding, their young master would bring home two living ancestors!

One was the white moonlight their young master had once cherished in the palm of his hand, and the other was the proper spouse he had formally married into the family.

With his years of experience judging people, neither of these two was easy to deal with!

Just look at them now. One sat with his arms folded, seemingly elegant and composed, with a faint smile lingering on his lips. Yet every glance he cast at the person opposite him seemed bristling with thorns, as if he wanted to pierce him full of holes!

The other held a skewer of meat in his left hand and a large kidney skewer in his right, eating happily from both sides with loud smacking sounds.

Though his mouth was too busy eating to speak, the eyes he occasionally lifted seemed capable of cursing. Every time he looked at the man across from him, that man tensed up a little more. If this continued, Uncle Meng worried that Mr. Song would start swearing and curse right back at him on the spot!

Then there was the health porridge before Mr. Song. Ever since this young madam sat down, he had not touched another bite. It had long since gone cold, as though this person had taken away all his appetite the moment he arrived, leaving him uninterested in any of the dishes on the table.

Meanwhile, only half of the piping-hot, fragrant barbecue had been served. The young madam was not only eating skewers, but drinking as well. Just watching him made it seem delicious.

Uncle Meng sighed inwardly. Were young people these days all so skilled at fighting without weapons? Their young master should not have left alone—he should at least have taken one of them with him!

"Why isn't Mr. Song eating?"

Guo Lantai took a sip of beer and broke the silence first.

"I'm full."

Song Anning's grip on his arm loosened slightly as he complained inwardly. How was he supposed to eat? Just looking at Guo Lantai's uncouth table manners had already filled him up.

Besides, seeing him smack his lips reminded Song Anning of that mouthful of saliva from last night. All he felt now was disgust. How could he possibly have the mood to keep eating?

"Oh, then what a pity for my husband's thoughtfulness."

Guo Lantai swept his gaze over the bland dishes and shook his head with absolutely no sincerity.

"Muxiao has always been attentive to me. He won't say anything."

"Mm, he really is attentive. I kept getting nosebleeds last night, and he was so worried that he specifically called a doctor over. Honestly, it was just a nosebleed, but he got so nervous that I was embarrassed!"

Guo Lantai quickly followed along with his words, took another gulp of beer, then raised his brows and asked, "By the way, how is the injury on your hand? My husband too—after he finished fussing over me, I sent the doctor away and forgot to have him take a look at you!"

Song Anning froze when he heard that Cen Muxiao had called for a doctor. A doctor had come? How had he not noticed?

Thinking about it, he must have been shut in the bathroom taking a shower at the time, which made him even more upset. Guo Lantai had merely had a nosebleed, yet Cen Muxiao had gone so far as to summon a doctor. Song Anning had clearly been injured too, but Cen Muxiao had forgotten about him!

No, that was not right. Although they had only reunited recently and had not spoken much, Song Anning could still clearly feel Cen Muxiao's joy and regard at his return. It was impossible for Cen Muxiao to knowingly ignore him when he was injured!

His gaze fell on the smug man opposite him, and Song Anning thought bitterly, Guo Lantai must have done this on purpose. He wants to drive a wedge between us!

"I already said it was a minor injury. He listened to me and simply didn't make a fuss. But you're different—he had no choice but to worry. If anything happened to you, he would have a hard time explaining it to your family."

Song Anning's words carried two meanings. First, he was mocking Guo Lantai for being immature and delicate, making a fuss over a nosebleed and forcing Cen Muxiao to call a doctor just to appease him.

Second, he was implying that Guo Lantai was an outsider. Cen Muxiao had only called a doctor out of consideration for the Guo Family, merely going through the motions. It was nothing impressive.

Of course, there was also a touch of his own pride in it. Cen Muxiao listened to him and trusted him. If he was fine, then he was fine; Song Anning would not use an injury to play tricks.

"You're right. My mom—his mother-in-law—reminded him over and over that I'm delicate and precious, and that he has to pay attention to everything. And he really did take it seriously. He's indeed very good at listening to other people's advice!"

Guo Lantai immediately shot back with those few words. You little green tea, don't get so full of yourself. So what if that big pig trotter cared about him!

Listening did not mean Cen Muxiao only listened to Song Anning. What was there to be so proud of?

Guo Lantai felt that the plot was starting to go off course. The Song Anning before him was nothing like the patient, enduring person he had imagined. They had only met a few times, yet he already seemed unable to hold himself back, wanting to compete over everything. He was being far too impatient.

He remembered that in the original novel, during the early days after Song Anning returned to the Cen Family Villa, he had still been able to maintain a surface-level peace with the original host. He had even stepped forward to defend the original host a few times when Cen Muxiao went too far. He had seemed extraordinarily kind and generous.

Guo Lantai considered it for a moment and quickly understood. It was all because he had led things astray. After all, the original host had not been this sharp or prickly.

To please Cen Muxiao, he had only known how to yield and endure, foolish to the extreme. He had been deceived by Song Anning's hypocritical facade, laying the groundwork for the schemes and framing to come.

Heh! Song Anning had already figured him out and knew he was a complete fool. Of course he had felt safe making his move.

But the current Guo Lantai had clearly made Song Anning feel an unprecedented sense of crisis. If he did not fight for it, then the love he had let go of for three years could disappear just like that!

From the moment Guo Lantai had kissed Cen Muxiao in public, Song Anning's fighting spirit had been stirred!

Hearing Guo Lantai say that, Song Anning tightened his grip again. This man had a sharp tongue and was quite skilled at sophistry. Song Anning had underestimated him.

Thinking of something, he suddenly smiled and asked with curved lips, "Since he cares about you so much, why didn't he take you back to the old residence? Bringing his newlywed spouse home to meet the elders—isn't that the best proof that he values you?"

At those words, Guo Lantai's lowered eyes flickered. Wasn't the reason he could sleep peacefully because he knew that big pig trotter would not take him home?

There were some things he had to fight for, but this was not something that could be rushed. He knew that even if he found a way to persuade Cen Muxiao to take him home, it would be meaningless.

Cen Muxiao dared to disregard and neglect him so openly not only because he was arbitrary and no one dared question him, but also for an even more important reason: the Cen family's tacit approval!

The Cen family, especially Old Master Cen, the old chairman, would not be easy to deal with!

As for Song Anning's question, Guo Lantai did not find it difficult at all. He pointed to his still slightly red and swollen nose bridge, blinked, and said frivolously, "Because an ugly daughter-in-law is most afraid of meeting her parents-in-law. My husband doesn't want to make things difficult for me!"

After saying that, Guo Lantai took a huge bite out of the kidney skewer. Hmph, he was just making things up with his eyes open. Listen or don't listen!