Salted Fish Misunderstands

Chapter Thirty-Four

Li Wenchuan tilted his head and glanced at Jiang Hansheng, only to meet the other man's gaze. He froze for an instant, then quickly looked away. "All right, let's pack up and head out."

"Coo Coo, do you want to come with us?" Li Wenchuan bent down to look at Coo Coo, who was squatting in its new nest.

Jiang Hansheng raised a hand and rubbed the spot between his brows. He did not know why that gesture came so naturally, but this person was going too far! He was actually trying to tempt him again, pretending to be an innocent little white rabbit... Fine, he had won. Didn't he just like this pure and innocent side of him?

But who was Coo Coo?

Looking down, he saw a shy child with big round eyes. Only, why did the child's yellow hair have a streak of red in it?

Was it the awakening of their Lineage bloodline?

Casting a sidelong glance at Li Wenchuan as he communicated with the child, he thought that if this man could remain so obedient, then for the sake of this child who had inherited his noble bloodline, he could make an exception and elevate this lowborn man to the principal position.

He carefully hid those thoughts away without revealing the slightest hint of them, but his eyes could not lie and still gave him away. The filming crew could not help muttering, "Why does Teacher Jiang's gaze seem a little strange?"

The next moment, they heard Jiang Hansheng say, "Bring the child along. It'll be good for him to see the world." As my heir, how could he possibly be lacking?

"???"

Though Li Wenchuan had no idea what he meant, he still smoothed Coo Coo's fur and took it along as he followed Jiang Hansheng.

Thus, he had no idea how great a danger awaited him.

The temperature in the city had dropped somewhat today. The lingering sunlight was nearly gone, and the jagged shadows of buildings shifted across the city's ground before vanishing into the darkness.

Jiang Hansheng's studio had a lighter workload than most, because he had never taken on any other artists. Over the years, he had introduced resources to others, but he had never shown any intention of cultivating newcomers.

The film he had made earlier was now in theaters, and he had happily gone off to participate in a variety show. His upcoming schedule also needed planning. Before he left, Yang Xuan had given him a pile of documents, but he had yet to receive a reply. Some things had also been left behind at Jiang Hansheng's home, so he had no choice but to come over and retrieve them.

Yang Xuan could not understand why this ancestor was so interested this time, especially in that Li Wenchuan. The man clearly had no potential, and his future value probably would not be much either. Could it be that Jiang Hansheng wanted to take on a newcomer?

The study was immaculate and meticulously organized. The books on the shelves were arranged by category, author, and height, with the same level of care as building the Great Wall.

Even the laptop sat squarely in the center of the desk, but sharp-eyed Yang Xuan spotted something that should not have been there.

He walked over and picked it up, wearing the expression of an elderly man staring at a phone on the subway. "The Bewitching Prince's Little Poisonous Consort?"

He read the synopsis—The prince's residence had gone a century without an heir, leaving the family line sparse. He used an ancient secret technique in fury to bear a son. The child inherited his bloodline and descended as an auspicious blessing, so the prince doted on him beyond all limits...

"'He'?" Yang Xuan could hardly believe his eyes. He read it over several times, and it really did say "he."

Jiang Hansheng was actually reading this kind of book?!

Jiang Hansheng read BL?!

Then, as both his manager and friend, should he tell Uncle and Auntie? This was too deadly, too explosive. Why had Jiang Hansheng not told him? If this got exposed, wouldn't it all be over?!

A flash of inspiration appeared in his mind, and Yang Xuan seized it precisely. "I understand... Li Wenchuan. So that's how it is."

Yang Xuan: His heart twisted into a knot as he frantically gnawed at his claws.

With a pained expression, he put the book back where it belonged. As a modern person, he was very open-minded. Some of his former classmates had been gay, and one had even emigrated to get married a few years ago.

He no longer had the mind to retrieve the documents he had come for. He needed to prepare a PR plan immediately, just in case.

Where else could one find someone as considerate and dedicated as him? When the time came, he would have to hint that Jiang Hansheng should give him a raise.

The city's temperature had dropped, and the countryside felt it too. Tonight's breeze was cooler, but there were also more mosquitoes.

Su Mingwei had discovered that ordinary mosquitoes were manageable, but there was one kind with flowery rear ends and zebra stripes. After being bitten by one, a swollen bump would definitely rise up, and it itched terribly. She had fallen victim yesterday, and even mosquito repellent could not stop the itching.

Before coming here, the production crew had lit quite a few mosquito coils nearby and borrowed electric mosquito swatters from the villagers to conduct an indiscriminate sweep.

Her arms were fair and tender, so bites showed especially clearly. They still itched a little, and she pressed her fingernail into the swollen bump in the shape of a cross. The pain made her feel somewhat better.

From far away, Su Mingwei heard Li Wenchuan greeting everyone.

She hurriedly turned off her phone. The novel page on the screen happened to display: "He gently covered his lips with his own. The room filled with lingering tenderness, while the candle flame crackled..."

If she had not left that book at Jiang Hansheng's house, she would not have needed to risk being discovered while following the story on her phone. She hoped Jiang Hansheng would not look through it.

Jiang Hansheng keenly noticed the strange look the pretty young girl was giving him. As if recalling something, he stepped closer to Li Wenchuan, as though backing him up. He mouthed to her: Don't cause trouble.

Su Mingwei: "???"

Why was he warning her not to cause trouble again? She had not done anything these past few days. Besides, she now thought Li Wenchuan was rather nice... not nearly as bad as she had imagined. Why was he still singling her out?

So love could disappear, right?

She refused to accept it. She had originally disliked Li Wenchuan for stealing Jiang Hansheng's attention, but her mindset had now changed. She was now Mingwei of the Niohuru Clan. Swiftly changing her expression, she sweetly said, "Brother Wenchuan, come have some watermelon. The villagers grew it themselves, and it's especially sweet."

In his slacker state, Li Wenchuan was holding the hen and did not notice any of the undercurrents at all. Hearing there was watermelon, he happily walked over. If there was one fruit he loved most, it had to be watermelon.

Juicy and sweet—if technology had advanced far enough, he would have wanted to eat watermelon all year round.

"Girls should eat less of it. Watermelon is cooling in nature," he kindly reminded her.

"I don't eat much either. Watermelon is so sweet that I gain weight easily." Su Mingwei puffed out her cheeks.

Li Wenchuan thought, What an adorable little sister.

He had not had a younger sister in his previous life. The only ones he had were daughters born to other consorts. Some were little tyrants who looked down on the humble origins of his mother consort; others had backgrounds similar to his own, and because their birth mothers could not raise them, they had grown timid and submissive under the halfhearted care of other consorts.

Moreover, royal princesses only had so many years when they could live freely and boldly. Besides, his imperial father had always preferred peace and ease.

His third elder sister, Princess Pingle, had been sent to Northern Desert in a political marriage. In the fourth year of his reign, he sent troops into Northern Desert, intending to bring Princess Pingle back to the capital. But by then, Pingle had married the old Khan, and after the old Khan died, she had followed local custom and married his younger brother. When the Northern Desert royal court underwent a coup, she became the wife of that Khan's son as well.

The Northern Desert regime had fractured into pieces. The new Khan was nowhere near as valiant as the old Khan had been. Upon hearing that Great Qing had sent troops, he hurriedly sent the princess back without stopping.

Pingle returned, but she was no longer the Pingle she had once been. She had been the only princess who had cared for Li Wenchuan and spoken up for him. She truly loved this younger brother of hers.

But when she returned, there was no life left in her eyes. She performed her rites properly, bowed low, and kowtowed. "This lowly concubine, Huyan, pays respects to Your Majesty. May Your Majesty live ten thousand years, ten thousand years, ten thousand times ten thousand years."

A married daughter, wed three times over—what face did she have left to call herself "Pingle"?

At that time, he realized that even an emperor could be far too insignificant in this mortal world. In the end, his third sister shaved her head and entered religious life. Until the day she died, they never saw each other again.

Seeing these lively smiling faces now, Li Wenchuan felt fortunate. No longer would young women in the prime of their lives be forced to marry far from home and repeat the tragedy of his third sister.

Perhaps his gaze was too fatherly, because Su Mingwei inexplicably felt that he resembled her father, as well as... her cousin. Both of them were always brimming with fatherly affection.