Liu Cheng's expression darkened. "How did you know, Fourth Lady?"
Had Wang Yang told Xie Xinghan beforehand? Had he refused to become my father's disciple?
Impossible.
There were a hundred advantages and not a single drawback. How could someone so adept at maneuvering for advancement refuse?
Besides, it was already this late, and he still hadn't come. Didn't that make his attitude clear?
Liu Cheng regained his confidence.
Xie Xinghan said evenly, "I trust his character. If he weren't coming, he would have told me beforehand and explained why. He would never have Young Master Liu mention it in passing for him."
Liu Cheng asked coldly, "Do you mean you don't believe me, Fourth Lady?"
"I don't." Xie Xinghan lowered her eyes and took a small sip of Acorus Wine, perfectly composed.
Now we're done for, Yan Youcheng thought.
Seeing Xie Xinghan act this way, Liu Cheng's anger flared.
"That Wang Yang willingly sinks into baseness, disregarding the distinction between gentry and commoner! A man of the gentry, personally plying a merchant's trade! He even gathered those assorted traders and peddlers under one roof, gifts crowding his gates and carriages choking the lanes, brazen-faced and shameless as he amassed his wealth-"
Yu Yuling immediately interrupted. "Mind your words, Young Master Liu! Brother Wang is merely skilled in managing business!"
Liu Cheng scoffed. "The gentleman despises those who refuse to admit their desires and instead invent excuses for them! Managing business? Isn't that still trading for money?!"
Yu Yuling did not know how to refute him either, because Wang Yang had indeed been personally engaged in commerce lately and had grown rather too close to those merchants. He had even invented a new term, something called bidding. Clever though it seemed, it had given others ammunition! When accused of devoting his