Just as Tang Si was recovering from that thunderbolt of a realisation that had struck her, Mo Ruo also glanced in the same direction. Haha! “What are you looking at? Is it really so strange? Even your fish had dropped to the floor.”
She gathered her wits and immediately picked up the skewer that had fallen to the ground. She took another big gulp and tilted her head slightly to look at the composed Mo Ruo. “What... what’s the situation with the two of them?”
“What situation?”
“Didn’t you see that? Their two hands… their hands were clasped together!” Tang Si’s face had practically scrunched up into a large wrinkled mess.
Mo Ruo stared back at her and remarked casually, “I saw it, so what? What’s so strange about it?”
“Of course it’s strange! How is it not strange to have two grown men clasping their hands together?!” She was abnormally agitated. She lowered her voice again and narrowed her eyes, “tell me the truth, could the two of them be…” cutsleeves? [1]
“What nonsense are you talking?” Mo Ruo gently chided her, “I really wonder what’s going on in your head all day long, I bet it must be a mess in there!”
Tang Si was not satisfied. She lifted her chin and suddenly grasped Mo Ruo’s hand. “Of course it’s not alright for a man to hold another like this. But if it were the two of us, it’s fine.” She herself didn’t know what prompted her to make such a bold move. She probably just wanted to express her intentions with her actions.
However, Mo Ruo froze when he saw that hand on his. He felt a sense of déjà vu.
A few years ago, Kong Yu also once held his hands just like this and told him, "Mo Ruo, I'm going to go into the mountains for a meditative retreat with my mother, and may not be back for a few years. You must take good care of yourself; drink less alcohol for it harms the body. When I'm not around, you must also help look after Ah Rong. I'll pray for you both in the temple."
Lost in his reminiscing, Kong Yu's voice seemed to ring in his ears. He looked at the arm touching him, eyes slowly trailing up before ending at Tang Si's face. He had once remarked that this woman bore some resemblance to Kong Yu; he turned a little dazed as he continued looking, even though he was clear that this woman was not Kong Yu. However, whenever he focused his attention on her like this, his heart would mysteriously turn tranquil. This feeling was extremely comfortable.
As the recipient of that intense stare, Tang Si was rather nonplussed. That gaze… that expression… made her stomach fill with b.u.t.terflies and get tied up in knots. She immediately s.n.a.t.c.hed her hand back shyly and continued roasting the fish with a coy smile, “Why… why are you looking at me like that?”
Mo Ruo jerked back into awareness, somewhat panicked at his own actions. His brows knitted together involuntarily. “That’s… nothing. I was just casually looking.”
“Oh.” Tang Si smiled like a flower in bloom.
For the first time, Mo Ruo’s heart also jumped into his throat and started to beat faster. He quickly lifted his jar of wine and took a gulp. To settle his nerves! He thought to himself, I couldn’t have really… grown feelings for that spoiled brat?
Poohey, that’s impossible. Definitely not possible.
Rumble… Crackle… A flash of lightning and a roar of thunder suddenly split the air. It seemed as if the sky was about to start pouring.
In unison, the four of them looked up at the sky. The inky night sky clearly was still filled with bright twinkling stars, how did the lightning come out of nowhere? In an instant, the skies seemed to open up for a curtain of rain to start falling.
“Ah!” Tang Si screamed and tossed her half-roasted fish aside, hurriedly holding her arms above her head.
Mo Ruo tugged on her arm and ran towards the carriage. At that moment, Tang Si was stunned and simply followed him onto the carriage. Behind them, Jing Rong and Ji Yunshu also got on.
“What kind of blasted weather is this, to just decide to start raining without any warning?” Tang Si complained as she wiped the rainwater off her face.
Ji Yunshu commented, “This is called a tropical squall (?); it’ll be over very soon.”
“Tropical squall? What is a tropical squall?”
“That’s…” Ji Yunshu shrugged. She didn’t know how to explain as she was, after all, not a weather expert. Her body had always been delicate, so she’d immediately caught a chill right after being drenched by the rain. “Cough cough…”
Without saying anything, Jing Rong immediately took off his outer robe and put it around her shoulders, then wrapped her tightly in his embrace. He took no notice of Tang Si’s bulging eyes. Just look as much as you like. Ji Yunshu didn’t avoid his hug either; as she coughed, she snuggled deeper into his arms. In short, they were flaunting their relations.h.i.+p and torturing the single dogs in the carriage.
Tang Si picked her jaw up off the ground and thought to herself, if two grown men could be so touchy with each other, why did that fellow sitting opposite show no indication of interest at all? Isn’t the contrast a little too stark?
That fellow sitting opposite her was naturally referring to Mo Ruo. She pretended to cough a few times, but he still did not show any reaction. In a fit of anger, she lifted her leg and savagely kicked Mo Ruo’s knee. “Ah!” A tragic scream rang from within the carriage. Sooner or later, Mo Ruo’s knee would be permanently injured by her kicks.
After they returned to the residence, a pot of ginger tea was prepared for them. The sensible s.h.i.+ Ziran had the kitchens serve up four bowls of ginger tea. He then deliberately put two of them in front of His Highness, and the other two in front of Mo Ruo.
Jing Rong understood what he intended, and drank a bowl before bringing the other over to Ji Yunshu. However, after Mo Ruo finished his bowl of tea, he pushed the other bowl to the side. “I can’t finish two bowls.”
Hearing that, s.h.i.+ Ziran almost fainted. “Who said that the second bowl was for you?”
“Then why did you put it in front of me if it was not for me?!”
“It’s for you to bring to Miss Tang.” You fool! Emotionally constipated! [2]
Mo Ruo opened and closed his mouth several times, gaping, “What… what does that have to do with me?”
“Ah, since it has nothing to do with you, I’ll just have someone else send the bowl of ginger tea over then.”
“Wait.”
“What?” s.h.i.+ Ziran revealed a wicked smirk.
“I’ll go myself.” Mo Ruo held the bowl of ginger tea, not forgetting to leave a sarcastic repartee, “You are exactly like that prince of yours, so annoying.”
As he said that, he still took up that bowl of ginger tea and brought it to Tang Si with his tail between his legs. Hahaha! This was the loudest s.h.i.+ Ziran had ever laughed in his life. He thought to himself, men are all like that; however cold and aloof they may seem, once they meet a woman, even a meek koi fish would turn into a ferocious dragon.
In Ji Yunshu’s room.
Ji Yunshu had just changed into a clean set of clothes, but her hair was still rather damp. Jing Rong entered and placed the ginger tea gently in her hands. “Quickly drink up, you mustn't catch a cold.”
She obediently downed half a cup in a single gulp. “It’s already so late. You’d better quickly go back to rest.”
“Are you chasing this prince away?”
“No, I’m just…”
“That’s good then. This prince will sit for a while more.” His overbearing gaze looked at Ji Yunshu’s pale, blus.h.i.+ng face. Her features were exquisite, with thin, elegantly curved brows, small crimson lips… How good-looking!
The room was very quiet. In the gently flickering candlelight, the shadows of the two people inside had merged and woven together.
[1] I always thought TS knew JYS was a girl... either i misremembered or this is a giant plot hole. Does any reader remember?
[2] Aru: tfw s.h.i.+ Ziran, the guy who hates his lil sister, still knows how to please a girl better than Mo Ruo. tsk tsk tsk Mo Ruo