At his words, Youyou quickly nodded and said with a grin, “Great, then please go ahead, My Lord.”
Without hesitation, Lu Hetian strode into the medicinal shop.
There was a glint in Youyou’s bright black eyes.
Sister Empress had specially instructed him to try and create an opportunity for the Grand Duke to meet Auntie Lin if he came to the medicinal shop.
Was this moment not a marvelous opportunity?
Youyou’s eyes gleamed with mischief.
At this moment, Ling Lihua was sitting on the wall and drinking from a wine jar in her arms.
She was merely a little bored, so she drank to pa.s.s the time.
However, she ended up drinking more than intended without realizing it.
When a blurry shadow plopped down beside her, she thought that Wu Hongming had returned and pa.s.sed the wine jar over without a single glance. “The rest is yours.”
Lu Hetian noted the way she handed over the wine jar and spoke so naturally. It was obvious that she had done this a lot in the past.
How could this woman let someone else drink from her wine jar so casually?
Despite his anger, he accepted the wine jar from her.
He took a swig wordlessly and looked at the quiet woman beside him, his heart aching with a torrent of mixed emotions.
He yearned to hold her in his arms, but he did not dare to.
He dreaded seeing her hate-filled eyes.
Lost in thought, he gulped down another large mouthful of wine.
He was already tipsy when he finished the contents of the jar. He wanted to call out to Ling Lihua, but in a state of grogginess, he slackened his hold on the jar, sending it falling to the ground with a loud crash.
Ling Lihua turned at the sound, but when she saw the person sitting next to her, her expression hardened, and she made a move to jump off the wall. However, Lu Hetian suddenly toppled over in her direction.
“Lihua…”
His voice was full of grief, interwoven with untold tenderness.
Ling Lihua froze, and only when the man slumped against her shoulder did she regain her senses.
“Lu Hetian, get up this instant!” She shoved him in exasperation.
However, the alcohol had clouded Lu Hetian’s mind and he did not seem to hear her. Instead, he reached out and pulled her into an embrace.
Feeling the warmth and softness of the woman in his arms, he let out a contented sigh.
“Lihua… don’t leave me ever again… Do you know how much I’ve missed you… all these years?”
Ling Lihua’s heart trembled, but she regained her composure and snorted disdainfully. “Don’t drink if you can’t hold your liquor; stop embarra.s.sing yourself all the time.” She knew this person well. He was clearly a terrible drinker, but he would always pretend otherwise in front of other people. The truth was, a few cups of wine were enough to knock him out.
Moreover, he had drunk all the wine in the jar just now.
He had always been like this—having drinking compet.i.tions with her but pa.s.sing out on his first sip. He eventually improved his alcohol tolerance a little, but he still could not get past a few cups.
She always ended up having to take care of him every time.
There was even once when he threw up on her.
She was so mad back then that she threw him straight into a lotus pond.
As she recalled the past, she could not help smiling wryly.
He must have gotten drunk this time on purpose to get closer to her and gain her sympathy.
As she mulled over her thoughts, she tugged at the man’s arm roughly in an attempt to pull him away, but he held fast onto her.
In the distance, Youyou and the old beggar were hiding inside the house, watching the scene on the courtyard wall.
“Grandfather, will Auntie Lin and the Grand Duke make up?”
The old beggar ruffled his hair. “It depends on fate. If they’re fated to be, they’ll naturally be together.”
“What’s fate?” Youyou raised his head and asked curiously.