Chapter 226

The bamboo curtain was suddenly lifted before his voice faded away. Fang Yuan bellowed, “What are you doing? What a wonderful sister I have! You began to seduce my husband right after I left!”

Fang Zhen pulled her arm out of Zhang Yun’s hands, ashen-faced. Liu’er stood at the side and said hastily, “Second Miss, you shouldn’t make such a scurrilous accusation. Can’t you see that it’s Zhang Yun who is harassing my lady?”

How could Fang Yuan not know? She was outside, and she had heard everything Zhang Yun had said. Clenching her teeth with rage, not only did she hate Zhang Yun’s infidelity, but she also resented and envied Fang Zhen.

Liu’er’s scolding only intensified Fang Yuan’s jealousy. In a fury, she replied, “I only saw my dear sister getting handsy with my fiance! And you! Was it you who asked Zhang Yun to talk to my mother and break off the engagement?”

Liu’er hurried to defend herself. “I only said it to vent my anger!”

“Vent your anger? That’s not what I heard. I only heard that you were jealous that I found a good family to marry into. You tried to seduce my husband and incited him to break off our engagement so he could marry your lady!”

“Second Miss, how can you say things like this?” Liu’er almost cried with indignation.

“How can you be in the right when you snatched your own younger sister’s fiance?!”

Overbearing and aggressive, Fang Yuan raised her voice, wishing that everyone on the ship could hear her. As expected, guests in other suites all looked over at them.

In the next room, Qiao An’s brows furrowed in anger. His fingers had turned pale from squeezing the teacup too tightly. On the other hand, Su Jiu quietly watched the drama. She knew that the younger sister was seizing the opportunity to gain an advantage, by condemning her elder sister first for seducing her fiance. It would serve Fang Yuan’s interests if her elder sister became a vamp (1) in other people’s eyes and felt too ashamed to ever face Zhang Yun again.

This woman treated such a vulgar and shameless man as a treasure. Birds of a feather indeed flocked together. They should never separate and ruin other people’s lives.

While Fang Yuan was arguing with Liu’er, Zhang Yun remained silent. He waved the fan in his hand and looked outside through the window.

Seeing how Fang Yuan was confounding right with wrong and spreading rumors, Fang Zhen hollered in anger, “Fang Yuan, you should know what happened before if you’re not blind! No, you are blind. That’s why you took a fancy to such a disgusting hypocrite in the first place!”

“What did you say?!” Fang Yuan flared up from shame. Driven to a jealous frenzy, she splashed the hot tea toward Fang Zhen’s direction.

“Ah!” Zhang Yun stepped backward to dodge the tea, startled.

“My lady!” Liu’er cried out in fright.

Just then, the bamboo curtain of the next room was lifted at the critical moment. A light blue figure flashed by and shielded Fang Zhen from the front. The hot tea landed on his back and gave off hot steam.

He was grasping Fang Zhen’s arms. She raised her head and was dumbfounded when she looked at the man who had protected her from the hot tea.

“My lady, are you alright?” Liu’er hurried to Fang Zhen. She could not stop the attack in time as she was standing near the door.

Fang Zhen’s face was pale, yet her eyes were sparkling. She looked at Qiao An and frowned. “Did it hurt?” she asked in concern.

“It’s nothing serious!”

Qiao An replied to Fang Zhen and turned around, still holding her arms and keeping her safe behind him. He stared coldly at Fang Yuan and said, “I heard it clearly. It was your fiance who harassed Fang Zhen. If you have any sense left, you should question your fiance instead of making things difficult for your elder sister.”

Calm and composed, Su Jiu sat in her seat and peeked through the broken bamboo curtain that Qiao An was holding the young woman’s hands. Her eyebrows arched in surprise.

It turned out Qiao An knew the young woman next door.

She had never seen Qiao An so riled up.

As she expected, interesting things were more likely to happen when they were having fun outside.

Su Jiu sipped the wine while sizing Fang Zhen up. Fang Zhen wore a long, light green dress and had several simple jade hairpins on her hair. She looked charming, gentle, and elegant, and she shared the same kind of bookish demeanor with Qiao An.

The young woman’s eyes were filled with distress as she stared at Qiao An’s drenched back.

Qiao An certainly had good taste!

It seemed like the Dragon Conqueror Gang would have another wedding to arrange soon!

Fang Yuan shot Qiao An a suspicious glance and asked in an annoyed tone, “Who are you?”

“I’m Fang Zhen’s friend!” Qiao An replied calmly. He quietly let go of Fang Zhen’s hand behind his back.

Everyone on the ship was watching them. He could not risk fuelling any more slanderous gossip about Fang Zhen.

A tinge of disappointment flashed in Fang Zhen’s eyes as Qiao An let go of her hand. She thought Qiao An intended to keep a distance from her, so she stepped back in dejection.

Fang Yuan looked at Qiao An and smiled. “Judging by your gracious manner, you must be a noble young master in the city,” she remarked. “Don’t be deceived by a woman’s pretty face and do something regretful.”

She darted a glance at Zhang Yun on purpose while speaking.

Liu’er glared at Fang Yuan and replied, “I will go to tell the Old Master if you keep insulting my lady like this, Second Miss!”

Qiao An said slowly, “Most people in Shengjing City already knew the Young Master of the Zhang Family was engaged to the Eldest Young Lady of the Fang Family. Second Miss Fang, you should have quietly gotten married after snatching your sister’s fiance. Slandering your elder sister in public because of your guilty conscience will only make everyone aware of your bad behavior. It’s truly unwise of you!”

“You…!” Fang Yuan scowled at Qiao An, her face flushed red.

However, Qiao An ignored her and turned to Zhang Yun instead.

“I don’t know what kind of arrangements the Zhang Family and the Fang Family have made, but the engagement between you and the Eldest Young Lady Fang has been annulled. Why don’t you look at yourself in the mirror first before dreaming about getting your hands on both sisters? Since Young Lady Fang doesn’t like you, you should back off respectfully. This kind of badgering and double-dealing are beneath your dignity, and it may even compromise your father’s reputation.”

Zhang Yun’s face burned up in embarrassment. He said angrily, “Who are you? How dare you lecture me?”

“I’m only a passerby who happens to be Young Lady Fang’s friend. I came forward to give my two cents simply because I couldn’t stand how you two were bullying Miss Fang!” Qiao An spoke in a domineering manner, even though he looked gentle and graceful. His brief remark was powerful and rousing.

Su Jiu suddenly shouted in the next room, “It was clear that the Young Master harassed the Eldest Young Lady Fang. The Second Miss didn’t dare to discipline her man, yet she didn’t hesitate to accuse her elder sister of being a temptress. They are indeed birds of a feather!”

Fang Yuan glared at Su Jiu in annoyance and asked, “Who are you?”

Su Jiu shrugged and answered, “Just an onlooker who can’t tolerate such things!”

Su Jiu turned to look at other suites and continued, “We all had a good look at what happened just now. Don’t you feel the same way about this shameless couple?”

The guests in other suites were all watching the drama from behind the bamboo curtains. They jeered to answer Su Jiu.

“Yes! Such blatant disrespect to her elder sister! She’s only so brazen because the Mistress of the Fang Family is gone!”

“She can’t keep her man in check and only has the nerve to bully her sister. How despicable!”

“How does a cultured family like the Zhang Family have such a shameless son? A noble Young Master of Shengjing City? Puh!”

“Despicable and shameless. They’re quite a match for each other!”

…

Liu’er smirked at the side.

Fang Yuan was overwhelmingly embarrassed at that point. She shouted, “Shut up! All of you shut up!”

“It’s my own mouth. Why should I listen to you?” Someone spat out a sunflower seed and smiled contemptuously.

Zhang Yun was also mortified. He pulled Fang Yuan to leave and said, “That’s it. Let’s not stay here to be humiliated anymore!”

“Hurry up! You’re a disgrace for real!” Someone was still shouting.

Su Jiu laughed heartily and said, “You are all discerning, chivalrous people who have upheld justice. Today’s drinks are on me!”

“Thanks, my lady!”

“You’re welcome, my lady. It’s our duty to stand forth to lend a hand!”

“Young lady, you’re such a straightforward and generous person!”

The enthusiasm was soaring on the second floor as people shouted in jubilation.

Fang Zhen turned around and curtsied to them. “Thank you all!” she said.

“You’re welcome, my lady!”

“We have to be merciless when it comes to these kinds of people!”

…

Fang Yuan and Zhang Yun went downstairs. However, they could only hide on the deck, since the ship was still sailing on the river, and they couldn’t go ashore.

A man sitting on the second floor threw a dish out on purpose, which precisely hit Zhang Yun. The sauce splattered on Fang Yuan as well.

Zhang Yun raised his head and howled in anger, “Which blind a*shole did this?”

The man upstairs laughed. “The plate is blind; just the right kind to hit a shameless man and woman!”

People on the deck stared at the humiliated couple, pointing at them and whispering to one another.

Feeling guilty already, Zhang Yun and Fang Yuan were too afraid of attracting more attention to have the nerve to argue with the man anymore. They asked the server to clean up the mess and laid low in a corner.

People on the second floor burst into a roar of laughter, entertained by their torment.

Fang Zhen asked Liu’er to close the bamboo curtain, before curtsying solemnly to Su Jiu and Qiao An. “I sincerely appreciate your help today!” she thanked them.

Qiao An gestured and replied, “I didn’t expect to meet you again here, Miss Fang!”

When she recalled about the mess before, Fang Zhen blushed with shame and said in embarrassment, “I’ve made a fool of myself!”

Even though Fang Yuan and Zhang Yun had been cast out, Fang Zhen was still mortified that Qiao An had seen her family scandals.

“Not at all!” Qiao An smiled gently and said, “Don’t bother with these kinds of people in the future!”

Liu’er spoke on her lady’s behalf, “My lady has already been hiding from those two. Who would have thought that we would still bump into them out here? How unfortunate!”

Qiao An’s eyes turned cold. He realized that Zhang Yun had probably chased Fang Zhen here deliberately.

Fang Zhen raised her head and looked at Su Jiu. “Are you Young Master An’s friend?” she asked.

Young Master An?

Su Jiu rolled her eyes at Qiao An for not telling the young lady his real name.

Qiao An smiled and introduced the two, “This is my friend Su Jiu. This is Fang Zhen, the eldest daughter of Secretary-General Fang.”

Su Jiu wore a simple dress and tied her hair back with a modest purple ribbon. Nevertheless, Fang Zhen was from a noble family, and she could certainly tell the purple ribbon was exquisite and the dress was made of expensive fabric. She felt even more downhearted when she noticed Su Jiu’s gorgeous face and elegant manner.

A young master as kindhearted and courteous as Qiao An obviously would be accompanied by a beautiful woman even if he was not married yet. Besides, it seemed like she was not a match for this woman, in terms of either appearance or family background.

Although she was overwhelmed by a sense of loss, she still smiled gently and said, “Nice to meet you, Miss Su!”

“Call me Su Jiu since you’re Master An’s friend!” Su Jiu cracked a bright smile.

Fang Zhen nodded gracefully and replied, “Okay, Su Jiu!”

They sat down in another suite. Fang Zhen asked, “How are you, Young Master An? Were you burnt by the tea?”

Qiao An smiled and reassured her, “It’s alright. The clothes protected me. I wasn’t hurt.”

Despite that, Fang Zhen still seemed concerned. She kept glancing at Qiao An’s back and said to Liu’er, “Go and ask the server if they have any ointment for burns.”

“Yes!” Liu’er answered and left.

Su Jiu poured some tea for Fang Zhen and said, “It appears that your younger sister is targeting you on purpose. You should be careful in the future.”

“Yes!” Fang Zhen nodded and replied, “She will hide her behavior around our father at home.”

Qiao An asked in a soft voice, “Does the mistress treat you well at home?”

Fang Zhen’s hand that was holding the teacup trembled for a split second. She turned her eyes on Qiao An and forced a smile. “It’s okay!”

Qiao An certainly understood the young woman’s sorrow from her short reply. His face darkened, but he did not push her for details.

Needless to say, as a stepmother who had snatched her stepdaughter’s engagement and had given it to her biological daughter, how nice could she be?

Soon, Liu’er returned with medicinal ointment. “My lady, the server said that this is very effective to treat burns.”

Fang Zhen placed the ointment in front of Qiao An and said, “Please put it on, Young Master An.”

Qiao An shook his head and answered, “Don’t worry. I can do it when I get home.”

“It’s better to take care of the wounds sooner!” Fang Zhen insisted.

Su Jiu chimed in, “I’ll take a look at it for you. You should put on the ointment if it’s serious.”

Only then did Qiao An nod. “Fine!”

Fang Zhen stood up immediately and said, “I’ll go out for now!”

After that, she and Liu’er walked out of the suite.

Only Qiao An and Su Jiu were in the room now. Back when they were on the mountain, Qiao An always wore long sleeves, even when Hu Dapao and the others were shirtless in the summer. He was even more embarrassed now that Su Jiu was married. “Let’s ask a server to come and take a look!”

Su Jiu chuckled and said, “What are you worried about? Take off your shirt quickly!”

Qiao An had no choice but to unbutton his robe and leave half of his shoulder bare.

Su Jiu furrowed her brows, her face riddled with concern. To her surprise, Qiao An’s injury was quite severe, even though he had been quiet the whole time. His entire shoulder was shockingly red with blisters.

Su Jiu poured some iced tea on Qiao An’s shoulder and said while frowning, “It’s quite serious! Why didn’t you say something?”

Qiao An laughed while sitting on the chair. “It’s alright! It’s just a burn, not something I would die from!”

“On this kind of hot day, you’ll undoubtedly suffer if it gets infected!”

Su Jiu opened the bottle. Her eyes darted from side to side, then she raised her voice. “Ouch!”

Fang Zhen lifted the bamboo curtain and hurried in. “What’s wrong?” she blurted.

When she saw Qiao An, who was facing away with his shoulder bare, she covered her eyes and swiftly turned around. “What happened? Is the wound serious?”

Su Jiu clutched the young woman’s arm and said in a shaky voice, “I can’t. I’m afraid of blood. Lady Fang, could you please apply the ointment for Master An?”

She then shoved the bottle into Fang Zhen’s hand and left the room in a couple of strides.

Qiao An’s mouth twitched. She was afraid of blood?

Their Chief used such a ridiculous excuse. What kind of blisters would bleed?

“Miss Su!” Fang Zhen called out, squeezing the bottle. As she stood back to back with Qiao An, she did not know what to do.

Qiao An remained still as he gazed outside of the window, with his shoulder naked. After a while, he muttered, “Miss Fang, you can put the ointment on the table and find a server to come in!”

Hearing his voice, Fang Zhen turned around instinctively. She was stunned when she saw Qiao An’s shoulder.

It was surprising to her as well that Qiao An had been injured so severely.

She was too worried to play coy anymore. The young woman walked to him, her eyes filled with worry. Her slender fingers quivered as they touched Qiao An’s shoulder. “How… how did this become so bad?”

Qiao An was startled by the woman’s touch as if he was burnt again. He raised his hand and was about to get dressed. “I’m okay. This will get better after a few days of rest!”

“Don’t touch it! Be careful not to pop the blisters!” Fang Zhen blocked Qiao An’s hand and said quietly, “I’ll apply the medicine for you.”

Qiao An lowered his hand, and he did not speak anymore.

Fang Zhen dipped her finger in the transparent ointment and applied it on Qiao An’s shoulder and back. Her movements were exceptionally gentle, making sure that she did not hurt Qiao An.

An entire cup of steaming hot tea had been poured on Qiao An’s back, below his left shoulder. It looked flaming red.

Fang Zhen’s heart ached. “Does it hurt?” she asked.

Qiao An shook his head. “It was hurting before, but not anymore. It’s alright. It’s worth the pain as long as the tea wasn’t splashed on your face.”

Fang Zhen’s hand trembled. She could not help but blush at his words, even though she knew the man did not necessarily mean them.

The man had a fair complexion, but he was not pale like a typical bookish scholar. Fang Zhen had never seen a man’s naked back before. At first, she was distracted by her concern for him, but now she was touching his skin with the tips of her fingers. Her eyes shifted slightly, and she noticed the man’s handsome face. His light blue robe was halfway down, exposing his neck and shoulders. Below that, she could vaguely see…

Fang Zhen’s heart trembled for a moment, then started to pound violently. She took a deep breath to compose herself and continued to apply the ointment.

“Thank you so much, Young Master! My face would probably be ruined if it wasn’t for you!” Fang Zhen said in a low voice.

“How are you going to thank me?” Qiao An asked with a smile.

“How do you want me to thank you?” Fang Zhen asked back, her voice becoming even lower.

“Then… pledge yourself to marry me!” Qiao An replied slowly.

Fang Zhen raised her head abruptly. “…What?”

Qiao An gripped his clothes and belt while chuckling. “Don’t worry! I was joking!”

Fang Zhen’s eyes sparkled, and her face reddened. Her heart was in her mouth, and she was just about to say yes. Alas, she could only swallow her reply back down her throat.

Meanwhile, Su Jiu was teasing Liu’er outside of the door. “How did your young lady get to know our Master An?”

Liu’er recounted how Fang Zhen had borrowed Qiao An’s umbrella at the poetry session.

“Is your young lady engaged to anyone?” Su Jiu asked with a smile.

“No. When our mistress was still alive, my lady was engaged to the Young Master of the Zhang Family. But then the mistress passed away, and no one cared for the young lady anymore. Her engagement was taken by other people as well!” Liu’er explained with indignation.

Su Jiu nodded and asked, “Then, does your young lady have anyone she likes?”

Alarmed, Liu’er gaped at Su Jiu and said, “Don’t worry, Miss Su. Even if our young lady likes Young Master An, she won’t get involved if Young Master An already has a lover.”

“Oh! It turns out that your young lady likes Young Master An!” Su Jiu laughed, raising her eyebrows.

“I… I said ‘if’!” Liu’er explained hastily, her face reddening.

Su Jiu had sized up the situation. She glanced at the two people in the room and cracked a smile.

Changing the topic, Liu’er asked, “What’s the relationship between you and Young Master An?”

Liu’er naturally understood that her young lady liked Young Master An. Young Master An was undoubtedly much better than Zhang Yun. Nevertheless, she was afraid that he already had another woman in his mind.

Su Jiu giggled. “Friends. We’re just friends!”

Liu’er rolled her eyes and remarked, “Can men and women just be friends? What kind of friends?”

Inside the suite, Fang Zhen had applied the ointment. She lowered her head and gently blew on Qiao An’s wound.

The chill breeze brushed against Qiao An’s back and into his heart. It wrinkled the surface of the tranquil lake within his heart.

He put on his clothes and stood up, tying the belt slowly while facing away from the young woman.

“This medicine…”

“Thank you, Miss Fang!”

Qiao An abruptly turned back while Fang Zhen was handing him the ointment. The two opened their mouths together, then stopped speaking at the same time. Their eyes met, and they could not remember what they were going to say. Just then, a breeze blew in through the window, ruffling the woman’s hair on her forehead.

She combed her hair behind her ear and handed over the bottle again. “Young Master, you should take the medicine with you. Ask your servants to put it on at night. You should be better after a few days.”

“Okay. Good!” Qiao An said as he took it.

The ship pulled into the shore. The street cries of the pedlars on the river banks rose one after another.

Fang Zhen lowered her eyes and said slowly with a flushed face, “I’m sorry that you’ve gotten injured because of me. But… I’m glad that I’ve met you again. I’m going home now!”

Qiao An’s eyes gazed at the young woman’s delicate face. “I live at No.16 of the Qingzhu Alley in the Dong Cheng district. You can send servants to find me if you need me.”

“Yes!” Fang Zhen bit her lips and nodded. She paused for a moment before she proceeded to walk out.

Leaning against the wall, Su Jiu stood up straight when she saw Fang Zhen open the door. “Is it done? We’ve troubled you, Miss Fang!”

“Not at all! Young Master An was hurt because of me!” Fang Zhen smiled softly and continued, “It’s getting late, and I need to go home. Please take care of Young Master An!”

“I will!” Su Jiu’s lips curled up into a smile.

“I hope to see you again!” Fang Zhen curtsied to say goodbye, then walked off the boat with Liu’er.

After they were gone, Su Jiu lifted the curtain, and she saw that Qiao An was in a trance while holding the ointment bottle in his hand.

Su Jiu leaned against the door frame and chortled. “Has our Master An finally developed an earthly desire this time?”

Qiao An placed the bottle on the table and lowered his eyes. “She’s perfect, but we’re too different. I’m more than a dozen years older than her. We’re hardly compatible!”

Qiao An was already 32 years old, while Fang Zhen was only around 17. There was indeed a huge age gap.

Su Jiu sat across him and asked, “Regardless of age, I only care if you like the girl or not.”

Qiao An poured some tea and nodded slowly after a while. “A little!”

Maybe it was more than a little. However, he was already past the age of falling in love blindly and irrationally. He was also scared that Fang Zhen was only momentarily infatuated with him.

He did not want to have his heart broken again.

“As long as you like the girl! It’s obvious that the girl likes you too!” Su Jiu said.

“I know! But I’ve married once, and I’m much older than her. It’s not fair to her,” Qiao An replied.

“So, would you rather see her get bullied in the Fang Family?” Su Jiu chuckled.

Qiao An raised his head, stunned by her question.

Su Jiu continued, “Think about it! Fang Zhen’s mother is gone, and Fang Yuan’s mother is the mistress now. Will she treat Fang Zhen well at home? Judging by Fang Yuan’s attitude today towards Fang Zhen, it’s apparent that Fang Zhen’s situation in the Fang Family is becoming dire. She desperately needs you to save her!”

Qiao An laughed quietly and asked, “How do you know that she’s willing to marry me?”

“Just my intuition!” Su Jiu replied with confidence.

Qiao An sipped the tea, smiling in silence.

“I’ll send a matchmaker to the Fang Family to propose the marriage tomorrow!” Su Jiu continued, unable to wait any longer.

“Not yet. Let me think about it more!” Qiao An hurried to say.

“What are you going to think about?”

Qiao An shook his head slowly. “I don’t know! I’ll think about it more!”

Su Jiu held the teacup and looked outside of the window. “Fine, you can think this through, but do it quickly. It’ll be too late to regret if such a good girl gets married to someone else!”

Qiao An stared at her steadily, his eyes darkened.

The ship then pulled into the shore. Fang Yuan and Zhang Yun also went ashore in a hurry and scurried to their horse carriage.

Zhang Yun had been coaxing Fang Yuan the whole way back. He explained to her that he was only joking about what he had said to Fang Zhen in the suite.

“Stop fooling me! I know you’ve taken a fancy to my sister and wish to marry both of us!” Fang Yuan shot him a glare and said angrily.

“I’ve already told you that I was only messing with her. We’re about to get married. How can I still like other women?”

“Then swear on it!”

“Alright. I swear that I, Zhang Yun, only like Fang Yuan!” Zhang Yun declared with a cheeky grin.

Fang Yuan knew she could not push him too far. She decided to relent, though she still felt indignant.

“Fang Zhen was born with that foxy face. She may look graceful, but I know what kind of a woman she is much better than you guys. Somehow, she always manages to deceive you. Did you see the man who protected her today? He is probably married, judging by his age. But wasn’t he still seduced by her?”

Zhang Yun did not think that Qiao An had been seduced, yet he still echoed Fang Yuan, “Yes, I didn’t realize she was like that. Thankfully, I’ll be marrying you!”

“You should be very grateful!” Fang Yuan prodded Zhang Yun on his forehead.

Zhang Yun grabbed the woman’s hand and pulled her into his arms. “Why don’t we have some fun now?”

The man rushed to kiss on the young woman’s face. Although Fang Yuan was still upset for his infidelity, she fell on her back while resisting half-heartedly.

The horse carriage was moving at full speed. However, the man was still not satisfied with the kiss. His hand started to pull down the woman’s trousers under the dress.

Fang Yuan stopped him in a hurry and grumbled in a flirtatious manner, “Don’t. We’re in the horse carriage!”

“So what? It’s not like we’ve never done it before!” the man replied while laying on top of her impatiently.

(1) Vamp: implies a woman who uses her charisma and beauty to charm men into doing what she wants them to do.