CH 44.1

unedited

Meng Huan turned his head to look at Lin Bozhou: “Are we going?”

Lin Bozhou slightly tilted his head sideways. “If Huan Huan wants to go, then go.”

Meng Huan: “Mm!”

He led Lin Bozhou to the deck of the decorated boat. The surface of the Jin River was really more visible, and the lights on the water swayed with the waves, quite like the scenery of <<The Qinghuai River in the Shadow of Oars and Lanterns>>*. The hot wind blew the fragrance of wine and cosmetics, which made people relaxed and happy.

*A prose by Zhu Ziqing and Yun Pingbo while traveling along the Qinhuai River.

The view from the bow of the boat under the canopy was excellent. Meng Huan was about to go over when the waiter stopped him. “Sorry, Young Master. This seat has been booked.”

Meng Huan’s heart surged with disappointment, but he nodded and went inside. “Then I’ll take this table on the hull.”

Before he could get his buttocks around it, the waiter came over in a panic. “Hey, Young Master, you can’t sit at this one either. It has been booked.”

“……,” Meng Huan nodded despite his disappointment since he had arrived later. “Where can I sit then?”

“This table, this, this, this; these several are available.” The waiter turned around, full of apologies, “I’m really sorry, Young Master. Our decorated boat has the best view of the Jin River, so the young masters and noblemen have picked here to sit. Most of them are booked in advance. It’s this servant’s fault that he didn’t make it clear to Young Master. “

Meng Huan scratched his head and looked at the remaining tables.

The location was dimmer and remote, not as good as his selection.

Mentally, Meng Huan still wanted to sit at the empty table he had just picked.

Meng Huan stood in the same place, at a loss.

To sit or not to sit?

If I sit, it’s a bit remote.

If I don’t sit, changing to another one, the location will not be as good as this boat and may be full.

Meng Huan’s decision-making fear began to kick in. When Meng Huan struggled to weigh the options, Lin Bozhou laughed softly beside him.

He could not see, but as soon as Meng Huan was dazed, he could guess what Meng Huan was thinking.

Meng Huan blushed a little and gently pinched his fingertips.

Fierce.

The two hesitated to take their seats. The waiter knew they were dissatisfied with the seats, so he whispered as if leaking a secret, “Young Master, I’m not going to hide it from you. The young master who booked the seat was a big deal, so we had no choice. Otherwise, we would have given you the seat. Young Master, just sit here. The night view is not bad.”

When he said that the young master was a big deal, it was obvious that he wanted Meng Huan to give up.

However, Meng Huan looked at him and Lin Bozhou beside him.

…… What big deal he hadn’t seen?

It wasn’t a question of whether the other party was a big deal, but saying this in front of Lin Bozhou seemed like….. bringing a big axe in front of Lu Ban’s house*.

*Lu Ban is a famous craftsman in ancient China. This proverb means showing off your skills in front of experts.

If this were a shuangwen* novel, Meng Huan would simply say, “Do you know who is the man beside me?” and successfully change the seat. But Meng Huan did not have an arrogant and domineering temperament. After pondering for about half a minute, he held Lin Bozhou. “Let’s change to another boat, okay?”

*Shuangwen: a type of online literature common where the protagonist goes smoothly from the novel’s beginning to the end and upgrades rapidly.

Lin Bozhou: “Mm.”

Waiter: “Eh?”

Meng Huan walked back. The middle of the decorated boat was narrow, and many people came up. A young man in the middle was dressed in silk and was holding a jade-bone folding fan with a cicada crown on his head, clasping a book with both his hands. As he walked down the aisle, he had a strong servant escorting him, signaling people to stay away.

Obviously, this was the extravagance possessed by a rich young master.

Generally, when encountering such a young master, ordinary people would have to go around the road.

–But, unfortunately, Lin Bozhou walked into the aisle now. Even if Lin Bozhou pretended to be ordinary, it was impossible to give way to someone; his lineage would not allow it.

In the front, that young master’s strong servant said, “Make way.”

Before Meng Huan could say anything, the guard dressed in civilian clothes behind Lin Bozhou said, “Excuse me, our young master walked up this road first. Please give way.”

A roar of laughter erupted from the other side. The laughter was a mockery that the other side was very insensitive to the situation, equivalent to ‘Who do you think you are, dare to talk about the order in front of our young master?’

It seemed that the young master before him was a very important person.

Meng Huan thought about it and said, “You guys give way. The road is only so long; we’ll leave soon.”

At this time, someone suddenly made an “ah” sound. “It is a blind man.”

“……………………”

The young man before him, busy reading a book, raised his head slightly, and his gaze fell first on Meng Huan and then on Lin Bozhou.

Lin Bozhou wore a plain white robe, standing upright; a white veil covered his eyes, and his eyebrows and nose were tinted with shadows. He didn’t have the usual sense of prestige of the prince regent but rather like a person suffering from eye disease, educated and with a pure temperament of a scholar.

But the servant behind him was tall and strong, watching angrily, and his hands were secretly clasped at his side, which was clearly the posture of holding a sword.

Somehow, the young master’s hand shook violently.

He glanced at the source of the voice. “Insolence!”

After reprimanding that person, he turned slightly sideways. “It’s okay. You two can go ahead.”

As they were about to leave, he suddenly said, “Are you two also here to enjoy the Lantern Festival at the decorated boat?”

Meng Huan hesitated, “Ah, yes.”

“Then why are you two leaving now?” He smiled kindly.

The waiter interjected, “The two young masters dislike the view from the remaining tables and want to change to another one.”

“……”