NOVEL NEXT Chapter 12: “Third Brother…” the Girl Was On the Verge of Tears
Mei Shuyu was looking at the words written by Liu Jiyu. Upon hearing Yun Rumei’s question, he replied, “I’ve already prepared it. I’ll have the servant send it over tomorrow.”
Yun Rumei uttered a sound of acknowledgement. She had thought she would be able to watch him do it himself, but she hadn’t expected it to be already done.
Seeing her sit down, constantly sizing up Liu Jiyu and Mei Shuyu, a smile gradually spread across Yun Rumei’s face.
Liu Jiyu felt goosebumps all over her body from being stared at by her, glared at her, and asked, “What are you doing?”
Yun Rumei winked at her, ignoring her question, and looked at the young man, asking, ‘Third brother, do you have any girl in mind?’
Liu Jiyu: “!!!!”
Mei Shuyu put down the paper in his hand and looked at Liu Jiyu, furrowing his brow as he said, “you’re not young anymore, yet your handwriting is still so terrible. It’s clear that you don’t put much effort into this normally.”
Liu Jiyu shrunk her neck. Although she had read countless books in her previous life, she had never picked up a pen to write herself, so her handwriting was still quite ugly.
The young man placed the paper in his hand on the table, his eyes clear as he looked at Yun Rumei, calmly saying, “Yes.”
Liu Jiyu lowered her eyes, focusing on her own preserved fruit, practicing mindfulness.
“Could third brother reveal who she is?” Yun Rumei’s mouth was almost stretching to the back of her head with her grin.
Mei Shuyu shook his head gently, “It might not be appropriate.”
Yun Rumei wasn’t disappointed either. She smiled mischievously at Liu Jiyu and said, “It doesn’t matter, even if third brother doesn’t say, I already know who it is.”
The young man smiled but remained silent.
Liu Jiyu’s hand, holding the preserved fruit, trembled slightly.
“You guys continue practicing calligraphy, I’ll take my leave now. See you at dinner later.” Yun Rumei, showing a keen sense of timing, got up with a sly grin and left.
Mei Shuyu glanced at the absent-minded girl and said, “Write another piece, let me see.”
With that, he stood up and walked over to the girl’s side.
Liu Jiyu snapped out of her daze, uttered an acknowledgment, dipped her brush in the ink, and started to write on the paper, the strokes spreading instantly.
The young man furrowed his brow, “Why hesitate when you start writing?”
Liu Jiyu blinked, looking somewhat aggrieved, but didn’t say anything.
The room was extremely quiet. Just as Liu Jiyu was about to turn her head to look, a cold voice came from above, “Stop daydreaming and focus on your strokes.”
The girl shuddered. Oh no…
At that moment, the hand holding the brush was firmly grasped by a distinctively strong hand.
Liu Jiyu was startled, almost jumping.
“Third brother…” The girl was on the verge of tears. Wasn’t this against propriety?
Mei Shuyu remained indifferent and said, “Watch how I handle the brush carefully.”
Liu Jiyu pouted, watching as he manipulated the brush with her hand held in his.
She watched as he wrote, the elegant yet somewhat sharp characters appearing on the paper.
Liu Jiyu sighed inwardly while feeling awkward.
In the next moment, she saw the young man releasing her hand.
Liu Jiyu felt the need to clarify their relationship and change the atmosphere.
“Third brother, we…”
Mei Shuyu interrupted her, saying, “I understand what you want to say.”
Liu Jiyu looked at him expectantly.
“From today onwards, let’s address each other as siblings and nothing more,” the young man said calmly, stating his decision.
Liu Jiyu looked at him skeptically. He was the future powerful figure, wouldn’t it be easy for him to deceive her?
Seeing her disbelief, Mei Shuyu smirked and continued, “Have I ever lied to you from childhood till now?”
Liu Jiyu thought for a moment and realized that he hadn’t. So, she honestly shook her head.
“I’ve always been straightforward. You know that. If you don’t believe me, just watch,” he said.
The girl pouted, feeling that Mei Shuyu wouldn’t lie to her. At most, she would just be a bit more cautious.
However, if they could address each other as siblings, that would be quite nice.
With that in mind, Liu Jiyu smiled at the young man, “I believe you, third brother.”
Mei Shuyu’s lips curved up slightly, then he looked at her and said, “Continue writing.”
***
As it was time for dinner, Liu Jiyu and Mei Shuyu went together to the Xinyong Hall, walking side by side in the corridor.
Mei Shuyu turned his head slightly and glanced at her bunched-up hair, softly saying, “When writing and reading in your daily life, focus and don’t be distracted.”
Liu Jiyu pursed her lips. She had just agreed to treat each other as siblings, and now he was trying to educate her as an elder brother.
“I know,” the girl replied weakly, feeling a bit irritated.
The young man glanced at her, seeing her pouting face, so adorable, and the hand clenched in his sleeve, unsure of what to do.
Oh well, he decided to bear with it for now.
After dinner, Liu Jiyu chatted happily with old madam, who kept affectionately calling her “darling.”
This made some people jealous. Liu Zhu gritted her teeth, wondering why Liu Jiyu could charm everyone with just a few words.
As she was about to speak, her hand was grabbed. She turned to see her younger sister, Liu Zhen, looking at her with a pleading expression.
Taking a deep breath, Liu Zhu chuckled self-deprecatingly and quietly sat down, deciding not to say anything.
“I heard that Luan’er asked Meimei and Yinyin to practice calligraphy?” Old Madam Liu smiled and looked at Liu Jiluan.
Liu Jiluan sighed and nodded, saying with a smile, “They were rude in public, they deserve to be punished.”
“I wonder, what breach of etiquette did they commit?” Old Madam Liu hugged Yun Rumei with one hand and Liu Jiyu with the other, her smile never fading.
Liu Jiluan smiled faintly and said, “Just some trivial formalities.”
“Tell me more about it,” Madam Sui insisted, determined to get to the bottom of it.
Liu Jiyu remained calm, nestled in her mother’s embrace.
Liu Jiluan pondered for a moment before slowly saying, “It was because Miss Shen had a dispute with them, so I punished them.”
Sitting beside them, Shen Zhizhi looked bewildered. What did she have to do with this?
“What’s going on?” Madam Sui asked, seeking clarification.
Liu Jiyu lifted her head from Old Madam Liu’s embrace, smiled at everyone, and said confidently, “It’s nothing, just a little squabble. It’s nothing serious.”
After speaking, she buried her head back in Old Madam Liu’s embrace, eliciting laughter from those around.
Old Madam Liu, with a loving expression, reached out to pat her head and asked, “I know your handwriting is poor, and your elder sister is strict. How did you manage to get away with it?”
As Old Mother Liu spoke, Liu Jiyu refused to accept it. She lifted her head, looked at Old Madam Liu, and said, “Grandmother, don’t underestimate me. I sought Third Brother Mei to be my teacher.”
Hearing this, Madam Qin’s expression deepened. She looked at Liu Jiyu, who was smiling gracefully, and asked, “Why did Sanlang become your teacher?”
Liu Jiyu looked at her, feeling a chill in her heart. Madam Qin’s methods were formidable, not something an ordinary person could contend with. Even Madam Sui might not be able to match her, showing how frighteningly deep her scheming ran.
The girl smiled sweetly at her, “Big Brother Mei and Second Brother have heavy academic burdens, so I didn’t dare to disturb them. That’s why I sought Third Brother.”
“You little rascal, don’t you dare bully your Third Brother Mei, understand?”
Liu Jiyu pouted. She wouldn’t dare!
The summer days were long and the nights short. Although it was already the third quarter of the You hour, the sky had not yet darkened. Liu Jiyu joked with Yun Rumei for a while, spoke with Old Madam Liu, and then got up to leave.
In this room, except for Yun Rumei, everyone else was shy and reserved. Liu Jiyu found it boring, so after paying respects to the elders present, she turned and left the Xinyong Hall.
As she passed through the archway, preparing to stroll along the stone path to the corridor, Liu Jiyu saw a handsome young man with a gentle smile standing by the path, looking at her.
It was Shen Huan.