“What did Qiao Yin mean by that? Was she deliberately cursing you? Or is she really going to be with… Jinzhi? What’s wrong with you?”
“You don’t look too good? Are you really sick?”
Chu Wenjing vividly recounted the scene, but seeing no reaction from Lu Jinzhi, he turned to look at him and was suddenly startled by Lu Jinzhi’s pale face.
Lu Jinzhi pursed his lips without speaking and quickly boarded the carriage.
Chu Wenjing, confused, asked, “What are you going to do?”
“To the horse track,” Lu Jinzhi replied with a gloomy expression.
Chu Wenjing, belatedly realizing, followed him onto the carriage and sat opposite Lu Jinzhi.
As the carriage moved forward at a steady pace, Lu Jinzhi raised his voice and commanded, “Faster.”
His tone was somewhat fierce and urgent.
Chu Wenjing felt a pang of worry for Qiao Yin. “Jinzhi, what Qiao Yin said was a bit excessive, but you shouldn’t take it out on a woman.”
Was he this angry because Qiao Yin had cursed him to die?
Lu Jinzhi asked himself inwardly.
It didn’t seem so.
More than Qiao Yin’s curse, what angered him was that what Xue Wanran said was true—today, Qiao Yin was really with Xie Yu’an.
In his eyes, Qiao Yin was like a kite, with the string in his hand. If he tugged it, Qiao Yin would come running back. But now, it seemed the string had snapped, and Qiao Yin, this kite, was no longer under his control.
Was Qiao Yin really with Xie Yu’an?
Lu Jinzhi didn’t know what drove him—whether it was male vanity or a desire to win—but as soon as this thought surfaced, he immediately dismissed it.
Impossible.
He didn’t believe it unless he saw it with his own eyes.
The carriage hurried along and finally arrived at the horse track.
Before the carriage even came to a stop, Lu Jinzhi had already lifted the curtain, anxiously peering out at the track with an expression full of indignation.
He looked like someone who had lost something and was coming to catch a thief—or, more accurately, to catch someone in the act.
Chu Wenjing was startled by his own analogy. Could it be? Could it really be?
He felt as though he had discovered something, but he wasn’t sure until he saw Lu Jinzhi’s next expression—
Lu Jinzhi looked around, but the horse track was empty. His expression visibly relaxed.
Not seeing anyone didn’t make him angrier; instead, he let out a long sigh of relief.
This expression was very familiar to Chu Wenjing. Every time his father called him to the study to test his knowledge, he would feel nervous walking to the study door. But if he found that his father wasn’t there because guests had arrived, he would show this same sense of relief—like he had “escaped a disaster.”
Was Lu Jinzhi afraid? Was he running away?
Chu Wenjing felt as though he had uncovered a huge secret and stared intently at Lu Jinzhi.
Lu Jinzhi had already ordered the coachman to turn back, his tone much gentler than when they had arrived.
“By the way, Jinzhi, since you didn’t come today, Yan Ruyu asked about you. She’s been quite concerned about you lately. Are things progressing well between your two families?” Chu Wenjing suddenly made small talk.
Lu Jinzhi replied, “Yes, at the last palace banquet, my aunt mentioned it to the Prime Minister’s wife. It should be soon. Why do you ask?”
“Nothing much. It’s just that, since your family has this intention, you should put some effort into Yan Ruyu. Other things can be set aside for now,” Chu Wenjing advised tactfully.
In families like theirs, especially for someone of his status as the heir to a ducal household, marriages were often alliances based on the interests of the two families, leaving little room for personal choice.Anyone with eyes could see who was more suitable for Lu Jinzhi between Yan Ruyu and Qiao Yin.
“Hmm.” Lu Jinzhi responded, then inquired, “What styles of jewelry are currently popular among the young ladies in the capital lately?”
Chu Wenjing thought Lu Jinzhi was asking because he intended to send a gift to Yan Ruyu after hearing his words, and felt quite pleased.
“If you want to know about the latest fashionable jewelry, don’t ask me—you should go back and ask your half-brother. I only learned from my sisters at home that your half-brother has struck it rich on his recent trip to the southern border. He discovered a mineral vein there, filled entirely with red gemstones. Right now, the most popular items in the capital are the various ruby jewelry from your family’s shops. The young ladies in the capital can’t get enough of them.”
Lu Jinzhi nodded, then called out to the coachman, “To Yueji Pavilion.”
Yueji Pavilion was the Lu family’s private property. Its revenue went to the family’s common fund, but it had always been managed by his half-brother, Lu Yizhi.
Lu Yizhi’s birth mother came from a lowly background, and Lu Yizhi himself was worthless—unable to amount to anything. When told to study, he refused to apply himself properly. Instead, he went out gambling, lost money, and had a finger cut off as punishment. Since then, he could no longer write quickly, thus ending any prospects for an official career.
The family had no choice but to assign him to manage the business.
Though their ages were not far apart, Lu Jinzhi disliked this half-brother immensely. In his view, Lu Yizhi was not even worthy of being called a brother.
“Young Master, we’ve arrived at Yueji Pavilion.”
The carriage stopped, and Lu Jinzhi lifted the curtain and stepped out. As soon as he entered, the attendants in Yueji Pavilion hurried forward to greet him.
“What brings Young Master here today?”
Lu Jinzhi ignored them, clasped his hands behind his back, and glanced around the shop. Sure enough, he saw many dazzling ruby ornaments.
His gaze was immediately drawn to a peony hairpin. Its outer layer consisted of overlapping golden petals, with a smooth, round ruby at the center—utterly magnificent and eye-catching.
“Wrap this up and deliver it to the Jing’an Marquis Estate,” Lu Jinzhi said, pointing at the hairpin.
Chu Wenjing nodded. “This hairpin is indeed very nice… Wait…”
“Where are you sending it? Did you say that correctly?” Chu Wenjing stared at Lu Jinzhi in astonishment.
“To the Jing’an Marquis Estate,” Lu Jinzhi repeated, urging the shop assistants to proceed.
The assistants exchanged glances. One quick-witted among them whispered, “Let’s wrap it up first and note the charge on the account. We’ll report it to the manager later.”
Everyone thought this reasonable. One assistant deftly placed the hairpin into an embroidered box and asked, “Young Master, is this for Second Miss Qiao at the Marquis Estate? I’ll deliver it right away.”
Lu Jinzhi nodded, then left satisfied.
Only Chu Wenjing remained foolishly rooted to the spot, mouth agape, his jaw nearly hitting the floor.
Was he seeing things? Lu Jinzhi personally choosing a gift for Qiao Yin?
Was this still the same Lu Jinzhi?
…
“Ouch—”
The carriage jolted, and Qiao Yin inside the compartment winced, sucking in a sharp breath.
No other reason—her bottom hurt.
If Xie Yu’an hadn’t been in the carriage with her, she would have already turned over and lain face down.
Qiao Yin had never imagined that one day she would be bullied by a horse!
This horse was truly cunning. At first, it seemed obedient enough, but after she mounted and rode halfway around, it realized she was a novice and began bucking wildly. In just half a day, her bottom felt like it had been split into four pieces. Yet, when Xie Yu’an demonstrated, the horse behaved perfectly—moving forward when told, jumping when commanded.
A downright two-faced, hypocritical, white-lotus horse in the equine world!Qiao Yin slightly furrowed her brows, her lips pursed in dissatisfaction.
As if he could read her mind, Xie Yu’an quickly removed his white outer robe, folded it into a square, and placed it on the cushion beside her.
Qiao Yin was taken aback, looking at him with some embarrassment.
“All things have a spirit. Some fine horses possess the intelligence of a five- or six-year-old child. Once you ride them for a lap, they can tell how skilled you are at horsemanship. If you try to slack off, they’ll find ways to bully you. When I was learning to ride as a child, I was thrown off a horse and broke my arm.”
Xie Yu’an’s voice was calm and unhurried, like a gentle flowing stream. Speaking with him was incredibly relaxing.
Sitting on his robe, Qiao Yin indeed felt more comfortable.
“What happened next? How did you tame that spirited horse?”