***
Qin Mu washed himself in the bathtub like he was going to war. Just as he was about to get up and dress, he heard Huang Lianshan's voice coming from outside the bathroom: "Sir, Lu Daqi has entered the city and asked to see you."
Qin Mu smiled slightly, and sat back in the bathtub. He raised his voice to Huang Lianshan outside and said, "Just tell him that I have to bathe and change clothes first to show respect, and let him rest in the lobby first. By the way, he is the governor of four provinces after all, remember to serve him a pot of good tea."
"Yes, sir."
Most of Qin Mu's actions were beyond Dong Xiaowan's expectations. She stood in the bathroom holding a set of clean clothes, looking at Qin Mu sitting in the bathtub with his eyes closed with complicated eyes.
In her opinion, Qin Mu was a typical outlier. His poems were unmatched in the Ming Dynasty. However, his behavior was very different from that of all the literati of the time. At least, he was a far cry from the gentleness and elegance that she thought a literati should have.
"What are you standing there for? Come over and rub my back. It's a rare moment of free time for me." Qin Mu lay on the bathtub for a long time and suddenly spoke, which scared Dong Xiaowan.
"Come here."
Qin Mu urged again, and Dong Xiaowan gently put down the clothes she was holding. Her pair of bright starry eyes were already filled with hot mist, and crystal tears could fall at any time. She finally walked to the bucket and picked up the handkerchief, and her slender jade-like fingers were trembling slightly.
Qin Mu saw that there was no movement for a long time, so he turned around and looked at her. Dong Xiaowan's beauty gave Qin Mu a very special feeling. She was not like Li Xiangjun, who was bright and unrestrained, and had a clear distinction between love and hate.
Her beauty was a dreamlike beauty, no matter how you imagine it, it was not excessive, but this kind of beauty was hard to describe, which made her seem a little unreal. Qin Mu couldn't help but hold her slender and round fingers. His fingers were trembling, and the warm temperature came from his fingertips. Well, only at this moment did Qin Mu feel that she was a real person, not a dream.
Dong Xiaowan's breathing became rapid as Qin Mu held her hand. Her breasts rose and fell. Although Qin Mu had never touched them, he could tell from her eyes that her breasts were not very big. But they were definitely not small either. Her waist was as slender as a willow branch in early spring, and could be held in one hand.
"Do you know why Han Zanzhou went to so much trouble to send you to me?"
This question had a strong appeal to Dong Xiaowan, making her temporarily forget her fear and her fingers stopped trembling. But she still did not speak, and her starry eyes looked at him silently.
"Because I told Han Zanzhou that I always repay kindness with kindness and revenge with revenge... You don't understand, right? If you want to understand, please rub my back first."
Qin Mu smiled and turned around to lie back beside the bathing tub. Dong Xiaowan raised her jade wrist, then lowered it. She raised it, then lowered it, and finally it landed on his back, gently scrubbing it.
"Although you, Dong Xiaowan, are famous throughout Jiangnan, I really don't take it too seriously. The reason why Han Zanzhou gave you to me was not because you are beautiful, but mainly because of what I said to him."
"What grudge do I have against you?" Dong Xiaowan finally couldn't help asking.
"You didn't, but Mao Xiang did. Back in Nanjing, Mao Xiang and Hou Fangyu used despicable means to kill me, and the method they used was to ask Han Zanzhou to give me the position of Huichang County Magistrate. At that time, Huichang was full of bandits, and the previous two county magistrates died in office. Mao Xiang and Hou Fangyu thought that I was just a weak nerd, and that I would die if I went to Huichang, hahahaha..."
"You're talking nonsense! Mao Lang is not that kind of person."
"Mao Lang? Haha... Birds of a feather flock together. The world now knows what kind of person Hou Fangyu is. To be able to get along so well with such a person, your Mao Lang must be... Hehe, it's not that I look down on you. My Xiangjun has a much stronger personality than you. She has a clear distinction between love and hate, a strong character, and would rather die than yield.
Do you know why she turned from love to hate for Hou Fangyu? It was because she learned that Hou Fangyu and your bastard used despicable means to plot against me that she began to doubt Hou Fangyu's character. I told you this just to kill time. In fact, I don't care. Just think that the whole thing was caused by my lust for your beauty."
The handkerchief fell on the water and floated away gently. Dong Xiaowan stood blankly beside the bath tub, two crystal tears silently sliding down.
Qin Mu was too lazy to care what she was thinking. He stood up and dressed himself. However, combing his hair had always been a problem that bothered him. He fiddled with it for a long time but couldn't get it to look right. To be honest, Qin Mu missed Qiao'er more and more. Although she was clumsy and couldn't even hold a basin of water properly, with her around, Qin Mu could always feel the warmth of home. Besides his busy work, his life became more fun. "Alas, I wonder how this girl is doing?"
"Sir."
"ah!"
Qin Mu suddenly looked like he had seen a ghost. The wooden comb in his hand fell to the ground with a "bang". He stared at the bathroom door that was pushed open with wide eyes.
A little head popped in from the door. A pair of eyes as bright as stars, an incredibly pretty face, and... Never mind, let's verify whether it's real or not first. Qin Mu walked up to it stupidly and pinched the little face hard.
“Ah, it hurts…”
"What a coincidence, what a coincidence..."
"Sir, you are mistaken. Are you dreaming? People are pinching themselves, why are you pinching others..."
"Uh, I am dreaming, I can't help myself, I can't help myself..." Qin Mu said, raised his hand and slapped her, then picked up the little girl and threatened her fiercely, "Tell the truth, why are you here? What's going on?"
"Hahaha... I knew I could scare you, sir. Ah! Sir, please spare me, I'll just tell the truth!"
"Say it!"
"Hehe, I came here with Sister Zhier. When we were in Ganzhou, I said I missed the Master and asked Mr. Sima when the Master would be back. Mr. Sima said it might take a long time for the Master to return to Ganzhou, and that if I really missed the Master, I should come to Changsha with Sister Zhier to find him. Then Mr. Sima arranged the troops to send us here."
"Yang Zhi?" Qin Mu murmured to himself, and couldn't help thinking about Sima An's intention. With Sima An's intelligence, it was not surprising that he could predict that he would stay in Huguang for a long time. But Qin Mu couldn't figure out what Sima An meant by sending Yang Zhi to Changsha.
"Sir, who is this sister?" Qiao'er asked cunningly, lying on Qin Mu's shoulder.
"Dong Xiaowan, a famous person. Let's go, where is your sister Zhi'er? Take me to see her." Qin Mu carried Qiao'er and went out. Dong Xiaowan was left staring at their backs in a daze;
In this short moment, her impression of Qin Mu was overturned again. Qin Mu's doting on Qiao'er was simply difficult to describe in words. It was not difficult to see from his every tiny expression and movement that it was a doting that came from the bottom of his bones. Is this still the cold and tough Qin Mu
In the flower hall of the back court, Yang Zhi was wearing a plain dress and her eyes were red and swollen. When she saw Qin Mu, she knelt down silently, tears streaming down her face.
"Sister Zhier, don't cry. The young master is fine." Yun Qiaoer was also about to cry. She struggled out of Qin Mu's arms and wanted to help Yang Zhi. Halfway through, she turned back and called Qin Mu softly, "Young Master..."
Qin Mu sighed and was about to go up to help Yang Zhi up. But an ignorant guard came to the door and reported loudly: "Sir, Lord Lu asks you to go to the front hall quickly..."
"Where is Huang Lianshan? Didn't I make it clear to him? Let Lu Daqi wait." Qin Mu spoke in a bad tone, which scared the guard.
"Please forgive me, sir. Please forgive me, sir. It was because Lu Daqi said that there was an imperial decree and asked you to go out and receive it. That's why I had to come back and report..."
"Imperial edict? What's wrong with the imperial edict? Don't you have to bathe and change clothes to receive the imperial edict? Go, let Lu Daqi wait patiently."
"Yes, sir."
At this time, Yang Zhi didn't care about much else. She came forward and pushed him out while saying, "My husband, receiving the imperial edict is a big deal. How can you... Husband, go quickly. I will wait here. When you receive the imperial edict, come back and deal with me."
"Dispose of?" Qin Mu did not move. Instead, he sat down on a chair and pointed to the chair on the other side of the coffee table, signaling Yang Zhi to sit down. "You want me to dispose of you?"
"Husband."
"At home, obey your father; after marriage, obey your husband. If you still know that I am your husband, then listen to me and sit down first."
"Sister Zhi'er, please sit down. Please sit down. The young master knows his limits. Please don't make him unhappy. Please sit down. Young master, what kind of tea do you want? I will pour it for you."
The little girl was like a peacemaker, and she was very attentive, very likable, and very... Qin Mu really wanted to give her a good scolding. "Hey, Master, why are you bullying me again? Humph!"
The aggrieved look on the little girl's face while she covered her forehead not only made Qin Mu happy, but also made Yang Zhi, who was worried, feel relieved.
"You don't understand me as well as Qiao'er." Qin Mu said to Yang Zhi, with a hint of bitterness in his expression.
"My dear, I'm sorry, I..."
"Well, you have done nothing to let me down. On the contrary, I should be grateful to you for risking your life to save me. Putting aside the grudges between you and your father, what more could a husband ask for to have a wife like this?"
Qin Mu said it very frankly. No matter what others thought, in his opinion, a man should distinguish between gratitude and resentment. The grudge with Yang Tinglin was a matter between men. It was too narrow-minded to vent his anger on a woman.
Besides, Yang Zhi had done nothing wrong to herself. She had never helped Yang Tinglin to deal with herself from the very beginning. Instead, she fought to the death to protect him. Now blaming her was not what a man should do.
However, Yang Zhi didn't seem to think so. She didn't sit down, but knelt down, and said with tears in her eyes: "Husband, I am sorry for you. I am not blessed. Please divorce me. I don't blame you. I just hope you can let my father go and let him return to his hometown to enjoy his old age..."
"Ah, Sister Zhier, you... How could you... Sir, please, please don't divorce Sister Zhier... Woo woo woo...
"Girl, this is none of your business, go away." Qin Mu frowned and said to Yang Zhi calmly, "Tell me honestly, did Sima An teach you to say that?"
Yang Zhi was startled, then shook her head and said, "No, I have thought about these words for a long time, and they are my own ideas." (To be continued...)
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