BSI Chapter 57 A Girl's Thoughts
Chapter 57 A Girl's Thoughts
The moon rises above the willow branches.
As night fell, the government office, which had been busy all day, gradually quieted down.
After so many days of adjustment, the yamen runners have gradually gotten used to this new magistrate. Compared to his predecessor, this one is much easier to serve.
Li Chong's qualities, which he brought from the modern world, make it difficult for people to feel any ill will towards him.
Of course, this has also fostered a sense of complacency in many people.
Even though Li Chong did not acquire any property outside the yamen and stayed in the back yamen every day, many of the yamen runners who remained at the yamen gate still dared to "defy the wind and commit crimes," seeking pleasure under the nose of the big boss.
In a room in the outer courtyard, orange candlelight shone through the window, and several yamen runners gathered together playing dice.
In this day and age, nightlife is just so boring.
In the dark courtyard, a petite figure hesitated outside Li Chong's door, her entire being exuding an aura of mystery.
hesitate.
Zhong Mei, who has always had a fiery temper, finally showed a touch of the gentleness that belongs to her age.
With her hands behind her back, her toes, clad in embroidered shoes, tapped the ground unconsciously as she muttered to herself.
"Those are my enemies, I will definitely kill those two with my own hands..."
"No, no, let's find another excuse." Zhongmei shook her head vigorously. "How about saying, 'After all, I grew up in the mountains and know a lot of trails'?"
The muttering had barely stopped when Zhong Mei, still annoyed, said, "With Zhang Tianfu and the others around, this excuse doesn't hold water. Ugh, this is so annoying!"
Only at this point can one see a hint of girlish charm in her eyes and brows.
Of course, if you can ignore the fact that she was actually conceiving some rather violent things, then she seems even more girlish.
Suddenly, she stumbled and swayed before regaining her balance.
Looking at the embroidered shoes on her feet, Zhong Mei became even more annoyed: "You're here to cause trouble too. Go back and change into boots."
These embroidered shoes look nice, but they're not very practical for movement, and they clearly don't match Zhong Mei's style at all.
Just as she was worrying about how to tell Li Chong, someone walked in from the outer courtyard; it was Cui Shi.
Hearing the noise, Zhong Mei glanced at it, then turned her head away indifferently to continue devising her reasons.
Choi Si-je's face was rosy, and she walked towards her room with a satisfied expression.
He squinted at the figure outside Li Chong's room, a hint of disdain in his eyes.
"He's so easily swayed; he could even lay a hand on a woman like that. Speaking of women, the ones from Xichunlou are the real deal..."
Choi Si looked somewhat nervous as he pulled his gaze away from Zhong Mei.
"No, I'm going out with him soon, and I haven't even seen what the courtesan looks like yet. If something unexpected happens, it would be such a waste."
Touching her belly, Choi Sil pondered who she should ask for another free meal before returning to her room.
As the sound of Cui Shi closing the door reached her ears, Zhong Mei made up her mind, clenched her small fists, and walked towards Li Chong's door.
"Baoqin." Siqi appeared out of nowhere and nervously grabbed Zhongmei's arm. "If you go to see the master now and he gets angry, you'll be kicked out."
Zhongmei glanced back, then waved her hand dismissively, "He... Master wouldn't do that. I know what I'm doing. Go back to sleep."
With that, she shook off the chess player and prepared to continue knocking on the door.
Siqi was a little anxious. She had been with Li Chong for several days and was gradually getting used to life here.
Compared to the Zhu family home, this place is obviously more comfortable, as it only requires sweeping and cleaning every day.
Not only is the work easy, but she also doesn't have to worry about any trivial matters. She doesn't want to be kicked out because of Zhong Mei's involvement.
Moreover, she truly meant well for Zhongmei.
Siqi raised her hand and grabbed again: "Oh dear, you don't know, Master is already married, and Madam is currently at her parents' home. If you go in now, who knows what Madam will do to you when she comes? Being kicked out would be the least of your worries. We should just do our duty as maids and not think too much."
Zhongmei didn't realize that Siqi was misunderstanding her, because she was distracted by another piece of news.
"He... got married?" Zhong Mei stared blankly at Si Qi.
Siqi nodded naturally and whispered, "I heard this from someone else. They said that Madam has gone back to her parents' home to fulfill her filial duties and will not be back to reunite with Master until later. If you try to get into bed now, you'll be in for a world of hurt when Madam comes! Come back with me."
Zhong Mei's face flushed red, and the inexplicable melancholy in her heart was immediately overshadowed by shame and indignation.
"Who said I came here to climb into someone's bed? I, I..."
The words were on the tip of her tongue, but Zhong Mei couldn't say them. She clearly couldn't just casually reveal her purpose for coming.
Frustrated, Zhongmei shoved Siqi aside: "Anyway, I'm not here to sleep with you, so don't worry. I'll go inside and talk to you before I go back."
After saying that, Zhong Mei rushed to Li Chong's door in a few steps and knocked on the door.
Siqi raised her hand, looking helpless.
Seeing that there was movement inside the room, she had no choice but to quickly retreat and nervously observe the commotion outside.
The light inside the main room flickered: "Is that Baoqin? Come in."
Of all the people in the courtyard, only her knocking was so urgent, and Li Chong easily guessed who it was.
Zhong Mei took a deep breath and pushed open the door, saying, "I told you, don't call me that."
Li Chong casually closed the account book on the table and replied with a smile, "There are other people outside. If I didn't call you that, wouldn't I give myself away?"
Zhong Mei's face stiffened: "You...you heard everything?"
Li Chong raised an eyebrow: "More or less. I was just guessing that you would walk back and forth a few more times before knocking on the door."
With the lighting of that era, the indoor brightness was clearly insufficient for Li Chong to see the outside scene completely. Once Zhong Mei's shadow was cast by the lanterns hanging from the eaves, Li Chong already knew that she was outside.
Zhong Mei blushed slightly; it's always a bit embarrassing for a young person to have their inner turmoil seen by others.
Gritting her teeth, she forced a look at Li Chong and said, "Then give me a straight answer: will you let me go with you or not?"
"Of course, as long as you don't try to climb into my bed, we can discuss any terms."
Zhong Mei continued, talking to herself, "Actually, I'm quite good at fighting too. Back then..."
He paused for a moment, then looked at Li Chong in disbelief: "What did you say?"
Li Chong repeated it again nonchalantly, then said, "I was planning to have you come with me anyway. You could have just said so directly, there's no need to overthink it."
Although Zhong Mei had changed her opinion of Li Chong quite a bit and thought he was not a corrupt official, she still felt that she was Li Chong's hostage and he could not allow her to meet with Jia Zhuo and the others so easily again.
She had thought of so many reasons, but she didn't expect Li Chong to agree so easily, which obviously caught her off guard.
Seeing that Li Chong was staring at her, and recalling the words about "climbing into bed" from earlier, Zhong Mei suddenly felt embarrassed.
She hurriedly turned around, and her embroidered shoes almost tripped her again.
Stumbling to her feet, Zhongmei hastily uttered, "Give me back my dagger later, and also, I'm never wearing embroidered shoes at home again."
As soon as he finished speaking, he left the room.
Watching Zhong Mei walk away, Li Chong rubbed his nose: "I thought I'd hear a thank you, but I was wrong."
He stretched, got up and closed the door. He couldn't stay up late anymore these days; he needed to start conserving his energy.