Chapter 414: Chapter 390, Persuasion_1
“Xiao Yeyang, you really know how to push your luck these days!”
Daohua shook off Xiao Yeyang’s hand with a flick.
Xiao Yeyang, feeling embarrassed, touched his nose and fell silent for a moment before calling out towards the door, “Defu, turn back.”
Upon hearing this, Daohua immediately looked over, “What do you mean, turn back? I want to go home!”
Xiao Yeyang said, “I just made a trip to Taohua Temple and found out you had left. I hurried out to chase after you. Grandmother Gu and Master Gu must be so worried right now. Are you sure you don’t want to go back and let them know, so the two elders can rest easy?”
Thinking of the worry in Grandmother Gu’s and her master’s eyes when she left, Daohua lowered her head and fell silent.
With a flick of his mouth’s corner, Xiao Yeyang nodded at Defu, who was standing outside the door.
Soon, the boat started up again and turned, heading back in the direction of Taohua Village.
Daohua glanced at Xiao Yeyang seated next to her, stood up, walked out of the cabin, and stood on the deck. Looking at the scenery passing by on both banks, she felt incredibly conflicted.
She had wanted to distance herself from Xiao Yeyang, take the opportunity to reflect on her feelings. But who knew he would chase after her so closely, cornering her in just half a month?
Yet, she was secretly delighted at his pursuit.
“This is so annoying!”
Daohua lifted her hands to her head, feeling an urge to pull at her hair, at a loss for what to do. Should she continue to keep her distance, or let him draw nearer?
When Xiao Yeyang stepped out of the cabin, he saw Daohua holding her head, looking somewhat frantic, and he couldn’t help but chuckle, “What are you doing?”
Seeing the teasing smile on Xiao Yeyang’s face, Daohua awkwardly dropped her hands. She felt silly and defensively claimed, “The wind is a bit strong; it’s making my ears uncomfortable. Can’t I cover them up?”
Xiao Yeyang’s smile faded, “If you’re uncomfortable, then why not go back inside the cabin?” As he said this, he reached out to pull Daohua back in.
Daohua sidestepped, avoiding Xiao Yeyang’s hand, “I don’t want to stay in the cabin. It’s stuffy.”
Seeing this, Xiao Yeyang helplessly dropped his hand, thought for a moment, then walked up beside Daohua. Before she could react, he reached around from behind and covered her ears, “Then I’ll cover them for you.”
Seeing that Daohua was trying to struggle, he quickly added, “Pick one, either go back into the cabin or let me cover your ears while you stand on the deck and enjoy the view.”
Xiao Yeyang applied slight pressure, preventing Daohua from turning her head.
Daohua felt helpless, took a deep breath, and gritted her teeth, “Xiao Yeyang, let go of me. I’ll go back to the cabin.”
Xiao Yeyang laughed, “Not watching the scenery anymore?”
Daohua said, “No, I’m not!”
Xiao Yeyang let go with a smile, and Daohua turned around to glare fiercely at him before heading back into the cabin. Xiao Yeyang followed with a smile, but as he reached the door, a ‘bang’—he was shut outside.
Looking at the closed door, Xiao Yeyang sighed helplessly and gestured for Defu to bring a chair over, then sat down by the door.
Seeing this, both Defu and Wang Manman’s corners of the mouth twitched.
Defu looked sympathetic, “Poor master, can’t even get through the door.”
At this comment, Wang Manman slapped Defu’s shoulder with a ‘smack’, “What nonsense are you spouting? If you dare to talk rubbish again, be careful I tell my young lady to have the Little Prince teach you a harsh lesson.”
Defu, knowing he misspoke, quickly raised his hand and slapped himself several times, “Look at this mouth of mine, I can’t spit out anything good—like a dog can’t spit out ivory. Miss Manman, please don’t take it to heart.”
Wang Manman huffed, “It’s no wonder my young lady keeps her distance from you all, you and your master are just too impertinent.”
Defu immediately said, “It’s my fault I spoke out of turn, but it has nothing to do with my master.”
Wang Manman glanced at Xiao Yeyang and muttered under her breath, “The Little Prince is no better.”
Defu disagreed, “Miss Manman, I can’t agree with you there. My master’s behavior towards Miss Yan is a bit too intimate, sure, but isn’t that because they have been very close since they were young?”
Wang Manman said, “That was when they were children. Now that the young lady is grown up, it’s not appropriate to act like before. Eunuch Defu, this is something you must remind the Little Prince of. He might not worry, but my young lady needs to maintain her reputation.”
Defu fell silent for a moment, then nodded, “Don’t worry, I’ll remind the master.”
Wang Manman didn’t say anything more.
…
After some time, they arrived at Taohua Village.
As soon as the boat reached the shore, Xiao Yeyang was the first to land and then turned around to help Daohua, only to have his hand sharply swatted away by her as she landed on her own and quickly headed towards Taohua Mountain.
Xiao Yeyang, with a look of helplessness, quickly followed after her.
As the two entered Taohua Temple, they saw Granny Gu and Gu Jian standing in front of the main hall, watching them.
“Granny, Master!”
“Granny Gu, Master Gu!”
Gu Jian maintained a stern face as he glanced at the pair, then made his way into the kitchen.
Granny Gu, on the other hand, smiled and beckoned them over: “You must be hungry, the meal is ready, come inside and eat.”
Daohua and Xiao Yeyang approached, each taking one side to support Granny Gu into the house.
Soon after, Gu Jian appeared along with De Fu and Wang Manman to serve the dishes: “Dinner’s ready!”
Seeing Gu Jian’s stern face, both Daohua and Xiao Yeyang didn’t dare to speak up and quietly sat down.
At the dinner table, the four of them silently ate their meal.
Daohua and Xiao Yeyang occasionally glanced up at the two elders.
Granny Gu was as kind and compassionate as always, whereas Gu Jian’s expression was somewhat intimidating.
Granny Gu couldn’t help but laugh at the two children’s cautious behavior, scolding her brother with a glare: “We are eating, why are you scowling like that? It’s off-putting.”
With that, she added a chopstick-full of food to both Daohua and Xiao Yeyang’s bowls.
“Eat more, you’ll need strength to quibble after you’re full.”
Upon hearing this, Daohua and Xiao Yeyang exchanged a swift glance.
Daohua put down her chopsticks: “Granny, Master, we truly weren’t causing trouble…”
Gu Jian cut her off with a cold snort: “Not causing trouble? One hiding, the other seeking? Are you playing house or what?”
Daohua hung her head in silence.
Seeing Daohua scolded, Xiao Yeyang immediately said, “Master Gu, don’t blame Daohua, it’s all my fault…”
“Of course, it’s your fault!” Gu Jian interjected again, pointing at Daohua, “This girl has her faults, but she has one merit— she’s magnanimous. If such a tolerant person is avoiding you, you must have done something wrong. You’d better reflect on yourself.”
Xiao Yeyang: “….” He felt so wronged inside, he clearly hadn’t done anything!
Forget it, this was Daohua’s master, and he was an elder; let him say his piece, he would take it.
Daohua looked at her master with sparkling eyes.
Indeed, the master was still more on her side.
At that moment, Granny Gu stepped in to smooth things over, laughing as she said, “A couple of words and let that be it, eh? We are still eating after all.”
Upon hearing that, Gu Jian did not say more and picked up his chopsticks to continue eating.
Granny Gu looked at Daohua and Xiao Yeyang with a smile: “When two people spend a lot of time together, it’s inevitable there will be some bumps and scrapes. But this is all trivial; if there’s an issue, we should speak openly and work together to resolve it.”
“Never keep it locked up inside. That’s the last thing you should do, as it not only causes unnecessary worry but also confuses others.”
Xiao Yeyang nodded repeatedly, looking at Daohua and saying, “Exactly, exactly.”
Daohua glared at Xiao Yeyang, signaling him to shut up.
Granny Gu continued, “From now on, you two mustn’t make a fuss like you did today; you should be cordial with each other.”
Xiao Yeyang looked at Daohua, and Daohua glanced at Xiao Yeyang, both of them bowing their heads in silence.
Seeing this, Gu Jian showed his dissatisfaction and knocked on the table: “I’m speaking to you, have you both become mute?”
Daohua and Xiao Yeyang quickly replied, “Yes, Granny!”
Granny Gu, all smiles, said, “Alright, all’s well that ends well, now eat up.”