newbobooks Chapter 771 A Cheng Yaojin Who Came Out of the Way
Chapter 771 A Cheng Yaojin Who Came Out of the Way
Shen Yu is a natural at warming up the atmosphere.
He grabbed one of them with each hand and dragged them to a ring toss stall, throwing down a handful of coins with an air of magnanimity: "Boss, I'll take all these rings!"
The stall owner was overjoyed and quickly handed over a large stack of bamboo rings.
"Come on, boss, go first!" Shen Yu shoved the bamboo ring into Gu Qingchen's hand, looking on expectantly. "Let them see your glory days! I still remember how you snatched that glass cup on your first try!"
Gu Qingchen was amused by his appearance, and her previous gloom vanished.
She weighed the bamboo ring in her hand and glanced at Lin Jiayou, who was smiling but clearly detached from the situation.
“Okay.” She raised her chin, a sly glint in her eyes. “But I’m having bad luck today, so someone has to give me a lucky draw.”
As she spoke, she turned to Lin Jiayou and said, "How about that clay figure in front of you? You stand there and don't move. If I manage to ring it, you lose, and you're treating everyone at Wenxiangju tonight. If I don't..."
She paused deliberately.
A crack appeared in the gentle smile on Lin Jiayou's face.
He looked at the chubby, adorable clay doll that Gu Qingchen was pointing to, and then at her mischievous expression, and for a moment he didn't know how to react.
"Boss, you're making things difficult for him!" Shen Yu chimed in from the side. "Isn't Lin Jiayou standing there a sitting duck? No way, we have to change the prize!"
His eyes darted around, and he pointed to a beautifully crafted revolving lantern at the back of the stall. "That one! Lin Jiayou, if you can get that for the boss, I, Shen Yu, will cover the drinks tonight! If you can't, you still have to treat us!"
Before Lin Jiayou could speak, Gu Qingchen had already shoved all the bamboo rings in his hand into his hands.
"Did you hear that? Shen Yu has spoken." She patted Lin Jiayou's shoulder affectionately, but her tone carried an unyielding force. "Show us your skills, Scholar Lin."
Holding the large stack of cold bamboo rings, Lin Jiayou looked at the two enthusiastic people in front of him and felt the veins on his forehead throbbing.
His carefully planned time alone, the warmth and reminiscence he tried to create, were all ruined in front of Shen Yu, that reckless guy.
Instead of helping him, Gu Qingchen went along with it and pushed him into the eye of the storm.
"Alright." He took a deep breath, his flawless smile returning to his lips, his voice still gentle. "Since Qingchen wants to see, then I'll make a fool of myself."
He picked up a bamboo hoop and tossed it aside casually.
The bamboo hoop traced a precise arc in the air, perfectly catching the furthest revolving lantern.
"Wow!" Shen Yu exclaimed exaggeratedly, "You're something else! You've been hiding your talent all along!"
Lin Jiayou simply smiled, handed the remaining bamboo rings back to the stall owner, then took the revolving lantern from the stall owner and turned to hand it to Gu Qingchen.
"I have fulfilled my mission." He gazed at her tenderly, as if he were not the one who had been forced onto the stage, but rather a gift he had willingly won for her.
Gu Qingchen looked at the exquisite revolving lantern, but did not reach out to take it.
She just smiled and said to Shen Yu, "See? I told you he was amazing. Come on, there's a sugar painting stall up ahead, let's go check it out!"
She turned and left, her steps light and quick, as if the revolving lantern and the man who had gone to great lengths to win her the prize were no longer relevant to her.
Lin Jiayou's hand, holding the revolving lantern, froze in mid-air.
The smile on his face finally couldn't be maintained.
Shen Yu glanced at Gu Qingchen's back, then at Lin Jiayou's unpleasant expression, and belatedly scratched his head, sensing that something seemed off.
"Um... Jiayou, the boss might be... she might be..."
He hesitated for a long time without coming up with a solution, then simply snatched the lantern from Lin Jiayou's hand, saying, "I'll hold it for the boss! Let's go, let's keep up!"
At the alleyway opposite the teahouse, Qian Zhenyun's figure was hidden in the shadows, like a lifeless statue.
He watched Gu Qingchen and Lin Jiayou come out of the teahouse, watched Shen Yu rush over, and watched the three of them laughing and joking in front of the ring toss stall.
He saw Lin Jiayou win the whirlwind for her, and he also saw Gu Qingchen turn away without a care.
But so what?
To outsiders, this is a heartwarming scene of childhood sweethearts and close friends.
They bickered and argued, yet walked together in such harmony, the sunlight falling on them, so beautiful it was almost blinding.
And he could only stand in this dark corner, like a thief who couldn't see the light of day, spying on everything that should have belonged to him.
"Young master," the servant beside him said in a low voice, his tone full of worry, "Should we... still follow?"
Qian Zhenyun did not answer.
His gaze pierced through the throng of people, fixed intently on that slender figure.
He saw her stop in front of a sugar painting stall, turn around and say something to Lin Jiayou and Shen Yu, her eyes crinkling with a smile.
At that moment, Qian Zhenyun felt as if his heart was being slowly torn to pieces.
He slowly turned around.
"I'm not going anymore." His voice was terribly hoarse. "Let's go back to the manor."
The servant was stunned for a moment, and wanted to persuade him again, but when he saw Qian Zhenyun's eyes, he swallowed all his words.
What a pair of eyes those are.
The former calm and gentle atmosphere was gone, replaced by boundless desolation and coldness, as if a heavy snow had buried all life.
The festivities at the temple fair continue.
Shen Yu was a very responsible host, taking Gu Qingchen and Lin Jiayou on a tour of almost half the street.
With Shen Yu's interference, Lin Jiayou could no longer find a suitable opportunity to relive his past romance.
"Come on, boss, Lin Jiayou, I know a restaurant up ahead that has an amazing roasted lamb leg. It's my treat today, we're not leaving until we're drunk!" Shen Yu was in high spirits and pulled the two of them forward without saying another word.
Gu Qingchen was happy that someone would break the deadlock, so he naturally wouldn't refuse.
Lin Jiayou watched the two people singing in unison ahead, the gentleness in his eyes fading, leaving only a deep coldness. But he quickly concealed this emotion and followed them.
In the private room on the second floor of Wenxiangju, wine and dishes were quickly served up in a continuous stream.
Shen Yu was indeed determined to get the two of them drunk, and ordered three jars of the finest Daughter's Red wine.
"Come on, boss, I'll toast you! I wish you all the best in the new year, and may everything go smoothly for you!" Shen Yu raised his wine bowl and drank it all in one gulp.
Gu Qingchen picked up the bowl and drank it just as readily.
Lin Jiayou held his wine glass, took a refined sip, and looked at the two of them with a smile: "Brother Shen still has such a high tolerance for alcohol."
"That's right!" Shen Yu patted his chest. "Lin Jiayou, stop pretending. Nobody's leaving until we finish these three jars!"