Chapter 95

Yong Ge picked up the fan bone and carefully felt the two figures on it, then turned to ask Cheng Duo with anticipation, "Does it look like us?"

Cheng Duo smirked, "If you like it, let's buy it."

At the moment, he missed the modern camera a bit. If Yong Ge got a photo of the two of them, he would be overjoyed.

However, regardless of the fish or the shrimp, Cheng Duo asked the fan craftsman, "How long does it take to complete such a fan?"

The craftsman quickly replied, "Half an hour is enough."

Seeing that both of them were willing to wait, Wei Ling ordered the guards to take their luggage back to where they were staying. He left most of the troops at the inn outside the city, making it convenient.

Du Boyan thought this was his chance. He took out his own fan from his waist, slightly opened it, and handed it to Yong Ge, saying, "Little Master Wei, this roadside trinket is far inferior to the sandalwood fan from our Du family. If you like it, why not visit our Du family's fan shop?"

Du Boyan was quite elegant. The sandalwood fan handle he presented was polished like smooth jade. White jade fan pendants and purple tassels adorned it. The fan's surface featured a painting of a solitary person drinking in a cold river, indicating his exceptional taste.

Unfortunately, he was trying to win favor in the wrong place. Yong Ge blushed instantly when he saw the fan, "I like the one from this stall!"

"What's so great about this?" He may not have seen many good things, but his heart had already been captured by it. There wasn't any silhouette of him and Cheng Duo on the fan Du Boyan presented!

Yong Ge stared at Du Boyan indignantly, unknowingly making him fall for him even more. Du Boyan's heart pounded rapidly, as he was accustomed to self-confidence. He didn't think Yong Ge was upset, instead, he believed the young man was feeling shy.

After thinking it through, he realized his mistake. The fan he had in hand was for men, with darker colors that most young men wouldn't prefer. Moreover, Little Master Wei had already pointed at the fan on the roadside stall, so he took out the high-quality sandalwood fan for comparison. No wonder Little Master Wei got angry.

Yong Ge held back his anger and walked behind Cheng Duo. Using his sleeve as a cover, he secretly held onto Cheng Duo's large hand and used his fingers to pester and caress it relentlessly, looking like a little person who had suffered grievances outside and now came back to find his parent to coax him.

Cheng Duo was tickled a little by Yong Ge, and with a smile, he glanced at the sulky little wife. He raised his fist and lightly coughed, "There's a teahouse over there. Shall we go for tea and wait?"

Before Yong Ge could respond, Cheng Duo tossed a small piece of silver to the fan craftsman, "This is extra for you. Take your time with the polishing; we can wait as long as needed."

"Thank you, thank you, sir. The little one will be meticulous. Thanks for your reward," the craftsman thanked gratefully.

Just now, he thought this deal was going to fail when the Little Master in the ornate robe took out his own fan. He didn't expect that the beautiful Little Master would like his craftsmanship.

He was right. The affection between this newlywed couple was indeed strong. The Little Master just secretly held his husband's hand a moment ago. Sitting in front of the stall with a lower line of sight, he noticed everything, while others were oblivious to it.

"Let's go, and we'll sit in the teahouse," Cheng Duo said.

Coincidentally, the teahouse Cheng Duo chose was also a property of the Du family. After they entered the teahouse, Du Boyan displayed the utmost hospitality, not only ordering the most expensive Biluochun tea but also bringing a pile of delicacies.

(T/N: Biluochun tea is a type of green tea.)

"These sugar-steamed cheese buns and honey azuki bean rolls are our teahouse's most famous snacks. Little Master Wei, you must try them," Du Boyan placed two plates of snacks in front of Yong Ge. Although he tried to hide it, his affectionate eyes were fixated on Yong Ge's face, causing Yong Ge to frown.

Cheng Duo was about to burst into laughter. After spending so long in ancient times, this was the first person who dared to openly covet his wife. Did he think Cheng Duo had no temper?

Cheng Duo casually picked up the chopsticks in front of him and flicked his wrist. The chopsticks flew past Du Boyan's cheek and inserted firmly into the pillar behind him with a "thud."

The remaining half of the chopsticks wavered in the air. Only then did Du Boyan suddenly come to his senses, his face covered in cold sweat.

Cheng Duo grinned, "Oops, my hand slipped. Fortunately, Du Young Master dodged quickly. Otherwise, if this chopstick accidentally stabbed your eye, it would have been a pity."

Tan Yulou's heart was already in turmoil. With just one move, he could see how high Cheng Duo's martial prowess was. Even his father, Tan Guangkun, probably couldn't match this chopstick's attack.

He looked at Cheng Duo, then at Du Boyan, who now looked pale and seemed to have weak legs, almost about to collapse. How could he not know that it wasn't Du Boyan's quick reflexes, but that Cheng Duo did it intentionally? Otherwise, instead of having his eyes poked out, this handsome and suave Young Master Du would have become a lifeless corpse by now.

"It's… it's alright…" Du Boyan squeezed out a few words from between his teeth.

Among the people present, Tan Yulou was busy currying favor with the Wei family and wouldn't make any trouble. Wei Ling seemed to be casually observing the scenery, appearing not to notice this side of things. As for the person he cared most about, Little Master Wei…

Yong Ge seemed to treat the incident as an accident as well. He looked at the remaining chopstick next to Cheng Duo and suddenly brightened up, enthusiastically proposing, "Cheng Duo, you dropped yours. Why don't I feed you?"

Du Boyan: "…"

Did his chopstick accidentally fall? It was evident that he did it on purpose!

Was this Little Master Wei too naive? Was it because he grew up in the countryside and lacked experience?

Du Boyan wanted to suggest having a servant bring another pair of chopsticks, but when he recalled Cheng Duo's seemingly smiling yet warning gaze, he swallowed back the words with difficulty.

Tan Yulou wanted to contribute his own chopsticks, but Wei Ling kicked him from the side. Tan Yulou stiffened for a moment, and after a while, he sneakily glanced at Wei Ling. He saw Wei Ling's eyes fixed on his teacup, gently blowing on the hot tea in his hand.

Tan Yulou's foot twitched, feeling inexplicably warm where Wei Ling had kicked him.

Meanwhile, on the other side, Yong Ge had already picked up a piece of sugar-steamed cheese bun and held it with one hand, bringing it to Cheng Duo's mouth. Cheng Duo helplessly lowered his head and took a bite.

"Is it tasty?" Yong Ge asked.

Cheng Duo scoffed, "Too sweet."

So, Yong Ge took a bite himself. It was indeed a little sweet, but with a rich milky flavor that he quite enjoyed. Yong Ge finished the rest of the sugar-steamed cheese bun in three or four bites and then picked up a savory chestnut cake from the table. He first offered a bite to Cheng Duo, saying, "How about trying this one?"

"…" This time, Cheng Duo didn't object, and Yong Ge was wholeheartedly focused on feeding him, thoroughly enjoying the experience.

After finishing two pieces, Cheng Duo declined further, picking up his teacup instead. "You can eat them yourself; I don't like these overly sweet and dry things."

"Oh," Yong Ge looked a bit disappointed. No wonder Cheng Duo always liked to feed him when he was tired. So, hand-feeding his beloved felt even more satisfying than eating himself.

Tan Yulou was already stunned, opening his mouth, "You and General Cheng have always been like this…?"

"Apologies for making Young Master Tan laugh. Yong Ge has the heart of a child, just playing around," Yong Ge could be mischievous, but Wei Ling still needed to save face. He was well aware that among the people present, including the tea customers at nearby tables, no one would dare to make trouble.

"Wei Little Master does indeed have a genuine temperament…" Tan Yulou smiled, secretly envious.

Du Boyan, who was dejectedly sipping his tea, suddenly perked up. Yes, Wei Little Master probably didn't understand at all. He treated everything like a child's game, right?

Otherwise, how could his silent and uninteresting husband be more likable than him, an elegant and charming Young Master?

After drinking tea and listening to storytelling for a while, they returned, and the fan was indeed completed. Yong Ge couldn't put it down and played with it repeatedly.

Back in the courtyard of Jianxin City in the evening, he still held the fan under the oil lamp, illuminating their silhouettes. The candlelight cast through the fan's intricate patterns, forming two somewhat indistinct figures on the wall.

Yong Ge compared them and said, "His brow is not as deep as yours, and his nose is not as straight as yours. I'll go find the vendor tomorrow and have him make another one."

Cheng Duo choked and thought it over before keeping silent. To avoid having every piece of furniture and every window and screen in his home displaying their silhouettes, he didn't recommend Yong Ge bringing the fan maker back to the Western Capital.

With the real person right here, Yong Ge soon put the fan away. Seeing Cheng Duo lazily sitting by the bedside reading, Yong Ge directly sat on him and tried to snatch the book from his hands. "Cheng Duo, reading at night is bad for your eyes."

Look at him.

The young man's gaze was innocent yet enticing, with a face full of eagerness to try. Cheng Duo covered his eyes with his hand, saying, "Don't look at me like that."

Last night, they had been fooling around for most of the night, and now he was afraid Yong Ge wouldn't be able to handle it.

Yong Ge felt his intentions and deliberately rubbed against him. "Cheng Duo, don't you want to? Could it be that you're still tired from last night? That can't be."

"You know that's not what I meant!" Cheng Duo gritted his teeth and rolled over, easily suppressing the alluring little demon.

Yong Ge giggled, raising his hand to hook around Cheng Duo's neck. At this moment, he truly resembled a bewitching fox spirit that sucked away men's yang energy.

What could Cheng Duo do but comply with his wishes?

The welcome banquet was eventually moved to the third evening, and the renowned General Tan Shoubei finally appeared. He was a general who had risen from the bottom ranks. Upon meeting, he spoke with a loud voice, saying, "My apologies, Young General Wei. There are bandits causing chaos in the southern part of the Ying River. I led the troops to suppress them, but I arrived a step late. I will penalize myself with three cups during the banquet later."

"General Tan, you are too kind," Wei Ling had a favorable impression of him. Compared to the county magistrate Hu Zhongwei, who spoke in a roundabout way, he preferred generals like Tan Shoubei.

However, today's banquet seems to be a bit like the Hongmen Banquet. Many officials and wealthy households have brought their female family members and unmarried sons. Due to the large number of people, they had to divide the seating arrangements between the front and back courtyards.

At first, Wei Ling intended to play dumb, but after a few rounds of drinking, Tan Shoubei, who had turned red-faced, whether he was drunk or not, spoke loudly during the banquet, "Young General Wei, in my life, there's one thing I'm particularly good at, and that is having many daughters and sons. I heard that Young General Wei doesn't have any family members by his side. If you find any of my children suitable, why not take one or two back with you tonight?"

Wei Ling was taken aback, feeling cornered by Tan Shoubei's boldness.

Their visit was originally for reconciliation, and Tan Shoubei's desire to bring people closer to him to strengthen their relationship was understandable. Moreover, Tan Shoubei directly allowed him to take people back without insisting on marriage. This could be considered acceptable, especially since Tan Shoubei only had one legitimate son, and the others were all illegitimate.

In truth, Tan Shoubei had given him enough face, and his request was not excessive. If he were to refuse on the spot, not only would it offend Tan Shoubei, but their cooperation might also encounter difficulties…