Xu Ping’an had a headache.
This girl really kept her word; she just showed up.
What kind of talk is it for an unmarried young woman to just show up and live at a married man’s house without any proper status?
“Shopkeeper Liu, you’ve come quite early today. I haven’t prepared any food yet. How about you return first, and I’ll invite you again in a few days once I’ve prepared a meal?”
When he said this, he wasn’t sure if it was just his imagination, but he felt as though the sharp and resentful gaze from the west room behind him had eased a little.
Even stranger, he seemed to vaguely sense a gaze from the east room.
Could it be… my wife is peeking?
No way?
Given her current state of not having recovered her memory, she shouldn’t feel any jealousy, or rather, her jealousy should be similar to a child fighting over a toy.
It’s okay, my wife is easy to coax.
A good comforting session later should sort things out.
As for the one in the west room.
To be frank, she might have some feelings for him, but he currently has no intention of getting involved with the royal family.
Especially in the current complex environment.
This Great Qi Dynasty has thirteen prefectures, and the Emperor has twenty-six sons.
Of these thirteen prefectures, apart from Nanzhou and Saizhou, the rest are divided among various princes.
Currently, the whereabouts of the sect leader of the Great Qi’s largest sect, Liuyun Sect, are unknown, and various factions have emerged within the Liuyun Sect. All the princes hold military power, and chaos has already begun.
Who knows how this Great Qi will progress from here?
If any trouble truly arises, the Zhennan King, who can govern a prefecture, will obviously be pushed to the forefront.
And Li Yu’er, as his “only child,” will inevitably be swept into this vortex, unable to escape.
Therefore… Xu Ping’an has no thoughts about her in that way.
He firmly believes it’s best not to have too much contact and to cure her illness as soon as possible.
Then just let her leave.
As for her feelings, Xu Ping’an can understand them to some extent.
After all, she is a privileged daughter of heaven.
Although she has been trained as a man, it’s perfectly normal for a young girl to have romantic feelings.
And he, Xu Ping’an, just happened to be in the right place at the right time, at the right age, to stir some thoughts in this Princess Royal.
This Great Qi Dynasty is vast, and there will always be some outstanding young people who will eventually replace him in her heart.
So Xu Ping’an isn’t worried about this.
Instead, it’s Liu Yingying.
Xu Ping’an has known this girl for seven or eight years.
When he first met her, she was just a little girl, spoiled by the Liu family, so she always wanted to be first in everything.
The most crucial thing is that this girl is stubborn to a fault.
He understood that if he allowed this girl into his courtyard today, he probably would never be able to get rid of her in the future.
Didn’t he notice that she still hadn’t entered the courtyard gate?
This was a hurdle in her own heart.
Xu Ping’an had practically watched this girl grow up, so he naturally understood some of the thoughts in her heart.
She wanted Xu Ping’an to personally accept her, so even though she arrived as promised, she didn’t just walk straight in.
Because once she stepped through the courtyard gate, it would mean she wholeheartedly considered herself a member of the Xu family.
“Ping’an~ aren’t you going to look at me more?”
It seemed she had known all along that Xu Ping’an would refuse, so Liu Yingying didn’t show much disappointment on her face.
Instead, a determined look emerged, and she was no longer as shy as before.
She raised her head and looked at Xu Ping’an’s face.
“Shopkeeper Liu’s beauty is stunning, a true peerless beauty in this world. However, I already have a wife, so it’s not appropriate for me to look too much. Shopkeeper Liu, please return today. I will definitely visit you another day to apologize.”
“Xu Ping’an… do you really dislike me that much?”
“I have never disliked Shopkeeper Liu. It’s just that I’m used to being a free spirit and already have a family, so it’s inconvenient to host Shopkeeper Liu. I hope Shopkeeper Liu can understand.”
Upon hearing these words, even the most patient woman would probably not be able to bear it.
As expected, the moment Xu Ping’an uttered those words, tears welled up in Liu Yingying’s beautiful eyes.
“Xu Ping’an… are you really that heartless?”
“What do you mean by that, Shopkeeper Liu? It’s just inconvenient for me to host you, please…”
“Don’t be so formal with me, Xu Ping’an. I know what you’re thinking, but today, this door… I must enter!”
At this point, Liu Yingying directly laid out her cards, no longer beating around the bush with Xu Ping’an.
She wasn’t the type to play word games; she wasn’t good at gaining an advantage through words, but she wasn’t someone who could be fooled away with just a couple of sentences.
Seeing that Liu Yingying had already made her intentions clear, Xu Ping’an could only smile wryly and shake his head.
“Shopkeeper Liu, why bother? I’m just a wandering doctor, not to mention whether I’m famous or not, I don’t even have a stable position. My life is unstable. As the eldest daughter of the Liu family, you’ve been pampered since childhood, so why bother suffering this hardship with me?”
Liu Yingying smiled sweetly.
“As long as I’m with you, I’m not afraid of any hardship!”
Xu Ping’an looked at the little girl he had practically watched grow up.
Her expression showed no retreat or fear, and he couldn’t help but sigh.
“Alas… girl, why bother? You know I have no feelings for you. What can you gain by doing this?”
“I don’t believe it, and I don’t care! All I need is to be by your side!”
Looking at the silly girl with tear-filled eyes, what more could he say?
This stubborn girl probably already planned to starve herself to death at the courtyard gate, right?
That’s right, this girl’s personality was exactly like that: incredibly stubborn, only recognizing one truth.
Once she set a goal, she would absolutely not change it.
“Fine, fine. I probably owed you something in my past life. In this life, you’ve come to collect the debt.”
Liu Yingying, her face streaked with tears, raised a hand to wipe them away, then directly squatted on the ground.
“If you don’t let me in, I’ll starve to death here!”
As expected, this girl still chose this approach.
“Alright, don’t sit there. The ground is cold. It wouldn’t be good if you got sick. Come in.”
Hearing those last three words, Liu Yingying, who had been lowering her head, immediately looked up with a joyous expression.
Her watery eyes were still brimming with tears, but the corners of her mouth couldn’t stop turning upwards.
“Really?! You feel sorry for me?”
He just casually expressed some concern; how could this girl interpret it in such a way!
“Think whatever you want. Don’t sit by the door. Master Fang’s two disciples will be coming later to check on the completion of the work. Don’t let them see a joke.”
“Mm!”
Upon hearing this, Liu Yingying immediately stood up.
Disregarding the dirt, she used her wide, embroidered robe to wipe her face and nodded heavily.
“Don’t worry, I won’t let you lose face in front of outsiders. After all, I’m a daughter-in-law of the Xu family. If anyone dares to look down on you, I’ll beat them to death!”
What does she mean, a daughter-in-law of his Xu family? When did he ever acknowledge that?
“Ping’an!”
Liu Yingying stood at the doorway, looking at him sweetly, then extended a hand.
“What do you mean?”
“Lead me in. I’m a bride; what kind of sense does it make for me to walk in by myself?”
Xu Ping’an looked at Liu Yingying’s tear-streaked face, with tears still welling in her eyes, yet displaying an arrogant look.
He sighed helplessly.
“Sigh… I’m afraid of you. I really don’t know what I owed you in my past life that I have to repay it like this in this life.”
Hearing this, Liu Yingying’s small nose twitched.
“Hmph~ You must have owed me so, so much in your past life. In this life, I’m sticking with you!”
Is this… being stuck with someone?
Xu Ping’an reached out and gently took Liu Yingying’s wrist. Unexpectedly, Liu Yingying suddenly intertwined her fingers with his and stepped inside.
Before Xu Ping’an could react, Liu Yingying buried her head in his chest, tears overflowing again, and she cried aggrievedly against his chest.
“Ping’an… do you know how many times I’ve thought about the day I would enter your home? You scoundrel, did you have to make me lose all face before you’d accept me?”
What more could Xu Ping’an say?
Looking at the stubborn, foolish girl in his arms, he gently stroked her long hair.
“There, there. Now you’ve gotten what you wished for, so don’t worry about those things…”
“What you owe me, you’ll have to repay me with a grand, splendid wedding in the future!”
Oh no!
Nothing’s even happened yet, and he’s already in debt again.
Was it like this in his past life too?
But he couldn’t remember having any girlfriends on Earth before.
It seemed he hadn’t owed any emotional debts.
Why, then, after coming to this world, did so many creditors suddenly come knocking?
“Alright, let’s talk inside. But first, let me be clear, I haven’t agreed to anything.”
Xu Ping’an quickly denied it, then received a small punch to his chest.
“What you owe me, I’ll always remember!”
Great.
Nothing’s even happened yet, and she’s already keeping a tally, huh?
He was really at his wit’s end with this girl.
This suddenly added another debt.
He really didn’t know how much more he’d owe her in the future.
“Alright, alright, let’s go inside first.”
Xu Ping’an looked behind Liu Yingying.
“Excuse me, are you…?”
“I am the maid sent by my lady to serve Miss. My name is Liu Ning’er. I hope master will take pity on me in the future…”
The young girl Ning’er looked only about thirteen or fourteen.
Although she was still in the bud, she was already tall and slender.
But what the heck does “take pity” mean?!
He hadn’t agreed to anything, had he!?
And who is this “master” you’re referring to? It couldn’t be him, could it?
Why are you blushing like a teapot bubbling with tea?!
He hadn’t done anything yet… bah, bah, bah!
He wasn’t planning on doing anything!
“Ping’an, she’s the… the dowry maid my mother gave me. In the future, you’ll have to take care of her too…”
Liu Yingying’s pretty face turned crimson as she lowered her head.
As an unmarried young woman, saying “dowry maid” was truly mortifying.
Seeing this, Xu Ping’an couldn’t help but smile wryly and shake his head.
What are you blushing for? You were so self-righteous just now, forcing him to pull you in.
Now you mention a dowry maid, and you’re blushing like this?
What does she mean, he has to take care of her?
It seems she’s already planning his future, even though nothing has happened yet, right?
“Alright, alright, let’s talk inside. I’ve said it several times. Let’s not stand at the door. That… the room on the right side of the east wing is still empty. You can stay there for now.”
“Mm~”
Liu Yingying’s pretty face was slightly red as she nodded.
“That… Ping’an.”
“Huh?”
“Tonight… I’ll wait for you.”
What?!
As soon as she spoke, Liu Yingying’s face immediately flushed scarlet.
She twisted around and, with her absolutely dominant figure, scurried into the east wing.
Looking at the silly girl’s shy demeanor, Xu Ping’an couldn’t help but raise a hand to his forehead.
“What sins did I commit in my past life?!”
“Master, I’ll go serve my young lady first.”
“Don’t call me master, I’m not your master!”
“Okay, Master. Then I’ll go serve the young lady, Master.”
Speechless.
He watched Liu Ning’er directing the strong servants to carry in the large boxes, one by one.
One of them was clearly wrapped in a large red brocade cloth with a double-happiness pattern.
Through the gaps in the edges, he could see a new set of bedding hidden inside.
He felt three strange gazes behind him, and his heart was filled with sorrow.
How would this mess end?!
He guessed Pei Qingxuan was also secretly peeking from her room.
Although he had gotten on the “bus” and bought the “ticket” later, he had originally only planned to live happily ever after with his wife, like a pair of lovebirds.
Who would have thought that soon after, the debt collector and the beggar both arrived.
The debt collector was Liu Yingying, and as for the beggar… just look at the one in the west room.
“Never mind, never mind. Let nature take its course.”