Chentan's Memories

The Ninth Chapter: Defrauding a Daughter by Words of Tongue

"I heard that you... disappeared?"

Thoughtfully arranged for the group of boudoir close friends to go back to the table first, and after there was no more noise from others, Hua Liangxu opened his mouth quietly, with a faint smile on his face all the time, just like the sweet smile on the scroll but still motionless beauty.

"...Hmm." Lin Lang remained expressionless, turning his face away without looking at her.

Lin Lang has always disliked Hua Liangxu's eyes - those bright eyes seem gentle and charming, but Lin Lang always feels that they are full of tricks.

Ever since Huafu and Lin's family had contacts with each other, the two met only three or five times.

Lin Lang was arrogant by nature, and he didn't want to gain the reputation of "attaching to the official family", so he was extremely repulsed by his father's arrangement.But Hua Liangxu is good-looking after all, and his personality seems to be gentle and kind. It is a lie to say that he has never been tempted.

It wasn't until the fathers of both parties began to mention the banquet about their marriage that Lin Lang, who was torn between "marry" and "not marry", found an excuse to hide and go out to relax, but met in the Huafu courtyard. To Hua Liangxu who also left the table.

——"My father is optimistic about you, but I am not."

——"My father is not all optimistic about you—he is optimistic about the incomparable wealth of the Lin family."

——"It's not you."

When the contemptuous words were blurted out, there was a gentle smile on his face.This made Lin Lang feel that this woman was horribly complicated.

"Ha..." But the woman laughed softly: "It is said that it is because you don't want to marry me."

Lin Lang remained expressionless; but Tang Yushu was so surprised that his eyes widened.

Although it was said that "the nobles and wealthy families of Jinling Mansion have already spread the word—", this stunning beauty who was "rejected by Lin Lang" did not show any displeasure because of it.The smile on the corner of her mouth was still light, her voice was gentle and sweet, and she called Lin Lang affectionately: "Brother Ting, I still want to ask you in person—is that really the reason?"

Although she was ridiculed by her in Huafu Garden that day.But the other party was a girl after all, and Lin Lang didn't want to embarrass her in front of others - of course the others meant Tang Yushu who was standing beside her.

So Lin Lang continued to parry with a deadpan face: "No."

"That's good." The gentle smile that has never changed for thousands of years still hangs on Hua Liangxu's face, but at this moment she frowned slightly, as if she was sorry, and she said: "What happened tonight is completely Misunderstanding—the sisters at the dinner also believed the rumors, so they defended me and said some... nonsensical things that were made out of nothing. Unfortunately, this young man who was passing by heard it, and he was eager to argue for you , and thus such an oolong was born—this young master, but Brother Ting's...?"

"...it's me... another shopkeeper of our store——Tang Yushu!"

The clever Lin Lang arranged a high hat for Tang Yushu in a moment.

"No wonder, brotherhood is so deep..." Hua Liangxu slightly bowed his head to the man in coarse cloth in front of him to express his apology, "Mr. Tang is magnanimous—it was the sisters who made a slip of the tongue just now, don't take it for granted."

"...Oh...it's okay." Tang Yushu, who was scolded for standing in for his friend, had no choice but to accept the apology silently.On the other side, while dealing with Hua Liangxu, Lin Lang found a gap and threw Tang Yushu a "loyal" look.

"So—Brother Ting has his own shop?" Capturing the key information revealed in Lin Lang's words just now, Hua Liangxu looked at the "another owner" in rough clothes from the corner of his vision, while He asked hesitantly.

Lin Lang guessed that she was wondering, and immediately argued: "He... is very powerful! When there was a rebellion in Shu, he was a member of the Jinyang Army and made great achievements. After the war, he refused the high-ranking officials and generous salaries offered by the emperor, so he wanted to come and fight Let me run this hot pot restaurant together!"

"..." These words were half true and half false. Tang Yushu, who was honest and never lied, blushed when he heard it, and a few drops of sweat were still oozing from his forehead.

Hua Liangxu didn't seem to be suspicious of Lin Lang's words, just smiled and rolled his eyes: "Oh, hot pot?... What kind of food is this, I've never heard of it..."

"A kind of delicacy from the Sichuan region." Seeing that his bragging seemed to scare Hua Liangxu, Lin Lang couldn't help but raise his chin a little: "—I have a long-term vision and decided to introduce this delicacy to the south of the Yangtze River."

"Oh? Where's the store? I'll definitely go and support it when I'm free in the future."

"...in...in Chentan." After the location was finished, Lin Lang felt guilty again, and immediately added to himself: "Cough... After all, it is introducing a new delicacy, and it is not clear what the future will be...starting from a small place Well! The cost is not high, and you can stop the loss in time just in case!" Lin Lang wanted to applaud himself after speaking with reason and evidence!

After hearing Lin Lang's decent introduction, Hua Liangxu raised his eyebrows without hesitation in complimenting him: "Brother Ting really made me look at him differently..."

This room Lin Lang was recognized, and he became proud again in an instant: "Thank you - if you come to Chentan in the future, I will definitely entertain you."

Hua Liangxu nodded gracefully: "The Lin Mansion..."

After bragging recklessly, when Hua Liangxu mentioned Lin Fu, Lin Lang involuntarily exclaimed: "—Don't say it!—Even my father!"

"...Huh?" Hua Liangxu was taken aback by his suddenly high-pitched tone.

Lin Lang restrained his panic for a moment, and put on a mysterious look: "—you know...uh... I'm in business, if I don't make a name for myself, I'm sure if I make a name for myself—today, you have the right to pretend that you didn't see me .”

"..." Hua Liangxu was silent for a while after hearing this, and then nodded: "Understood... Don't worry, I won't say it—my sisters won't say it either."

"That's good." Presumably Hua Liangxu is a gentleman who sticks to his word, Lin Lang felt relieved and made a bow: "Let me go first..."

"Farewell." Hua Liang saluted the two of them thoughtfully.

After watching the two gradually go away and turn out the door, Hua Liangxu couldn't hold back and sneered.

Subconsciously raised his cuffs to cover his gaffe, but when he came back to his senses, he found it really interesting——

——"In the past, I only thought that this person was no different from those ordinary sons, but I never expected that he would run away from the marriage, violate his father's order, leave the mansion, and set up his own family; it seems that he is also a stubborn person with his own plans ..."

What are you laughing at?

Maybe he was laughing at his recklessness in escaping the mansion; maybe he thought his funny appearance just now was too silly; maybe it was... a little envious?

The signature smile disappeared in the night where no one noticed with his back to the lights, and after a while, it hung back on that delicate face again, Hua Liangxu turned around and walked back to the cubicle as if nothing had happened.

It seemed that the expressionless face at that moment was a sneak in from a busy schedule.

Besides, the next day, Jinling City was still bustling with people.Thousands of people breathe in and out, warming the whole early winter.

In the porcelain shop, the clerk walked around Lin Lang and Tang Yushu on saddle: "Jingdezhen white porcelain is not considered high-grade. Look at this—this bowl is from the Zhen Kiln in southern Hunan. Not to mention good-looking, the main thing is that it is strong and durable!"

Lin Lang took the sample that the guy handed over and played with it in his hand.

"Is it resistant to falling?"

"Of course—hey son, why did you smash our bowl?"

"Take it to my account." Lin Lang rolled his eyes: "I want the real one, don't fool me with crap!"

"...Okay!"

Porcelain from famous kilns in various provinces was everywhere. Tang Yushu had never seen so many kinds of bowls and dishes, but none of them caught his attention at the moment.

"The girl is so good-looking, why don't you marry her?"

Lin Lang picked and picked the dishes on display, and dealt with Tang Yushu vaguely: "I don't like her."

"Smiley, like a flower." Tang Yushu praised people unequivocally.

"All the sons and gentlemen in Jinling City will be deceived by her smiling face, but I won't!" Lin Lang snorted coldly: "She is the concubine of the Hua family; I'm a kabuki, so I guess Hua Liangxu's ability to smile and flatter her is also inherited!"

"It sounds more and more pitiful."

"What do you pity her for? He is the daughter of the Huafu. All the young masters in Jinling City pity her, love her, and love her—why don't you see who you are?" Lin Lang was angry because Tang Yushu turned his elbows outward. : "Do you really consider yourself a boss? Quickly pick out the dishes and think about your own business! In the future, when you start a business, I don't care which girl you care about!"

"Oh..." Tang Yushu responded blankly.

"What happened last night... I'm sorry." The apology was an apology, but the high chin refused to turn around.

"...What's the matter?" Tang Yushu had already forgotten about it.

After picking and choosing for half a day, Lin Lang finally chose the bowls and dishes that satisfied him.

"240 broken jade porcelain from Su Kiln—even the ones you smashed just now, with a small change, the total is twelve taels of money!"

"A lot?!" Tang Yushu immediately pulled Lin Lang aside after the price was quoted by the clerk in the porcelain shop: "You are crazy! Two hundred bowls are only ten taels, and one bowl is fifty cents? ——Don't buy it There are bowls and dishes sold on Chentan, and you can buy a dozen or twenty for fifty renminbi!"

In the past two days, he was also used to seeing Tang Yushu, a poor guy with no prospects, Lin Lang couldn't even roll his eyes.

"It's a matter of quality—if you want to do business, you have to invest first. If the bowls are not exquisite enough, you can't entertain exquisite guests—you don't understand, trust me, I'm a person who has walked the Silk Road!"

After educating Tang Yushu, he told him to take out a bank note from the money bag first, and Lin Lang said to the clerk, "I'll go to the bank ahead and exchange the bank note."

"Hey, you go!" The guy who saw a big deal was beaming with joy.

Let’s say that Tang Yushu was waiting in the porcelain shop, and he had nothing to do, so he thought about it a little: Lin Lang’s temper is bluffing—the idea of ​​opening a hot pot restaurant was thought of yesterday morning, and he wrote it there early in the morning After writing and drawing a bunch of "lists", I arrived at Jinling City by car at noon and at night.

But I am still hesitating at this moment: Opening this restaurant...is it feasible?

——In the final analysis, Lin Lang is a wealthy young master with a well-to-do family.To open a shop, to do business, the book of a hundred taels of silver comes at your fingertips... But I am different, I don't earn much at the dock... If the foreman doesn't deduct money, I have to pay for the hundred taels of silver by myself □ □ years of work.

Simply closing his eyes, Tang Yushu felt extremely distressed.

——Qingyang, let me give my brother a hint: If this restaurant succeeds—it doesn’t expect a lot of popularity, and it’s considered a success if it doesn’t lose money—you just...you let your brother Lin Lang cry for me today...

Thinking of this, Tang Yushu laughed from his depressed mood.

——I haven't seen this guy cry yet...

This rich young master usually looks rebellious and shows his teeth and claws. He has laughed and been angry, but he has never shown any weakness... It looks a bit like him...

The outline of this "him" in the memory came to mind vaguely.

His thin figure was restrained under the golden armor, and the back of the horse sitting on the horse looked powerless but extremely firm.

——"Tang Yushu." He called out his name softly.

——"Well, I'm here." Across time and space, Tang Yushu replied at this moment.

"Tang Yushu——!" Another call changed its voice and tone: "Tang! Yu! Tree!—"

Ji Ling opened his eyes, and saw Lin Lang rushing in, pulled his arm and ran out from the other door of the porcelain shop.

Only the clerk in the porcelain shop will come back to his senses: the repentant customer has seen it, and it’s all right if the business is not done; but—— "You should pay me for the smashed bowl first!"

This room Tang Yushu was dragged by the sweaty Lin Lang, and ran in a panic in the crowded Jinling City.

The incident happened suddenly, and he looked blank: "What's the matter? Why are you running?"

"Stop talking, run!"

Tang Yushu turned his head in the gap, and the people in the clothes of bank servants were still chasing after him not far behind.While running with Lin Lang's footsteps, Tang Yushu guessed a reason based on the current situation: "You robbed the bank?"

"Stop talking, run!"

"..." The doubts all over his head seemed to be unanswerable in this situation, so he simply stopped pursuing it. Tang Yushu was determined to solve the current predicament first: "Turn right ahead and turn into that alley!"

Lin Lang was obedient, and after a few steps, he dodged and jumped into the alley under the cover of overlapping vendors.

He ran for several steps without looking back, and the shouts of "stop--" from the bank servants really went from far to near and then to far away.Lin Lang slowed down and said, "Let's get rid of them..." Turning around - Tang Yushu was not behind him.

"...?" Lin Lang stopped where he was, not knowing the situation.

Besides, getting rid of Lin Lang's "burden" this time, Tang Yushu immediately changed into a much faster pace, and in a short while all these bank servants who were chasing after him were all thrown away.

Just in a hurry, the trousers on the knee of the right leg were torn at some point, and the slit was horizontal, almost going through the flower embroidered with green seedlings.Tang Yushu looked very distressed.

Hiding in a shop and watching the movement outside for a while, Tang Yushu didn't come out until he confirmed that there was nothing wrong with him. He carefully returned to the alley that Lin Lang turned into just now, and successfully found the man who was squatting on the ground. The young master in Jinyi buried his face in his arms, his shoulders rising and falling slightly with his rapid breathing.

"What the hell did you do!"

Tang Yushu stepped forward, thinking that the other party was not breathing well due to his violent escape, so he patted his back lightly to help him breathe: "My pants are all torn..."

Lin Lang maintained a squatting posture without raising his head, and answered the cause and effect in a low voice: "My father, that old and cunning thief - actually knew that I brought out the bank notes... As soon as I went to the bank to exchange the money, the people in the bank When they came up, they surrounded me, asked me if I was the young master of the Lin family, and wanted to arrest me..."

After Tang Yushu heard it, he didn't know what to say for a moment, and could only hold back two words for a long time: "...terrible."

"I ran in a hurry and left the silver bill in the bank..."

Tang Yushu still didn't know what to say, and could only hold back two words for a long time, "...it's okay."

"It's okay? What do you mean it's okay!"

Lin Lang suddenly yelled and stood up, turning his back to Tang Yushu, only to use his fist to pound the stone wall heavily.Tang Yushu was so frightened that he went up to hold his arm: "You are crazy!"

Lin Lang's shoulders were still trembling, and when he turned his face, tears were streaming down his face.

I have only seen his proud face when he laughed, bullied, or humiliated himself; seeing him crying abruptly, Tang Yushu was at a loss.

"Why is it so difficult! Why is it so difficult for me to do something!" Lin Lang shook off the arm held by Tang Yushu, and shouted hysterically because of his emotional breakdown: "I don't know who the house belongs to! The bank note can't be cashed out." ! Why is it so difficult!"

"..." Tang Yushu couldn't hold back even two words.

Simply giving up his restraint, Lin Lang let the emotions of the embankment collapse, and began to cry.

"..." Tang Yushu didn't know how to comfort Lin Lang, so he had to stand by and wait for him to cry.

After a long time, Lin Lang finally calmed down, wiped away his tears, and looked up at Tang Yushu.

Tang Yushu had a bitter face, but when he saw that Lin Lang seemed to be recovering, he immediately put on a smile; "Do you feel better?" Just as he was about to blurt out, Lin Lang said coldly: "Go away Bar."

Tang Yushu found himself facing Lin Lang with a blank face: "What?"

Lin Lang repeated: "You go...go back to Chen Tan."

"...What about you?" Tang Yushu was a little scared.

Lin Lang straightened his collar, looked for the dirty place on his body when he ran away just now, and slapped the dust: "Of course, my son is going back to Lin's mansion, so why do you need to worry about it?"

"...Isn't it a shop?"

"What are you driving?"

"... open a shop."

"..." Hearing his dream uttered from another mouth, Lin Lang only felt as if he had been slapped silently by someone.For some reason, Lin Lang suddenly hated Tang Yushu who was entangled at the moment: "You go."

But the hated person didn't know it, and tried to squeeze out a little smile, flattering: "Let's go, let's go together."

"Go away!"

"..."

"I have nothing left—house, money—why open a store? Just you?" The line of reason broke again.Only the most bitter and mean self was left, uttering bad words desperately, using self-abuse to torture him, passively trying to make the other party give up.

The other party still didn't give up: "There's still you."

"What am I?!"

"You...you walked the Silk Road!"

"I walked the Silk Road, yes... I walked the Silk Road at the age of 13, I memorized the "Shang Lue Jing" backwards at the age of ten, I was five years old, and the abacus was faster than the old tent of the palace. Refusing to let go... But it's all because I am Lin Lang, I am the young master of the Lin family of Jinling weaving—without these, what am I?"

"..."

"Go, let's go." The only sliver of reason told himself, don't make the difference too ugly: "I will go to Chen Tan when I pass by in the future, and I will go to play with you."

"Okay, okay, don't be angry, isn't it just that you have no money...go home first." Tang Yushu gently grabbed Lin Lang's arm.

Lin Lang wanted to shake off Tang Yushu's grip on his hand, but he found that Tang Yushu's grip was even tighter by three points; he could only say in a cold tone, "Let go!"

But Tang Yushu repeated those three words as if he didn't hear it: "Go home first."

"Let go!"

"Go home first."

"I said let go!" Lin Lang couldn't get away, and in a rage, he swung his fist and punched Tang Yushu on the shoulder.

"I said go home first!" Tang Yushu didn't dodge Lin Lang's irrational attack, his face was also clouded, and he was no longer in the mood to smile.

After Lin Lang pounded wildly, he finally calmed down again.

"Finished?" Tang Yushu said lightly.

"...Hmm." Lin Lang raised his eyes and looked at Tang Yushu for a moment, then turned away unnaturally.

It was the first time that Lin Lang saw that kind of complex expression on Tang Yushu's face—hidden under the calmness, there was anger, helplessness, fear, and a hint of humble begging.

That complicated expression made Lin Lang dare not look Tang Yushu directly in the eyes, but somehow made Lin Lang feel at ease.

"Then go home." Tang Yushu turned around and walked away while talking, so he was led to walk together.

It was only at this time that Lin Lang realized that no matter how recklessly he threw his fist on him when he lost control just now, Tang Yushu's hand that was holding his arm did not let go from the beginning to the end.