Gu Zezhi stuffed the handkerchief back into her hand and rightfully instructed, “Wipe your hands too.”
Following his gaze, Qin Gui realized that her fingers were also covered in the dust from the sack.
Behavingly, she wiped her hands too and did it carefully this time for fear that her mysophobic golden thigh would nag her again.
After wiping, she casually shoved the handkerchief into her sleeve and said with a smile, “I’ll gift you one in return next time.”
“…” Gu Zezhi’s brows moved slightly and an indiscernible look flashed past his eyes.
He nodded and smiled lightly, “All right.”
The two of them walked all the way to Qingming Teahouse’s entrance. Fearing that he would mention tea again, Qin Gui hurriedly waved goodbye to him “I still have an appointment with my brothers.”
Gu Zezhi smiled and said, “I’ll see you in a few days then.”
Qin Gui thought he wanted his handkerchief back, so she readily agreed.
And so, Gu Zezhi left.
He went straight to the palace and went to the imperial study to seek an audience with the emperor.
The emperor had just learned of Yelu Luan being beaten when Gu Zezhi arrived. Seeing him, he offered him a seat and casually brought up the matter. “Just now, Northern Yan’s ambassadors came to complain. He asked me to investigate the culprit and even demanded I give him an answer on this matter.” Those Northern Yan people really are troublesome!
Gu Zezhi lifted his robe and sat down by the window, looking elegant yet calm and relaxed. Smiling, he said, “Your Majesty, it was I who beat him.”
The emperor was stunned and could not help but reveal an astonished expression.
Gu Zezhi, “Just now in Huachang Street, Yelu Luan told Third Young Mistress Qin in front of the public that he fancied her.”
Emperor, “???”
The emperor was even more confused when he saw Gu Zezhi’s expression and thought to himself, could it be that he was jealous?
But you can’t beat someone up just because you’re jealous, right?
He could come to plead with him, he would have been able to get him Qin Gui’s hand in marriage… But if they did get married, then how was family seniority going to be calculated in the future?
After thinking about it though, the emperor finally understood what Yelu Luan’s intentions were.
It can be said that Yelu Luan didn’t try to cover it up in the slightest!
The emperor turned the jade ring on his finger thoughtfully and said, “We have already rejected Yelu Luan’s request to marry Xiao Gui, so he plans to start with her…Seems like the compound bow is quite attractive to Northern Yan.”
The winter sunlight passed through the branches outside the window and left mottled shades on Gu Zezhi’s face. When the wind blew, the dappled shadows would sway along, leaving a more profound feeling of unpredictableness on his person.
“Northern Yan has always been extremely ambitious towards Great Qi. The only difference lies in whether they can beat us or not.” Gu Zezhi said slowly, voice gentle as usual.
The emperor looked at Gu Zezhi and he stopped turning the ring around his finger, saying, “We’ll leave the ambassadors from Northern Yan to you.”
“You’ve been in the capital for a while, it’s time you take on some errands.”
“Just don’t let them bother Us about nothing.”
After a pause, the emperor added teasingly, “If you do a good job, We’ll let you marry her.”
Gu Zezhi raised his brows. “Marry who?”
The emperor picked up his teacup in a good mood and asked, “Who do you wish?”
Gu Zezhi smiled but he did not say anything.
The emperor took a sip of his hot tea to wet his lips and put the cup back down, asking, “Did it shock Xiao Gui?”
Gu Zezhi said definitely, “No.”
Not only that, but the girl was in great spirits when she was beating him! She was in such a good mood after that, and she even took his handkerchief away.
The emperor continued to ask with interest, “Did you send the girl home? The capital is a messy place, it wouldn’t be good if a girl like her were to bump into any unscrupulous people.”
The emperor was torn. He was worried that in case the marriage becomes a reality, he would have no idea how to address the seniority problem in the future, but he also thought the two were very well matched. He had no idea what he should do.
The emperor planned to ask around for some information first before he tells the empress.
Gu Zezhi was out of it, mind still on the handkerchief. He wondered, does that girl know what it meant for her to take his handkerchief?
