Top Scholar

Chapter 191 Friends and Brothers Can All Be Sold

Meanwhile, after finishing her dinner, Miss Zhu was tending to the blue-purple irises by the lotus pond.

It wasn't that the Zhu family was too poor to afford a gardener; it was just that she had loved gardening since she was a child...

Under her care, the irises danced like purple butterflies, creating a picturesque scene against the backdrop of the green lotus leaves in the pond. The garden was serene, with only her and the flowers for company. At such times, she felt like the happiest person in the world.

Unfortunately, this tranquility was shattered in an instant, as a girl in a red dress, walking with a confident stride, pouted and charged towards her.

Upon seeing this, the maidservant hurriedly said, "Miss, Miss She has arrived."

"I saw it." Miss Zhu nodded, put down her scissors, and smiled at She Yunluo, "Who made you angry this time?"

"Who else could it be but that big, stubborn ox!" She Yunluo angrily went to pluck the iris flowers.

Miss Zhu quickly spread her arms to protect her precious flower. "There's a cause for every grievance, so don't come here and cause trouble."

"Hmph, stingy! I'll give you a hundred pots later!" She Yunlu waved her hand, letting the poor flowers go.

"Tell me, what did Young Master Su do to offend you this time?" Miss Zhu asked as she pulled her away from the flowers and plants.

"I invited him to go on a spring outing on his day off, and he actually refused!" She Yunluo stomped her feet in anger.

"You've probably scared her," Miss Zhu said, rubbing her forehead. "I've told you before, girls should be reserved."

"Am I not reserved enough?" She Yunluo said, hands on her hips. "If this were where I'm from, I would have dragged him back and married him long ago!"

"Pfft..." Miss Zhu couldn't hold back any longer and said, "You are in Luzhou now, not Lincheng."

She asked, utterly puzzled, "Besides, I could understand if you were interested in Young Master Su. But you're infatuated with his brother? What do you see in him?"

"Little Su? Hmph, a pale-faced scholar, full of bad intentions, what's so good about him?" She Yunlu snorted, then changed to a lovestruck tone, cupping her face and saying, "Brother Su is different. His broad shoulders, strong arms, sturdy thighs, and that deep, charming voice, aren't they all one in a million?"

"..." Miss Zhu could only say that some people like peonies, and some people like cabbages...

"And once you're really in danger, you'll see that a man like Brother Su is truly reliable. He'll bravely protect you, using his rich experience and strong physique to get you out of danger!" She Yunluo said, her eyes shining, then snorted.

"His brother, that pretty boy, only sees you as a burden and always wants to get rid of you!"

"I see." Although Miss Zhu didn't understand, she was still greatly shocked.

"Hmph, Brother Su is always hot and cold towards me, and it's because his brat brother is always talking bad about me behind my back!" She Yunlu stomped her feet angrily, stomping on the grass growing in the cracks between the bricks as if it were Su Lu. "In martial arts, I was like Kong Rong sharing pears, and I even risked my life to practice spear thrusting with him. I finally managed to warm Brother Su's heart. But his brother, on the other hand, pours cold water on me every few days, and then he ignores me."

"Are you so sure it's Young Master Su?" Miss Zhu found it hard to believe that the talented Young Master Su would be such a gossipy person.

"Who else could it be but him?" She Yunlu snorted. "He's just afraid I'll take his brother away from him."

Miss Zhu understood what he meant and chuckled, "He can't be that naive, can he?"

"He's just a childish brat!" She Yunlu insisted, "The more he fears I'll take his brother away, the more I'll take him away!"

"..." Miss Zhu was speechless. Who was the childish brat here?
"Sister, you must help me!" She Yunluo grabbed Miss Zhu's hand, her face full of expectation, and said, "You're my only sister in Luzhou City!"

"Okay, okay, let go first, you're squeezing me to death." Miss Zhu pulled her hand away, rubbing her reddened hand, and said, "How do you want me to help you?"

“Just like during the Lantern Festival, have your brothers invite those two brothers out!” She Yunluo said, “Then I’ll bring Sister Huang along. As soon as he sees Sister Huang, that kid won’t care about his brother anymore, and his brother will be mine…”

"..." Miss Zhu said speechlessly, "Then what kind of person do I become? Besides, have you considered Huang Meimei's feelings?"

“You don’t need to worry about this!” But then She Yunluo laughed and said, “You don’t know unless you live with Sister Huang. She reads the books that little devil lent her every day.”

“That’s a book of superstition, not a book of charm,” Miss Zhu said helplessly.

“She even used that New Year’s paper as a bookmark.” She Yunluo added, “She would write one sentence, and that brat would write the next one.”

"That's because the couplet is exquisite..." Miss Zhu still disagreed.

“Every time I scolded that brat, she would speak up for him, saying, ‘Young Master Su isn’t like that, he’s not like that.’” She Yunlu imitated Huang E in a high-pitched voice.

“Didn’t I also speak up for him? That’s because you went too far.” Miss Zhu shook her head again.

"Hey, why are you worrying so much? The emperor isn't worried, but the eunuch is," She Yunluo waved her hand and said, "I'll tell her who's going, and if she doesn't like it, she can just not go."

"That's alright." Miss Zhu nodded slightly.

"So you're willing to help?" She Yunlu asked excitedly.

"No, no, no," Miss Zhu quickly shook her head and said, "I don't want to become the public enemy of all the young masters and ladies in Luzhou."

"What do you mean by that?" She Yunlu asked, puzzled.

"Which young man doesn't fall in love with the most talented woman in Sichuan, and which young woman doesn't admire the most talented man in Luzhou?" Miss Zhu said matter-of-factly.

"Just by solving a riddle, he's the number one scholar in Luzhou?" She Yunluo was skeptical.

"He not only solved a riddle, but also stood out from the crowd as soon as he entered Heshan Academy. He even received personal guidance from the old scholar. His essay 'The Metamorphosis' has moved countless young women to tears," Miss Zhu said admiringly.

"Sigh, I really don't understand the preferences of you Han people." She Yunlu shook her head in equally bewilderment, but she naturally knew how to reach a consensus: "I won't let you help me for nothing. I'll have someone bring you two of the best apricot-yellow slipper orchids from home!" Sure enough, just like last time, after a brief internal struggle, Miss Zhu smiled and said, "Alright, what can I do but be loyal?"

~~
Several days later, in the evening, Su Lu and Zhu Zihe finally finished their day's lessons.

Zhu Zihe, who is usually exhausted, excitedly opened his arms to embrace the sunset today, saying, "Qingming Festival, I've finally been waiting for you!"

"Don't make it sound so creepy, are you a ghost?" Su Lu shook his head and said.

"This is a rare holiday, the kind where you can rest all day!" Zhu Zihe shook Su Lu's shoulder and said, "Aren't you excited? I don't even know what to do!"

Then he sighed and said, "Well, for you, a holiday is just a change of scenery for studying."

"Because I can't find anything more interesting than studying," Su Lu said helplessly.

He also wants to watch movies, play video games, and watch short videos, but he doesn't have the means!

What can you do if you don't study? Throw sandbags with Xiaotian, play hopscotch, or even push each other's legs with your second brother? The former is boring, and the latter is not only boring, it's deadly...

"Alas, how pathetic!" Zhu Zijing's voice rang out from behind the artificial hill. "If the young ladies of Luzhou City heard this, they would be so disappointed that their beloved Young Master Su is so dull and boring!"

The Zhu brothers arrived together, and Zhu Ziming angrily defended Su Lu, saying, "Third brother, you're talking nonsense! A student's duty is to study! It's better to disappoint those women than to fail the exam and disappoint the family!"

"Okay, okay, never mind." Zhu Zijing quickly surrendered. This kid can't stand anyone saying anything bad about Su Lu now; he'll bite back if anyone dares to say anything.

The eldest brother, Zhu Zigeng, smiled at Su Lu and said, "Studying is important, but it's also important to balance work and rest. Come with us for a spring outing tomorrow!"

“Exactly, we can’t become bookworms!” Zhu Zigong laughed. “Even I, the senior student at the Upper Hall, need to relax a bit!”

Zhu Zijing put his arm around Su Lu's shoulder and said, "We came here specifically to call you, so we can't refuse."

"Why does this sound so familiar?" Su Lu asked with a smile. "Did you guys act out this scene before?"

"Really? Haha?" The Zhu brothers laughed and joked, "You must be mistaken."

"Absolutely," Su Lu said confidently. "Just one more thing from Ziming... My sister is going tomorrow too, and she's a real beauty!"

He had absolute confidence in his memory. Besides, it hadn't been that long...

"Brother, you're only half right," Zhu Ziming laughed. "What I really want to say is that not only will my sister be going tomorrow, but Sister Huang E will be too!"

"What's the difference?" Su Lu coughed lightly and asked, "Do I still need to call my second brother?"

"Yes." The Zhu brothers nodded.

Su Lu knew this was another scheme orchestrated by She Yunluo...

Even though her second brother clearly refused, she's really persistent.

With that kind of tenacity, if you memorize the Analects more, would you really get eight wrong?

"Are you going or not?" Zhu Zigeng and the others asked.

"Since you brothers have extended such a warm invitation, how could I refuse?" Su Lu said with an embarrassed smile.

"Haha, that's right." The guys laughed loudly too. "We'll pick you up first thing tomorrow morning."

"Yes, we need to leave early, or there won't be any good spots left," Zhu Zijing said.

"Understood." Su Lu nodded. Now it was his turn to have a headache: how to get his second brother out.

~~
That evening at dinner, Su Lu said to his parents, "My second brother has been a bit depressed lately. I'll take him out for a walk tomorrow to cheer him up."

"Who else is with us? Miss She isn't among them, is she?" Su Youcai asked cautiously.

"No, no," Su Lu quickly shook his head and said, "Our horoscopes don't match."

"Really?" Su Youcai asked, scrutinizing the two rebellious boys.

"Really?" Su Lu said, "How about this, I'll bring Xiao Tiantian along too, you can ask her when we get back."

"Alright. Tiantian has been here for quite a while now, she should get some fresh air." Su Youcai finally agreed.

"Okay." Xiaotian nodded happily; she was indeed very bored.

Worried that her brothers would be unhappy about her being included, after the meal, when Su Youcai and the landlady were not around, Xiao Tiantian whispered to Su Lu and Su Tai, "Don't worry, I won't betray you."

"Don't worry, little sister. I was planning to take you anyway, it's not just a casual remark," Su Lu said with a smile. "I'll introduce you to some pretty ladies tomorrow, see if you can make any friends."

"Thank you, brother." Tian Tian smiled happily.

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(End of this chapter)