Where prosperity ends, flowers never end

Chapter 195 Rouge Abandoned Tears

Downtown Main Street—

The long street was paved with stone slabs. Walking northward, it became more and more prosperous and noisy. On a reddish-brown wooden door in the alley was a conspicuous Chinese character "Fu". Li Zhengzhong was making cakes in the yard with his bare hands. Sitting at the table was a young man named Qionghua who was holding a scarlet Wanyunshan folding fan.

"How lucky I am to have Mr. Li, a free-spirited man, take up the kitchen."

Li Zhengzhong looked at him and smiled knowingly.

"The small hermit hides in the mountains, the great hermit hides in the city, and only the writer can let the mountains and rivers run wild, free and unfettered."

Li Zhengzhong is a literary giant who appears gorgeous, aloof and difficult to touch. In fact, he is more approachable than anyone sees. He is not only proficient in music, chess, calligraphy and painting, but also in food.

"Don't brag, I can't take it."

Li Zhengzhong smiled faintly and did not respond, but lowered his head to continue making pastries.

The tassels on his hairpin gently hung down to his neck, his hands were long and delicate, his eyelashes were as light and soft as a feather fan, his fox eyes revealed an unintentional seduction, and his jawline was flat but very curved, as if you would be sucked in just by looking at him.

Huai Rufan looked at him at will, and even men thought he was extremely handsome.

"I heard that you went to the pavilion to take shelter from the rain today and caused a stir?"

"Otherwise, there are just too many people."

"Haha, when will you go out with few people?"

Huai Rufan stood up and walked to the table. Each cake looked so delicate and fragrant that it made one's appetite grow just by looking at it.

"I also heard that the second daughter of the Ran family was making a scene in the pavilion?"

"I'm not throwing a tantrum, I just can't help but speak out."

He defended Ran Qianxi in front of others for unknown reasons. Huai Rufan had known him for many years and had never seen him so impetuous. Obviously, there was a reason for it.

"No, no, I know you have a close personal relationship with her father, but you are not the kind of person who would care about a woman's beauty..."

"What is this nonsense?"

Huai Rufan lifted his chin and looked at him, and immediately noticed that there seemed to be a look of avoidance in his eyes.

"I heard that the second daughter of the Ran family is both talented and beautiful, with a heavenly appearance, and Li Taidou's love for her is undying?"

"There is no such thing as an undying love, it's just a gorgeous beauty that people admire."

Huai Rufan joked: "This is so gorgeous, it must be fascinating."

Li Zhengzhong looked at him coldly and didn't want to bother with him any more, so he gave up and put the cakes into the steamer.

"Send some to Miss Ran later."

Huai Rufan raised the corner of his mouth slightly. It seemed that he understood the reason. He was deeply attracted by Ran Qianxi.

"Do you know where she is staying?"

"Since she said she would see you later, she will definitely come over tomorrow."

The next day—

Ran Qianxi slept until before noon. As soon as she walked out of the room, she saw Mou Lan standing in the kitchen corridor in an awkward manner.

"What's wrong, Sister Lan?"

"This... Village Master Zhen locked the kitchen..."

Ran Qianxi sneered a few times. Duanmu Yan still loved to play this kind of trick like when she was a child.

"It's okay. There's a kitchen in the back. Let's go out to eat breakfast first, then buy some ingredients and bring them back."

Mou Lan sighed softly, feeling bad in his heart.

"It's the only way..."

Ran Qianxi saw her helplessness and put his arm around her shoulders affectionately.

"Haha, don't feel pressured. I just happen to have no one to serve me, and you're not eating and drinking for free. Let's go."

"Yes."

Today the sky is clear and there are more people on the street again. The scholars and writers in Yunting are still discussing poetry and there are more girls watching than on rainy days.

Ran Qianxi and the other person passed by and stopped for a moment unconsciously.

“Are there so many people when it’s not raining?”

The two did not stay for long. They just wanted to join in the fun after finishing their shopping, but they never expected that the breakfast stall where they were located would become the focus of the whole city.

Li Zhengzhong was holding pastries in his hands, Huai Rufan followed calmly beside him, and Ran Qianxi's gaze followed him far ahead.

"Zhong is polite."

"Is Mr. Li coming to have breakfast too?"

Li Zhengzhong sat down with a smile and brought out the pastries specially made for her.

"Writer Huai made some pastries, but the two of us ate them and it wasted them, so I brought some for Miss Ran to try."

Huai Rufan stopped fanning himself, his brows furrowed, and he had no idea what Li Zhengzhong was talking about.

Seeing that he did not respond, Li Zhengzhong turned around and smiled slightly. Huai Rufan observed his expression for a moment to understand.

"Yes, yes, yes. Since I was a child, I have been impressed by Dean Ran's manners and manners. Now I am fortunate to meet his daughter. I would like to offer you a small gift. I hope you will accept it."

Seeing Huai Rufan's unnatural smile, Ran Qianxi also smiled in response.

"Haha...thank you very much..."

Li Zhengzhong looked at her gently and waited for her to taste it. Huai Rufan sat down somewhat at a loss.

"Taste it."

Ran Qianxi picked up the pastry with a smile. In the silence, it seemed as if thousands of eyes were looking at her, and she suddenly felt imprisoned by them.

The jealousy and envy of young girls vary greatly.

Ran Qianxi took a tentative bite. It was soft in the mouth, and the rich bean aroma slowly melted on the tip of the tongue, leaving a lingering fragrance on the lips and teeth.

"Wow, it's delicious. Did you run a dim sum shop before you became famous?"

Huai Rufan smiled awkwardly and could only accept it all.

"Haha... my family ran a pastry shop for a while..."

"Really? You're really hiding your true self!"

Huai Rufan looked back at Li Zhengzhong helplessly, then turned around with a wry smile...

"As long as Miss Ran is happy."

Ran Qianxi was eating with relish and casually took a piece for Mou Lan.

"Sister Mou, eat."

Mou Lan took the pastry with a faint smile, and Li Zhengzhong picked up another piece for Ran Qianxi.

"Try this flavor."

The two of them only met briefly yesterday, but today he took the initiative to come over and be so attentive, which made everyone feel that something was wrong.

Ran Qianxi took the pastry hesitantly and smiled politely.

"I didn't expect that Mr. Li is such a meticulous person."

Li Zhengzhong looked at her with unusually wandering eyes, and even Mou Lan, who was silent beside him, could see it.

He watched for a moment, then unexpectedly raised his hand and touched the corner of her eyes. His unusual behavior shocked everyone.

Ran Qianxi subconsciously dodged back a bit, and Li Zhengzhong's finger followed her forward an inch.

"What are you doing…"

Ran Qianxi asked him in surprise, and he saw another similar face through this beautiful face.

Li Zhengzhong's fingers were still at the corner of her eyes, so she had to turn a blind eye and grab his right hand.

He suddenly felt a warmth on the back of his hand, and then he came to his senses and took his right hand away.

"Haha...Does Mr. Li like to touch his eyes?"

Li Zhengzhong looked at her indifferently, the shadow of his ex-wife could not be shaken off.

Huai Rufan looked at Ran Qianxi based on his expression, and immediately realized what was going on, and pulled Li Zhengzhong away.

Everyone was confused, and the two of them didn't say a word.

Huai Rufan pulled him faster and faster, showing signs of getting angry.

"what are you doing?"

The two men stopped in an alley, Huai Rufan was furious and couldn't help expressing himself.

Li Zhengzhong glanced at him and pulled his right hand away. He actually knew that such emotion was inappropriate.

"She just kind of looks like that."

"So? You see her as a living stand-in?!"

Li Zhengzhong took a deep breath, turned around to leave but was stopped by Huai Rufan.

"This person has passed away. Even if you are sad, you shouldn't treat people who are not involved in the incident like this."

Ran Qianxi was still eating seriously at the breakfast stall. The girls around her dispersed one after another, but Mou Lan remembered an old story.

"Li Zhengzhong once had a lover. They were together through thick and thin, and their love was unshakable. He praised her in every line of his poem."

Ran Qianxi picked up the beef patty and started eating it again.

"Ahhh...and then?"

"Then the lover was ill for a long time, and the rouge abandoned the tears."

Only after hearing the second half of the sentence did Ran Qianxi raise her head.

"Sister Mou can also write poetry?"

Mou Lan smiled gently and helped her dry the mutton soup.

"It's Li Zhengzhong's poem, 'Rouge and Abandoned Tears'. I heard that her lover didn't want him to watch her die, so she tricked him into going out to buy rouge, but when he came back, she was already dead."

Although Ran Qianxi listened to her carefully, her expression remained calm.

"That's a shame."

"I saw the way he looked at you, it seemed to reveal the regret between husband and wife."

At this time, Ran Qianxi finally realized that something was wrong.

"Could it be that he thinks of me as his dead lover?"

"Nine times out of ten it's because you look alike."

"Depend on!"

Ran Qianxi put down the beef patty in anger, and the noise was so loud that the stall owner leaned over.

"How shameless! Your own wife is gone, and you're looking for sympathy from others?"

Mou Lan smiled impatiently.

"I want to remind you not to be hurt by him."

At this time, Ran Qianxi was already burning with anger, and she wished she could expose his ugly behavior to everyone.

"Humph, if he comes again I won't let him go."