Chapter 289: Provocation

 Chapter 289: Provocation

"Ji Guang Fang family?"

Xiao Yeyang raised his eyebrows, examining the young man before him. "Is the head of the Guozijian Fang family your relative?"

Fang Hao respectfully replied, "Yes, Your Highness, he is my uncle."

Xiao Yeyang nodded. Last time, during the Hong disaster in Ji Guang, the Fang family had helped his maternal uncle greatly, so he had to give them some respect and exchange a few words.

"What brings you here?"

"A younger member of my family is getting engaged, so I came to congratulate them," said Fang Hao, pointing to Fang Liangji. "This is my nephew." He then said to Fang Liangji, "Hurry up and greet His Highness."

Fang Liangji stepped forward nervously. "I am Fang Liangji, Your Highness."

Xiao Yeyang waved his hand nonchalantly, glancing at Fang Liangji before shifting his gaze away. He didn't say anything.

As for the others who came with Fang Hao and Fang Liangji, including Sun Yongyi, Xiao Yeyang didn’t even spare them a glance.

Official sons never sought closeness with merchants' children. Though not overtly contemptuous, they would certainly not initiate friendship. They were from entirely different worlds.

Dong Yuanxuan, Su Hongxin, and Zhou Chengye only exchanged pleasantries with Fang Hao, introduced themselves, and nodded to Fang Liangji, which was as much of a greeting as they gave.

At this point, Yan Wenkai walked over with a smile. "Isn't this my future brother-in-law?"

"Fourth Brother, stop with your nonsense!"

Daohua interrupted Yan Wenkai.

Yan Wenkai looked back in surprise. "Isn’t he engaged to my cousin Zixuan? I don’t see anything wrong with calling him brother-in-law."

Daohua glanced at Fang Liangji and said coolly, "They are engaged, not married."

Yan Wenkai laughed. "What’s the difference?"

Daohua replied, "Of course there's a difference. Engagement is engagement, marriage is marriage. You called him too early."

Yan Wenkai quickly realized something was off. He looked at his sister, then at the awkward-looking Fang Liangji. Had he done something to upset her?

Xiao Yeyang, seeing Daohua fuming, lowered his head and thought for a moment before smiling and asking, "I saw you looking at that pavilion just now. Shall we go sit there?"

Daohua immediately nodded. "Sure, I saw Young Master Fang enjoying a snack there. I want to try some too."

"And me," Dong Yuanxuan chimed in. "I want to see what delicious cakes he’s eating, and why he needs someone else to feed him."

Hearing their words, both Xiao Yeyang and Dong Yuanyao were moved, while Fang Liangji turned red with embarrassment.

Fang Hao furrowed his brow and shot an unhappy glance at Fang Liangji and Sun Yongyi.

"You two really have no shame!"

Dong Yuanxuan smiled and said to Fang Hao, "My little sister is being rude. Please don’t mind her."

Fang Hao quickly smiled in response, "No, no, Young Master Dong is too kind."

The group then headed toward the pavilion, with Fang Hao and his party bringing up the rear.

Looking at Daohua and Dong Yuanyao walking in front, Xiao Yeyang’s eyes flickered. "So it’s them."

Although he had suspected their identities when he saw them at the Bai Xi Lou, he didn’t know for sure until now.

The one in the blue cloak was the daughter of Yan, the new Prefect Magistrate of Ningmen Prefecture; the one in the red cloak was the daughter of the Bu Zheng Shi family.

Fang Liangji asked in a low voice, "Uncle, do you know them?"

Fang Hao didn’t answer. Instead, he glanced at Fang Liangji. "If those Yan girls cause you trouble later, you’d better handle it. I think you understand their meaning, right?"

Fang Liangji froze for a moment, seemingly unsure.

Seeing his confusion, Fang Hao sighed and said, "Engaged and then breaking off an engagement, that’s not uncommon. Be careful."

Fang Liangji’s face changed dramatically, and he became filled with regret.

He hadn’t expected that Sun Jiayue feeding him snacks would be witnessed by the Yan girls.

Sun Yongyi patted his shoulder apologetically. "Sorry, Jiayue caused trouble."

He knew his sister liked his friend, and although the family elders didn't oppose the two families coming together, the Fang family didn’t approve of the match.

He had only invited Sun Jiayue today because she begged him to.

In the pavilion, Sun Jiayue and several other girls saw Daohua’s group entering and stood up, shyly glancing at Xiao Yeyang and the others.

Daohua walked into the pavilion and smiled at Sun Jiayue. "And you are?"

Sun Jiayue bowed to Xiao Yeyang and the others before smiling and introducing herself, "I am Sun Jiayue, the daughter of the president of the Zhongzhou Merchants' Association."

The other girls also greeted them one by one.

Although the greetings were directed at Daohua and Dong Yuanyao, their eyes were fixed on Xiao Yeyang and the others.

Daohua and Dong Yuanxuan, who had been unwillingly used as stepping stones, found the situation quite unpleasant. They gave perfunctory replies before heading straight to the area where the snacks were placed.

"I don’t look down on merchant families, but some of their rules are just so inappropriate. Only daughters from such families would introduce themselves to a man they’ve just met," Dong Yuanyao said with a touch of disdain.

Daohua's expression remained neutral. To her, exchanging names wasn’t an issue, but the fact that someone engaged was still accepting food from other women—this, she couldn’t accept.

As Daohua took a piece of cake, Yan Wenkai walked over with a smile. "What kind of dessert is this? Is it good?"

Just then, Fang Liangji entered the pavilion. Daohua’s eyes shifted, and she said, "This is glutinous rice cake. As for whether it’s good, you should ask Young Master Fang."

Fang Liangji paused for a moment and then forced a smile.

Dong Yuanyao, who also disliked indecisive men, mocked, "Young Master Fang, don’t just smile and stay silent. If it’s good, I’ll have my kitchen make some when I get home."

Fang Liangji replied weakly, "It’s... alright."

Daohua sneered and casually tossed the rice cake back into the plate. "Young Master Fang must be tired of his family’s snacks and wanted to try something new. Even if it’s only 'alright,' you can’t bring yourself to spit it out, huh?"

Yan Wenkai realized his sister was getting frustrated, but since Fang Liangji was soon to be his future brother-in-law, he didn’t want to make things awkward. He smiled and walked up to Fang Liangji.

"Future brother-in-law, or no, Fang Xiong, I think we should be more careful with food. If we can avoid eating things from outside, it’s better, to prevent any stomach issues."

Daohua continued, "Stomach issues are one thing, but some cakes are so sticky they get stuck in your teeth and you can’t get rid of them."

Dong Yuanyao shook her head. "Having stomach issues isn’t a small matter. If this glutinous rice cake conflicts with other food in your stomach, you could end up losing half your life."

Yan Wenkai was shocked. "Lose your life? That can’t be true!"

Daohua replied, "Even if you don’t lose your life, you’ll be in pain for days. Fourth Brother, don’t you remember what happened in Xingyun Prefecture last time when you got so sick?"

Thinking back to that experience, Yan Wenkai shivered and quickly agreed, "Yes, yes, this glutinous rice cake is sticky and hard to digest. It’s really not a good dessert. Fang Xiong, you shouldn’t eat it anymore."

Although Yan Wenkai didn’t quite understand the direction of the conversation, his words ended up aligning perfectly with Daohua and Dong Yuanxuan’s.

The group at the pavilion, seeing Daohua and Dong Yuanyao jointly teasing Fang Liangji, were entertained, though they didn’t understand why the two girls were upset with him.

Fang Hao’s gaze shifted between Daohua and Dong Yuanyao. Seeing his nephew at a loss for words, he shook his head with a sigh.

He was really unlucky to meet these two mischievous girls.

Meanwhile, Sun Yongyi and Sun Jiayue looked increasingly uncomfortable.

(End of Chapter)