Chapter 96 (1/2)

Chapter 96 Cloud Nine: Realisation

“Hey Luodi! Missed me yet?” Qi Jianqiu beamed as she pushed open the doors of the dining room at Manchun Tang, her good friend sitting by the table with a hand supporting her chin, looking a little forlorn.

Upon hearing her voice, Feng Luodi turned around and saw Qi Jianqiu enter the room. She smiled. “There you are. How does it feel to get out of your courtyard?”

“Amazing.” Qi Jianqiu set the hamper on the table and placed a hand on Feng Luodi's forehead. “Are you ill? You seem very tired.”

“I'm fine.” Feng Luodi pushed her hand away. “I just haven't been sleeping well recently.”

“I'm sure you have things on your mind – that's why you couldn't sleep properly.” Qi Jianqiu did not let her off easily. “Did something happen between you and Situ when you were in the North? You don't seem quite right.”

“Hey! Who says I'm not right today.” Feng Luodi glared at her. “At the very least I didn't get grounded despite proclaiming every other day that it wouldn't happen!”

That got Qi Jianqiu. She balled her hand into a fist, upset at her punishment. “Now that you mentioned it, I can't believe that I got punished because of the same issue twice in a row! I am disappointed in myself!”

“Well, if you don't want it to happen a third time, I suggest you get out there, find yourself a pretty little boy and force him to marry you. That way, neither the Heir nor your father will get their way.”

“Hmph! Do I even need to ‘force' people to marry me?” Qi Jianqiu pointed a finger at herself, incredulous. Then, she saw the laughter in Feng Luodi's eyes and stomped her feet. “Hey! Stop making fun of me! You know I'm no match for you!”

“Of course not. Even from the limited amount of people I am acquainted with, I know at least two eligible bachelors who can't wait to marry you.”

“Stop right there; don't talk about Gan Qingjia.” Qi Jianqiu's nostrils flared. “That punk proclaimed his love for me using the first half of his breath and wooed the girls in Moonglade with his second. What does he treat me as? Hmph! He's even leading Xue Yiqi down the wrong path!”

“Woah, woah. Hold on a minute right there.” Feng Luodi looked at her suspiciously. “I didn't mention Gan Qingjia at all – why did you bring him up on your own?”

“Feng. Luo. Di.” Qi Jianqiu ground her teeth together. “Stop making fun of me! If you don't stop bullying me…I will…I will…” She looked around the room, an angry expression on her face. Her eyes landed on the hamper on the table.

“I won't let you eat the dishes I'd cooked!”

Feng Luodi tried to hold her laughter in, but to no avail. She raised both hands in surrender. “You're still as adorable as ever.”

“Hmph! That's not going to work this time!” Qi Jianqiu hugged her hands close to her chest and turned away from Feng Luodi.

Feng Luodi poured her a cup of warm tea and handed it to Qi Jianqiu. “I'm sorry, Miss Qi. Will you please forgive me?”

Qi Jianqiu took the tea from her and pouted. “Now that's more like it.”

Feng Luodi shrugged helplessly at Qi Jianqiu's antics. She'll need to find a husband that can dote on her like the child she is. “Did you mention Xue Yiqi just now?” Feng Luodi was confused. “Have you been spending time with him?”

“Yep.” Qi Jianqiu nodded, a mischievous grin playing on her lips. “He's so dense! It's so fun to mess around with him!”

“Is that a…compliment?” Feng Luodi was speechless.

“Of course!” Qi Jianqiu nodded vigorously. “He's the only one I can stand out of the Four Gentlemen of Chang'an. Well…Jiang Moyin can be counted as another half, seeing as how he's helping to convey messages from my sister.”

“Well, that's awfully honest of you.”

Qi Jianqiu looked at her in wonder. “You aren't mad that I didn't praise Situ at all?”

Feng Luodi was stunned for a moment. “Isn't that between the two of you? Why should I get mad?”

“Did you guys…have a quarrel or something?”

“No? Why will we quarrel when there's nothing between the two of us?” Feng Luodi answered immediately.

Doesn't her reaction validate my point? Qi Jianqiu scratched her head. “I guess it's normal for two people to have disagreements, even if they like each other. Situ looks like the kind of guy who doesn't know how to express himself well in words; it's no wonder he made you upset.”

Feng Luodi's heart skipped a beat. “Whoever said that the two of us like each other? That's absolutely nonsensical!”