Chapter 375 - Fear Not (1/2)
”Ge! Are you seriously just going to let go of Ying jie like this? En? I've thought long and hard about this but I really couldn't come up with anything. You like her and she likes you, so what exactly is the problem? Or am I wrong? You like her, don't you?... There's nothing not to like.” She quietly mumbled that last part.
Xiao Ting had followed Lei Yong all the way to the garden, where Lei Yong laid down on the grass, closed his eyes, and proceeded to ignore her existence. Used to being ignored, Xiao Ting plopped down next to him, hugged her knees, and proceeded to ”talk to herself”.
”Jiejie says being able to live with someone is more important than love... Love can come later but compatibility may not. Ying jie has already lived with us for so long and there were no problems. You two definitely get along!”
Silence.
”Or is it her family that is the problem?” Xiao Ting prodded with a frown, ”Jiejie says your in-laws are also very important. She says a crazy in-law can make or break a relationship... Jiejie wouldn't tell me but I think she doesn't get along well with the Empress dowager but since the Emperor dotes on her so much, it doesn't seem to be much of an issue... But this can't be your probelm, right?” She said, getting back on track.
”You're a man so you don't have to live with your in-laws. Other than the occasional meeting maybe once or twice a year, you can pretty much forget they exist. As for father and mother, they have already accepted Ying jie as their own so that can't be the problem either.” Xiao Ting thoughtfully said, knitting her brows and going through the list of dealbreakers Lei Xing had given her during her time in the palace.
Tung Mei had a great sense of humor, she was rich, reasonable, smart with a great character, and beautiful - not that Lei Xing mentioned that as a necessary requirement. Xiao Ting added that one on her own.
Silence.
”Ge!” She irritatedly said, shaking him with her hands, ”How can you be sleeping at a time like this?!”
”If you're worried about in-laws, you should marry An Hao then. His mother is dead and his father is extremely loyal to the Emperor and since your jiejie and the Emperor are cut from the same cloth, you shouldn't have any problems.” Lei Yong sneered. He was still not over his encounter with Lei Xing. Even if the Emperor wanted to mess with him, how could his own younger sister follow along too? When they were younger, she used relentlessly chase after his shadow, but now that she has gotten married, she has forsaken him - not loyal at all!
Xiao Ting's face reddened and she puffed her cheeks, ”We're talking about you, why are you bringing up an unrelated person?!”
Lei Yog sneered, ”So you can be nosy and I can't? And unrelated? Ahh, I really pity An Hao...” He said, shaking his head.
”I'm pitying Ying Jie!” Xiao Ting fired back, jumping to her feet and glaring daggers at him, ”At this rate, she will be an old woman before you make up your mind!”
Lei Yong blinked at her a few times, before bursting into a dry laugh, at a loss, it was becoming more apparent that he really did not know his sisters at all, ”Were you always this brazen, or is this a new thing?”
Xiao Ting scoffed, feeling insulted, ”I am not just giving you candid advice. Since she left you have either been suffocating me or moping around the house like a lost puppy - those are jiejie's words, not mine.” She quickly clarified, lowering her head when Lei Yong narrowed his eyes at the insult. She cleared her throat and mumbled, ”I'm just saying, Ying jie has a host of other suitors so-”
”Like who?” Lei Yong interjected with a raised eyebrow.
Xiao Ting raised her head with a sly smile, ”I thought you weren't interested. Well, Ying jie is a beautiful, fun to be around and a rich governor's daughter, naturally those things attract attention so it's a given that she would have many admirers. Just so you know Ying jie is going back to get married. I'm just informing you ahead of time so you don't blame me when it's too late.” She spat out and then scurried off before he could further question her.
Xiao Ting stopped once she rounded the corner and poked her head back to check if he took the bait. To her dismay, she watched as Lei Yong shook his head and laid back down, perfectly at ease.
”Nothing?” Xiao Ting exclaimed with a frown, as her excitement deflated, ”Is he really not interested?” Any normal man would have charged up to go steal the bride at the discovery, or so the stories go. Xiao Ting sighed, perhaps her brother was not normal. After all, her sister was an anomaly as well, it would make sense that they were all abnormal in this family. Xiao Ting shook her head, ”No, I'm normal!” She reminded herself with conviction and she poked her head out again to check to see if Lei Yong had moved.
Lei Yong spied Xiao Ting watching him from the corner and rolled his eyes, he let out a heavy sigh and turned his back to her.
{...Honestly, why is everyone being so troublesome?...}
***
”Just admit we are lost.” A member of a riding party in the forest wearily said.
”We're not lost! How was I supposed to know that road would be flooded? I was ju”
”If you were any type of guide, you would have done your homework before we left! Because of your stupid shortcut, we have been circling the forest for days now!” Another member of the group piped up, tired of this useless guide's inability to take responsibility for their situation.
”Hey, you can't blame me for that! You know I'm not too familiar with the capital roads. It makes sense to go the way we came. Also, this trip was very rushed. If I had time to prepa -”