Kang Yu nodded and walked towards Shen An.
He reached out his hand to pull her, but Shen An calmly avoided him and smiled, “Uncle Kang is here. I was just thinking that it’s been a while since Uncle Kang visited us.”
With that, she went over and sat down by herself.
Kang Yu looked a bit embarrassed, and his eyes flashed with a few traces of gloom, which disappeared in a flash. He withdrew his hand and stood back next to Kang Shao.
Shen An’s words seemed to please Kang Shao, and the smile on his face became even more intense. He glanced at Shen Yu and teased, “It’s been a few days since we last met, but this little girl has become more clever and sensible.”
Shen An just smiled and said nothing.
Shen Yu changed the subject, saying, “As the wedding of these two children is approaching, do you think we need to prepare something for them? This is a big event, and we can’t be careless.”
“Shen Ge (1) is right,” Kang Shao replied with a smile. He didn’t show any abnormality on his face and continued, “But I’ve heard some rumors outside about Shen An…”
“Come on Kang Shao, you know that it’s just rumors from outside. Since it’s just rumors, a smart person like you shouldn’t take it seriously.”
Shen Yu interrupted him before he could finish speaking, knowing that things were not looking good. Shen An couldn’t help but glance at Shen Yu a few more times, realizing that her old man was really cut out for doing business, so shrewd and cunning…
Kang Shao chuckled and said, “Shen Ge, you misunderstood me. I, Kang Shao, don’t care about baseless rumors. I know Xiao An’s personality very well. She must have been wrongly accused and slandered by wicked people. I just heard that Shen Ge had a fit of rage yesterday and almost seriously injured Xiao An. That’s why I brought A Yu here to check on her. Shen Ge, how could you lay such heavy hands on your own daughter? A Yu was heartbroken all night after hearing about it. That’s why she came to see Xiao An early in the morning.’
Shen An stole a few glances at Kang Yu from the corner of her eye. His gaze never landed on her the whole time. How could he even have the face to say that he was heartbroken all night? He was such a hypocrite.
But her own father seemed deeply moved and sighed, “It’s a great fortune for Xiao An to marry a wise man like you. I was also influenced by outsiders and acted impulsively to hit Xiao An. I have been remorseful ever since.'”
“Alas, Shen Ge should change his temper in the future. I see that Xiao An’s complexion is a lot worse than usual. We should delay their marriage for a while and let Xiao An recover first. We can’t delay Xiao An’s health, no matter what.”
So this was his ultimate goal, wasn’t it?
Shen An sneered. They talked the talk better than they walked the walk. She couldn’t understand how shameless people could sugarcoat their words like this. Weren’t they already dissatisfied with her because of the rumors they heard from outside? But she couldn’t comprehend why they didn’t simply call off the engagement instead of postponing it.
She understood everything they said. How could their old man not see through it? His face turned slightly awkward, but he still tried to maintain his dignity and said, “Kang Shao is right. I also think that way. Since they’ve already decided on their marriage, it doesn’t matter whether they get married now or later.”
Kang Shao smiled even more when he achieved his goal. “Shen Ge is reasonable and understanding,” he said, turning to remind Kang Yu, “Weren’t you still thinking about Xiao An before you came? Why are you standing there like a wooden pole now? Take Xiao An out and have a good time.”
Kang Yu nodded. “Okay.”
Shen Yu gave a signal to Shen An, and Shen An, reluctantly, followed. Her own father was afraid that he wouldn’t be able to marry her off, but she was happy to take this opportunity to see what kind of person her fiance was.
As the two of them left, Shen An vaguely heard Kang Shao and her father talking about business. She had a bad feeling that something big was going to happen, but she couldn’t quite put her finger on it.
The market outside was noisy and bustling, so they went into a tea house to rest. As soon as they entered, Shen An could feel all the eyes on them, occasionally pointing and whispering about her, making her feel uncomfortable but not yet to the point of exploding.
Beside her, Kang Yu had a sullen face and didn’t say a word. The waiter came over and asked, “What would you like to drink?”
“What are you having?” Shen An turned to Kang Yu and asked.
“You decide for yourself.” Kang Yu said with a dark face, deliberately distancing himself from Shen An.
He didn’t care about this woman who his father wanted him to marry. She didn’t mean anything to him. Now that she had made their relationship public and brought shame to their family, how could he possibly marry her? How could she be qualified to enter their Kang family’s door?
Shen An had expected Kang Yu’s disdainful expression, and she felt even more disgusted with him in her heart, but she didn’t show it.
“A pot of Bi Luo Chun tea, and two plates of dim sum. Put them on… that table over there,” Shen An pointed to an empty table, but in the opposite direction of Kang Yu.
“Alright, a pot of Bi Luo Chun tea. Please wait a moment, miss,” the waiter placed a towel over his shoulder and went to attend to other customers.
“Let’s try the food here,” Shen An sighed and sat down at the empty table. The whispers around her became even more intense than before.
Kang Yu did not expect Shen An to embarrass him like this, and a hint of anger appeared on his face. He immediately got up and walked over to sit across from her. By this time, the waiter had already brought over the dim sum and tea.
“Enjoy your meal, both of you.”
Kang Yu squeezed out a smile, maintaining his gentle and cultured image, and smiled at the waiter.
After the waiter left, his face returned to its previous gloomy expression.
“Are you doing this on purpose?” he asked.
Shen An nodded openly, “Yes, I did it on purpose.”
“You!” Kang Yu’s eyes narrowed, flashing a dangerous light.
When did this woman become so bold that she dared to contradict him like this?
“The matters between us, are you deliberately trying to make others laugh at us?” he said.
“The one who wants to make others laugh at us is you, not me. You are always trying to distance yourself from me, just because you are afraid that I will bring rumors and damage your reputation as Young Master Kang. If that’s the case, why should I deliberately make things unpleasant for myself?” Shen An said calmly, without any hint of anger.
Kang Yu was taken aback by her words and couldn’t come up with a response for a moment.
When did this woman become so eloquent?
“Snap.”
Suddenly, a loud noise startled Shen An, and when he looked up, he saw a reckless woman who had somehow appeared and smashed her teacup, spilling tea all over the table and a few drops on the woman herself. The woman exclaimed, “This dress was specially brought back from the capital by someone!” Suddenly, all eyes were on her. The waiter rushed over to apologize and scrambled to clean up the mess on the ground.
The woman, however, remained stubborn. She wiped the few water stains on her body and cursed, “My good clothes have been ruined by you all! A bunch of ignorant bumpkins, you’ve brought me bad luck.” Shen An spread his hands helplessly and said, “Yes, we may be uncultured, but you’re blind. You crashed into my things and started shouting before I even said anything. I’ve never seen such an ill-mannered shrew before.”
“You dare to talk to me like that?” The woman raised her eyebrows and rolled up her sleeves, ready to fight. “Why don’t you go to the surrounding villages and ask about me? Do you know who I am?”
She then looked Shen An up and down, and asked, “Who are you? Why haven’t I seen you before?”
As she spoke, the woman’s older companion whispered a few words in her ear, and the woman nodded in understanding, looking at Shen An with a deeper meaning in her eyes. She let down her sleeves and sneered, “Oh, so it’s the famous Miss Shen of this town. I heard you did something indecent with a fool, and yet you still prefer him over the wealthy Mr. Kang. It’s truly puzzling. Perhaps that fool is just better in bed? You’re truly lascivious.”
At once, Shen An felt all eyes mocking her. She looked at Kang Yu, but saw him looking at her with a face as cold as iron. He not only showed no intention of standing up for her, but seemed more like he was going to accuse her.
What a scumbag.
“This is a tea house, not a place for you to spew filth. You’d better clean your dirty mouth before you speak.”
“How dare you insult me!” The woman’s eyes widened, and in front of everyone, she couldn’t save face. She immediately pounced on Shen An to teach her a lesson.
“Smack!”
A crisp sound rang out and shocked everyone present. The woman looked at Shen An in disbelief, covering her cheek with her hand, which still showed a clear handprint.
Shen An didn’t hesitate and gave her a solid slap.
“If you want to continue making trouble, I can accompany you all day.” Shen An spoke coldly, not one to be messed with. If someone provoked her, she would definitely fight back.
“Fine, if you have the guts, don’t leave. Wait for me here, I’ll find someone to teach you a lesson!” The woman gritted her teeth and stared at Shen An. She had never been touched by anyone, not even her parents, and today this despicable woman had slapped her. She would definitely get revenge.
“Well, if you’re going to find backup, then I won’t be able to keep you company. I’m not dumb enough to sit here and wait to be beaten!” Shen An made a face and mocked, “Finally able to get out and have some fun, but then I run into a crazy dog like you. Looks like I’ll have to get a few shots after I go back home. I must have picked a bad day to leave the house.”
The woman’s face turned red and then white, unable to attack Shen An again. The woman by her side had never made a move to help her from the start and just stood there. The woman was furious but couldn’t act on it, so she had to go and find someone else to help her.
“Okay, Shen An, I will remember this. You better be careful!” The woman warned Shen An.
Shen An smiled and said, “Sure thing, sure thing.”
She thought the woman would rush towards her to fight again, but unexpectedly, she just left like that…just like that…
Footnotes
1. Ge – older brother. Doesn’t necessarily have to be related by blood