Chapter 9: False Sentiments and Hypocrisy

  Liu Qingqing changed into a light green dress, letting her hair down, and from behind, it was like a black waterfall, straight and shiny. Hu Zhongren looked at her back and couldn't help but feel his heart racing again. What's wrong with him? He's even reacting to the woman's back. He forced himself to calm down, covering up his true feelings, and intentionally spoke in a rough tone: "Can you hurry up? You're ugly and clumsy!" Xiaolian was tying a yellow ribbon on Liu Qingqing's hair, blocking her running strands of hair, and heard Young Master's words, feeling secretly delighted. She remembered that when Madam Xiulian was alive, the young master was also like this, pretending to be disliked while actually liking someone, pretending to be angry while actually being happy. The madam would always look at him gently until he couldn't hold it in anymore and revealed his true feelings. Xiaolian wondered if Ninth Madame could see through Young Master's heart, thinking that maybe in the future, Young Master could drop his icy facade and live a happy life. Xiaolian was excited to hint this to Liu Qingqing. But just as she was about to speak, Hu Zhongren said: "Xiaolian, go inform Old Madame that I and Young Madame are going to pay our respects." Liu Qingqing remembered the old madame's dislike of her and couldn't help but feel timid. They don't like me, they like Chen Xixi, what should I do?

  The top priority is to grasp Hu Zhongren, only he can protect himself. Hurriedly getting up, tightly holding onto Hu Zhongren's arm with both hands, coquettishly saying: "Brother, I don't want to go." Liu Qingqing's usual trick was to act cute and silly, men like women who are gentle and dislike women who are clever. Hu Zhongren was taken aback, what? Last night she was a little tigress, today she became a docile rabbit. After thinking for a moment, it became clear that she was afraid of meeting her mother-in-law, so you're also afraid? But his attitude unconsciously softened, and his tone became gentle: "Don't be afraid, Mother will like you." Xiao Lian secretly admired the lady, her skills were impressive, seeing how she had turned Hu Shaoheng from an iceberg into a small stream. Hu Zhongren walked out of the door with big strides, Xiao Lian pulled Liu Qingqing out of the bedroom and together they entered the main hall.

  The house was full of people, and as soon as Liu Qingqing saw Chen Xixi, her gentle demeanor disappeared and a fighting stance emerged. She learned the ancient lady's etiquette to greet the old woman, then stood proudly beside Hu Zhongren, a model of maternal virtue. The old woman was delighted, beaming with joy, and hurriedly said "come quickly". Liu Qingqing secretly rejoiced: she had guessed it right, all mothers in the world are the same. The old woman also loved seeing her son and daughter-in-law being affectionate.

  Yang Liuqing walked two steps forward and smiled: "Sister-in-law came so late, didn't brother-in-law tire you out last night?"

  Liu Qingqing couldn't believe that Yang Liuqing would say such a thing in front of everyone, and her face immediately flushed with red clouds. This was truly the color of shyness. How could she, who had never been in love before, discuss this matter in such a public setting?

  Hu Zhongren's icy face suddenly cracked a smile, although it quickly disappeared, but was still caught by everyone. What a miracle!

  "Don't flirt with your younger sister-in-law, she's very shy." Hu Zhongren surprisingly spoke up for Liu Qingqing, and everyone was shocked again, what a miracle.

  "We're going to Liujiacun to pay respects to my father-in-law Old Taishan, and then we'll head to the capital. I'm taking special leave of Mother."

  Liu Qingqing was originally grateful to Hu Zhongren for helping her out, but upon hearing this, she became anxious again. After thinking about the wording, she quickly said, "The Liu family is far away and it's not convenient to trouble you, sir. My father said we'll meet again in Beijing, so there's no need to go home now. Besides, I should stay with the Hu family for a while to fulfill my filial duties, it's not suitable to rush to Beijing too quickly." Liu Qingqing thought, at least give me some time to figure out the situation. If she goes to the Liu family, the real Qingqing will definitely run into her, and the matter of Qinglian's escape will also be exposed. It's better for herself to stay with the Hu family for now.

  Everyone is unaware of her mind, Qi Zan Liu Qingqing understands things, and Chen Xixi is furious.

  "Daughter-in-law, I'm glad you think that way, but visiting your father-in-law's home is also something a son-in-law should do. You can go without any worries." The old lady was delighted, the daughter-in-law had high moral character, which was truly rare. Although she wasn't very good-looking, her son liked her, and that was what mattered.

  "It's all up to you, sir." Liu Qingqing clutched onto Hu Zhongren's arm, her pleading eyes hinting at him, "I don't want to go back." This only added to the allure in other people's eyes.

  "Are you really not going back?" Hu Zhongren smiled and looked at Liu Qingqing, although he was enjoying the warmth of her body in his arms. But such intimate behavior also confirmed that she wasn't some noble lady, she definitely wasn't Liu Fangchun's daughter. Who exactly was she? He had to uncover her true identity. Thinking this way made him feel even more uneasy, maybe she really was his good friend's wife, what a predicament. On the surface, however, he remained affectionate and tender.

  "Hey, is this still my temperamental and short-tempered, wolf-like fierce and masculine cousin who's bold in bed? Yang Liuqing took advantage of her aunt being present to expose Hu Zhongren's true nature."

  Hu Zhongren gently stroked the soft and delicate face of Liu Qingqing, as if he liked the scars on her face. "You don't know how good your sister-in-law is, only she knows how good I am, so your worries are unnecessary."

  Liu Qingqing listened to the two people's verbal sparring, and leaned in closer to Hu Zhongren, putting on a sweet and affectionate expression, coordinating well with Hu Shao, she had already succeeded halfway. Yang Liuqing's face turned iron green.

  "What's the meaning of this! You're a woman, you should follow the rules of propriety. Quickly return to your room!" The old lady saw that her nephew was displeased and felt sorry for him. She couldn't bear it anymore, although she was delighted to see her son finally find a woman he liked. However, being so intimate in front of outsiders without regard for etiquette would make people laugh at the Hu family for having no rules. She had to warn them to restrain themselves.

  "Yes, Sister-in-law is indeed a talented woman, but her behavior makes one feel that she has no upbringing. She also strongly opposes Brother and her returning home, I'm afraid there's something fishy going on. Why don't I go investigate in Brother's name?" Yang Liuqing calmed down his expression and walked closer to Liu Qingqing, observing her intentions. A sour feeling kept rising up, he couldn't help but want to separate the two of them, not letting them get too close. Last night, he didn't make a move first, and now he regretted it, thinking that Liu Qingqing was already won over by Brother. He silently cursed "What a shameless woman, conquered by Brother in just one night! When Brother gets tired of you, I'll make sure you know my ways, I'll make you beg for mercy!" As he thought this, his eyes stared straight at Liu Qingqing, but others only saw him glaring at her in anger. However, the look in his eyes revealed something else. Liu Qingqing leaned closer to Hu Zhongren, thinking that her brother-in-law was a lecher, and she had only met him once yesterday, playing a joke by putting a cloak on his head. Why was he looking at her with such an intense gaze? Thinking this, she unconsciously leaned in even closer to Hu Zhongren. Hu Zhongren also noticed the brother-in-law's intentions and seemed to know what Liu Qingqing was thinking. He whispered in her ear "He's just envious that I have you as a good wife." But in his heart, he firmly decided "I must get him to leave immediately, otherwise, it would be unfair to my good friend. I won't let him behave recklessly like before."

  "Alright, let my younger brother go to the Liu family village and investigate what's going on. We'll make a decision afterwards." He patted Yang Liuqing's shoulder, and Yang Liuqing came back to his senses, withdrawing his naked gaze. "Younger cousin, go to the Liu family village for me and pay respects to our relatives in my place."

  "This, I..." Yang Liuqing smiled awkwardly, covering up her own embarrassment. She thought that since her brother-in-law was always cold and unfeeling, he shouldn't be able to see through anything. Because the eight ladies in front had all spoken their minds, and hadn't seen any reaction from him either. Thinking this way, she felt a bit more at ease, but when she heard that she would be going to the Liu household, her heart was unwilling. Her eyes looked at her aunt, hoping that she could help speak up for her.

  Hu's mother, however, had a different idea. She didn't want Yang Liuqing to harm her son and daughter-in-law again, so she said: "Qing'er, be careful on your way, finish your business, and come back soon. Don't make me worry." The old woman held onto Yang Liuqing's sleeve, repeatedly reminding her, then said she was a bit tired and went back to rest. Liu Qing hugged Hu Zhongren's arm, showing off their love, making others jealous. Together they sent Yang Liuqing to the gate, where Yang Liuqing looked at her brother-in-law's hand wrapped around his wife's waist, gritting her teeth in anger, forcing a smile: "Brother and sister-in-law, go back, I can't bear to see your intimate appearance, my teeth are about to fall out." This seemingly fake yet true sentence truly expressed her thoughts. Hu Zhongren's handsome face showed a hint of a smile again. "Don't be jealous of me, you'll have your own beloved person sooner or later."

  Willow Qingqing's eyebrows opened with a smile, seeing the seam inserting needle, constantly dripping towards Yang Liuqing and throwing flirtatious eyes. Peach Blossom Boy is really attractive to people's eyeballs, not matching is truly a waste of natural resources.

  Hu Zhongren suppressed his discontent, "You go and come back quickly, then immediately head to the capital to take a trip. The manager's letter said that something has happened at the silk store in the capital, you need to go and deal with it. I want to go to Hong Cuishan Villa with your wife to rest for a few days and cultivate our feelings."

  Yang Liuqing forced a smile, looking at the hesitant expression of Liu Qingqing, ultimately didn't say anything and left on horseback with a humiliated look.

  Yang Liuqing left, and Liu Qing immediately let go of his hand and walked away with a flourish. Everyone has left, who are you pretending to be for?

  Hu Zhongren was unaware that it was both infuriating and laughable, and had never seen anyone burn their bridges like this before.

  Liu Qingqing left the crowd and returned to her dormitory, picked up a pen and started drawing. Her mind was restless and she threw down the pen. She thought about going to the backyard to find Ren Zhonghu's older brother to discuss escape plans.

  Familiar with the road, Liu Qingqing entered the garden. Seeing that the big dog was not there, he immediately sprinted, jumped onto the wall, climbed down, and followed the path to the small hut. He sneaked in quietly, looking at a person standing with his hands behind his back, who turned out to be Ren Zhonghu.

  "Brother Hu, what are you thinking about?" Liu Qingqing patted the person's shoulder and called out loudly. The newcomer slowly turned around, and Liu Qingqing was extremely embarrassed. The person had a solemn face, thin eyes, and raised eyebrows - where was her own Brother Hu?

  "Who are you? Where is Ren Zhonghu?" Liu Qingqing was flustered but her mind was quick.

  "Brother, someone is looking for you." The man shouted towards the green field. This time Liu Qingqing finally saw clearly that a person was squatting on the grass. Ren Zhonghu walked out with big strides, "How did you come?"

  "I have something to discuss with you."

  Ren Zhonghu came between the two, "I'll introduce you, this is my older brother Ren Zhongjie, and this is Hu Zhongren's newlywed wife Liu Qingqing, she is Liu Changchun's daughter, people call her Jade-faced Weaving Maiden."

  Liu Qingqing smiled and said: "I don't dare to be called Jade-faced Weaving Maiden. I look a bit sorry for everyone."

  "What brings you here?" Ren Zhong Hu asked.

  Liu Qingqing looked at Ren Zhongjie without saying a word. Ren Zhongjie cleared his throat, "I, uh, have something to do, I'll leave first, you guys talk." He turned around and disappeared into the green wilderness.

  "I want to ask you to take me away, and also find someone to go to Liujiazhuang to check on Yang Liuqing, who is Hu Zhongren's nephew. He was sent by Hu Zhongren to Liujiazhuang, I'm worried he might do harm to my family."