Zhou Liu-lang had envisioned countless scenarios of what might happen after taking this bold step. He imagined the lady might cry, rage, or let out a cold laugh followed by some mocking remarks. Or perhaps she’d act like Young Master Qin, a smiling tiger, feigning kindness while subtly blaming herself—he had prepared himself for any reaction.
In short, no matter what you throw at me, I shall remain steadfast, punishing myself to declare my resolve.
But what he didn’t expect was that the lady neither cried nor raged, neither blushed nor panicked. Instead, she simply raised her delicate, jade-like hand and pointed at him.
“You’re… not good-looking.”
Not good-looking?!
Where am I not good-looking?
Zhou Liu-lang instinctively glanced down at himself. From the time he couldn’t yet walk, his father, elder brothers, and masters had been tossing him around, and as soon as he could walk, he began training in martial arts, sculpting a fine physique. Every spring at the Golden Pool’s archery competitions, his mere appearance always garnered unanimous praise, accompanied by a shower of embroidered handkerchiefs and scented sachets from countless ladies.
Not good-looking? Are your eyes even working?!
Wait—no, no, this wasn’t what he wanted her to look at!
The lady continued to stare at him, while beside her, a maid—apparently feigning shyness—had spread her fingers slightly to sneak a peek through the gaps.
In that instant, Zhou Liu-lang’s previously unshakable composure crumbled completely. He instinctively turned his back to them.
Chaos erupted on Cheng Jiao-niang’s side.
“What are you doing, Liu-lang, in this freezing weather?” Madam Zhou cried out, sobbing as she ordered the maids to quickly bring him some clothes.
“Mother, stay out of this,” Zhou Liu-lang gritted his teeth, his face alternating between red and pale. Shaking off the approaching maids, he grabbed a thorn switch, raised it, and struck himself hard across the body.
Madam Zhou and the maids let out cries of alarm.
“My son!” Madam Zhou rushed forward, throwing her arms around Zhou Liu-lang. Seeing the bright red welt on his body, she burst into tears. “My son!”
Though Zhou Liu-lang was a sturdy young man, he couldn’t withstand the persistent efforts of the ladies. Within moments, the thorn switch had been snatched away, and a cloak was wrapped tightly around him.
“Liu-lang, she’s your sister. What matter between siblings can’t be resolved through words…”
“…Behaving so recklessly like this, aren’t you putting your sister in a difficult position…”
“…You’ve scared your sister…”
Madam Zhou held her son, scolding him while crying. As she thought about how Cheng Jiao-niang had remained silent and composed throughout, she couldn’t help but marvel. If it had been any other young lady, they would have been frightened to tears or utterly distressed by now.
She lifted her head and called out, “Jiao Jiao,” looking toward the veranda.
But the young lady was no longer there.
“Where is she?”
Madam Zhou froze for a moment, and a maid quickly pointed toward the room.
The door was ajar, revealing Cheng Jiao-niang already seated inside. She was listening to the maid speak while casually observing the room, her demeanor calm and unruffled, as if completely at ease.
“Jiao Jiao.”
Madam Zhou pulled Zhou Liu-lang into the room and pressed him down to kneel.
Since he wasn’t wearing a shirt, the motion caused the cloak to slip open, revealing his bare chest.
Cheng Jiao-niang, who had just withdrawn her gaze from the screen, looked at him and extended her hand again.
“Stripped bare,” she said, the corners of her lips curling slightly as she pointed with a single finger.
What kind of way was this for a young lady to talk?!
Even Madam Zhou, a married woman, felt slightly embarrassed. She hurriedly reached out to cover her son and, in doing so, lost track of the words she’d intended to say.
“You’re just causing trouble! Offering the rod in apology—how could your sister possibly understand such a thing?” she chided him softly.
Zhou Liu-lang’s face turned beet red.
“I’m sincerely apologizing—don’t you play dumb with me!” he shouted, sitting up straight with his brows furrowed.
“Taking off your clothes—is that how you apologize?” Cheng Jiao-niang said, her expression impassive and showing no hint of emotion. If anything, she looked utterly serious and focused.
“You’re still pretending not to understand!” Zhou Liu-lang’s face flushed even more as he abruptly stood up.
Madam Zhou pulled him down forcefully.
“Liu-lang, why are you yelling? How would she understand this? You, a grown man, suddenly doing something like this in front of a young lady—of course it would frighten her! Do you think she’s like you, just another man?” she exclaimed, her tone urgent.
Zhou Liu-lang said nothing, stubbornly holding his ground as he fixed his gaze on Cheng Jiao-niang.
Do you think she’s like you, just another man?
Cheng Jiao-niang met his gaze, the corners of her lips curling into a faint smile.
Young Master Qin slapped his thigh and laughed heartily, causing the wine bowl on the low table in front of him to wobble.
Inside the room, Zhou Liu-lang still had his upper body bare, while a maid applied ointment to the whip marks on his back.
“I never would’ve thought you’d come up with something like ‘offering the rod in apology,’” Young Master Qin said, laughing.
Zhou Liu-lang remained kneeling, his face and body tense—whether from the stinging ointment or something else was unclear.
“And even more unexpected,” Young Master Qin continued, “is how such a grand and spirited snow-bound act of atonement turned into a little lady teasing a young man.” He took a sip from his wine bowl. “What’s more, the little lady even managed to send the young man scurrying off in embarrassment.”
This time, even the maid tending to Zhou Liu-lang’s injuries couldn’t hold back her laughter. Realizing her slip, she quickly knelt down to apologize.
Zhou Liu-lang waved her off without a word, motioning for her to leave.
“Quite the act of playing dumb,” he sneered coldly.
“So what?” Young Master Qin retorted. “If you can pretend to be reckless and rude, then naturally, she can pretend to be clueless and oblivious.”
“Whether she’s feigning ignorance or playing dumb, she’s still entered my household,” Zhou Liu-lang scoffed.
Before he could finish speaking, Young Master Qin grabbed the cane by his side and swung it heavily at him.
Though the strike didn’t have the strength to injure Zhou Liu-lang, it was forceful enough to leave him utterly startled.
“Sanzi, are you mad? Why are you hitting me!” he yelled, glaring.
“I’m hitting you, you brute, for going too far!” Young Master Qin glared back, slamming down a wine bowl in one hand and taking another swing with the cane in the other.
Zhou Liu-lang, bare-chested though his muscles were well-defined, had no intention of taking a beating for nothing.
“You come over just to drink, and after drinking, you throw a drunken tantrum!” he exclaimed, standing up to dodge.
But Young Master Qin wouldn’t stop. He raised the cane in his hand, determined to chase after him.
“You brute! You’ve gone too far—too far! I’m upset! I can’t feel better unless I beat you!” he shouted, calling for the servants to help him up so he could continue the pursuit.
The commotion left the maids and servants flustered, unsure of how such a ruckus had suddenly erupted. Young Master Qin, usually so refined and soft-spoken, was now drunkenly chasing after Zhou Liu-lang.
“What did I do to anyone?” Zhou Liu-lang asked, equally bewildered. Could he really have had too much to drink? But even so, who at home could have upset him?
“You—you bullied me!” Young Master Qin bellowed, his eyes slightly red, whether from drink or frustration. With that, he hurled the cane in his hand straight at Zhou Liu-lang.
Zhou Liu-lang naturally avoided the cane, taking a step to the side and furrowing his brow.
“You… bullied Lady Cheng, and that means you’ve also bullied me,” Young Master Qin said, somewhat unsteady as he stumbled to the ground, speaking loudly.
What? Zhou Liu-lang’s face hardened.
“She—what is she to you!” he muttered, unable to stop himself. Could it be that the playful words from before had actually been taken seriously?
Young Master Qin lifted his head to look at him, sneering.
“She? She is me, and I am her—both of us are outcasts,” he said, pushing himself up. “I… I must go see her.”
The maids and servants were startled.
This… this isn’t right, is it?
“Madam, Madam, Young Master Qin has had too much to drink and is making a fuss, insisting on going to Lady Cheng’s place with Young Master.”
The maid rushed in to report, causing Madam Zhou, who had only just sat down, to jump up in alarm.
After all the trouble to send Zhou Liu-lang away and say a mountain of comforting words, and after Cheng Jiao-niang didn’t cry or cause a scene, and didn’t mention leaving—now this troublesome boy had gone and led someone there!
It would be fine if it were her own siblings, but Young Master Qin was an outsider!
Madam Zhou was fuming with anger.
Taking her back had never been easy; it only seemed to make matters worse and more aggravating.
“Quickly, quickly, stop them!” she shouted, hurrying toward the door.
At this moment, Young Master Qin and Zhou Liu-lang had already arrived at Cheng Jiao-niang’s doorstep.
The maid standing in the corridor saw them at once and quickly turned around.
“Miss, that naked person is here again!” she shouted in a sharp voice, raising her hand as if ready to cover her eyes at any moment.
Zhou Liu-lang stumbled slightly in his step at the maid’s cry.
This shameless maid!
