272Chapter 259 Accept Your Fate

Translator: 549690339

“Ouch, eldest son, it’s said that a gentleman speaks but takes no action. You really lack the grace of a gentleman!”

“Eldest son, I only painted a tiger for Jinzhou, what’s the meaning of smearing black all over my face?”

“Eldest son, show mercy…”

“Eldest son…”

Whatever, just accept it.

Those who struggle hard already have half of their faces painted. Whether you resist or not at this point doesn’t really matter. Since things have come to this, it would be more pleasing to the eye if my entire face were covered in black instead of looking odd with these splotches.

So, with a heart as dead as ashes, Fan Wenxuan could only sigh silently when he saw his own face, literally transformed into a Judge Bao’s visage in the mirror Chu Jinnian had intentionally placed in front of him.

Just because he felt playful today and picked on Chu Jinzhou a bit, he was caught by Chu Jinnian, this living hellhound, again. How unfortunate!

Looks like Chu Jinnian is indeed his nemesis!

If he wants to have fun in the future, the first step is to get rid of Chu Jinnian!

After Fan Wenxuan mentally grumbled for a while, he proceeded to wash his face with the warm water brought over by Ning Feng and wash off the ink stains on his face.

Just like Chu Jinzhou, the ink stains on Fan Wenxuan’s face couldn’t be completely wiped off. Because Fan Wenxuan’s face was heavily covered with ink, it was even more noticeable. Now that it’s summer, they were all wearing round-necked robes, showing a stark contrast between the colour of their necks and faces, making his face look even darker.

In Beijing, both men and women consider fairness as beauty. Especially for a scholar like Fan Wenxuan, who values elegance. This look of his was as unbearable as having no braised meat to eat.

After Fan Wenxuan returned, he kept looking at himself in the mirror, sighing again and again.

Chu Jinnian is truly unbearable, he always knows where to stick the knife in to hurt the most!

Especially his eyes, apart from the matter of the Fourth Prince, they are always nailed to Chu Jinzhou. Due to this, he can’t even joke with Chu Jinzhou. Who knows when Chu Jinnian will change this character trait of his!

He needs to find a way to keep Chu Jinnian busy, so he won’t always be focused on how he tutors Chu Jinzhou.

What could keep this cold-hearted king of hell, Chu Jinnian, busy and not always focused on him and Chu Jinzhou…

Fan Wenxuan pondered for a while.

“Mr. Fan.” A servant entered the room, holding a cup of fresh tea in his hand, respectfully placing it on his table. “Please enjoy the tea.”

“Mm.” Fan Wenxuan nodded slightly, immediately spotting a hint of pink peeking out from the gap in the servant’s robe.

“What’s this…”

The servant, seeing the corner of his handkerchief exposed, blushed like a ripe apple, hurriedly tucked it away, stuttering, “This… sorry to make a fool of myself in front of you, sir. This was something I bought a few days ago, planning to give it away when I had some free time.”

Fan Wenxuan chuckled, “No wonder you’ve been so absent-minded lately. So it’s because you’re preoccupied with other things, and your heart is not on your work.”

“1 wouldn’t dare.” The shock at Fan Wenxuan’s words made the servant hastily apologise, “I will serve you wholeheartedly in the future…”

“It’s just a joke, you don’t need to be scared. You know my personality, don’t pay too much attention.”

Upon hearing this, the previously frantic servant calmed down a bit.

Fan Wenxuan tends to take many things lightly, making jokes. But as a servant, he has to be careful and serve as best he can. After apologising again, he withdrew.

Watching the servant leave, Fan Wenxuan laughed and shook his head.

Ah, youth is a wonderful thing…

Right!

Chu Jinnian, isn’t he just a young man? With all the vigor and vitality of youth, if he had a woman in his arms, where would he have the time and energy to meddle in Chu Jinzhou’s and his affairs?

This idea grew wildly, like a weed sprouting from a crack in a stone, after seeing the sun and feeling the wind. It grew rampantly, almost filling Fan Wenxuan’s entire mind.

This is a good idea, a very good idea indeed!

Fan Wenxuan even paced excitedly around the room a few times, looking extremely pleased with himself.

Hehe, Chu Jinnian, Chu Jinnian, let’s see howyou’re going to show off in the future.

The Chu Jinnian, who had been muttered about countless times, sneezed heavily as he flipped through the pages of his book.

“Did the young master catch a cold?” Jing Zhao instantly got worried.

Chu Jinnian, thinking about spending more days with Chu Jinzhou at Qingzhuyuan, rushed back from Shouchun at night. Although it was scorching summer, but the deeper the night, the heavier the dew. He had passed through the woods last night, and the cold wind had a chilling sensation. Jing Zhao had also shivered a few times.

“No harm done.” Chu Jinnian rubbed his nose. “I don’t feel uncomfortable anywhere.”

“But I did perceive that there seems to be a new fragrance in this room. Did you use any incense?”

“No.” Jing Zhao answered. “When I entered the room, I also smelled it. I asked household manager Feng about it. Feng said that it was a mosquito repellent herb pouch newly arrived at a fabric shop in the county.”

“Yes.”

Ning Feng, who had just entered the room, continued, “The fabric for the servants’ clothes in the garden is all purchased from this shop. So the shop manager sent us a few samples. If we find them useful, he will send more. So I put these mosquito-repelling pouches in the rooms of the Eldest Son and Third Young Master. Actually, this herb pouch really works. It’s even more effective than the ones we received from Beijing before. I was thinking about asking the shop formore.”

“The scent is quite refreshing.” Chu Jinnian flipped another page of the book, “In recent times, has everything been peaceful here?”

“There were no problems in the garden. After that incident, that lady from Beijing seems to have given up; there hasn’t been any activity.”

Ning Feng answered, “However, Magistrate Xu did visit once. It seemed like a courtesy call. Seeing that you were not here, he did not stay long.”

“On the other hand, some time ago, due to a man drowning in Cuiwei Lake, rumors of a Water Ghost caused a bit of chaos and panic among the people. Fortunately, County Magistrate Ding recently ordered a cleanup, and the rumors slowly dissipated.”

“Since we use spring water from Cuiwei Mountain for tea, I was considering whether or not to temporarily stop fetching water from the spring because of these rumors, but now I’m relieved.”

“Oh?” Chu Jinnian perked up, casually closing the book in his hands.

“This kind of rumor is indeed hard to dispel, especially when it involves spirits and ghosts. This County Magistrate Ding seems to be quite capable.”

“I think so too.”

Ning Feng scratched his ear and chuckled, “Not to hide from the young master, I specially went to watch the Magistrate in action. He is indeed quite decisive in handling matters…”