Chapter 164: Sobering Up

Chapter 164: Sobering Up

For a moment, He Qingxiao was unsure whether Miss Kou was praising him or teasing him.

But his attention soon turned to Xin You's words: "The disaster of bloodshed—"

Xin You nodded: "It's the disaster of bloodshed I mentioned to Lord He a few days ago. It was supposed to happen at this banquet. Fortunately, I was clever enough to prevent King Qing from going mad."

He Qingxiao listened quietly and finally understood.

Miss Kou had engaged in a drinking contest with King Qing to prevent his disaster of bloodshed.

A warm current slowly flowed through his heart.

He Qingxiao's background was complicated. Although his extraordinary appearance attracted many young women, he avoided them for one reason, and on the other hand, such considerate actions were entirely different from the enthusiastic pursuit due to his looks.

This difference, like a gentle spring breeze and a fine rain, nourished his heart.

"However, it wasn't just for Lord He," the girl said, her tone changing as she propped her cheek on her hand. "It was also for myself; I don't like holding my tongue."

She preferred to handle her own troubles rather than trouble others, even if that person was Lord He.

Xin You glanced at He Qingxiao.

The man opposite her had a face as white as jade, his eyebrows and eyes as dark as ink, looking even more handsome than usual.

Why?

Xin You thought about it seriously but couldn't figure it out.

"Lord He, I have a question."

He Qingxiao couldn't help but straighten his expression: "Please, Miss Kou, go ahead."

Xin You tilted her head slightly, her eyes filled with pure curiosity: "Lord He, why do you look better today than usual?"

He Qingxiao, who had been waiting for Xin You to get to the point, was speechless.

The nearly drunk girl, whose face remained unchanged, waited for an answer for a long time before finding one herself: "It must be because Lord He dressed up specially for the banquet."

He Qingxiao met her hazy gaze and nodded helplessly: "Yes, I did dress up specially."

Xin You smiled, revealing a look of confirmation.

He Qingxiao felt he couldn't let Miss Kou continue talking nonsense. After all, in her unusual state of drunkenness, who knew if she would remember what she said after sobering up.

If she did—

He Qingxiao didn't dare to imagine what that would be like, so he quickly changed the subject: "Miss Kou said there was something important to discuss. What is it?"

"Important?" Xin You's mind went blank, but the words slipped out directly, "Didn't we finish talking already?"

He Qingxiao couldn't help but twitch his lips.

"Lord He, have some pastries," Xin You's head was dizzy, but she steadily pushed the pastry box in front of him. "These are made by Aunt Yang, and they taste very good. Do you know who Aunt Yang is? A few days ago, Miss Kou's tavern hired a new chef, and Aunt Yang is his wife. Knowing that Aunt Yang is an excellent cook, I invited her to be our kitchen maid."

He Qingxiao was certain that since he and Miss Kou had known each other, she had never spoken so much to him.

Seeing that Xin You showed no signs of stopping, He Qingxiao silently picked up a pastry and ate it.

"How is it?"

"Very good."

Xin You smiled: "Right? Although it's not as good as Aunt Xia's, it's still pretty good. Have you heard of Aunt Xia? She is Aunt Gui's younger sister, and her cooking skills are no less than Aunt Gui's."

As she spoke, the girl's long lashes trembled, and tears fell: "But Aunt Xia is dead, and I can never eat her pastries again."

Originally, He Qingxiao found Xin You's drunken behavior both amusing and exasperating, but at this moment, it felt like a bee's sting suddenly piercing his heart, causing a sharp, fine pain.

He realized that he cared for the girl in front of him.

Perhaps he had also drunk too much at the banquet, or perhaps the strong scent of alcohol here had made him drunk. Before He Qingxiao realized it, his hand had covered the one casually resting on the table.

The girl's hand was delicate, while the man's hand was slender. The skin contact was unexpectedly warm.

He seemed to have been burned by a spark and quickly withdrew his hand, his heart beating rapidly.

"Sorry—"

The two words came out, but he couldn't continue.

Some things were completely inexplicable.

Xin You looked at her hand, her gaze fixed on He Qingxiao's face.

He Qingxiao's cheeks quickly flushed: "Miss Kou, you've had quite a bit of wine today. Since we've finished discussing the important matter, you should go back and rest early."

"Yes, I've had quite a bit," Xin You lifted the hand that had been held, pressed it to her forehead, and stood up steadily, "Then I'll go back to the eastern courtyard."

He Qingxiao also stood up. Just as he took a step, he saw the girl turn around, wave happily, and say, "See you tomorrow, Lord He."

He Qingxiao's expression was somewhat strange.

It would be better if Miss Kou forgot everything when she sobered up. If she remembered, she might not be happy to see him tomorrow.

When passing through the study hall, Xin You seemed normal. But once she returned to the eastern courtyard and entered her room, she collapsed on the bed and fell into a deep sleep.

Xiaolian hurriedly helped her take off her outer clothes and shoes, wiped her face and hands with a soft cloth wrung out in hot water, and then covered her with a blanket.

Xin You slept until the next morning. When she opened her eyes, she saw Xiaolian, whose eyes were bloodshot.

"Miss, if you hadn't woken up, I would have had to fetch a doctor."

From yesterday afternoon until now, it was truly frightening!

Xin You rubbed her temples, feeling the headache from a hangover, and gave Xiaolian an apologetic smile. "I drank too much, so I tend to sleep for a long time."

"Did you really drink that much?" Xiaolian quickly poured a cup of warm water and asked curiously.

"What do you mean?" Xin You finished the water in a few gulps.

"You didn't seem like you had been drinking at all yesterday."

"Yes, I have good tolerance. It doesn't show on the surface—" Xin You paused as memories from the previous day flooded back.

She indeed had good tolerance, not only managing to act as if nothing was wrong but also avoiding any memory loss.

Damn, no memory loss!

Xin You fell back onto the bed, staring blankly at the canopy above.

Xiaolian was startled. "What's wrong, Miss?"

"Nothing, just alive." Xin You closed her eyes and answered weakly.

While Xin You felt embarrassed to the point of wanting to die after waking up, King Qing was furious and humiliated.

"Little brat, how dare you make me lose face!" King Qing kicked over a high table, shattering the expensive vase on it.

Every time he thought about the humiliation at the banquet, he wanted to tear Xin You apart like that vase.

No one dared to stop King Qing's outburst; they all lowered their heads to avoid drawing attention.

Finally, after overturning a table, King Qing stopped, breathing heavily.

"Your Highness, please have some water."

"Get away!" King Qing pushed the person aside, his face filled with anger. "Keep an eye out for anyone talking about this outside these walls for the next few days!"

King Qing's concern was not unfounded. Although the incident hadn't spread widely, it had already made the rounds among the nobility and was showing signs of spreading further.

Upon hearing the news, Duan Shaoqing went to Ruyitang and mentioned Xin You's behavior to the old lady.

"A young lady drinking with a prince—what will people think of our Shaoqing Mansion!"

The old lady lowered her eyes and sipped her tea.

No wonder the number of suitors for her granddaughter had suddenly decreased.