Chapter 150

Chapter 150

He shot Jiang Cihe a pleading look, "Aren't you going to help me out? He was the one who insisted on dragging me here. Are you just going to stand there watching me struggle?"

Jiang Cihe cleared his throat and looked sternly at Wu Qing, "By the way, I heard you promised to pay someone but then reneged on your promise. What's going on with that?"

Meng Shuping was surprised, "Huh? He reneged on a debt? Is he some kind of deadbeat?"

The other onlookers also turned their attention to Wu Qing, "Young Master Wu reneged on a debt? No way, really?"

"Whose debt did he renege on? Maybe he didn't bring money when he went out?"

"Perhaps he just forgot? Young Master Wu isn't short of money—how could he possibly do something like that?"

Wu Qing was taken aback. If he remembered correctly, he had never reneged on a debt. Then he froze—could it be that Jiang Cihe was referring to that incident not long ago?

When they were mocking Xun Chengzhou, was Jiang Cihe also there? At this thought, Wu Qing felt very guilty and tentatively asked, "This... I really don't recall. May I ask which incident Your Highness is referring to?"

Meng Shuping was utterly incredulous, "No way! Other things I could understand, but how could he forget something that just happened? What's wrong with his memory? Is he pretending to be stupid?"

Jiang Cihe didn't speak but made a very subtle gesture, signaling Wu Qing to question Meng Shuping.

Now Wu Qing was truly certain that Jiang Cihe was here to stand up for Meng Shuping. He quickly thought it over and then ground out, "Fine, I remember now. I'll give the money to Xun Chengzhou right away."

*What's Meng Shuping's problem? He's not even that familiar with that Xun Chengzhou—is it worth helping him that much? If he wants to help others, fine, but why report it to Prince Zhao? Is it necessary to make such a big deal out of a trivial matter?*

Jiang Cihe was slightly taken aback. *Give the money to Xun Chengzhou?* He lowered his gaze in thought. *Could it be that he had misunderstood, and the debt Wu Qing reneged on was Xun Chengzhou's, not Little Moneygrubber's? Then why is Little Moneygrubber so fixated on it?*

He forcefully pushed aside the many thoughts in his mind, nodded, and said, "I hope Young Master Wu won't forget this time."

Wu Qing said stiffly, "Yes, I definitely won't forget this time."

Jiang Cihe hummed in acknowledgment. "Alright, with me here, I'm afraid you all won't be able to enjoy yourselves. I'll take my leave now."

Everyone quickly said, "Farewell, Your Highness!"

After distancing themselves from the others, Meng Shuping eyed Jiang Cihe suspiciously, "How did you know that Young Master Wu reneged on a debt?"

*Could it be that he was eavesdropping the whole time? Then why didn't he come out earlier? Is eavesdropping on people's conversations honorable?*

Jiang Cihe explained deadpan, "I didn't know. But that Wu fellow often reneges on debts. I was just testing him earlier."

Meng Shuping was astonished, "So that's how it is!"

*He really is a deadbeat! Tsk, tsk, who would have thought? Dressed so splendidly, yet he's this kind of person!*

Jiang Cihe sighed in relief. Anyway, Meng Shuping wouldn't confront that Wu fellow about it, so let the misunderstanding be.

Noticing that Jiang Cihe was leading him toward the exit, Meng Shuping asked doubtfully, "Where are we going?"

Jiang Cihe looked at him meaningfully. "What, do you really want to stay here and continue being set up? What if someone takes a liking to you? It wouldn't be easy to get rid of them."

Meng Shuping looked Jiang Cihe up and down, then said deliberately, "How would you know? Personal experience? Then again, I wonder who it was that attracted so much attention as soon as they entered."

Jiang Cihe shot him a glance and said with a smile, "So you've been paying such close attention to me since I came in? Are you jealous?"

Meng Shuping sputtered and looked away unnaturally. "Who's jealous?"

Jiang Cihe didn't press the point. He grabbed Meng Shuping's hand and led him outside. "Let's go, let's eat."

The two got into the carriage together. Remembering the love letter situation, Jiang Cihe asked Meng Shuping, "How do you plan to handle the love letter issue?"

Meng Shuping thought for a moment. "I'll go back first and investigate who stole my writing sample."

Jiang Cihe considered for a while. "I actually think it might be better to let someone else investigate this matter. If you investigate it yourself, it'll inevitably take a lot of effort, and you might not even find out the truth."

Meng Shuping was puzzled. "Who should investigate it?"

Jiang Cihe said, "Your grandfather."

"Ah?" Meng Shuping was very surprised. "Why?"

Jiang Cihe explained, "You haven't been back to the Estate for long, so you're not familiar with the various relationships there. Investigating would naturally be difficult for you. But your grandfather is the master of the Estate. It's much easier for him to investigate anything than it is for you."

Meng Shuping hesitated. "But such a small matter—would grandfather necessarily handle it? He has a lot of things to do. It wouldn't be good to trouble him too often."

Jiang Cihe disagreed. "You've encountered a lot of troubles since returning to the Estate, right? If this isn't dealt with, I'm afraid someone might accuse your grandfather of failing to maintain strict household discipline."

Meng Shuping: "...Alright."

*Then I'll just tell the parents! Sigh, I really don't want to do this—it makes me seem like I like a tattletale.*

Jiang Cihe laughed, then moved to sit beside Meng Shuping and grabbed his hand, lacing their fingers together. "Why don't you come live at my residence?"

Meng Shuping flushed. "Wouldn't that be inappropriate?"

*Our relationship isn't even stable yet, and he already wants to live together? Isn't that a bit too rushed? Wait, does he also want to do some intimate things? Ptooey! Dirty old man!*

Jiang Cihe paused and looked deeply at Meng Shuping. "What's inappropriate about it?"

Meng Shuping widened his eyes. *He's asking me what's inappropriate? The pace is too fast, okay? Besides, I'm not even old enough for intimate things yet!*

His ears tinged red as he said, "I haven't even decided whether I want to be with you yet, so of course I can't live at your place."

Jiang Cihe smiled, his eyes curving. "Where did your mind go? I meant that with so many troubles at your home, living at my residence would be quieter, and at least you wouldn't lose any more things."

Meng Shuping's face flushed bright red. *How infuriating! Is he doing this on purpose? With this comparison, it makes me seem so dirty-minded!*

Seeing him so embarrassed, Jiang Cihe couldn't help but laugh even harder. He said softly, "Of course, if you're willing to share a bed with me every day, I would be very happy too."

Meng Shuping took a deep breath and put on a calm front. "No need, I'm perfectly fine living at the Estate."

Jiang Cihe tightened his grip on Meng Shuping's hand and said in a low voice, "Really no need?"

Meng Shuping immediately said, "Really no need."

But no sooner had he spoken than he noticed Jiang Cihe slowly moving in closer to him. Meng Shuping's eyelashes fluttered rapidly several times. *What are you doing? Is he going to try to kiss me? Should I refuse him, refuse him, or refuse him?*

Despite the intense internal monologue, on the surface, Meng Shuping's body didn't move an inch. Just as Jiang Cihe was about to reach him, he suddenly buried his face in Meng Shuping's neck and muffled his laughter.

Meng Shuping was annoyed. He pushed Jiang Cihe away. "Are you teasing me?"

*Was it funny to see me mistakenly think he was going to kiss me? Bastard! I'm not speaking to him anymore!*

Jiang Cihe laughed so hard his whole body shook. Seeing that Meng Shuping was a little angry, he quickly stopped laughing. "No, no, it's just that whenever I see you, I feel very happy. I couldn't help laughing just now."

People say one thing but mean another, but why did he feel that Meng Shuping's heart was also very dishonest? Besides, he was about to kiss him, and Meng Shuping's voice kept echoing in his ears—can he be blamed for not being able to hold back his laughter?

Meng Shuping was somewhat skeptical. Even so, was it necessary to laugh like that? He said unhappily, "Nonsense! You think I'm that gullible?"

"Then what do you think is the reason?" Jiang Cihe shot back.

But before Meng Shuping could answer, Jiang Cihe met his gaze and continued, "Besides, why do you think I'm teasing you? Could it be that you just assumed I was going to kiss you?"

Meng Shuping stammered, then turned red with embarrassment and annoyance. "You're overthinking—"

Before he could finish speaking, his lips were abruptly sealed by Jiang Cihe's lips. He struggled briefly, only to find Jiang Cihe kissing him more aggressively.

Breath growing ragged, he trembled. Meng Shuping soon grew weak under Jiang Cihe's dominant approach, and could only passively accept the kisses.

When Jiang Cihe finally pulled away, he shifted to gently peck Meng Shuping's chin and neck.

Panting, his heart racing, Meng Shuping struggled to calm down. Just then, Jiang Cihe chuckled and said, "You guessed right—I did want to kiss you. Can I?"

Meng Shuping stared at him in disbelief. *He’s already kissed me and now he asks for permission? Seriously? If I say no, does he want me to kiss him back or something?*

At a loss for a retort, he finally turned away and blurted out, "No!"

Jiang Cihe feigned a sigh. "Alright, maybe next time then."

*He hadn’t planned to be so bold, but who could resist when this little moneygrubber was so adorable?*

Meng Shuping kept his face blank as he thought, *Next time I see him, I’ll eat a few cloves of raw garlic and see if he still dares to kiss me.*

Jiang Cihe raised an eyebrow. *Go ahead and try.*

After casually finding a place to eat, the two returned to the Earl’s manor together. Hearing that Jiang Cihe had accompanied Meng Shuping again, Meng Houliang hurried out to greet them. "Greetings, Prince Zhao. To what do we owe the honor of Your Highness’s sudden visit?"

Jiang Cihe replied politely, "Let’s discuss it inside."

Soon, the three were seated indoors. Jiang Cihe took the lead. "Shuping, show him the love letter."

Meng Shuping quickly handed the letter to Meng Houliang. "Grandfather, please take a look."

After skimming through the letter, Meng Houliang asked in surprise, "What is this?"

Jiang Cihe explained, "Earl, not long ago, I lent Shuping some of my calligraphy to practice. To my surprise, a love letter resembling my handwriting has surfaced. I suspect someone in your household stole my writing samples. If it were just for trivial matters, I might let it slide, but if it’s used for other purposes, I could be implicated unjustly."

Meng Houliang was astonished. "What? How could such a thing happen?"

He didn’t believe anyone in his household would dare harm Prince Zhao, but since the matter involved him, it couldn’t be taken lightly.

At this point, Meng Houliang couldn’t help but curse the culprit inwardly. *Not only did they scheme to frame someone, but they also bungled it—how utterly foolish!*

Jiang Cihe added, "I hope you will investigate this thoroughly, Earl. To be blunt, if I don’t receive a satisfactory resolution, I won’t hesitate to bring in the authorities."