Female martial arts fanatics only love to fight, while men fight for their lives.

42

"Is my sudden visit disturbing you? If there is any inconvenience, please don't hide it from me." Lou Xiao knew that his arrival was abrupt and impolite. Lou Hong signaled the servants to present the gifts he brought, and the housekeeper of the Li family took them.

Li Huaiqing personally welcomed Lou Xiao into the room.

Lou Hong said nothing and lowered his head in an act of respect, as if the look Li Huaiqing had seen before did not come from him.

He treated himself as a housekeeper and did not interact with others, but Li Huaiqing could not ignore his behavior on purpose for fear of being criticized.

So while casually chatting with Lou Xiao about recent events, he greeted Lou Hong with a smile, "Mr. Hong lives in seclusion and rarely goes out. I haven't seen you for many years. Today, you came to my Li Mansion with Miss Lou, which shows the deep affection between the siblings."

Lou Hong raised his eyes with a smile on his face, but his eyes were cold. He clasped his fists and said coldly, "Nice to meet you."

He didn't want to say even a word.

Li Huaiqing was not angry either. He had only been putting on a show with Lou Hong. Now that he had found out the other party's attitude, he didn't need to worry about it anymore.

Lou Xiao is the top priority.

But when he probed her with his tone, he found that she didn't seem to know that he was injured?

Lou Xiao followed Li Huaiqing's lead, her attention completely attracted by the scenery in Li's mansion.

The heritage of a century-old family lies in the fact that every blade of grass, every brick and every tile in the Li family's mansion in the capital is unique.

It is not the heaviness and wealth portrayed by the Duke of Zhenguo's Mansion, nor is it the royal demeanor that the Imperial Palace must display.

There was a new scene at every step in the Li Mansion. Seeing the admiration in her eyes, Li Huaiqing took the opportunity to talk about the stories and allusions contained in it with interest.

They slowed down their pace, and the road that was originally intended to take her to the reception room ended up in the garden of Li Mansion.

There are bluestones under your feet, rockeries and flowing water on both sides, and blue tiles and white walls.

There is a fan-shaped window on the wall, and outside the window are jagged lake rocks and bamboos, as well as the flying eaves of a small pavilion hidden behind it.

The fallen flowers that came from somewhere on the eaves fluttered down with the wind, and a bunch of wind chimes hanging on the eaves tinkled with the spring breeze, as if welcoming her arrival.

This place doesn't look like a mansion in the capital, but more like a garden in the south of the Yangtze River.

The garden was filled with the singing of birds and the fragrance of flowers. If she had a bamboo lounge chair, a pot of tea and some snacks, it would be more comfortable than her previous life in the village.

No wonder a person like Li Huaiqing emerged.

He stood among them, with an open folding fan in his hand. The jade handle of the fan, depicting a picture of orchids and orchids in spring, swayed in the wind, and was graceful and inviting. The fan was decorated with asparagus fern, sesame seeds, and stones, giving it a refreshing aura that complemented him perfectly.

Li Huaiqing had never received so much favor from her since he met her. He waved his folding fan lightly with a smile on his face.

Lou Xiao pointed curiously at the small pavilion outside the window and asked the man standing next to her, who looked like a bamboo, "Can I go over there?"

Li Huaiqing naturally did not refuse, and moved to take her with him, "Of course. It's just that I often write in the pavilion, so it's a little messy, Miss Lou, please forgive me."

They followed the quiet path and slowly entered the beautiful scenery. There were schools of koi in the spring water, and magnolia flowers bloomed and fell with the wind by the water.

The white gauze on the pavilion was rolled up. Li Huaiqing was the first to enter the pavilion and used a bronze animal head paperweight to hold down the paper that was about to fall.

Lou Xiao came a step slower, and when she saw him taking out a useless painting and about to throw it away, she turned around and took the drawing paper in her hand, spreading it out and looking at it while smiling,

"Let me see how the painting is."

She was just joking, but she didn't expect that although the work was a semi-finished product, it had delicate brushstrokes and was quite artistic.

"It's quite good, why throw it away." Lou Xiao didn't quite understand, and looked around the pavilion to see if there were any of his manuscripts. "You enjoy calligraphy and painting in your spare time, you are really worthy of it, Li Huaiqing."

He lowered his head modestly, "It's just a practice piece, not worthy of my attention, Miss Lou, thank you for the compliment."

Sometimes being too modest can seem fake. Lou Xiao stopped talking and spread the painting out on the table.

Li Huaiqing was sensitive to her change of mood and said again, "Miss Lou, if you like it, I will paint another one for you after I recover from my injury. Please don't despise it then."

hurt?

"Are you injured?" The surprise on Lou Xiao's face was real. She looked Li Huaiqing up and down, but did not find anything unusual on him.

Either he was lying, or he was so patient that he didn't show any discomfort at all.

Li Huaiqing was sure that she was really unaware of the situation. He glanced at Lou Hong, who was looking at her with his eyes and nose, and treating her as if he were a fake person.

However, Li Huaiqing felt that as the person in charge of the finances of the Duke of Zhenguo's Mansion, if he wanted to hide it, someone like Lou Xiao, who often went in and out of the palace and didn't care about worldly things, would really not know.

"It's just a minor injury to my arm. I can't control my writing and painting these days." Li Huaiqing still didn't show any discomfort. He picked up the pen and wrote a word casually in front of her.

"If it were a normal time, and Miss Lou liked my painting, I would have the nerve to start painting on the spot and would not let you down. But..."

Unfortunately, it is not convenient today.

Lou Xiao didn’t really care whether he could paint or not. She just knew that Li Huaiqing had injured his arm, so what should she do about the matter she asked him for advice?

"Alas, what should I do?" Lou Xiao couldn't hide her disappointment. "Lou Hong said that you are a master of both calligraphy and painting in the capital, and it's hard to find an opponent. I have a problem and I want to ask you for help. Now it seems that I have to find another way."

Lou Hong raised his eyes and glanced at her, thinking to himself, I never said that.

When asking for help, one naturally speaks nicely. Lou Xiao missed his glance and was about to say goodbye.

Li Huaiqing hesitated for a moment and asked, "Why don't you tell me, Miss Lou, what's the matter?"

It took a lot of effort to get someone to come and get closer to you. If you just leave disappointingly, you don’t know when you’ll have another chance.

Lou Xiao looked down at the beautiful handwriting he could write despite his injury, his fingers pressing on the edge of the pen and ink, thinking that he must be an excellent teacher.

"I have a calligraphy work. Lou Hong said it is very difficult to copy. But I need to copy it in a few days," she looked into his eyes. "I don't know how to do it, so I came to you for help."

Thinking it was some big deal, Li Huaiqing said with a smile, "Shall I write it for you now?"

Is that underestimating him?

"No." Lou Xiao shook her head and stared at him hopefully, "It's to teach me how to write well."

"I have never liked practicing calligraphy since I was a child. You are an expert in this field, so I will practice whatever you ask me to do." She thought for a moment and promised.

"If it is accomplished, then I will grant you everything you ask for."

To avoid a big incident, she added a restriction, "As long as it's not something that endangers the country or harms human lives..."

Li Huaiqing laughed and shook his head, "What are you thinking, Miss Lou? I'm not that scary."

He didn't ask anything else and directly agreed, "So where would you like to practice calligraphy, Miss Lou? Is it the Duke of Zhenguo's Mansion, or my Fengbo Pavilion?"

Lou Hong frowned and was about to speak, but Lou Xiao had already answered very considerately.

"You are still injured, so you don't need to run around. I will come here every day."

She bowed slightly, thanking him in advance for his teaching, "Well, please give me your guidance, Mr. Li."