“Huh?” The honest-faced man stood there with his mouth agape and neck stretched out, looking exactly like a foolish goose. “You… what did you say?”

Didn’t this master always dislike people commenting on his appearance? He had once personally knocked out someone’s teeth for calling him the most beautiful man in Copper Gong Town. Even he had found that scene terrifying to watch.

He Kexian turned to look at him, pointing at Lu Chi who was being harassed in the distance, and asked again with utmost seriousness, “Between me and that scholar, who is more beautiful?”

The honest-faced man swallowed with some difficulty, looked at the scholar in the distance, then at Master He standing before him with a cold face, and said very diplomatically, “Naturally that scholar is more beautiful, but Master He, you’re a real man among men – you’re much more masculine than him.”

He tried very hard to flatter, but when he saw He Kexian’s darkening face, he realized his flattery had hit the wrong spot.

What was wrong with him…

A grown man competing with others over beauty?

This Master He was becoming increasingly moody and unpredictable.

Shi Fa Ke was filled with both guilt and regret at this moment. Watching Lu Chi get beaten helplessly, her tears finally couldn’t be held back anymore.

“Stop, stop, please stop! If you don’t stop, you’ll definitely regret it!” Shi Fa Ke cried out.

Hearing Shi Fa Ke’s loud crying, Lu Chi, who was surrounded by everyone and seemed to have suffered considerable injuries but was actually fine, couldn’t help but sigh inwardly. This girl… it was clearly her devious idea, yet now she looked as if she had suffered the greatest injustice.

In fact, from the moment she had come to invite him for a spring outing today, he had already suspected something, since when he had proposed the outing yesterday, she had firmly refused. To say he wasn’t upset would be a lie.

But in the end, he couldn’t bear to see her cry like this.

Seeing her cry like this, the anger in his heart dissipated. After all, the person Miss Zhu was looking for wasn’t him anyway… Never mind. Just as he was about to take action to end this charade, footsteps suddenly came from not far away, mixed with a woman’s slightly shrill voice from anxiety.

“Big Brother Shi, hurry, hurry, it’s over there. I can already hear the little matchmaker crying…” It was Jiao Jiao’s voice.

Today happened to be Big Brother Shi’s duty day, and he was patrolling outside when he saw the widowed Madam Duan from the Duan family rush over to intercept them, saying that Ah Ke was being bullied by bad people. He immediately hurried over with his men.

Seeing the constables, the scarred man and those burly men immediately scattered like birds and beasts. They fled extremely fast and seemed very experienced, disappearing into the flower bushes in just a few moves.

Shi Fa Ke was freed and immediately rushed to Lu Chi’s side.

“How are you? What happened to you?” she asked urgently, tears falling as she spoke, trying to check where he was injured.

Lu Chi shook his head somewhat helplessly, “Don’t worry, I’m fine.”

Looking at Lu Chi’s miserable appearance covered in injuries, Shi Fa Ke sniffled and burst into tears with a “wah,” “I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry…”

Lu Chi used his sleeve to wipe her tears while coaxing her with both heartache and helplessness, “Don’t cry anymore, they’re just surface wounds, nothing serious at all.”

Shi Fa Ke cried with hiccups, still saying sorry.

When Big Brother Shi rushed over, he saw his sister crying pitifully, and his heart immediately sank, thinking his sister had been bullied. “Ah Ke, what’s wrong?”

“I’m fine, but… but Young Master Lu was beaten so badly…” Shi Fa Ke said with red eyes, sobbing.

“What happened?” Big Brother Shi looked at Lu Chi.

“Just some ruffians came to cause trouble. I suffered some surface injuries, nothing serious. Ah Ke was probably just frightened.” Lu Chi explained as concisely as possible.

Big Brother Shi looked at his sister, seeing her clothes were neat and she seemed fine except for her tear-stained face. He felt relieved, but hearing his sister keep muttering apologies, he comforted her with some heartache, “It’s not your fault, stop crying.”

Upon hearing this, Shi Fa Ke burst into even louder tears with a “wah.”

Big Brother Shi, not knowing what he had said wrong, stood there stunned.

Lu Chi somewhat helplessly used his sleeve to wipe her tears, “Don’t cry anymore, be careful not to hurt your eyes. I’m really fine…”

In the distance, He Kexian had silently watched the entire scene. He was already feeling upset, and now seeing her actually shed tears for that stinking scholar and cry so breathlessly, he was even more furious.

The scarred man quietly avoided the constables with his men and circled back, angrily throwing his embroidery scissors on the ground and fuming, “That wicked girl has such a poisonous mouth.”

Not only did she call him effeminate, but she also said he was ugly?

If it weren’t for Master He seeing that wicked girl and the scholar flying kites and getting jealous, casually grabbing a pair of embroidery scissors from a street vendor’s stall and shoving them at him while gritting his teeth and saying, “Go, cut it for me.”

Would he have been called effeminate by that girl? He was truly infuriated.

The honest-faced man couldn’t stop chuckling silently, and said to He Kexian who was staring at the distance with a dark face, “Master He, this place is not suitable for staying long.”

He Kexian withdrew his gaze, closed his eyes, and walked away with a flick of his sleeve.

Originally, he had only wanted to know who exactly had made Shi Fa Ke so concerned that she would even think of such testing tricks. When he found out it was this stinking scholar, he had planned to fulfill her wish and help her out… yet she actually shed tears for that stinking scholar.

He was absolutely furious!

This stupid girl, blind in both eyes and heart, had liked to cling to that bookworm Chu Yizhi since childhood. It was hard enough when that bookworm got married and was out of the picture, yet now another stinking scholar appeared.

He must have a grudge against scholars! One Chu Yizhi left, and another Lu Chi came – it was truly endless!