What had she been planning earlier? She had only calculated that if she directly told A’Ke that her beloved was Scholar Lu, A’Ke would certainly not believe it. After all, she had just personally refused Scholar Lu’s marriage proposal earlier, and whether she believed it or not was one thing – even if A’Ke had believed it then, she definitely wouldn’t have been willing to help her, especially since she had just offended Scholar Lu terribly. So she had planned to tell A’Ke that she already had a beloved, then guide her to discover step by step that her beloved was Scholar Lu… She thought that this gradual approach would help A’Ke better understand her predicament and be willing to help her.

As a result, this fool actually thought her beloved was her Third Brother?!

What was she even thinking!

“Uh… isn’t it my Third Brother?” Shi Fa Ke was somewhat dumbfounded.

“No!” He Ketian emphatically denied it, afraid of leaving even the slightest room for misunderstanding.

“Then who is it?” Shi Fa Ke couldn’t figure it out. It couldn’t be her eldest brother or second brother, could it?

After all… she was willing to endure the torment of playing chess with her daily, and even Third Brother said her ambitions were not small. So logically speaking, this beloved of hers must be someone she knew and could speak to.

He Ketian could tell at a glance that she was thinking wrongly again. How could she dare to keep hiding it? Her head heated up in the moment, and she shouted hoarsely: “It’s Master Linyuan! My beloved is Master Linyuan!”

“Alright… I know, I know.” Shi Fa Ke twitched the corner of her mouth and said perfunctorily: “I knew early on that you fancied Master Linyuan, but can we be realistic here?”

“How am I being unrealistic!” He Ketian protested indignantly.

“How is saying you like Master Linyuan realistic? Where am I supposed to find a Master Linyuan to marry you?” Shi Fa Ke wore a pained expression.

Regarding this matter, no matter how much He Ketian tried to please her, it was useless!

“Master Linyuan is Lu Chi.” He Ketian gritted her teeth and said.

“…What?” Shi Fa Ke blinked, asking again in disbelief.

“Master Linyuan is Lu Chi!” He Ketian rolled her eyes and repeated loudly.

“Really?” Shi Fa Ke stared wide-eyed.

He Ketian was nearly exploding with anger: “At this point, do you think I’d lie to you about this?”

Shi Fa Ke suddenly fell silent.

That’s true…

But it turns out Lu Chi really was Master Linyuan, and his paintings weren’t forgeries after all…

Shi Fa Ke was silent for a while, then suddenly felt something wasn’t quite right. She looked at He Ketian with a subtle expression: “Hey, wait, if Lu Chi is Master Linyuan, then that means the person you want to marry is Lu Chi. But I went to propose marriage on Lu Chi’s behalf back then – what did you say at the time?”

She had said Lu Chi was a toad lusting after swan meat, that the embroidered ball matchmaking was just a gimmick, a business ploy by their family’s pastry shop to attract customers, and that she, He Ketian, couldn’t possibly marry someone so randomly and inexplicably…

She had also disdained Lu Chi as a scholar of unknown origins, penniless, who had to pawn his belongings just to scrape together the money to hire a matchmaker for the proposal…

She had even sent people to follow Lu Chi, fearing he would try to blackmail the He family.

At that time, she was so angry about He Ketian not keeping her promise and slandering Lu Chi that she had retorted: He caught the embroidered ball and came to propose according to the agreement, pawning his most valuable possession to marry you with the greatest sincerity – what’s wrong with that?

But what did He Ketian say?

She said it was because… he knew that once he married her, he would be marrying a gold and silver mountain – you have to give up the child to catch the wolf.

Facing Shi Fa Ke’s gaze, He Ketian suddenly became somewhat uncomfortable: “That was… that was because I didn’t know at the time that Young Master Lu was Master Linyuan.”

“You refused Second Brother Lu’s marriage proposal, yet fell in love with Master Linyuan.” Shi Fa Ke thought about it, becoming even more puzzled: “The person you like was standing right in front of you, but you couldn’t recognize him at all. So what do you like about him? Just his paintings?”

“Wait… what did you call him?” He Ketian suddenly frowned and asked.

Second Brother Lu?

Shi Fa Ke actually called him Second Brother Lu?

Shi Fa Ke was startled: “Uh, Second Brother Lu, what about it?”

He Ketian’s expression became somewhat subtle as she looked at Shi Fa Ke. She looked deeply at Shi Fa Ke: “Nothing.” She decisively didn’t continue this topic, instead answering Shi Fa Ke’s earlier question with a longing expression: “I like Master Linyuan because when I was most confused, it was Master Linyuan’s paintings that helped me find direction in life.”

…That serious, huh.

“What painting was so amazing?”

He Ketian was silent for a moment: “A portrait of a lady.”

“Eh? But according to my second brother, Master Linyuan rarely paints people.” Shi Fa Ke blinked.

“…Rarely doesn’t mean never.” He Ketian said somewhat grudgingly. She thought again of the Jiangnan Misty Rain painting hanging in Shi Fa Ke’s boudoir. Although it was still primarily landscape, there were figures in it.

She had actually coveted that painting for a long time, but Shi Fa Ke had never been willing to part with it. Last time when she broke her porcelain, although she was compensated with a painting by Master Linyuan, it wasn’t that Jiangnan Misty Rain painting… Clearly Master Linyuan’s paintings were so precious, yet she seemed to obtain them casually, and had foolishly mistaken them for forgeries. Thinking of this, He Ketian’s heart suddenly felt blocked. She hadn’t thought much of it at the time, but now it seemed that Shi Fa Ke’s relationship with Master Linyuan was a bit too close…

Thinking this way, He Ketian’s gaze at Shi Fa Ke unconsciously carried scrutiny.

“I see…” Shi Fa Ke was completely unaware that there was anything wrong with He Ketian’s gaze. She rubbed her chin and asked curiously: “When did you lose direction in life?”

A vein bulged at He Ketian’s temple as she suppressed her anger: “These things aren’t important. What’s important is how to resolve the marriage arrangement between you and your Third Brother!”

Speaking of this, He Ketian felt somewhat uncomfortable.

Her and Third Brother Shi… originally two people who had nothing to do with each other, how could Shi Fa Ke think of such a terrible idea to pair them together, even exchanging horoscopes and setting a wedding date.

How were they supposed to resolve this now?

Shi Fa Ke’s expression also became serious. Yes, now wasn’t the time to get to the bottom of things. She thought for a moment and said solemnly: “This matter isn’t too difficult to resolve. Fortunately, our families are familiar with each other and can speak reasonably. Since you have no intention toward my Third Brother, this marriage arrangement definitely can’t continue. Let’s call off this engagement.”

He Ketian had come angry and furious, but hearing these words, she regained some rationality.

After all, this misunderstanding… she was also at fault.

“Does Third Brother Shi… know about this?” Biting her lip, He Ketian asked somewhat uncomfortably.

“Don’t worry, he doesn’t know about this yet.” Shi Fa Ke scratched her head: “I originally planned to give him a surprise, but now… well, at least he still doesn’t know.”

He Ketian felt even more uncomfortable. Third Brother Shi had helped her at Shengxing Restaurant last time, yet she had inexplicably been fierce with him just now. Thinking about it, she seemed to have been a bit excessive… She stamped her foot and vented at Shi Fa Ke: “It’s all your fault for randomly matchmaking!”

What kind of mess was this!

“Yes, yes, yes, it’s all my fault for randomly matchmaking. I’ll return the horoscope to you right away. Fortunately, this matter hasn’t been publicized and no outsiders know about it, so let’s just pretend nothing happened.” Shi Fa Ke rubbed her aching head.

Hearing this, He Ketian actually hesitated. If she took back the horoscope now, she would definitely be pestered to death by her mother… Thinking of her mother’s unreasonable behavior and her father’s unprincipled wife-protection, He Ketian silently shuddered. She looked up at Shi Fa Ke and said particularly righteously: “No need. It wouldn’t be proper for me to take the horoscope away right now. Since my mother gave you the horoscope, you should return it to my mother personally… um, it’s getting late today, tomorrow then. You can come to my house with the horoscope tomorrow.”

Shi Fa Ke nodded in agreement: “Alright, fortunately this matter hasn’t been publicized and no outsiders know about it, so you don’t need to worry. Let’s just pretend nothing happened.”

“Mm.” He Ketian paused: “When you come to return the horoscope tomorrow, what are you planning to tell my mother?”

Shi Fa Ke immediately understood her meaning and said very tactfully: “…I made a mistake.”

He Ketian nodded with satisfaction: “Then that’s settled. I’ll go back first. See you tomorrow.”

“…See you tomorrow.”

The He family’s carriage was stopped not far away. He Ketian turned and got into the carriage, then lifted the curtain again and reminded uneasily: “Don’t forget to come return the horoscope tomorrow.”

“…I know.” Shi Fa Ke said somewhat grudgingly.

But He Ketian still looked like she wasn’t quite reassured.

“How about I just let you take the horoscope back with you now.” Shi Fa Ke really couldn’t stand it anymore.

He Ketian choked for a moment and finally quieted down, lowering the curtain.