166: Chapter 166 When the Plums Ripen: Childhood Sweetheart Male Lead 44 [An Qi, the Official, Owes 1 Chapter]

Dinner at Qinghe Garden was warm, yet it also carried a hint of subtlety.

Nan Li was thin-skinned to begin with, and during dinner, Old Madam occasionally cast glances filled with smiles and teasing.

Nan Li forcefully buried her head into her bowl, transforming into a ruthless rice-eating machine, barely daring to speak.

It wasn't until the meal was finished that this atmosphere finally ended.

After dinner, Meng Zhu walked Nan Li back to Tingyu Pavilion.

Such a short path wasn't really anything that needed walking back.

But Nan Li wouldn't refuse even if it killed her.

She originally wanted to speak with him alone.

The early summer night breeze was slightly cool, and the two of them walked like this along the path beside the rockery.

Until they walked to the edge of the pavilion, Nan Li, who was walking in front, suddenly stopped in her tracks.

She turned around, and under the water-like moonlight, looked straight at Meng Zhu.

"Brother."

She didn't call him Brother Xiujie, but instead softly switched to a more intimate form of address, though not the kind of brother for a blood-related older brother.

"Welcome back."

Nan Li looked into his eyes, her voice soft and gentle.

"These past six months, Zhaoyu has missed you all this time."

Meng Zhu was stunned for a moment.

Looking at the little girl's sparkling eyes, he raised his hand and gently rubbed the top of her head, his voice low, hoarse, and mellow.

"Brother misses Zhaoyu too."

Hearing these words, Nan Li did not let the matter rest there.

She sniffled and continued speaking:

"The plums at home are ripe, and I want Brother to brew plum wine for us to drink."

"Alright, tomorrow we'll go make it."

Meng Zhu agreed in a soft voice.

"When Zhaoyu saw that the plums were ripe yesterday, she realized that Brother had already gone abroad for so long."

Nan Li's voice gradually lowered, carrying an imperceptible slight tremble.

"I'm sorry, it was my fault."

Looking at her somewhat reddened eye sockets, Meng Zhu felt his heart ache beyond description.

"Brother promises that in the future, I will never leave for so long again."

Hearing this promise, Nan Li finally couldn't hold it in anymore.

She didn't wail loudly, but her tears fell silently like broken beads, dropping down in large sizes.

"Then you are not allowed to lie."

She choked back her sobs, like a stubborn child.

"From now on, no matter where Brother goes, you must bring Zhaoyu with you, and Brother must stay with Zhaoyu forever."

Meng Zhu's heart felt as though it was being clutched by something, feeling both sour and soft.

He stepped forward and gently embraced her into his arms, tightening his arms.

"Alright."

He solemnly promised right beside her ear.

"Brother was wrong; in the future, Brother will absolutely never leave Zhaoyu behind again."

Embracing each other quietly like this for a moment, they felt each other's heartbeat and body temperature.

A moment later, Nan Li broke free from his embrace.

She frantically wiped away the tear stains on her face, suddenly breaking into a smile through her tears, her cheeks dyed with a shy blush under the moonlight.

"Brother, will you listen to me play the qin?"

She asked with her head raised.

"Alright."

"Then wait for me in the pavilion, and you aren't allowed to leave."

Finishing her words, Nan Li ran quickly back to Tingyu Pavilion.

Before long, she came back carrying that guqin that had just been repaired in the afternoon.

She placed the qin on the stone table of the pavilion, burned a censer of light incense, and then straightened her posture.

Seeing Meng Zhu sitting obediently to the side, she gave a slight smile.

Her slender hands gently plucked the strings, and the crisp sound of the qin flowed through the night.

What she played at the beginning was "Chang Xiangsi".

The sound of the qin was mournful yet plaintive, lingering and low, pouring all the day-and-night anticipation and long-standing yearning of these past six months directly into her fingertips.

Clear tears slid down the beauty's cheeks once more, and a wave of heartache surged within Meng Zhu as well.

Shortly after.

As the tune came to an end, the lingering sound echoed around the rafters.

But Nan Li did not pause; disregarding the tear stains on her face, she looked at Meng Zhu and smiled again.

Then, changing her fingering techniques, she began to play another piece.

That was "Zhuzhici" which Meng Zhu had personally taught her.

This was a piece expressing deep affection and love.

Meng Zhu stood to the side, his figure slightly trembling, his deep gaze locked tightly onto the young girl playing the qin.

Of course he knew the meaning of this piece.

The willows are green, the river water calm, I hear my love singing stepping songs upon the river.

Sunrise in the east, rain in the west, they say it is sunny, yet there is affection.

The word "sunny" here refers to "love."

Nan Li was using this piece to confess her feelings to him.

Meng Zhu listened in fascination, the heart within his chest beating violently, thoroughly moved by the thick affection within the qin's sound. Unwittingly, he had already stood up and walked over to the stone table.

The qin music played its final note.

Nan Li also stood up, bypassed the stone table, and walked right in front of Meng Zhu.

She raised her head, her gaze shifting fluidly, and softly said:

"Brother, I have never played this piece for anyone else, and in the future, I will never play it for a second person either."

As she spoke, she slowly stretched out both hands, wrapped them around Meng Zhu's waist, and gently hugged him.

She buried her side profile against his broad and warm chest, listening to the steady and powerful sound of his heartbeat, whispering softly.

"Brother, when I say this... can you understand?"

Meng Zhu was also extremely moved at this moment, his Adam's apple rolling up and down.

He reached out and hugged Nan Li's slender shoulders back, his voice slightly hoarse.

"I can, Brother understands."

Nan Li rubbed gently against his chest, like a cat that had found a safe haven.

"I originally wanted to be more solemn, and originally thought of many, many scenarios, wanting to pick a perfect day..."

Her voice carried a trace of coquettishness.

"But seeing Assistant Liu today, I just couldn't hold back anymore."

"I haven't seen you for half a year, and I won't wait another minute or second; Brother can only be mine."

She raised her head, and within those clear eyes, the confusion and fear toward feelings from the past were gone, leaving only unreserved determination.

"No matter whether I believe in romantic love or not, I believe in Brother."

"I only need to believe that Meng Xiujie will treat Nan Zhaoyu well forever, and that is enough."

This sentence was like a heavy hammer smashing onto Meng Zhu's heart, shattering all of his restraint.

Meng Zhu's eye sockets grew hot, and he was actually moved to tears as well.

He didn't speak, only hugging the girl in his arms a bit tighter, as if wanting to knead her into his very bones.

Inside the pavilion, the night breeze brushed lightly, the floral fragrance intoxicating, and the people even more intoxicated.

After tenderly lingering for a moment, Nan Li slightly raised her head within Meng Zhu's arms.

She stood on tiptoe, looking into Meng Zhu's gentle eyes, her eyelashes trembling slightly as she parted her red lips.

"Brother, kiss me."

The young girl's request was straightforward and brave, carrying a fatal temptation.

The string of Meng Zhu's rationality snapped in an instant.

Without the slightest hesitation, he lowered his head toward her pretty cheeks and kissed her deeply.

[Ah ahahahaha ahhhhh! ! !]

[They confessed! They finally confessed!]

[This is so awesome, I'm shipping them like crazy]

[Wait, I didn't board the train, I didn't understand, I fucking don't understand the qin, what the fuck]

[Oh my, it's just a confession through qin music, ask again and you'll get shot yo]

[So beautiful, both of these people are talents, simply romantic to the extreme]

[No wonder Assistant Liu doesn't even have a name, she's just a pure assist provider after all]

[Too sweet, too sweet, high-end sweetness]

At this moment, the bullet comments went completely wild, with exclamation marks filling the screen exploding like fireworks.