Chapter 82 – An Awkward Dinner

Suffocated, Su Yi felt his death looming. He struggled to pry off the hand gripping his neck, but it felt like an unyielding iron clamp tightening around his throat.

Darkness was closing in, and Su Yi felt that he would pass out at any moment.

At that moment, he seemed to see an angelic figure appear around the corner.

"

Uh

... Dummy?"

Chi Nanwei blinked with astonishment, staring at Ye Beizhi and the man he was holding in mid-air.

Chi Nanwei pointed at Su Yi. "What are you doing...?"

Ye Beizhi glanced at Chi Nanwei, and she looked back at him. Then both of them turned their attention to Su Yi in mid-air.

"He ambushed me." Ye Beizhi rubbed his face with his free hand.

"He did?" Chi Nanwei looked over Su Yi skeptically. "From what he's wearing, he seems to be a scholar, right?"

"

Mm

." Ye Beizhi nodded. "He doesn’t know martial arts."

Su Yi saw stars float before his eyes, unable to register what the two were saying. All he could think about were the memories of the dilapidated house he lived in as a child, the pickled vegetables he survived on, the firecrackers on the day he became a top scholar, and finally, his aging mother.

He never expected that he would die quietly in this small alley in the imperial capital before he had the chance to take his place in the court.

"Why don’t... you let him go?" Chi Nanwei pursed her lips. "He doesn’t seem like a bad person. There might be some misunderstandings."

Ye Beizhi looked at Chi Nanwei and thought for a moment. He then nodded and let the man tumble to the ground.

Caught up reminiscing about his short life, Su Yi was unprepared when suddenly he felt the grip on his neck loosen and his feet touched the ground. He fell to the ground with trembling legs.

Haaa— cough cough—

Su Yi lay on the ground. He didn’t waste time trying to analyze what had just happened. He instinctively took a deep breath and then began coughing violently.

His vision swam with tears from being choked. He looked up and saw the blurry outlines man and a woman walking away from him without turning back. He could faintly hear their conversation.

"Why did you come out too?"

"Aunt Yu ran out of green onions, so I came out to buy some."

"

Mm

."

"And you, didn’t you say you were going out to buy something? What did you buy?"

"

Mm

."

"Acting all mysterious. if you don’t want to tell me then don't."

Was I wrong? He wasn't here to kill me?

Su Yi suddenly felt bewildered. Was this what it meant to be too clever for your own good?

It might be more accurate to describe it as reaping what you sow.

After a long while, Su Yi felt a bit better, staggered to his feet, and staggered toward the Fuzhao Courtyard.

Recalling what happened earlier, Su Yi’s legs still felt weak.

He thought he might never forget the look the man gave him, it was so calm and indifferent, like a bottomless ancient well. The emotionless gaze felt like it was considering whether to extinguish the life of an insect.

He must have killed before, and killed many people.

Such a person deserves to be caught by the Imperial Guardians and beheaded!

Su Yi fumed internally as he clenched his teeth to keep them from chattering uncontrollably.

As he entered the courtyard, he saw old man Liu was at the entrance, preparing vegetables. Seeing Su Yi, old man Liu showed a gap-toothed smile and greeted him. Su Yi forced a smile in response.

Before entering his house, Su Yi was surprised to see that the door of the neighboring house was wide open. Apparently, another family had finally moved in.

As soon as he entered the house, he saw his mother busy at the stove, and a tall, slender woman stood beside her. The woman's outline seemed somewhat familiar.

"Mother, " the top scholar softly called out, suddenly feeling incredibly emotional... He had been so close to never seeing his mother again.

"...

Hmm

?" Old Lady Yu turned around with small steps. "Oh, little brat, why did you come back?"

Su Yi didn't know whether he should laugh or cry. "What do you mean? Why can’t I come back?"

"

Hmph

, you never come home these days. How could I know you’d be back today?" Old Lady Yu huffed, "There isn’t enough food. You’ll have to make more noodles yourself later."

"Alright." Su Yi pointed at the woman beside Old Lady Yu. "Mother, who is this?"

"This is Miss Chi, who just moved in next door." Old Lady Yu pointed at Su Yi and said to Chi Nanwei, "This is my unfilial son." Though she said that, she couldn’t hide her pride.

Chi Nanwei smiled awkwardly, remembering how she bumped into Su Yi earlier. "I’ve... met Mister Su before."

Su Yi was flummoxed. "Miss Chi, have we... met before?"

"

Ah

?

Ha

... it's possible?" Chi Nanwei chuckled nervously. "Maybe, maybe."

"You’ve met before?" Old Lady Yu shook the water from her hands and looked at the two. "Miss Chi just moved to the capital today. When did you meet?"

"Just moved today?" Su Yi had a fleeting realization but couldn’t quite grasp it.

At that moment, Su Yi noticed a figure walking through the doorway. Looking up, their eyes met directly.

Su Yi’s eyes widened. "It’s you?!"

"..."

Ye Beizhi raised an eyebrow at Chi Nanwei. Chi Nanwei shrugged helplessly at him.

Ye Beizhi blinked. "It’s me."

"What? Do you two know each other too?" Old Lady Yu looked at one and then the other, her face full of confusion.

Chi Nanwei laughed awkwardly.

How should we tell her? Should we say that we almost killed your son just now?

Old Lady Yu keenly noticed that her son’s face was twitching. He seemed likely angry but mostly scared.

"What is this?" Old Lady Yu asked as her confusion deepened.

"It’s nothing. Perhaps I recognized the wrong person," Su Yi said, keeping his eyes fixed on Ye Beizhi. He cupped his hands in a formal greeting. "I am Su Yi. May I ask your name?"

"You recognized the wrong person?" Old Lady Yu pursed her lips but didn't pursue the subject.

Ye Beizhi looked at Su Yi with a hint of surprise in his eyes. "Ye Beizhi."

The dishes were soon served. In the end, Old Lady Yu did not only let her son prepare his own meal but also personally served him a bowl of egg noodles.

The atmosphere at the dinner table was rather strained.

Su Yi slurped his noodles, occasionally glancing at Ye Beizhi without saying anything.

Ye Beizhi ate silently, occasionally picking up some vegetables but saying nothing.

Distracted, Chi Nanwei watched the two eat silently and engaged in a half-hearted conversation with Old Lady Yu.

Old Lady Yu, however, was enjoying the lively atmosphere and was pleased to have such a lively family dinner.

The sun slowly set, and each household lit their lamps.

Ye Beizhi and Chi Nanwei spent their first dinner in the capital in this awkward atmosphere.