Volume 6: Dream Record Chapter 410 Gao Hui's Late-Night Date with Yuan Xudong
The moonlight was like water. Yuan Xudong hugged Zhao Pan'er tenderly for a while, and then left the brightly lit Sanyuan Inn. After listening to Zhao Pan'er's story about Ouyang Xu and the whereabouts of her Night Banquet painting, he rushed to Gao's house overnight. He wanted to visit Gao Hu before leaving Tokyo to see if he could get the Night Banquet painting back directly.
After arriving at Gao's house, Yuan Xudong explained his identity. After the servants of Gao's house informed him, he was led into the main hall of Gao's house. An old man with an imposing manner sat in the main seat of the main hall, drinking tea. He glanced at the old man with eagle-like eyes. Yuan Xudong bowed respectfully and said:
"Uncle Gao, I am sorry to have disturbed your rest by visiting you so late at night. Please forgive me, Uncle Gao!"
"Uncle Gao?"
Gao Hu looked down at Yuan Xudong. He put down the teacup in his hand and could not help but snorted coldly, sneering:
"Mr. Xiao, if I remember correctly, the relationship between our two families has not reached this point, right?"
"Uncle Gao, you are joking. I know that you and my father have different political views and many conflicts. However, Uncle Gao has always been a man who distinguishes between public and private affairs and is generous and righteous. He is also an elder, so he will not vent his anger on me, right?"
Yuan Xudong smiled respectfully. These words flattered Gao Hu and lowered his own attitude. Gao Hu glanced at him and said directly:
"Mr. Xiao, if you have anything to say, just say it directly. No one comes to visit you for no reason. Why are you coming to my Gao Mansion so late at night?"
"Uncle Gao, if I have something to say, just say it!"
Yuan Xudong bowed respectfully towards Gao Hu and said directly:
"Here's what happened. I have a friend who has a painting of a night banquet by Wang Ai that she left with Ouyang Xu. She went to ask for it back, but Ouyang Xu said that the painting was mistakenly given to the Gao family, that is, you, as a gift. The painting is very important to me. I wonder if Uncle Gao can give it to me?"
"Night Banquet Picture?"
After listening to Yuan Xudong, Gao Hu frowned slightly and said:
"What is the Night Banquet? I have never heard of it. Ouyang Xu is a disciple of the Chai family. I have never received any gifts from him. Where did the Night Banquet come from?"
"ah?"
Seeing that Gao Hu didn't seem to be shirking his responsibility, Yuan Xudong couldn't help but frown and said:
"That's impossible. My friend asked Ouyang Xu for it twice, and he said that he had given it to the Gao family by mistake. Oh, and he also said that he would ask Madam Gao to help get the painting back tonight and return it to my friend in three days. I have to go back to the old house to worship my ancestors tomorrow and need to leave Tokyo for a while, so I visited him overnight. I don't know..."
Without waiting for Yuan Xudong to finish his words, Gao Hu could not help but say angrily when he heard that Ouyang Xu was going to look for his daughter at this late hour:
"This bastard, who told him to come over to see Hui'er so late at night? Also, when did I ever accept a gift from him?"
As he spoke, Gao Hu shouted outside:
"Someone, go call the young lady over, and also that Ouyang Xu, and see if he is with the young lady!"
"Yes, sir!"
Outside the door, two servants from the Gao Mansion left in response. Yuan Xudong looked at the angry Gao Hu and added fuel to the fire:
"Uncle Gao, there is something I want to say but I don't know whether I should say it or not!"
Gao Hu was angry. Hearing this, he glanced at Yuan Xudong and said impatiently:
"explain!"
"Okay, then I'll just say it straight!"
Looking at the angry old man, Yuan Xudong said solemnly:
"The thing is, as far as I know, although Ouyang Xu is a good writer, he is not a good person. He is definitely not a good match for the lady from the Gao family. He is a mean person. No, not a mean person, but a hypocrite. When he was in Qiantang, he received three years of favors from others. Now that he has passed the imperial examination, he is ungrateful and has betrayed his promise. Just to curry favor with the rich and powerful, he wants to marry the lady from the Gao family as his principal wife..."
After roughly explaining what happened between Ouyang Xu and Zhao Pan'er, Yuan Xudong looked at Gao Hu, who was somewhat skeptical, and said directly:
"Uncle Gao, Xiao Fan knows that you should not have the intention to harm others, but you must be on guard against others. I have seen Madam Gao from afar. She has bright eyes and white teeth, is lively and lovely, and is a very kind woman. I really can't bear to see her fall into the fire pit. Although Xiao Fan has concealed some things, every word he said is true. I dare to guarantee it with my personal life and the reputation of the Xiao family. Even if we sign a contract, if Uncle Gao still doesn't believe Xiao Fan, you can go and check it out. Just send people to Qiantang and Ouyang Xu's hometown to investigate, and you will know what kind of person Ouyang Xu is!"
Hearing that Yuan Xudong dared to use his life and the reputation of the Xiao family as a guarantee, and even signed a contract, Gao Hu believed him. Compared with Ouyang Xu, a child from a poor family, he was more willing to believe in the reputation of a famous family, even if it was the Xiao family where the treacherous prime minister Xiao Qinyan was from. However, he looked at Yuan Xudong with some doubts and said:
"How do you know so much about Ouyang Xu and come to tell me?"
"I just..."
Seeing Gao Hu's sharp eyes, Yuan Xudong took back the nonsense he wanted to say. This old man is quite shrewd, and it is really hard to fool him with ordinary lies. With his mind racing, Yuan Xudong decided to act like himself and tell the truth. He sighed softly and said:
"Well, to be honest, I just felt unhappy. I didn't like Ouyang Xu, so I asked someone to investigate. I didn't expect that he was such a hypocrite. He would never be a good match for Madam Gao!"
"Why are you so concerned about Hui'er's marriage?"
Looking at Yuan Xudong, Gao Hu said with suspicion on his face. His daughter Gao Hui was pretty, lovely and virtuous. Could it be that this brat named Xiao was planning to do something bad to his daughter?
Sure enough, Yuan Xudong blushed and said:
"I dare not hide this from Uncle Gao. Actually, I have met Madam Gao more than once. She is gentle, kind, pure, and lively. Sometimes she is even a little spoiled and willful. But I like her from the bottom of my heart. However, it is important to know one's own situation. I know that there are some unhappiness between Uncle Gao and my father, and they will definitely not agree to this marriage. So I buried my love in my heart until I heard the news that Madam Gao was going to marry Ouyang Xu. I was heartbroken, and worried that Madam Gao would not trust the right person, so I went to investigate Ouyang Xu. Of course, I also had some selfish motives. Please forgive me, uncle!"
“Hmph~~”
Hearing Yuan Xudong's admission, Gao Hu couldn't help but snorted coldly:
"Just give up on this idea. I will never marry Hui'er into your Xiao family. As for Ouyang Xu, I will send someone to investigate. You don't need to worry about it!"
"Yes, it is the junior who is rude!"
Yuan Xudong responded respectfully. Looking at Yuan Xudong who was always polite and prudent, Gao Hu's eyes flashed with admiration and envy. Although he despised a treacherous prime minister like Xiao Qinyan who flattered his superiors and bullied his subordinates, he envied him. He envied that his Xiao family had successors, while his Gao family had only an innocent daughter. It was precisely because of this that he wanted Ouyang Xu to be his son-in-law. If he was really a child of a prominent family and was full of arrogance, who would be willing to marry into his Gao family?
At this time, a servant outside the door reported:
"Master, the young lady and Mr. Ouyang are here!"
"Humph, let them in!"
"Yes, sir!"
Hearing that Ouyang Xu had indeed come to look for his daughter in the middle of the night and was so unruly, Gao Hu was angry in his heart, but his face gradually calmed down. Everyone knew that Ouyang Xu was the son-in-law of his family. If there was no suitable reason, he could not blame him too much or even break off the engagement. He just had to wait for someone to investigate Ouyang Xu's past. If it was really as bad as Yuan Xudong said, he would never let Ouyang Xu go and make him pay the price for his stupidity and deception!
"Dad, what do you want from me?"
"My son-in-law greets my father-in-law!"
"Well, Hui'er, come here!"
Ouyang Xu and Gao Hui walked in together. He first greeted Gao Hu, and then glanced at Yuan Xudong, who looked unfamiliar. Yuan Xudong also took the opportunity to look at Ouyang Xu and Gao Hui. Judging from the appearance, Ouyang Xu was a very gentle man with a good appearance. He was also the third place winner of the imperial examination and the first-class Jinshi selected by the government. No wonder he was favored by the young lady of the Gao family and wanted to be her son-in-law. As expected, pretty boys always attract women's favor and can also eat gigolos. Yuan Xudong disdained to associate with him!
As for Gao Hui, she was a typical young lady from an official family, with skin as white as jade, a face as delicate as an orchid, bright eyes, white teeth, long black hair, and a white plain dress. A blue shawl was draped over her arms, her face was slightly made up, her neck was fair and delicate, her clothes were slightly open, and she wore a pink tube top underneath, which made her chest look even whiter and more tender. Such a lovely beauty, Yuan Xudong couldn't help but take a glance or two more. To be honest, he just liked Gao Hui's pink tube top and he had no other thoughts at all!
Gao Hui was called over by Gao Hu, who introduced Yuan Xudong to Gao Hui:
"Hui'er, this is Young Master Xiao, the son of Prime Minister Xiao's family!"
Seeing that Yuan Xudong was secretly looking at her, Gao Hui blushed slightly, bowed slightly towards him, and said respectfully:
"Hui Er has met Master Xiao!"
"No need to be polite, Madam Gao, you are too polite!"
Yuan Xudong responded politely, glancing at Gao Hui while speaking. It would be a pity for such a beautiful woman to marry such a bad Ouyang Xu. Seeing Yuan Xudong's burning eyes, Ouyang Xu dared not speak out, and Gao Hui was also a little embarrassed. But Gao Hu had been mentally prepared. He just coughed to remind Yuan Xudong to restrain his gaze, and then continued to introduce Ouyang Xu:
"Mr. Xiao, this is Ouyang Xu, the future son-in-law of my Gao family!"
As they were talking, Yuan Xudong and Ouyang Xu greeted each other with smiles on their faces, but they wanted to kill each other immediately in their hearts. After all, rivals in love would be jealous of each other when they meet. Yuan Xudong was better, but Ouyang Xu was angry and scared. On the one hand, he hated Yuan Xudong for taking Zhao Pan'er away and looking at his current fiancée with burning eyes, but on the other hand, he was afraid that Yuan Xudong had said something to Gao Hu. He could easily deal with Gao Hui, but Gao Hu was different. He would not be able to feel at ease until he and Gao Hui had made things fait accompli. If the prince had not suddenly fallen ill, or if Gao Hui had not always been accompanied by her wet nurse Jiang, he would have found a way to take Gao Hui's female body, so that the Gao family would not be able to cancel the engagement!
After a moment, Gao Hu looked at Ouyang Xu and said directly:
"Son-in-law Ouyang, Master Xiao said that his friend had a painting of a night banquet in your hands, but you gave it to me by mistake. What's going on?"
"Father-in-law, this is what happened!"
Hearing about the Night Banquet Picture, Ouyang Xu's mind quickly turned and he said:
"I asked Uncle De to give some gifts to Hui Niang, but he got it mixed up. I only found out later that he gave the Night Banquet Painting that was originally intended for Hui Niang to Mr. Ke, my son-in-law's mentor. I wanted to ask my mentor to return the Night Banquet Painting to Mr. Xiao's friend, but my mentor was dismissed by the government and sent away. I'm afraid I won't be able to contact him for the time being, otherwise..."
Having said this, Ouyang Xu looked at Yuan Xudong and said respectfully:
"Mr. Xiao, consider that I bought the painting of the Night Banquet. My entire fortune is worth more than 1,200 strings of cash. I wonder..."
"Mr. Ouyang, I am actually quite curious about this!"
Seeing Ouyang Xu wanting to use his entire fortune of more than 1,200 strings of cash to buy a painting, Yuan Xudong couldn't help but laugh:
"Before you passed the imperial examination, you were not poor, but you didn't have much money. It's only been a short time, and you have accumulated more than 1,200 strings of cash. You don't seem to have been granted an official position yet, so where did all this money come from?"
"I……"
Ouyang Xu didn't expect Yuan Xudong to be so straightforward. He was speechless for a moment, his face full of embarrassment.
In fact, a small part of this money was the travel expenses and living expenses that Zhao Pan'er gave him before he went to Beijing for the imperial examination. The rest were all valuable items such as gold and jade pendants that were specially rewarded to him by the Gao family and the virtuous concubine in the palace (Gao Hui's aunt). Ouyang Xu had never earned a single penny from his own efforts since he was a child.
When he was young, he lived on the support of his family and Uncle De. Three years ago, after he failed the imperial examination, he jumped into the river to commit suicide. He was rescued by Zhao Pan'er, who supported him for three whole years. Now he has passed the imperial examination and won the third place in the imperial examination. The Gao family continues to support him. If his career goes well, the court and the people of the world will continue to support him. His life is really good. He is a typical protagonist template. Until he met a protagonist template of a higher level, he became a pitiful villain.
Seeing Yuan Xudong deliberately embarrassing Ouyang Xu, Gao Hu hadn't said anything yet, but Gao Hui couldn't help but help Ouyang Xu:
"Mr. Xiao, Xu Lang's money all comes from my Gao family and my aunt. If you think it's too little, just tell me how much the painting is worth, and my Gao family will buy it for Xu Lang!"
As soon as he finished speaking, Gao Hu pretended to scold:
"Hui Er, don't be rude to Master Xiao!"
"OK!"
After taking a look at Ouyang Xu who had no expression on his face, Yuan Xudong looked at Miss Gao who had a proud face and said with a smile:
"Ouyang Xu once promised my friend to return the painting in one day, but it didn't work out, so he changed it to three days. Seeing that it was not going to work out again, he changed it to buying the painting. He is so fickle. Madam Gao, how much do you think a person's reputation is worth? Then how much is my friend's Night Banquet painting worth?"
"You, you are just making excuses!"
Gao Hui was furious. If this Night Banquet Painting was equivalent to a person's reputation, then it would be difficult for her to make an offer. Reputation, which is invisible and intangible, is worthless to some people, but to some people it is worth a fortune, even more important than life. How could she make an offer?
"Well, it seems I won't be able to get the Night Banquet Map tonight, so I'll have to wait three days!"
After taking a look at Gao Hui, who was staring at him with her beautiful eyes, Yuan Xudong looked at Ouyang Xu next to him and said with a smile:
"Mr. Ouyang, a man should be responsible and at least keep his word. Since you promised Pan'er to return the painting in three days, I will wait for you for three days, no, six days. When I return to Tokyo after paying homage to my ancestors, I hope to see the Night Banquet!"
"Okay, I'll try my best!"
Ouyang Xu glanced at Yuan Xudong and smiled. Seeing that he could endure this, Yuan Xudong couldn't help but feel contempt. A barking dog doesn't bite. You look so calm, don't you just want to bite people?
"Uncle Gao, I won't bother you any more. I'll visit you another day!"
"good!"
"Madam Gao, see you later!"
Hearing this, Gao Hui rolled her eyes at Yuan Xudong. Yuan Xudong didn't mind. He glanced at Ouyang Xu for the last time and then left the Gao family.
After Yuan Xudong left, Gao Hu asked the servants in the mansion to take Gao Hui back to her room to rest. He looked at Ouyang Xu and said directly:
"What are you going to do with the Banquet painting?"
After taking a look at Gao Hu, Ouyang Xu hurriedly said respectfully:
"I will buy a similar painting at a high price and give it to my mentor. I will then explain the reason to him and take back the Night Banquet painting and return it to Mr. Xiao's friend!"
"Well, if you had done this earlier, wouldn't you have saved yourself so much trouble?"
Glancing at Ouyang Xu, Gao Hu said calmly:
"I have an appointment with my colleagues to have dinner at Yuezhou Tower tomorrow night. When you go back, prepare well and come with me to the dinner!"
"Okay, thank you, father-in-law!"
Hearing that Gao Hu was still willing to take him to the Yuezhou Tower for a banquet, Ouyang Xu couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief. Gao Hu probably didn't know about what happened between him and Zhao Pan'er. At this time, Gao Hu glanced at Ouyang Xu and said:
"Well, it's getting late, go back and have a good rest!"
"Yes, father-in-law, I will take my leave first!"
"Well, go ahead!"
Watching Ouyang Xu's leaving back, Gao Hu couldn't help but flash a trace of disappointment in his eyes. He who knows others is wise; he who knows himself is enlightened. If a person can't even figure out his own situation, then such a person is bound to fail miserably. If Ouyang Xu sensed the danger and chose to confess everything to him, then he might not necessarily help him. It can only be said that it's a pity. It's rare that Hui'er likes him so much!
…
On the other side, not long after Yuan Xudong walked out of the Gao family's gate, a servant chased after him and shouted:
"Mr. Xiao, please stay!"
Seeing Yuan Xudong stop, the servant respectfully said:
"Mr. Xiao, my lady invites you to meet her in Taoyuan!"
Looking up at the bright moon hanging high in the sky, Yuan Xudong couldn't help but look at the boy in surprise and said:
"Now?"
"yes!"
"Lead the way!"
"Mr. Xiao, this way please!"
Yuan Xudong followed the servant all the way to the backyard of Gao's mansion. In this feudal era with strict etiquette and laws, it was late at night and she invited a strange man to a date. It seemed that this Miss Gao was not an ordinary person. Yuan Xudong could guess that she must have made an appointment with him because of Ouyang Xu's matter. Her courage was commendable, but she was a little stupid. In fact, Ouyang Xu played a good hand of cards badly. Two such good women liked him, but he didn't know how to cherish the people in front of him, so he missed the gift of God one after another. How sad!
