Chapter 173: One Hundred and Eighty: Talk of Wind and Moon, Not of State Affairs

One Hundred and Eighty: Talk of Wind and Moon, Not of State Affairs

Not possible—gentlemen also guard against craftsmen. One hundred and eighty: Talk of Wind and Moon, Not of State Affairs. After Su Su Guoer whispered this.

Magistrate Ouyang Rong sharply sensed that the atmosphere inside the pavilion had changed.

Not to mention the complex gaze from the Su family's younger sister before him, laced with admiration.

Even the plump little maid standing guard behind the shadow wall had timidly peeked her head out from behind it, gazing at him with reverence and awe.

In her eyes lingered a trace of guilt, as if deeply ashamed of her earlier shallow understanding of Magistrate Ouyang's poem; now, under her mistress's analysis, she had suddenly awakened and grown even more enamored.

At this moment, faced with the two women's odd reactions, the man felt a dark vein throb on his forehead.

Thud.

He set down his teacup, sat upright, and said solemnly:

"Miss Su, please maintain propriety."

"I am a scholar of the Great Zhou, specially granted a seventh-rank official position by His Majesty. I wholeheartedly support the decisions of Her Imperial Majesty and the court ministers, and I have no objections whatsoever to imperial edicts."

"I have never participated in any private discussions, nor do I comprehend the meaning of such topics."

"I support what the court supports, oppose what the court opposes, and neither support nor oppose what the court neither supports nor opposes, firmly rallying around…"

"Beyond this, I concern myself only with affairs within Longcheng County, devoting myself entirely to the people's welfare and managing the butterfly stream's flooding."

"All other state matters—I understand nothing."

Magistrate Ouyang Rong never imagined that even after rebirth, someone would still try to bait him into political debate.

Did he look so much like a kindred spirit? Why did everyone keep coming to him?

He still remembered vividly how his previous life's graduate school entrance exam study group had been destroyed by online political rants.

Magistrate Ouyang Rong believed one shouldn't fall into the same pit twice.

Especially not in an era where feudal imperial authority was the supreme political correctness.

Did they think they were still in some cyber group? Offline, they'd scatter your ashes…

The young county magistrate made a solemn declaration with strong survival instinct.

Su Su Guoer and Sister Caishou exchanged a glance.

Su Su Guoer looked at Magistrate Ouyang Rong, who spoke with righteous indignation, then at his barely touched teacup.

A refined smile touched her lips as she nodded:

"On the Golden Throne, you dared to speak truth at the risk of death. Your name resounds throughout the land. Though I dwell deep within the inner chambers, I've heard whispers—but hearsay is false, seeing is believing. Only after witnessing you myself did I realize that a man of virtue is far more than merely a gentleman."

"You topped the imperial examination, received your post in Apricot Garden, rode the spring breeze in triumph—then suffered sudden setbacks. Such dramatic ups and downs—I understand why you must be so cautious."

Magistrate Ouyang Rong acted as if he heard nothing, stared straight ahead, gestured around with his finger, and spoke calmly:

"Miss Su, fine moments suit beautiful scenery; dew-steeped tea brews anew. Do not waste this wind and moon."

"Alright. No more state affairs—only wind and moon. Let us drink together."

Su Su Guoer again offered that smile that made Magistrate Ouyang Rong's lips twitch, raising her cup in invitation.

Magistrate Ouyang Rong lowered his eyes to sip tea, then turned his head to gaze at the setting sun.

They chatted for a few moments.

Mostly about Chenjun Xie Ling and Su Su Dalang.

After all, they shared mutual acquaintances—perfect for conversation.

Soon, noticing Magistrate Ouyang Rong's teacup was empty, she turned to gaze at the night scenery.

Su Su Guoer suddenly rose, her expression serene, and took the initiative to take her leave.

She departed with Sister Caishou, carrying her qin.

Without a trace of hesitation.

Magistrate Ouyang Rong watched her slender, graceful figure in crimson Daoist robes, nodded lightly, rose, turned away, and returned home with his umbrella.

In the following days, Magistrate Ouyang Rong rose early and returned late; when water levels rose dangerously upstream of the Butterfly Stream, he would sleep overnight at Yue Nu Gorge instead of returning.

But whenever he returned home at dusk and heard music drifting from the plum grove, and had no pressing duties, he would gladly go there to meet in the elegant pavilion.

Sometimes he brought two or three boxes of pastries; sometimes a flask of yellow wine, getting pleasantly drunk in the twilight.

Setting aside her frequent refined smiles that left him speechless, and her habit of steering every topic toward political debate—

This Su family's younger sister was indeed a remarkable person.

First, she was undoubtedly a talented woman—proficient in music, chess, calligraphy, and painting.

If Magistrate Ouyang Rong hadn't studied Classical Chinese for his graduate school entrance exam in his past life and combined it with the knowledge and memories from this life, he might have struggled to keep up.

Fortunately, he was a good conversationalist; with his two-life accumulation of "knowing a little about everything," he could match her on any topic.

If it were only these feminine scholarly pursuits, it would be understandable—a lady of noble birth, raised in silk and jade, confined to her chambers, learning arts befitting a woman, including metaphysical discourse—yes, perhaps one day she'd accidentally drop a jade artifact shaped like a two-headed dragon beneath her pillow…

But occasionally, Magistrate Ouyang Rong wanted to casually drop some advanced theories on famine relief and flood control to impress her.

Or use methodologies from his past life to address the governance questions this Su girl persistently raised—though he avoided topics concerning the centralized court in Shenjing Luoyang, he could briefly touch on local prefectural and county issues, since the tension between central and local authority had long existed and concerned rulers of every dynasty. Yet he never expected that Su Su Guoer could grasp his points almost entirely.

And she even responded with equal depth.

Though for Magistrate Ouyang Rong's theories that crushed the era's empirical wisdom, Su Su Guoer mostly resorted to painstakingly citing historical examples of flood control from ancient texts.

Yet this still revealed her vast reading.

This could not be explained merely as a noble lady passing time by learning feminine arts.

She didn't just read about willows and moonlight—this Su girl clearly devoured histories and meticulously studied regional gazetteers across the land.

Could an ordinary young lady from a noble household possibly do this?

No wonder she dared to debate politics with him, appearing eager to engage…

Thus, during occasional meetings in the plum grove pavilion, they often chatted until the tea grew cold, their feet numb, the moon high above the branches, reluctantly parting—each walking away in opposite directions, both returning with wistful expressions, neither feeling fully satisfied.

Magistrate Ouyang Rong was beginning to understand why ancient people had idioms like "knee-to-knee long talks" and "candlelit night conversations."

This Su girl truly was a remarkable person.

Magistrate Ouyang Rong found himself quite fond of her.

But he felt a pang of shame for Su Su Dalang, her elder brother.

Look at your mother and sister—then look at you.

Still grinding away at your books.

Had Magistrate Ouyang Rong not clearly observed Su Su Guoer's unmistakably feminine figure—not some androgynous "beauty" with an Adam's apple—he might have thought she was the Su family's true heir.

Wait—could they really have been educated in the same family academy?

Why does Su Su Guoer seem so carefree, roaming about debating politics, while Su Su Dalang remains stuck struggling in school? Has she already graduated early, leaving him behind?

He was beginning to glimpse the truth.

Magistrate Ouyang Rong couldn't laugh.

He pictured Su Su Dalang's thick, bearded, earnest face—ah, Su Dalang really did have it hard.

Also, Su Su Dalang and Su Su Guoer had different personalities.

Broad-minded, kind, sincere in dealings.

Magistrate Ouyang Rong felt that if he had to choose one as a true friend, it would be the former.

Su Su Guoer, though brilliant, was forceful and competitive.

They could converse easily, even work as teammates—but long-term coexistence would be exhausting.

Because if a disagreement arose, one side would have to yield, lowering their head—or they'd likely end up bloodied and broken.

Moreover, Magistrate Ouyang Rong sincerely believed that though Su Su Guoer was breathtakingly beautiful, she was no mere ornament, nor could she be treated as an ordinary maiden. Friendship was possible, but true intimacy was nearly impossible.

Thus, she lacked the endearing contrast and innocent naivety of his little junior sister.

Not cute enough.

The little junior sister who followed him calling "Ru Shixiong, Ru Shixiong," and Su Su Dalang were better suited as true confidants.

As for this Su girl… occasional deep talks in the plum grove, mutual displays of intellect, leaving satisfied—maintaining a distance that was neither too close nor too far—was perfectly suitable.

Hmm, just like those political debaters in my past life's graduate school entrance exam study group.

At present, Magistrate Ouyang Rong's envisioned progress on Longcheng's flood control was nearing completion, and regarding these social interactions and people around him—

He had his own boundaries.

And he increasingly suspected that the Su family next door was almost certainly descended from one of the Five Great Clans and Seven Noble Houses.

Even if not one of the Five, they were surely of equal prestige—a high-born clan that had inexplicably relocated to this remote county in Jiang Nan Dao. Had they committed some offense and gone into hiding?

That story would be deep, indeed.

But it didn't matter—Magistrate Ouyang Rong would act… pretending ignorance, avoiding the deep waters.

Of course, Magistrate Ouyang Rong, who had already begun slacking off on everything beyond Butterfly Stream flood control, didn't know that these recent conversations in the plum pavilion had left Su Su Guoer increasingly astonished—she often paced her chambers, chewing over his shocking statements, her footsteps growing faster and faster…

These private matters and shifting attitudes will be set aside for now.

That night, deep into the night.

Magistrate Ouyang Rong returned from the plum pavilion, muttering to himself as if still savoring the conversation.

He pushed open the door and entered the plum grove courtyard.

Bai Mao, the maid who had been waiting for him on the swing for a long time, leapt down, lantern in hand, and hurried forward:

"Master, Master, are you back from another late rendezvous with the Su girl? Are you hungry? I'll make you some noodles."

"Not hungry. Talked myself full. Time for bed." Magistrate Ouyang Rong shook his head. "And don't say things like 'rendezvous'—this is the pure friendship of gentlemen, as clear as water."

Ye Ye Weilai frowned, muttering: "Clear as water, huh…"

Magistrate Ouyang Rong paused, turned back, and tapped her head twice. "Stop thinking nonsense. Do you want a beating?"

"Mmm." Ye Ye Weilai covered her white hair with both hands, ducking her head and whispering softly:

"I was talking about the relationship—why keep chatting if it's as bland as water? Isn't plain water tasteless? Why has the Master suddenly struck me? Did I say something wrong?"

"...", Magistrate Ouyang Rong.

"Cough, cough, it's nothing—my mistake. I won't use that word again."

Saying this, Magistrate Ouyang Rong turned and went to wash and bathe.

Not long after, the lamp in the room went out, and master and servant lay down to rest.

Moonlight slipped through the window crack and fell to the floor.

Beneath the outer edge of the bedding, a pair of gray-blue eyes opened quietly, clear and bright.

Ye Ye Weilai turned her head and glanced at Magistrate Ouyang Rong's peaceful sleeping face.

Suddenly, a faint sound of a door opening came from the entrance.

Soon after, a faint scent of sandalwood drifted through the room.

"Sister Sister Xiuniang."

Ye Ye Weilai lowered her voice and called out, tucked the blanket snugly around Magistrate Ouyang Rong, slipped on her shoes, and stepped off the bed, making room.

Sister Xiuniang nodded, sat down on the bed with practiced ease, gazed tenderly at the Young Master for a moment, then lowered her head and gently stroked him.

Ye Ye Weilai took up brush, ink, paper, and inkstone with familiarity; by the moonlight, she noticed Sister Xiuniang's expression today was unusually grave.

Sister Xiuniang lowered her head and wrote:

"I shall teach you that sword technique once more; review and practice it yourself. I must go out tonight."

Damn it, last chapter described the protagonist's gaze—I heard someone left a comment on yesterday's chapter. You, get out here! I'll kill you! Come out, don't force Xiao Rong to beg on his knees! Oh no, Xiao Rong's mind is corrupted—he needs to be replaced…