Chapter 98: Taking My Sister to the Cultural Palace

Rushing to the Street Office's tailor shop, Lu Cheng rode at breakneck speed, fearing that damn Teacher Xu might have gone elsewhere.

"Hey, move aside, move aside, the brakes are broken!"

When the pedestrians heard the brakes were broken, they all hurried to clear the way.

"Ouch, riding so fast, what are you doing…"

When he reached the tailor shop entrance, Lu Cheng applied the hand brake and foot pedal, and stopped steadily.

"Sister, sister… Lu Ying, Ying Ying…"

Hearing Lu Cheng's hoarse shout, several heads quickly poked out from the doorway.

"Hello, sisters," Lu Cheng waved his hand in greeting.

When he wasn't working before, if he got bored, he would often hang around this tailor shop.

He had touched every girl's hand inside at least once, of course under the pretense of reading palmistry.

The sisters all liked his visits, because Lu Cheng spoke sweetly and often praised them to the point of making them blush.

Only Lu Ying kept a stern face, because Lu Cheng was busy flattering others and had neglected his own older sister.

"Lu Cheng, come in and talk."

"Exactly, it's been several days since we saw you, sister will pour you some tea."

Seeing the sisters' enthusiasm, Lu Cheng really wanted to go in, sit for a while, tease them, but he had important business today.

"No, Jing Jing, I'm looking for my Er Jie; when we have time another day, we'll go up that back mountain, and I'll read your palm alone."

Jing Jing covered her mouth and laughed, shouting toward the shop: "Ying Ying, your brother is here."

Lu Ying, wearing a sleeve cover, slipped both hands into her coat pockets and swaggered out.

"What are you barking about out there again!"

The brother and sister exchanged barbs; Lu Cheng snapped, "Sister, look at you walking like a duck, can't you learn from Qing Yan sister?"

Sure enough, Lu Ying got angry, flew over and kicked.

"Who said anyone walks like a duck? You're being ridiculous! No real work, go help Mom snatch cabbages, what are you aimlessly wandering every day?"

Lu Cheng didn't want to go cabbage‑stealing: "Sure, sis, come, I'll take you for a spin."

Lu Ying rolled her eyes: "You think I'm like you? I have so few holidays, I'm working, I don't have time to play with you."

Lu Cheng persisted: "Don't, sis, I just went around the Cultural Palace, guess who I saw?"

"Who?"

"Famous poet Teacher Xu."

Lu Ying's eyes lit up instantly: "Teacher Xu? How do you know him?"

"Ha, a famous poet—who in the Capital City doesn't know him?"

That's true; Teacher Xu's poems are adored by young comrades, spread widely, even the Educated Youth circles love them.

Seeing the sisters not move, Lu Cheng coaxed, "Let's go, sis, Teacher Xu is giving a lecture at the Cultural Palace, such a good learning chance—miss it and it'll be gone forever."

Lu Ying was tempted; she really wanted to meet Teacher Xu, and a private conversation would be an even greater honor.

"Alright then, I'll tell Grandma Liu."

Watching his sister bounce into the tailor shop, Lu Cheng thought, she'll be happy now, but later she'll be crying.

Grandma Liu, who managed the tailor shop, was kind and easy to talk to; she treated the kids in the shop like her own granddaughters, and anyone with a problem just needed to say so.

After Lu Ying got on the bicycle's rear seat, she didn't hug her brother's waist as she usually did.

Lu Cheng teased, "Sister, why aren't you holding my waist now? Are you afraid Teacher Xu might misunderstand?"

Lu Ying patted his back and said, "Enough chatter, let's go quickly."

Pedaling hard, Lu Cheng asked while riding, "Sister, you don't happen to like Teacher Xu, do you?"

"Don't talk nonsense; I just think he's talented, I respect him."

Lu Cheng didn't deny: "Indeed, someone as talented and dashing as Teacher Xu inevitably attracts young girls; the worry is he has no principles and accepts any girl's advances without refusal."

Hearing her brother's double‑talk, Lu Ying protested, "Teacher Xu isn't that kind of person; regardless of gender, anyone with a question gets equal treatment—it's not that he only likes young girls, that's respect."

This time, taking you to the Cultural Palace, you can also learn from him; Teacher Xu is truly a person of both virtue and talent.

Lu Cheng fell silent; in these days people are already naive, saying more is useless—facts speak louder than rhetoric.

Near the Cultural Palace, Lu Cheng took a side path that passed by the small river.

"Hey, the Cultural Palace is over there, why are you going this way?"

"I just want to admire the river and maybe find some inspiration."

Lu Ying pursed her lips: "What inspiration can you find in a stinky gutter? No wonder you write that poop is a shooting star—seeking inspiration in such a filthy place, hey stop, stop, stop…"

Lu Cheng stopped his bicycle; not far away, Teacher Xu was standing with that young girl, the two close together, and the sister likely already saw them.

Lu Cheng deliberately asked, "Isn't that Teacher Xu? Looks like we came late, the lecture's over. Since it's quiet, let's go say hello; I can learn a bit."

Lu Ying hurriedly stopped him: "Don't go."

"Why not go? We're already here; didn't you want to meet the virtuous and talented Teacher Xu?"

Lu Ying gave no reply, her eyes fixed on Teacher Xu a short distance away.

The two chatted and laughed; clearly, while speaking, Teacher Xu deliberately leaned toward the girl, and she showed no sign of refusal, feeling honored to be in contact with him.

Leaning on his bicycle, Lu Cheng said, "Whoa, those two look pretty close—what's their relationship?"

"Hey sis, look, they're hugging!"

During the poetry exchange, Teacher Xu, taking advantage of the girl's admiring expression, proactively draped his arm over her.

The girl shyly lowered her head.

"Tsk, Teacher Xu is so bold, hugging the girl so quickly—hey sis, do you think they'll end up kissing later?"

Since seeing that scene, Lu Ying hasn't spoken a word.

"Let's go!" Lu Ying got back on the bicycle.

"Where are we going?"

"Going home."

"I'll watch a little longer; it's hard to finally see Teacher Xu, so I should follow and learn properly. Virtue and talent combined? Tsk tsk, they aren't even married yet, yet they hug each other in public. Hmm, indeed worth learning from. Compared with Teacher Xu, I'm far behind…"

Lu Cheng muttered to himself, completely oblivious to the face Lu Ying had pulled down.

"Are you going or not? If you don't, I'll just keep walking by myself."

"Go, go, go!" Lu Cheng lifted the handlebars, turned on the spot: "I was just saying I came to hear the famous poet's lecture—what an untimely coincidence. Next time we'll come to the Poetry Association."

Lu Ying got on the bicycle, her head resting on her younger brother's back: "Not coming anymore, never again."

She hadn't expected that the Teacher Xu she had always admired and respected turned out to be this kind of person; then why, in his reply, did he express admiration for her, even with affection?

She hadn't agreed; she just felt the progress was too fast and wanted more interaction, and Xu Wenjie had explicitly voiced support for her idea, so why did he so quickly embrace another woman in his arms?

She truly misread him, all that respect she had for Xu Wenjie was in vain.