Chapter 106: The Horse Was Frightened

He had guessed correctly; the girl truly did not recognize him at all.

"Cousin, do you know the two people sitting across from us?" Gong Shaoyu asked, noticing his cousin’s figure stiffen.

Gu Li withdrew his gaze, lowered his eyes, and replied, "I do not." His slender fingers lifted his teacup.

"Oh? Is that so?" Gong Shaoyu raised an eyebrow and said nothing more, though he naturally had his own answer.

At that moment, the young Miss Chen, having already gulped down several cups of tea, stole a glance across the room. Good, they weren't looking this way! She breathed a sigh of relief.

The two maids thought to themselves, "They simply couldn't care less about you."

"Bao'er, which noble houses do you think those young masters belong to? I have never seen such a handsome pair of gentlemen before," her little friend said, resting her chin on her hands and squinting her eyes.

A pair? Gu Li thought, *Mind your word choice.*

It was no wonder the young girl didn't recognize them. Gu Li was not a resident of the capital, and although Gong Shaoyu was born there, he had traveled extensively with his master since childhood and rarely stayed in the city, so it was only natural that the local ladies did not recognize him.

Fu Bao was not actually interested in handsome men, but the young man in white across from her gave her a strange sense of familiarity. When she felt the youth’s gaze sweep over her, her heart skipped a beat, and she was suddenly overcome by a strange urge to cry.

"Bao'er? Bao'er?"

"Ah?"

"What are you daydreaming about?" her friend asked curiously. She was already scatterbrained enough; now she was just staring blankly, not responding even after being called several times.

"Oh, nothing," Fu Bao replied, reaching up to tug at her mustache.

And so, the mustache fell off.

Staring at the fake mustache lying on the table, Fu Bao thought, *Damn it! Poor quality.*

Her friend thought, *That’s what you get for tugging at it!*

...

"Ugh! Cousin, why on earth did you bring this dog out with us?" On the streets of the capital, Gong Shaoyu stared at the majestic, imposing black dog walking ahead of them, unable to fathom where it had even come from.

People on the street dared not get near the beast. One had to wonder why two such handsome gentlemen would be walking such a terrifying dog; the combination was truly bizarre.

"Little Black has been with me since it was a pup. It’s very important to me," Gu Li said, holding the leash. *The brat's dog is also quite the glutton,* he added silently.

Little Black? Did it really?

"What a loyal and devoted dog," Gong Shaoyu praised.

Gu Li thought, *Heh.*

Very soon, Gong Shaoyu felt his face being metaphorically slapped.

"Move! Quick, move! The horse is spooked!" People scrambled to clear the path as a carriage came barreling toward them. The coachman was shouting frantically, and the screams of women and children could be heard from inside.

Standing in the middle of the road, the two men and the dog watched the horse charge straight at them.

"Get out of the way!" the coachman screamed.

Little Black spread its four paws, reared its head high, and in a flash, vanished from sight.

Gu Li thought, *Heh. What a "loyal and devoted" creature.*

Gong Shaoyu thought, *This dog… really should be made into stew.*

"Help!" the two men cried out, clutching each other.

The crowd thought, *Just move already!*

At that critical moment, a figure flashed by. Gu Li felt a sharp kick to his backside, and the next thing he knew, he and his cousin were sprawled across a greengrocer’s cabbage stall.

Gu Li and Gong Shaoyu: "???"

After kicking the two men away, Fu Bao stood where Gu Li had just been. The horse suddenly reared up on its hind legs and then grew perfectly calm.

Fu Bao patted the horse, soothing it, "Don't be afraid."

The crowd was amazed.

Having calmed the horse, Fu Bao looked helplessly at her friend, who was hiding behind her. She had intended to save two "damsels in distress," but ended up being the one dragged into the mess! And another thing—where had that big black dog come from?

It did look a bit familiar.

"Little Black?"

"Woof woof!"

And so, as Gong Shaoyu lay on the vegetable stall, he watched "loyal and devoted" Little Black trot away, following the mustachioed young master he had seen at the teahouse, never once looking back.

Suddenly, his face stung quite a bit.