Chapter 156

Speaking of this side, Fubao went to the auction house yesterday and ran into Gu Li. Fortunately, Gu Li was too busy to deal with her at the time, allowing her to slip away. Unable to find her then, Gu Li came looking for her today.

"So it's Young Master Gu. I haven't seen you in seven or eight years, you've grown up," Meng Yun said, quite fond of the child she had watched grow up since he was little.

"Auntie can just call me Xiao Li," Gu Li replied.

"Alright then, I'll call you Xiao Li."

Fubao followed behind, busy pouring tea and serving water. Watching Gu Li chatting happily with her mother, she suddenly felt as though Gu Li was Meng Yun's actual son, while she herself was nothing more than a serving maid.

Fubao: "......"

"Fubao, why did you run away yesterday? I couldn't even catch up to you," Gu Li said leisurely, picking up his teacup after Meng Yun had gone to the shop. His imposing manner clearly implied that unless she gave him a reasonable explanation, this matter was far from over.

Fubao: "......" Could I possibly tell you that I was afraid you would catch me and launch into another lecture?

"Ahem, that's a long story," Fubao cleared her throat and said.

"Then make it short," Gu Li retorted.

"Actually, I had business at the auction house yesterday, and once I finished, I was in a rush for other matters and left early. That's all."

"Oh, is that so? You have that many matters?" Gu Li completely overpowered Fubao with his presence.

Fubao: "......"

"Yes, hehe," Fubao grinned, exposing her standard eight teeth.

Gu Li: "......" How truly ugly.

"Well, yesterday I originally intended to give someone a gift, but unfortunately I couldn't call that person back. Those things..." Gu Li feigned sorrow. Yesterday at the auction house, he had discovered a shiny, golden stone that was simply breathtaking.

Speaking of acquiring this stone, Gu Li was genuinely fortunate. The guests at the auction house had practically beaten each other to a pulp over it, all fighting to snatch up this glittering stone.

The stone had been passed around from hand to hand before finally ending up in his own grasp. Gu Li glanced at the object in his palm.

Then he glanced down at the group of bruised and battered people still brawling below, and with a thick skin, simply walked away with the stone.

As soon as Gu Li finished speaking, he noticed Fubao's eyes light up instantly.

Gu Li: "......" I think I understand something now.

"What kind of thing? Big brother, tell me quickly!" Fubao grabbed Gu Li's sleeve, shaking it back and forth, back and forth.

Gu Li: She's already calling me big brother directly?

"Ahem, didn't someone say she didn't want it? Why ask about it now?" Gu Li kept Fubao dangling and refused to say.

"Big brother, look at how cute and obedient your little sister is, yet you are so cruel to me!" In an instant, Fubao's inner drama queen took over.

Gu Li: "......" Heh, which of those descriptions could possibly apply to you?

"Hmph," Gu Li ignored her.

"Waah, big brother!"

Gu Li: "......"

A moment later, Gu Li retrieved a very exquisite small box from his sleeve and handed it to Fubao.

"Ooh, what a pretty little box!" Fubao opened the box in her hands.

Her expression instantly froze. This is...

"Do you like it? I spent a huge amount of effort buying this yesterday," Gu Li said, wearing an expression begging for praise.

Fubao: "......"

"Hmm?"

"I like it, I like it so much! It's gorgeous," Fubao beamed with a huge smile.

"As long as you like it, haha." Gu Li shook his head. Well, Fubao said she liked it.

"Hey~ Fubao, this thing looks so familiar?" The little ginseng spirit crawled onto Fubao and said, peering at the contents of the box.

"Heh, of course it looks familiar. This is my scale," Fubao said expressionlessly.

"Oh! No wonder it looked so familiar to me! How on earth did your scale end up in the auction house?" the little ginseng spirit asked with curiosity.

"How would I know?" Fubao frowned and said.

"Right, the Dragon Boat Festival is coming up in a few days. Let's go together to watch the dragon boat races hosted at the palace," Gu Li said, remembering the upcoming festival.

"Okay, okay! The academy will definitely grant a day off on the day of the dragon boat races, let's go together."

"Alright, no problem," Gu Li agreed.

Once the matter was settled, Gu Li took his leave. After sending him off, Fubao held the fish scale in her hand and frowned, utterly baffled as to how her fish scale could have possibly ended up there.

...

"Fubao!"

Having recuperated at home for a few days, Lin Jiajia rushed straight toward Fubao the moment she stepped into the academy.

Everyone watched wide-eyed as Lin Jiajia tripped over the threshold, wobbled left and right for a long time, finally managed to steady herself, and then charged directly at Lin Cenbao.

The crowd was utterly amazed that Lin Jiajia hadn't fallen flat on her face this time.

"Yay! Jiajia, you're here!" Fubao greeted Lin Jiajia.

"Fubao, let me tell you, I didn't get tripped when I went out today, the carriage wheel didn't break, nobody came to rob me, and most importantly, no bird pooped on my head!" Lin Jiajia slammed the desk in excitement.

Fubao: "......"

"Then did the equestrian instructor's dog bite you?" Fubao asked again. The equestrian instructor kept a small black dog.

As it turned out, the equestrian instructor was built like a rugged giant, yet he kept a tiny, adorable little dog. This little dog was very cute and gentle, but for some reason, it loved chasing and biting Lin Jiajia.

"Uh, it did."

Fubao: "......" Well, it seems her fortune hasn't turned around yet.

"Today's first assessment is calligraphy. Let's see how everyone has been practicing recently. Has anyone slacked off?" the calligraphy instructor stroked his goatee and said.

Fubao, the young Miss Chen, and Lin Jiajia all wore terrified expressions: Oh no, oh no! We didn't study at all, we completely forgot about the assessment!

"Um, I'll just write this one," Fubao's brain spun at high speed, selecting the simplest poem she could find, intending to put on a show for the instructor.

Miss Chen and Lin Jiajia watched wide-eyed as Fubao wrote as if guided by the gods. Though they had no idea what she was writing, her aura was overwhelmingly powerful.

Regarding today's assessment, Fubao expressed herself quite satisfied, even though the calligraphy instructor's complexion looked a bit poor when he collected the papers.

As for the second assessment—equestrianism—Fubao declared that this test couldn't possibly stump her. She simply pulled a large apple out of her sleeve, hung it from a long pole, and dangled it right in front of Honghong's eyes.

With a swish, Fubao rode her warhorse galloped toward the finish line, though halfway through, Honghong strayed to follow Liu Feier's Tanyue.

Yet at the crucial moment, Fubao jerked the horse's reins and rescued Honghong, who had been dazzled by feminine charms.

Regarding Fubao taking first place, the equestrian instructor felt rather helpless.