Moonlit Reunion [子夜归]

Chapter 14

Mei Zhuyu looked at Wu Zhen. "They invited me here with good intentions, but I ended up making everyone unhappy."

Wu Zhen chuckled, crossing her arms as she looked at him with amusement. "You don't seem to be the type who enjoys these gatherings, so why did you agree to come? Don't tell me Mei Si dragged you here?" It had to be the case. As cousins, it'd be hard for him to refuse.

Unexpectedly, Mei Zhuyu turned his head away and replied, "I wanted to see what kind of place you enjoy. And besides... we'll soon be husband and wife. Since you like it, I'll get used to it. And as for drinking, I heard you enjoy it, though I've never drunk before. In the future, I'll get used to that too."

Wu Zhen's smile faded, and her brow furrowed slightly without her realizing it. When she'd agreed to the marriage, she hadn't thought much about it. Not putting much thought into it meant she didn't particularly care; if the marriage happened, fine, and if it didn't, that was fine too. She hadn't considered how they would get along after marriage, nor was she particularly concerned. People kept saying the two of them were mismatched and that it couldn't last. Wu Zhen never responded to such comments, but perhaps the thought lingered within her.

She didn't know Mei Zhuyu well; they'd only met a handful of times. Her understanding of him was only surface-level, apart from knowing that he might have harbored some fondness for her for some time, and she found him comfortable to be around. Beyond that, he was still largely a mystery.

She had assumed he was the type of man who was set in his ways—someone a bit like the Censor Liu, carrying an innate sense of pride. Men like that weren't likely to change their ideas or habits for others. And her first impression of Mei Zhuyu suggested that he would hardly be interested in her world of wine, beauty, dance, and banquets. Yet here he was, seriously saying he would get used to it, he would learn to accept it.

For someone to attempt to accept what they didn't like for another person's sake—that meant, at the very least, he was invested. Wu Zhen had always found herself at a loss when dealing with sincere people, especially when they were sincere toward her. She began to suspect that perhaps this young gentleman liked her even more than she'd thought.

This cautious sentiment made her feel a bit uneasy, as if she'd been too careless with his feelings. She was older than him, and when their marriage was arranged, she'd thought it would be like gaining a younger brother. But now she realized he couldn't be thought of as a younger brother; this young gentleman wanted to accompany her for much longer—perhaps even for a lifetime.

Wu Zhen found the thought overwhelming, too uncertain to fully grasp.

Her silence seemed to cast a shadow over Mei Zhuyu, who looked downcast, choosing to remain quiet. Wu Zhen quickly noticed his expression, so she coughed and said, "The wine you had earlier is called Amber Light. It's quite strong. Next time, I'll bring you some sweet rice wine or Frozen Spring wine, which has a milder, sweeter flavor. Wine is something you should get used to, after all..."

Wu Zhen smiled, looking at him openly. "In two months, we'll have our wedding banquet, and you'll have to drink quite a bit. It's a good idea to start practicing now."

Mei Zhuyu blinked, his eyes slowly lighting up again.

Watching him, Wu Zhen felt a wave of relief and continued to idly wave her riding whip as she said, "You don't have to join Mei Si and the others in their fun. They're like my little brothers, but you're not one of them; you're my future husband. You can just go out with me. I know plenty of interesting places, and if you want to go, I'll take you myself. No reason to bring a whole group of troublemakers with us, don't you agree?"

Wu Zhen wasn't even sure where these comforting words had come from, but after saying them, she didn't regret it. In fact, she even felt a bit of anticipation. Maybe it was the obvious sadness he'd shown that had prompted her. It made her uneasy to see someone usually so composed and steadfast lose his calm over her words.