At that moment, a gentle breeze swept by, creating ripples on the surface of Inner River, and a few strands of hair also brushed onto Li Qiao’s face with the wind.
She gazed at Qiu Huan with a dangerously charming faint smile, lifting her delicate chin, "So it was Master Qiu’s doing. What’s the reason?"
Qiu Huan felt incredibly uneasy under the stare of Li Qiao’s dark, doe-like eyes.
Struggling to explain due to his guilty conscience, he braved himself and said, "Sister Qiao, this really is a misunderstanding..."
Li Qiao withdrew her gaze, her expression detached, "How can you prove it?"
Qiu Huan, acting as if unrelated to the matter, scuffed the lawn with his leather shoe and bent down to apologize with a smile, "That dumbass Zhang Leshan, I’ll take care of him for you. How about that?"
At this point, Li Qiao reached out her hand to pick up an empty brandy decanter from the table, poured herself half a glass, sniffed it, and took a light sip before slowly asking with raised eyebrows, "Won’t that be too much trouble for Master Qiu?"
Qiu Huan nearly dropped to his knees, her indifferent, imperious manner was just like Shang Shaoyan’s!
"Not at all, not at all, it’s what I should do."
Having said that, Qiu Huan wiped the sweat from his forehead, still reeling from the fear and barely seated before he let out a long sigh of relief as if he had just survived a catastrophe.
Li Qiao didn’t pay any more attention to Qiu Huan and quietly continued to drink the brandy from the decanter, which was smooth and not bad in taste.
That’s when a crystal grape perfectly dropped into her decanter.
Li Qiao glanced over from the corner of her eye, just as Shang Yu’s shapely fingers were placing the metal fruit clamp back on the fruit plate.
The distinctive decanter, similar to those ancient round and straight-walled tripod cups with animal-mask ring handles, now had a grape stuck right in the middle, ingeniously blocking the flow of the liquor.
Li Qiao swirled her decanter, the rich aroma of the brandy wafting around, but she couldn’t drink any of it because of a single grape.
"Brandy has a strong kick, girls should drink less of it," a deep and magnetic voice floated over from beside her. Li Qiao turned towards the sound, raising her eyebrows just as her eyes met Shang Yu’s.
Putting down the decanter, she leaned back in her lounger, her eyebrows slightly upturned, "Master Yan, my alcohol tolerance is quite good."
The man lazily curled his lips, eyeing Li Qiao’s expressive demeanor, "How good?"
"Hmm, that depends on the situation!" Li Qiao’s smile was teasing as she twirled the decanter in her hand, glancing at Shang Yu, "When I want to drink, I never get drunk, no matter how many glasses. When I don’t, just one glass will do me in. However... I never drink in front of strangers."
At this moment, Qiu Huan sat across from them like an inconsequential pillow, staring eagerly as they chatted nonchalantly.
Could he get a glance?
Could he be treated as a person?
Qiu Huan gave a light cough, attempting to draw attention, "I mean..."
Before he finished, Shang Yu’s brow slightly furrowed, mercilessly gave the kick-out order, "It’s time for you to leave."
Qiu Huan’s breath hitched, his eagerness to flip the table rising.
Then, he saw Li Qiao casting a somewhat disdainful glance at him, "When does Master Qiu plan to deal with Zhang Leshan?"
The underlying message, aren’t you leaving?