2 hours later——

What Kinoshita Mai said was absolutely correct. Boss Kiryu returned on time just as the hour hand of the clock crossed "10".

Edo, Senshiya, Garden——

The master and apprentice sat side by side on the verandah, facing the courtyard in front.

"Mr. Kiryu, Aomori, please have some tea."

Kinoshita Mai held a tea tray containing 2 cups of hot tea and a plate of wagashi, and walked behind the two of them with small steps.

At first glance, the girl in red looks and behaves the same as before, nothing out of the ordinary.

But if you observe carefully, you can find that when she walks, her two little feet tremble slightly, the muscles in her legs and feet seem to be full of fatigue, and her voice is a bit strange.

Although this is only the beginning of time, a certain old man has extraordinary senses.

"Young Master, what's going on with your legs, feet and voice? Why are you trembling? Why are you becoming mute?"

As soon as he finished speaking, the body of the young man sitting next to him stiffened suddenly, and the hand holding the teacup stopped in mid-air.

Kinoshita Mai was stunned for a moment, then her eyes wandered wildly, panicked, and her words were incoherent:

"Ah, ah...! This, this, this, no, nothing! It's just that my mouth is sore and my legs and feet are tired... Ooohhhhhh!"

She regained consciousness and yelled, trying to cover up her embarrassment and mistake with a loud voice.

Unfortunately... it's too late, the most critical information has already been heard by Boss Kiryu.

This can be considered an old problem of hers.

Because she is introverted and not good at communication, once her mind is confused, she will say everything she should say and what should not be said.

"..."

Boss Kiryu lowered his eyelids and cast a straight, deep look at Mai Kinoshita.

Kinoshita Mai, who didn't dare to look at her, buried her head low, her pretty face flushed, she clutched the tea tray tightly with both hands and hugged it to her chest, as if she wanted to hide behind the tea tray in exchange for

sense of security.

Suddenly, the old man pointed at the girl's red lips.

"...Oh, Master, there seems to be a strange stain on the corner of your mouth."

"Huh? How is that possible? I've obviously already washed it!"

As she spoke, Kinoshita Mai raised her hand to wipe her mouth, and then took a closer look - there was nothing on her hand.

Beep, beep, beep...

Suddenly there was a strange noise.

This was the sound of Qing Teng's hand holding the tea cup twitching slightly, causing the tea in the cup to splash out and fall to the ground.

The innocent girl who was deceived... Her face, which was already as red as fire, became increasingly hot, and even the tips of her ears and neck were dyed with a gorgeous red glow.

"Uh-huh...! Ah! I-I'm going to prepare lunch! Excuse me for now!"

After that, Kinoshita Mai hugged the tea tray and ran away in a hurry, ruthlessly "abandoning" Qingteng.

Kiryu: "..."

Qingdeng: "..."

As the crisp footsteps of Kinoshita Mai gradually faded away, the courtyard and outside were surrounded by a heavy silence, and there was silence.

Boss Kiryu turned his head, expressionless and silent, and looked straight at Qingden.

Under the refraction of light from the spectacle lenses, the old man's eyes became blurry and difficult to distinguish and elusive.

"Oh, Boss Kiryu, look at it!"

Qingden looked down at the tea cup in his hand and said in a cheerful voice:

"The tea stems are standing up. It seems like something good will happen today!"

This is a Japanese feudal superstition: when drinking tea, if the tea stems stand up in the tea, it means something good will happen today.

"I don't know if something good will happen today. Anyway, I have received an unexpected 'surprise gift' today."

"I was just wondering why you came so early today. So that's why..."

"Your actions are too quick and precise, aren't they?"

"In a few days, the young master will follow you to Luo, so I want to take advantage of these last few days to cook more meals that the young master likes to eat."

"I went out very early today just to buy the freshest vegetables from the Eight Hundred Houses so that I could make a sumptuous meal for the table."

"In the end, you took advantage of the short gap when I was not in the store and scurried in smoothly."

"Your ability to find opportunities to find opportunities is really superb."

[Note: Zhuofu Cuisine: Japanese-style Chinese banquet dishes. Eight Hundred Houses: All vegetable stalls are collectively referred to as "Eight Hundred Houses"]

Qingdeng listened quietly to the end... He closed his eyes and took a deep breath.

When he opened his eyes, he changed into a sonorous and powerful tone:

"Boss Kiryu, draw your sword! I'm ready to fight! Come over here!"

As he spoke, he reached out and grabbed Vairocana beside his legs.

"Who said I'm going to fight you?"

Boss Kiryu gave Qingto an angry look, and then said "Alas" all kinds of emotions into his voice.

"Ji Jun, you and the young master can take it easy."

"I will take this opportunity today to make it clear to you."

"I treat the young master as if I were my own son, and you are my personal disciple."

"Of course I am happy to see your union."

"Even if you want to marry three wives... As long as the young master doesn't object, and you can really make the young master happy, then I won't object."

"but!"

Boss Kiryu suddenly raised his voice and changed the subject.

"What I say does not count."

"At the end of the day, I'm just the guard beside the young master, serving as an intermediate and acquaintance."

[Note: Yuzhushou: the duty of holding and taking care of children. Middle: servant of the martial arts family. Jinxi: personal attendant]

"As for the future of the young master, I only have the right to make suggestions, but I don't have the power to make a final decision."

"The final person to make the print... is only my master, the young master's grandmother."

"I have served my lord for more than 70 years. I know your lord's temperament very well."

"She hates men who are not affectionate."

"She once declared in public: The young master's future husband will never take concubines or have side wives."

"If I tell her that the man who is in love with the young master, besides the young master, is also unclear with two other girls, to be honest... I can't even imagine what the master will do after learning about this.

, how will it react?"

"First of all, rage is a given."

"For the time being, let's put aside all the matters at hand and gather all the people to come to settle accounts with you. It's for sure."

When Qingdeng heard this, he immediately couldn't help but said seriously:

"Boss Kiryu, I am not being unprofessional!"

"Although at first glance, my behavior of wanting to marry three wives seems outrageous and out of place, what I did is obviously different from the term "playing with women"!"

"If I want to use a metaphor...those who are truly incompetent give the water of a river to others, and distribute it very unevenly! And I have opened up three river sources! Please

Understand the difference!”

After hearing this, Boss Kiryu snorted "Humph".

"Ji Jun, I'm afraid you can't even fool the young master with these nonsense, right?"

"..."

Qingdeng's mouth twitched slightly and he responded silently.

"Anyway, in order to protect you... ah, no, I should say to save you, I concealed your ambition of 'marrying three wives'."

Having said this, Kiryu sighed again.

"Until now, my lord still thinks that you and my young master are just ordinary lovers."

"My lord is quite satisfied with you. She appreciates your extraordinary martial prowess and your boldness and courage in making big and small decisions."

"If it weren't for Pepsi, she would have wanted to see you."

"A while ago, she even sent me a letter specifically asking me: 'How is Ju Qingden doing?', 'How are Ju Qingden and A Wu getting along?'..."
To be continued...