Yuan Tong tilted her head and snorted, "I’m accompanying my sister to the Lantern Festival, why can’t I be here!"
Gu Chengfeng’s gaze fell on Yuan Baolin’s face, and he politely greeted her, "Sister-in-law!"
Yuan Baolin smiled, "Chengfeng."
"Come down and greet people!" Gu Changqing said in a deep voice.
"Oh." Gu Chengfeng obediently jumped down from the window, cupped his hands and bowed to Yuan Baolin, "Sister-in-law."
Yuan Tong raised her chin and smiled somewhat proudly, "Hmph!"
Gu Chengfeng glanced at her and sneered, "I wasn’t even talking to you."
Gu Changqing exuded the full presence of a big brother, "How are you speaking?"
Gu Chengfeng pursed his lips.
Yuan Baolin tried to ease the situation, "Chengfeng, are you here to enjoy the lanterns too? Want to join us?"
"Uh... I..." Gu Chengfeng’s eyes flickered.
He wasn’t there for the Lantern Festival, he was there on a mission.
After being away from the Capital City for many days, upstarts were rising. If he didn’t make a few more moves, his position as the number one thief in Jianghu would be at risk.
Yuan Baolin noticed his hesitation and said straightforwardly, "If you have something to do, you can go ahead."
Gu Changqing looked at him coldly.
As if to say, it’s your sister-in-law’s first invitation to you, dare you refuse and see what happens.
He could pretend to be a fake couple with Yuan Baolin, but it was based on respect. He wouldn’t let Yuan Baolin suffer a cold shoulder.
What’s more... he was already at fault for breaking their agreement, so he couldn’t let her be wronged further.
The brothers reached an unspoken understanding. Gu Chengfeng instantly smiled, "I’m fine, I was just thinking, with Sister-in-law and Brother coming out with great difficulty, would I be a bother being here?"
Yuan Baolin laughed, "No, Tong’er is here too."
"Sister, I don’t want to..."
Yuan Tong’s words were cut off midway by a sharp look from Yuan Baolin that was like a flying dagger.
"Fine." She reluctantly complied.
The group of people moved forward.
Today’s Lantern Festival was bustling, with lantern sellers, opera performers, and street artists showing off acrobatics.
On an open space in front of a rice shop, a shirtless man held a sword in one hand and a wine jug in the other. He took a swig of wine with abandon and suddenly spit it into the air.
The unsuspecting crowd thought he was spitting wine, not knowing it was actually a long tongue of flame.
The crowd gasped in amazement.
Yuan Tong was also clapping excitedly.
Gu Chengfeng shook his head, childish.
If that girl were here, she would’ve already seen through the trick.
The four continued to wander the lantern festival, and during this time, a small incident occurred; the performer accidentally sprayed the flames onto a passerby.
The passerby fled in a panic, knocking over their stage, and the stage fell towards the crowd, about to hit Yuan Baolin. Gu Changqing quickly stepped forward, embracing Yuan Baolin, and using lightfoot skill, whisked her away to safety.
"Sister!" Almost at the same time, Yuan Tong also tried to save her sister, but the second stage also collapsed, and unfortunately, she stumbled and fell.
Gu Chengfeng frowned, stepped forward, and kicked the stage back.
He stood like a hero before Yuan Tong, his back to her. Yuan Tong stared at his silhouette, her heart suddenly pounding.
Gu Changqing placed Yuan Baolin safely on the street’s edge, "Wait here for me a moment."
Afterward, he went to the accident site.
The brothers busily saved people and put out the fire. By the time the soldiers rushed in, the chaos had mostly subsided.
Yuan Tong, visibly shaken, was taken home first by Gu Changqing and Yuan Baolin, while Gu Chengfeng stayed at the scene to assist with the investigation.
In the carriage, Yuan Tong leaned pale-faced against her sister’s shoulder, clearly still frightened from earlier.
The sisters had these personalities: Yuan Tong seemed loud and noisy, but was actually quite timid, while Yuan Baolin appeared quiet and calm, possessing great inner strength.
Yuan Baolin hugged her sister’s shoulder and comforted her, "I’ll tell mother when we get back, and you can sleep with her for the next two nights."
"Then father will blame me again." If she slept with her mother, her father would have to sleep in the study room.
Yuan Baolin chuckled, "Aren’t you too scared to sleep?"
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