Chapter 174: Chapter 174: Why Did Second Brother Arrive So Late?
Making a young lady recite poems about "longing" in public is quite a difficult task.
Under normal circumstances, it would undoubtedly be considered "presumptuous."
However, due to the context of "Truth or Dare," this difficult demand actually becomes interesting.
Everyone was eager to see what kind of poem Qu Fulan could come up with.
If she couldn’t compose one, she would surely be punished.
Qu Fulan wouldn’t let herself be punished, so she thought hard and indeed remembered a poem about "longing."
Before reciting it aloud, she first apologized to the Poetry Buddha Wang Wei in her mind, then spoke.
"Red beans grow in the south, a few sprout in the spring.
May you gather them abundantly, this is indeed the most longing."
After Qu Fulan finished reciting, everyone present showed surprised and admiring expressions.
"What a ’this is indeed the most longing,’ this poem has passed." Prince An praised greatly.
Qu Fulan smiled but said nothing. Initially, she wanted to recite "With no colorful phoenix wings to fly, our hearts still communicate profoundly."
However, the whole poem was a bit long, and although the middle two lines fit the current situation perfectly, the first and last lines were complicated to explain. "Longing" was better, with nothing needing explanation.
Qu Fulan passed, and Yao Xing’s face turned ashen.
Cheng Ru maintained her usual smile, with no special expression.
The others, filled with enthusiasm, started the next round of the game.
Yao Xing wasn’t always successful with her maneuvers. She made small moves twice but failed to pass to Qu Fulan when the drumming stopped, as such things couldn’t be too obvious.
After a full round, where almost everyone had experienced once in "Truth or Dare," the flower ended up in Qu Fulan’s hands again.
This time, she couldn’t choose dare and had to pick truth.
Yao Xing was quick to say, "How much savings do you actually have now? You can’t lie in truth, you must tell the truth."
Anything could be reasonably asked in truth, and Qu Fulan didn’t intend to avoid it, promptly responding, "Honestly, after renting a house, I have just enough for food. Later on, I might have to borrow some money to make ends meet."
Her words naturally had some exaggeration but were not entirely lies. Once she rented a shop to do business, accounting for turnover funds, she truly wouldn’t have much movable cash before making a profit.
But she couldn’t state all these specifics, and there was no need to be entirely forthright.
Everyone took it seriously, especially Prince An, who immediately patted his chest, saying, "The houses here are indeed pricey, but only in such places are you safe. No need to worry about money, just ask, and I’ll surely provide with both hands."
Mr. Wei and a few others quickly expressed the same sentiment as Prince An.
Third Miss and Fang Yuan also stated that if she needed help, they would be there for her.
Cheng Ru merely smiled and said, "If Miss Qu really runs short, the Heir would certainly not stand by and watch, making your concern unnecessary."
Before Third Miss and Fang Yuan could say anything, Yao Xing spoke up, "Miss Qu is no longer the Heir’s servant, and the Heir is busy with so much every day. He didn’t even appear at today’s occasion, indicating how busy he is. Even family members shouldn’t easily disturb him, let alone others!"
After finishing, she didn’t wait for others to react and continued, "The Heir might be busy, but we’re not. If Miss Qu opens her savings vault for us, and we verify the truth, I’m sure everyone here would be willing to help."
"Truth or Dare" is a game intended for amusement and enjoyment, as long as the conditions proposed do not breach moral limits, anything goes.
But Yao Xing’s current remarks were excessive.
Truth is inherently difficult to verify, and the default is to take the speaker’s words as true. Even if false, those who don’t know naturally won’t; and those who do are obviously friends—who would expose a lie during a game?
So, it’s about the feeling, becoming too serious spoils the fun.
"What do you mean? Are you questioning Miss Qu’s words?" Prince An had long disliked Yao Xing, who always seemed sharp-tongued and mean, bullying the weak—wasn’t she picking on Miss Qu just because she lacked family support? A typical bully.
But who said Miss Qu had no support? She’s shared the "battlefield" with these brothers, building a deep friendship on the polo field, standing together through thick and thin, and she is their friend. Supporting a friend is a must.
Mr. Wei, Mr. Chu, and Mr. Ge also looked disapprovingly at Yao Xing.
Yao Xing didn’t expect Prince An to speak up for Qu Fulan, leaving her momentarily speechless, gripping her fingers tightly. She felt very uncomfortable and didn’t dare to retort, only awkwardly saying, "We should verify otherwise, how do we tell truth from lies?"
Prince An chuckled, about to retort, but Pei Lian interrupted, "It’s just a game, having fun is what matters most, why the hostility?"
Unable to provoke Prince An and the others, Yao Xing suppressed her temper, and while others didn’t side with her, her own husband did too. How could Yao Xing bear this? She erupted like a lit firecracker.
"I’m being hostile? I merely wanted to verify the truth, abiding by the game rules. How’s that hostile? If we don’t verify, anyone could say anything. If it turns out false, aren’t we being deceived?"
"It’s a game after all, and being deceived is part of it—besides, there’s no real harm. If you’re so keen on verifying, I’ll add a condition to this game: for anyone playing truth, I’ll invite Ministry of Justice personnel to ensure no lies through severe interrogation. Do you want to play?"
This time it was Wei Xu speaking, a Ministry of Justice official, his words reflecting their style.
While his words were severe, the logic was sound.
Otherwise, you could check Qu Fulan’s vault today, but what about the next person without one? Would you need to resort to interrogation to determine the truth?
Again Yao Xing was silenced, her face turning pale, unable to utter a word.
Indeed, aren’t you all about seriousness? Then let’s do it convincingly, with real measures ensuring nobody dares to lie, why not continue now?
Clearly, she was picking on someone without family backing.
Prince An moved his lips but refrained from saying, "If you can’t handle it, don’t play; it’s bad luck!"
While the gentlemen had already been lenient, Yao Xing failed to notice, feeling targeted by the noblemen. She felt aggrieved and uncomfortable, unable to confront them yet harboring resentment towards Qu Fulan.
The atmosphere was still somewhat tense, and everyone felt uneasy.
As Qu Fulan, the host, was about to say something to ease the tension, a voice came from the door.
"It’s a new house banquet, meant to be lively. Why’s everyone silent? Could it be that you’ve prepared a surprise for us?"
Everyone looked over to see the old lady standing by the flower gate, along with the tall and handsome Heir Pei and a group of maids and servants.
Fang Yuan’s eyes lit up as she ran forward, "Grandmother, why are you here?" Then added, "Second Brother, why are you only arriving now?"