Chapter 113 Seduction [Case Two Ends] She kept thinking about that kiss from that night…
In early October, the leaves of the paulownia tree heralded the beginning of autumn. Yue Yining and Xie Qingyu returned to Qinghuai City together after descending the mountain. Both were safe and sound, and the whole city rejoiced.
In mid-October, Qianlin was splashed with red gold. He Chan led a group of mountain bandits to surrender to the imperial court. During this time, Che Zilong and others from the Qinghuai government wanted to take the opportunity to cause trouble. They were stern and wanted to arrest and punish the bandits. Yue Yining stopped them all on the grounds that the bandits "led the people to surrender and made great contributions to disaster relief and people's safety. Their merits can offset their crimes." He vouched for them with his own body.
Seeing her resolute attitude, the high-ranking officials all backed down and refused to speak up for Che Zilong. The prefect, secretly resentful, could only leave in a huff.
In late October, when oranges and tangerines turned yellow and green, the floodwaters in Qinghuai City had calmed, and seven or eight out of ten disaster victims had gone home. The floodwaters had receded, and the turbid waves had returned to their troughs; rice and millet gradually filled the markets, and prices stabilized.
The government stipends were distributed to every household, and children played in the alleys and lanes. Smoke from cooking fires rose in the air, revealing a scene of peace and prosperity.
The disaster relief efforts in Qinghuai, which lasted for three months from summer to autumn, finally ended at the end of October.
The scorching sun has gone, and the golden wind is blowing in.
In early November, the group headed north, with Yanjing (Beijing) in sight.
"Miss, would you like some tea?"
"Miss, is the backrest tilted? Is it comfortable to lean against?"
"Miss--"
Yue Yining looked up from her book, her gaze turning helplessly to Fu Yao, who was chattering beside her: "No need, Yao Yao, why don't you take a break?"
Fu Yao: "I'm not tired, it's okay!"
Yue Yining: "..." Is it okay if she's tired?
Two weeks ago, Yue Yining returned to Qinghuai unharmed. The moment Fu Yao saw her, she rushed over, hugged her, and burst into tears. She cried so hard that it was heartbreaking.
After Yue Yining finally managed to calm her down, Fu Yao woke up the next day with her eyes swollen like walnuts and came over again, saying that she would never leave her mistress's side again.
Yue Yining is a soft-hearted and easy-going person, so she follows her lead. However, these days, Fu Yao has indeed become more clingy to her, which seems to indicate that she is overprotective.
For example, right now.
The journey was bumpy, and Yue Yining didn't read much anymore, afraid of getting dizzy. She would close her eyes and rest for a long time after reading for a while. The journey from Qinghuai to Yanjing was long, and she had to stop in five cities along the way before arriving. Of these, only Xijin could be considered a major city.
The group passed through Xijin and rested in the city for half a day. Yue Yining was a little hungry, but did not want to disturb too many people, so she only invited Fu Yao. The two of them planned to have a good meal at a local restaurant.
Yue Yining had just sneaked out the door when Ye Miheng caught her. He happened to be passing by and asked, "Yue Yining? Where are you going?"
The female official, dressed in a blue robe and white gown, with a veil on her head, froze on the spot. She quickly lifted the veil with her delicate hand, revealing a pair of bright black eyes and long, crescent-shaped eyebrows. She looked around nervously, and finally glared at him with resentment and anger: "Keep your voice down!"
Ye Miheng remained silent for a while.
Just as Yue Yining was about to leave, he caught up with her, taking a few strides to reach her. He lowered his voice, looking at her with a sly eye, and said, "Where are you going? Why don't you take me with you?"
Yue Yining was speechless: "We're going out to eat, why would we bring you along...?"
"That's good, I haven't had lunch either!"
Yue Yining: "......"
"Never mind." Seeing that he showed no intention of leaving, Yue Yining sighed. She figured she might as well bring a dog along for company. "Then you come too."
Ye Miheng, overjoyed at receiving permission, scurried over. But as he got closer, he became restless, glancing frequently at Yue Yining, and couldn't help but ask, "Why did you suddenly decide to go out for dinner?"
"The local food in Qinghuai never really suits my taste. I haven't had a decent meal in ages. Can't I even be a little hungry?" Yue Yining said lazily. "Besides, I'm already here. How can I leave without trying the local cuisine? Eating and drinking are just one of the few pleasures in life, so I have to make the most of it."
Ye Miheng: "But why did you go out to eat? Why didn't you just have the servant prepare a portion in a food box and bring it back?"
Yue Yining: "I heard that Xijin Grand Restaurant does not allow customers to prepare dishes for outside consumption."
Ye Miheng: "You won't allow it? Then just throw more money at it."
Yue Yining: "......."
She gave Ye Miheng a complicated look. She always felt that this person's mind was unusually simple, and ever since he started working for the Fourth Prince, Ye Miheng's arrogant and disdainful attitude towards money had become increasingly pronounced.
Is this a case of "one is influenced by one's surroundings"?
Yue Yining didn't continue. She sighed and said, "The restaurants have already said they won't serve outsiders, so why should I spend money to ask them to make an exception for me?"
"And why are you talking so much today? You better be quiet during dinner later."
Ye Miheng hummed twice: "Fine. I won't say anything more, okay?"
As the two walked out of the hall, two of Xie's guards, who were perched on the eaves of the inn, spotted them from behind. Their expressions changed, and they immediately climbed into the window sill, hurrying off to find someone.
Yue Yining didn't notice at first, but she soon found out who they were going to see.
She and Ye Miheng had just sat down in the private room of Xijin Restaurant, and before they had even turned two pages of the menu, the door creaked three times.
As the two men looked up one after the other, the door slowly opened, and a well-dressed maidservant bowed respectfully and said in a clear voice, "I apologize for disturbing you two lords."
“A gentleman surnamed Xie sent me to deliver a message, saying that he recognized the carriage of the Yue people downstairs and asked me to come and ask if the Yue people were having a meal inside. If it is convenient, he would like to join the two gentlemen at the same table for some fun.”
Yue Yining's heart skipped a beat, and her hand, which was flipping through the menu, suddenly stopped. Before she could reply, Ye Miheng spoke up decisively: "It's inconvenient, let him eat by himself."
The maid was taken aback by the answer and paused, thinking she had offended the distinguished guest in some way. She hurriedly agreed and was about to leave when Yue Yining quickly called out to her, "Wait!"
“...It’s fate that we met. Since he’s also out for dinner, let’s join him,” Yue Yining said. “Please tell him I agreed and bring him up.”
The maid hurriedly replied "Yes" and retreated. Yue Yining received a disapproving look from Ye Miheng, but remained seated firmly in the main seat, calmly drinking tea, and continued to look through the menu, ignoring Ye Miheng's furious gaze.
"Why did you agree to him?" Ye Miheng said indignantly. "Why not just let him eat it himself?"
He had half a sentence left unsaid; he actually wanted to curse that this guy was a persistent ghost with a face as big as a basin, always clinging to Yue Yining.
This wasn't the first time. A couple of days ago, he noticed that Xie Qingyu always seemed to be around Yue Yining. Even when they were just going downstairs for a meal, he would always seem to be telepathically connected with her, arriving in the lobby one after the other, and then naturally exchanging pleasantries with Yue Yining. Before long, they would be sitting at the same table. This happened at almost every meal.
Because they had stayed in small towns on their first two stays, the group lived in the same large inn within the town. Ye Miheng even bumped into Xie Qingyu and Yue Yining talking in the outer corridor on several occasions.
The young master from a noble family, dressed in black brocade robes, usually had a cold and aloof demeanor, almost unapproachable. But when he met Yue Yining, he was like a piece of cold jade suddenly breaking, revealing a tender and affectionate side.
When Xie Qingyu looked down at her, not only her gaze, but even the corners of her eyes and brows were radiant with spring breeze.
It really... made Ye Miheng feel extremely annoyed.
“When I came out, I clearly saw his carriages and horses still parked at the inn. We had just gone out to eat when he arrived. What a coincidence!” Ye Miheng spat, subtly exposing Xie Qingyu’s little scheme. “He probably followed us here secretly.”
Even someone as dim-witted as Ye Miheng could figure it out, so Yue Yining was naturally much clearer; she was perfectly astute.
However, she still had to put on an act when facing Ye Miheng, so she casually made up a high-sounding but hypocritical reason: "People have already come to ask about my carriage, and you just send them away with a 'it's inconvenient' excuse. It's like slapping them in the face and telling them that you don't like them. Xie Qingyu is, after all, a second-rank official in the court, and I don't want to offend him."
Actually, that's not the case.
She just wanted to agree to his request.
Since returning to Qinghuai, she has been busy dealing with a mountain of official duties. For a period of time, she spent her days on the go and her nights falling asleep as soon as her head hit the pillow.
But no matter how many things she had to do, there was always a time when she would finish. Later, when she had less to do and slowed down, she would involuntarily think of that kiss from that night.
She had only been lying in bed for a short while when Xie Qingyu returned after washing up. She was already feeling sleepy, so she didn't open her eyes again and prepared to fall asleep.
In her half-conscious state, she felt Xie Qingyu sit down beside her bed, and he carefully covered her exposed shoulder with a quilt to keep it warm.
She was drowsy and about to fall asleep when those cool lips pressed against hers.
It was the first time she had been kissed, and it took her a long time to react.
After Xie Qingyu left, she opened her eyes and stared blankly at the moss on the cave ceiling.
Yue Yining had long known that Xie Qingyu likely liked her, but she truly hadn't expected that someone so usually self-disciplined and respectful would secretly kiss her at night. However, her shock and disbelief weren't due to the kiss itself.
When he kissed her, they were very close, and Xie Qingyu's breath brushed against her eyelashes, the moisture tickling her.
His breathing was very unsteady, almost broken. If he hadn't been so quiet and made no sound at all, she probably would have thought he was crying.
It must be either sadness and pain, or tension and fear, that makes one lose control of their breathing and become so confused.
Yue Yining was lost in thought.
She was certain that Xie Qingyu harbored extraordinary feelings for her; however, she vaguely sensed that it was more than just ordinary affection.
Even though she only caught a glimpse of a blurry, indistinct silhouette, she could still discern its immense size and weight from that exposed corner.
When Yue Yining called out to the maid just now, she didn't think too much about it. She just felt that if she rejected him, he might not show it, but he would definitely be very sad and disappointed inside.
"Never mind," she thought. "It's just a meal together."
Although she couldn't respond to him, she also didn't want to hurt his feelings.
Approaching footsteps echoed from outside the corridor, followed by another knock on the door. Then, the two long wooden doors with begonia patterns were pulled open.
The newcomer entered slowly, his figure tall and slender. His flowing, ink-black robe swayed gently with each step, like clouds and smoke swirling around him. His jade crown gleamed, and his features were refined and elegant.
He looked up, and in that single, shimmering glance, all the beauty and romance of the world turned to dust.
Yue Yining met his gaze, and even though she had prepared herself mentally, her heart still tightened slightly.
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Author's Note: Ningning's heart tightened because she was stunned. Ayu's seductive attire was showing initial success. [Let me see]
I didn't write enough today, I'll write another chapter tomorrow! [Cat paw]
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