The next day.
When Lanyin woke up, the sky outside was already bright.
She opened her eyes in a daze, staring at the emerald-green bed canopy painted with scenes of lakes and mountains. Suddenly, the images from her dream last night flashed before her eyes… Yet, the scenes that had made her heart race last night did not bring a blush to her face now. Instead, her complexion grew even paler.
She closed her eyes tightly and clenched her fists.
Feeling something unfamiliar in her hand, Lanyin frowned slightly. She opened her eyes again and looked down, only to realize that she was still holding onto the longevity thread. Even in her sleep last night, she had refused to let go, keeping it wrapped around her little finger the entire time. After an entire night, her finger was already sore, swollen, and red. She silently untied the longevity thread while rubbing her swollen thumb, deep in thought.
“Master?”
Ting Yun’s voice came from outside.
Lanyin steadied herself, tucked the longevity thread under her pillow, then cleared her throat and responded, “Come in.”
Ting Yun and Shi Yu lifted the curtain and entered the room. Through the thin veil, they saw that Lanyin was already sitting up, so they approached her with a smile. Shi Yu went to open the windows for ventilation and replaced the magnolia on the windowsill with a fresh one plucked that morning, still adorned with morning dew. Meanwhile, Ting Yun lifted the bed canopy and spoke to Lanyin with a smile, “You woke up later than usual today. Did you sleep well last night?”
“Mm.” Lanyin’s voice was slightly hoarse. “Pretty well.”
Shi Yu noticed this. While bringing over Lanyin’s clothes, she also handed her a cup of tea. “Master, have some tea to soothe your throat.”
After drinking the tea, the discomfort in Lanyin’s throat finally faded. However, she still held onto the tea cup without letting go. The two maids saw her lowering her head in thought and were about to ask when Lanyin suddenly said, “Prepare a few sets of clothes for me later. I’ll be staying at the shop for the next few days.”
Keeping her distance from Qi Yubai—this was the only solution Lanyin could think of now.
If before, she wanted to stay away from Qi Yubai merely for the sake of his reputation, to avoid unnecessary misunderstandings, then now… apart from those reasons, there was another one—she could no longer face him.
How could she possibly act as if nothing had happened after having such a dream? How could she, knowing that she was on the verge of no longer being able to conceal her feelings, continue to interact with him as calmly as before?
She didn’t have that kind of ability.
She had to leave for a few days.
At least for the next few days, she couldn’t see him.
Lanyin had always believed that time could resolve everything—whether it be emotions, expectations, or resentment. As long as enough time passed, everything would eventually fade away.
She thought.
That was how she had always gotten through things.
Her desire for Qi Yubai would also disappear. She just needed time—a little time.
This decision was too sudden, leaving Ting Yun and Shi Yu stunned. The two exchanged glances before Ting Yun was the first to ask, “Why do you suddenly want to stay at the shop?”
Lanyin gave the excuse she had already prepared. “The shop is about to open soon, and I’m feeling uneasy. I’d rather stay there and oversee things myself so I can feel more at ease.” As she spoke, she lowered her gaze and sipped her tea, as if trying to use the act of drinking tea to calm her slightly trembling heart.
“But there’s no need for you to live there,” Shi Yu frowned in disapproval. “That place is crowded and disorderly, and the living conditions aren’t great. How can you stay in such a place? If you’re really worried, why not let me or Ting Yun go and keep an eye on things instead?”
Ting Yun also nodded in agreement.
Lanyin, however, shook her head. She still held the teacup in her hands and said calmly, “Go and prepare.”
Her decision was made, and the two maids knew they could not persuade her otherwise. They could only nod and agree. After leaving the room, Shi Yu held onto Ting Yun’s arm and lowered her voice to ask, “Master was perfectly fine. Why would she suddenly decide to stay at the shop?”
Ting Yun, however, had already guessed the reason.
But now was not the time to say it. She glanced back at the room. The curtain had yet to fully fall, and she could still see her master sitting on the bed. The summer morning sun streamed through the gauze-covered window, casting light into the room, illuminating the woman in her inner garments. The sun was scorching, yet it could not dispel the deep silence surrounding the elegant and refined woman.
She had locked herself away, forbidding herself from stepping out and forbidding others from coming in.
This was the first time Ting Yun had ever seen such a heavy silence from her master. Even back when she had been disappointed in the heir, she had never been like this.
Ting Yun pursed her lips slightly. “You go and prepare first. I’ll try to persuade Master again later.”
That was all they could do.
Shi Yu sighed and went outside to arrange for breakfast, while Ting Yun led the servants back inside to assist Lanyin with her morning routine.
After breakfast, perhaps because she knew Qi Yubai was not in the residence at the moment, Lanyin did not hurry to leave. Instead, she sat in the study, reviewing the account books that had been sent over in the past few days. Occasionally, she would pick up a brush and note down a few key points on a blank sheet of paper.
Ting Yun stood to the side, grinding ink. Watching Lanyin, who was fully focused on her work, she suddenly said, “Master, do you still remember Miss Meng Yuan?”
Meng Yuan was the woman Lanyin had saved two years ago when she was being bullied by Sun Jin. Upon hearing Ting Yun mention her, Lanyin immediately thought she was in trouble again. She stopped writing, furrowed her brows, and looked up. “What happened to her?”
“Don’t worry, Miss Meng is fine,” Ting Yun said with a smile. “It’s just a coincidence. Earlier, when Chunqin went out to buy supplies, she happened to run into Miss Meng. You know they’re from the same hometown and old acquaintances. When Miss Meng saw her, she chatted for a bit.”
Lanyin naturally knew about Chunqin and Meng Yuan’s relationship.
Back then, it was Chunqin who had come to her, pleading for help on Meng Yuan’s behalf.
“She actually came to Bianjing?” Lanyin was a little surprised. Then, her brows knitted together again. She had just had a conflict with Madam Cheng recently. If Madam Cheng found out that Meng Yuan was in Bianjing, she would certainly not let her go. Worried that Meng Yuan might get into trouble, Lanyin put down her brush and asked seriously, “Where is she staying? Is she alone?”
Ting Yun, understanding her concerns, reassured her, “Rest assured, Miss Meng is just passing through and won’t be staying long. She heard that you left the Cheng Manor and originally wanted to come and pay her respects to thank you, but she was afraid that it might cause trouble for you if the wrong people saw. So, she could only ask Chunqin to pass on her gratitude and said that if there’s an opportunity in the future, she will thank you in person.”
Knowing that Meng Yuan was only passing through, Lanyin breathed a sigh of relief.
Hearing the message she left, however, Lanyin’s expression remained indifferent. “There’s nothing to thank me for.” She picked up her brush again and continued reading the account book. “I knew back then how much she had suffered, yet for the sake of the Xiao family’s and Sun family’s reputation, I couldn’t seek justice for her. Saying I helped her is nothing more than offering her a favor so she wouldn’t go against the Sun family, to avoid implicating the Cheng Manor and Xiao Ye.”
Lanyin actually did not like her past self at all.
Cold and selfish, always prioritizing personal gain. That was why she felt undeserving of Meng Yuan’s gratitude.
Ting Yun, however, did not like hearing her speak of herself in such a way. Frowning, she immediately retorted, “You did all you could at the time. If you had let Miss Meng continue opposing the Sun family, her only fate would have been death.”
The Sun family was a dominant force in Zhenjiang, and with Madam Cheng backing them, how could a girl from a small household with no background possibly fight against them? If she had gone to the authorities, she would have ended up as nothing more than a silenced corpse.
It was all in the past now. The good and the bad had already passed.
Lanyin did not wish to bring up old matters again, nor did she want to accept any gratitude for them. Right or wrong, selfishness or not—it did not need to be argued. But seeing how Ting Yun had smiled while speaking of Meng Yuan earlier, she still asked, “How is she doing now?”
When she left Zhenjiang back then, she gave Meng Yuan a sum of silver, thinking that she could either find a livelihood or move to another place. Having some money with her would always be good. However, in the years that followed, she never saw Meng Yuan again and had no idea what she looked like now.
Ting Yun smiled again, “Miss Meng is doing very well now.”
She specifically brought this up today to pave the way for what she was about to say. As she continued grinding ink for someone, she casually chatted with Lanyin, “Chunqin said that Miss Meng has married and even had a child. Her husband seems very honest and kind. When she was talking to Miss Meng earlier, he was holding their child, soothing it, and when they left, he firmly held Miss Meng’s hand, showing great care and affection.”
While speaking, she carefully observed Lanyin. Seeing her slightly stunned expression after hearing this, Ting Yun couldn’t help but feel a stir in her heart.
Lanyin indeed hadn’t expected that Meng Yuan was now not only married but also had a child. Back then, after being bullied by Sun Jin, Meng Yuan would even scream at the sight of men. At that time, Lanyin stood in the room, watching Meng Yuan hug Chunqin and cry incessantly, and thought she would never marry in this lifetime. She never expected…
She softly sighed, “This is a good thing.”
To be able to move on from the past miseries and embrace a new life, Lanyin was happy for her.
Ting Yun also smiled, “Yes, this is a good thing. We all thought Miss Meng wouldn’t be able to move on, but now she’s married with a child, and her husband dotes on her so much. I asked Chunqin, and she said that Miss Meng’s husband also knows about her past. Miss Meng thought he would leave her after finding out, but that very afternoon, he bought a bunch of things and sent them to her home, saying he wanted to marry her.”
As she spoke, she kept an eye on Lanyin.
She wanted to use Miss Meng’s personal story to tell her mistress that there’s nothing in this world that can’t be overcome. The things she worried about, perhaps Master Qi didn’t care about at all? Giving others a chance is also giving yourself a chance.
She didn’t dare to speak too plainly, fearing it might upset Lanyin, but who was Lanyin? Even if she hadn’t thought much about it at first, hearing this, she could sense some underlying hints. She put down the account book in her hands, looked at Ting Yun, and asked with pursed lips, “What exactly are you trying to say?”
Ting Yun’s face changed slightly, and her grinding action suddenly stopped.
Meeting Lanyin’s gaze, looking into the calmness in those almond-shaped eyes, she held her breath. But soon, she put down the ink stick and knelt beside Lanyin. She looked up at Lanyin, “I know you like Master Qi, and I know you moved to the shop to avoid him, but why don’t you try like Miss Meng did? Perhaps there will be unexpected results?” Seeing Lanyin’s slightly changed expression, she continued, “If you’re worried that Master Qi doesn’t like you, then you can rest assured. I already tested Master Qi yesterday, and he does like you!”
If Ting Yun’s earlier words had startled Lanyin, her last sentence almost shocked her.
“What?”
She stood up, and because she rose too quickly, the brush in her hand fell to the ground. The ink-stained brush rolled on the floor and finally stopped at Lanyin’s feet, leaving a streak of ink on her embroidered shoe, very abrupt, but she had no time to care. She just looked at Ting Yun in stunned silence, then hoarsely repeated, “…What did you say?”
Ting Yun hadn’t originally planned to tell her mistress so soon.
It was too fast, and she was afraid her mistress wouldn’t be able to accept it. But since things had progressed to this point, she didn’t think to continue hiding it. She recounted what she had done last night and also told Lanyin about Qi Yubai’s reaction. Seeing Lanyin’s face turn pale, not showing the happiness she had imagined, she also began to panic.
Ting Yun knelt and crawled to Lanyin’s front, grabbing her skirt and looking up tearfully, “Mistress, I know I’ve been presumptuous. Whether you punish or beat me, I accept it! But I really don’t understand, if Master Qi didn’t like you, that would be one thing, but since you and the master like each other, why not give it a try? Shi Yu and I can both see that the master treats you differently. He truly likes you. He’s not like the heir, he’s a good man, and he will definitely treat you well.”
Lanyin finally snapped out of her initial shock. She lowered her gaze to Ting Yun, whose eyes were brimming with tears. Her almond-shaped eyes were dark, devoid of any light, and she asked, “So what?”
Seeing Ting Yun’s stunned expression, Lanyin closed her eyes and spoke hoarsely, “So should I ruin him just because he’s a good man?”
She hadn’t expected Ting Yun to guess her feelings for Qi Yubai, nor had she expected that Qi Yubai felt the same way about her…
All the strange things she had overlooked in the past suddenly seemed to make sense.
Why did she always happen to run into Qi Yubai every time she went to the Qi residence for a meal? Why would someone of his temperament serve her food? Why did he take the initiative to escort her out of the residence? Why did he speak to her differently than he did with others? Why did he prepare gifts for her? Why, when she asked about children that day, did he say, “It’s fine if I have them, and it’s fine if I don’t…”?
At the time, she thought Qi Yubai liked men, but now, looking back, that day, he had been looking directly into her eyes when he said it.
He had been trying to soothe her anxious heart in his own way all along.
Lanyin didn’t know when Qi Yubai had started to like her, but instead of feeling the joy Ting Yun had imagined, this realization only made her more sorrowful.
In the study, several windows were open. Under the blazing summer sun, everything seemed so vibrant and full of life—except for Lanyin. Though she was still so young, her heart felt as if it had already decayed. Her hands, resting at her sides, trembled. She tried to clench them, thinking it would stop the shaking, but not only her hands, her entire body began to quiver slightly. In the bright and sunny summer, she felt as though she were in the depths of winter. She kept her eyes closed, refusing to open them.
After what felt like an eternity, she finally spoke in a hoarse voice, “I know he’s not like Xiao Ye. I know that if I were with him, he would treat me well and never let me suffer.”
Her refusal to accept this affection wasn’t because she was afraid of getting hurt again in a relationship.
Qi Yubai wasn’t just anyone.
If it were someone else, she might have been afraid, but Qi Yubai—she knew he would never hurt or mistreat his wife.
There was only one reason she couldn’t accept his feelings: she… wasn’t worthy of him. “Such a good man deserves a better, more perfect marriage. Why should he be tied to someone like me?”