“What is she coming here for?” Gu Jianli muttered softly. She thought for a moment. If she were Ye Yunyue, she wouldn’t come to the Guangping Marquis Residence again, much less to the Fifth Master’s courtyard. Isn’t it awkward? And… isn’t it scary?
Gu Jianli politely invited her into the main hall. Ye Yunyue was the first to speak: “I hope you don’t mind my unexpected visit.”
Jixia, upon hearing this, set down the tea and fruits, rolling her eyes inwardly.
“Not at all.” Gu Jianli smiled and shook her head, her tone polite but distant.
Ye Yunyue said, “On my journey from my hometown, I often heard Third Brother Ji speak of you. He always spoke highly of you, and I had long wanted to make your acquaintance. I was busy before the New Year, but now I’ve finally found some free time, so I took the liberty of visiting.”
Gu Jianli was surprised. Ji Xuanke would speak of her to Ye Yunyue? No, that couldn’t be. Ji Xuanke was not the type to discuss such topics with other women.
Gu Jianli picked up her teacup, smiling slightly, and subtly changed the subject: “Just coming in from outside, it’s best to warm up with some hot tea.”
Ye Yunyue thanked her, took a sip of tea, and quietly observed Gu Jianli. She noted Gu Jianli’s graceful and elegant demeanor as she sipped her tea, and couldn’t help but genuinely admire her beauty. Even among the beautiful people of the Li family, Gu Jianli’s looks were outstanding. As a woman, Ye Yunyue was amazed by her beauty—how much more so would a man be?
Ye Yunyue recalled her previous life of poverty. At that time, stuck in the inner chambers, she always heard people praise Gu Jianli, extolling her beauty and virtues without reservation. It was as if she were a flawless moon, worthy of all women’s admiration.
Ye Yunyue acknowledged Gu Jianli’s goodness; otherwise, she wouldn’t have caused so much upheaval among the outstanding men of the Ji family in their pursuit of her.
Gu Jianli put down her teacup and looked at Ye Yunyue, her tone neither close nor distant: “You’ve heard about me from others, but unfortunately, I don’t know much about you.”
“It doesn’t matter, as long as you don’t mind my intrusion,” Ye Yunyue said quickly. “Oh, a few days ago, my cousins and I went shopping in the capital, and it’s indeed incomparable to my hometown. I got carried away and bought a lot of things, only to realize afterward that I had bought many children’s toys. They’re of no use to me, so I thought of the two children in your courtyard and brought them here. They’re just some trinkets, so please don’t think I’m insincere or using your place to offload things.”
“Not at all,” Gu Jianli said gently. “I must thank you on behalf of Fourth Sister and Sixth Brother.”
Gu Jianli maintained a polite smile, but she couldn’t figure out what Ye Yunyue’s intentions were.
“It’s great that you don’t overthink it. Are Sixth Brother and Fourth Sister here?”
Wishing to see the children? Gu Jianli decided to go along with it: “They should be playing in the backyard right now. Since you brought them gifts, they should thank you in person.”
Gu Jianli instructed Jixia to fetch the children, but Ye Yunyue quickly stopped her, saying, “No need to call them over. Children usually don’t like being interrupted while playing.”
Gu Jianli gave Ye Yunyue a longer look and tentatively said, “Then let’s go to the backyard and see them.”
“Sure.” Ye Yunyue immediately agreed.
When Gu Jianli led Ye Yunyue to the backyard, Ji Xinglou and Ji Xinglan were building a snowman. Ji Wujing sat lazily nearby, looking listlessly at the two children playing, passing the time.
Gu Jianli noticed Ye Yunyue’s eyes light up when she saw Ji Wujing.
Gu Jianli was momentarily stunned, wondering if she had seen wrong.
“Xinglan, Xinglou!” Gu Jianli waved, calling the two children over and pointing to the toys held by the maid behind her. She said, “These toys are gifts from Aunt Ye. Hurry and thank her.”
The two children’s faces were flushed from playing. Ji Xinglan quickly and obediently said, “Thank you, Aunt Ye.”
“Good child.” Ye Yunyue smiled gently.
Ji Xinglou tilted his head, looking at Ye Yunyue with sideways, hostile eyes.
Gu Jianli gently prompted, “Xinglou…”
Ye Yunyue quickly interrupted, saying, “No need to thank me! Really, it’s not necessary.”
Gu Jianli had a vague feeling that Ye Yunyue seemed a bit afraid of Ji Xinglou.
Gu Jianli found Ye Yunyue increasingly strange. Shouldn’t she be afraid of Ji Wujing, who had broken off their engagement? Yet, she not only wasn’t afraid of Ji Wujing, but her eyes also lit up when she saw him. And she seemed scared of a four-year-old child?
This person… was inexplicably odd, as if she weren’t quite right in the head.
Ji Xinglan covered her mouth with her small hand and suddenly sneezed.
Gu Jianli snapped out of her thoughts and immediately instructed Jixia to fetch a coat for her. As soon as Gu Jianli spoke, Ji Xinglou took off his own coat and disdainfully tossed it to his sister.
“Thank you, brother!”
Ji Xinglou turned his head, his chin held high.
Ye Yunyue glanced at Ji Wujing sitting to the side, her eyes flickering.
She had seriously analyzed why, besides being beautiful, talented, and kind, Gu Jianli had earned Ji Wujing’s favor. She recalled a day in her past life when Ji Wujing, as the national patriarch, suddenly dressed in women’s clothing. Everyone said he was inappropriate, but only Gu Jianli didn’t mind, even saying that as long as he was happy, it was fine.
Ye Yunyue believed that while everyone around Ji Wujing feared and avoided him, only Gu Jianli fawned over him, flattering him excessively. By chance, she had also shared hardships with him and had been lucky enough to save him, thus winning his heart.
Ye Yunyue removed her cloak and squatted in front of Ji Xinglan, taking off Ji Xinglou’s coat and wrapping her own cloak around Ji Xinglan. She gently said, “Wear this one from Aunt. You’re a girl, and girls shouldn’t wear boys’ clothes, just as boys shouldn’t wear girls’ clothes.”
Ji Xinglan tilted her head and innocently asked, “Why?”
“Because men and women are different. While you’re still young, it doesn’t matter, but when you grow up, people will laugh at you,” Ye Yunyue paused. “I have a cousin who loves to wear men’s clothing. When she reached the age to discuss marriage, she still wore men’s clothes and showed her face in public. Her family didn’t care about her because they didn’t value her, so they didn’t care if she was embarrassed or improper.”
Ji Wujing, who had been listlessly looking down, finally lifted his eyes to glance at Ye Yunyue.
Gu Jianli frowned.
“Gu Jianli, who told you to bring any random people in front of me?” Ji Wujing suddenly spoke in a dark, hoarse voice.
Gu Jianli was startled and quickly said, “I didn’t know you were here.”
Ye Yunyue immediately stood up and politely curtsied, “Fifth Master, please don’t blame Jianli.”
Ji Wujing frowned. How unpleasant the name “Jianli” sounded coming from Ye Yunyue’s mouth. So he said, “You should call her ‘Madam.'”
Ye Yunyue paused for a moment and quickly said, “Yes, the Fifth Master is right. I know you don’t want to see me, so I’ll leave now.”
Ji Wujing looked at Ye Yunyue’s face a moment longer, then suddenly smiled and asked, “I don’t want to see you?”
Ye Yunyue was puzzled and looked at Ji Wujing in confusion. Did he want to see her? Ye Yunyue suddenly became nervous.
Ji Wujing, too lazy to talk to her, impatiently looked at Gu Jianli and asked, “Which family’s maid is this?”
Ye Yunyue was immediately embarrassed.
Gu Jianli hadn’t expected Ji Wujing to forget Ye Yunyue again, even though they had met before the New Year. Choosing her words carefully, she said, “This is the eldest daughter of the Ye family.”
Seeing Ji Wujing still not understanding, Gu Jianli had to walk over to Ji Wujing, leaning close to his ear and lowering her voice, “She’s the girl from the Ye family who was once engaged to you.”
Ye Yunyue watched as Gu Jianli leaned close to Ji Wujing’s ear with an intimate gesture, pursing her lips. She felt a sense of loss, but she didn’t give up, silently encouraging herself.
Ji Wujing responded with an “Oh.”
Ye Yunyue waited and waited, but no further words came from Ji Wujing. Feeling unbearably awkward, she had no choice but to leave in embarrassment.
Gu Jianli politely saw her out, and as she returned, Jixia whispered, “What does this Ye family lady mean? It’s like she still has feelings for the Fifth Master!”
“I find it odd too. Who would be eager to become a widow?” Gu Jianli shook her head in confusion. “The Fifth Master is married now. Even if she came over, she couldn’t even become a widow, a concubine widow?”
“Oh my!” Jixia became anxious, “My lady, someone has their eye on the Fifth Master, and you can’t just ignore it! What she said to Fourth Sister earlier was implying that you don’t care about the Fifth Master! She was sowing discord right in front of you!”
Gu Jianli blinked and asked, “Why should I care? If she wants to be a concubine, let her. It would be like having an extra maid to help take care of the Fifth Master.”
Jixia was about to say something but then realized it herself. Right, given the master’s situation, what was there to guard against? After thinking for a moment, she finally understood—this Ye Yunyue must be out of her mind.
While Jixia figured it out, Gu Jianli couldn’t make sense of certain things. How did Ye Yunyue know that she didn’t stop the Fifth Master from wearing women’s clothes? How did Ye Yunyue know Ji Wujing dressed as a woman?
Could it be that she was overthinking, and Ye Yunyue didn’t mean it that way? Or did Ye Yunyue’s example just coincidentally hit the mark?
Ye Yunyue had originally thought that Ji Wujing only wore women’s clothing after he became the national patriarch, not knowing it had already happened. So she spoke like that to plant a seed of doubt in Ji Wujing’s mind. But she was unaware that this had already occurred.
Gu Jianli paused and looked back in the direction where Ye Yunyue had left, muttering to herself, “This Ye Yunyue is quite strange, as if she knows many things…”
Turning to walk back, she casually remarked, “It’s almost like she received guidance from a sage, knowing that the Fifth Master would become prosperous in the future, and hurried over to curry favor…”
Something suddenly struck Gu Jianli, causing her to exclaim. She turned to see a scattered snowball at her feet. Looking up toward the back garden’s gourd gate, she saw Ji Wujing throwing another snowball.
Startled, Gu Jianli instinctively dodged to the side. The snowball hit Jixia, exploding into white fragments that fell to the ground.
Ji Wujing took the snowball handed to him by Ji Xinglou and said leisurely, “Gu Jianli, come play with me.”
Suddenly interested, Ji Wujing’s fox-like eyes curved slightly, drawing out a smile.
Looking at Ji Wujing, Gu Jianli thought that if Ye Yunyue really received guidance about Ji Wujing’s future success and came to curry favor, she was quite foolish.
What does it matter to her if others are prosperous or not? Wouldn’t it be better to just live her own life well? Why curry favor with someone as unpredictable and vastly different from ordinary people as Ji Wujing?
Gu Jianli again felt she shouldn’t judge Ye Yunyue based on an unrealistic suspicion. Perhaps Ye Yunyue was just kind-hearted and wanted to make up for the wrong she had done to Ji Wujing.
