Chapter 50: Emerald Oriole Pavilion 2

Yu Qingyan raised her eyes and glanced around. "You may all withdraw first."

Then, she looked at the beautiful woman beside her. "Let us ignore him. Huamei, what else can you do?"

"The pipa."

"Good!" Yu Qingyan smiled at the well-behaved Huamei. "Let us play the pipa!"

In the slanting rays of the setting sun, the notes of the pipa drifted mournfully; behind the pearl curtains, the beauty lowered her gaze.

The wine on the table was not of the finest vintage, yet Yu Qingyan drank with great enjoyment, especially upon seeing the murderous expression on the face of the person opposite her, which for no reason put her in a cheerful mood.

Ah, what a perverse sense of amusement.

"Why does My Lord wear such an expression? Lady Huamei is gentle and lovely, and her pipa playing is even more enchanting. Does My Lord not like it?"

"Yu Qingyan—"

Yu Qingyan cut him off. "This lord's surname is Gu, with the single given name Yan."

Chu Yuchuan's gaze suddenly shot toward her. "Surnamed Gu?"

Yu Qingyan's brow suddenly furrowed. "Be careful—"

She was closest to Chu Yuchuan. There were only three people in the room, and though Chu Yuchuan was fully capable of self-protection, after a momentary hesitation, she still darted toward Huamei.

Sounds of fighting echoed from outside the room, presumably Zuo Shen, who had been following secretly the entire time. Meanwhile, the intruder inside had already engaged Chu Yuchuan in close combat. Frowning, Yu Qingyan plucked the jade hairpin from Huamei's hair and hurled it with pinpoint accuracy. The hairpin pierced straight through the masked assassin's chest, and the man instantly stopped breathing.

Chu Yuchuan flicked his sleeve, his amber eyes reflecting a chilling gleam as he glanced toward Yu Qingyan and Huamei, then turned and walked out.

"..." Yu Qingyan was stunned. Was he angry?

"Huamei thanks My Lord. Such a life-saving grace can never be repaid."

"It was merely a trivial effort," Yu Qingyan said, lowering her gaze to look at her, before adding, "May we meet again if fate allows."

When she chased him out of the room, Chu Yuchuan was already completely gone, leaving only Zuo Shen standing in place.

He was truly angry, it seemed.

Yu Qingyan walked along the street for a while, with Zuo Shen trailing a few paces behind her the whole time. As she walked, someone suddenly stepped forward to block her path.

Yu Qingyan looked up and found the person before her staring straight at her in a daze.

"It's you."

"It is me, it is me! My Lord, we truly are bound by fate. Last time My Lord saved me, and I haven't yet had the chance to express my gratitude. Hey, My Lord, don't leave! My Lord, wait—"

Yu Qingyan quickened her pace, but the person behind her pursued relentlessly. "My Lord, since we are so fated, why don't we become friends? My surname is He, and my given name is Haozhuo. What is your name? Can you walk a bit slower? I—"

"He?"

He Haozhuo hurriedly looked up at her. "Yes, yes!"

Yu Qingyan frowned. "Why do you keep following me?"

He Haozhuo answered without a second thought, "Because you look good-looking..."

Yu Qingyan rolled her eyes. The person before her was definitely not the son of Prime Minister He Qiuxin.

"No, no, I misspoke! Because you saved me, and your martial arts are so good." He Haozhuo's eyes lit up. "Why don't you teach me? How about it?"

"If you want to learn, go back and tell your father. Stop following me."

He Haozhuo was taken aback. "You knew."

During the brief moment of his stupefaction, Yu Qingyan had already walked far away, and when he looked up again, her figure had completely vanished.

"Little Liu, he knew all along, so why is he still ignoring me?"

"Young Master, in my opinion, he doesn't look like much anyway. Shall we go find someone else?"

"No! This young master has set his mind on him! I must make him my friend!"

Little Liu scratched his head. "Young Master, the son of the Minister of Rites has invited you for tea, and Master has already agreed to it."

He Haozhuo flicked his long sleeves in dismissal. "I'm not going!"

Yu Qingyan had successfully shaken off the tail behind her, though unfortunately, Zuo Shen was not so easily shaken.