Chapter 58: The Youth

Lu Ying was feeling extremely uncomfortable. The lingering warmth on her palm and shoulder from where Yin Che had rested had yet to fade, and now she found herself squeezed into a corner by him again. The fresh, clean scent of the youth wrapped around her incessantly. Coupled with the teasing from the other two young men, her eyes grew round with embarrassment and irritation.

Noticing this jade-like youth on the verge of bristling, the group of young men quickly cleared their throats and shifted the topic.

“Ayun, where are you headed? Let us accompany you,” one of them offered.

Lu Ying pressed her lips together and replied, “Just taking a walk down West Street.”

“Then to West Street it is,” another responded, poking his head out to call to the driver. Meanwhile, the young man surnamed Wang was still rubbing his foot, his eyes brimming with tears as he complained, “It’s definitely swollen, turning blue! Every time I go out with you, I end up suffering,” he grumbled at Yin Che.

Yin Che merely tugged at the corner of his lips, pretending not to hear.

Frustrated, Wang shot him another glare before turning to Lu Ying with a bright smile. “Let me introduce myself, Ayun. My surname is Wang, given name Xu. This is Mo Yuan. And the one beside you is Yin Che.”

Lu Ying offered a gentle smile and addressed each in turn, “Brother Wang, Brother Mo, Brother Yin.”

Wang and Mo responded heartily, but when she called to Yin Che, his ink-dark eyes fixed intently on her. After a pause, he replied, “You may call me Brother Yin as well.”

Lu Ying curled her lips slightly and acted as if she hadn’t heard. Deep down, however, she couldn’t help but wonder—this Yin Che was truly a puzzle. When he climbed walls to play the flute, he seemed gentle, shy, even romantic; yet in front of others, he was entirely different.

At that moment, Mo Yuan asked, “Ayun, what’s your purpose in heading to West City?”

All three young men turned to her, awaiting her answer.

Lu Ying thought for a moment before replying, “Just out for a stroll.”

Wang Xu, apparently recovered from his pain, straightened up energetically and grinned, “Ayun, you’re quite intriguing. Last time, you were dressed like a nobleman, but today, you look every bit a scholar. Whatever you wear, you carry it with style. Not bad at all.”

No sooner had he finished speaking than Yin Che, sitting bolt upright, shifted forward, blocking Lu Ying even more from view.

The other two didn’t notice Yin Che’s subtle movement, but Lu Ying certainly did. She shot him a glare, though her cheeks couldn’t help but flush even as she did so.

Both Mo and Wang were the talkative sort, and as the journey continued, their conversation grew ever more lively, eventually spiraling into a heated debate. Their argument made the pair in the corner seem especially silent. Sensing Yin Che’s ink-wash eyes resting on her, Lu Ying turned her head aside to avoid his gaze, muttering a warning in a small voice, “Stop looking at me.”

Yin Che stared at her impassively, his gaze lingering on her delicate, jade-like ear for a long moment. Only when Lu Ying commanded again, “Don’t look at me!” did he finally reply calmly, “Opportunities like this are rare.”

Opportunities like this are rare? He actually said that!

Lu Ying’s face darkened; she slanted her eyes at him, her anger barely restrained. “I said, stop looking!”

Her complexion was as fair as jade, her features exquisitely refined; the way she cast a sidelong, slightly upturned glance at him struck Yin Che’s heart with such force that, for a moment, he even forgot to breathe.

As his gaze grew more entranced, Lu Ying’s face grew darker; flustered, she quickly turned her head to stare out the carriage window.

Just then, Wang Xu exclaimed, “Ah, we’ve arrived at West Street!”

At these words, Lu Ying let out a great sigh of relief and called, “Please stop here.” She then bowed to the three youths and declared in a clear voice, “I have some matters to attend to. Gentlemen, until next time.” With that, she hurriedly opened the carriage door and leapt out.

She hadn’t gone more than five steps when she heard Wang Xu’s agonized cry from the carriage: “Yin Che, you kicked the book basket onto my foot again! Don’t tell me it was an accident this time!”

Once in the open air, the cool breeze finally soothed Lu Ying’s flushed cheeks. Thinking of Yin Che, she bit her lip and pondered: after this encounter, those two are bound to come looking for me again from time to time. This won’t do—tonight, I must speak with Yin Che and have him find some excuse to turn them away.

In West City, Widow Zhang’s household was somewhat well-known. While Lu Ying pretended to chat idly, she kept her eyes open for any opportunity to earn some money. By the time she spoke to the fifth person, she did learn that Widow Zhang had indeed mentioned her the day before yesterday, praising her abilities and expressing her intent to ask a matchmaker to propose on her behalf.

Other than that, Lu Ying discovered little else.

Originally, Lu Ying suspected that if Widow Zhang’s son had been acting on someone’s orders, perhaps the mastermind behind the four thugs might be connected as well. But with nothing more to go on, and after an hour of searching with no fortuitous encounter with Widow Zhang’s son, she had no choice but to return home.

Back in her room, Lu Ying wandered slowly about the courtyard. As she paced, a knock sounded at the door.

“Who is it?”

“A Ying, are you home? It’s me, Sister Huang. I’ve come to see you.”

Sister Huang? The servant woman from the secondary branch of the Ping household—she was certainly resourceful.

Lu Ying knew well that the Ping household was attempting to curry favor and make peace with her, but after being firmly rebuffed several times, their masters had lost face. Now, only servants were sent to try softer tactics.

Precisely because of this, Lu Ying sometimes wondered if Widow Zhang’s son had been stirred up by Sister Huang to cause her trouble, with Sister Huang then stepping in to “resolve” the problem and earn her gratitude.

There were times she even suspected that her brother’s beating might somehow be linked to the Ping household. It wasn’t a matter of hatred, but rather, if someone from the Ping family was connected to that noble in Luoyang, they would certainly know that it wasn’t Lu Yun, but Lu Ying herself who had studied and played chess with him.

Because she had caught that noble’s eye, the Ping family might well want to keep her under their control.

…And if they destroyed Lu Yun, leaving her without kin or support, in an era when family influence was growing and women had to rely ever more on their clan, it would be the most effective way to control her.

As her thoughts reached this point, Lu Ying stood quietly, watching the door being knocked upon, the corners of her lips slowly curling into a smile.

With a smile, she walked gracefully over and opened the gate.

Sister Huang stood outside, two plainly dressed maids behind her. Seeing Lu Ying’s friendly smile, Sister Huang’s face lit up with delight. “A Ying, I’ve come to see you—hope you don’t mind?” She shook the basket in her hand as she made her way inside, cheerfully continuing, “My sister from the countryside just brought some fresh bamboo shoots. I thought you might like them, so I brought some over. They’re best cooked with meat, so I also bought two pounds of pork. Come, see if it’s to your liking.”

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A reader asked about the book’s official release—I checked with my editor, and it’s set for March 8, which happens to be my holiday. When the time comes, please show extra support and toss in some pink tickets for me! After the launch, I’ll try to update with six thousand words a day for more pink tickets and see if I can climb the new releases ranking.