A Misty Night, With A Crystal-Clear Moon - Chapter 13
Chapter 13: The Second Encounter
Since that incident, the other maids dared not provoke Linglong and Cui Xin again, but they never gave them a pleasant look either. Shopkeeper Li, having personally witnessed the events of that evening, instinctively felt this maid was no ordinary person, yet he knew letting the conflict escalate was also inappropriate. He decided to assign Linglong some especially heavy chores to, in his mind, appease the resentment among the other servants. Although Linglong didn’t ask about it, she guessed most of the reason. She knew that as the owner of the house, the matter had reached his ears. She also felt she had acted too forcefully that day, but she was a proud person. Seeing Shopkeeper Li assign her so much heavy work, she understood his intention and offered no resistance.
This day, Linglong was carrying a large bucket of water to clean the floor early in the morning. Cui Xin had been assigned another task and couldn’t help her at the moment. How could Linglong have such strength? She managed to carry it to the doorway, but she tripped over the threshold. With a splash, the water spilled all over the floor, and she nearly fell herself.
“How are you working? You’ve dirtied the whole hall for no reason,” Shopkeeper Li scolded, then immediately added, “Young Master, are you alright?”
Linglong looked up, intending to shoot a glare at Shopkeeper Li, but instead met a pair of clear eyes.
“It’s you,” he said excitedly, his eyes filled with unconcealed joy. But did she know him? He completely disregarded his soaked shoes and kept staring at her.
“Have you forgotten? We met a month ago at the silk shop. You were wearing a white dress and a white hat that day.”
She finally remembered. He was the young man who had rescued her: Situ Nuo.
“Young Master, you know each other?” Shopkeeper Li asked, confused.
Situ Nuo smiled and nodded. He looked back at Yu Linglong. He hadn’t expected that their next meeting would find her as a mere cleaning maid in the very restaurant he managed.
Ever since their first encounter, Situ Nuo had often thought of Linglong—her face, her cold indifference. He couldn’t imagine how such an ice beauty could exist in the world. He didn’t blame her for being rude and not even saying thank you; he only looked forward to meeting her again. He didn’t know what the feeling was, but he simply liked it: this sensation of being concerned about someone, thinking of someone, even in his dreams.
Several times, he had drifted into thought alone, sometimes even giggling foolishly. A-Yuan had jokingly called him possessed and suggested a ghost had stolen his soul, insisting they find a shaman. Each time, he would impatiently dismiss A-Yuan, then return to his pleasant anticipation. And now, the anticipation had finally become reality.
“Why are you here?” he asked, his face still holding that sunny smile.
She looked away, saying nothing. How could she tell a stranger about her circumstances?
Shopkeeper Li walked over. “Young Master, her name is Yu’er. She’s a new servant. She’s not very good at her work. My apologies for her collision with you.”
Situ Nuo smiled. “So your name is Yu’er? That’s lovely.” Then, turning to Shopkeeper Li, he said, “To make a girl do such heavy manual labor—are there no men left in the building?”
Shopkeeper Li was startled. He quickly said, “Yes, yes, yes. I overlooked that. Xiao Yao, come clean this up. Hurry up! We’ll be open for business soon.”
Xiao Yao was a waiter in the building and a relative of Shopkeeper Li, in his twenties. Hearing Shopkeeper Li’s words, he walked over reluctantly. He glared at Linglong, then sullenly picked up the bucket and left.
A-Yuan rushed over at this time. Seeing Yu Linglong, he was also surprised. He pointed at her and said, “Isn’t that… why are you here?”
Linglong looked at him, and using the same tone as Shopkeeper Li, she said, “Young Master, if there’s nothing else, I’ll go back to work now.”
Before Situ Nuo could answer, Linglong had already left. A-Yuan asked, “Young Master? What is going on? Isn’t she a haughty young lady? Why is she here? And wearing a maid’s uniform?”
Situ Nuo looked at him. “You ask me, but who am I supposed to ask?”