Delicate Beauty Steals the Spring [Transmigration into a Book] - Chapter 8

Perhaps the wind on Swallow Isle was too strong Yu Luo sneezed.

“Achoo…”

She quickly covered her mouth and nose with a handkerchief.

Looking around, she couldn’t shake the feeling that someone was secretly talking about her behind her back. But who it was Yu Luo couldn’t guess.

Zi Ming hurried forward to wrap her cloak tighter around her. “The wind is strong here, Miss. Please be careful not to catch a chill.”

Yu Luo held the kite string in one hand. “Forget it. I’m a bit tired of playing today. Let’s head back.”

At that moment, her kite was blown off course and became entangled with Liu Yanran’s kite string.

No matter how they pulled, the two kites couldn’t be separated. In the end, they had no choice but to reel them in.

The strings were so tightly wound that they couldn’t be untangled one had to be cut.

Liu Yanran’s eyes instantly turned red. “This kite was a gift from my second cousin… Never mind. Cut mine, so Luo Biaomei won’t be upset.”

Yu Luo: “…”

That overwhelming green-tea-girl energy it really couldn’t be held back, could it?

And besides, it was just the string, not the kite itself. You could always tie the string back on. Was all this melodrama really necessary?

Yu Luo didn’t bother saying much. She simply took the scissors handed to her by a maid.

With a “snip,” she cut her own kite string and picked up her big white rabbit kite.

In a calm voice, Yu Luo said, “It’s just a kite. Does Biaojie truly think I’d care so much? I am a noble lady of a marquis’s household, not some petty person who gets worked up over trivial things.”

Liu Yanran was stunned.

Yu Luo’s actions today were completely unexpected.

The old Yu Luo the hot headed fool would’ve flown into a tantrum the moment Liu Yanran pushed her buttons even slightly.

But today, Liu Yanran had provoked her three or four times, and Yu Luo had calmly deflected each one.

Truth be told, Yu Luo really had no patience for fake sweethearts like her.

Right now, Liu Yanran was still young and hadn’t yet developed into the scheming, manipulative woman who would one day ruin the entire Yu family just to curry favor with the male lead.

Her tricks now were limited to mild manipulation and innocent-sounding words laced with meaning.

But Yu Luo had weathered far greater storms she didn’t care much about these petty games.

After finishing what she had to say, Yu Luo didn’t bother to check the expressions on her two older brothers’ faces. She told Zi Ming to pick up the kite with the broken string, then turned and left.

Yu Che stared at her retreating back and stroked his chin. “Feels like Luo’er suddenly grew up. She’s starting to carry the grace of a proper noble lady.”

Yu Yuan agreed.

Liu Yanran’s eyes welled up with tears. “It’s all my fault for upsetting Luo Biaomei. Maybe I should just pack up and go back home, so she won’t be so distressed anymore.”

Yu Che said, “Biaomei, don’t think like that. You’re doing just fine here at the estate—why leave? If you go back, your stepmother will only torment you again.”

Yu Yuan, who always felt sorry for Liu Yanran’s unfortunate background, also spoke up to comfort her.

Liu Yanran forced a smile through her tears. “It’s just my fate, I suppose born with nothing. Luo Biaomei is blessed whatever she wants, she has.”

The two dimwitted straight arrow brothers, seeing how pitiful she looked, immediately forgot about Yu Luo and hurried to comfort her.

Yu Luo took the boat back with her maids.

Zi Ming and Bi Tong, though often scolded and ordered about by their young mistress, were born and raised in the household and remained loyal to the Yu family.

Because of that, they didn’t think much of the so-called “cousin.”

Zi Ming couldn’t help but say, “That young lady is always speaking poorly of you in front of the two young masters. Maybe you shouldn’t pay her any mind next time…”

Yu Luo lowered her gaze, long lashes casting shadows over her eyes.

Then she said, “I’m tired today and don’t want to deal with her. Don’t mention her in front of me.”

Zi Ming nodded. “Yes, Miss.”

By the time they returned to the residence, it was nearly dusk. Just before entering the courtyard, Yu Luo spotted Li Xiao, who was on duty.

Yu Luo felt a headache coming on.

When it came to the male lead, she really didn’t know how to make amends.

Li Xiao’s personality was complex, and his thoughts couldn’t be easily deciphered.

In the novel The Road of the Tyrant, the author had intentionally avoided writing much of the male lead’s internal thoughts just his actions so that his image would remain mysterious and powerful in the reader’s eyes.

Because of this lack of inner monologue, readers found Li Xiao to be an enigmatic figure.

Even Yu Luo, who had read the entire novel, couldn’t fully guess what the male lead was thinking.

What scared her most was whether he was planning to tie her to a post and steam her alive—or maybe roast her. Or perhaps go full out with a five-horse dismemberment punishment.

Li Xiao was not a traditionally “positive” male lead.

His bright, heroic side had only existed before the Qin Prince’s residence had fallen when he was still a young general, proud and full of vigor.

Now, after everything he’d been through, his character was closer to a villain. The cruel and bloody punishments he dished out he had absolutely used them on those who opposed him.

Just thinking about it made Yu Luo instinctively afraid of him.

Li Xiao noticed the flicker of fear in her gaze however brief it was and it didn’t escape his sharp eyes.

He didn’t show any emotion, only said calmly, “Did the young lady’s kite break?”

Yu Luo found this odd.

Li Xiao was known for being a man of few words. Unless he was planning to kill someone, he rarely initiated conversations. Why was he suddenly asking about a kite?

Was he planning something?

Would he send someone to kill her tonight?

She took two steps back.

Then quickly remembered she was a noble lady, and he, though hiding his true identity, was currently serving as a bodyguard. She absolutely couldn’t break character.

Yu Luo handed the kite to him. “The string broke. Fix it and bring it to my courtyard afterward. If you can’t fix it, you’ll be severely punished.”

Li Xiao didn’t say anything just took the kite from her hands.

Yu Luo returned to her quarters with her maids.

Ever since her mother had passed, she’d spent a long time in grief. Later, her stepmother’s abuse only worsened her health. Compared to the original Yu Luo, her own body was far more fragile.

And strangely, after arriving in this dynasty, Yu Luo’s physical condition hadn’t aligned with that of Yu Luo’s body it remained exactly the same as it had been before she transmigrated.