Entangled Love GL - Chapter 15

“I don’t play chess.” Duan Min looked at Xue Yuyu’s fan and added, “Not at all.”

Xue Yuyu nodded and gently waved his cattail fan: “That was presumptuous of me.”

The wind swept through the courtyard, and the branches were in full bloom. Duan Min slightly turned her head to look at a peach tree outside the pavilion. A few scattered petals gently drifted down, landing on the cobblestone path. Spring was almost over.

Xue Yuyu said, “Miss Duan has been staying here for over a month. Are you accustomed to it?”

Duan Min didn’t know his intention. After thinking for a moment, she replied, “It’s alright.”

“I’m afraid it’s not alright.” Xue Yuyu’s voice was gentle and slow. His slender eyes curved with an ambiguous emotion, seeming tender, yet scrutinizing. “I heard that Miss Duan is extremely easygoing, never particular about food, clothing, or daily life. I suspect you are just muddling through, and not at peace, are you?”

Duan Min raised her eyes to look at him and said frankly, “I have no intention of staying here for long.”

“Why?” Xue Yuyu asked with a smile, “Does Miss Duan find this Pavilion’s temple too small? Or are you concerned because the young mistress is young and reckless?”

“I have no grand ambitions; this Pavilion would only be too grand for me. As for your young mistress…” Duan Min paused, then turned to ask, “Does Advisor Xue actually hope I stay here?”

Xue Yuyu nodded, “Naturally. It would truly be a pity if a talent like Miss Duan could not be with our Pavilion.”

Duan Min couldn’t help but smile, “You flatter me too much.”

Xue Yuyu shook his head very politely, “Miss Duan does not need to be overly modest.” He then said earnestly, “If Miss Duan has anything unsatisfactory, you can tell me, and perhaps I can be of service?”

Duan Min knew nothing about Xue Yuyu and didn’t know why he was so kind to her. Duan Min didn’t want to understand him, nor did she care how he saw her. She only wanted to know if he could possibly help her leave: “Thank you, but there is nothing wrong with this place. It’s just that I’m used to being unrestrained and truly unaccustomed to the atmosphere here.”

“It is indeed a pity that Miss Duan, with your purity and refinement, should stay in this place of conflict.” Xue Yuyu smiled, “However, firstly, Miss Duan’s talent is exceptionally rare. The situation in the capital is complex; how can such talent remain hidden for long? If not ours, then theirs, and wouldn’t it be regrettable if a day of hostility arose? Furthermore, the young mistress is exceptionally fond of Miss Duan. Even if Miss Duan is unwilling to contribute to the Pavilion, the young mistress will not treat you unfairly. You can live out your days in leisure, and if you can find peace in this, it will not be difficult to get used to it.”

“The young mistress…” Duan Min carefully observed Xue Yuyu’s expression and said slowly, “Your young mistress is truly kind to me—kind to the point of being inexplicable, which makes me feel uneasy.”

Xue Yuyu smiled knowingly and comforted her, “Miss Duan, please don’t be troubled. The young mistress’s treatment of you is not inexplicable. There are few female relatives in this Pavilion. The other girls are just low-ranking servants. The young ladies from places like the Howling Tiger Hall and the Nine-Turn Dragon Pavilion are either naive or difficult to distinguish as friend or foe. The young mistress has been lonely since childhood and has never had a close female companion. Miss Duan is exceptionally courageous, insightful, unique, and very sincere. It is not strange that the young mistress has developed a heart of yearning.”

Duan Min frowned. She strongly disliked hearing compliments—Duan Youchang was very annoyed by all sorts of flattery during his lifetime, believing that he did not need anyone’s commentary on anything he did—moreover, the more Xue Yuyu valued her, the greater the obstacle to her leaving would become.

Xue Yuyu looked at her earnestly and added, “The young mistress is young after all. She might speak and act childishly and rashly when unguarded, but her heart is absolutely not bad. It would be best if Miss Duan could be understanding.”

Duan Min suddenly realized that the last sentence was the key point in all that was said. Yang Mei was due back in the next couple of days, and Xue Yuyu hoped she would change her mind and her attitude towards Yang Mei. Xue Yuyu genuinely seemed not to find Yang Mei’s behavior towards her strange. Duan Min didn’t know if he truly couldn’t see it, chose not to see it, or was too confident that he could afford not to care.

Duan Min said, “Advisor Xue is right, but if I don’t want to stay here, perhaps it’s better not to be understanding.”

If she made every encounter with Yang Mei unpleasant, how long could the fervor last?

Xue Yuyu, however, gave a bright smile, “I wonder if Miss Duan believes this: for a person, especially one who is still a bit childish, if they get what they covet, they might tire of it quickly, as it’s only a momentary novelty. But if they don’t get it, they’ll want it even more. Even if they lose interest, they might refuse to let go out of stubborn spite. Furthermore,” Xue Yuyu modestly lowered his eyes, “compared to love and hate, the transition between liking and disliking is harder because it’s not deep enough; it can be dragged out.”

Duan Min was moved.

In the evening, the sky turned cloudy, and it gradually began to rain. After dinner, Duan Min dismissed Yue Ting, put out the light early, and went to rest. However, until the middle of the night, with silence all around, Duan Min remained listening to the rain.

The sky outside the window was dark and heavy, with tree shadows faintly visible. The sound of rain was sparse, tapping down lightly, drop by drop, making it quieter than when there was no sound at all. In the distance, light could still be seen in the Pavilion of Cold Night. Duan Min had only found out a few days ago that the building was the Pavilion of Cold Night, the place where Yang Yuansi first met her, and also the key strategic location of this Pavilion.

At this hour, the one still in that pavilion was probably Xue Yuyu.

Duan Min had a slight urge to go find him. On a rainy night like this, one person felt a little lonely after all. Xue Yuyu was someone she could talk to, and he was opinionated, yet gentle, which made him pleasant.

To be fair, Yang Mei was also pleasant. If she hadn’t wanted to become too deeply involved and interfere too much, Duan Min felt she would have been very happy to be her friend.

Duan Min sighed softly. She then thought, if she were truly under house arrest here, it would actually spare her many troubles. Being unable to act freely was a sufficient reason to escape danger and responsibility. After a long time, would she perhaps find peace?

Duan Min felt no drowsiness. She simply got up and went to the window, concentrating on listening to the rain. The rain sounded like a gentle lament, slow and graceful. Suddenly, there was a gust of wind, and the rain abruptly swept into the window, followed by a sheet of black shadow flying in. Duan Min was greatly startled and took two steps back. Someone had actually arrived.

The person was tall and stood with their back to the window, making their face indistinguishable. As soon as they stopped, they softly called out, “Miss Duan.”

“Lin Mo?” Duan Min quickly calmed down, then became worried. She asked in a low voice, “How did you get here? Didn’t I tell you to come find me at the Yiwei Clinic after some time?”

Lin Mo was silent for a moment, then said, “I heard you were being held here, and it was ill-fated.”

Duan Min was surprised, “Who told you that?”

It turned out that before Yang Yuansi’s funeral, several people disappeared from clinics in the capital. After the funeral, rumors circulated that the Pavilion had locked up all the doctors who treated Yang Yuansi, and many had been killed. Lin Mo went to the Yiwei Clinic to look for Duan Min. The people around there said that Miss Duan had been missing for a long time, her fate was uncertain, and it must have been the Pavilion’s doing.

Duan Min gave a wry smile. The Pavilion’s reputation had become this bad. Before she came here, the neighbors mostly felt that such a place of power had little to do with ordinary people, and sometimes they were even envious of it.

The Pavilion had indeed silenced people to cover up the matter of the “Poison of Entanglement,” but the fact that such talk was stirred up was probably due to someone deliberately orchestrating it.

“I arrived at the entrance of the Yiwei Clinic, saw the couplet… and I knew already.”

In the pitch-dark of midnight, Duan Min couldn’t see his expression. After thinking for a moment, she still didn’t speak.

Lin Mo then said, “If you are willing, I will take you out.”

Duan Min asked, “Taking me with you without alerting anyone, are you confident?”

Lin Mo hesitated for a moment, then said frankly, “No, but even if we are discovered, I can protect you and force our way out.”

Duan Min shook her head, “No need. Don’t risk yourself for me again. My family owes yours a great deal.”

Lin Mo said in a deep voice, “I don’t know about the events of that year, but Uncle Qi saving me is absolutely true!”

Duan Min smiled faintly, “You don’t need to worry. I am not in danger here.” She paused and said, “You can help me take a message to Lady Yun at the Yunyun Hall. Tell her I am doing well here in the Pavilion. Even if I can’t leave for a while, there is no need to worry. You can wait for me at her place.”

“Lady Yun?”

“Yes,” Duan Min heard his hesitation and smiled even more, “Just tell the person who greets you: ‘Find me the most beautiful woman here. She must be able to drink three cups of plum wine and play half a tune of ‘Green Pomegranate’.”