Eternal Night - Chapter 138
Yongye opened his eyes wide and watched as Minglan carried the medicine bowl to the bedside.
Minglan is also very sweet-looking. When she speaks, she has two deep, round dimples around her mouth. Her long hair is draped over her shoulders, and a bright blue gemstone hangs between her smooth, round forehead.
Yongye was immediately captivated by Minglan's beauty and found her to be very appealing. She smiled and said, "Your master likes beautiful women, and beautiful women are often named after colors. You like blue, so you are called Minglan. This headdress was a special gift from your master to you. He will definitely say that only Minglan is worthy of this blue gemstone."
Minglan was dumbfounded.
"Give me the medicine, be careful not to spill it!" Yongye looked at Minglan's trembling hand gesture with amusement.
"Oh, Miss, does the master know you too? He told you everything?" Minglan's wide eyes weren't clearly black and white, but rather a clear black with a faint blue tinge.
Yongye drank the medicine in one gulp, wiped his mouth and smiled, "You're wearing a bright blue skirt and a dark brown blouse. Your master is a master painter, so he naturally knows how to match colors. Your name is Minglan (Bright Blue), and with this sapphire, it's easy to imagine."
Minglan smiled, revealing two deep, sweet dimples. A blush rose to her cheeks, and she stamped her foot, saying, "If I didn't know you were a girl, I would definitely think you were a smooth-talking bad man!"
Yongye's mood brightened up in the bright blue light. She took a deep breath and found her breathing much calmer. Feng Yangxi had sent Chen Qiushui's beloved woman to serve her; their relationship must be quite close. She paused for a moment, then told herself not to think about it. She got out of bed, stretched, and said, "I have nothing to do, so I'll go visit your master."
She reached for the robe, but Minglan suddenly pulled it away and said disdainfully, "That's for men. What's a girl doing wearing a robe?"
"Your master said that girls are best suited to soft, flowing dresses, and that men's robes cannot bring out a girl's beauty, is that right?"
"Ah! Miss found out again?" Yongye loved Minglan's glaring eyes. He reached out and touched her face, secretly longing for the beauty hidden in Chen Qiushui's manor.
A bright blue so distinct and unique, other beauties must be just as stunning.
Although An Boping said that Chen Qiushui relied on the financial support of the An family, Yongye believed that someone who could gain Feng Yangxi's trust and create magnificent landscape paintings must have a broad mind and would never be someone who coveted money.
This puzzled Yongye. Why would An Boping think Chen Qiushui was that kind of person? Perhaps if she got to know Chen Qiushui, she could understand some of An Boping's purpose in having her forge the painting.
"But I can't just go out like this, can I? I'm not afraid, I'm just worried about what others will think." Yongye was telling the truth. In this era, people are covered up all year round. In her previous life, on a hot day, she would have gone shirtless or just casually put on a t-shirt.
Minglan pouted and said, "Young Master Feng said that Miss definitely wouldn't stay still after waking up, so my master said that if Miss is willing, she can go to Qiushui Manor for a visit." She smiled and took out a cloth bag and handed it to Yongye.
Upon opening it, she found a light purple dress paired with a white, wide-sleeved gauze blouse. Yongye recalled that day at the silk shop, when Feng Yangxi forced her to take her measurements and have this dress made. Her fingers traced the smooth fabric, a myriad of emotions welling up inside her. She shook her head: "I don't wear women's clothing."
She thought of Yuepo. He was still in Youli Valley's hands; how could she let others see her dressed as a woman? He wanted him to be the first person to see her in women's clothing. Yongye's nose stung with tears; she remembered Feng Yangxi's kiss last night, and her spirits plummeted.
"Minglan, I'd like to sit here for a while. I won't go to the villa. If it's convenient, could you bring me a tea set? I'd like to brew some tea."
"Miss!" Minglan looked at Yongye in confusion.
She looked beautiful with her hair down and wearing a simple undergarment. Why didn't she wear a more beautiful ruqun (a type of traditional Chinese dress)?
Yongye took Feng Yangxi's zither and placed it on the low table. He smiled apologetically at Minglan and said, "Please thank your master for his kindness on my behalf."
She slowly extended her wrist, her middle finger pressing down to lightly pluck a string. Yongye gazed at a bird skimming across the water, recalling Wang Bo's lines: "The setting sun and the lone wild goose fly together."
She was like a lone bird, afraid to get close to people.
That's the fate of an assassin. She felt sorry for Yuepo, and was close to him because he, like her, shared the same tragic fate.
The warmth of simple meals in the alley was still vivid in her mind. How could she abandon him?
The music shifted from sorrow to indignation, and Yongye's fingerwork grew increasingly rapid. She didn't know how long she played; in the sweltering afternoon heat, Yongye felt no warmth whatsoever. She couldn't even hear her own music; her gaze was unfocused, lost in the distance, her mind filled only with images of the moon and roses.
A hand suddenly landed on the strings, and the music stopped abruptly.
"Your hands are so delicate, injuring your fingers will make it difficult to throw hidden weapons." Feng Yangxi's calm voice clearly carried a hint of anger.
Having not played for a long time and then playing for too long, a slight pain shot through his fingertips. Yongye lowered his eyes and asked, "Any news?"
Are you worried about Rose or Young Master Yue?
Yongye turned her head away, worried about Qiangwei and Yuepo. The thought of them being trapped in the Valley of Wandering filled her with anxiety, making it impossible for her to calm down.
Feng Yangxi suddenly smiled, gazing at the setting sun over the lake, and said, "Look, night is coming soon, but there will be such a magnificent sunset tomorrow."
Yongye was stunned, unsure of what he was trying to say. She wasn't in the mood to watch the sunset with him right now, and bit her lip as she said, "An Boping said he spent ten thousand taels of silver to ask Youli Valley for help, to control Yuepo and Qiangwei, just so I could make fake calligraphy and paintings for him. Jiguzhai and Dachanghao are both businesses of the An family."
"You've learned so much! Is this something an assassin needs to learn?" Feng Yangxi asked, puzzled.
His words stirred up Yongye's sadness again. She didn't want to be an assassin in her past life, and now she was an assassin in this one; it was exhausting. Feng Yangxi's tone was full of mockery in Yongye's ears. Assassins don't need to learn these things, they only need to learn how to kill, right? She sneered, "It's much better than someone who claims not to associate with the powerful, yet is closely colluding with Crown Prince Yan of Emperor Youqing! At least, I earn my living through my skills! Yongye has always wanted to know what kind of work a great hero does to make a living, and now she understands."
She actually said he was making money by being a lackey? Feng Yangxi was so angry that she gritted her teeth, veins throbbing on her forehead. She turned her head away from Yongye, lest she slap her to death. To think that someone with so many years of cultivation could make her lose control like this, Feng Yangxi admired Yongye.
He took a deep breath, not understanding why a single sentence had provoked her into acting like a hedgehog. Feng Yangxi forcefully controlled her anger and slowly addressed her seriously: "Whether Youli Valley wants you to stay at the An family to paint, or the An family needs you to paint, you have the opportunity to enter the An family to investigate this matter. However, you only have one month. Whatever the result, you must prepare to get married."
Yongye raised an eyebrow: "Who is the Crown Prince to you?"
"Those who helped me destroy the Wandering Valley. I think you don't want to see the Wandering Valley continue to threaten you."
Yongye paused for a moment and then asked, "Is it your and his condition?"
Feng Yangxi was stunned for a moment and didn't say anything.
"What business is it of yours whether I marry him or not?!" He kissed her last night, and today he wants her to marry the Crown Prince? Feng Yangxi, what do you take me for? Yongye was instantly enraged.
"Wasn't the route you took that night to the Crown Prince's Eastern Palace? Weren't you thinking of marrying him and using him to protect your beloved?" Feng Yangxi looked at Yongye mockingly.
Yongye was speechless, and snorted without replying.
Yongye's stubbornness angered Feng Yangxi. Did she really like that boy that much? Would she rather marry Murong Yan, someone she didn't love? He smiled coldly: "You have to do it whether you like it or not! If you want your sweetheart and Princess Rose to be safe! Call me a threat or whatever, you'd better think it over!"
Yongye suddenly burst into laughter, saying, "I am a lowly assassin. Why should I save Rose and Moon Soul? Their lives are their own, and have nothing to do with me! Yongye is unharmed, so I will take my leave!"
Feng Yangxi reached out and grabbed her, saying each word clearly, "I don't believe a single word you've said!"
"Let go!"