Arrancando flores y sonriendo

Capítulo 40

"Miss Lu, what brings you here?" I looked at the suspicious blush on her face with suspicion—why would she blush to come see me?

"Mr. Ye, uh, Young Master Ye. I've come to apologize to you." She stammered as she finished speaking, her face even more flushed than the dress she was wearing.

"Apologize? You?" I looked at her in surprise, then smiled coldly. "Miss Lu, you must be mistaken. You don't seem to have done anything to offend me."

"It was at my house last time that I shouldn't have hurt you in a moment of impulse." She looked apologetic, and her expression seemed quite serious.

"Really? It's been so long, was that really necessary?" I was speechless—what was she really up to?

"So, Young Master Ye doesn't blame me?" Lu Rumei breathed a sigh of relief and looked at me with a hint of anticipation. "Then can I call you Brother Qingyang, just like Brother Jiang does?"

"Whatever you like," I shrugged. "But you didn't come all this way to see me just for something as trivial as how to address me, did you?"

Lu Rumei blushed slightly, a hint of embarrassment in her expression. I remained silent, simply watching her—what exactly was the main point she wanted to make?

She hesitated for a long time, as if she had mustered up a lot of courage, before finally speaking, "Brother Qingyang, how did you manage to change Brother Jiang?"

"Huh?" I didn't understand at all, and could only stare at her with my mouth wide open like a fool. "Me, change him? You think too highly of me. How could I possibly have that ability?"

“Yes, of course!” Lu Rumei looked at me eagerly. “Don’t you know? Not only has his tone of voice changed, but even the way he looks at me has warmed up. He even pats my hand to comfort me. And he smiles at me!”—As she spoke, her bright eyes sparkled with longing; her soft voice carried the joy of being immersed in love.

"Really? Congratulations then." I forced back my tears and said indifferently—Huaiyuan, is this your reason for forgetting me? Is that so? Is that so?!

Lu Rumei anxiously poured out her worries to me, "But, Brother Ye, I really want to know where Brother Jiang went during these six years of disappearance? What did he do? Who did he meet? I know that Brother Jiang must have suffered a lot during these six years! This suffering has made him even unwilling to face his family!" As she said this, she looked at me with eyes full of gratitude and a hint of hope, "You must have given Brother Jiang a lot of help! Can you tell me what I can do to make him like me more?"

Indeed, someone as proud as Huaiyuan would never allow anyone to see him tormented by poison, reduced to the appearance of a little child! Change him? I dare not take credit—his change was due to the Seven-Colored Azalea curing the poison in his body. He had returned to being the arrogant, domineering master of the number one manor in the world, naturally in high spirits! Even more gratifying was that after six years, his beautiful fiancée was still unmarried, patiently waiting for him. Although there had been some minor setbacks, they didn't affect the overall situation. How could he not be happy? If I were him, I would wake up laughing even in my dreams!

“Miss Lu, I’m afraid there’s nothing I can do to help you. As you can see, besides causing him trouble and creating problems, I haven’t done anything to benefit him at all. It’s more accurate to say I’m his enemy than to say I’ve done him a favor. You’ll have to put in your own effort to win his favor.” I replied coldly, looking at her happy face, and couldn’t help but want to pour cold water on her enthusiasm. “Besides, someone as domineering as him is unlikely to change through human effort alone!”

"Brother Qingyang is unwilling to help me?" Lu Rumei was on the verge of tears. "Then where were you, and how did you meet Brother Jiang? You can at least tell me that, right?" A beautiful woman with tears in her eyes indeed has a powerful effect, even moving a man with a heart of stone—it's just a pity that I am a woman!

My expression was indifferent. "How we met, I can't really say. I only know that I was being chased by my enemies, injured and unconscious. When I woke up, I was already in Wushan. It seems that Master Jiang saved me. That's all I know." — I wasn't lying to her; I was indeed thrown into the wilderness by my enemies—by God himself!

"Wushan? So, Zhou Tianyao went to Wushan to see Brother Jiang? Then you must know who the woman who was with Brother Jiang during that time and had a very close relationship with him is?" Lu Rumei was excited and almost pounced on me.

I gave a wry smile. What had I done to deserve this? Was everything she said before just empty talk? Was this her real purpose in coming to me? To find the mysterious woman hiding behind the scenes? We were definitely together during that time, but our relationship wasn't necessarily close!

"I didn't see the woman you're talking about." I remained calm and composed, stating clearly, "At least, there wasn't a woman he was intimately involved with." Given his condition at the time, it was impossible for him to have any romantic thoughts, okay?! But her words transported me to those carefree, idyllic memories—if I had known this would happen, would I have still asked Huaiyuan to come down the mountain? And if I hadn't argued with Huaiyuan and had waited a year before coming down with him, would Wufeng have already married Rumei by then? And would my troubles have disappeared then?

This book was first published on Xiaoxiang Novel Original Website. Please retain this information when reprinting!

[Volume 3: War and Chaos - Chapter 1: Unrequited Love]

Although the scenery at the resort is beautiful, being cooped up there every day without going out would be torture for anyone in the long run. Huaiyuan seemed to have vanished into thin air, leaving me feeling suffocated and almost driven mad—so I decided to take Xiaofeng out of the resort for a walk.

Looking at that pretty figure, I could only smile bitterly—ever since I failed to get the information she needed from her that day, I went from being called "Brother Qingyang" back to being "that guy surnamed Ye" in Miss Lu's mouth.

"You, surnamed Ye! Don't think that just because Brother Jiang and Wufeng kindly took you in, you can do whatever you want!" Lu Rumei glanced at me sideways, like a proud peacock, displaying her dominance. "These past few days, Brother Jiang has been extremely busy dealing with the mess you've made. I advise you to stay obediently in your Youhuang Residence and stop thinking about causing trouble for Brother Jiang all day long!"

"I caused him trouble? What a joke! I have legs, I can go wherever I want, what's it to you?" I couldn't help but sneer.

"Isn't this just causing trouble? If the outsiders catch you, how am I supposed to explain to Huaiyuan and Wufeng?" Lu Rumei's beautiful eyes widened, her pretty face filled with anger. "I don't have that much free time to follow you!"—Although her words were harsh, it wasn't hard to hear the concern she subtly revealed for me.

"Whether you come with me or not is up to you," I replied indifferently. "However, I am definitely going out. Surely Master Jiang didn't forbid me from leaving the house, did he? As for whether anything will happen, you don't need to worry about that."

Despite my reluctance, I must admit that Lu Rumei isn't actually that difficult to understand. While she can be a bit arrogant and willful, she's also passionate and never hides her true feelings. Even setting aside her appearance, Lu Rumei has her endearing qualities—as the saying goes, "Besides her elegant and upright demeanor, she possesses something else that captivates the heart!" Perhaps it's this straightforwardness and frankness that successfully won Huaiyuan's heart?

It seems I'm not as famous as I thought. At least for now, Xiao Feng and I have been strolling down the street for a while without running into a single troublemaker—which has made Xiao Feng keep looking around. I turned around, made a face at Lu Rumei who was following us at a distance, and pulled Xiao Feng into a side alley. We went through it and entered a restaurant called "Tianxiang Pavilion".

I had only intended to tease Lu Rumei a little and then leave immediately after shaking her off. However, when my gaze inadvertently fell upon a very familiar figure on the second floor through the window, I changed my mind.

I practically dragged Xiaofeng by the hand, leading her upstairs. We found a corner spot and peered through the beaded curtain of a private room—yes, the man sitting by the window, looking terrified and sweating profusely, was none other than Mr. Ye! Facing him was a woman with a charming smile and elegant demeanor—if I'm not mistaken, she should be the famous courtesan of Qinhuai I'd caught a glimpse of the other day, what was her name again? Right, Li Yanluo. Leaning against the wall was a slender woman, her face veiled in purple gauze, head bowed and silent; her origins were unknown.

"Brother Qingyang, let's hurry back to the manor!" Xiaofeng looked very anxious. She lowered her head, tightly gripped my sleeve, and kept urging me, "If Miss Lu catches us, we'll be in big trouble. With her temper, she'll definitely cause a huge uproar. Why do you have to go against her?"

"It's alright, she's all bark and no bite." I casually brushed off Xiaofeng. "Even if she catches her, so what? It's not illegal to come to a restaurant. Don't worry, she won't make a scene over something so trivial. At most, she'll throw a little tantrum."

“But we are guests in the manor, so it’s not right to be too disrespectful to the host, is it?” Xiao Feng tried her best to shrink behind me—she looked like she wanted to hide in a hole in the ground.

"Xiaofeng, what's wrong? Are you scared?" I asked, puzzled, squinting at her intently—she was pale and looked very weak. —How could she possibly resemble a woman who had once worked in a brothel?

"No, I probably ate too much this morning and ran too hard just now, so my stomach is a little uncomfortable." Xiao Feng smiled rather reluctantly.

Really? I'm skeptical. While strolling down the street just now, aside from feeling a little timid, I felt perfectly fine! And I'd only run less than fifty meters; to say I overexerted myself is a stretch. But I didn't intend to expose her—it's just...could her reaction be related to the three people in the booth across the street?! I remembered Brother Yan's parting words—Xiao Feng, would she really harm me?

"Alright then, Xiaofeng is a grown woman now, she'll be shy about showing her face in public." I casually pulled her up, pretending to tease her, while secretly observing her expression. "Go back and ask the doctor to take a look at you. You, you don't exercise enough, that's why your health is so poor."

"Um, I'm sorry, Brother Qingyang. We rarely get to come out like this, and I'm useless; I've prevented you from having enough fun." Xiaofeng visibly relaxed, secretly glancing at the private room before still huddled behind me—sure enough, she was afraid of the three of them. Was she afraid of just one of them, or all three?

Along the way, Xiao Feng seemed genuinely frightened, not uttering a single word, and quietly returned to the villa.

"Xiao Feng," I stopped Xiao Feng, who was about to return to her room, and looked at her calmly, "or should I call you Miss Yunxian?"

"Brother Qingyang!" Xiaofeng was startled and suddenly looked up at me in a panic—it seemed that Brother Yan had not wronged her; she really was Shen Yunxian. My heart ached slightly.

"Don't you have anything to say to me?" I remained indifferent, but my voice betrayed a hint of disappointment.

Xiao Feng bit her lower lip tightly, her expression tragic, and looked at me with tears in her eyes. "Brother Qingyang, I'm sorry. Yes, I am indeed Shen Yunxian from Yihonglou. Ma Juncai did not mistake me for someone else."

"You've been hiding your identity and going to great lengths to get close to me. What is your purpose?" I looked at her with a cold smile. "You don't need to cry. A woman's tears have no effect on me."

“A few months ago, I was a courtesan in the Yihonglou brothel. Madam Du made me comb my hair and start serving customers. Young Master Ma was chosen first, but I absolutely refused. Just as I was crying and making a scene, a man suddenly said he would redeem me.” Xiao Feng smiled sadly. “I had already resigned myself to death. But suddenly there was hope, so of course I was extremely grateful. In the end, he took me to Miss Li Yanluo. Miss Yanluo then took me to the Shen family, saying that she wanted me to be their daughter and change my name to Xiao Feng. A few days later, she said that a distant cousin was coming to Jiangning and that I should go and pick him up to stay with them.”

“Relatives? That’s not what you told me back then.” I interrupted her, sneering.

"Yes, she said this cousin is a proud and upright scholar who disdains associating with brothel people. If I were to say directly that she was helping him out, he would definitely not accept it. So she asked me not to explain yet, but to rent you a small, secluded courtyard at a cheap price so that you can study and prepare for the autumn exams." Xiao Feng said, raising her tearful eyes, "Brother Qingyang, believe me, I really didn't lie to you!"

"That's it? Nothing else?" I looked at her suspiciously.