"Does this little girl think I'm too long-lived?" The beautiful protector Hua Yunfeng was speechless. He couldn't pretend he hadn't heard, so he had to stop, sigh, and turn around to bow: "What are your orders, Madam Sect Leader?"
Qiu Lingling ran up to her: "Don't you recognize me?"
"If I recognized you too well, the cult leader might just reassemble me," Hua Yunfeng smiled. "Did you need something from me?"
"Did you see Jin return?"
"The leader?"
"Yes, I just heard he was in the hall, but I didn't see him when I went over."
Hua Yunfeng's eyes flickered, an idea forming in his mind. He feigned hesitation, "This..."
You know?
"I vaguely remember hearing someone mention it, but I'm not sure."
Qiu Lingling asked joyfully, "Where is he?"
Hua Yunfeng glanced at her, remaining calm: "If the sect leader finds out I leaked his whereabouts..."
Qiu Lingling quickly said, "I won't tell him, don't worry."
Hua Yunfeng shook his head and turned to leave: "No, no one can bear the blame if the sect leader is angry."
Qiu Lingling panicked and grabbed him, saying, "Tell me quietly, I won't tell anyone."
"real?"
"real."
Hua Yunfeng then looked around to make sure no one was there before lowering his voice and saying, "I heard that the sect leader likes to go to the Peony Courtyard..." He left the sentence unfinished, leaving much to the imagination.
Peony Courtyard? Qiu Lingling felt the name was familiar. After a moment of thought, she finally remembered that it was the courtyard with many peonies: "Yes, he often goes there on business, but it's almost dark now, why isn't he back yet?"
"Madam is so calm, or do you still not understand?" Hua Yunfeng smiled mysteriously and shook his head: "That's right, that place is only beautiful at night."
Qiu Lingling was even more surprised: "Really?"
“Of course,” Hua Yunfeng instructed, “but if the sect leader finds out…”
Qiu Lingling understood: "Don't worry, I won't tell anyone about you."
Watching her retreating figure, Hua Yunfeng waved his jade flute, feeling greatly relieved. It wasn't a deliberate frame-up; Jin Huanlai trusted Protector Qian, Yin Fei, the most. Whenever there was an emergency, Yin Fei could always find him. Until later, when he personally saw Yin Fei go to the Peony Courtyard, he thought, "Tch, so what if I'm the sect leader? This girl doesn't even know what love is all about, yet she's already taken me as her wife. She's clearly trying to block my love life, and she even drove me out of my own garden. I'll make sure your backyard is on fire."
.
As night fell, Qiu Lingling walked alone on the street, just about to ask someone where the Peony Courtyard was, when she suddenly heard a familiar voice calling her. Turning around, she saw Yi Qinghan and Liu Bai coming out of the restaurant, followed by two servants who also acted as guards.
"Running around so late?" The young master frowned. The two people he sent to protect her had returned, but who knew the little girl would sneak out again at night.
Qiu Lingling didn't think so: "I want to find Jin and get him back."
"Gold back?" The young master remained calm: "Looking for him?"
Qiu Lingling asked, "I heard he's at the Peony Courtyard. Do you know where the Peony Courtyard is?"
Liu Bai and the others immediately turned their faces away. The young master was also stunned for a moment, then smiled. She had no idea what the Peony Courtyard was. Interesting. However, it would probably be dangerous to let this girl go there alone.
"Of course I know," the young master nodded with a smile, turned his head slightly, and instructed Liu Bai, "You all go back first."
"Seriously, young master? Can't you be a little more mindful of your image? How can you take such a young lady to a place like that?" Liu Bai's face darkened, and he left with two guards.
Qiu Lingling asked excitedly, "Are you going to take me with you?"
The young lady is too ignorant and really needs to go for some tutoring. Always holding a man's hand makes one feel uneasy. The young master smiled and said, "Of course, you can't go alone."
Qiu Lingling was puzzled.
"Because only men can go in that place." After explaining, the young master naturally raised his hand, allowing the little maid to come forward and pull him away.
"I see. Let's go."
.
The young man in brocade and the young woman in black, elegant yet understated, simple yet beautiful, their combination of splendor and subtlety, instead of creating a contrast, achieves a visually harmonious effect.
Not to mention the girls' surprise, even the experienced madam felt something was amiss. It wasn't uncommon for a shrew to come and drag her husband around in this kind of place, but it was rare to see a woman bringing a woman along. Could it be that she was here to borrow a room for some business? I'm not in the business of running an inn.
The madam stepped forward to stop them: "Young master..." She had only said two words when the young master handed her a silver note: "We're just here to take a look and borrow a room. You don't need to worry about anything else."
Upon seeing the amount on the banknote, the madam opened her mouth, "So the two of you have come up with the idea of visiting a brothel to enjoy the scenery?" "Whatever," she thought, "as long as we make money, that's all that matters." So she turned around and ordered her maid to take the two of them to the inner garden.
As they walked along the exquisite covered walkway, the young master couldn't help but receive flirtatious glances from the girls. He paid no attention to them, but Qiu Lingling kept looking around. The way the girls leaned against the railing and smiled as they greeted the guests felt familiar to her, just like the place where Jin had come to pick her up before, except that place wasn't called Peony Courtyard.
She quietly tugged at the young man's sleeve: "Aren't there any peonies?"
The young master suppressed a laugh and gestured for her to look: "What do you mean there aren't any? Look how pretty they are, don't they look like peonies?"
So that's what the Peony Courtyard meant. Qiu Lingling had grown up so much, and she vaguely began to feel that it wasn't a good thing for a man to come here. She was very uneasy: "Have you been here before?"
The young master stopped in his tracks and glanced at her sideways: "No."
"That's good, I don't like it here." Qiu Lingling pouted and continued to pull him forward.
Indeed, no. Because whoever I want, I can just send someone to pick them up. Young master smiled. Even if I had really been here, I wouldn't tell the truth at a time like this. Silly little cat, it's really easy to leave a good impression on you.
Upon reaching the door of the room, the young master gestured for the maid who had led the way to step back.
"With so many people, how are we supposed to find them?" we worried.
"Or he might be in some girl's room." He pondered.
"What is he doing in someone else's room!" Qiu Lingling said unhappily.
"Do what a husband and wife should do." The young master remained unfazed.
Wife? Qiu Lingling's face fell: "I'm his wife."
The young master stared at her coldly for a while, then kindly corrected her: "You're wrong. You're not his wife. When you get married, you wear a wedding robe and ride in a bridal sedan chair. Did he perform the wedding ceremony with you?"
Qiu Lingling was stunned, then lowered her head: "He will marry me."
As soon as they finished speaking, a scream suddenly came from the next room, followed by a strange and suppressed woman's laughter, and a man's voice, which, though not loud and intermittent, was enough for the two of them to hear.
Qiu Lingling tilted her head: "What's wrong with them?"
"Doing things between husband and wife," the young master said calmly, trying to explain in an elegant and easy-to-understand way, "the girls here don't need to go through a wedding ceremony to become the wives of many men." Seeing her stunned, he shook his head again: "You're still young, you can't ask so many questions. Go inside and rest for a while, don't run around. I'll go over there to find Master Jin for you, I'll be back soon."
He left leisurely and disappeared around the corner.
What is this between husband and wife? Qiu Lingling was both puzzled and curious. She was unwilling to go into the room to rest. The sounds from next door were getting more and more strange, making her face flush and her heart race. What were they doing in there?
The door was tightly closed, but the openwork areas were covered with paper, so it wasn't difficult to see what was inside.
She blinked her big eyes, looked around cautiously, and finally couldn't resist tiptoeing over quietly...
.
Yi Qinghan returned quickly as expected. When he entered the room, he found the little girl sitting motionless in a chair, seemingly lost in thought, with a suspicious blush on her face.
A hint of a smile flickered in her peach blossom eyes.
"Lingling?" she called softly.
Qiu Lingling, who was feeling guilty, was startled by this sudden turn of events and immediately jumped up, her face turning as red as a boiled crab: "You...you're back."
The young master pursed his lips: "I inquired earlier and didn't see Master Jin, so he's probably not here." He bowed slightly, took her small hand, and led her towards the door: "I'll take you to the Embracing Green Pavilion over there..."
As if burned, Qiu Lingling quickly withdrew her hand and took two steps back.
Young Master Mo Ming: "You..."
Qiu Lingling became increasingly flustered, standing there helplessly with her eyes lowered, stammering, "No, it's nothing. It's so late, let's not look anymore. I...I want to go back!"
After saying that, she ignored him and ran away quickly.
The figure drifted away, heading into the darkness, and finally disappeared completely from sight. The young master smiled and said, "See, I can always explain the most complicated things in the simplest way."
Unrequited Love
In fact, Jin Huanlai didn't go to the Peony Courtyard. He was just looking for Jiang Xiaohu. When he returned, he found the little girl's door tightly closed, so he didn't call her. However, in the following days, the little girl became very strange. Not only did she stop looking for Yi Qinghan, but she also became less talkative, often lost in thought, blushed inexplicably, and liked to secretly look at him, as if she suspected something. This often made Jin Huanlai feel uneasy, as if a flower had grown on his face. As for the educational issues that Jiang Xiaohu raised, he never had a chance to speak up.
Everything changed that night. I heard she came back very late that day. What happened? Jin was full of questions. Had this girl accidentally drunk something again and been poisoned?
The little girl was slumped over the desk in a daze. Jin Huanlai couldn't hold back any longer and pulled her hand to take her pulse: "What's wrong now?"
Qiu Lingling exclaimed "Ah!" and her face flushed red. She jumped up and backed away as if by reflex, trying to pull her hand back: "No, it's nothing."
Something's definitely fishy! Jin grabbed her little hand tightly and snorted, "Where did you go that night?"
"That day?" Qiu Lingling was stunned for a moment, finally understanding what he was asking. Her face turned even redder, and she struggled even more fiercely. How could she possibly admit to having been to such a place, to that shameful scene...
Jin grew increasingly suspicious and demanded sharply, "Aren't you going to talk?"
Qiu Lingling stopped struggling, lowered her head, and after a long while, mumbled, "With Young Master Yi."
Jin's heart skipped a beat: "What...did he do to you?"
Qiu Lingling already understood some things, and even though she was confused at this moment, she vaguely guessed the meaning behind the words. She lowered her head even further: "No..."
Seeing that even her ears were red, something the girl would never normally do, Jin Hailai couldn't believe "no." Like a bolt from the blue, his mind went blank, and before he could think of anything else, his hand tightened suddenly: "You, he really did love you..."
"No, no, it's my hand!" Qiu Lingling cried out in pain.
Suddenly there was a knock on the door, and the two of them stopped at the same time.
"Who!" he roared.
"Master, Young Master Yi has sent a letter." It was Protector Qian, Yin Fei's voice.
Just in time, Jin sneered, "Bring it here."
The door opened, and sure enough, it was Yin Fei who entered. He was the only one among the four protectors who had seen the sect leader's true face, so he shouldn't have been surprised. But now the sect leader was holding his junior sister's hand without any hesitation and showed no intention of letting go. He couldn't help but secretly admire Protector Yue Yiping's ability to judge people. These two were indeed suspicious!
.
"This letter is actually for the old cult leader," he said respectfully, presenting it to him.
Jin took it and gestured for him to step back.
Although Yin Fei was straightforward, he was known for his calm and meticulous approach to handling matters. So when he went out, he carefully closed the door for the two of them, because he was a little worried that he might have disturbed something.
Qiu Lingling asked, puzzled, "Is it for Master?"