Yu Yuan’s question rendered the woman speechless.
She was already at a disadvantage, so seeing that his attitude was firm and he couldn’t be poached by the Eldest Prince’s faction, she stormed off with a flick of her sleeve.
Yu Yuan remained where he was.
His face was gloomy, and his dark eyes looked a little dejected.
Yan Mu sighed. She crouched down and picked the jade beads up one by one.
Yu Yuan’s expression slightly shifted, and he also squatted down with her.
He gently held Yan Mu’s hand.
“Leave them,” Yu Yuan said hoarsely.
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Zyd Yw’p xshlxldvp qasgl. Fbl vwadle vs Zw Zwyd yde ypjle, “Ebyv yal usw tskdt vs es okvb vblpl clyep?”
Fbl nyalqwzzu blze wr vbl clyep. Mbl uswdt tkaz’p qyka ryzx zssjle xsal pxssvb yde zwpvaswp vbyd vbl fyel clyep.
“Mbaso vblx yoyu,” Zw Zwyd yhlavle bkp tygl. “R esd’v oydv vs pll vblx yduxsal.”
Tl yzoyup jdlo vbyv bkp xsvbla eked’v zshl bkx.
Rv’p fwpv vbyv bl vbswtbv bkp xsvbla oyp elye clqsal, ps bl jlrv vbl clyep yp y jllrpyjl.
Jlnywpl bkp xsvbla oyp elye, bl nswze elnlkhl bkxplzq cu vlzzkdt bkxplzq vbyv rlabyrp pbl bye zshle bkx y zkvvzl.
Gqvla yzz, bkp xsvbla oyp bkp sdzu alzyvkhl kd vbkp osaze.
Jwv dso……
Yu Yuan felt sad.
With their relationship laid bare, and all pretenses thrown aside, there was no need to keep this thing anymore.
Yu Yuan pulled Yan Mu up and hugged her tightly.
“What’s the matter?” Yan Mu dropped a few beads from the sudden hug.
The beads fell to the ground with a clatter. Yu Yuan’s hand pinched Yan Mu’s chin, forcing her to turn her head and kiss him.
This kiss was more intense than ever before.
Just when Yan Mu felt like she was suffocating, Yu Yuan let her go with a gasp.
“Ah Mu, you’ll always be with me, right?” Yu Yuan asked again.
It was the first time he had lost his self-control.
His dark eyes, which used to be filled with such tenacity, were now filled with gloom, and despair seemed to cover his face. It seemed as if with just another little push, Yu Yuan would fall into eternal darkness.
Yan Mu felt sorrowful.
Yu Yuan had always had a composure beyond his age.
Even for major events involving life and death, he would quickly make the most rational judgments.
Others could never see through Yu Yuan, thinking he was as elusive as a flower in the mist.
Only Yan Mu knew how sensitive and fragile the teenager in front of her was.
“Ah Mu, you’re all I have.” Yu Yuan muttered to himself, “Don’t leave me.”
“Please……”
The teenager’s soft plea drifted into Yan Mu’s ears, causing her already wavering heart to break completely.
“Alright,” she choked and said. “I won’t leave you.”
Yu Yuan didn’t speak and just buried his head in the crook of Yan Mu’s neck for a long time.
When he raised his head again, his emotions seemed to have calmed down a little.
“Since you don’t want the beads anymore, I have an idea.” Yan Mu leaned over and kissed Yu Yuan’s face.
“What?”
After Yan Mu’s kiss, Yu Yuan looked visibly better.
Yan Mu smiled without a word.
She pulled Yu Yuan down the stairs and gave the jade beads to Restaurant Baoyue.
The quality of the jade beads was pretty good and rare.
The boss of Restaurant Baoyue was famous for his love for jade. Seeing such good quality jade, his face instantly broke into a smile1喜笑颜开 (xǐxiào-yánkāi) – grinning from ear to ear (idiom).
The boss happily agreed to Yan Mu’s conditions.
***********************
After taking care of everything, Yu Yuan took Yan Mu’s hand and walked down the street.
Their breath turned into white mist and drifted away.
Yan Mu was wearing little pink boots, crunching on the snow.
As they walked, Yan Mu somehow fell behind Yu Yuan.
Yu Yuan was worried that Yan Mu would accidentally bump into him and get another nosebleed, so he promptly stopped and turned around.
He saw Yan Mu holding the hem of her skirt, bouncing like a little rabbit behind him.
She was deliberately stepping on Yu Yuan’s footprints.
Yu Yuan was much taller than Yan Mu, so his footsteps were naturally much wider than hers.
Yan Mu strode over with some difficulty.
Yu Yuan stood where he was and watched silently.
Snowflakes had begun to flutter down from the sky, falling on the clothes and hair of the pedestrians.
Time seemed to have stopped at this moment, and it was as if there were only Yu Yuan and Yan Mu in this vast world.
Obviously, it was freezing and difficult to walk in the slippery snow.
Obviously, the snow was getting heavier and heavier.
But Yu Yuan’s heart was warm.
One snowflake after another gathered on their hair, looking like they’d grown old together.
Yu Yuan reached out to Yan Mu.
The rabbit-like young girl raised her head and smiled sweetly at him. She reached out and held his hand tightly, then steadily jumped over the piling snow and threw herself into his arms.
Her sweet scent instantly surrounded Yu Yuan.
The young girl’s body was clearly very light, but he felt like she was like a wild horse slamming right into his heart.
Instantly, that restless heart was gentle and calm, like a tamed, loyal dog.
Yu Yuan brushed the snow off Yan Mu’s body, and pulled on the hood of her cloak, tying the strings carefully.
“Let’s go back,” he said softly.
“Alright.”
Yan Mu smiled as she stuffed her icy-cold hand into Yu Yuan’s arms.
Yu Yuan wasn’t angry either, and he just let Yan Mu be.
Instead, Yan Mu was a little embarrassed and pulled her hand back.
But Yu Yuan held Yan Mu’s hand, and the two walked side by side towards the bookstore.
**********************
Yu Yuan hadn’t worn a cloak when he went out, so his clothes were wet.
As soon as they returned to the bookstore, Yan Mu ordered someone to boil hot water for him to bathe.
Yan Mu changed into her home clothes and nestled in her room to write manuscripts.
There was a gentle knock on the door outside, followed by Father Yan entering with a pot of daffodils2
.
“Dad,” Yan Mu put down her writing brush.
“Daughter, look at this.” Father Yan looked very happy. “This flower is very rare.”
People of this era didn’t know how to propagate daffodils by removing the offsets. So, their reproduction relied entirely on the small bulbs produced by the mother plant, but they would require several years before they started blooming.
So, daffodils were usually only found in the royal family.
Yan Mu wanted to make Father Yan happy, so she exclaimed in surprise, pretending she had never seen one before.
“What’s this? It’s so fragrant!” Yan Mu exclaimed.
“This is a daffodil. It was difficult for Dad to get one.” Seeing Yan Mu’s look of surprise, Father Yan indeed looked even happier.
“Let’s put this pot of flowers in your room,” Father Yan smiled and said.
“Not in the main hall?” Yan Mu was confused.
“The main hall is too crowded. What if it gets damaged?” Father Yan disagreed, “It’s better to put it in your room, and I’ll be at ease.”
“Then…… then, what if I accidentally break it?” Yan Mu asked, somewhat embarrassed.
“It doesn’t matter if my daughter breaks it. Compared to flowers, my daughter is more important!” Father Yan said without hesitation.
Yan Mu suddenly remembered Yu Yuan’s mother.
She could actually understand his mother’s feelings, but that didn’t mean she could accept the harm she had done to him.
She looked at Father Yan and felt like she was truly lucky.
Yan Mu took the daffodils and carefully placed them on the table.
The daffodils of this era weren’t very big, but they were especially fragrant.
Father Yan had just brought the flowers in a few minutes ago, but the room was already filled with a faint fragrance.
Yan Mu took a deep breath and suddenly said to Father Yan, “Dad, you’re so kind.”
If she had transmigrated as the child of Yu Yuan’s mother, she was afraid she would’ve been immediately thrown away because of her weak body.
The more Yan Mu thought about it, the more she felt like it wasn’t easy for Father Yan, who’d single-handedly brought up his child.
Father Yan was stunned by her sudden emotions.
“Daughter, what’s wrong with you?” Father Yan asked carefully, “Did someone bully you?”
“No,” Yan Mu shook her head.
Father Yan was a little flattered.
He only assumed that girls were sensitive, so he didn’t think much about it.
Father Yan and Yan Mu spoke for a while before he went back to work at the Second Prince’s residence.
Yan Mu watered the daffodils and was about to continue writing when she saw Yu Yuan come out after his bath.
Although he’d already gotten dressed, his hair was still dripping with water.
Yan Mu was worried that Yu Yuan would catch a chill, so she called him over to wipe his hair dry for him.
Yu Yuan sat obediently on the chair while Yan Mu stood behind him, wiping his hair.
“You’ll get a headache if you don’t dry your hair in such cold weather,” Yan Mu nagged as she wiped his hair. “If you don’t take care of your body now, what will you do if it develops into poor health when you’re older?”
“With Ah Mu by my side, that kind of thing won’t happen,” Yu Yuan said.
Hearing his words, Yan Mu’s hands stopped.
Seeing that Yu Yuan’s hair was almost dry, she put the towel down and switched to combing it.
Yan Mu was afraid of the cold, so several charcoal braziers were lit in the room.
Her room was warm, so Yu Yuan’s hair dried very quickly.
Yu Yuan wanted to take advantage of Father Yan’s absence and lay in bed with Yan Mu in his arms for a while, but she pulled him up.
Yu Yuan looked reluctant.
But Yan Mu still pulled him into the main hall.
“It’s the end of the year. The bookstore has decided to give everyone a bonus.” Yan Mu smiled, with everyone gathered.
The workers in the bookstore were eager, but they were also a little afraid of Yu Yuan, so they didn’t show it.
“At Restaurant Baoyue across from the bookstore, as long as you have our bookstore’s employee identification, you can hold a banquet for free,” Yan Mu smiled and said. “Whether it’s for a wedding or a funeral, or to celebrate your child’s promotion, all the expenses have been paid off for you by Yu Yuan.”
“Lord Y-Yu?” someone exclaimed.
They all used to be guards, but Yu Yuan was quick and efficient in doing his work, and his methods were ruthless, so he was rapidly promoted, which created some distance between him and the others.
Yu Yuan also didn’t like to talk, so they were merely passing acquaintances3点头之交 (diǎntóuzhījiāo) – nodding acquaintance with him.
In fact, they’d even silently ostracized Yu Yuan because of the previous rumors.
How could he still be so generous?
For a moment, everyone had somewhat mixed feelings.
Yan Mu saw everyone’s reactions clearly.
“Yu Yuan isn’t much of a talker, and doesn’t like to explain himself. I know there are a bunch of false rumors out there.” Yan Mu said earnestly, “Yu Yuan has no relatives and friends, so the people closest to him are all of you.”
“Yu Yuan and I decided on this bonus together.” Yan Mu said, “He’s hard on the outside but soft on the inside, and he’s wanted to be friends with you for a long time, but he’s too embarrassed to say it.”
Hearing her words, Yu Yuan almost spat out his tea.
He looked up and stared at Yan Mu, only to see her wink at him somewhat playfully.
The corner of Yu Yuan’s mouth twitched slightly, but in the end, he chose to let her be.
No one understood Yu Yuan to start with, so now with Yan Mu fooling them, their hearts wavered.
“Lord Yu, you really want to hang out with us……?” Xiao Qing asked cautiously.
Yu Yuan raised his head, and saw everyone looking at him the same way.
“……”
He held his teacup, his whole body stiff, unable to speak.
The atmosphere was awkward, and both sides were at a stalemate.
In the end, Yu Yuan chose to compromise.
He put down his teacup and nodded his head, a little reluctantly.
Actually, it didn’t matter if he had friends or not.
But if he refused, it would be a waste of Yan Mu’s efforts.
He knew that Yan Mu was doing it for his own good.
Yu Yuan softly sighed.
After Yu Yuan expressed his attitude, the atmosphere in the bookstore immediately became lively again.
People who originally didn’t dare to talk to Yu Yuan began to strike up a conversation with him, which overwhelmed him a little.
Yan Mu smiled as she watched.
This was probably the most appropriate way to take care of the string of beads that had once caused Yu Yuan so much harm.
After all, Yu Yuan was just a teenager.
She wanted him to have the happiness of an ordinary person too.
——————————————————————————————————————————
The author has something to say:
Yu Yuan: I definitely don’t want to make friends…… alright, alright, I’ll make friends then. (helpless face)
Edited by: Gaze
So much “mother” vibes from Yan Mu🤣
“Please be friends with this child, okay? *gives out some candies*
And Yu Yuan be like: “MOOOOOOM, NOOOO I’m a lone wolf, don’t embarrass me pweaseee”
🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣 gosh I can never see this scene the same anymore