The moon didn’t know when it had slipped out.
A slender crescent hung low in the sky.
Fu Minglin’s eyes shone brightly in the night, like a sharp mirror, as if they wanted to reflect every single shred of unseemly vulnerability hidden inside Nan Zhi’s heart.
Stared at like this, Nan Zhi didn’t make a sound, nor did Fu Minglin press her further.
Only the emotion in those eyes grew a fraction heavier, even more obscure.
Whenever Fu Minglin fixed that gaze on her, Nan Zhi would subconsciously panic and lose her composure.
Her scrutiny was simply too aggressive, easily piercing through the expensive fabric of Nan Zhi’s clothes and peeling away the unseemliness hidden deep within her bones.
Nan Zhi had originally wanted to ask why she hadn’t replied to her message, whether she had found something out and thus despised her. But when the words reached her lips, they transformed into: “Okay.”
The milk in her hand was completely cold.
Even though Nan Zhi gripped it tightly, she couldn’t retain a single trace of warmth.
Just as Nan Zhi felt she was about to be suffocated by that scrutinizing gaze, the top of her head suddenly grew heavy.
“Lift your head up.” Fu Minglin’s fingertips slipped into those soft strands of hair, gently rubbing them. “When conversing with someone, you must look them in the eyes at all times. This is both politeness and respect for yourself.”
Respect for yourself.
Catching the faint scent of antiseptic lingering around those wrists, a nameless joy flooded Nan Zhi’s heart.
Her fingertips, clutching the cup of milk tightly, trembled. Nan Zhi lifted her head and blinked obediently: “I will.”
Fu Minglin visibly noticed the person before her slowly shedding the sharp thorns all over her body, and she raised an eyebrow in surprise.
She withdrew her hand, her voice softening slightly as well: “Be a good girl. Go change your clothes now, and return to the banquet. Mother will be coming over soon.”
Fu Yunci was coming back?
This news made Nan Zhi subconsciously frown, unable to help revealing a flash of disgust, though it vanished almost as quickly as it appeared.
“Then Si…” Nan Zhi started to speak while raising her head, but her voice trailed off into a mute choke.
Because she failed to lock eyes with that pair of eyes as she wished—just like the word Sister that she could never quite bring herself to say.
Fu Minglin had already opened the door to the private room deep in the corridor.
Leaving behind only her retreating back for Nan Zhi, and a floor full of moonlight.
…
It wasn’t until the door clicked shut that the gaze clinging to her back was finally blocked off.
Fu Minglin’s tightly furrowed brows smoothed out.
Forcing her emotions down, she immediately pasted on a smile the moment she took her seat: “Sorry to keep you waiting, Miss Gu.”
Hearing the voice, Gu Shiyun, who had been tapping away furiously on her phone, looked up in a panic.
A meatball bun hairstyle, a doll-like face, and eyes like grapes in an amber hue.
“Hello there,” Gu Shiyun suddenly smiled, her eyes curving into crescents. “Miss Fu can just call me Shiyun.”
A very formulaic smile.
The screen discarded on the table hadn’t even had time to go dark yet. Fu Minglin glanced at it unthinkingly, her gaze catching on the full screen of complaints Gu Shiyun had just typed out, looking as though she were furious about some plan being derailed.
Being forced into socialization and public events was naturally an annoying affair anyway.
It looked like Gu Shiyun wasn’t keen on being forced into an arranged marriage either.
That made things much easier to handle.
“Then you can call me Minglin,” Fu Minglin said as she sat down, skillfully unpacking and brewing tea while softly asking, “Has Shiyun been waiting long?”
Gu Shiyun, who had been full of resentment earlier because her gym schedule for the night had been disrupted, was instantly captivated by her movements.
Rinsing the pot, waking the aroma, warming the cups.
In a split second, boiling water was poured out, filling the room with the fragrance of tea.
Fu Minglin’s movements flowed like water, smooth and accomplished in one go. That pair of distinct, bony hands exerted a slight force, and the protruding veins beneath her thin skin were quite pleasing to the eye.
“N-not long,” Gu Shiyun said, watching in a bit of a daze. “Minglin, you’re amazing. If I had hands as steady as yours, I wouldn’t always get scolded by my mom for breaking the rules.”
Hearing the praise, Fu Minglin maintained a faint, gentle smile as she pushed a cup forward: “I just rushed through the motions to beat the pain from spreading; it’s a bluff more than anything. Shiyun, give it a try and see if the flavor is too strong.”
The tea soup was clear and drifted with a tranquil fragrance.
Gu Shiyun took a small sip, and her eyes lit up: “It’s fragrant yet light, delicious!”
“I’m glad you like it.” Fu Minglin picked up her own cup and took a light sip as well.
Gu Shiyun, who had initially planned to just go through the motions, grew interested in the person before her and took the initiative to start a conversation: “I heard Minglin lived away from home for school when you were very young. Did you keep any little cats or dogs?”
“No.” Fu Minglin set her cup down and smiled apologetically, “Until I have full independent agency, I won’t burden myself with the weight of another life.”
This answer greatly boosted Gu Shiyun’s favorable impression, and she pressed on: “Then does Minglin have a favorite animal?”
Favorite animal.
Fu Minglin lightly raised an eyebrow, pondered for a moment, and said, “The naked mole rat.”
“Why?” Gu Shiyun let out a sound of disbelief. “That sounds so rare.”
“Because naked mole rats lack pain receptors, which reduces my sense of guilt when dissecting them.” Fu Minglin paused, then added, “They have to be artificially bred, though, because wild ones are protected animals.”
She hadn’t expected this answer, and Gu Shiyun was stunned for a long while.
“Apologies.” Fu Minglin quietly refilled her cup, explaining softly, “Did I scare you?”
Before Gu Shiyun had a chance to reply, the door to the private room was pushed open with a clatter.
Fu Minglin’s hand pouring the tea paused slightly. She turned her head to look, instinctively halting her actions.
The person standing at the doorway lowered her eyelids, expressionless.
Her thin spine was held very straight, and the moonlight spilled behind her like a frost-covered branch of bamboo breaking through the snow.
Nan Zhi no longer wore a backpack over her shoulders; instead, she was holding a serving tray in her hands.
“Hello.” Although Nan Zhi deliberately slowed her tone, it was still impossible to detect any gentleness in it: “This is the wine you ordered.”
Looking at the wine glass pushed toward her, Gu Shiyun couldn’t react for a moment.
Because that pair of eyes possessed an extraordinary, piercing aggressiveness—slanted and narrow at the corners, with pupils as black as ink.
And that suit she was wearing…
Having already taken in the person completely, Gu Shiyun took the wine herself and muttered inwardly, Do Fu family servers wear haute couture now?
This financial backing was almost ridiculously deep.
The atmosphere in the private room quieted down in an instant.
Nan Zhi could feel Fu Minglin’s gaze landing on her—scrutinizing as always, except this time accompanied by a hint of displeasure.
Recalling the warning Fu Minglin had given her right before entering the room, Nan Zhi gripped her tray tightly and slowly started to back away. Her mission was completed, after all.
Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Gu Shiyun pick up the wine glass.
Yet the moment those lips were about to touch the rim of the cup, a voice rang out from behind.
“Miss Gu.”
Fu Minglin pulled her gaze away from the person who had abruptly appeared and silently pushed the freshly poured cup of tea forward: “Your tea is going to get cold.”
Nan Zhi, who had already started moving to leave, paused in her tracks.
That pale green tea soup—Fu Minglin had brewed it with her own hands.
She hadn’t even gotten a chance to taste it yet.
Forcefully suppressing the surge of annoyance in her heart, Nan Zhi compelled her emotions to remain undisturbed and slowly prepared to exit the private room.
Meanwhile, the person who hadn’t hesitated between the wine and the tea had already made her choice.
“It’s fine,” Gu Shiyun waved her hand briskly, her tone clearly tinged with excitement. “I’ve been craving this for so long, you don’t know how m—uh—”
Clatter—
The wine glass crashed onto the table, and her words were cut short mid-sentence.
Nan Zhi, whose foot had already reached the doorway, stopped dead in her tracks.
Gu Shiyun, who had just been smiling while holding her drink, turned scarlet in the face. Like someone drowning, she grabbed frantically at her throat, her grape-like eyes welling up with tears.
Her windpipe sounded like a broken bellows, wheezing and gasping for air.
The sudden turn of events was far too abrupt.
And reacting with lightning speed was Fu Minglin.
She leaped to her feet, firmly supporting Gu Shiyun’s sinking body.
“What’s wrong?”
Her icy expression melted, and her fingertips quickly pressed against Gu Shiyun’s rolling larynx as she slowly laid her down flat: “Adjust your breathing. Follow the rhythm I give you, exhale—”
A spicy, burning sensation swept through her entire body.
Gu Shiyun had completely lost the ability to make a sound. Her eyes shut tightly as large teardrops rolled down continuously, shaking her head helplessly.
“Do you have any past medical history or allergens?” Fu Minglin immediately began checking her over, using long fingers to pull back Gu Shiyun’s eyelids to confirm her pupils. “Heart condition, asthma, are you allergic to alcohol? Don’t speak, just nod or shake your head.”
Unable to answer, Gu Shiyun weakly shook her head over and over.
Her complexion had gradually swollen into a purplish-red, and the burning sensation stuck in her throat was practically costing Gu Shiyun her life.
Desperate to vomit, her weak, trembling fingers pointed toward the door.
And Nan Zhi, standing at the doorway, was caught completely off guard by this sudden emergency.
Especially the moment Gu Shiyun pointed her finger in her direction, Nan Zhi’s pupils widened in shock, and she instinctively shook her head.
No way.
The substance was clearly at the very bottom of the glass, how could it take effect this fast?
What kind of act was Gu Shiyun pulling here?
Anxious to defend herself, Nan Zhi instinctively looked toward Fu Minglin. She surely won’t misunderstand me, right?
Unfortunately, Fu Minglin had no attention to spare for her at the moment.
“No relevant medical history,” Fu Minglin finished checking her basic condition, her voice low as she confirmed, “And no known allergens, correct?”
Gu Shiyun, who had been shaking her head the whole time, finally nodded.
“Alright.” Fu Minglin reached out, scooping the lying person up horizontally into her arms. “There’s a lounge over there, I’m taking you inside.”
Lacking the ability to reply, Gu Shiyun nodded, her outstretched hand now tightly wrapping around Fu Minglin’s neck.
Frozen in place, Nan Zhi watched this intimate movement, the fingertips gripping her serving tray trembling.
Could it be that this Miss Gu arranged this drink beforehand? Did I fall into a trap?
Yet that suffocating sensation didn’t look like acting. Nan Zhi’s emotions were shredded to pieces by this sudden twist, and her mind was in a chaotic mess.
What was even worse was that Nan Zhi could clearly feel Fu Minglin’s gaze sweeping over her.
Direct. Sharp.
Like a bared blade, and Nan Zhi was just a piece of meat stuck on a cutting board, unable to move.
Fu Minglin, holding Gu Shiyun, had already stood up and was walking toward the door.
Silence fell over the private room.
That stillness was enough to push Nan Zhi to the brink of suffocation. She wanted to stop Fu Minglin and defend herself, yet she was afraid that if Miss Gu’s condition was truly critical, her actions would delay treatment.
And Fu Minglin, carrying Gu Shiyun, had already walked past Nan Zhi’s side.
She took in every bit of panic and bewilderment on the other person’s face, the very last hint of emotion in her eyes turning into pure mockery.
“Is this what you promised me,” Fu Minglin lowered her voice, speaking in a tone meant only for the two of them, “that you would be obedient?”