She even had you lying down properly.
“Did Miss Su have an allergic reaction?”
At lunch, the group ate in the inn’s main hall. Noticing that neither Shen Su nor Yunzhi had come down, someone asked about them.
Though Qin Yu was seated at the head of the table and knew Shen Su’s condition best, no one dared to ask her directly.
Qingmu turned to Manager Zhou:
“Is it serious?”
Manager Zhou glanced at Qin Yu’s expression. Seeing her lower her eyes and eat unhurriedly, he cautiously replied, “The physician said it’s not severe, but it looks quite uncomfortable.”
“Of course it’s uncomfortable,” Qingmu frowned. “Allergies are just as draining as illness, especially for a delicate young lady. It must be miserable.”
Hearing this, Chen San snorted in derision.
He had just arrived for the meal, grabbing two chopsticks from the holder and deliberately slamming them against the table to align them before sitting down.
Chen San always sat sloppily, like a ruffian, occupying half the bench with his backside while his foot propped up the other half.
With a mocking tone, he said, “Oh, didn’t realize you cared so much about Miss Su.”
Qingmu raised his eyelids sarcastically. “I have a heart, a conscience, and a sister. Can’t I ask a few questions?”
He scoffed, insinuating, “Unlike some people, whose minds are stuck in the gutter, twisting everything into something indecent.”
Chen San’s intentions toward Shen Su had been laid bare the night before in the ruined temple, even going so far as to offer them the fine wine he’d bought for his father as a bribe.
Truly a filial son his father would be “proud.”
Chen San’s face darkened, and he set his foot down, his gaze flickering subconsciously toward Qin Yu.
Seeing that Qin Yu hadn’t even lifted her eyes, he slapped his chopsticks heavily on the table, feigning anger. “You!”
Both men were in their early twenties, full of youthful vigor. If Chen San could slam his chopsticks, how could Qingmu swallow his pride?
“Who are you throwing chopsticks at?” Qingmu slapped the table and stood up.
If he had the guts, they could take it outside and see whose fists were harder!
“Enough,” the bearded man interjected. “You’ve barely exchanged three sentences and already started bickering? If you’re that bored, you can set off back to the capital after lunch.”
“The sun outside isn’t as hot as your tempers,” the bearded man shot them both a stern look. “Sit down and eat.”
Chen San glared at Qingmu, and Qingmu sneered back at Chen San. Both grudgingly yielded to the bearded man’s authority, sitting back down with reluctant obedience.
Throughout it all, Qin Yu never said a word.
Manager Zhou, witnessing this for the first time, was thoroughly confused.
What was going on? Was the real authority in this group not Qin Yu, but this burly, bearded man?
But wasn’t Qin Yu the master? Since when did servants dare to nearly come to blows right in front of their master?
Especially since, during Qingmu and Chen San’s argument, the others remained calm, as if this were a common occurrence they were used to.
Manager Zhou began to wonder if the Qin family had truly been replaced by the “Li” family, given how weak and ineffectual the young master seemed.
As Qingmu and Chen San quarreled, Qin Yu, under the weight of both overt and covert scrutiny, calmly picked up another bite of vegetables.
She never wolfed down her food. Whether it was a dish she liked or disliked, the expression on her face remained unchanged as she brought it to her mouth, making it impossible to discern her preferences.
Shopkeeper Zhou thought Qin Yu ate far too delicately. Someone so refined and aloof ought to have taken the scholarly path to become an official. Yet here she was, not only engaged in commerce but also leading a pack of wolves.
How could she possibly manage them? No wonder the people in her group didn’t seem afraid of “him.”
Noticing Shopkeeper Zhou’s gaze, Qin Yu lifted her eyelids and glanced at him.
Her cool, phoenix-like eyes swept over lightly, carrying a weighty chill.
Caught off guard by her gaze, Shopkeeper Zhou’s heart instantly tightened, and he instinctively lowered his head, not daring to look again.
The “young master” seated at the head of the table was clearly a seventeen-year-old “youth,” yet her eyes held a steadiness that belied her age.
Shopkeeper Zhou, after all, had spent many years navigating social circles, met countless people, and trained numerous waiters and attendants. Only now did he slowly begin to understand Qin Yu.
“It” seemed neither incapable of managing the group nor unwilling to do so. Rather, “he” appeared to be observing just how far these people would go in “his” presence.
“He” possessed immense patience, restraint, and calmness, like a wolf lying in wait, ready to hunt.
Minor scoldings wouldn’t establish authority. Only by seizing a major mistake and delivering a sharp, unforgettable lesson could true fear be instilled.
Shopkeeper Zhou kept his head lowered. When he cautiously raised his eyes again, Qin Yu had already withdrawn her gaze, her expression as indifferent as ever, as if nothing had happened.
The commotion at the table was quelled by the bearded man. Sensing the tense atmosphere, he turned to Qingmu and struck up a casual conversation. “You mentioned your younger sister earlier?”
Qingmu shot a glance at Chen San before rolling his eyes and looking away. “My younger sister once had symptoms like Miss Su’s.”
Qin Yu, who had been chewing on greens, paused mid-bite at these words.
Shopkeeper Zhou, standing nearby to attend to her, instinctively glanced at Qin Yu a few more times.
Then he noticed that this master, who had previously been focused solely on her meal, now ate slightly slower.
On the surface, it was barely noticeable, but in truth, she was very interested in what Qingmu was saying.
She even pricked up her ears, eager to hear more.
Qin Yu thought, so there are others who suffer from the same condition as “Su Qingqing”?
“She couldn’t eat hazelnuts. Even a tiny bite would cause large red patches all over her body, difficulty breathing, and unbearable itching that made her eyes and nose run,” Qingmu shook his head repeatedly. “It was pure misery.”
Qin Yu recalled Shen Su calling out “Qin Yu” through tears, clearly in great distress, looking utterly pitiable.
Someone couldn’t help but ask, “What happened afterward? How was she cured?”
Yes, how was she cured?
Qin Yu held her empty bowl.
“After taking medicine, the symptoms gradually faded, but she could never touch hazelnuts again.”
Qingmu picked up his bowl, about to shovel rice into his mouth, but paused to add a few more words. “The physician said my sister’s condition might not seem severe, but if she accidentally ate hazelnuts again, it could be life-threatening.”
That serious.
Someone gasped in astonishment. “How could it be that serious?”
“Exactly. This is no trivial matter,” Qingmu explained. “That’s why I asked so many questions.”
The Aoki family had already arranged a marriage for him, and his betrothed was the girl next door whom he had liked for many years. So how could he possibly take a fancy to “Su Qingqing”?
Even if “Su Qingqing” were as stunning as a celestial maiden, surpassing even Xi Shi in beauty, even if she were truly a fairy descended from the heavens, Aoki would only smile and admire her from afar. His heart would still belong to his own betrothed.
He was nothing like Chen San, Aoki thoroughly despised that lowlife’s character.
Wasn’t Chen San just relying on his father being under Old Master Li’s patronage? But in the end, Old Master Li was merely the Qin family’s son-in-law who had married into their household. The true master of the Qin family was none other than their young master, Qin Yu.
Aoki glanced at the young master, Qin Yu, then froze. “Young Master, your bowl is empty. Would you like more rice?”
Qin Yu looked down at her bowl. “…”
So she had been holding an empty bowl, listening to all this.
“No need,” Qin Yu paused briefly before calmly setting down her chopsticks. “The weather has been hot these past two days. Everyone should rest well. As long as you don’t cause trouble, you’re free to do as you please.”
With that, she stood and went upstairs.
“Could the young master really have fallen for Miss Su?” someone whispered. “I thought it was just for fun.”
After all, given the Qin family’s wealth and status, even if the girl were just an ordinary beauty, or even a noble princess from the imperial family, Qin Yu could easily marry her.
“Who knows?” Aoki called out. “Eat up. Once the heat dies down, we’ll go out for a stroll.”
Chen San’s gaze drifted toward Qin Yu as she went upstairs.
The evening weather was pleasant, and the group at the table would surely go out to wander around. They’d probably have dinner outside too and wouldn’t return until late at night.
Meanwhile, “Su Qingqing” wasn’t feeling well and might stay at the inn.
For Chen San, this was an opportunity.
He wanted to taste what kind of woman Qin Yu had played with.
Distracted, Chen San picked at his bowl of rice.
At noon, Shen Su and Yun Zhi had lunch in the second-floor Heavenly Suite.
After taking her medicine, the red rashes on Shen Su’s body had mostly faded, and the itching had stopped.
Yun Zhi was still worried. “Miss, you should eat on the bed. I’ll bring the dishes to you.”
“I’ll eat at the table,” Shen Su said. “This is Qin Yu’s bed. She’s particular about cleanliness. If she knew I ate on her bed, she’d probably toss me out along with the sheets.”
“Oh, and open the window later to air out the room,” Shen Su added, sitting at the table and picking up her chopsticks. “Get rid of the smell of food and medicine.”
Yun Zhi let out a soft “Ah.” “Just looking at Young Master Qin’s appearance, you’d never guess he’s so fussy in private. The richer the family, the more quirks their young masters seem to have.”
She sat beside Shen Su, her eyes filled with concern as she leaned in and whispered, “Miss, when you’re with him, do you ever feel wronged?”
“Hmm?” Shen Su chewed her rice, cheeks puffed as she looked at Yun Zhi in confusion, as if she didn’t understand the question.
Young Miss Qin was just a bit ruthless, a bit obsessive about cleanliness, and though she appeared refined and aloof, she was actually quite two-faced and cruel-hearted. But otherwise, she was fine.
Apart from her flaws, she was practically perfect.
After all, the woman had promised to take her shopping for clothes that afternoon.
Yun Zhi pressed her lips together, sitting up straight and fixing Shen Su with a look that said, “Don’t lie to me.”
“I heard everything,” she said.
Shen Su swallowed her rice. “What exactly did you hear?”
Yunzhi was a bit angry. “I heard ‘him’ hitting you and telling you to ‘stay down.'”
“?!!!”
Shen Su spat out her food in shock, coughing until her face turned red, unable to speak for a long while.
“Just now, I was guarding the door outside, afraid someone might come by, and then I heard you inside, crying.” Yunzhi clenched the fabric of her clothes in distress, her heart aching for Shen Su.
She feared that Shen Su wasn’t truly happy but had been forced to submit to Qin Yu that “wolf in sheep’s clothing” with his twisted desires just to get to the capital!
If that were really the case, Yunzhi was willing to suffer in Shen Su’s stead!
No matter how bitter it was, she couldn’t let her young mistress endure such torment!
Seeing Yunzhi’s expression, as if she were ready to “sacrifice herself for justice,” Shen Su’s eyelid twitched. “It’s not what you think.”
She had simply lost control and gone another round.
As for “stay down”
It was mainly because her legs kept squeezing Qin Yu, provoking the young mistress’s temper, which led to that stern rebuke.
And the “crying”.
Shen Su bit her chopsticks, reflecting. Had she really been that loud?
Yunzhi grabbed Shen Su’s hand. “Miss, you don’t have to hold back.”
If it really came to it, they could run away! There had to be another way to reach the capital.
Feeling a little guilty, Shen Su blinked. “I just didn’t hold back at that moment, so I cried out.”
Neither of them had any experience, so how was Qin Yu so much better at this?
Shen Su decided she’d have to buy some books when she went out in the afternoon to expand her knowledge.
People should always be eager to learn.
Seeing Yunzhi’s genuine concern, Shen Su patted her little face, her ears reddening as she reassured her softly, “Don’t worry, it’s not what you think.”
Shen Su added, “I’m actually very happy.”
Yunzhi, “…”
Instantly, Yunzhi’s gaze toward Shen Su changed.
“The happiness of adults,” Shen Su could only hint at this point, “is something a child like you can’t imagine.”