Chapter 13: Little pearls are about to fall!

The people on the street were still discussing heatedly.

“Chu Yuan? How does he know the Crown Princess of the Immortal Dynasty?”

“No way? A waste like him, how could he possibly…”

“What business could the Crown Princess want to discuss with him? What does he even have to offer?”

“Could it be… that kind of business?”

“Don’t talk nonsense! What status does the Crown Princess have? How could she possibly fancy him?”

“Then why is she looking for him?”

No one could answer.

Everyone was staring at that youth.

Chu Yuan lifted his head, meeting all their gazes. He turned back toward the teahouse and walked up the stairs leading to the third floor.

Ji Xuanyuan stood by the window, watching that figure. In a trance, she seemed to see:

Many years later, the little dog on the bridge had come back to life and was being led by a snow-white figure to where he truly belonged.

The smile on Ji Xuanyuan’s face grew brighter. She turned to Liu Biqin and gave a slight salute.

“Young Master Yunlan, let us meet again if fate allows.”

Liu Biqin stiffly cupped her hands and bowed, barely maintaining a surface-level composure.

As the window closed, she could no longer hold back. She flicked her sleeve angrily and returned to the phoenix carriage.

The moment she sat down, Liu Biqin saw:

Gu Qingwan’s hand slowly releasing the carriage curtain.

As the curtain fell, it completely separated her from the outside world.

Gu Qingwan’s heart felt as if it had been viciously gripped by something.

It was a feeling she had never experienced before.

It wasn’t pain.

It was worse than pain.

It felt like something was surging up bit by bit from the deepest part of her heart.

When it reached her throat, it lodged there, making it hard to breathe.

Many years ago, when Gu Qingwan was still a little girl, she once followed A-Yuan into the mountains to gather herbs.

She accidentally stepped into empty air and fell into a deep pit.

The bottom of the pit was damp and cold. She curled up in the corner, cold and terrified, crying and calling “A-Yuan gege.”

She called for a long time.

Until her voice grew hoarse.

Then, a figure appeared at the mouth of the pit.

Chu Yuan. His delicate face was illuminated by sunlight.

He raised his small hands covered in bloodstains and wiped the sweat from his forehead.

But when he looked at her, he smiled warmly.

“Don’t be afraid. I’m here.”

He jumped down, picked her up, and climbed up bit by bit.

From morning until noon, until she was almost falling asleep, they finally climbed out.

Bathed in sunlight once more, Gu Qingwan felt warm all over. She saw the youth looking at her, his eyes bright and full of light.

At that time, she felt that in A-Yuan gege’s eyes, there was only her.

Only her alone!!!

But just now, the figure in his dark eyes had been replaced by another woman, and might never look at her again.

Gu Qingwan’s vision suddenly blurred.

She blinked, trying to prove those were not tears!

She would not cry! She could not cry! What right did she have to cry?

She was the one who let go first. She was the one who left first. She was the one who personally said “We are not suitable.”

It was only right that he looked at someone else.

It was only right that he no longer looked at her.

What right did she have to feel bad?

Yet she felt terrible.

So terrible it was as if someone had dug out her heart and slowly roasted it over fire until it was scorched, dry, and cracked, with blood seeping from every fissure.

She remembered the moment she told Chu Yuan they were breaking up. He had looked at her with eyes as calm as dead water.

At that time, besides shock, she had also felt a trace of relief, thinking:

Good thing he didn’t realize I was acting. Good thing he isn’t sad. Good thing he…

Good thing he doesn’t care.

But now she suddenly understood:

The reason her A-Yuan gege didn’t care was perhaps because there was already another woman.

The moment this thought appeared, Gu Qingwan’s vision blurred completely.

She tried desperately to hold it back, biting her lip hard, desperately trying not to let those things fall.

But they still surged out, little by little, uncontrollably, sliding down her cheeks.

She lowered her head and wiped them away messily with the back of her hand.

Gu Qingwan did not know why she felt this way.

Outside the phoenix carriage, the sunlight was pleasant.

The sounds of the crowd’s discussions gradually faded.

At the entrance of that teahouse, the youth’s back disappeared behind the door.

Inside the phoenix carriage, the girl lowered her head and gripped her sleeves tightly.

Those sleeves had been twisted into deep wrinkles that could never be smoothed out again.

Liu Biqin, sitting opposite her, watched silently as the girl bowed her head. Crystal tears fell like bright pearls, constantly shattering against the skirt stretched over her full jade legs.

Liu wanted to say something, but in the end chose to pretend she saw nothing and even silently increased the distance between them.

It was common knowledge that in this female-honored society, boys had to protect themselves.

The more prestigious the family, the more strictly they had to uphold male virtue. Although Liu Biqin was a woman, she was currently wearing the appearance of her young master and thus had to guard against Gu Qingwan suddenly throwing herself into “his” arms and taking liberties.

After all, Liu Biqin had no interest in yuri pairings.

Not to mention Chu Yunlan far away in the Chu family residence. After catching a glimpse of Ji Xuanyuan’s face, it was as if those rural children in “Metamorphosis” had seen the dazzling lights of the big city and could no longer look at the village flower back home.

Of course, seeing Fairy Gu weeping so sorrowfully, and thinking back to Ji Xuanyuan’s favor toward Chu Yuan, Chu Yunlan felt a surge of jealousy.

Why?

What charm does that waste have? Why are all the women flocking to him?

The more Chu Yunlan thought about it, the more wrong it felt. He secretly transmitted orders to his trusted subordinate.

【Go! Investigate for me! What kind of business is that waste Chu Yuan discussing with the Crown Princess of the Immortal Dynasty!】

The spy subordinate quickly replied.

【Yes, Young Master!】

With that, the spy swiftly headed toward the teahouse.

Third floor of the teahouse.

After re-entering the private room, Chu Yuan bowed in greeting.

“Chu Yuan greets Your Highness.”

Ji Xuanyuan sat down gracefully and nodded slightly.

“Sit.”

“Yes!”

Chu Yuan responded and sat down opposite her.

The fragrance of tea curled upward from the table, while the faint scent of agarwood lingered from the incense burner.

Ji Xuanyuan looked at him and suddenly noticed that when this person sat, his back was straighter than hers.

It was not the reverence one would show toward the Crown Princess of the Immortal Dynasty, nor was it deliberately feigned righteousness. The ease and confidence radiating from his bones felt completely different from the junior brother in her memories.

“I didn’t expect Your Highness to suddenly take interest in this one’s business.”

Chu Yuan spoke, his voice calm.

“May I ask why?”

He looked at her with open, upright eyes, without the slightest evasion.

Ji Xuanyuan was rendered speechless.

Why was she interested in his business?

She didn’t know either.

She only knew that the moment she saw him being cornered by Chu Yunlan from the window, something inside her heart had stung.

It didn’t hurt, yet it made her speak without thinking.

Inviting him upstairs under the pretext of discussing business was merely an excuse.

She just… just what?

Ji Xuanyuan couldn’t figure it out.

She only knew that facing the youth’s candid gaze right now, she actually felt a momentary loss.

Thus, she lowered her eyes, picked up the teacup, and took a light sip.

The freshly brewed tea was at the perfect temperature—neither too cold nor too hot.

With a soft sigh, she set the teacup down and raised her eyes to look at the youth.

“What business did you wish to discuss with this palace?”

Chu Yuan did not dwell on it. He took out the iron ores again, placed them on the table, and pushed them toward Ji Xuanyuan.

“Your Highness, please examine them carefully with your divine sense.”