The private room was surrounded by windows on three sides, allowing ample light to flood in.
A screen embroidered with mandarin ducks stood in the center, with two cool couches placed on either side.
The small, exquisite pastries and seasonal fruits on the low table added a touch of elegance.
On the right side of the screen sat two people.
One was a woman over forty, her face kind and gentle, with only a sandalwood hairpin adorning her hair.
Her attire was simple and elegant, and a string of deep red Buddhist beads hung from her wrist.
However, the one who looked up and peered over the screen at Lin Ting was the other person.
He was in his early twenties, quite young, dressed in a crimson robe that accentuated his red lips and white teeth.
His belt, composed of eleven jade plaques carved with lotus flowers, cinched his waist.
Beneath the layers of his robe, black shoes peeked out, and his attire was immaculate.
As he looked at them with a puzzled expression, Lin Ting, who had been pulled back by Madam Li, also looked at him.
Their gazes met, and in that moment, she almost blurted out, “Lord Duan.”
Duan Ling’s hand twitched slightly.
Madam Li’s hand rested on Lin Ting’s lower back, forcing her to step forward.
In a voice only they could hear, she said,
“Don’t go back on your word. You promised me. Since we’re already here, why run?”
Lin Ting felt like she wanted to die.
She shouldn’t have pointed randomly that day.
How could she have ended up choosing Duan Ling?
It was just her luck.
If only she had asked for more details before coming, she wouldn’t have been in such a panic.
She did have a mission to get close to Duan Ling, but that didn’t mean she had to marry him.
Who was Duan Ling?
The Deputy Commander of the Imperial Guards.
The tricks she had prepared to deal with potential suitors were completely unsuitable for him.
What surprised Lin Ting even more was that Duan Ling had actually agreed to come to this meeting?
It didn’t seem like him.
In that brief moment when their eyes met, she saw a flicker of confusion in his gaze, indicating that he probably didn’t know about this either.
Since things had come to this, she had no choice but to play along.
Lin Ting walked to the left side of the screen, her mind in turmoil.
Madam Li stood beside her and spoke softly to the woman on the other side of the screen,
“Madam Feng, I apologize for our tardiness.”
The woman addressed as Madam Feng was none other than Duan Xinning’s mother, whom Lin Ting had just met yesterday.
Of course, she was also Duan Ling’s mother.
Lin Ting lowered her head, wishing she could dig a hole and bury herself.
No wonder Madam Feng had been so warm to her yesterday.
There was this reason behind it.
Lin Ting suddenly understood.
Feng Ye looked at Lin Ting through the thin screen, stopped turning the Buddhist beads on her wrist, and placed them aside.
She said gently, “We arrived early. Please take a seat, Madam Li. Leyun, you too.”
Born into a scholarly family, Feng Ye had been the beloved eldest daughter before her marriage.
After marrying, she became devoted to vegetarianism and Buddhism, staying away from the intrigues of the inner chambers, which made her appear like a compassionate person filled with Buddhist kindness.
Madam Li was momentarily stunned.
She had heard of Feng Ye and secretly envied her.
Feng Ye was different from her.
Madam Li came from a merchant family, and her father, who was uneducated, had deeply misunderstood the saying
“a woman without talent is virtuous,” so he hadn’t let her read many books.
Moreover, she was surrounded by coarse women who gossiped all day long.
Over time, Madam Li was subtly influenced by the scheming and intrigues of the inner chambers, growing up to be sharp-tongued and somewhat worldly.
The reason Lin San Ye had married her was because the Lin family had fallen into hard times twenty years ago, and he hadn’t yet passed the imperial examination, needing a large sum of money.
In the first year of their marriage, Lin San Ye had treated her decently, and they could be said to have respected each other.
But after he passed the imperial examination and became an official, he began to look down on her in every way, saying she was incompetent for not bearing a son to inherit the family business, and that she shouldn’t blame him for breaking his promise not to take a concubine.
Not only that, but he also despised her for being petty and unsophisticated, saying she was no match for his concubine.
Madam Li suppressed a sudden wave of inferiority and silently vowed not to let her daughter follow in her footsteps.
She tugged at Lin Ting, who was standing there silently, and whispered, “Greet them.”
Lin Ting felt Madam Li’s eagerness and was at a loss for words.
She forced herself to curtsy and managed a smile,
“Leyun greets Madam Feng, Lord Duan… Second Young Master Duan.”
Feng Ye nodded with a smile in her eyes.
“Ziyu greets Madam Li, Miss Lin Qi.”
Duan Ling also stood up and bowed.
They looked at each other from a distance, neither of them looking away first.
Lin Ting wanted to convey her ignorance of the situation through her gaze, while Duan Ling showed little emotion.
Madam Li was nervous, her palms sweating, but she maintained her composure on the surface, thinking she couldn’t embarrass her daughter.
“Leyun knows Miss Duan San. Has Second Young Master Duan met her before?”
Duan Ling replied, “Yes.”
Seeing that they were still standing, Feng Ye spoke up, “Please, take a seat.”
Duan Ling sat down.
As soon as Lin Ting sat down, she leaned over to Madam Li’s ear and whispered,
“Mother, I’ll be honest with you. I chose randomly that day. I didn’t know I’d end up choosing the second young master of the Duan family.”
Madam Li didn’t care,
“What does it matter? You chose him randomly, which means it’s fate. I remember you’re close with Miss Duan San. ‘Adding kinship to kinship’ is a good thing.”
“Is that how ‘adding kinship to kinship’ is used?” Lin Ting instinctively wanted to correct her.
“Adding kinship to kinship’ isn’t used like that. Never mind that. What I mean is that it’s impossible between us. He doesn’t like me, and I don’t like him. No, he dislikes me.”
Madam Li didn’t believe her,
“How could Second Young Master Duan dislike you? If he did, he wouldn’t have come today. Besides, you’re his sister’s close friend. It’s like the moon being within reach from the pavilion.”
He was probably tricked into coming by you parents, just like me.
Lin Ting thought to herself.
“Originally, I was worried that our family’s status wasn’t high enough, and that the Duan family, with their generations of officials, would look down on the Lin family. I sent the invitation without expecting a response.”
Madam Li continued, taking advantage of the silence on the other side.
She was happy at the thought of being able to trample Lin San Ye under her feet in the future, and she smiled broadly,
“But Madam Feng actually agreed. Being close with Miss Duan San has its uses.”
Lin Ting rubbed her aching forehead.
Their thoughts were too different.
She couldn’t convince her mother, who was steeped in traditional ancient thinking.
After a while, Lin Ting relaxed, thinking that Duan Ling wouldn’t agree either, so she might as well take it easy.
On the other side, Duan Ling tilted his head slightly and called out softly to Feng Ye, “Mother.”
Feng Ye knew what Duan Ling wanted to ask, but she didn’t respond.
Today, she had used the excuse of not having visited the capital for a long time to get him to take her out, saying she wanted to visit Nanshan Pavilion, without revealing the true purpose.
She had no choice but to trick him into coming.
Duan Ling was still young and could establish his career before settling down, but he showed no interest in women and had even mentioned that he had no plans to marry.
Feng Ye couldn’t stand by and do nothing when he was so stubborn.
Feng Ye had initially been troubled by this matter until she received an invitation from the Lin family and saw the name mentioned on it.
Lin Ting, whose childhood name was Leyun.
This girl had visited the Duan residence when she was young, and Feng Ye had seen her from afar a few times.
She had been with Duan Ling, playing with him, and because the scene was so rare, Feng Ye remembered it to this day.
After receiving the invitation, Feng Ye didn’t respond immediately.
She thought about it for a night and first sent a servant to investigate whether they had met alone after growing up, without Duan Xinning’s involvement.
The news she received was that they had.
From this, Feng Ye concluded that Duan Ling had some special feelings for Lin Ting and that she could be the key.
If Lin Ting, who was lost in thought, knew what Feng Ye was thinking, she would have spat out blood.
Back then, “she” had been with Duan Ling to find an opportunity to harm him, almost pushing him into the water.
Unfortunately, Lin Ting couldn’t read minds and didn’t know what Feng Ye was thinking.
She idly played with the blue carved teacup in front of her, turning from a chatterbox into a silent gourd, wondering when she could leave.
Throughout the entire time, only Feng Ye and Madam Li were conversing, with Duan Ling occasionally responding politely.
Seeing that she couldn’t leave anytime soon, Lin Ting wanted to try the snacks on the low table, but Madam Li didn’t give her the chance, steering the conversation to her,
“My Leyun loves reading.”
Feng Ye took a sip of tea and smiled, putting down the teacup,
“That’s just like Ziyu. Before he became an Imperial Guard, he loved staying indoors and reading. What does Leyun like to read?”
At this moment, Duan Ling looked up, his gaze seemingly able to pierce through the screen and land on her face.
Lin Ting had just uttered the word “storybook” when Madam Li quickly stuffed a grape into her mouth and answered with a smile,
“She usually likes to read ‘The Four Books for Women’ and some historical records.”
Duan Ling smiled and asked, “Which historical records does Miss Lin Qi like?”
Madam Li rarely saw Duan Ling ask a question related to Lin Ting and gave her a hard look, signaling her to answer properly.
She also mouthed, “If you mess this up, I won’t let you off.”
Lin Ting thought, “……” I’m just a person with no ambition who likes to read shameless, steamy restricted novels.
I chose science in high school and only skimmed through history books.
She paused for a few seconds,
“Actually, I don’t like reading historical records. I prefer storybooks.”
Madam Li was so angry she nearly fainted, seriously suspecting that Lin Ting was doing this on purpose.
Why couldn’t this girl seize the opportunity and had to ruin everything to be satisfied?
Feng Ye was taken aback but then laughed,
“Storybooks are good too. When I was your age, I also liked reading them. I’m not afraid to admit it, I even thought about writing one.”
Duan Ling lowered his eyes and didn’t respond.
Lin Ting drank water tactically.
It was too awkward to be on a blind date with her “former nemesis.”
As the sun set in the west, the sound of cicadas came from the backyard of Nanshan Pavilion, where trees were planted.
Madam Li and Feng Ye chatted about their children, and Lin Ting, who had had a nightmare the previous night and slept poorly, was so tired that her head kept nodding.
Duan Ling could see Lin Ting’s nodding head and the peach-colored silk ribbon falling over her shoulder through the screen.
His gaze inadvertently swept over her slightly parted lips, and he subtly looked away.
A moment later, Lin Ting’s head suddenly hit the low table with a crisp sound, leaving a bright red mark on her fair forehead.
Feng Ye was concerned,
“What happened?”
Madam Li couldn’t bear to look at her lifeless appearance and cursed silently, but she had to take care of it,
“She hasn’t been feeling well since last night.”
Hearing that she wasn’t feeling well, Feng Ye became even more worried and wanted to step around the screen,
“She’s not feeling well? Madam Li, you should have told us earlier. We could have arranged to meet another day. It didn’t have to be today.”
Lin Ting said, “I…”
Honestly, I’m glad Duan Ling was chosen at random… I thought it would be Xia Zimo, and that was going to make things very complicated