“You’re getting defensive.”
Lin Ting was utterly exasperated by Jin Anzai.
He always brought up the most inconvenient topics:
“Jin Anzai, if you don’t speak, no one will think you’re mute. Really. I’m begging you, shut up.”
Jin Anzai averted his gaze and suddenly asked,
“Aren’t you afraid I’ll drag you down?”
Some people who knew his true identity were afraid of being implicated.
They either distanced themselves and reported him to the court or drove him away.
Lin Ting thought for a moment, then said seriously,
“I am afraid. So, could you give me five hundred taels as hush money? If five hundred isn’t possible, three hundred will do. Even one hundred is fine. That’s the lowest I’ll go.”
Jin Anzai: “Lin Leyun.”
“Huh?”
“I think I’ll just kill you.”
Because of Lin Ting, Jin Anzai had completely forgotten the man’s words, and his displeasure vanished without a trace.
The only thought left in his mind was to slash her with his sword.
Lin Ting wasn’t about to stand still and wait for him to strike.
She darted around, grabbing a chicken and throwing it at Jin Anzai.
The chicken squawked loudly, feathers flying everywhere, with a few landing in his high ponytail.
He wore an ugly mask, had a few chicken feathers stuck in his hair, yet held a long sword, chasing after her.
The scene was as ridiculous as it could get.
The dog, having been bumped into, started barking, and the yard descended into chaos.
*
In the months when they didn’t have to take on tasks and the bookstore wasn’t receiving customers, Lin Ting lived very comfortably, only occasionally visiting the fabric shop.
In the past, Lin Ting had to sneak into the fabric shop, but now she could go openly.
Because Third Master Lin no longer had the authority to interfere with her business.
Although the contract he signed allowing her to establish her own business wasn’t widely known, they both understood it.
Today, Lin Ting also went to the Linji Fabric Shop to check the accounts.
Tao Zhu stood by her side, serving tea while supervising the shopkeeper and the clerks:
“When there are no customers, sweep the floor.”
The clerk frequently glanced at Lin Ting, who was sitting at the counter playing with the abacus and checking the accounts.
The young girl sat on the stool, wearing a red dress with bright yellow silk ribbons.
The crystal-clear moon-shaped earrings on her earlobes complemented her fair, makeup-free face.
The clerk had been at Linji Fabric Shop since it opened, but he had only seen the shopkeeper and rarely the actual owner.
It was only a month ago that he first met the owner, who was younger than him.
And she was so beautiful…
The shopkeeper rapped the clerk on the head, interrupting his daydream:
“What are you staring at? Get back to work.”
It was the off-season, and there weren’t many customers.
After checking the account book, Lin Ting lay down on the recliner next to the counter and ate grapes.
Tao Zhu stood behind her, massaging her back:
“Is business not going well?”
Lin Ting: “Not particularly bad.”
It was the off-season, after all.
She needed to keep a steady mindset.
Besides, she still had her private savings and wouldn’t let the fabric shop go bankrupt.
As soon as she finished speaking, a young man walked into the fabric shop, asking if they had Hangzhou silk.
The shopkeeper, noticing the man’s extraordinary bearing and good looks, personally greeted him, saying enthusiastically,
“Yes, we do. Please follow me.”
Tao Zhu glanced over and quickly nudged Lin Ting, who was dozing off:
“Seventh Miss, open your eyes and see who’s here. It’s Lord Duan. He’s back in the capital.”
Lin Ting opened her eyes just as Duan Ling turned to look in her direction.
Duan Ling’s skin was as pale as ever, his hair tied with a jade crown.
He had lost some weight, evident from the slim waist cinched by his belt.
His green robes accentuated his tall, slender figure, and his features were strikingly beautiful.
She was slightly startled:
“Lord Duan?”
Duan Ling’s gaze lingered on her face for a moment:
“Seventh Miss Lin, it’s been a while.”
Out of politeness, Lin Ting put down the grapes she was holding and walked over to him:
“It has been a month. When did you return to the capital?”
She had visited Duan Xinning just the day before and hadn’t seen him, so he must have returned either yesterday or today.
“I just got back today,” Duan Ling said.
Lin Ting glanced at the shopkeeper, who was holding a few bolts of silk:
“Are you here to buy silk?”
Duan Ling finally shifted his gaze from her face:
“Yes, I need to buy some silk for my mother. I saw the fabric shop as I passed by, so I came in.”
No wonder he had come personally to buy silk-it was for Lady Feng.
Lady Feng had always treated Lin Ting well, and she remembered that.
Hearing that Duan Ling was buying silk for Lady Feng, Lin Ting also became more attentive, abandoning her plan to let the shopkeeper handle Duan Ling while she slipped away. Instead, she stayed.
Lin Ting said without hesitation:
“Take whatever silk you like. Consider it a gift from me to Lady Feng. If you’re not sure what would suit her, I can also recommend some.”
“This fabric shop belongs to Seventh Miss Lin?”
Duan Ling seemed to have just realized this.
Lin Ting no longer needed to hide the existence of the fabric shop from anyone:
“That’s right. This is my fabric shop. Feel free to pick.”
Duan Ling smiled slightly:
“Then I’ll trouble Seventh Miss Lin to make some recommendations.”
Lin Ting felt a small sense of pride.
She began selecting:
“I’ve seen Lady Feng a few times. She usually wears clothes with subdued colors, so bright silks wouldn’t suit her. That pale green one over there is nice, and the blue silk behind you is also good.”
The shopkeeper followed them, taking out the silks Lin Ting mentioned and placing them to the side.
Tao Zhu stood at a distance, observing them, curious to see if Lord Duan had fallen for her seventh miss.
But after observing for a long time, Tao Zhu couldn’t tell.
They didn’t exchange longing glances like in the storybooks, nor did their conversation seem particularly intimate.
It seemed her seventh miss still had some work to do to win over Lord Duan.
It had to be said, Lord Duan was a tough nut to crack.
With all her charm, how could he still not be smitten?
Tao Zhu was baffled.
In the end, Tao Zhu concluded that Lord Duan was blind and couldn’t appreciate her seventh miss’s good qualities.
Lin Ting, on the other hand, was wondering when Duan Ling would leave.
The incident where she had forcefully kissed him had happened a month
ago, and she had almost forgotten about it.
But seeing Duan Ling today brought it all back, and she couldn’t help but stare at his lips.
A month later, Duan Ling’s lips had returned to their original color-a pale red, not the deep, blood-red they had been at Nanshan Pavilion, and the bite mark she had left was gone.
She unconsciously pursed her lips.
Duan Ling turned his head:
“Seventh Miss Lin, why are you staring at my… my face?”
“I noticed you’ve lost some weight, so I couldn’t help but look a little longer. Is it because of the illness you mentioned?”
Lin Ting whispered the last part, ensuring no one else could hear.
It seemed not many people knew about Duan Ling’s illness.
As someone in the know, she could show some concern, but she had to avoid letting others find out through her.
That was basic decency.
Duan Ling ran his hand over the red silk laid out on the long table, feeling its softness and smoothness, and said indifferently,
“Perhaps.”
Lin Ting glanced around, her voice even softer:
“Did seeing a doctor not help?”
“Doctors can’t cure it.”
Doctors can’t cure it?
Could it be some terminal illness?
If that were the case, Duan Xinning, the little crybaby, would be devastated.
Although Lin Ting had a somewhat distant relationship with Duan Ling, she didn’t want him to die.
After a moment of thought, she asked tentatively,
“May I ask-does this illness pose a threat to your life?”
He paused: “It shouldn’t.”
“That’s good.”
Lin Ting felt slightly relieved.
Otherwise, she’d have to consider whether to tell Duan Xinning to prepare herself emotionally.
Lin Ting hadn’t forgotten that she still owed him a favor, so she added,
“If there’s anything I can do to help, don’t hesitate to ask.”
Duan Ling withdrew his hand from the silk:
“Thank you, but you can’t help me.”
True, she wasn’t a doctor and couldn’t help with something even doctors couldn’t cure.
Lin Ting could only say,
“Lord Duan, good fortune favors the virtuous. I’m sure you’ll find a way to treat your illness.”
Duan Ling subtly rotated his wrist and looked elsewhere:
“I hope so.”
Lin Ting thought of Jin Anzai’s identity and decided to probe Duan Ling for information about the unrest in Suzhou:
“Was the situation in Suzhou very difficult to handle?”
He raised an eyebrow:
“Why is Seventh Miss Lin suddenly asking about Suzhou?”
She remained calm:
“I’ve been hearing a lot about the unrest in Suzhou in the capital, so I got a little curious. If it’s inconvenient to talk about, just pretend I didn’t ask.”
“The situation in Suzhou was indeed difficult to handle,”
Duan Ling took a step forward but didn’t elaborate.
Instead, he casually added,
“Is Mr. Jin from Suzhou?”
Lin Ting glanced at him:
“Who told you Jin Anzai is from Suzhou?”
Duan Ling:
“No one told me. I guessed. His accent sounds a bit like someone from Suzhou, but I could be wrong.”
She looked down at the silk:
“I don’t know. He’s never told me where he’s from.”
She steered the conversation back to buying silk:
“Apart from these bolts of silk, do you want anything else?”
“I’d like two more.”
Lin Ting looked up at him:
“Sure. Are these also for Lady Feng?”
Duan Ling replied calmly:
“No, they’re for me. I’ll pay for them myself. Could Seventh Miss Lin recommend two more for me?”
“Talking about money hurts the sentiment…”
Lin Ting immediately took Duan Ling to the most expensive silk, calling the shopkeeper to bring it out.
“You seem more suited to brighter colors. How about these few bolts?”
She had seen Duan Ling wear the bright red Feiyu robe many times, looking incredibly handsome, truly embodying the phrase “more radiant than flowers.”
Despite being a military officer, he appeared even more refined than a civil official, which was rather peculiar.
Duan Ling leaned in closer to look, his breath brushing over Lin Ting’s hand resting on the silk, causing her to tremble slightly.
Just as Lin Ting was about to withdraw her hand, he moved away:
“These two are good, but are there any others? I’d like to see more.”
“Yes, there are.”
She called the shopkeeper again to bring out a few bolts of expensive red silk that were hard to sell:
“How about these?”
Duan Ling selected two bolts:
“These two will do. Thank you, Miss Lin Qi.”
“No trouble at all. I’ll have them delivered to your residence later.”
Lin Ting didn’t mind the trouble; she was more than happy to make a profit.
As Duan Ling reached into his sleeve for the money, a corner of the handkerchief inside was briefly revealed.
It looked somewhat familiar, though she couldn’t immediately recall that she had given it to him.
Almost instinctively, she pulled it out.
The handkerchief, embroidered with what she first thought were bugs but then realized were actually grass patterns, was back in her hands.
The moment she saw the design clearly, Lin Ting remembered that this was the handkerchief she had given Duan Ling to wipe off blood.
Did he think it would be impolite to throw it away, so he washed it clean to return it to her?
Duan Ling’s hand, holding the money, paused mid-air as he looked at Lin Ting.
Her slender, pale fingers were now pressing on the handkerchief that had once been stained with a white, filthy liquid, and she seemed about to clutch it in her palm.
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That Duan Ling…