Lin Ting couldn’t help but stumble a bit.
So Duan Ling remembered what had happened when he was drunk!
Did that mean he was in a half-drunken, half-awake state when he kissed her?
If so, why did he still kiss her?
Was it the alcohol that got to his head?
Even if he still had some awareness, could he really not control his actions?
Lin Ting still didn’t dare to think in the direction of Duan Ling liking her, because the possibility was just too slim.
She would rather believe that he was drunk and couldn’t tell who she was at that moment, only coming to his senses afterward.
“You.” She looked at Duan Ling, whose face was as handsome as jade, with a strange expression, wanting to say something but only managing to utter that one word.
Duan Ling, however, patiently waited.
After a while, Lin Ting’s lips moved: “Why did you kiss me that day?”
She had asked a similar question after their kiss at the pond.
Duan Ling simply stared at her, his expression unchanged, but he remained silent for the moment.
Lin Ting felt uncomfortable under Duan Ling’s gaze, and as he took his time to respond, the absurd thought in her mind gradually took over-could he really like her?
Was that why he kissed her while drunk?
But how could Duan Ling like her?
Lin Ting couldn’t think of a reason why he would like her.
In the original story, Duan Ling had never liked anyone and had never married in his life.
Even if she had crossed into the story and caused a butterfly effect, it wouldn’t be enough to make him go from disliking her to liking her.
It felt too far-fetched.
Could Duan Ling completely forget what she had done in the past?
How could that be possible?
A person like him, who was known for holding grudges, would never forget the times she had tried to harm him when they were children.
If the roles were reversed, and Lin Ting was in Duan Ling’s position, she would never like someone who had harmed her repeatedly as a child.
Being able to let bygones be bygones as an adult would already be a great virtue.
But she couldn’t do that.
Lin Ting knew that those actions were done unconsciously by her before she awakened, following the original story’s setup, but Duan Ling didn’t know that.
In his mind, she had genuinely wanted to harm him and kill him back then.
She couldn’t tell him the truth; there was no way to defend herself.
How could Duan Ling forget the past and like her?
He wasn’t someone who would enjoy being mistreated.
Lin Ting thought seriously about it.
She had been single her whole life, and her modern friends often said she was smart in other people’s matters but a bit slow in her own romantic affairs.
In high school, a boy often came to her with questions and even bought her snacks.
Lin Ting thought he was just studious and buying her snacks as “tutoring fees.”
It wasn’t until a friend reminded her that the boy liked her that she didn’t believe it, until he confessed his feelings.
And her relationship with Duan Ling was even more complicated.
Although they had shared intimate moments, it was either due to tasks or other special reasons like the pond incident or the misunderstanding with the medicine tea.
None of those instances involved liking each other.
The more Lin Ting thought about it, the more impossible it seemed, but seeing Duan Ling’s calm demeanor now made her vaguely feel that it wasn’t entirely out of the question.
She was the type of person who needed to find answers when she had questions, and this was no different.
After kissing Duan Ling a few times, her courage had inexplicably grown a bit.
Seeing that he wasn’t answering, Lin Ting hesitated for a long time before finally mustering the courage to ask,
“Did you kiss me because… you like me?”
Duan Ling was still looking at her when he suddenly spoke:
“Why did you kiss me at Nanshan Pavilion? The reason I kissed you that day in the pavilion was because of you. What was your real reason for kissing me at Nanshan Pavilion?”
Lin Ting was taken aback.
So it wasn’t that he liked her.
When she kissed him at Nanshan Pavilion, she had given off the impression that she wasn’t sincere, that she was deliberately teasing him.
So Duan Ling just wanted her to know what it felt like to be kissed unexpectedly?
Was Duan Ling actually getting back at her?
In such a way?
He was too vengeful; that incident had happened over a month ago.
Well, no matter how long ago it was, what was done was done.
It was her fault; she acknowledged it.
Lin Ting didn’t answer Duan Ling’s last question but instead apologized again for what happened at Nanshan Pavilion:
“I understand the reason now; I’m sorry.”
It’s fortunate that he doesn’t like her; otherwise, that would be too strange.
Duan Ling: “Sorry?”
Lin Ting had a look that said “please forgive me, I was really wrong”.
“Yes, I’m very sorry.”
He pressed his finger over the blue book cover and chuckled softly while saying:
“Miss Lin Qi, are you planning to treat this as a dream and then forget about it?”
What else could she do?
He had kissed her back, right?
She had kissed him a few times, and he had kissed her a few times; that should cancel each other out: “Yes.”
Duan Ling’s smile faded slightly, and he pondered: “Alright, I understand.”
Lin Ting thought for a moment and shoved the silver he had just given her back to him.
After brushing against his fingers, she quickly pulled away, not lingering, and held back the pain of parting:
“This book is also a gift from me to you. In the future, when you come to the study to borrow books, I won’t charge you any silver.”
Duan Ling looked down at the silver in his palm:
“That doesn’t seem quite right. Miss Lin Qi, if you open a shop, how can you not make money?” His tone was normal, but his emotions were hard to read.
Jin Anazi, who had just returned from outside, happened to overhear these two sentences and suspected that Lin Ting had been bewitched by beauty and gone mad, treating money as life and refusing to suffer losses.
She actually told Duan Ling that he wouldn’t have to pay for books in the future.
Previously, she had invited Duan Ling to Nanshan Pavilion for a meal, and now she was selling books without charging him.
Lin Ting had really “improved”; Duan Ling had surpassed gold and silver in her heart?
That was rare.
Jin Anazi pushed the door open and walked in: “Lin Leyun, what did you just say?”
Lin Ting was startled.
Why was Jin Anazi back at this time?
She turned her head and once again signaled him:
“The books Duan Ling is borrowing, I will pay for them. I won’t let the study suffer losses.”
The study wasn’t just Lin Ting’s; Jin Anazi was also one of the owners.
She remembered that and didn’t intend to take advantage of Jin Anazi; she would bear the losses herself.
But Duan Ling probably wouldn’t borrow too many books, right?
He probably wouldn’t; his study was larger than her study and had a richer collection.
After signaling to Jin Anazi, she added:
“I just said that in the future, when Lord Duan comes to the study, he won’t have to pay for books. Remember that.”
To the outside world, she was the sole owner of this study.
Jin Anazi looked at them meaningfully, still politely calling out “Lord Duan,” putting away his sword, and picking up a feather duster to clean, his movements skilled, indicating that he often did this.
Duan Ling slowly shifted his gaze away and casually asked:
“Why isn’t Young Master Shen coming back with Young Master Jin? Didn’t they go out together?”
Lin Ting exchanged glances with Jin Anazi and said: “He won’t be coming back.”
“Why?”
She calmly replied: “He has some matters to attend to, so he left today.”
Duan Ling’s smile faded slightly, as if genuinely regretting the lost opportunity to make a friend:
“What a pity; I wanted to be friends with Young Master Shen.”
Lin Ting knew that he was not just interested in the wine; she pretended to comfort him:
“There are many talented people in the world. I believe Lord Duan will be able to make better friends in the future, so there’s no need to regret.”
Jin Anazi listened in silence.
Duan Ling flipped open the book again, the dark characters reflecting in his eyes:
“It’s different; everyone is different. No matter what it is, if you change the person, the feeling will be different.”
Lin Ting shrugged: “There’s nothing you can do about it; fate can’t be forced.”
“What if I insist on forcing it?”
Was that implying he wanted to catch Xie Qinghe?
Duan Ling wasn’t wrong; he was from the Imperial Guards, and that was his duty.
Lin Ting awkwardly said: “Generally speaking, forcing things won’t yield good results and may lead to mutual destruction. It’s better to go with the flow.”
Duan Ling’s eyebrows twitched slightly: “Mutual destruction, going with the flow… But even if it’s mutual destruction, I still want to get what I want.”
Lin Ting decided not to discuss this matter with Duan Ling anymore.
With Jin Anazi present, he probably wouldn’t catch Xie Qinghe: “Then I wish you good luck.”
Jin Anazi, who was sweeping the spider webs with the feather duster, couldn’t help but look back.
Strange, why did it feel like they weren’t talking about the same thing?
Was it his illusion?
Jin Anazi didn’t think deeply and continued sweeping the spider webs.
Duan Ling slowly put away the book and placed the silver Lin Ting had shoved back on the bookshelf:
“You gave me a book a few days ago; today, if you buy a book, you still have to pay. Just accept it.”
He turned to leave: “I won’t disturb Miss Lin Qi’s business.”
Lin Ting watched Duan Ling’s profile, not forgetting that she still had a task at hand, and called out to him:
“I remember your birthday is at the end of the month.”
Duan Ling stopped, his gaze passing over a row of bookshelves before slowly landing on her:
“I didn’t expect you to remember when my birthday is.”
“You are Ling Yun’s second brother; I’ve heard her mention it, and it just stuck in my mind.”
“Why bring this up all of a sudden?”
Lin Ting steeled herself: “I want to give you a gift.”
She had never gone to the Duan residence to celebrate his birthday, even when Duan Xining invited her, she found an excuse not to go.
Over time, Duan Xining realized that Lin Ting’s relationship with Duan Ling was not as harmonious as it appeared and stopped insisting that she celebrate his birthday.
Because of this, Lin Ting was a bit worried that he wouldn’t invite her over this year, just like before.
Although Lin Ting could sneak in through Duan Xining’s connections on the day, she felt it was necessary to get Duan Ling’s consent; after all, it was his birthday, and some etiquette should be observed.
Duan Ling: “You want to give me a gift?”
Lin Ting nodded: “That’s right. I just want to ask what you like so I can give it to you.”
He looked at her for a moment, and after a while, he said:
“That’s thoughtful of you, but you can give me whatever you want; anything you give is your intention.”
“Alright, I’ll choose myself.”
Gifts that are flashy and useless are not practical; Lin Ting planned to give him a hairpin made of jade.
It could also serve as a way to make up for the fact that she had to publicly say “I want to marry you” on his birthday to complete her task.
Saying that in public wouldn’t affect his reputation, nor would it affect her much.
In the open-minded culture of Dayan, many noble girls bravely pursued love; there was even one who drugged and slept with the top scholar.
She didn’t consider herself particularly outrageous.
It would just attract some gossip.
Thinking of this, Lin Ting began to worry about how to explain it to Duan Xining.
Not far away, Jin Anazi let out a silent snort.
For his birthday, Lin Ting had only given him an apple, saying it was for peace and safety, and that eating apples on one’s birthday was good.
That apple wasn’t even bought by her; it was given to her by the apple vendor because she looked good.
Jin Anazi wouldn’t think Lin Ting would give an apple to Duan Ling.
To be honest, he still couldn’t quite understand Lin Ting’s transformation; could liking someone really change a person so much?