MQSP - Chapter 80
Chapter 80
Lin Yuqing had been going crazy these past few days. The others were running up and down the mountain, but they absolutely wouldn't let her go up, dead set on preventing her from seeing Xiao Ye. Aside from her frustration, she also truly felt for Xinran. How had she managed to get through all those years without Yilan?
Since she couldn't see Xiao Ye, she went to the manor to keep Xinran company whenever she was free. She learned how to weave flower crowns from her, thinking she'd make one for the little one to wear.
But this particular "fellow" was all heart and no dexterity. When Xinran first taught her, she only let her use trimmed branches and leaves. But once Lin Yuqing thought she'd gotten the hang of it, she started eyeing the lush, growing branches as her raw material.
Her routine for the past two days went something like this: she'd trail behind Xinran. The moment Xinran finished watering and tending to the flowers, Lin Yuqing would sneakily pluck a few leaves. She was quite cunning about it, plucking from different plants every so often instead of taking from the same one. After all, with so many flowers, a few missing leaves here and there shouldn't be noticeable.
With the flower crown finally complete, Lin Yuqing couldn't wait to show it off to Xinran. She came out of Xinran's residence, stretched, and headed straight for the backyard.
"Xinran, look." She proudly held up the flower crown. It was woven from leaves and dotted with orchids, and it actually looked quite decent.
"You've been plucking my leaves again."
"Huh?" Lin Yuqing froze. She had only plucked two today. How could she have noticed? Then what about all the others before...
Xinran turned and shot her a sideways glance.
"Er... well, it's for Xiao Ye. Of course, I had to use the best materials..." She had no choice but to use the little one as a shield.
Xinran glanced at her again but didn't say anything. Lin Yuqing silently breathed a sigh of relief. Her desire to show off vanished instantly. Better to keep a low profile.
"Don't keep running over here. Fang Yi is going to get suspicious."
Hearing this, Lin Yuqing took two steps forward, about to squat down beside her.
"Don't block my flowers' sunlight."
"..." Right, I'm superfluous!
She retreated again and stood there obediently.
"It's fine. Fang Yi isn't here today. She went to pick up Xia Nan."
"Xia Nan?"
"Yes, Xiao Ye's adoptive mother. She's Xiao Zi's older sister. I mentioned her to you before."
Xinran nodded. This is her benefactor.
"Then why didn't you go?"
"I... I felt too awkward. I entrusted Xiao Ye to her back then, and now I'm taking Xiao Ye away from her. It doesn't sit right with me."
"Besides... if we're talking about seniority, she's technically my mother-in-law, isn't she?"
Lin Yuqing sighed.
Xinran looked back at her and chuckled lightly.
"What are you laughing a—" Lin Yuqing froze. Oh my god, there's a real mother-in-law squatting right here...
"I... oh, dear... what a mess this all is. And that whole gang, they're all waiting to hear me change how I address everyone... Why is Xiao Ye's seniority so low, anyway? Hey, since she's marrying me, shouldn't she follow my seniority? Can we give her a promotion?"
After blurting it all out, Lin Yuqing noticed that Xinran's face seemed to have the word "Scram" written on it in gold foil. She lowered her head in dejection.
"I want to meet her."
"Hm? You mean Xia Nan?" Lin Yuqing thought for a moment. If Xia Nan was here, she would probably go straight up the mountain to be with Xiao Ye. She glanced at the time, guessing that Fang Yi would be back soon. "I'll go back and wait for them now. Once she arrives, I'll bring her over."
"Okay." Xinran nodded. This was what she liked most about Lin Yuqing. Whatever she wanted to do, Lin Yuqing would always help her accomplish it unconditionally, and she rarely asked too many questions.
"Hold on to this flower crown for me. It's a surprise!" With a lift of her hand, Lin Yuqing placed the crown on Xinran's head, gave a gentle smile, and turned to leave.
Gu Xinran smiled helplessly, took off the flower crown, and examined it closely, carefully mending it for her.
Less than twenty minutes after she returned to her residence, Fang Yi and Xia Xiaozi were back, with Xia Nan in tow.
After ushering Xia Nan inside, Lin Yuqing stood in the room, at a complete loss. She didn't know whether to stand or sit.
It had been a long time, but Xia Nan looked the same as ever. She was dressed in professional attire, simple and clean, with her hair tied up, giving her a neat and capable appearance. She seemed like a very easygoing person.
Xia Nan, however, was much more relaxed. She plopped down on the sofa nonchalantly. On the way there, Fang Yi and Xia Xiaozi had been drilling into her head that she was the elder. They told her that when she saw Lin Yuqing, she didn't need to be as polite as before. Even making Lin Yuqing give her a shoulder massage was perfectly reasonable. After all, who told her to covet your daughter!
With that in mind, Xia Nan decided not to be polite. Besides, she still held a grudge against Lin Yuqing for whisking Xiao Ye away.
"Ahem. I've been in here for a while, and not even a sip of water." Xia Nan cleared her throat, putting on an air.
Lin Yuqing looked over. Right, this Xia Xiaozi is so thoughtless. "Xiao Zi." She shot Xia Xiaozi a look.
"Serving tea to your mother-in-law is something you need others to do for you?" Fang Yi poked her.
"...Right. I'll go. You... please, have a seat..." Lin Yuqing was dying of embarrassment, her tongue twisting into knots.
"Auntie wants a cup too." Xia Xiaozi was being quite wicked. With her sister here, Lin Yuqing had to be on her best behavior.
Lin Yuqing wanted to glare at her, but with Xia Nan watching, she couldn't act out and could only nod.
"Auntie Fang wants one too. That long drive really wore me out."
"..."
Lin Yuqing obediently resigned herself to her fate. She brewed a pot of tea, poured a cup for each of the three, and then stood there like a wooden post again.
"Hey, is this how you treat your mother-in-law!" Fang Yi muttered in her ear.
"...It's my first time meeting a 'mother-in-law.' I don't have any experience. What am I supposed to do next?"
"I... I've never met one either, but... you could at least make some conversation. Just standing there stiffly won't do." Fang Yi was speechless. The four of them looked at each other in silence, and the atmosphere was a bit awkward.
"Um... you've come a long way. You must be tired." Lin Yuqing smiled at Xia Nan.
"Isn't that obvious..." Fang Yi rolled her eyes. God, it's true what they say about women in love having negative IQ!
"Um... what would you like for dinner? I'll..." Lin Yuqing paused. "Fang Yi will cook for you."
Fang Yi covered her face. She's not so dumb when it comes to selling me out, huh.
Lin Yuqing rubbed the back of her neck, feeling the height of awkwardness.
"That's alright. Where's Xiao Ye? I'll go see her." Xia Nan didn't know whether to laugh or cry. It wasn't just Lin Yuqing who was uncomfortable; she was starting to feel ill at ease herself.
Hearing this, Lin Yuqing remembered Xinran's request. "Xia..." She started to say Xia Nan's name but stopped, feeling too embarrassed.
How should I address her... Calling her by her full name feels inappropriate now. Mother-in-law? I can't bring myself to say it. Auntie? No, no... Mom? I'm out.
"Alright, alright, just act like you used to. This is making me feel awkward too." Xia Nan waved her hand dismissively. What a mess.
"Okay... let me take you to see the wedding venue. You can see if there's anything that needs to be added." With Fang Yi present, Lin Yuqing didn't state things explicitly.
"It's not far. If we go now, we'll be there in about ten minutes." Seeing Xia Nan hesitate, and guessing she was eager to see Xiao Ye, Lin Yuqing quickly added.
"Alright." Only then did Xia Nan nod in agreement.
"Just the two of us will go. You two stay here. I happen to have something I want to discuss with her alone." As they were leaving, Lin Yuqing stopped Fang Yi and Xia Xiaozi from following.
Staring at the closed door, Fang Yi found it very strange. Now that Xia Nan was here, shouldn't Lin Yuqing be happily taking her up the mountain to see Xiao Ye? It was the perfect, legitimate reason! Yet she was taking her to see the venue first? Tsk, no matter how you looked at it, something was off.
"I'm going out to buy a few things. You can start preparing dinner." After thinking it over, Fang Yi decided to follow them secretly. That Lin Yuqing is definitely up to something!
"Here it is. This is the wedding venue. She decorated it all by herself." Lin Yuqing gave Xia Nan a brief tour of the site.
Xia Nan was astonished and kept looking toward the Flower Witch. "You've gone to so much trouble. Thank you so much." She thanked the Flower Witch sincerely.
The Flower Witch shook her head. "You don't need to thank me. You're the one who raised such a wonderful daughter."
I'm the one who should be thanking you.
"She knows I live alone on the mountain, so she often comes to keep me company. She's very filial, gentle, and kind. That's all thanks to you."
Xia Nan smiled, feeling a little awkward at the sudden praise.
Seeing the two of them start to chat, Lin Yuqing quietly stepped aside and watched from a distance.
From what Xinran had just said, it seemed she didn't plan on revealing her identity to Xia Nan. That made sense. All these years, Xia Nan had treated Xiao Ye as her own. If Xinran suddenly revealed who she was, Xia Nan might think she was trying to take Xiao Ye back, which would surely make her uncomfortable. Besides, Xinran wasn't an ungrateful person; she wouldn't hurt Xia Nan.
"What are they talking about?" A sudden voice from behind startled Lin Yuqing. She whipped her head around.
"What are you doing here?" Fang Yi? It's over! She had that all-seeing look in her eyes again, the exact same expression she'd had when she saw through Xiao Ye's identity!
"What could those two possibly have to talk about? Doesn't the Flower Witch dislike contact with strangers?" Fang Yi's eyes were fixed on Lin Yuqing like a hawk's.
Lin Yuqing was a terrible liar, and Fang Yi's stare made her feel guilty. "How should I know?"
"How should you know? The moment Xia Nan arrived, you couldn't wait to arrange a meeting between them. Two complete strangers with no connection—what reason could there be for them to meet?"
"I..."
"If you didn't arrange it deliberately, then the Flower Witch must have asked you to. And that's even more interesting. Why would she want to meet Xia Nan? How would she even know who Xia Nan is?"
"Hmm? Why don't you explain it to me." Fang Yi's intensity grew, her questioning becoming more aggressive and relentless. In contrast, Lin Yuqing had lost all her presence, not to mention her confidence. The word 'guilty' was practically written on her face!
Seeing her like this, Fang Yi already had an answer in her heart. She was thrilled but also couldn't be certain. She wanted to hear it from Lin Yuqing's own lips.
"This Flower Witch... who is she!" Even her voice began to tremble unconsciously.
"Lin Yuqing!"
"..." It's over.
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