Weakness Trap - Chapter 24

“That” Yu Lingxue was left speechless by Yu Qingluan’s remark.

She took a deep breath, failing to grasp the underlying meaning in Yu Qingluan’s words.

“Will it be dangerous overseas? You should be careful,” she replied mechanically.

“Who was that person earlier?” she then hurriedly changed the subject.

Yu Qingluan suppressed her expression, biting her lip until it hurt.

Had she chosen the wrong moment to ask?

She wanted to discuss the future with Yu Lingxue.

But Yu Lingxue was busy being jealous.

“He’s my friend,” Yu Qingluan forced herself to accept Yu Lingxue’s reaction.

It’s fine maybe she just didn’t understand…

Maybe she just didn’t know how to respond.

Or perhaps she was too caught up in her jealousy to pay attention to what was being said. But Yu Qingluan had never felt this kind of jealousy toward Yu Lingxue.

No matter how many people surrounded Yu Lingxue, how many friends she had, or how many admirers secretly pined for her, Yu Qingluan had never shown the slightest displeasure.

She could even act as if nothing had happened when she witnessed Yu Lingxue being confessed to.

She could calmly tell Xiang Yan that Yu Lingxue had rejected Su Lian.

Why couldn’t Yu Lingxue just listen to what she was saying?

Yu Qingluan pinched her wrist and took another deep breath.

“Let’s go boating? The clouds are coming soon, and it’ll get cold again.”

Yu Qingluan forced a smile and then took Yu Lingxue’s hand.

Yu Lingxue was dissatisfied with her answer but only opened her mouth without pressing further.

Once aboard Yu Qingluan’s awning-covered boat, Yu Lingxue felt, for the first time, that the small vessel was unbearably cramped.

Her emotions were trapped inside, making her feel stifled and miserable.

A friend, just a friend, only a friend,

Wasn’t Yu Qingluan going to say more?

What kind of friend? When did they meet?

Why did she still know nothing about it?

Yu Lingxue stood up to get some air, and Yu Qingluan gently touched her face.

It was an intimate gesture.

But Yu Lingxue felt no love in it.

Suddenly, Yu Lingxue hugged Yu Qingluan tightly, causing her to drop the oar.

“Wait,” Yu Qingluan stumbled, and the boat began to sway.

“It’s going to capsize, don’t…” Yu Qingluan’s heart had already softened—otherwise, she wouldn’t have reached out to touch Yu Lingxue’s face.

Seeing Yu Lingxue’s desolate expression was unbearable.

Just as she was about to explain things properly, Yu Lingxue acted urgently, as if trying to prove something.

She no longer listened to Yu Qingluan’s words, stubbornly gripping her hand and kissing her lips.

“Mmph…” Yu Qingluan’s final resistance was muffled into a murmur.

Then, the narrow awning-covered boat capsized.

The quarreling lovers fell into the icy Chu Yun River.

Yu Lingxue couldn’t swim and thrashed about violently.

Yu Qingluan had no choice but to hold her waist tightly, pulling her into an embrace and ignoring the blows landing on her shoulders as she swiftly swam toward the riverbank.

Yu Lingxue had always been frail, how could she endure being submerged in such cold water in the middle of winter?

Yu Qingluan couldn’t bear to let her stay in the water a second longer.

“Calm down, Lingxue,” she urged, her speed hindered by Yu Lingxue’s struggles, yet she had to speak to get her to move less.

Yu Lingxue trembled uncontrollably in her arms.

The water soaked through Yu Qingluan’s clothes.

But in an instant, she could distinguish Yu Lingxue’s tears.

“It’ll be over soon. I’ll take you away,” Yu Qingluan pressed Yu Lingxue’s head against her still-dry shoulder.

“I’ll protect you,” she said, already reaching the riverbank.

She mustered all her strength to lift Yu Lingxue safely onto the shore, then, utterly exhausted, barely managed to pull herself up.

Yu Lingxue knelt by the water’s edge, tears streaming down her face.

She paid no mind to the cold or her trembling.

She threw herself at Yu Qingluan, who had just made it ashore, sobbing silently.

Yu Qingluan let out a soft sigh.

“Don’t cry Let’s go home first, take a bath, and change clothes.” And then they still had to retrieve the boat she had dropped in the river.

Why had she been so upset with her in the first place?

Yu Qingluan kissed Yu Lingxue’s forehead and held her securely in her arms.

Their soaked clothes felt even colder now. Yu Qingluan could only shield Yu Lingxue from the wind with her own body.

She ran back home, grateful for the first time that she carried her sewing kit every day and rowed a boat to school.

Otherwise, carrying her girlfriend all the way home would have been impossible.

“Mom! Is the bathwater ready?” Yu Qingluan pushed the door open with a loud bang.

Yu Shuhua jumped, thinking a robber had barged in.

“Oh, yes, it’s ready” Recognizing her daughter, Yu Shuhua replied in a daze.

Goodness, what had they been up to?

She really couldn’t understand young people these days.

Fortunately, she had prepared the bathwater in advance, just in case the two couldn’t bathe after whatever they were doing.

Yu Shuhua watched as her daughter carried her girlfriend into the bathroom.

“What’s up with your daughter?” Zeng Min and Zeng Lan stared at the scene, Zeng Min’s jaw practically dropping.

“Never mind her, as long as she’s happy.” Yu Shuhua turned her gaze away and offered Zeng Min some sunflower seeds.

“True.” Zeng Min quietly accepted the seeds.

Only Zeng Lan took an extra glance at Yu Lingxue.

It took some effort to wash away all the chill from Yu Lingxue’s body.

Yu Qingluan wrapped her snugly in clothes and blankets before taking another quick rinse herself.

“Qingluan” Yu Lingxue recalled her earlier behavior, feeling deeply ashamed.

But the moment she fell into the water and was caught by Yu Qingluan, she felt with absolute clarity that Yu Qingluan loved her.

Deeply, sincerely, loved her.

No matter her flaws or virtues.

This overwhelming sense of being cherished gave Yu Lingxue an immense feeling of security.

She pulled the clothes tighter around herself.

She wasn’t cold at all now, yet she still yearned for the warmth of Yu Qingluan’s embrace.

Perhaps,

She truly loved Yu Qingluan too.

After her shower, Yu Qingluan slipped back under the covers where Yu Lingxue lay.

Yu Lingxue snuggled closer, rubbing her cheek against Yu Qingluan’s arm.

A gesture of seeking affection.

Yu Qingluan sometimes found it surprising.

Yu Lingxue was a delicate, pampered young lady, frail and sickly, raised like a precious jewel since childhood.

How could she behave like this?

But such thoughts were fleeting, quickly overshadowed by the knowledge that she was the only one who had ever seen this side of Yu Lingxue.

After a moment’s reflection, Yu Qingluan tightened her embrace and spoke earnestly.

“It’s my fault.”

Yu Lingxue froze, the sparkle in her eyes impossible for Yu Qingluan to ignore.

“I shouldn’t have brushed you off earlier.” Yu Qingluan lifted a corner of the blanket to wipe Yu Lingxue’s face.

Yu Lingxue lowered her gaze, her eyelashes trembling slightly.

So Yu Qingluan was this indulgent with her.

Her heart was still racing wildly.

The sound was so loud.

So loud she could no longer hear Yu Qingluan’s words.

“You saw it too that person is a guest at my house. We’ve known each other since we were kids. Her mom and my mom are very close.”

Gently, Yu Qingluan wiped the moisture from Yu Lingxue’s face, revealing the soft, delicate fuzz on her skin.

Yu Qingluan couldn’t help but smile.

Wasn’t this how they were meant to be together?

Be good, don’t argue or sulk,

She could afford to be a little more tolerant toward Yu Lingxue.

After all she really did like Yu Lingxue.

So there were many things she could let slide.

Like the future she had mentioned.

Yu Lingxue had said she would stay with her in Chucheng.

Now that Yu Lingxue had become Li Ran’s apprentice, she would surely pursue her postgraduate studies in Chucheng as well.

And she still had to finish her undergraduate studies.

So the idea of going abroad could wait.

By the time she finished wiping her face, Yu Lingxue blinked, and tears slid down again.

“Hey, I’m apologizing to you, why are you still crying?” Yu Qingluan teased her softly.

Yu Lingxue bit her lip, then couldn’t hold back and let out a sob.

Even when she cried openly, her voice was so faint, like a kitten’s mewl. If one didn’t listen carefully, her weeping would be drowned out by the casual chatter between Yu Shuhua and her friend.

Yu Qingluan wrapped her arms around Yu Lingxue, leaning back with her.

“I, ” Yu Lingxue couldn’t speak.

Perhaps from the moment Yu Qingluan admitted it was her fault, Yu Lingxue could no longer hear anything.

The world fell silent, just as it had in her childhood.

But this time, it wasn’t the domineering Yan Wenying by her side, nor the cold and terrifying Yan Lanshen.

It was Yu Qingluan, who loved her, indulged her, and cared for her.

“Little Bird” Yu Lingxue realized that once you truly fall in love with someone, words of confession become impossible to utter.

All she could do was cling tightly to Yu Qingluan, pressing herself deeper into her embrace.

“There, there,” Yu Qingluan murmured, stroking her hair.

Just like the auntie who had once taken care of her.

Gently soothing the turbulence in her emotions, turning the crashing waves into gentle ripples.

“Little Bird, I ” Yu Lingxue lifted her head.

Her eyes met Yu Qingluan’s, and then Yu Qingluan lowered her head.

There was no need for her to say it.

Yu Qingluan knew she loved her.

“No fever, right? I’ll go mix some medicine for you.” After their tender moment, Yu Qingluan ruffled Yu Lingxue’s hair.

Yu Lingxue nodded obediently. “Probably not, thanks to you.”

Within five minutes, Yu Qingluan returned with the medicine and a bowl of congee that Yu Shuhua had just prepared.

“Auntie is so thoughtful,” Yu Lingxue said, sipping slowly.

“Did you inherit that from her?”

Yu Qingluan burst out laughing.

“If she heard that, she’d laugh herself silly. This is the first time anyone’s called me thoughtful.” Yu Qingluan thought to herself she was the type to follow her own rules.

If she didn’t like someone, she wouldn’t bother with them, let alone be considerate.

But if she did like someone, she would offer them her whole heart.

“True enough,” Yu Shuhua’s agreement came from the living room.

“…” Yu Lingxue had forgotten she was in Yu Qingluan’s old home.

This home housed only two people, usually quiet, living a slow and orderly life.

So the walls were thin, and secrets were hard to keep.

“Save me some face, please.” At least in front of her girlfriend.

Yu Shuhua laughed again from the living room.

Yu Lingxue buried herself in Yu Qingluan’s embrace.

Her ears flushed with embarrassment as she whispered softly, close to Yu Qingluan’s ear, “Earlier, when we”

“No, they had just turned off the TV.” With how softly Yu Lingxue spoke, her voice could barely mask the rustling sounds of Yu Qingluan’s movements.

“That’s good.” Yu Lingxue breathed a sigh of relief.

After lingering for a while, Yu Qingluan took Yu Lingxue’s hand and led her out for dinner.

Zeng Min and her daughter had already left.

Yu Lingxue felt a little more at ease.

“So you’re Xiaoyu, where are you from?” At the dinner table, Yu Shuhua casually asked a few questions.

“Gangcheng.” Yu Lingxue immediately grew tense again.

“But I’ll be staying in Chucheng for the foreseeable future.”

“Oh. Chucheng is nice, but it’s not the best place to build a career.” Yu Shuhua’s words carried an underlying meaning.

Yu Lingxue didn’t respond.

Yu Qingluan, however, began overthinking again.

If Yu Lingxue wanted to stay in Chucheng long-term, then it wouldn’t matter if she didn’t go out adventuring with Zeng Lan.

After all, her family had lived this way for generations.

She was content to be an embroiderer, stitching for a lifetime.

Though with a slight modification.

Half a lifetime of embroidery would suffice. The remaining half, she wanted to dedicate to Yu Lingxue.

After the meal, Yu Qingluan took Yu Lingxue out for a casual stroll, to retrieve her overturned boat and walk off the food.

By the time they returned, the night had deepened.

Exhausted from the day, Yu Qingluan fell into a deep sleep.

Yu Lingxue tossed and turned, unable to rest, and eventually got up, taking her phone.

She quietly pushed open Yu Qingluan’s door and walked forward.

On and on she walked.

As if afraid Yu Qingluan might overhear her upcoming words, she walked until Yu Qingluan’s home was no longer visible.

This small alley, lined with willow trees along the bank, was eerily silent.

Yu Lingxue gazed at the dim streetlight and simply tightened her coat.

Ghosts… aren’t scary at all.

People are the most terrifying.

Yu Lingxue picked up the phone and called Yan Wenying.

“Miss Yan, perhaps I wasn’t clear before. There are some things I need to say again. I have no intention of marrying you. From the moment you forcibly confined me in the Yan family, all I’ve felt toward you and your family is hatred.” Some matters needed to be settled once and for all.

Good news, they’re in love with each other!

Bad news, the antagonist and I are eager to start setting things on fire.