Weakness Trap - Chapter 54

The mirror fragments were stubbornly taken back by Yu Lingxue.

She shut herself in her room, piecing them together over and over, but not only were a few pieces missing, she simply couldn’t restore it completely.

When it had shattered, some parts had broken into fine dust, impossible to pick up, let alone fit back into place.

So even if reassembled, cracks would remain.

Yu Lingxue crouched on her chair, her body hidden beneath a blanket, gazing at the mirror on the desk by the dim candlelight.

The mirror reflected countless fractured beams onto her face, making her already pallid complexion appear even more mottled.

With a sigh, Yu Lingxue closed her eyes.

A broken mirror could never be made whole again. Everyone understood that.

But emotions weren’t truly like a mirror.

She would take it slow.

Yu Lingxue swept the debris into the trash, drew back the curtains, and welcomed a beam of light.

After washing up and having breakfast, just as she was about to set off to find Yu Qingluan, she saw a message.

Yu Lingxue froze in place, her brow furrowing tighter the more she read.

Then she made a phone call.

“I knew that old geezer would come after you again after failing to spread rumors in M Country,” Zeng Lan said, utterly exasperated as she scanned the news.

Back in the day, she had also taken that old professor’s class. At the time, she hadn’t thought much of it, except that whenever she tried to ask him questions after class, he never responded.

Later, Yu Qingluan also enrolled in that course it was a required class, and that year, he was the only professor teaching it. Zeng Lan had wanted Yu Qingluan to switch, but there was no alternative.

During one lecture, the old man openly made discriminatory remarks, belittling Chinese culture.

Yu Qingluan, incensed, recorded the audio and reported him to the faculty. It was only then that Zeng Lan realized what she had encountered back then.

That incident had happened last year. Yu Qingluan was juggling her studio work, graduation preparations, gathering evidence for the faculty, and negotiating with local authorities on how to resolve the matter.

Eventually, the professor was suspended, but he held a grudge against Yu Qingluan and her friends, particularly despising their sale of products infused with Chinese culture in M Country. He went out of his way to cause trouble for them.

Just last month, Yu Qingluan had been tied up dealing with this very issue.

They had just enjoyed a brief respite when, to their surprise, the old man tracked down her studio in Hong Kong.

Today, Zeng Lan’s monitoring alert notified her of negative news about them. A quick search revealed that their studio had been exposed, accused of product plagiarism.

“After all this time, he still hasn’t come up with anything new. All he does is accuse us of plagiarism or claim our designs are shoddy,” Yu Qingluan remarked calmly after skimming a few articles.

“It’s like having a fly buzzing in your ear. Is it harmful? Not really, just filthy. Is it harmless? Well, it gives you a headache,” Zeng Lan quipped, already preparing to contact her assistant to handle the situation.

“At this rate, the first department we’ll establish in our company will be PR,” she joked with Yu Qingluan.

“You know, that’s not a bad idea. The fashion world isn’t any cleaner than the entertainment industry petty tactics like this are everywhere.”

Having been in the industry for two years, Yu Qingluan had seen it all and treaded carefully at every step. Zeng Lan’s comment made her seriously consider the idea.

“Don’t rush to handle it just yet. This is a perfect publicity opportunity a free trending topic,” Yu Qingluan stopped Zeng Lan.

They had nothing to hide. Let the buzz build, then launch the new season’s designs alongside a rebuttal to the rumors treat it as free promotion.

“Alright, I’ll have someone steer the comments toward the direction of ‘Fenice Yan’.” Fenice Yan was the brand name registered by Yu Qingluan.

Zeng Lan went off to make some calls, while Yu Qingluan busied herself messaging suppliers, guiding them on how to refine their techniques to better replicate the texture of hand embroidery.

In this regard, Yu Qingluan was not one to cling stubbornly to tradition.

If the technology was up to standard and had advanced, why not use it?

Besides, once the brand was established, she couldn’t possibly embroider every piece of clothing herself. At most, she would offer a high end custom line, providing hand-embroidered designs for those with extra money to spare.

In less than fifteen minutes, Zeng Lan returned to the shop, her expression one of astonishment, as if she were about to jump out of her skin. She rushed over to Yu Qingluan.

“What’s wrong?” Yu Qingluan set down her tablet, and Zhuang Chengwen, on the other end of the call, also looked up and noticed Zeng Lan.

“Sis Lan, who scared the soul out of you?” The junior apprentice sister even joked with Zeng Lan.

“The hashtag is gone!” Zeng Lan said, pulling out her phone to show Yu Qingluan.

It took Yu Qingluan a second to process this, then she hung up on Zhuang Chengwen and also took out her phone to search.

“Did you try different keywords? What about the network?” Yu Qingluan couldn’t believe the issue had been resolved so easily.

“I’ve tried everything. My friends couldn’t find the hashtag either.” Zeng Lan sat down on the counter, still stubbornly searching.

“Could it be that the old man suddenly grew a conscience? That’s impossible. Expecting someone like him to have a change of heart is like expecting my cat to support me in my old age.”

“Ahem.” A possibility flashed through Yu Qingluan’s mind.

It came and went so quickly that she didn’t have time to react before her mind automatically dismissed the thought.

“Never mind, it’s just as well that it’s gone. Let’s discuss something more important.” Yu Qingluan wanted to quickly divert herself from the unsettling feeling that had gripped her heart for that moment and changed the subject.

The two of them chatted for a while until the wind chime at the door rang, signaling someone’s entrance.

“I’ll go see.” Yu Qingluan put down the fabric she was holding and stepped out of the small room, with Zeng Lan following close behind.

It was the same customer who always wore a mask and never spoke.

Yu Qingluan greeted her and let her browse the products.

Zeng Lan, however, circled Yu Lingxue a few times, feeling that she looked somewhat familiar.

Yu Lingxue glanced at Zeng Lan, feeling uneasy, and turned slightly to avoid her gaze, lowering her eyes to hide the flicker of recognition, afraid of being discovered.

It had taken her a long time to remember who Zeng Lan was.

She was the neighbor who had always treated Yu Lingxue differently, the older sister who had played with her since childhood.

She was also the one who had once stopped her from meeting Yu Qingluan, bluntly “begging” her to leave Yu Qingluan alone.

This person knew her. Yu Lingxue didn’t dare to stay long. She quickly bought something and left.

“That customer.” Zeng Lan watched for a long time but couldn’t figure it out, so she asked Yu Qingluan.

“She’s been coming for several days in a row. It seems like she might not be well-off? Anyway, she doesn’t seem to speak and communicates with me through her phone. She’s quite nice she even gave me some scented balm.”

Yu Qingluan took out the scented balm she carried with her and dabbed a bit on Zeng Lan’s temples.

“That’s really thoughtful of her. You’ve been suffering from insomnia lately, and the bloodshot eyes are quite alarming.” Zeng Lan set aside her doubts for the moment, though she still felt something was off.

“Right? I’ve been sleeping a bit better since using it.” Yu Qingluan put the balm away.

A short while later, Qu Mingyuan also arrived, and she began her teaching session.

For the next two days, every time Yu Lingxue came, Zeng Lan would observe from nearby for quite a while, causing Yu Lingxue’s time spent in the shop to decrease sharply.

Yu Qingluan was embroidering a new pattern in the shop and gently tugged at Zeng Lan.

“Why do you keep staring at her? Do you have any thoughts?”

Zeng Lan shook her head. “I can’t figure it out, but something just feels off.”

“If you can’t figure it out, then stop looking. Anyway, in a few days, I won’t be in the shop either.” Yu Qingluan appeared indifferent, her mindset calm and composed.

What she truly thought, no one knew. All that could be seen was her fingertips pressing against the fabric, turning slightly pale.

“Right, it’s time to get busy again.” Zeng Lan stretched lazily just as Yu Lingxue entered the shop.

Perhaps because it was raining that day, droplets clung to Yu Lingxue’s face, and a few dewdrops gathered on her eyelashes.

She gently wiped them away with a tissue, not daring to use too much force.

In that fleeting moment, her posture still reminded Zeng Lan of Yu Lingxue.

Recalling that Yu Qingluan had mentioned Yu Lingxue had been lingering near the shop recently, Zeng Lan felt a sense of foreboding.

After Yu Lingxue left the shop, Zeng Lan followed her.

Just then, a gust of wind blew, carrying away Yu Lingxue’s hat.

As Yu Lingxue turned to pick it up, she unexpectedly met Zeng Lan’s gaze and froze in place.

Zeng Lan then furrowed her brows, hurriedly stepped forward, and pulled off Yu Lingxue’s mask.

“It really is you!” She had sensed something was wrong!

Not to mention that Yu Lingxue had only observed for a few days before learning that Yu Qingluan wasn’t sleeping well and had sent her scented balm a gesture that had already put Zeng Lan on high alert.

Even with her features altered, there was still that distinct aura unique to Yu Lingxue.

Moreover, wearing a hat and mask inside the shop and avoiding speaking were suspicious enough.

Zeng Lan was beginning to suspect that Yu Qingluan might be aware of this person’s true identity and was simply tolerating her.

She couldn’t bring herself to ask Yu Qingluan what she was thinking, so she could only vent her frustration on Yu Lingxue.

“What do you want? It’s been so long since you parted. Don’t you know how much she despises you?”

Yu Lingxue covered her face and took two steps back, stepping into a puddle and forcing herself to stop. She averted her gaze, unwilling to speak.

“Your silence doesn’t change your actions. After all this time, you’re still clinging to Qingluan. Don’t you realize you’re harassing her? Don’t you know she’s troubled by this? You nearly got her killed once, how dare you come looking for her again!”

Afraid that Yu Lingxue might run away and return to bother Yu Qingluan when she wasn’t around, Zeng Lan reached out and grabbed her.

Yu Lingxue had no intention of engaging with Zeng Lan. Instead of replying, she twisted Zeng Lan’s wrist and tried to escape.

Zeng Lan couldn’t stay in Yu Qingluan’s shop forever.

As long as Yu Qingluan didn’t see her face,

But Zeng Lan tightened her grip, refusing to let her escape, insisting on confronting her right at the shop’s entrance.

Inside the shop, through the misty rain, Yu Qingluan vaguely saw Zeng Lan and that customer in a dispute. After a moment’s hesitation, she stepped out of the shop.

As soon as she stepped outside, she heard Zeng Lan’s voice: “How many times do I have to remind you! You’re married! You have a family, a lawful wife. Coming to find our Qingluan are you trying to cause her harm again?”

“I haven’t!” Then came the voice Yu Qingluan knew all too well, yet dreaded to hear the most.

“I’m divorced. I’ve been divorced for a long time! I’m a free woman now, I have no ties whatsoever to Yan Lanshen or the Yan family. There’s no one else in my life, not even anyone I’m ambiguously involved with. I’m already divorced and I have no connection to her from the past! We never even lived together!”

Yu Lingxue was determined to make this matter crystal clear. Once she started speaking, she repeated herself over and over, afraid that Zeng Lan might not hear her properly.

She didn’t want Yu Qingluan to misunderstand. She didn’t want Yu Qingluan to think she was still entangled with someone else, still bound by a marital relationship, yet shamelessly clinging to Yu Qingluan without clarity or boundaries.

If Yu Qingluan knew she was divorced, would there be a chance for things to turn around?

After shouting it out, Yu Lingxue immediately regretted it. She should have fled as quickly as possible instead of wasting time arguing with Zeng Lan. Whether Zeng Lan believed her or even listened to her didn’t matter.

But it was already too late.

As soon as the words left her mouth, Yu Lingxue caught sight of Yu Qingluan’s voice.

She froze in place, her eyes filled with a panicked light as they darted toward Yu Qingluan’s gaze. In an instant, a pleading redness flooded her eyes.

Tears, tinged with that crimson hue, slid down Yu Lingxue’s cheeks.

But Yu Qingluan’s face darkened, half-shadowed. When she lifted her eyes again, the usual light in them was gone.

She began walking toward Yu Lingxue.