Chapter 23 Conflict

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  The osmanthus hurriedly went to open the door.

  It's so late, of course it's someone from the He Feng courtyard. Ye Qinglan thought absent-mindedly, casually raising her head to take a look, then her smile paused for a moment.

  He has a handsome appearance, a warm smile, and elegant manners. Probably no girl wouldn't like such a handsome young man... except for her.

  "Big brother, it's so late, how did you have time to come over?" Ye Qinglan smiled lightly and greeted him, keeping a subtle distance.

  Ye Yuanzhou smiled casually: "Just passing by, came to see you." Now living in a yard, it's much more convenient. No need to find any excuse to come and see her at any time.

  Zhou Mama had already politely yielded her seat and was urging Rui Xue to pour tea. Rui Xue hesitated for a moment, involuntarily glancing at Ye Qinglan. This pouring of tea still didn't know how long the young master would stay...

  Ye Qinglan smiled as if nothing was wrong: "Big brother isn't an outsider, no need to be so polite."

  Rui Xue responded with a sound and stood aside naturally.

  Ye Yuanshou spoke a few words that didn't quite get to the point, his dark eyes fixed steadily on Ye Qinglan's pretty face. Ye Qinglan's reaction was very cold, however, and she responded with just a few faint words before falling silent.

  The atmosphere is somewhat chilly and awkward.

  Ye Yuanzhou knew he was unwelcome, but pretended not to know and sat there, thinking hard about a topic.

  Mrs. Zhou began to feel that something was amiss. It was already so late, and the young master didn't go rest but instead came to find their own miss, which in itself was a bit strange. Moreover, after listening carefully, there wasn't anything important being said.

  Zhou Mama couldn't help but glance at Ye Qinglan.

  Ye Qinglan didn't miss the doubt in Zhou Mama's eyes, and quietly instructed: "Zhou Mama, take Gu Yuan to the kitchen to fetch some hot water, I'll be taking a bath later."

  It's both a way of showing off Zhou Mama and also a subtle hint that Ye Yuanshou should leave.

  Zhou's mother was taken aback for a moment, then smiled and responded with a "yes", leading Guiyuan away. The only ones left in the house were Ye Yuanchou, Ye Qinglan, and Rui Xue.

  Ye Yuanzhou still refused to leave.

  Ye Qinglan's heart secretly furrowed her brow. She had already hinted so obviously, why hadn't Ye Yuanshou shown any signs of getting up to bid farewell?

  "Rui Xue, you go and keep watch outside the door first." Ye Yuanshou unexpectedly opened his mouth: "I have something to say to Sanmei alone."

  "No way."

  Ye Yuanshou's eyes turned cold, and his entire body emitted a chill: "How big is your nerve! When did the master's words need to be arranged by you?"

  Rui Xue's whole body shook, and she knelt down to plead for mercy without hesitation: "I deserve to die, I deserve to die." For a moment, her desire to protect her master was so strong that she forgot the distinction between master and servant. Although Ye Yuanshou was usually gentle and easy-going, when he got angry, it was also quite frightening.

  Ye Yuanshou's face turned gloomy, and he coldly snorted, furiously shouting: "Get out of here!"

  "Wait a minute!" Ye Qinglan's temper also flared up, and her voice turned cold: "I don't know what big brother wants to say that he must speak with me alone. Although we are siblings, after all, men and women are different, and being alone in the same room at midnight is not quite proper, is it?"

  Ye Yuanzhou was choked for a moment.

  That gentle and sweet face was tense, with bright and astonishing eyes, having a moving demeanor that was not seen on ordinary days: "Also, no matter how wrong Rui Xue is, she is still someone by my side. If you want to hit her, scold her or punish her, it should be me who does it. Big brother overstepping his authority, what kind of logic is this? Is it that I did something wrong and made big brother unhappy, so he's taking it out on others?"

  Sharp words cut like a knife and flew by swiftly.

  Ye Yuanshou was speechless, staring blankly at the angry Ye Qinglan.

  It's already like this, Ye Qinglan also didn't bother to beat around the bush and said straightforwardly: "It's getting late, I plan to take a bath and go to bed early. If Big Brother doesn't have anything else, then please excuse me."

  Ye Yuanshou took a deep breath, suppressing the unpleasantness in his heart, and said in a low voice: "It's my fault, don't be angry. I really have something to tell you alone, can you let Rui Xue step down for now?" Seeing Ye Qinglan frowning, he quickly added another sentence: "Don't worry, I'll just say a few words and leave."

  Ye Qinglan's mind was racing, and she quickly made a decision: "Rui Xue, you temporarily retreat and wait outside the door." This stalemate couldn't continue. It was better to hear what he had to say, which would also allow her to get rid of this plague earlier.

  After Rui Xue left, there were only two people left in the house.

  Ye Yuanzhou couldn't help but take a step forward, and that scorching gaze from that night returned: "Lan'er..."

  "Aren't you going to say something?" Ye Qinglan took a step back, her eyes cold: "Just stand over there and talk, my ears are very sharp, I can hear clearly."

  The cold indifference that kept people at bay for thousands of miles was so obvious, Ye Yuanshou's enthusiasm was frozen to death, and his smile was a bit stiff: "Okay, I'll say it here. Lan'er, did you go to the Ring Cui Pavilion today?"

  Was all this fuss just for him to say that?

  Ye Qinglan replied faintly: "Indeed went. What's wrong?"

  Ye Yuanzhou said patiently: "You deliberately made friends with Liu Mei, is to get to know Zheng Junyan, right? Lan'er, don't be foolish. Zheng Junyan is the young master of the Zheng Guo Gong Fu, his status is noble. Eldest aunt has already secretly planned to arrange this marriage. Even if it doesn't work out, such a good thing would never fall on a concubine's daughter."

  Ye Qinglan looked at Ye Yuanshou with a smile that was not quite a smile: "You rushed over here just to tell me this?" Her eyes were full of sarcastic and mocking amusement.

  Ye Yuanzhou indeed cared about this "sister" of his, and as soon as he saw something was amiss, he hurried over to "remind" her.

  Ye Yuanzhou rarely had a hint of embarrassment and awkwardness, and even more so, the shame and unbearable feeling of being seen through: "I, I didn't mean anything else, I just wanted to remind you..."

  "Thank you, big brother, for your kind intentions." Ye Qinglan raised an eyebrow and smiled lightly: "Little sister has taken note. However, big brother is also being overly cautious. I was just idle with nothing to do, so I went to Liu Tangjie's Ringing Jade Pavilion for the afternoon. I didn't have any other thoughts."

  Ye Yuanzhou's smile had not yet unfolded when it completely disappeared after hearing what came next.

  "Marriage is a lifelong matter, and parents will make the decision. Besides, among my three siblings, I'm the youngest. Even if it's time to discuss marriage, it should be my older brother's turn first. It's not like my brother has nothing better to do than worry about me; he'd be better off focusing on himself. However, his words did remind me that on Grandfather's birthday, I'll have to stick with Sixth Sister. Who knows, maybe I'll even make some new friends!"

  A few light words, like sharp arrows, pierced Ye Yuanzhou's heart.

  Ye Yuanshou's face turned pale, staring straight at Ye Qinglan: "Lan'er, is this really what you mean?"