Chapter 89

"Misunderstanding, my lady..." Zhu Minglang hurriedly tried to defend himself, but he blurted out the nickname he had made up.

Li Yunzi’s eyes widened. If it were any other rogue, regardless of whether they heard clearly or not, she would have cut out their tongue with a sword.

"Slip of the tongue, slip of the tongue, Miss Yunzi, I, Zhu Minglang, have always been a man of good character. I don’t understand why she would spread rumors about me." Zhu Minglang said.

Li Yunzi looked at him, seeing the sincere expression on his face, but she couldn’t help but sneer inwardly.

Why hadn’t she ever thought Zhu Minglang had such a thick skin before?

"I warned you not to get too close to her... Forget it, from the current situation, it seems she won’t take your life." Li Yunzi shook her head and didn’t pay any more attention to Nan Lingsha’s affairs.

Zhu Minglang scratched his head, realizing that she was worried about him dying at the hands of Nan Lingsha.

Nan Lingsha had indeed initially wanted to kill him, but later, she must have been gradually won over by his upright character.

"That night in the bamboo grove was indeed a coincidence, and as for the Green Divine Dragon..." Zhu Minglang explained, not wanting Li Yunzi to see him as the kind of person people in the city were talking about.

Even though they were twin sisters and looked exactly the same, Zhu Minglang still preferred to treat them as completely separate individuals.

"Miss, how... Ah, you can’t go in, you can’t go in!"

At this moment, Shuang'er’s voice came from the door in the distance.

Zhu Minglang then realized that she had gone to let him out.

Wait, why say "let him out"? He hadn’t done anything to be ashamed of, just a casual chat.

"What kind of person is so rude, daring to intrude even into your courtyard?" Zhu Minglang looked at Li Yunzi with some surprise and asked, "Should I leave?"

"Leaving would only make people speculate more," Li Yunzi said.

She seemed to know who had intruded, but she slowly got up, took a clean cup from the wooden table behind her, and then picked up the teapot, slowly pouring a cup of clear tea into the empty cup.

Zhu Minglang was puzzled, his gaze involuntarily turning to the long courtyard path, wanting to know who had come.

When he saw Li Yunzi walking along the stone path in the courtyard, his face was filled with surprise. It wasn’t until he turned his head back and saw that Li Yunzi hadn’t teleported and was right in front of him that Zhu Minglang finally realized!

It was truly a case of two flowers on one stem.

Previously, Zhu Minglang had always felt there was something inexplicably strange, thinking that the concept of one body with two souls really existed. Now, seeing them appear together, he completely discarded all those strange speculations.

However, seeing them appear together still brought a significant visual impact.

Li Yunzi was already stunningly beautiful, and now there was another person with the same appearance, equally charming and graceful.

"Nan... Nan Lingsha?" Zhu Minglang’s eyes kept alternating between the two women.

To be honest, if they didn’t easily show their different personalities, Zhu Minglang couldn’t tell them apart at all.

Moreover, Shuang'er, who had let him out, almost mistook the intruder for Li Yunzi!

"Sit." Li Yunzi pointed to the wooden chair beside her and said calmly.

Nan Lingsha saw Zhu Minglang and smiled, but it wasn’t a gentle or elegant smile; rather, it was playful.

"Sister, you have such grand ambitions?" Nan Lingsha sat down, right next to Zhu Minglang on his left.

In front of Zhu Minglang was Li Yunzi, and on his left was Nan Lingsha, but for some reason, he felt a bit of a headache.

The tea table was round, and Zhu Minglang felt that if he lost focus for a moment, he might get them mixed up...

Fortunately, Nan Lingsha wasn’t her usual quiet and reserved self today. Her green eyes sparkled, and her gaze was filled with her characteristic charm.

"I won’t be gentle if you try to stop me." Li Yunzi still had that cold and distant demeanor, showing little emotion even to her sister.

"Hmph, what a disappointment, coming at the wrong time." Nan Lingsha got up but didn’t touch the tea in front of her, instead looking like she was about to leave.

But soon, she stopped, her eyes shining as she looked at Zhu Minglang, who was sitting there trying to be invisible.

Zhu Minglang looked down at his teacup, his face as calm as the tea, but his heart was like the leaves of the autumn nan tree, swaying in the wind.

"The streets are bustling, and the whole winter is dull. Why don’t you lend me this handsome young man to entertain me, and let me take him for a walk around the fragrant and splendid Zulong City?" Nan Lingsha smiled, her eyes as bright as if washed by snow.

"No." Li Yunzi firmly rejected her.

"Are you unwilling to part with him? Zhu Lang, why aren’t you talking to me today? Usually, you are so attentive and enthusiastic, even chatting all night without showing any signs of fatigue." Nan Lingsha’s smile looked so innocent and charming, as if she were a naive and carefree younger sister, only interested in shopping and eating.

"Miss Nan Lingsha, I have already explained the facts to your sister. Don’t twist the truth. Besides, my relationship with your sister is like... a gentleman’s, and your attempts to sow discord are meaningless." Zhu Minglang said solemnly.

"Watch your tongue!" Nan Lingsha glared at Zhu Minglang.

Zhu Minglang remained calm, like an old monk in meditation.

After all, he didn’t understand the extent of the discord between Li Yunzi and Nan Lingsha, whether they had completely lost their sisterly affection or were just at odds due to different positions.

"I have something to discuss with him. You can stay or leave, as you please." Li Yunzi didn’t like Nan Lingsha’s mischief.

"Fine, I’ll wait until you finish. After that, you can accompany me to the Spring Night Lantern River. Sister, why don’t you come too? We haven’t gone out together for many, many years." Nan Lingsha sat down, picked up the teacup, and drank the clear tea gracefully and quietly.

Zhu Minglang frowned.

He finally had a chance to be alone with Li Yunzi, and perhaps their relationship could become more subtle.

He didn’t know what Nan Lingsha was trying to find out—whether she wanted to know the true nature of his relationship with Li Yunzi or was just being mischievous.

Li Yunzi glanced at Nan Lingsha.

Nan Lingsha rolled her eyes.

Suddenly, the atmosphere became silent.

Li Yunzi didn’t speak, as if waiting for Nan Lingsha to leave.

Nan Lingsha, however, wasn’t going to back down. Li Yunzi could either speak in front of her or wait for her to leave.

Zhu Minglang, seeing the sisters start to argue, decided to be a good invisible presence...

A gentle breeze blew through the courtyard, where a cluster of very delicate lilies of the valley was planted. The tender white flowers, like hanging white bells, swayed gently, not making a pleasant sound but releasing a gentle fragrance.

It was still very quiet, with no one speaking.

Zhu Minglang suddenly remembered that he hadn’t eaten lunch. Seeing some pastries on the table, he got up, picked up the plate of handmade pastries, and enjoyed them while drinking tea.

Nan Lingsha stared at him with her beautiful big eyes, not saying a word, but it seemed like she was saying: Are you treating this place like your own home?

"Oh, you should try some too, they taste really good." Zhu Minglang took some from the plate and gave a portion to Li Yunzi.

Li Yunzi tasted a piece but didn’t say anything.

But she had a new definition of Zhu Minglang’s thick skin.