The Minister: Cold by Day, Hot by Night-Chapter 108: Lu Zhan: Be Obedient
At the thought, her face flushed red.
She nervously twisted her handkerchief, wondering if she should explain.
After all, what Shuang’er said was ambiguous and easily misunderstood.
Besides, she wasn’t always thinking about her cousin. She was just a little worried about his safety...
Just as she was about to speak, Lu Zhan beat her to it. "You haven’t had breakfast either, have you? You can go back after you eat."
Zhi Wan blinked, swallowing the explanation that was on the tip of her tongue.
’He probably didn’t hear.’
She comforted herself.
"Alright." She nodded, not refusing again.
The breakfast spread was lavish: soup dumplings, Yangzhou fried rice, layered cake, lotus root flour balls, jadeite shumai, and scallion pancakes.
Zhi Wan was already a bit hungry, and the sight of this sumptuous breakfast made her even more so.
But when she picked up her chopsticks, she found herself unsure of what to eat first.
Just then, a pair of chopsticks placed a shumai on the plate in front of her.
"Aren’t you going to eat? It won’t taste as good once it gets cold," Lu Zhan said lightly.
"I’ll eat right now," Zhi Wan said immediately.
This was the first time she had eaten alone with her cousin. She was a little reserved at first, but soon the delicious breakfast captured her full attention. She thought today’s meal was exceptionally tasty and had no time to think about anything else.
She had a little of everything and finished with a bowl of soy milk.
When she was full and put down her bowl and chopsticks, she saw that Lu Zhan had finished long ago.
He was sitting there quietly, his gaze fixed on the rain outside the window, lost in thought.
Zhi Wan didn’t want to disturb him, but she had drunk too much tea earlier and needed to use the privy. She had no choice but to speak up. "Cousin?"
Lu Zhan turned his head. "Hm?"
"I’ll be heading back now," Zhi Wan said, standing up.
"Alright." Lu Zhan nodded.
Zhi Wan curtsied and walked toward the door.
Just as she reached the door, she suddenly heard her cousin call out in a low voice, "Cousin."
Zhi Wan stopped and looked back at him. "Is there something else, Cousin?"
Lu Zhan didn’t look at her, but his handsome face seemed a bit uncomfortable. He said in a low voice, "Wait a moment." Then he stood, picked up the cloak he had draped over the back of his chair, and walked toward her.
Zhi Wan watched him, confused.
Then he held out the cloak. "The rain is a bit heavy outside. Don’t catch a cold."
Zhi Wan didn’t take it, shaking her head. "It’s just a few steps. I’ll be fine..."
"Put it on. Be good." Lu Zhan’s voice grew sterner.
A part of Zhi Wan was still a little afraid of her cousin, especially when he wore a stern expression.
She timidly reached out, took it, and draped the cloak over her shoulders as told.
But Lu Zhan was tall and broad; his cloak draped all the way to the floor on Zhi Wan’s smaller frame.
Seeing this, Zhi Wan had to gather the hem in her hands. "I’ll go back now, then. I’ll have Shuang’er bring it back to you later."
"Mm," Lu Zhan grunted in acknowledgment. He stepped out the door ahead of her, opened the umbrella that was leaning against the wall, and handed it to her.
"Thank you, Cousin." Zhi Wan took it. Holding the umbrella in one hand and gathering the cloak with the other, she quickly walked out into the rain.
When she returned to the adjacent courtyard, she immediately spotted Ouyang Zhenzhu sitting under the covered walkway, bored, her hand extended to play with the rainwater dripping from the eaves.
Seeing Zhi Wan return, Ouyang Zhenzhu immediately stood up. She crossed her arms and feigned anger, "So, you see your cousin and just forget all about me? Look at you, only coming back now."
Zhi Wan blinked. "How could I? I’m back, aren’t I?" 𝐟𝚛𝕖𝚎𝕨𝗲𝐛𝚗𝐨𝐯𝐞𝕝.𝐜𝗼𝗺
Just as Ouyang Zhenzhu was about to say something, she suddenly noticed the cloak on Zhi Wan’s shoulders.
"Is that... Mr. Lu’s?"
"Mhm." Zhi Wan didn’t deny it, but she quickly unfastened the cloak.
"You and Mr. Lu..." Ouyang Zhenzhu’s eyes scanned her up and down. She had been about to tease her a bit, but when she saw the bloodstain on her rear, she was too stunned to speak.
"What is it?" Zhi Wan asked, confused.
Ouyang Zhenzhu pointed behind her. "See for yourself."
Zhi Wan couldn’t see, of course, but seeing her friend’s expression, she suddenly understood. Her face flushed, then burned.
’Oh no, my period started.’
She said nothing more, hurried into her room, and changed out of all her clothes.
When she saw the bloodstain on her dress, her face felt like it was on fire.
’No wonder he suddenly gave me his cloak and told me to put it on...’
The thought of Lu Zhan seeing her in such an embarrassing state made her want to curl up and die.
Her period had always been irregular, which was why she’d dared to joke about it with Shuang’er that morning. She never expected karma to strike so quickly—her period had started without any warning while she was with her cousin...
’SOB, I can’t face my cousin anymore...’
She buried her burning face in her quilt.
When Ouyang Zhenzhu came in, she saw Zhi Wan hiding under the quilt. She cleared her throat and tried to comfort her, "It’s not a big deal. Mr. Lu is your cousin, not some man you’re in love with. So what if he saw? It’s fine."
Zhi Wan: "..."
To ease her embarrassment, Ouyang Zhenzhu started telling an embarrassing story of her own.
"The first time I got my period, I was out playing with my brother. When he saw the blood on my dress, he started screaming his head off, thinking I was seriously injured. He dragged me to a clinic to get treated, only for the doctor to scold him. You should have seen the look on my brother’s face! It was priceless!" At this, Ouyang Zhenzhu burst out laughing.
Imagining the scene, Zhi Wan couldn’t help but laugh too. She pulled the quilt off her head, though her face was still red.
Ouyang Zhenzhu wiped tears of laughter from her eyes and complained, "Don’t you think my brother is a total blockhead? He’s a grown man who’s always hanging around brothels, but he doesn’t even know what a woman’s period is."
"Junior Minister Ouyang must have known," Zhi Wan said. "But panic clouds judgment. He must have been so worried about you that he didn’t even think of it."
Ouyang Zhenzhu pouted. "Mr. Lu is still better."
Zhi Wan froze.
"Look, Mr. Lu clearly saw the bloodstain on your dress, but he didn’t make a fuss. He just quietly gave you his cloak to cover it up. That kind of thoughtfulness and consideration is something my brother will never learn," Ouyang Zhenzhu said.
Zhi Wan paused. Thinking back to the scene in the side hall, it was true that her cousin hadn’t shown any hint of surprise.
Then again, her cousin had always been calm and sharp; she’d never seen him flustered. An unexpected period was probably a very trivial matter in his eyes.
Thinking this way, the embarrassment she felt began to fade.
She got up and inspected the cloak. She was relieved to find no bloodstains on it, but she still had Shuang’er take it to be washed, planning to return it to her cousin after it dried.
"The woman who marries Mr. Lu in the future will be very happy," Ouyang Zhenzhu remarked with a sigh.
Hearing this, Zhi Wan turned to look at her. Seeing the faint look of melancholy on her friend’s face, she paused, then couldn’t help but say, "My cousin might already have someone he likes."
"What?" Ouyang Zhenzhu stared at her, her eyes blazing with excitement.
Zhi Wan hesitated.
’Did I get it wrong? Is Ouyang Zhenzhu not interested in my cousin anymore?’
’Why else would she get so excited hearing that he already likes someone, as if she’d just heard the most fascinating piece of gossip?’
"Quick, tell me! Which family’s daughter is she?" Ouyang Zhenzhu pressed urgently.
Zhi Wan frowned. "I don’t know which family she’s from. It’s just a guess."
...
「That evening.」
Haitang Pavilion, the most famous brothel in Yangzhou.
The Madam was fretting over how the continuous rain had been bad for business when she saw a man with a refined and noble air walk in, followed by a sword-bearing guard.
