As Mu Anxiao made that move, Anchú’s nerves tensed up. Watching her, Anchú swallowed, her heart beginning to worry… had Ouyang Ye discovered her actions?
In that instant, all sorts of thoughts rushed into her mind.
Immediately after, Mu Anxiao stopped by the window, hesitated, and leaned her upper body out. She glanced at the pitch-black outdoors, her heart sinking. "Who is it?" she called out.
Anchú jumped, accidentally knocking over the cup in front of her. Her eyes darted away, and she quickly picked up the cup, casually wiping the water off the table with her hand. "Is someone there?" she asked, her voice trembling slightly.
Hearing this, Mu Anxiao pulled her half-extended body back and turned to look at Anchú. "No one," she said.
"Who do you think it might be?" Anchú asked.
Mu Anxiao sighed softly. "I don't know who it is, but I can be sure of one thing..." She glanced back at the window behind her. "The wind is quite strong here."
The wind was quite strong!
However, Mu Anxiao's words became a reassurance, allowing Anchú's suddenly raised heart to settle back down.
"Indeed, the wind here is quite strong," Anchú said, sighing in relief, and sat down.
Mu Anxiao remained silent and didn't close the window. She walked directly to Anchú's opposite side. "You spilled water," she said, looking down at the residual water stains on the table.
Anchú sighed. "Perhaps you're overthinking things," she said, recalling the question Mu Anxiao had been pondering earlier.
At the same time, Mu Anxiao also thought about the conversation she and Anchú had before the window was blown open. Her eyes darkened. "I'm not overthinking. Perhaps… he really knows."
"He really…" Anchú's nerves tensed, and she suddenly stood up. "You mean, the master knows that I…"
"This is just my imagination," Mu Anxiao deliberately interrupted Anchú, as she had other things she wanted to ask. She thought that if she spoke too directly, it would burden Anchú’s heart, and Anchú might then choose to placidly dismiss her. Thus, for her own sake, she had to let go of those unnecessary thoughts and return to reality.
"Imagination…" Anchú gasped. "Then why are you asking me about Mai?"
"Actually, I wasn't looking for Mai," Mu Anxiao said truthfully.
Anchú had always thought Mu Anxiao wanted to know about Mai. Just as she had reviewed her understanding of Mai in her mind, and was about to 'show off,' Mu Anxiao spoke the truth.
Hearing this, Anchú's expression froze.
"..." She suddenly didn't know what to say.
This outcome was also what Mu Anxiao had expected. Looking at Anchú, she said, "I want to know about the coachman."
"The coachman?" Anchú was startled, her eyes clearly darting away. "I don't know about that."
"What do you mean you don't know?" Mu Anxiao asked, confused.
Anchú: "What I mean is..." She cleared her throat and continued, "What I mean is, I don't know this person, nor do I know anything about him."
At this moment, Mu Anxiao saw a profound perfunctoriness on Anchú's face. She swallowed and let her gaze wander over Anchú’s face. "Let me tell you the truth," she said.
"What truth?" Anchú, as if troubled by something, shifted her gaze again.
Mu Anxiao gave a light laugh. "I was sent by your master to find you." She saw that Anchú was still affected by her previous suspicions. Thus, she realized that if she didn't mention Ouyang Ye, Anchú would certainly not tell the truth. There was no other way, she had to do this.
Anchú: "What do you mean by that?"
"I'm too lazy to beat around the bush with you. Your master knows you know everything, and he is now..." Mu Anxiao observed Anchú's face and smiled at the corner of her mouth. "Looking for the coachman."
"And then?"
"Then he sent me here to find you and have you tell me."
"You..."
"He already knows you know everything, so it would be best if you clarified some things. I think," Mu Anxiao said calmly, watching Anchú's changing expression, "you should also be aware of your master's temper."
"You're trying to scare me," Anchú said blandly.
Mu Anxiao chuckled. "There's no point in me deceiving you with this, is there?"
"You… really…"
"I'm not deceiving you. Actually," Mu Anxiao said, turning to glance at the window, "Ouyang Ye has been monitoring us all along, so I hope you'll tell the truth."
"You're contradicting yourself," Anchú said.
Mu Anxiao frowned. "How am I contradicting myself?"
"If you were sent by the master, you wouldn't not know that the master had been here. Also," Anchú narrowed her eyes, "your demeanor just now has given you away. Most importantly, you said you couldn't see that place, and as far as I know, anyone who isn't completely trusted by the master is forgotten by the master. You're talking about tasks? What a joke."
"Just forgotten?" Mu Anxiao asked deliberately.
"Also, they receive different degrees of punishment. As for what kind of punishment, I…"
"You think I'm lying to you." Mu Anxiao intentionally interrupted Anchú.
Anchú's gaze turned cold. "Aren't I?"
"Of course not. You…"
"This way of yours is meaningless."
"How is it meaningless? I'm just telling the truth. Although, it's true that I'm not trusted by Ouyang Ye anymore, I accepted the task he gave me in order to make amends. He…"
"You're not someone who habitually talks nonsense, I know that," Anchú said, putting on an expression of understanding Mu Anxiao.
Mu Anxiao hadn't expected Anchú to interrupt her so proactively. Looking at Anchú's understanding and serious expression, she was speechless.
Anchú continued, "This shop belongs to the master. Regardless of whether the master has seen through me or not, I have made my decision."
"What have you decided?" Mu Anxiao asked, confused.
"I've decided to be loyal to the master."
"What do you mean?" Mu Anxiao's nerves tightened.
Anchú: "What I mean is, from what just happened, I realized that the master has given me a home and a sense of security. I won't betray him. My previous words," she pursed her lips and smiled, "you can pretend you never heard them, just like… you were suddenly not trusted by the master. Everything happened suddenly."
Everything happened suddenly?
Yes, everything had indeed happened rather suddenly. And Anchú's indirect attitude made Mu Anxiao incredibly interested in her. At the same time, she thought of Song Xu.
"You don't like Song Xu anymore," she stated directly.