Chapter 425 - Respect and Worship 10

As a ‘maid’, Qi Qingyao had to of course accompany her ‘Master’.

Lu Yan sat still, looking through the ledgers and annotating in passing.

Qi Qingyao stood near the door and looked at the beautiful young man under the flickering candlelight. His eyes and brows really looked like something out of a painting.

She used to think that Lu Yan was just a good-for-nothing rich man’s son who only ate and slept. Who could have guessed that he actually diligently combed through ledgers at night?

It looked like it was not easy being the young master of Northern Liang’s top chamber of commerce!

After a while, someone knocked on the door.

Qi Qingyao opened the door.

It was a maid who had brought over a bowl of medicine.

The maid signaled her to bring it over to Lu Yan.

Qi Qingyao took the medicine.

The maid ran off in a hurry as though she was afraid of someone stopping her.

Qi Qingyao shut the door in confusion.

She brought the bowl of medicine over, placing it on the side table. Right after, she rapped on the tabletop with her knuckle.

“Master, please drink your medicine.”

Lu Yan looked up.

His eyes were a bit sharp.

It made Qi Qingyao freeze a little.

Lu Yan seemed a little close to losing his temper, but when he saw that the person beside him was Qi Qingyao, his gaze instantly softened a little. He took the bowl of medicine without a word and drank all of it in one go. Soon after, he picked up the ledger again and continued looking through it.

Qi Qingyao, “…”

It seemed like that little maid from before had previously received a scolding when giving Lu Yan his bowl of medicine at night, so she had run off like her butt was on fire.

After a while.

The door was knocked.

Qi Qingyao went over.

It was another little maid.

She handed a plate of snacks to Qi Qingyao.

It was technically meant to be supper.

After Qi Qingyao took it, she thought for a while.

To test Lu Yan’s patience, she placed the snack tray directly on the ledger.

Sure enough, when he looked up this time, his gaze was sharper than before, and he looked rather like he wanted to murder someone.

Then, he made contact with Qi Qingyao’s smiley gaze and her soft and gentle tone.

“Master, please have some snacks.”

Lu Yan, “…”

He quietly picked up the snack and ate it.

After that, he continued looking at the ledger.

An unknown amount of time passed. Qi Qingyao even added some oil to the candle holder.

She noted that the stack of ledgers had all been processed, and whichever ledgers had problems had been singled out and put aside.

Qi Qingyao yawned involuntarily, and her head began to droop.

She pulled out a chair and sat beside Lu Yan. She rubbed her eyes and said, “Master, it’s time to sleep…”

The man looking through the ledger did not hear her at all.

He continued looking at the ledger.

Qi Qingyao continuously yawned several times, tears leaking out of the corner of her eyes. “Master, I’m sleepy.” After she said this, she spread herself out on the chair and fell asleep.

An unknown amount of time passed.

Lu Yan finally finished looking through the stack of ledgers Dong Jing had brought over.

He was about to ask Dong Jing to come in to deal with the ledgers with issues.

However, as soon as he turned around, he saw a certain little lady spread out on a chair and dozing off.

Her white and tender face was filled with loveliness and innocence. Her eyelashes were extremely long under the candlelight, like two rows of small hand fans.

Lu Yan turned around and looked at the girl’s relaxed and sleeping figure.

He could not help but call her name out softly, “Yaoyao~”

Unexpectedly, him calling her instantly woke Qi Qingyao up. She yawned. “You called me?”

Lu Yan quickly backed away and said in a serious tone, “I asked you to wait on me as I went through the ledgers, but you fell asleep.”

Qi Qingyao raised her white flag and surrendered quickly. “Lu… ah, Master, to be honest, I got bored because you were looking at the ledgers for so long! It was so boring I fell asleep.”

After she said this, she continued pushing forward. “You can’t just make me attend to you without telling me when we’re going to the Yueya Auction House! When is that Nine Star Pill of Omnipotence going to show up?”

Lu Yan pursed his lips. “You’ve only attended to me for one afternoon and you’ve already begun to anxiously ask me for results.”

Qi Qingyao, “…”

Lu Yan said, “The master worked overtime and is almost done making the jade tablets you requested for before.”

“Then let’s look for a local tradesman as soon as we can to sell all these things.” Qi Qingyao immediately sobered up once they bega talking about serious business. “But you must be sure to remember to transfer them into a few individuals’ hands to make sure they’re not eventually traced back to you.”

Lu Yan said, “Don’t worry, Dong Jing has always been very serious when it comes to these things.”

Qi Qingyao nodded.

He continued. “I’m sleepy, it’s time for me to head back to my room to rest.”

Saying this, he turned to look at her with a face that asked, ‘Why are you frozen in place and not following me?’.

Qi Qingyao was shocked. “Do—Do I still have to serve you after you return to your room?”

“What do you think?” Lu Yan looked very serious on the surface, but in fact, he was so nervous inside he felt half-dead.

Qi Qingyao licked her lips. “Master, please go ahead. I will be following right behind you.”

As Lu Yan opened the door, his instincts told him something. “You’re rolling your eyes at my back.”

Qi Qingyao quickly paused her eye-roll and chuckled. “I wouldn’t dare~ My eyes have been shooting gazes of love like nobody’s business!”

Lu Yan, “…” ‘You’d better actually be shooting gazes of love!!’

After returning to Lu Yan’s room with him.

Lu Yan pointed at the bed.

Qi Qingyao hurried forward and helped him make the bed.

After efficiently making the bed, Lu Yan began to undress to get to sleep. Not long after, he was left only in white innerwear, and he got into bed.

He lied on the bed, his eyes still staring at Qi Qingyao.

Qi Qingyao said, almost at a loss for words, “Could it be that after this I still have to watch over you while you sleep?”

Lu Yan thought for a while. “You can also, come—Come here…” Before he could even finish speaking, he buried his head in the blanket in embarrassment.

Those ambiguous words confused Qi Qingyao. “Sleeping together?” ‘Is he trying to say that?’

He was taking advantage of her!

“I didn’t say that.” Lu Yan quickly poked his head out of the blanket. His face was a little red, and his gaze was darting about. “What I mean is, you can…”

Qi Qingyao finished his sentence. “Can go?” Was she finally free?

Lu Yan said anxiously, “There’s no need to go out. The weather outside is still cool.”

Qi Qingyao unhurriedly said, “Do you want me to warm the bed for you, but you’re too shy to ask for it?”

Lu Yan, “…”

He quickly buried his head in his blanket again.

Qi Qingyao, “???”

Was he acting shy?

Could this guy be…

“Does a maid’s duties include bed warming?” Qi Qingyao deliberately asked. “How about singing a lullaby?”

“Qi Qingyao!” Lu Yan stuck his head out of the blanket again!

“Hm?” Qi Qingyao asked.

“Do I look ugly?” Lu Yan asked, a shyness in his solemnity.

Qi Qingyao said, “You’re not ugly. I’d even say you look pretty good.”

Lu Yan said incomprehensibly, “Then why do I feel like you’re not interested in me at all?”

“What interest?” Qi Qingyao said in dumb pretense.

“Nothing.” Lu Yan abruptly swallowed the words that were at the edge of his lips.

Qi Qingyao leisurely said, “Master, do you perhaps feel like you don’t have the charms of a normal man?”

“…”

“I’m quite interested in you, but you’ve encountered so much in the past. If I really was interested in you, I’m afraid I’d scare you till your blood runs cold, and you’d stay a hundred thousand meters away from me henceforth!”

“I’ll allow you to nap together with me.”

“You’re saying you’re allowing me to sleep next to you?”

“Just, j-j-just, just take it as a test of my ability to endure women. You’re sleeping next to me until noon today.”

“Okay.”

“…”