A sweaty palm Yu Mei quickly shook her head, denying his allegations. This was almost as nerve-wrecking as that time she headbutted Pei Nan. She let out an awkward laugh. "Prince Shao must be joking. My name is Pan Yu Mei, not Xu Ren." She looked at the hand that was holding hers. "I'm a married woman by the way. Pei Nan would not be happy if he saw you touching me." She kindly reminded him. Yu Mei figured she would try her luck once more. If he knew, she would openly admit to being Xu Ren, it not...then she would continue to play ignorant.
No response.
Gu Shao furrowed his brows as he stared her down. Yu Mei didn't know if she should feel intimidated or not. Because right now, that was what she was feeling. "You're Xu Ren, aren't you?" he once again asked her sternly. In his heart, he knew it was the Brother Xu he was looking for but he wanted her confirmation. Those bright eyes, that smile and her tiny figure. They were all the same. There was no doubt in his heart this was the Xu Ren he was looking for.
Yu Mei let out an exasperated sigh. She knew he knew. *Hehehe* "Brother Shao, it's you." She lightly laughed it off, hitting his arm like old time buddies.
Next thing she knew, he was holding her hand and pulling her away. "Where are we going?" Yu Mei curiously asked. Gu Shao didn't say anything as he continued to roughly lead her away.
Chu'mei stood firm in her place. She knew this wasn't a time to be following her lady. This was a matter between Prince Shao and her lady.
Yu Mei quietly let Gu Shao lead her. It had been about ten minutes before they came deep inside the garden. Gu Shao lightly pushed her against a large landscape rock. Yu Mei stared at him with wide eyes. They were standing so close that she could see how flawless his skin looked.
"Did you know who I was when we met at the hot springs?"
"En." She nodded yes.
"Did you know that I liked Fei Ning?"
"En."
"Then you also knew the reason I brought you to the brothel the second time?"
"En." Suddenly Gu Shao walked over to the side of the rock and covered his face with both hands. "So embarrassing." He mumbled to himself. There were many other things he wanted to confirm with her but why must she act so calm. Could she not act like a normal lady, shy and scared. Must she be so blunt?
Seeing the situation now, Yu Mei finally let her guard down. She didn't know how Gu Shao would react but now that she was looking at an embarrassed Gu Shao, she giggled.
Gu Shao lifted his head and narrowed his eyes at Yu Mei. "You evil woman," he grit his teeth, pointing at her. His personality turned a compete 180. Yu Mei bit her lips nervously. What was wrong with him? Wasn't he just acting like a cute man just now?
Gu Shao stood in front of her and slammed his hand on the wall. "You knew I was looking for you this whole time yet you turned a blind eye. What do you take me for? A fool? Was it fun watching?"
[So that's what you are angry at? And here I thought it was something else.] Suddenly her tiny figure jumped up as her arm wrapped around his neck, firmly grabbing his shoulder with her hand. He blinked a few times stunned. He was not expecting this sudden move. Which woman was this bold to touch a man first? "Brother Shao, you aren't really mad are you?" she tried to act cute and innocent. She had already considered him a friend on their first meeting. So this little arm wrapping gesture of hers was normal for her. But for Gu Shao, this was going too far. He quickly removed her hand and spun away. "Xu Ren…No, I mean Pan Yu Mei. Have you always acted this brazen towards other men?" This was a culture shock for him.
"No. Just you." He was taken aback by her honesty. "Are you flirting with me then?" he asked skeptically. *HA* She slapped her thigh amused at his "joke". "Brother Shao, are you crazy? Why would I flirt with you? I have very high standards." He was hurt. He was one of the most handsome men in all of Luoyang. He wasn't considered high standards in her view? He swallowed his anger. "Good! That saves me a lot of trouble in the future. But you must take responsibility." He grabbed her wrist.
"Take responsibility?"
"En." Gu Shao pulled her towards him. The two of them stood very close together. Gu Shao stared at her with his seductive gaze. "You touched my thigh three times that night. You must take responsibility." She blinked a few times confused. [It's not like I meant to. Hmph!]
"If you hadn't brought me there in the first place, I wouldn't have accidentally grabbed you three times. It's your fault!" She rolled her eyes at him.
"I don't care. You have to take responsibility." He stood firm on his words.
"Fine. How do you want me to take responsibility?" Gu Shao slowly reached towards her face, lightly lifting her chin up with his finger. Yu Mei burrowed her brows as she let him continue. He slowly leaned forward. [You're actually going to kiss me? That's better than taking actual responsibility. It's not like I've never kissed before.] Yu Mei set her mind on it. She nervously closed her eyes, anxiously waiting for this moment to pass. Gu Shao stopped and stared at her youthful face and then... *Hahahah* Yu Mei opened her eyes to a laughing Gu Shao. The whole time he was teasing her, he almost couldn't hold in his laughter. "You were moved, right?" Not attractive enough? My butt. he thought. Yu Mei let out a sincere laugh. "I was so moved, my heart stopped." she exaggerated. "Brother Shao, I knew you weren't going to do it though. How could you kiss another girl when you're in love with another woman." She teased him. Gu Shao felt his cheeks flush. Just thinking back on that encounter with Yu Mei was enough for him to feel embarrassed. He actually said he liked his brother's wife in front of his brother's other wife. Could it get any more awkward?
He quickly tried to ignore it. "You're right. I was just playing around but remember...you still owe me one wish." He pointed his finger at her. "If you try to run away again, I'll tell Pei Nan." Hearing that man's name, Yu Mei suddenly gripped his hand desperately. "Speaking of Pei Nan. Don't tell him about it, okay?" He could see how anxious and worried she sounded when asking. He couldn't let this chance go to waste. He tugged his hand away and walked passed her. "Why? I was going to tell him since you lied to me."
"Brother Shao," Yu Mei stared at his back. "If you tell him, I'll never talk to you ever again." Yu Mei pouted her lips. Gu Shao was only playing with her, so why did she suddenly get mad. He couldn't help but turn to face the sulking Yu Mei. "Give me a reason then?" in a playful voice.
"I snuck out during house arrest. If he finds out, I'll be in deep trouble."
"Fine. I promise I won't say anything as long as you give me back that bracelet."
"Really?"
"En." Yu Mei didn't hesitate to take out the bracelet and hand it over to him. "I knew I could count on you Brother Shao." She happily said.
"Xiaojie!" Both Yu Mei and Gu Shao turned around. It was Chu'mei.
"Xiaojie. Prince Nan is back. He found out it was a lie." Yu Mei rubbed her temples a few times. He always stressed her out. Gu Shao leaned over and whispered, "You are quite brave to lie to Pei Nan." He said playfully. Even he was fooled when Chu'mei came over regarding the matter of the Empress's visit.
"It's only Pei Nan. There's nothing I can't deal with." she tried to play it off.
"If you need help, I'm right here." He added.
"No need. Watch and learn." She was confident she could go and leave without a single scratch. After all, she's done worse.
Yu Mei and Gu Shao followed Yu Mei back to the Pavilion.
When they arrived, Pei Nan and Fei Ning were both sitting in their original spot. Yu Mei and Gu Shao walked over side by side.
Finally the four of them met...