Madam Yan's Matchmaking Pavilion for Men

33 A Natural Thing, Not a Secret

The two men finished the food in silence. This time, Yu Huang Rong didn't mind it though. He had already said what he had wanted to say and even though he had had to prompt him, Zhang Shi Lan had also said what he wanted to hear. There was no reason to force a conversation. No, right now he was content just sitting here with him and enjoying the moment. Words were unnecessary.

Finally, Zhang Shi Lan put down his chopsticks and turned to him, giving a light smile. "Yu Huang Rong, you said I shouldn't worry but ... Just what do we do now? Is there anything I can help with?"

Yu Huang Rong reached over and took his hand again. "Nothing that I would know off at the moment. I only talked with Madam Yan about the first few steps. Making you admit that you had feelings for me was the most important one."

Zhang Shi Lan couldn't help but blush. "You ... You knew? And Madam Yan ..."

Yu Huang Rong chuckled. "I'm not sure what I should think about that woman but I guess she's a good matchmaker. She is able to see that kind of thing. She also didn't need more than a glance to find out what was up with me. Well, at least that's what I think. She didn't say so outright but from the way she behaved and the questions she asked, it's likely that she knew already."

Zhang Shi Lan thought back to his own conversations with Madam Yan and felt that there was indeed a likelihood of her knowing. "Then from the very beginning, what should have been kept secret wasn't that private anymore."

Yu Huang Rong squeezed his hand. "Don't worry about that. She's on our side. She'll help us get this sorted out somehow." He sighed and pushed the dishes out of the way, leaning closer to Zhang Shi Lan. "I don't know what she has planned at the next event but I'm sure that there'll be one. We'll likely get information about that soon. I'd say we should just wait for that. At the most, it should take two or maybe three days if she's slow. And I guess she noticed that I'm bad at waiting."

Zhang Shi Lan nodded. "I guess we don't have another choice then. So ... We won't see each other until then?"

Yu Huang Rong shook his head. "I don't know if this is alright with her but I don't think I can do that. Let's meet again in the meantime. She also wanted me to spend time with you I guess. Otherwise, there is no way for me to win you over, is there?"

"Then how should we go about that? I doubt we can meet openly, can we? Wouldn't people start talking if we did?"

Yu Huang Rong lifted the scholar's hand and pressed his lips on it. "What are you talking about? Who would think of a clandestine love affair just because we meet? Isn't this just a friendship among gentlemen? Come to think of it ..." He narrowed his eyes and tapped the ground with his foot. "That Qian Mu Qing should have figured it out, shouldn't he?"

Zhang Shi Lan nodded. "He did. He ... warned me about you. I guess he somehow saw at the first event. I couldn't help but tell him my true feelings. So he knows. I hope this won't be a problem?"

Yu Huang Rong hummed. "I don't know him. Do you think he is trustworthy?"

Zhang Shi Lan pondered and nodded. "I think so. I didn't know him before either but he took the time to warn me and made sure that nobody heard. That is very honorable of him. If our feelings weren't mutual and you really had something bad planned then I would need to thank him. Well, I guess I do need to thank him anyway. If not for him pointing it out, I might not have understood even today."

Yu Huang Rong nodded. "Then I guess I'll have to ask you to invite him out. People know that you met up before, don't they? So ... Since I don't know anybody here and dragged you out today, it wouldn't be unexpected if I asked you to be the link between me and Qian Mu Qing, would it?"