Giving Yourself an Answer

[You were startled.]

[Mental State +5]

The mental state value increased by another percentage point, but that was no longer what Lu Chang’an cared about.

At this moment, Lu Chang’an was caught in self-doubt.

Although he hadn’t known Miss Yue’er for long, he believed he understood her character well enough.

His assessment of Miss Yue’er could be summed up in four words: cold face, warm heart.

Unlike Xian’er, who was indifferent to outsiders from the inside out, Miss Yue’er was a genuinely warm-hearted person.

When Lu Chang’an first arrived, it was Miss Yue’er who took him in and cared for him.

Even this restaurant had been built with her help.

He had seen her hand out porridge to homeless beggars, help a little girl retrieve a kite stuck in a tree, and even glimpsed her standing alone in a peach grove, lost in sorrow.

Could a woman like this truly be a bloodthirsty witch?

“Boss Lu?”

Miss Yue’er’s soft voice stirred him from his tangled thoughts.

She looked at him with confusion and asked gently, “Boss Lu, have you run into some trouble?”

“You can tell me about it.”

“Maybe I can help.”

“I was thinking…”

Her question caught him off guard, and without thinking, he blurted out what was on his mind.

“…about the best way to eat a teapot.”

Miss Yue’er: “???”

“Oh, ahem, nothing.”

“Think of it as me talking nonsense.”

“Wait here, I’ll go brew the tea.”

Lu Chang’an brewed the tea as usual and brought it to Miss Yue’er’s table.

“Take your time.”

“If you need anything else, just order.”

Even his tone and greeting remained unchanged.

That was only natural, wasn’t it?

Lu Chang’an was lost in thought.

Though the system had revealed that Miss Yue’er was the notorious witch Lu Yuesheng, he still found it hard to connect the woman before him with that fearsome witch.

But if Miss Yue’er really was that Lu Yuesheng…

Thinking about it, he fell silent again.

Until Miss Yue’er left, Lu Chang’an remained distracted, unable to focus.

He didn’t even notice when Third Master Luo had left.

“Boss Lu, you seem troubled.”

Miss Yue’er’s voice jolted him back to reality.

Looking down, he saw her place twenty copper coins on the table—payment for the tea.

“I do have something on my mind.”

“Would you like to talk about it?”

“Perhaps I can help clear things up.”

“…”

Lu Chang’an was silent.

How could he voice his thoughts?

Was he supposed to ask directly, “Miss Yue’er, I heard you’re the great witch Lu Yuesheng. Is that true?”

He was certain that if he dared to ask that, his head would be separated from his shoulders in an instant.

Seeing his silence, Miss Yue’er simply smiled and gave a slight bow.

“I spoke out of turn.”

“Don’t take it to heart, Boss Lu.”

“No, it’s nothing.”

“By the way, have you prepared that tea?”

“What?”

“I might be leaving this place soon.”

“As a farewell, could you brew that pot of tea from the day we first met?”

As she spoke, a hint of melancholy crept into her expression.

Lu Chang’an could see the reluctance in her face, but he didn’t try to dissuade her.

He sensed a firm resolve in her—she had made up her mind to leave, and that determination was not something he could shake now.

He vaguely recalled that the first time he brewed that tea for her, she had loved it, and it had brought them closer.

But after that, she rarely drank it—only three times in the past year.

“When are you leaving, Miss Yue’er?”

“Three days from now.”

“…I’ll give you my answer tomorrow.”

In the end, Lu Chang’an didn’t agree on the spot, because he was hesitant.

He felt that if he let her go like this, they might become strangers forever.

He had to do something.

That night, after exhausting himself to brew tea for Xian’er, Lu Chang’an, for the first time, didn’t go straight to sleep.

Instead, he gazed at the full moon outside the window, wrestling with his decision.

“To be honest, I don’t believe Miss Yue’er could be that kind of person, nor that she did those things in the rumors.”

Recalling every moment he had spent with her, he rubbed his eyes, his heart in turmoil.

“They say seeing is believing, and hearing is deceiving.”

“Sometimes even what you see isn’t the truth.”

“Compared to hearsay, I trust what I’ve witnessed.”

His gaze grew resolute, and he made up his mind.

The next morning, as soon as he got up and opened the door, he saw Miss Yue’er waiting outside.

“So early?”

Lu Chang’an was surprised.

The sky had barely lightened, and he thought he was early, but Miss Yue’er was already there.

“I was just a bit eager to hear your answer.”

“Keeping me in suspense is truly unsettling.”

“Sorry for keeping you waiting.”

He stepped aside to let Miss Yue’er in.

She looked a bit haggard.

As soon as she sat down, she seemed almost impatient, asking, “Have you made up your mind, Boss Lu?”

“Yes.”

“That tea won’t be available anytime soon.”

A mischievous smile played on his lips, as if he were teasing her.

Hearing this, Miss Yue’er wasn’t disappointed.

Instead, her first reaction was disbelief.

“Why would you choose that?”

“I want to find out the truth.”

Hearing his casual tone, Miss Yue’er was momentarily stunned.

For some reason, her heart ached, and tears threatened to fall, but none came.

“Even if you find the truth, what then?”

“They won’t believe it.”

“I don’t need them to believe.”

“I just need to give myself an answer.”

In the end, she couldn’t hold back.

Whether because a weight had been lifted from her heart or for some other reason, tears streamed down her face.

Yet, even as she cried, she was genuinely happy.

Unaccustomed to seeing a woman cry, Lu Chang’an felt a bit flustered.

He wanted to wipe away her tears but thought it might be inappropriate.

After hesitating for a long time, he finally acted.

While wiping her tears, he said, “Let me reintroduce myself.”

“I’m Lu Chang’an, a humble restaurant owner.”

Miss Yue’er looked at his somewhat clumsy movements, laughed through her tears, and with gentle eyes, replied, “I am Lu Yuesheng, a humble witch of a heretical sect.”