006 So He Wasn't Gay After All

Upon hearing Ning Qian’s words, Ruan Qin and Shuni were utterly bewildered. After a moment, Shuni scratched her head in confusion and asked, “Miss, what are you talking about? Give what? What do you want to give to Third Young Master Yu? Heh, I can run errands for you, you know. Isn’t it like the wild geese carrying messages of love? I could be that wild goose.”

Without another word, Ning Qian flicked her sharply on the forehead. “What nonsense are you spouting? Wild geese carrying love messages? What feelings do I have for him? Ridiculous. You don’t understand—it’s not ‘give,’ it’s ‘gay.’ Ahem, I mean, he has a fondness for men.”

Shuni stared at her as if Ning Qian had uttered something truly shocking. “Miss, what do you mean? Third Young Master Yu is so handsome—how could he have such inclinations? No way, absolutely not.”

Ning Qian rolled her eyes at her. “Why not? Let me ask you: first, he’s not short of money; second, he’s not short of women; third, he lacks neither fame nor status. With a man like that who wants for nothing, why would he marry me? Doesn’t that strike you as odd? The more I think about it, there’s only one explanation—hmph, he must have a preference for men.”

Shuni and Ruan Qin exchanged glances, both stunned by Ning Qian’s brazen declaration. After all, such a predilection was no trivial matter; it concerned a man’s reputation.

“Qian, matters like this aren’t really for us women to discuss. Still, whatever the case, you must think long and hard about this. I don’t know why Third Young Master Yu wants to marry you, but I can sense there’s something unusual about it. Just be careful.”

“Cousin, don’t worry. How could I not know? This is my entire life at stake. But, if Yu Ziqi doesn’t have that kind of inclination, I might even want to marry him. Honestly, he is rather good-looking, isn’t he?”

Shuni was dumbfounded again. “Miss, what does ‘good-looking’ mean?” She had long grown immune to Ning Qian’s astonishing remarks. Hearing unfamiliar words no longer surprised her; she simply asked and Ning Qian would explain. Over the years, she attributed all of Ning Qian’s strange vocabulary to her fondness for reading, assuming the words came from books.

“Silly, haven’t I told you before? Good-looking means handsome. Think about it—Yu Ziqi is, first, handsome; second, he’s not after my dowry; and third, he’s certainly not enchanted by my beauty. No matter how lovely I am, after that incident with the wedding raid... So, if Yu Ziqi really doesn’t prefer men, I honestly don’t know why I should refuse to marry him. Most importantly, he knows what happened to me, but he doesn’t care.”

That was what mattered most to Ning Qian. In the modern world, it was common for a woman’s first time not to be with her husband, but in this era, for a man to still be willing to accept her—why wouldn’t she agree?

Ruan Qin nodded. “Qian, hearing you say that, it does make a bit of sense. But how do we prove he doesn’t have that kind of preference?”

Ning Qian’s lips curled into a sly smile. “That’s easy. Just as a man is drawn to women, if he likes men, he won’t resist the feast set right before him.” Her sinister smile sent chills down both Ruan Qin’s and Shuni’s spines. What puzzled them most was that Ning Qian seemed far less upset than they’d imagined, as if she truly had left the wedding raid behind her.

Early the next morning, after breakfast, Ning Qian told Shuni to fetch Ning Guoxuan. As soon as he entered, Ning Qian flung herself at him, clinging to his arm. Smiling sweetly, she cooed, “My dearest Third Brother, I’m in trouble now. You’ll help me, won’t you?”

He would have done anything for her, even broken the law without a second thought. “Tell me. Whatever it is, your brother will take care of it.”

“Wonderful, Third Brother. You’re the best.” Ning Qian leaned close and whispered in his ear for a while. Ning Guoxuan’s brows furrowed and relaxed repeatedly, his expression growing more peculiar by the moment.

After a long pause, Ning Guoxuan finally nodded. “All right, I’ll help you. I’ll make the arrangements now—wait here for good news.” With that, he hurried out.

All that remained was to wait. It wasn’t until late that night, after dusk, that Ning Guoxuan returned. Entering Ning Qian’s room, he gulped down several cups of tea before catching his breath and grinning. “Qian, I’ve taken care of your business.”

Ning Qian’s eyes sparkled. “Well? Well?”

Ning Guoxuan held up two fingers and waggled them. “Rest assured, it’s fine. He doesn’t have that kind of inclination. I thought so—even if he seems a bit delicate, he didn’t strike me as that sort. I can guarantee it.”

“Are you sure, Third Brother?”

“I’m absolutely sure. You know, our Ning family does some business with the Yu family. I haven’t met Yu Ziqi myself, but our shopkeeper has. It wasn’t hard to arrange. As you suggested, I told the shopkeeper to invite Yu Ziqi to dinner and made sure he brought along a few handsome young men, directing them to behave as though they wanted to get close to him. Guess what? He got angry. Accused the shopkeeper of not being serious about business, said a curt goodbye and left. I must admit, he has quite the presence.”

Ning Qian frowned. “Third Brother, didn’t I tell you to go watch for yourself? Indirect reports can be unreliable.”

“You think your brother wouldn’t listen? Relax, I saw everything from the next room. Yu Ziqi does not have that inclination—I guarantee it. Honestly, he’s a decent man. If he became my brother-in-law, I’d be satisfied. Qian, what do you think?”

Ning Qian narrowed her eyes. “Who knows? Besides, he’s so frail—how could he protect me?”

Ning Guoxuan widened his eyes. “Frail? Where does he look frail? You exaggerate too much.”

“Yes, yes, I exaggerate. Can’t I?”

“Of course you can. Qian, you can say whatever you like.” He patted her head, a tender smile on his lips. He adored this little sister and would do anything to make her happy.

Ning Qian began to push him toward the door. “All right, time for me to rest. See you tomorrow.” After closing the door, she covered her mouth and laughed silently. “Is this what they call ‘when all seems lost, a hidden path appears’? Heaven must have pitied me and sent a good man my way.”