Bab 14: Let me take you home
As the night turned colder, the bright moon in the skies of imperial turned even bigger while the entire city prepared to welcome the Lunar new year.
While cold wintry breeze caressed the sleepy trees leaves on the roadside Wan Yi Jun drove his car to the city centre with a silent Ming Yue sitting on the shot gun seat, reflecting on her mistake.
When she left home in the afternoon, Ming Yue never thought that her decision to visit Wisteria gardens will ends up in a disaster known as "Young master Wan Yi Jun"
She just came to take a look at Wisteria gardens, but ended up running into Wan Yi Jun, whose clumsy self forced her to act like a "damsel" for the entire evening, draining out the last ounce of her energy.
When she finally managed to find a way to escape and go home, Wan Yi Jun put on his "knight in silver armour" act and offered to drive her home.
Snapping out of her thoughts, Ming Yue tilted looked at the time showing on the GPS tracker on the car's dashboard.
It was already turned ten.
If she doesn't get home by 12, then that's it- all of her plan will go to the gutter.
When Wan Yi Jun noticed Ming Yue's eyes were stuck to the digital clock, he gradually increased the car's speed.
Since there was more than one hour drive left for the city, Wan Yi Jun decided to break the awkward silence in the car by initiating a conversation,
"Where did you learn to fix the heater?" He tossed a random question at Ming Yue, whose eyes were glued to the road than the one who was on the driving seat.
While he was at Wisteria gardens, Wan Yi Jun didn't even realize that the heater in the living room was malfunctioning until Ming Yue pointed out that it was broken. Instead of keeping the room temperature at optimum level according to the weather, it was overheating and even caused the circuit to trip.
It was only then he figured out the malfunctioning heater" was the real reason behind his body's extremely odd reactions while his consciousness chose to blame it on his lustrous thoughts on the presence of a woman.
Thanks to the overall condition of the house, he had no other option but to call the agency which sent workers for house maintenance. Unfortunately, no one picked up the call.
However, when he returned after a quick shower, Ming Yue had already fixed the heater, leaving him dumbfounded with her skills.
"I've learnt by repairing the old heaters." Ming Yue monotonously replied.
"You learnt it by yourself? But How?" Wan Yi Jun was literally surprised to hear her answer. Most of the times, all these mechanical/repairing works are done by men and it was nearly unbelievable for him to accept the fact that Ming Yue was a self taught mechanic.
"I don't know why, but wherever I used stay, the heater always stopped working out of nowhere." Ming Yue casually answered.
"Two hot things in a room? One has to give up." A random comment popped up in his mind, Wan Yi Jun just decided not to say it out loud, thinking that it might sound weird and degrading...most importantly -wrong to a girl.
"It was expensive to get a new heater. So I just learnt to repair and saved the money." Ming Yue added as her grip over the paper bag tightened, unknowingly.
"Is it too cold for you? Should I turn on the heater?" Wan Yi Jun asked when he saw that she was closely holding the paper bag that carries her dry clothes.
"No. I'm good."
For some reason, her reply made Wan Yi Jun believe that she was a girl who never complains but adjust no matter how poor her life might be.
"I'm glad that your parents taught you how to be self-reliant unlike spoilt brats like me who doesn't even know how to turn on a garden pipe." Wan Yi Jun praised her abilities with utmost honesty. Since he grew up in a wealthy family with lots of people to look after the young master Wan, he never faced any difficulties until he entered the police academy.
.
"You are a spoilt brat?" Ming Yue picked up the only phrase that caught her attention among his appraisals.
Damn it's true that brain is more sensitive towards negativity.
"Yes, I'm." He agreed with a faint smile hanging on the corners of his mouth. The life in police academy was practically hell and luckily the struggles made the man out of him.
"I must say, you are brave." She spoke in an appreciative tone only to acknowledge that he was indeed a spoilt brat.
"It takes immense amount of courage to admit that you are spoilt brat. Usually, no one does that."
"I agree with you. Miss Ming, where do you live?" Wan Yi Jun asked as he slid his index finger on the touch screen that showed GPS map on the dashboard.
"Down town."
"Down Town?" Wan Yi Jun's repeated in bewilderment as soon he heard her answer. "That's pretty far from here. You came all the way from downtown just for a flower?"
"I had no other options." Ming Yue shrugged her shoulders as if was no big deal.
"Good heavens!!!! I just hope you don't get scolded for arriving late for ancestral rites." Wan Yi Jun forewarned her and raised the speed once again as he recalled that she needs to be at home to attend the ancestral rites.
"It's alright. You don't have to rush." Ming Yue reaffirmed even though her head was filled with the thoughts of getting home quickly.
"Where exactly do you live? I will take you there."
"Somewhere around the downtown market."
"You don't know the exact place?" Wan Yi Jun who was ready to enter the address, shockingly averted his gaze to the girl who sat with a dead-pan expression.
"Actually, the place where I live...it doesn't have any particular name...it just somewhere around the market." She answered vaguely so that he will stop pestering her about the address. Since three of them had fake ID proofs, Yojiro carefully chose a rental place where they could live without any proper identification documents.
"But still...there will be a street name or an ally-"
"It was the last street in the dead end of market." She just replied with a random thing came to her mind. "I'm new to the city and still not familiar with the places..so I just use landmarks to get home."
"Hmm. It's alright. We will figure it out after reaching there." Wan Yi Jun assured her and entered the location to the map.
"So, where is your home town?" He made an effort to keep their conversation alive.
"Zhuncho in the eastern Jinlong city." She answered without thinking twice.
"Jinlong city? You mean the dragon city? Wan Yi Jun sounded surprised when heard her mentioning dragon city.
The Jinlong city was an ancient coastal city in the mainland which is rumoured to be the abode of dragons in the mythical texts and folklores.
"That's also pretty far from here."
"Yes, it nearly takes two days to reach there by train." Ming Yue added as she barely recalled the details of the journey.
"How about high speed train or a flight?"
From Ming Yue's words and straightforward but humble behaviour, Wan Yi Jun could figure out that she wasn't a city dweller or a person from well-off family. So he probed more about Ming Yue's hometown.
"Maybe one and a half day. It takes 7-8 hours for a boat from Dragon city to reach Zhuncho, if the sea is calm..otherwise it will take more time." Ming Yue elaborated on the details when she found that he was all ears.
"Is it a border island with Daisun?" Wan Yi Jun pointed out all of sudden.
"Mmm. Daisun is closer than Imperial for us." She said as a matter of fact. "Also Mainlanders really don't consider us as part of the country even if we speak in the standard imperial accent. So why bother coming here only to get mocked by everyone." Ming Yue added with a scoff.
"Hmm...some people are like that only...Due to their lack of knowledge and ignorance, they mocks whatever feels alien to them. All we can do is to teach them and make them aware...or the most easy part - Ignore them." Wan Yi Jun advised when he felt the resentment hidden in Ming Yue's words.
Growing up as an immigrant child, he was well aware of the painful experience of getting alienated and mocked because of one's ethnicity and language.
"I forgot to ask, are you studying here?" Wan Yi Jun tried to change the topic when he could sense the traces of anger and pain on Ming Yue.
"Or working?"
"I'm looking for a work."
She tossed out a white lie, expecting that it might stop Wan Yi Jun from asking for more questions.
However, she was absolutely wrong.
Whether it is because his job as a detective, or
simply because he was in a mood to talk, he kept asking questions one after another.
"What kind of work are you looking for? Let me see if I can help you." Wan Yi Jun offered his help since he felt bad for her. It was obvious that Ming Yue came from a faraway village to capital city, seeking better life opportunities, to earn more money while enduring mockery and discrimination. Though he never meddled in his family business, as the young master of Wan family he could manage to get someone a job by recommendation.
"Anything that pays." Ming Yue's answer was short and crisp.
"Even for toppers from prestigious universities, it is hard to get a job in Capital. But if you hang there a little more, you might land in a job according to your likes and qualifications." Wan Yi Jun tried to lift her spirits like a caring and responsible senior.
"Likes and qualifications?" Ming Yue asked as if she heard some kind of joke. "Those things exists in real life?"
"Yes. They do exist. Tell me about your course stream...Let me help you getting a job in your field of study itself." He proposed in the heat of the moment when he felt that the Ming Yue was a victim of extreme competition in the job market.
"Thanks for offering the help, master. But tell me one thing," Ming Yue paused for a moment and looked at Wan Yi Jun with glistening dark eyes.
"Who will give job for someone who barely finished high school?"
"You didn't go to university? Why?" When Wan Yi Jun heard something totally unexpected, he blurted out in perplexity.
"Had no money." She retaliated monotonously .
"But miss Ming, scholarships and other financial support are available for students. Why didn't you try it?" Wan Yi Jun inquired in a slightly reprimanding tone.
For him, education was the one among his priorities.
He himself was a sponsor of various charity societies and orphanages that focuses on the education of underprivileged children.
"I grew up in a courtesan house." Ming Yue answered with the melancholic smile, that held traces of miserable past.
"Courtesan house!" Wan Yi Jun unknowingly stomped on the break, abruptly stopping the car with a sudden screeching noise.
"In captial, you people call it by a different name," Ming Yue who managed to steady herself from the sudden break, turned to a face a petrified Wan Yi Jun and stated with a bitter smile,
"Brothel."
Hadiah
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