Feng Muting pushed the door and found it was bolted from the inside. This put him at ease, at least Su Fuliu hadn't run away again.
He frowned, hesitated for a moment, and then said, "I apologize; I was being presumptuous just now."
Feng Muting didn't know why he was apologizing, especially to a servant.
Moreover, Feng Muting never cared what others thought of his actions, letting them judge whether they were good or bad. But why couldn't he help himself? Just thinking of Su Fuliu's aggrieved appearance made him soften and want to comfort her.
There was still no sound from Su Fuliu inside. Feng Muting thought it best to let Su Fuliu have some peace and quiet. He shouldn't stand there, otherwise Su Fuliu would be even more embarrassed.
However, just as Feng Muting turned around, he heard a thud from inside the house...
Feng Muting was taken aback, then turned around and rudely kicked open Su Fuliu's door again. After opening the door, he saw Su Fuliu lying on the ground.
He strode over, squatted down, and helped Su Fuliu up. "Why is your body so hot?"
It's likely that Su Fuliu caught a cold after running back in these wet clothes and standing for so long.
He picked up Su Fuliu and couldn't help but scold, "With this frail body, you still dare to run around like this!"
He then carried him to the bed and ordered someone to fetch the imperial physician.
After the imperial physician arrived, he prescribed medicine to dispel the cold and reduce the fever for Su Fuliu.
Feng Muting stayed by Su Fuliu's side, wrung out a wet cloth and covered his forehead to help him bring down his fever faster.
Butler Su Yan stared at Feng Muting in astonishment. Had the sun risen in the west? His lord was actually personally taking care of a servant?
Su Yan glanced at Su Fuliu, who was lying on the bed looking uncomfortable. This kid must have accumulated a lot of good fortune in his past lives to be served by his prince.
Feng Muting glanced at Su Yan, who was looking around, and said, "You may leave. I will stay here tonight."
Su Yan was taken aback, wondering if he had misheard. "Your Highness, you're sleeping here tonight?"
"Any objections?!" Feng Muting removed the handkerchief from Su Fuliu's forehead, then stood up and glanced at Su Yan.
Su Yan hurriedly shook his head, "No, how could I dare to have any objections? Then, I will take my leave."
"Hmm." Feng Muting put the handkerchief in the basin to rinse it, then wrung it out until it was mostly dry, and put it on Su Fuliu's forehead.
Then, he sat on the edge of the bed and looked at Su Fuliu, whose face was flushed, and said, "Who is serving whom here?"
He sighed and turned the handkerchief over again.
And so, Feng Muting changed Su Fuliu's handkerchiefs all night, and by the next morning, Su Fuliu's fever had subsided.
When he woke up, the steward Su Yan was standing by his side, while Feng Muting had gone to the morning court.
"Butler?" Su Fuliu called out, then struggled to sit up.
Su Yan quickly came over to help, propping up a pillow on the headboard for him to lean against. "You're finally awake! You've had a fever all night."
"Really? I'm so sorry to have troubled you, housekeeper, to take care of me all night." Su Fuliu felt very apologetic.
Su Yan dared not steal the credit from Feng Muting, and quickly waved his hand, saying, "It wasn't me, it was His Highness. It was His Highness who took care of you all night. His Highness didn't sleep all night and kept changing the handkerchiefs to cover your forehead. Now, he has to go to the palace for the morning court, so he asked me to stay here and wait for you to wake up."
"What?" Su Fuliu couldn't believe it. It was actually Feng Muting who had taken care of him all night without sleeping.
"You are truly the first person in history to do this. When has the Prince ever taken such good care of anyone?" After saying this, Su Yan left, saying he was going to get him some medicine for a cold.
Su Fuliu sat there blankly, his mind filled with thoughts of how Feng Muting had taken care of him last night. But he couldn't imagine how someone as irritable as Feng Muting would take care of someone.
Just then, a servant's voice was heard from outside: "Your Highness."
Chapter 13 My Heart Aches
It was Feng Muting who had returned from court.
Su Fuliu shifted uncomfortably, then looked towards the door.
Soon after, Feng Muting walked over with his tall and straight figure. Su Fuliu thought to herself that Feng Muting was like a pine tree that never falls, giving people an extremely safe and reliable feeling.
"Awake?" Feng Muting walked over and asked, then raised his hand to cover Su Fuliu's forehead, and only put it down when he felt it was no longer hot. "Yes, the fever has gone down. Did you take your medicine?"
Su Fuliu shook her head. "The housekeeper went to get the medicine."
"Mm," Feng Muting responded, then sat down on the edge of the bed.
Su Fuliu pursed her lips, feeling quite uncomfortable with Feng Muting sitting on the edge of the bed, so close to her.
Feng Muting met Su Fuliu's evasive gaze. "What's wrong? Don't you want to see me?"
Su Fuliu lowered her head and shook it, "How could I dare?"
Just as Feng Muting was about to say something, Su Yan arrived with the medicine. He took the medicine from Su Yan and said, "You may leave."
"Yes." Su Yan glanced at Su Fuliu, then respectfully bowed and withdrew.
Seeing this, Su Fuliu tried to take the cold medicine from Feng Muting's hand, but he dodged her, saying, "I will feed you."
Su Fuliu was flattered and quickly waved her hand, "How could I trouble Your Highness? Let me do it myself."
Feng Muting frowned again. "What, you're not even listening to me anymore? I told you I'd come, so just sit there."
Su Fuliu blinked, looking a little flustered. Feng Muting scooped up a spoonful of the medicinal soup, blew on it, and then held it to his mouth. "Open your mouth."
He had no choice but to obediently open his mouth.
Before long, the medicine was gone. Although the medicine was very bitter, he dared not utter a sound, for fear of displeasing Feng Muting.
But his silence didn't mean Feng Muting didn't know. Feng Muting ordered someone to bring some candied fruit, picked one out, and put it in his mouth. "Look at your face, all wrinkled up like a bun, as if you're afraid others won't know how bitter the medicine is."
Su Fuliu lowered her head, not daring to utter a sound.
Then, Feng Muting stood up and smoothed out the wrinkles on his body: "You should rest for a few days and come back to serve me when you are fully recovered."
After saying that, he turned and left.
"Your Highness..." Su Fuliu hesitated for a moment, then called out to him before he could leave the room...
Feng Muting stopped and turned to look at Su Fuliu, who was leaning against the headboard. "Is there anything else?"
Su Fuliu pursed her lips and then said, "Your Highness, thank you so much for taking care of me all night. Your Highness should go back and get some sleep. The dark shadows under your eyes are making my heart ache."
When Feng Muting arrived, Su Fuliu noticed the dark shadows in his eyes. He had stayed up all night and still had to rush to court in the morning. Even a tough man would show signs of fatigue.
Feng Muting chuckled lightly, said nothing, and turned to continue walking away.
Su Fuliu finally breathed a sigh of relief. He admitted that Feng Muting's care for him had truly moved him, so when he saw Feng Muting's dark circles, he felt really sorry for him.
However, this was merely an expression of gratitude, nothing more.
Feng Muting walked back to his study. As soon as he entered, a maid who was cleaning the room was startled and knocked over a vase next to her.
With a loud crash, the vase shattered into pieces.
The maid was terrified and hurriedly knelt down in front of Feng Muting, kowtowing repeatedly and begging for mercy.
Feng Muting's temper was notoriously volatile, and the maid was extremely worried about her life.
However, misfortune did not befall her as she had imagined. She even wondered if she was hallucinating from fear.
Feng Muting actually said, "Hurry up and clean up the broken pieces, then get out of here."
Although the tone was not good, it was a hundred times better than the consequences the maid had imagined.
"Yes, yes, this servant will take care of it right away."
The maid didn't dare to lift her head as she rushed to the ground to collect the broken pieces. After she finished, she scrambled away as fast as she could.
Feng Muting walked to the desk and sat down. He picked up the document, intending to take another look, but then he heard Su Fuliu's words: "Your Highness, you should go back and catch up on your sleep. The dark shadows under your eyes are heartbreaking to see."
He couldn't help but smile, then closed the document, walked to the soft couch in the study, lay down, and took a nap after listening to Su Fuliu's words.
Chapter 14 Hindsight
After taking the medicine, Su Fuliu felt much better, so he got out of bed. He thought about how Feng Muting had taken care of him all night and was naturally exhausted. He felt that he should thank Feng Muting properly.
Besides being good-looking and skilled in music, chess, calligraphy, and painting, his only notable talent is his cooking.
Therefore, Su Fuliu wanted to cook a delicious meal for Feng Muting himself. Feng Muting had gone back to catch up on his sleep, so Su Fuliu had to hurry up and get it done. He was just waiting for Feng Muting to wake up so they could enjoy the meal.
So he picked up his basket and went out the door.
Even he himself didn't realize how naturally he looked carrying a basket, like a young wife going out to buy groceries.
"Boss, give me a grass carp, that one, the one that's lively and jumping around, looks fresh." Su Fuliu pointed to a grass carp of medium size in the basin and said.
But before he could retract his hand, it was grabbed by someone.
He turned his head and saw a well-dressed man in his fifties holding his hand.
He tried to pull his hand back, but the man wouldn't let go. "Hey, young master, you're quite handsome."
As he spoke, the man reached out and touched his face.
He slapped away the man's outstretched hand in annoyance. "You're so rude! Let go of me now!"
Su Fuliu's voice was soft and gentle.
The man was overjoyed. "I do have a few handsome male concubines in my mansion, but none of them are even a fraction as good as you. Young master, would you be willing to come back with me and live a life of luxury?"
Although Su Fuliu was a man, he was no different from a weak scholar. The man in front of him was strong, and he could not pull his hand back.
"Who wants to go back with you? Let go of me right now, or I'll call for help!"
The man burst into laughter as if he had heard something hilarious. "Go ahead and shout! Let's see if anyone dares to interfere with my business!"
The guards accompanying the man also laughed mockingly.
Su Fuliu was speechless. How could he have run into such a scoundrel? He frowned and tried his best to pull his hand back from the man's grasp.
Unexpectedly, the person ignored him and grabbed his hand, pulling him back, seemingly intending to forcibly take him back to the mansion.
"Let go! Let go! I'm from the Ting Prince's Mansion!" Su Fuliu cried out anxiously.
The more anxious he became, the more the man laughed heartily: "I don't care where you're from. I'm afraid you're just a servant at best. It's not a big deal for a royal palace to lose a servant."
"Look at that blushing face, it's really cute, hahaha." The man turned around and glanced at Su Fuliu, then prepared to lead him forward.
Unexpectedly, a person suddenly stepped forward and coldly said, "Let him go!"
The man looked up and asked disdainfully, "Who are you, daring to block my way?!"
Su Fuliu looked in the direction of the sound and saw Feng Muting standing there, his powerful aura making people afraid to look directly at him.