"The room smells terrible. Someone, put out more incense!" Dongfang Heng suddenly gave this order in a cold voice.
Shen Lixue's lips moved slightly, and the mist in her beautiful eyes instantly dimmed. Did he really send her to bathe because he thought the smell was unpleasant? She lowered her head slightly, holding the clean clothes in her arms, and walked step by step behind the screen.
The bath was steaming hot. Chen Lixue soaked in the water, dispelling the chill that had gripped her body. She sniffed her hair carefully and noticed a faint smell of gunpowder. Frowning, she picked up a small flower basket and sprinkled a thick layer of petals on the water. A faint floral fragrance filled the air. She immersed her dark hair in the hot water and washed it carefully until a faint fragrance wafted from it, only then was she satisfied.
After drying herself off, changing into a clean long dress, wringing out her hair, and loosely tying it into a bun, Shen Lixue looked at herself in the mirror several times to make sure there was nothing wrong before quickly walking out from behind the screen.
After arriving in Xiliang, Shen Lixue mostly dressed as a man. Dongfang Heng liked to see her in women's clothing and with her hair in a bun, but due to circumstances, she had to wear men's clothing. Now, she also felt that she looked better in women's clothing than in men's clothing.
The pine scent in the air was faint and elusive, carrying a subtle coolness, much like the aura of Dongfang Heng, cool and serene like pine.
The table in the inner room was laden with food, and the rich aroma made one's mouth water. Shen Lixue glanced to the side and realized that it was already Shen Shi (3 PM to 5 PM), time for dinner. Suddenly, she felt a rumbling in her stomach, as if she were starving.
Why not have Dongfang Heng accompany her to dinner? She can take the opportunity to explain things to him.
Shen Lixue made up her mind, lifted the curtain and went out of the inner room. She walked slowly to Dongfang Heng's side. Dongfang Heng's eyes were sharp and his whole body was cold. He looked straight at the letter in his hand. She stood next to him for a long time, but he didn't even look at her. It was as if he didn't notice her arrival.
Shen Lixue's gaze darkened, and she looked up at Dongfang Heng, softly uttering a single word: "Heng!"
"What is it?" Dongfang Heng wrote a reply without raising his head, his voice cold.
“You didn’t eat breakfast or lunch, so you should have some dinner, otherwise your body won’t be able to take it.” Dongfang Heng had been searching for Shen Lixue in the woods all night and had a long argument with her. He had just returned to the villa. She hadn’t eaten breakfast or lunch, and naturally, neither had Dongfang Heng.
Dongfang Heng frowned: "The food is not to my liking, I can't eat it..."
"Then I'll have the kitchen redo it. What would you like to eat?" Shen Lixue asked softly, secretly observing Dongfang Heng's expression.
"No need, I have no appetite!" Dongfang Heng said coldly, continuing to bury his head in reading the letter, looking as if he no longer wanted to pay attention to Shen Lixue.
Shen Lixue peered through the beaded curtain at the delicious-looking food, suppressing the waves of hunger rising in her stomach, turned around, and slowly walked towards the door.
"Where are you going?" Dongfang Heng suddenly looked up at Shen Lixue, his sharp eyes flashing with cold light, and his suddenly raised tone was filled with a strong sense of sharpness and anger.
This was the first time Shen Lixue had ever seen Dongfang Heng so angry. She trembled slightly and said softly, "I... I wanted to see if there were any ingredients in the small kitchen... to make you some delicious food..."
She just wanted to leave the room and go to the kitchen, why did he react so strongly?
"I have no appetite, no need to bother!" The cold light in Dongfang Heng's deep eyes faded slightly, and the anger surrounding him dissipated by most. His gaze returned to the letters, one after another, filled with densely packed words. His eyes lingered on them, but just like before, he couldn't concentrate on any of the contents.
Shen Lixue was dressed in beautiful women's clothing and had her hair loosely styled. She was stunningly beautiful. Just a moment ago, he thought that Shen Lixue couldn't stand his ignoring her and was going to go to the Zhenguo Marquis's mansion to find Lu Jiangfeng. If that were true, he would definitely be furious.
"You've been busy for so long, you can't go without eating. I'll be right back!" Shen Lixue hurried out of the room and down the long corridor to the small kitchen.
The small kitchen was fully stocked with vegetables, fruits, meat and all kinds of ingredients. Shen Lixue looked at basket after basket of food and sighed silently. It wasn't that Dongfang Heng wasn't hungry, but that he was too angry to eat. No matter what she cooked, he had no appetite.
Dongfang Heng ignored her and didn't care about her, giving her the cold shoulder. This was far more heartbreaking than having a heated argument with him, because after an argument, everything would be discussed and the conflict would be resolved quickly. But now, Dongfang Heng simply didn't want to pay attention to her, and she couldn't find an opportunity to resolve the conflict.
The guards carried the food into the kitchen, and the dishes were neatly placed on the table. Wisps of steam rose, and the aroma filled the entire kitchen.
Shen Lixue looked at the complete dishes and sighed helplessly. The food had all been brought out from the inner room, so she hadn't eaten a single bite.
If she were to serve the food she prepared to Dongfang Heng, it would likely suffer the same fate; he wouldn't even glance at it before having it brought out.
As night fell, Shen Lixue carried a tray into the room. Dongfang Hengwei kept his head down, reading letters, and didn't even glance at her.
Shen Lixue walked slowly to his side, picked up a small plate from the tray, and placed it on the table in front of him: "This is a snack, and this is soup. Don't just focus on me and being angry. Eat some, otherwise your body won't be able to handle it."
The delicate aroma of plum blossom cakes was irresistible, making one's mouth water. The soup, infused with medicinal herbs, was even more fragrant, making one's mouth water even more. Dongfang Heng, who was full, suddenly felt hungry and needed to eat something.
But the thought that the plum blossom cake and the soup were food that Shen Lixue had specially made to apologize to him and please him filled his chest with anger again, and he said coldly, "I am not hungry!"
Shen Lixue had already guessed he would say that. Her gaze darkened slightly, but she didn't react too strongly. She took two small plates and covered them with steaming pastries and soup: "These two foods retain heat well. With the lids on, they cool down very slowly. You can eat them whenever you're hungry!"
Dongfang Heng gave a vague "hmm" in response, his gaze lingering on the letter as he calmly urged Chen Lixue to hurry up.
Shen Lixue's beautiful eyes dimmed as she glanced at the letter in his jade-like hand. She blinked and whispered, "Heng, that..."
"I'm busy, I don't have time to listen to your explanation..." Dongfang Heng frowned and interrupted Shen Lixue. He had seen it with his own eyes, and it didn't need any further explanation.
Shen Lixue looked at the letter in Dongfang Heng's hand and said softly, "What I meant was that you're holding the letter upside down..."
Dongfang Heng was taken aback. He looked closely and saw that the letter in his hand was indeed upside down. He coughed lightly a few times, then slowly closed the letter. A barely perceptible blush appeared on his handsome face: "I have already read the letter. I was just thinking about how to reply..."
Even if he had read the letter and thought about how to reply, the letter should have been held upright or closed. The fact that Dongfang Heng held the letter upside down shows that he had no intention of reading what was written on it.
Knowing that Dongfang Heng was lying, Shen Lixue didn't expose him. She smiled to herself, gently tugging at her right sleeve with her left hand, while picking up the inkstone beside her with her right hand and slowly grinding the ink: "Continue to think about your reply, I'll grind the ink for you!"
"There's plenty of ink, enough for today. You don't need to trouble yourself anymore. It's late, go inside and rest!" Dongfang Heng opened a letter and began to read it with a serious expression. This time, he read it very carefully, and with a wolf-hair brush, he quickly wrote a long reply on the rice paper.
He put the reply into an envelope, sealed it, and set it aside. Then he opened another letter, staring at it sharply, completely ignoring Shen Lixue.
Shen Lixue smiled, but her smile was a little stiff: "I'm not sleepy, I'll keep you company while we read the letters!"
"I don't like outsiders disturbing me when I'm handling correspondence!" Dongfang Heng coldly uttered these words, his wolf-hair brush sweeping across the rice paper, successfully wiping away the stiff smile on Shen Lixue's lips.
Does he hate her that much now? Does he not want to see her even once? Or is he forcing her to rest like this because he doesn't want her to stay up late?
Looking at Dongfang Heng's cold gaze and icy face, devoid of any care or consideration, the first possibility is most likely: he hates her.
Shen Lixue was rational. She knew that Dongfang Heng was still angry, which was why he spoke so ruthlessly. She knew that she was in the wrong, but she wouldn't make a scene like a shrew. She would wait for him to finish dealing with the matter and find a suitable opportunity to explain things to him.
Her eyes dimmed as she slowly put down the ink pestle and turned to walk into the inner room.
As the slender figure receded into the distance, the familiar, fresh scent slowly dissipated. Dongfang Heng felt inexplicably irritated, his jade-like fingers suddenly clenching, almost crushing the letter in his hand into dust.
"Bang!" The slightly closed window was suddenly blown open, and the cold night wind blew into the room, chilling to the bone. Shen Lixue's dark hair was blown by the wind, making her slender figure appear even more frail.
A hint of pity flashed in Dongfang Heng's deep eyes. He was about to step forward and pull her into his arms when the scene in the woods suddenly appeared before his eyes. The foot he had just lifted stopped abruptly, and a hint of coldness flickered in his sharp eyes.