Although he toned down his behavior after returning to the capital, his years of experience fighting on the border had left an indelible mark on his bones. Whenever his expression darkened, he would still inadvertently reveal a hint of imposing and murderous aura, making people feel intimidated.
Although Xiong Xiaoyi wasn't very well-educated, he knew what "displaced anger" meant. So he quickly stopped his joking and teasing and muttered a suggestion: "If you really think she came with ill intentions, just yell at her and scare her away, then you can rest easy..."
Seeing Yun Lie glaring at him with a fierce look in his eyes, he hurriedly raised his "bear paw" to shield his face: "I understand, I understand, you have to figure out her intentions before you can feel at ease. I'll go check right now."
After saying that, he ran off towards the gate of the mansion.
Only after the burly man had completely run away did Yun Lie, who was alone under the veranda, finally let out a long sigh of relief.
He knew, of course, that Xiong Xiaoyi was right. Since he sensed that Luo Cuiwei's deliberate approach was motivated by ulterior motives, the simplest and most direct way to deal with it was to scare her away or simply find some excuse to refuse to meet her.
No matter what, he is still Prince Zhao. If he is truly determined to close his doors to visitors, even if Luo Cuiwei is bold, she wouldn't dare to force her way in.
For some reason, he didn't really want to do it.
"Since I have nothing better to do, I'll just have to see what she's up to." Yun Lie muttered to himself through gritted teeth, not knowing who he was trying to convince.
****
At dawn, two sedan chairs adorned with seven jewels and jewels arrived from the west and stopped in front of the Prince Zhao's mansion in the east of the city.
Inside the sedan chair sat Luo Cuiwei and her most important right-hand woman, Xiahou Ling, accompanied by several Luo family servants carrying rice, meat, vegetables, and fruit.
The gatekeeper of Prince Zhao's residence was used to seeing sedan chairs and greeted Luo Cuiwei and her party with familiarity.
Xiahou Ling grew up in the Luo family and is one of Luo Cuiwei's most important companions. The reason Luo Cuiwei chose to bring her along today is because the two have always worked together seamlessly, understanding each other's thoughts with just a glance or a gesture.
There weren't many people in the Prince Zhao's kitchen. Each day, there was only one head chef with two apprentices to help with the cooking, plus a fire-tending attendant.
The kitchen staff had been instructed by the head steward yesterday that His Highness had tacitly approved the Luo family girl's doing whatever she wanted in the kitchen today. The head chef on duty simply took a half-day off, only letting his two apprentices and the fire-tending servants assist him.
Without Luo Cuiwei needing to say anything more, Xiahou Ling calmly and smilingly invited everyone to the courtyard to prepare dishes and clean, leaving the kitchen quiet and tidy for Luo Cuiwei to do.
****
This was the first time in Yun Lie's life that he had ever sat in the kitchen watching someone cook. It was absurd yet novel, strange yet somewhat awkward.
Fortunately, Luo Cuiwei is very focused on her work. Even when it's just a small task like chopping vegetables, she remains completely absorbed.
From time to time, sounds from the courtyard could be heard through the slightly ajar kitchen door. Xiahou Ling and the cook's apprentices were picking and washing vegetables, chatting and laughing softly from time to time.
Yun Lie sat quietly at the table in the corner of the kitchen, thoughtfully observing Luo Cuiwei in front of the cutting board.
Her chopping movements were hardly skillful or efficient; they appeared calm and slow, but were actually a bit clumsy. Her only advantage was that her posture was genuinely sincere.
The morning light streaming through the window was brilliant, and it seemed as if a light mist was gently enveloping her behind her.
Her oval face had soft, delicate features, and her exquisite eyebrows and eyes were worthy of a painting. To be fair, while she wasn't a stunningly beautiful woman who would make anyone lose their senses, she was definitely a pretty girl.
Looking at her from a distance now, Yun Lie thought she was quite slender for a woman, but recalling the scene of them standing opposite each other yesterday, he was surprised to find that she was actually more than a head shorter than him... He really didn't know if she was petite or if he was too burly.
Perhaps for the sake of convenience, she wore a light blue, short-sleeved jacket and skirt with fitted sleeves today; and to protect herself from oil stains, she also wore a light purple silk cover-up.
If we ignore the fact that her dress is made of a material as precious as gold, and pretend that the two lotus-seed-sized beads dangling by her ears are not South China Sea moon pearls, then just looking at her as she carefully chops vegetables with her neck slightly lowered, she truly deserves the description of "gentle, beautiful, quiet and charming".
But Yunlie remained wary of her and wouldn't be easily fooled by this facade. In his eyes, Luo Cuiwei was clearly a treacherous and scheming woman.
She looks radiant and delightful, but only she knows whether her inner world is sweet or sour.
"How were the dumplings yesterday?" Luo Cuiwei raised her head, her eyes crinkling with a smile as she met his gaze.
Yun Lie's heart skipped a beat, and he lowered his eyes somewhat embarrassedly: "You'll have to ask Xiong Xiaoyi about that."
He regretted it as soon as the words left his mouth.
It's not some taboo question; just answering her "it's alright" wouldn't really matter, would it? I don't know what she's panicking about. Tch.
"Oh." Luo Cuiwei pursed her lips, a hint of disappointment in her eyes.
However, she didn't say anything more, but turned around and placed a piece of meat with bones on the cutting board. Today, she not only planned to make dumplings, but also to take care of lunch.
She switched to a cleaver that was easier to chop bones, but after only a couple of chops, she became somewhat frustrated.
I'm not strong enough to cut it.
Seeing this, Yun Lie cleared his throat awkwardly, stood up, walked over, and took the knife from her hand. He thought to himself that this was definitely not out of pity for a woman; it was just that the faint disappointment in her eyes had made him feel a little reluctant.
"How do you want it chopped?" Out of habit, the cleaver was turned around twice in his hand.
Luo Cuiwei stared in disbelief, then smiled and clasped her hands in a fist salute: "Young hero, what skill you have!"
She smiled and tilted her head back slightly, her bright eyes showing a mixture of surprise and reverence.
It sparkles and twinkles, like two stars that have been secretly hidden away.
Yun Lie's face flushed, and he quickly looked away, lowering his head to stare at the meat on the cutting board. His voice was deep and slightly fierce: "How exactly do you want it chopped?!"
That cunning and treacherous thornberry... Don't think that just because she smiles so beautifully, he will fall into her treacherous and unknown trap.
dream!
****
Because Luo Cuiwei was really not skilled at it, the lunch she had been preparing since early morning was not served until late afternoon.
"I seem to be having some good luck lately!" Xiong Xiaoyi, who had just returned from outside, rubbed his hands together and grinned at Luo Cui, showing off his bright white teeth.
Everyone greeted him with smiles, so Luo Cuiwei returned the favor with a smile: "If it's not delicious, General Xiong, please don't go around telling others about it."