Chapter 57 "I send you this as a fragrant sachet, to be worn on your elbow forever..."
A light snow began to fall during the night.
Shen Xi braved the wind and snow to step into the room, feeling a chill all over her body.
As soon as she entered, she shook the snow off her hair, and then Qingqiu helped her take off her cloak.
The room was heated by an underfloor heating system, and the snowflakes that hadn't been brushed away instantly turned into water droplets, soaking our clothes.
She casually placed the food box on the table beside her, the candlelight reflecting a fleeting glimmer in her eyes.
Shen Xi walked to the window, looking at the increasingly heavy snow outside, and suddenly, she smiled unconsciously.
Seeing this, Qingqiu handed her a cup of hot tea and joked, "I heard that the general has been very busy these past few days, and he hasn't left his study all afternoon today. Madam, you'll have to wait a little longer and warm your hands first."
Shen Xi took the hot tea, but still said, "Who said I was waiting for him?"
Qingqiu chuckled: "You've been staring intently out the door ever since you sat down. If you're not waiting for the general, then what are you waiting for?"
Shen Xiwu walked back from the window and continued to be stubborn: "Can't I wait for the snow to stop?"
"Of course, you can wait until sunrise."
Shen Xi glanced at her and said, "You're getting more and more arrogant in front of me."
But there was little blame in her words, and Qingqiu, feeling smug, quietly stuck out her tongue and stopped teasing her.
Shen Xi took a sip of tea, and her lips, which had been pale from the cold, gradually regained their color. Her gaze lingered on the food box on the table, and she frowned slightly.
"If he can't come back anytime soon, perhaps..."
Before he could finish speaking, the curtain was suddenly lifted, and a cold wind carrying a few fine snowflakes drifted into the room. Shen Xi shivered from the sudden chill.
Looking back, before she could even see the scene at the door, Shen Xi was enveloped by a chill.
She was stunned for a moment, and before she could hold the teacup properly, the scalding tea was splashed all over the person who came in.
Xie Chengyan seemed oblivious, simply holding her tightly in his arms, burying his face in her neck, taking a deep breath, and appearing to relax completely.
Shen Xi was confused about what he was up to this time, and exclaimed in surprise, quickly pushing him away: "Be careful!"
As he spoke, he went to check the area where he had been burned.
Xie Chengyan, however, reacted swiftly and grabbed Shen Xi's hand with such force that he could almost crush her wrist.
Shen Xi winced in pain, gasped, and looked up at Xie Chengyan with a puzzled expression.
Only then did she realize that those eyes were surging with an unprecedented intensity, like an inescapable downpour that was about to engulf her.
As for Xie Chengyan, he was like a drowning person who had been reborn, greedily and frantically grasping at the last glimmer of life, tightly gripping her wrist.
Shen Xi was stunned and blinked. She had never seen Xie Chengyan so out of control.
After a moment, she raised a hand and touched the corner of his eye with her fingertip, where the chill had not yet dissipated.
"What happened?"
Shen Xi spoke very softly, afraid of disturbing him again.
Xie Chengyan had been staring at her intently until this sound jolted him back to his senses.
Shen Xi noticed a sudden flicker in his eyes, which he quickly suppressed, his gaze lowered, and when he looked at her again, everything was as usual.
He even managed to maintain his usual composure, slowly and methodically tidying the stray hairs at her temples, and asked in a low voice, "Why are you back so late today?"
His voice was calm, without any discernible fluctuations.
Shen Xi tilted her head in confusion, trying to find a flaw in his eyes, but to no avail.
He could only reply, "Some things have delayed me."
A red mark had been left on her wrist by Xie Chengyan's grip, a shocking sight against her fair skin.
Xie Chengyan frowned, pulled her down to sit, and slowly stroked the red mark with his fingertips.
Shen Xi followed his gaze and looked down. After a moment of silence, she remembered to ask, "Are you done with your work?"
Xie Chengyan half-opened his eyelids, his gaze slightly fixed, seemingly somewhat puzzled.
Shen Xi added, "The servants said you've been handling official business in your study all day. Are you done yet?"
Xie Chengyan realized what was happening and gave a slight smile: "Yeah, I'm done."
As soon as the floor heater was lit, his body warmed up, and Shen Xi could clearly feel the palms holding his hands gradually becoming warmer.
She stared at Xie Chengyan for a couple of seconds, and some guesses began to form in her mind.
Therefore, she pulled her hand out of Xie Chengyan's palm, got up, and went to get the food box on the table.
Xie Chengyan saw her movement and suddenly reached out to stop her. Shen Xi looked back in confusion, only to see his deep expression.
With a cool, detached voice, he asked, "Another new drug?"
Upon hearing this, Shen Xi raised an eyebrow slightly.
Sure enough, he had noticed something was wrong a long time ago.
But he still forced himself to drink the medicine without asking a single question, and it's unclear what he was thinking.
Shen Xi didn't answer, shook off his hand, and took out the things on her own, unaware of Xie Chengyan's increasingly dark gaze.
But when the food box was opened, it was no longer filled with dark, murky medicine, but instead contained a soup.
Shen Xi glanced at him: "Your health is almost fully recovered. Every medicine has some side effects, so you can't drink it every day."
Xie Chengyan was clearly not expected to see this. His gaze lingered between Shen Xi and the bowl of soup. After a while, he realized what was happening and his furrowed brows relaxed.
She leaned forward and wrapped her arms around Chen Xi's waist from behind: "Okay, I'll listen to you."
Shen Xi paused slightly, but knew that there were some things she still needed to clarify with him.
“Some time ago, Mother was worried about you and gave you some medicine to help you recover. But Mother probably didn’t know that one of the herbs was incompatible with the poison you had in Mozhou. Since you hadn’t cleared up the poison a few days ago, I took it upon myself to change that herb.”
Xie Chengyan buried his face in her neck, the fragrance seeping into his lungs from her nose. He chuckled softly, "Today, are you going to see her too?"
Shen Xi knew she couldn't hide anything from him, and readily admitted, "That's right."
As she spoke, she set out the bowl and spoon, then poked Xie Chengyan: "Try it."
Xie Chengyan sat down as she asked, picked up a spoon and stirred the food a couple of times, but didn't eat it. Instead, he asked, "Haven't you thought about yourself?"
He didn't look at her, and his voice lowered.
Shen Xi, of course, knew what he meant by those words.
His men were following her constantly, so it's not surprising that they knew about her conversation with Madam Xue.
That statement means, now that you know the truth, haven't you thought about how to conduct yourself?
At the very least, they should struggle to escape.
No one said these words aloud, but they all knew it.
Shen Xi smiled and said easily, "I only came back because I thought about it."
Upon hearing this, Xie Chengyan twitched the corner of his lips, looked up, stared at her, and scooped up a spoonful of soup, putting it into his mouth.
Under her almost luminous gaze, Xie Chengyan swallowed the soup with some difficulty.
Having lived a life of secrecy for so many years, suddenly being exposed to others, especially since that other person was Shen Xi, left him feeling somewhat lost and disoriented.
This was clearly not the kind of clear-headedness he should have.
Xie Chengyan's palms were sweaty, but his face remained calm and composed: "Is there anything you want to ask me?"
For example, ask him who he really is, and what his intentions are.
In that brief moment, Xie Chengyan thought about many things.
He subconsciously scooped up another spoonful of soup, using these meaningless actions to pass the time that seemed to stretch on endlessly.
But after waiting for a long time, all that came down was a gentle question.
How does it taste?
His eyelids twitched, and he suddenly looked up, meeting that expectant gaze.
There was no hesitation or fear.
Xie Chengyan stared into her eyes for a long time, and after a while, he finally spoke when Shen Xi pressed him again, a smile playing at the corners of his eyes: "Very good."
Shen Xi breathed a sigh of relief and leaned closer to him: "It's good that it's edible. This is my first time trying to make Jade Pearl Cloud Soup, and I was afraid of making it bad."
"No, you did a great job."
Shen Xi watched as Xie Chengyan graciously finished the bowl of soup and chuckled.
Actually, she knew what he wanted her to ask, but all the words were on the tip of her tongue, and she couldn't utter a single word. After opening and closing her lips for a long time, she could only utter that one sentence.
There were some things he didn't want to say, so she tacitly understood and stopped asking.
Who he is doesn't matter.
He is Xie Chengyan, and that's enough.
Thinking this, Shen Xi took out a sachet from her bosom and handed it to him.
Made of dark blue cloth and embroidered with bamboo patterns, it's not particularly intricate; it's just an ordinary sachet.
Xie Chengyan took it, looked it over, guessed what it was, but still asked with a smile, "What is this?"
Shen Xi avoided his gaze and calmly said, "A thank-you gift. You've helped me so many times, I should give you something to express my gratitude."
"A thank-you gift?"
Xie Chengyan's smile vanished instantly: "How come I didn't know we had a relationship where we needed to thank each other?"
Shen Xi glanced at him and said innocently, "If you don't want it, then give it back to me."
As he spoke, he tried to take it back, but Xie Chengyan stretched out his long arm and Shen Xi missed.
She fell into Xie Chengyan's arms, where a warm palm gently and threateningly caressed her waist.
A voice, filled with gritted teeth, whispered in her ear, "What is it? Think it through before you speak, okay?"
Suppressing a laugh, Shen Xi looked up and asked instead, "What do you want it to be?"
"You sent it, so you should say so yourself."
Xie Chengyan, however, did not take the bait.
Seeing his lowered gaze, Shen Xi knew to stop while she was ahead and cease her provocations.
"Xie Chengyan, haven't you heard of him?" Shen Xi tiptoed closer to his ear and whispered, word by word, "I send you this as a sachet, to be tied to your armpit."
As soon as he finished speaking, the hand around her waist tightened suddenly, and Shen Xi staggered and fell into his arms.
Looking up, Shen Xi smiled slightly, her eyes deep and unfathomable. Without looking away, her fingertips deftly circled Xie Chengyan's lean waist, finally landing on his belt.
Xie Chengyan pressed down on Shen Xi's hand, stopping her from continuing to cause trouble in front of him; his voice was already somewhat hoarse.
He looked intently at her: "What is it this time? A thank-you gift? Or an exchange?"
Shen Xi leaned forward, using his waist and abdomen for support, and stood on tiptoe to kiss his lips.
Then, she tilted her head and gently blew a breath into his ear.
"I present this sachet to my lover, Xie Chengyan. This time it's not an exchange."
A whisper fell, and at the same time, his fingertips had already untied his belt.
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