Chapter 99: Miracle Su Su
"Wait a minute," Su Mengzhen called out to her.
Xie Huailing stopped before she could turn around and asked, "Is there anything else?"
From her perspective, Su Mengzhen's expression was calm, his eyes deep and unfathomable. Standing against the light, he possessed a rather unassuming air, clearly indicating that he had his own plans and had made up his mind. Xie Huailing thought to herself, "Oh wow," and then her eyelids twitched.
Su Mengzhen said, "You're right. The matter of Grand Tutor Li is of great importance and cannot be taken lightly. In that case, it's best to make preparations as soon as possible."
Xie Huailing understood his implication and was about to refuse when Su Mengzhen didn't give her a chance to speak. Just as she had interrupted him, he pointed to the books on the table: "So tonight, you will have to stay for another hour or two, and we will start with Go, which Grand Tutor Li likes."
Rarely has she miscalculated, but Xie Huailing's expression changed in an instant. Her previous smugness vanished, replaced by a lowered brow and a pleading, "No, please, sir. It's late at night, a man and a woman alone together. I was just joking, don't take it to heart..."
As he spoke, he backed away, wondering to himself what kind of hand this person had played this time.
Su Mengzhen watched her quietly until she retreated to the door, and before she slipped away, she "kindly" reminded her, "I locked the door."
Xie Huailing: "..."
Xie Huailing said, "Master, are you holding a grudge?"
Su Mengzhen replied calmly, "No. I won't hold a grudge against jokes, it's just that some jokes aren't that funny."
...She's totally holding a grudge! This feels so familiar; I think she's suffered a similar fate before. Oh, right, she was forced to practice calligraphy like this once before. Ugh, so bosses shouldn't evolve; isn't it better to just stay at her current level of capability? Those silent, unassuming people are really annoying. Now she's been directly hired by the boss to work overtime.
Xie Huailing let out a long breath, then, with a thought somewhere between "giving it one last try" and "not wanting Su Mengzhen to have an easy time either, let's perish together," he looked up and said, "That's true. The matter of Grand Tutor Li is extremely important. In that case, I shouldn't leave. But, Master, since things have come to this point, why not make the other preparations all at once?"
She emphasized her words: "For example, appearance and demeanor, what do you think?"
The silence wouldn't disappear; it would only shift, shifting to Su Mengzhen's face. Xie Huailing truly couldn't discern what he was thinking. Most of the time, she understood him better than Su Mengzhen himself, but she had also misjudged him, and even misjudged him from the very beginning. Therefore, she would sometimes wait for his reaction before making any inferences.
This time there was no need for deduction. After a brief silence, Su Mengzhen said, "Okay."
Xie Huailing's eyes widened.
.
Honestly, I think I've been set up.
If Xie Huailing could see Lu Xiaofeng now, she would definitely say that to him.
A door and a screen separated the bedroom from the side hall. Xie Huailing sat on a wooden chair, legs crossed, knees tucked in, mentally counting the time. The more he counted, the lower his eyelids drooped, and the lower his heart drifted.
She had no interest in figuring out where Su Mengzhen had gotten her inspiration or where it came from. It was as if she had returned to the time before Zhu Qiqi left, dragging her out of bed at dawn and heading to the bustling city of Bianjing. She wasn't exactly angry, but Xie Huailing felt like sighing.
On the bright side, this was a case of hurting the enemy a thousand while hurting herself a thousand, and Su Mengzhen might not have fared any better than her. Thinking this way, Xie Huailing felt a little better, stretched out her hand and knocked on the wooden door, each knock a soul-stirring sound.
She kept knocking and talking into the door, her voice slipping in through the crack: "Hey, are you done yet? Why are you taking even longer than me changing clothes? What are you doing in there? Talk to me, why aren't you saying anything?"
In the bedroom, Su Mengzhen's voice was somewhat muffled: "...Be quiet."
"Our feelings have faded, haven't they, OP? We've been so distant for half a month. You never used to tell me to be quiet. I'm so sad." Xie Huailing said this string of words expressionlessly. She had something even more disgusting to say, which, under Su Mengzhen's counterattack, completely backfired: "You can't treat me like this, OP! You can't do this to me, OP! I love you so deeply! OP, can you hear me, hello?"
There was no answer from inside the room. Perhaps her improved mental state had shocked Su Mengzhen. Xie Huailing pressed her advantage, calling out "Lord" in a lingering, drawn-out tone, the last syllable of which had a subtle hook that lingered in the air.
There was still no answer from inside the room. Xie Huailing took a sip of water, just as she was thinking of saying something more, when the wooden door was pushed open from the inside, and it turned out that someone was about to come out.
The person who opened the door exuded an eerie, almost reckless, aura, as if going to a meeting alone. He didn't immediately step out, but hesitated for a moment before emerging. He didn't seem particularly uncomfortable—perhaps he was, but it wasn't obvious—wearing the clothes Xie Huailing had chosen, his sleeves still rolled up, a light gray outer garment he had never tried before folded over a plain inner robe, a few strands of hair hanging down his temples, giving him an air of a frail, scholarly gentleman.
Xie Huailing put her legs down and quickly moved closer to him, looking him over from left to right. Then she turned around and took out a small, light blue ornament. It would have been impossible to find this in Su Mengzhen's luggage; she had taken it from her own hands to make do. Hanging it around Su Mengzhen's waist, it shimmered and perfectly accentuated his figure.
The young man, emaciated from a prolonged illness, was so thin that his body seemed to have been confined for so long. It was only because the heat of his illness had been so intense that it went unnoticed; people only noticed his stature, for even a knife striking bone would have produced a sharp, metallic sound. Now, upon closer inspection, he resembled a willow tree, thin and frail in the wind, and also looked like a desolate, decaying mountain, his plain clothes weighing down his appearance.
If he weren't sick, or if his illness wasn't so severe, he would probably still be quite handsome. Xie Huailing realized.
"You're such a show-off, OP. How come you look just as thin as me? Hmm, this one doesn't suit you. Red would be more appropriate." Muttering to herself, she straightened Su Mengzhen's collar, took a step back to look again, retrieved the jewelry, and tossed it, along with her now-broken silver bracelet, onto the chair.
The crisp clinking sound was heard. Su Mengzhen hadn't looked down at her the whole time. Only when she caught a glimpse of her delicate bracelet being ruined did she turn her attention back to Xie Huailing, who was still saying, "Master, let's get another one. But you really have to hurry, or neither of us will be able to sleep tonight."
She was complaining, so her voice was inevitably soft and gentle. Su Mengzhen stepped aside to make way for her: "Then you should talk less outside."
"I can't do it." After saying that, Xie Huailing went back into the bedroom and went to the bedside to pick out clothes for him.
Su Mengzhen wouldn't let her see his wardrobe. He first picked out a few items and placed them on the tatami. Fortunately, he was well-endowed, so she didn't need to worry too much. In the blink of an eye, she picked out another set, a bright red with light colors, and held it up against Su Mengzhen for a while. He leaned back slightly, but Xie Huailing ignored him. She then studied his face, convinced herself, nodded, and threw the clothes into his arms.
She wasn't entirely in favor of the outfit either, but couldn't think of a better combination for the moment; her styling skills were starting to wane. She was truly exasperated; why wasn't there an option to instantly get the highest score? Although choosing it might not be good for Su Mengzhen, she didn't care about that for now.
Despite the jumble of thoughts in her mind, Xie Huailing said, "Try this outfit."
The door closed again, and she sat back in her chair, lamenting the time she had lost to sleep.
Accompanying a man to pick out clothes sounds ambiguous, but accompanying your boss to pick out clothes sounds like a miserable fate. Even if this boss is exceptionally reliable, taking care of her while often being teased and manipulated by her, he's still a boss, that's an undeniable fact.
The only thing that could still pique Xie Huailing's interest that night was the Miracle Su Mengzhen game, which was indeed a good game, except that it was a bit too much for her jewelry.
Back and forth, the door opened and closed countless times, and Xie Huailing called out "Master of the Building" countless times. She tried on almost every coat Su Mengzhen brought out, and any outfit that could be put together was tried on. After trying on and on, until she had exhausted all the combinations she wanted to see under the guise of work, and had given herself the highest stylist rating, she was getting sleepy and finally settled on a rough plan.
At this moment, Xie Huailing's eyelids were almost touching. Leaning against the back of the chair, she let out a long yawn: "So sleepy, so sleepy... Let's stick with this outfit, Master. Just have someone buy similar accessories later. I really can't stay awake any longer."
As she spoke, she slid her chin down, resting it on the books piled on the table. Su Mengzhen knew without hearing that there were still many complaints she hadn't voiced. If this didn't end soon, she would probably completely stop cooperating and just close her eyes and resist to the end: "This is your decision. You chose this outfit, and it's this outfit."
Xie Huailing looked over after hearing this and said, "Great idea, then I'll head back. The landlord should remember to send me some money after returning to Bianjing; several of my jewelry pieces are ruined."
She rolled up her sleeves, revealing her bare wrists, which were just two clean sections of lotus root. The silver and jade ornaments she wore had all been removed, even though they were originally intended for her by Su Mengzhen. She continued, "You can't shortchange me on the money. I usually don't read novels until this late. What if I dream about you tonight after all this torment? It's heartbreaking to hear. You have to compensate me well, nothing can be missing."
Su Mengzhen knew she was utterly unserious and would say anything to annoy him, even more so than before, yet this excessive intimacy made his heart skip a beat. Recalling how Bai Feifei often teased her, he suddenly understood how to truly get closer to her, as if he had a written agreement in his hand.
As the clouds dispersed, the beauty, like a flower, was revealed, though not hidden by the clouds. His gaze fell upon her, and he saw her more clearly, saying, "I have never lacked anything from you."
.
To be honest, Xie Huailing was completely set up.
After returning to her room, she slept soundly for days, waking up later than usual the next day. She received a reply from the Southern Prince's residence delivered by Ye Gucheng, and, still half-asleep, tried to go back to sleep, but before she could, Lu Xiaofeng arrived.
His eyes shone when he arrived. As soon as he entered, he sneaked around like a thief, checking the place inside and out to make sure no one was eavesdropping and that Su Mengzhen wouldn't suddenly appear before he sat down and spoke: "You and Master Su, is there really some story between you?"
Xie Huailing asked bluntly, "Did you have a stroke last night?"
Lu Xiaofeng chuckled as he listened, saying, "I heard from the elder on night patrol that you only returned from Master Su's place late last night, so I came to ask. But I don't think it's a big deal; he probably called you over and scolded you."
"Pretty much." Xie Huailing thought for a moment and then said, "If anyone asks you what our relationship is, just say that our bond is stronger than gold and we treat each other with the utmost respect."
Lu Xiaofeng typed a question mark and asked, "What happened last night, and why did you add fuel to the fire of these rumors?"
“Not only did I contribute to the construction, I also spread rumors myself.” Xie Huailing replied to the second half of the sentence first, then continued to the first half, “As for what happened, I want to report it to the authorities.”
"The government doesn't care about this."
"I applied to the Divine Marquis's Mansion."
"The Divine Marquis's Mansion doesn't care about this."
"Whatever, isn't he the local earth god of Bianjing City?"
"...When are you going to stop using this joke? You just have a problem with the Divine Marquis's Mansion, don't you?"
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