Why should we waver in Chapter 22?
"Practice, practice, practice!" Tang Xiaoning was in a great mood, like a cat that had been stroked comfortably. She hopped back to the field, her skirt swirling in a joyful arc.
Although she answered readily, her gestures had a lazy, coquettish air about them, and she even hummed an off-key Jiangnan tune, the sweet melody swirling in the courtyard on the wind.
Li Minghua stood still, his gaze fixed on the girl's slender, vibrant back.
The off-key humming, the breeze stirred by the fluttering clothes, and the lingering sweet scent of apricots in the air all wafted over me.
A gentle warmth quietly flowed through her heart, even more comforting than when she first tasted sugar cake as a child.
She herself didn't realize that the corners of her lips, which were always pressed into a straight line, were now inexplicably being pulled upwards, slowly curving into a tiny arc.
The branches and leaves of the old osmanthus tree in the courtyard rustled, as if echoing this silent joy.
The sweet fragrance of osmanthus blossoms mingled with the rising steam of tea in the courtyard. Tang Xiaoning was about to put half a dried apricot into her mouth when Uncle Fu's dark blue robe appeared beneath the moon gate.
As the old butler bowed in response, the old gardener pruning the flowers in the corridor stopped his shears, the soft clinking of metal making his report particularly clear:
"...Miss Liu is diligent and taciturn in the kitchen, but..." Uncle Fu paused, his wrinkled eyes glancing almost imperceptibly towards the west wing, "...occasionally she would look towards the inner courtyard."
"Clatter." The candied fruit between Tang Xiaoning's fingers fell back into the white porcelain dish, making a crisp, mournful sound.
She pursed her lips, her slender white fingernails scraping a shallow mark on the edge of the dish: "She's learned to be 'well-behaved' after all." The last syllable of her voice was drawn out, thin and long, like a silver needle quenched in ice.
Li Minghua sat upright like a pine tree, his fingertips slowly stroking the raised, intertwined floral patterns on the celadon cup.
After Uncle Fu finished speaking, she didn't even raise her eyes, only saying, "The rules of the household are to be followed as usual."
Uncle Fu understood, bowed, and withdrew. The breeze stirred by his robe brushed against the newly sprouted grass in the cracks of the stone steps.
Tang Xiaoning glanced sideways at Li Minghua.
The man's profile was bathed in the golden light filtering through the vines, and his calm demeanor, as if handling official business, instantly soothed the slight unease in her heart.
"Minghua..." She suddenly leaned over the stone table, her hair brushing against the scabbard of Li Minghua's sword that was placed on the table.
"If..." Her fingertips unconsciously tightened around her sleeve, "I mean, if Miss Liu hadn't been so persistent, but had used a cleverer approach..."
Her voice trailed off like a tentative cat's paw, becoming increasingly halting and hesitant, carrying a clear sense of probing:
"For example, is she a master swordsman who can spar with you? Or is she knowledgeable about the strange tales of the martial world and can have a long talk with you by candlelight? Or... something else entirely? Would you waver?"
Before he could finish speaking, Li Minghua suddenly looked up.
Amber eyes reflected the bewildered Tang Xiaoning, clear enough to see into one's heart: "Why waver?"
The question was so frank that it left Tang Xiaoning speechless, as if she were being asked "why we need to breathe."
Tang Xiaoning hurriedly tugged at her sleeve: "It's like she can—"
"It has nothing to do with these things." Li Minghua interrupted her, his knuckles suddenly covering the back of Tang Xiaoning's hand that was clutching his sleeve.
The slightly rough callus clung to her delicate skin, and the heat traveled through her veins, burning right up to Tang Xiaoning's heart.
She gazed intently at the person before her, her words as sharp as if carved in stone: "The person I promised to protect is you. What does it have to do with anyone else?"
The wind suddenly stopped. Even the old gardener's copper shears hung in mid-air.
Tang Xiaoning felt as if a ball of fresh cotton soaked in morning dew was stuck in her throat.
My heart was gently gripped by those words, and after the initial tingling sensation, a surge of warmth welled up inside.
All those turbulent doubts and suspicions from before now seem like those of a naive child trying to savor the sour taste.
Her female warrior... truly doesn't understand the romance of wearing flowers in her hair and drawing eyebrows.
"Oh..." She suddenly lowered her head, her nose almost hitting Li Minghua's finger, which had not yet been withdrawn.
A blush spread across her pale earlobes, and a muffled voice, muffled by her collar, murmured, "I know..."
She suddenly picked up the plumpest candied fruit from the plate and, with a spiteful sweetness, brought it directly to Li Minghua's lips: "Here! This is for you! A dried apricot I 'casually' gave you!"
Li Minghua's gaze lingered for a moment between the candied fruit and Tang Xiaoning's shimmering eyes. His Adam's apple bobbed slightly, and finally, he opened his lips and took the golden fruit into his mouth.
The moment her pearly teeth sank into the fruit, Asakawa's brow furrowed instinctively: "Too sweet."
The complaints, muffled by the candied fruit in his mouth, sounded more like a sigh of indulgence.
What's even stranger is that this time she didn't turn her head away, but instead met Tang Xiaoning's gaze and swallowed the sweet taste.
Tang Xiaoning suddenly smiled, her eyes sparkling as if the Milky Way had been secretly hidden away.
Her fingertips swiftly brushed across Li Minghua's lips, smearing that sweetness onto her own tongue, her triumphant little tiger teeth gleaming in the sunlight:
"Sweet is just right!" The voice rose high at the end, "My heroine—she deserves to taste all the sweetest things in the world!"
The old gardener under the eaves shook his head and chuckled. With a "snip," he used copper shears to cut off the overly long flower branches, and a piece of osmanthus fell into Tang Xiaoning's hair, its fragrance filling her senses as if no one else was around.
Tang Xiaoning thoroughly enjoyed a few days of undisturbed time, where she could have Li Minghua... uh, I mean, have the "Jianghu consultant" all to herself for guidance.
That day, the two sat facing each other under the study window.
Tang Xiaoning was engrossed in reading a newly acquired book of martial arts anecdotes, occasionally letting out exclamations of surprise or silly laughter.
Li Minghua was studying an old map, his brows furrowed as if he were deep in thought.
"Minghua, Minghua! Look, this storybook says that there are snow lotuses in the far north that can cure all poisons! Is that true?" Tang Xiaoning asked excitedly, pointing to the pages.
Li Minghua looked up from the map, glanced at it, and answered objectively: "Snow lotus does exist. It grows in bitterly cold places and has the effect of warming the meridians and dispelling cold. However, the claim that it can 'cure all poisons' is an exaggeration and is mostly a rumor."
"Oh..." Tang Xiaoning was slightly disappointed, but was quickly drawn in by the new plot. "What about this? They say there's a kind of disguise technique that can change a person's appearance so much that even their own parents wouldn't recognize them!"
"Sophisticated disguise techniques require special materials and skills that are difficult for ordinary martial arts practitioners to master. Moreover, wearing a human skin mask for a long time causes great damage to the skin." Li Minghua calmly shattered the illusion once again.
Tang Xiaoning put down her storybook, puffed out her cheeks, and looked at her: "Miss Li, can you not be so lucid? Can't you let me dream a little longer?"
Seeing her sullen expression, Li Minghua paused for a moment, then reached out and pushed the teacup next to her toward her.
The cup contained freshly poured, perfectly warm floral tea.
"Talking in one's sleep is useless; drinking tea to soothe the throat is more effective."
Tang Xiaoning was amused by her practical yet slightly clumsy concern. She picked up her teacup, took a sip, and her little complaint vanished.
She discovered that although Li Minghua wasn't good at saying sweet words, his "casual" little gestures made her feel more at ease than the sweet words in storybooks.
Just then, Xiao Cui walked in carrying a plate of freshly baked, golden pumpkin pastries, and the aroma instantly filled the air.
"Miss, Miss Li, try the freshly made pumpkin pastry, it's so delicious!"
Tang Xiaoning's eyes lit up, and she reached out to take it, but Xiao Cui's next words stopped her in her tracks.
"These pastries were made by Miss Liu. She said that people in her hometown are good at making them, and she showed off her skills today. Please, Miss and Miss Li, have a taste."
Tang Xiaoning's outstretched hand froze in mid-air, and the smile on her face faded slightly.
She glanced at the plate of beautifully presented pumpkin pastries and snorted, "She certainly knows how to find opportunities."
Li Minghua also shifted her gaze from the map to the plate of pastries. Her face was expressionless as she simply said, "Since she's in the kitchen, making pastries is her duty."
These words sounded completely calm, even carrying a hint of "business as usual," which soothed the slight unease that had just arisen in Tang Xiaoning's heart.
"That's true." Tang Xiaoning picked up another piece of pumpkin pastry, took a bite, and found it to be crispy on the outside and soft on the inside, with just the right amount of sweetness. It was indeed delicious.
As she ate, she mumbled, "Hmm, it tastes alright, but... it's not as good as Chef Wang's cooking!"
She was deliberately nitpicking, but secretly she thought it tasted pretty good.
Seeing her insincere expression, Li Minghua didn't call her out on it. Instead, he picked up a piece and ate it slowly.
She's never been picky about food, as long as it fills her stomach, but the pumpkin pastry tasted better than she expected.
The two ate their snacks quietly, sunlight streaming in through the window, creating a warm and cozy atmosphere.
However, barring any unforeseen circumstances, this warm feeling won't last long.
In the afternoon, Tang Xiaoning, feeling that she hadn't been out for a long time, dragged Li Minghua along to go for a stroll in the street and stop by that dessert shop.
Just as they reached the front yard, they ran into Uncle Fu, who was returning from outside, followed by two servants carrying bolts of cloth.
"Miss, Miss Li, are you going out?" Uncle Fu greeted with a smile.
"Yeah, I need to get some fresh air," Tang Xiaoning replied casually.
Her gaze swept over the elegantly colored but finely textured fabrics, and she asked with some curiosity, "Is the household getting new clothes? This material looks nice, but it's not one of those bright colors we usually use."
Uncle Fu explained, "Miss, these are some everyday materials that Miss Li instructed us to purchase. Miss Li said that her previous clothes were a bit heavy and inconvenient to move in, so she wants some durable and sweat-absorbent materials to make a few simple outfits."
Tang Xiaoning was taken aback and looked at Li Minghua: "When did you give these orders? How come I didn't know?"
Li Minghua calmly replied, "I added it a couple of days ago when I was looking at the household's shopping list."
She did feel that although the clothes the Tang family had prepared for her were made of good material, they were too large or too elaborately decorated, which affected her daily sword practice and vigilance.
Tang Xiaoning said "Oh," but felt a little uneasy.
Minghua even handles small things like changing clothes by herself, as if... she doesn't need to worry about anything at all.
Moreover, wasn't "the past two days" shortly after she scolded Liu Yiyi and drove her away? Why does it seem like Minghua has suddenly become much more independent?
As she was lost in thought, Uncle Fu added, "By the way, this morning Miss Liu saw the fabric and came over to take a look. She said her needlework was alright, and if Miss Li doesn't mind, she can help sew it, and she guarantees it will fit perfectly and be neat."
Tang Xiaoning's alarm bells went off instantly. What a Liu Yiyi! She doesn't even leave the inner courtyard, yet her reach is so far! She even tries to steal the opportunity to make clothes?
She immediately spoke before Li Minghua could, saying, "No need! Minghua's clothes are taken care of by the embroiderers in the manor; there's no need for her!"
Her tone was a bit harsh, and she realized she had overreacted after she finished speaking, so she secretly glanced at Li Minghua.
Li Minghua didn't seem to care who made the clothes, and simply nodded to Uncle Fu: "Thank you, Uncle Fu, just leave it to the embroiderer as usual."
Uncle Fu acknowledged and withdrew.
Tang Xiaoning breathed a sigh of relief, took Li Minghua's arm and walked out, muttering, "If you need anything in the future, just tell me! I'll get it for you! Don't give orders on your own, lest some 'malicious people' take advantage of you!"
Li Minghua was pulled along by her, somewhat puzzled: "It's more convenient to make your own decisions. Why would someone take advantage of this?"
"Ugh, you!" Tang Xiaoning stomped her foot in anger. "It's just... it's just that we can't give her any chance! Don't you understand? Not even the slightest chance!"
Seeing her anxious expression, Li Minghua, though still not quite understanding the logic behind this "struggle," readily nodded and said, "Okay, as you wish."
Seeing that she agreed, Tang Xiaoning cheered up again and began to plan how to design several "exclusive" outfits for Li Minghua that were both good-looking and neat, definitely a hundred times better than what Liu Yiyi could make!
Meanwhile, Liu Yiyi, who was helping to wash vegetables in the kitchen, overheard the gossip of the passing maids and learned that her "good intentions" had once again been decisively rejected by Miss Tang, while Lady Li had no objections. She vigorously scrubbed the vegetables in her hands, her fingernails digging into the stems.
Miss Tang's defenses were as solid as an impenetrable wall, but the heroine's tacit approval chilled her to the bone.
But she wouldn't give up. As long as she remained in the manor and could still see her benefactor from time to time, she still had a chance.
Sincerity can move mountains, she believed that one day she would be able to melt the seemingly cold heart of the female knight.
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