Chapter 10 Soft Ceasefire
.
Cuihuang stood on the window frame, peeking quietly inside.
After not seeing it for several days, its owner stood with his hair down, leaning against the table. The candlelight cast a heavy shadow on his face from below, making him look like a damp ghost from a storyteller's mouth.
It had been roaming freely outside for a few days, so why did its owner go mad?
The young man at the desk seemed to notice something, his gaze falling on the small hole in the window.
The moonlight slanted in, just enough to outline the sparrow's silhouette on the oil paper.
"who?"
"Gah."
Wen Zhixu put down his pen and tiptoed to the door, his breath slow and deliberate, afraid of making too much noise and scaring away the sparrows.
"So you've finally decided to come back?" Wen Zhixu thought to himself with a cold sneer.
Eating and sleeping outdoors in the open is never as comfortable as being in a warm house.
He looked closely and found that the little guy hadn't lost weight at all; in fact, he had become rounder. His fur was even shinier, and his beady eyes shone with a confident and composed light. The scarlet ribbon tied to his pale orange paws was particularly eye-catching, its end cleverly tied into a butterfly knot.
Wen Zhixu gently patted her shoulder, and Cuihuang flew down and stood firmly.
"Have you met some kind people these past few days?"
The emerald phoenix moved its beak and emitted a clear call: "Bubu".
Cuihuang spoke?! He had been teaching it for months, but it couldn't even learn a decent call. Its awful voice had once made Wen Zhixu suspect he'd been tricked again, buying a crow thinking it was a myna.
Under the astonished gaze of her master, Cuihuang spoke clearly and distinctly: "Blake".
Wen Zhixu, of course, didn't understand what Cuihuang was saying, but he was still deeply moved. To him, it was his beloved pet's first cry to the world.
He led the sparrow into the house, gently calling its name: "Emerald Phoenix, tomorrow..."
Cuihuang… that name sounds so rustic and common. Suddenly, Bubu didn't want to go back to the manor anymore; it wanted to return to its sweet and soft new owner.
In an instant, it leaped up, skimmed over the eaves, and plunged into the night sky.
"Emerald Phoenix...!"
.
Bu Bu has disappeared.
Lin Xihe didn't sleep all night, and as soon as it was dawn, she sent people to search everywhere.
"Get out of the way, I need to leave the manor." Outside Tinghe Pavilion, the guards sent by Lin Zhaoheng did not move an inch.
The two door gods were completely unyielding, giving Lin Xihe a headache. Why couldn't these ancient people be more flexible?
"The master has ordered that the young lady be protected at all times."
Lin Xihe came up with a solution that would satisfy both sides: "I'll go look for birds, and you two can come along, okay?"
Just then, Lin Zhaoheng and his entourage arrived in a grand procession.
It is said that the relationships within the inner quarters of high-ranking families are complicated. As an observer, Lin Xihe looked at the two women behind Lin Zhaoheng: one was a concubine who had fallen out of favor, and the other was a young lady who loved someone but could not have him.
Lost in thought, Lin Xihe received several glances—
Min's eyes were like knives, and Lin Zhirou's eyes were full of resentment. The most outrageous one was Lin Pinyan; he seemed to have gained weight again after only one night.
He stretched out his chubby hands and waved enthusiastically, shouting, "Sister!"
Lin Zhirou stomped on his instep: "Shut up, who is your older sister here!"
Look at her ugly appearance, Lin Xihe rolled her eyes so hard they almost reached the back of her head.
Lin Zhaoheng was delighted that his eldest daughter had regained her composure. After scolding his second daughter a few times, he introduced her with the intention of keeping the peace: "He'er, I am your father. This is your Aunt Min, you can call her Second Aunt. This is your younger sister Zhirou, and your younger brother Pinyan."
So you're trying to smooth things over? Lin Xihe can do that too.
She immediately smiled sweetly and identified them one by one: "Cheap dad, heartless stepmother, green tea sister, bratty brother. Let me make this clear from the start, I'm not going to be a brother-supporting demon."
The entire room fell silent.
Upon hearing this, the old servants in the mansion looked at each other, not daring to utter a sound.
Oh no, it seems like the young lady's brain is working again, but not completely.
"As expected of my daughter, Lin Zhaoheng! She truly deserves the title of 'quick-witted'!" Lin Zhaoheng clapped, breaking the silence first.
Lin Xihe looked him up and down speechlessly. How could he praise something like that?
Lin Zhaoheng awkwardly tried to smooth things over, saying, "Father thinks that my He'er speaks more clearly than... the myna bird."
"..." The scene became even more awkward.
The news of his daughter's recovery made Lin Zhaoheng feel refreshed. For two consecutive days, he rushed over without even changing out of his court robes after court, his eyes filled with doting affection.
Lin Xihe scratched her head. She admitted that she was good-looking, but the original owner of this body had been mentally challenged for so many years. It was impossible for her father to spoil her so excessively after she woke up.
He clearly has two other children, so why does he shower her with fatherly love? This is suspicious; there must be a reason.
Lin Xihe decided to make full use of this fatherly love and "indulged" her by saying, "Daughter wants to go out."
"But He'er's health has not yet fully recovered..."
After a moment's hesitation, Lin Xihe brazenly called out, "Dad~"
Before the last syllable of her name even faded, she herself shuddered at the cloying address.
Lin Zhaoheng relented: "Take a maid and a few servants with you, and keep a low profile."
"Understood, we must keep a low profile!" Lin Xihe replied and quickly returned to her room to change.
Seeing this, Lin Zhirou followed suit, tugging at Lin Zhaoheng's sleeve, her voice sickeningly sweet: "Daddy~ your daughter wants to go out too."
Lin Zhaoheng's face darkened: "Haven't you caused enough trouble? Go back to your room and copy 'Admonitions for Women' fifty times!"
Lin Zhirou was instantly dumbfounded.
.
Several maids and a rough-looking servant in short clothes walked out side by side.
Lin Zhaoheng looked around: "Where is Miss?"
"Yes," the servant replied, raising his hand.
Lin Zhaoheng glanced at the man and saw that he had a simple high bun and looked exactly like a servant. The man was raising his eyebrows at him smugly.
"You were the one who said to keep a low profile." A man dressed as a woman, huh?
Lin Zhaoheng was speechless for a moment and could not refute.
Lin Xihe did not ride in a carriage; her servant's attire was completely out of place with the carriage.
As I strolled along the calligraphy and painting street, I saw many shops with birdcages hanging under their eaves, chirping all over the place. Among them, a black-feathered, yellow-beaked myna bird was chirping the most enthusiastically.
"Bubu?!" Lin Xihe's heart tightened, and she was about to step forward when a peddler carrying a load on his shoulder suddenly blocked her way. She couldn't dodge in time and stumbled backward. A strong hand accurately caught her arm and immediately let go once she regained her balance.
In that split second, a familiar scent wafted over—just then, the distant sound of an ancient temple bell drifted in.
Lin Xihe's back suddenly tensed, and her eyes caught sight of the twilight purple fabric beside her.
It's true what they say, enemies meet on a narrow road.
Wait a minute—given the deal made last night, her relationship with Wen Zhixu has temporarily entered a "truce."
She swallowed the thought of greeting Wen Zhixu. This servant's outfit was too ridiculous, especially the shoes that Qingwu had somehow gotten, which were so big they made her look like a little kid wearing adult shoes.
Lin Xihe lowered her voice and mumbled, "Thank you, young master."
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com