Lin Xihe returned home by carriage, and as soon as she stepped into the mansion, she saw Ji Zhuo.
"Why are you only coming back now?" Ji Zhuo was sitting anxiously in the main hall when he heard the rumble of the carriage outside. Knowing that Lin Xihe had returned, he immediately got up and hurried to the door to greet her.
"It only took me a little over an hour to go back and forth. Is that considered slow?" Lin Xihe raised her eyebrows slightly, her eyes filled with a hint of reproach.
"Only an hour? Oh dear, I must have misremembered the time." Ji Zhuo said as he quickly reached out to help Lin Xihe up, his face full of concern.
However, Lin Xihe slapped his hand away without any mercy.
"It's not like you're eight or nine months pregnant and have difficulty moving around, you don't need to be supported like this." Lin Xihe pouted, her tone playful.
"I haven't had a meal yet, why don't you eat with me?"
Ji Zhuo reached out his hand, which had been slapped away, and steadily supported Lin Xihe.
In his mind, even though Lin Xihe was not yet in her late pregnancy, she was still pregnant and could not be neglected in the slightest.
"That's perfect, I'm also hungry and just about to eat," Lin Xihe nodded gently in agreement.
"You didn't eat either?"
Ji Zhuo's tone instantly became noticeably pleased. He thought to himself, "So the two of them are on the same wavelength. Lin Xihe was even thinking about coming back to have a meal with me."
As Lin Xihe walked, she said, "Well, but you have to go back quickly after you finish eating. Don't come here again for the next few days."
Upon hearing this, Ji Zhuo froze in his tracks, his expression changing slightly.
What? Her attitude changed after just one meeting with Gu Qinghuai?
"Why?" Ji Zhuo's emotions suddenly surged, and his voice unconsciously rose a few decibels.
“It’s my fault, I didn’t explain it clearly to you before. Watch your tone, or I won’t let you eat at my house. General Gu has already promised to inform His Majesty about the annulment of the engagement next month, but on the condition that I accompany him during the spring hunt. Now there’s only half a month left until next month, so it’s best if we keep our distance for now.” Lin Xihe explained patiently, a hint of helplessness in her eyes.
"No way!" Ji Zhuo refused without hesitation.
"Are you sure?" Lin Xihe raised her eyebrows, a hint of mischief in her eyes.
"Hmph! What, you think you can do whatever you want? You think he can do whatever he wants?" Ji Zhuo retorted, his face full of resentment, his stubbornness practically written all over his face.
Lin Xihe found it amusing to look at Ji Zhuo's appearance.
She turned to Ling Shuang beside her, her red lips parted slightly: "Shuang Shuang, go and tell someone to remove the food. I don't have an appetite right now and don't want to eat."
After saying this, he made a move to walk towards his own courtyard.
Before Ling Shuang could respond, Ji Zhuo glared at her fiercely and said loudly, "Ling Shuang, you don't need to come with me. I'll take care of things here."
Immediately afterwards, he softened his tone and said gently to Lin Xihe, "I'll try my best. Don't try to scare me with the 'not eating' trick again. Do you think I, Ji Zhuo, can be fooled by your little tricks?"
Upon hearing Ji Zhuo's words, Lin Xihe couldn't help but chuckle. She looked up at Ji Zhuo and gently scolded him, "You're right."
When Ji Zhuo saw her smile, a doting smile also appeared on his face. He only realized this after falling in love with Lin Xihe: seeing the person you like smile makes you smile too.
"Ah Zhuo, if we ever bicker or argue in the future, let's go argue on the stairs," Lin Xihe suddenly said.
"Why?" Ji Zhuo asked, his face full of confusion.
"Oh, that's how it is. Now we both have a way out. You don't have to always give in to me and coax me all the time," Lin Xihe blinked and explained playfully.
"No need. As long as you're by my side, what's wrong with indulging you? Go eat quickly. Although you can't get fat in one bite, I can slowly fatten you up bit by bit. Then, when others look down on you, you won't have anywhere to run away. You'll just have to stay obediently by my side."
Lin Xihe was surprised, feeling that Ji Zhuo seemed to have suddenly become enlightened, and there was no longer the rift she had worried about between them.
This smooth sailing made her immersed in happiness, even giving her a sense of unreality, as if she were in a beautiful dream, afraid that it would shatter at the slightest touch.
The spring hunt lasted for three days. Several days in advance, the Imperial Household Department, together with the Ministry of Rites and the Ministry of War, had completed the construction of the camps and the hunting grounds.
On the day of the spring hunt, Gu Qinghuai came to pick up Lin Xihe at dawn to set off together.
Lin Xihe had made ample preparations long ago. Her pregnancy was still in its early stages, and as long as no one deliberately touched her abdomen, it would be difficult to detect that she was pregnant. Moreover, the pregnancy was already stable, and moderate activity would not cause any problems.
However, every time Lin Xihe saw Gu Qinghuai, her heart would involuntarily race.
The two sat together in the carriage. In order to reduce her interaction with Gu Qinghuai, Lin Xihe pretended to fall asleep as soon as she got in the carriage.
However, she was unaware that Gu Qinghuai, being a martial artist, could tell from her breathing that she was not asleep.
Even so, Gu Qinghuai couldn't help but keep staring at Lin Xihe. He wished the carriage would never reach its destination, so that he would have a reason to stay with Lin Xihe forever.
Only after the carriage stopped did Lin Xihe pretend to have just woken up, yawning lightly, and say, "Ah, we're here so quickly. I thought I had just fallen asleep."
She doesn't really look convincing at all.
"Yeah, it's pretty fast."
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