Zhao Luoning was in a daze. Hearing only the word “men”, she mumbled,
“Men? Bad guys!”
As she spoke, both her hands slipped into Ji Shisu's undergarment. She hugged his waist and pressed her face against his abdomen.
This position was extremely “dangerous”.
With the soft and fragrant beauty in his arms, Ji Shisu was struggling to control himself. He tried to remove Zhao Luoning's hands, but she hugged him even tighter.
“Caixue, stop bothering me. I'm sleepy. Let me sleep for a while. I won't be able to sleep once Ji Shisu comes.”
“Won't be able to sleep?” Ji Shisu asked her in surprise.
“Yeah, I can't let him see me like this!”
Ji Shisu: “...” He guessed right. This girl was indeed avoiding him!
Ji Shisu took the opportunity to ask, “Why can't Ji Shisu see you?” There was not a hint of anger in his voice. Instead, it was as gentle as if he were coaxing a child.
Zhao Luoning did look like a child at the moment.
She pouted and said discontentedly, “I'm afraid I'm ugly.”
Actually, when Zhao Luoning said “afraid I'm ugly”, she meant that she thought she looked embarrassing in the opera costume and didn't want Ji Shisu to laugh at her.
But to Ji Shisu, it meant something completely different.
He remembered the sad past that Zhao Luoning had told him in the teahouse.
Zhao Luoning was so good - looking, yet she was so self - deprecating as to say she was ugly. How badly must she have been bullied in the Zhao family?
He put down the towel and gently stroked Zhao Luoning's face, saying tenderly, “You're not ugly. You're very beautiful.”
Zhao Luoning hugged Ji Shisu's waist and shook her head.
“Don't let him see. I'm ugly!”
“Okay, okay. I won't let him see.”
When it came to Zhao Luoning, Ji Shisu had completely lost his temper.
“Luoning, why do we have to go through all these twists and turns?” Ji Shisu now felt his heart filled with joy. Holding Zhao Luoning in his arms, he felt as if he were floating in the clouds in bliss.
“I didn't expect you to be the same person.”
“Actually, I've always wanted to apologize to you. That night, I couldn't control myself and hurt you. I looked for you for a long time afterwards, but you never showed up.”
“Why didn't you come to find me? Do you still have the jade pendant I gave you? Or have you already thrown it away?”
“Alas, with your temper, you probably threw it away.”
“It doesn't matter. Life is so long. It doesn't matter if you throw away one jade pendant. I'll give you one every year from now on, okay?”
Ji Shisu rambled on, but there was no response from the person in his arms for a long time.
He looked down and found that Zhao Luoning, who had found a warm source, had fallen into a deep sleep.
Ji Shisu was both angry and amused. In the end, he could only lie down flat resignedly to make it more comfortable for Zhao Luoning to hug him.
This chaotic night finally ended in the sound of rain.
The next day, Zhao Luoning was woken up by the noise.
Although Ji Shisu had cleared the inner courtyard and Yu Chi was personally guarding the door, allowing no idlers to enter, after all, Nuanyu Zhai was a business place and was located in a bustling area on the street. There were people coming and going, and it was inevitably noisy.
When Zhao Luoning woke up, she was the only one in the room. There were clean clothes on the bedside, and even a face towel was thoughtfully prepared.
Although she was seriously ill and her head was still dizzy when she stood up, she still got a shock when she saw the face towel.
She dragged her sick body out of bed and searched the whole room for a bronze mirror.
What she didn't know was that this was the temporary bedroom where Ji Shisu stayed in Nuanyu Zhai. How could there be a bronze mirror that only girls used?
Just then, Rendong walked in with a basin of water.
Since Caixue was injured and there was no one to serve Zhao Luoning, Ji Shisu had sent someone back to Furong Yuan early in the morning to ask Rendong to bring Zhao Luoning's change of clothes.
Seeing Zhao Luoning rush down without wearing shoes, Rendong quickly put down the basin in her hand.
“Second young mistress, you're still sick. The floor is cold. Go back to bed quickly.”
Zhao Luoning seemed not to hear her. She rushed straight to the copper basin full of water and looked into it.
Her legs instantly went weak.
It was clean, nothing there.
“It's over, it's over.”
Rendong quickly stepped forward to support her.
“Second young mistress, what's wrong?”
“It's over, it's over. He saw it.”
“Saw what? Second young mistress, what are you talking about?”
Zhao Luoning grabbed Rendong's hand and asked anxiously, “When did Ji Shisu leave?”
“Master Ji didn't leave. He's busy in the shop in the front yard. Does the second young mistress want to see Master Ji? You lie down first. I'll go and call Master Ji right away.”
Zhao Luoning shook her head like a rattle.
Why would she want to see Ji Shisu? To be laughed at by him!
Only then did Zhao Luoning realize that this was not Furong Yuan. The events of last night flashed back in an instant. She thought of Caixue and quickly asked,
“Where's Caixue?”
“Miss Caixue hurt her hand and is now resting in the side room. Master Ji invited a doctor to examine her last night. There's no serious problem. Second young mistress can rest assured.”
Ji Shisu had long guessed that Zhao Luoning would definitely ask about Caixue's situation as soon as she woke up. So he told Rendong to take care of Caixue as well so that he could be informed if anything happened.
Rendong had served Ji Shisu for many years, but this was the first time she had seen Ji Shisu be so considerate of someone.
Hearing that Caixue was still resting, Zhao Luoning resisted the urge to go and see her.
She was still sick, and after this commotion, she was covered in cold sweat. She could only be supported back to bed by Rendong.
Rendong watched as she buried her face in the quilt, looking extremely annoyed.
She was worried that Zhao Luoning would suffocate herself, but she also knew that she was not Caixue and not as close to Zhao Luoning, so she might not be able to persuade her well.
Forget it. She'd better go and find Master Ji.
Hearing that Zhao Luoning was awake, Ji Shisu left the guests to Yu Chi to entertain and rushed to the inner courtyard in a hurry.
The guests who were looking at the jade wares were completely confused.
“What's wrong with Master Ji? Is there a fire at home?”
Yu Chi replied with a smile,
“Master Ji's precious treasure is sick. Naturally, he's anxious.”
“Precious treasure? When did Master Ji have a child? Why haven't we heard of it?”
Yu Chi just laughed and evaded the question.
On the other side, Ji Shisu pushed open the door and saw Zhao Luoning burying herself in the quilt like an ostrich.
She was just like a child.
He told Rendong to leave and walked to the bedside himself. He gently patted Zhao Luoning.
“Luoning, what's wrong with you?”
As soon as Zhao Luoning heard his voice, she quickly tried to drive him away.
“Get out. Get out.”
“Then get yourself out first. You'll suffocate like this.”
“I don't want you to care!” As Zhao Luoning spoke, she herself began to feel wronged.
Ji Shisu soon realized something was wrong. Why did her voice sound like she was about to cry?
Since Zhao Luoning refused to come out from under the quilt, he lifted the quilt and got in with her.
It was pitch - black under the quilt. Only a little light came in through the gap where Zhao Luoning was huddled.
Ji Shisu moved his face closer to Zhao Luoning's and asked softly,
“Why are you crying?”