Hua Zhi gently patted Shaoyao. "I understand. I won't dislike him, never will."
Assured that she spoke the truth, Shaoyao immediately beamed again, reaching for the half-full plate of pastries. Munching away, she whispered mischievously, "Hua Hua, let me tell you—I actually remember how Yan Ge used to be. He used to smile so easily, with two dimples appearing on his cheeks. His hair was always short and messy, and he had to use product during formal occasions to keep it from sticking out everywhere. He wasn't stiff and rigid like he is now."
Hua Zhi couldn't imagine such a Gu Yanxi; it felt almost blasphemous to picture him that way.
Yet with his family background—born into wealth and privilege—he ought to have been carefree and spirited by nature. And he had indeed possessed that once, only to lose it in such a tragic manner. How much it pained him, only he himself could truly comprehend.
While these thoughts swirled endlessly in her mind, she teased lightly, "If he finds out you've been revealing his secrets to an outsider, he'll surely discipline you."
"You're not an outsider," Shaoyao declared matter-of-factly. Their goal was to make Hua Hua an insider!
With official duties still awaiting her in the palace, Shaoyao left after enjoying an exceptionally lavish meal, carrying numerous packages—some for herself, some for her master, and some for Yan Ge.
In the imperial study, Gu Yanxi had been staring at the memorial before him for a long time. Lai Fu, assuming there was something amiss with the document, dared not make a sound.
Had he dared to look closer, he would have noticed that Gu Shizi, the head of the Seven Constellation Bureau, was not focused at all—commonly known as daydreaming.
The prolonged absence of Shaoyao made him increasingly anxious. In his desperation, he had sent such an unreliable person. What had she even said? He hoped she hadn't made things worse.
The thought made Gu Yanxi wish he could turn back time two hours and stop himself from making such a foolish decision.
Tossing the memorial aside, Gu Yanxi picked up Zheng Zhi's file again. The more he read, the stronger his sense of crisis grew. Here was a man of excellent character, well-read, whose thoughts aligned with A Zhi's, living right in the Hua family. He could see A Zhi every day, drink tea, play chess, chat freely—living the life Gu Yanxi yearned for most. Just imagining it made him restless.
And he couldn't interfere.
This man was kept by A Zhi, appreciated by A Zhi. He had promised to indulge her in everything; he couldn't go back on his word now.
He had also vowed to let A Zhi do whatever she wished. He couldn't use concern as an excuse to isolate her from others, even though he desperately wanted to cast Zheng Zhi far away at this moment.
"Yan Ge." The long-awaited person finally returned, sweeping in like a gust of wind. Gu Yanxi signaled for Lai Fu to leave and fixed his gaze intently on the items in her hands.
Shaoyao grinned, placing the bundle on the desk. "Yan Ge, Hua Hua said she'll never dislike you."
Gu Yanxi's eyes shifted upward. "What exactly did you say?"
"Just random things. Hua Hua is so clever—if I said too much, she'd definitely figure it out." Shaoyao played dumb; she wouldn't tell Yan Ge that she had described his youthful, naive image to Hua Hua.
Gu Yanxi didn't entirely trust her, but Shaoyao gave him no chance to probe. As soon as she finished speaking, she dashed off, saying, "I'm going to find Master."
Gu Yanxi didn't bother with her further. Opening the bundle, he saw the familiar food container. Strangely, he didn't catch any scent today. Had Fu Dong developed a new dish?Thinking this, Gu Yanxi opened the first layer—empty?
The second layer—still empty!
The third layer—empty!
Gu Yanxi’s mind went blank. What did it mean to send him an empty food box? Could it be that Shaoyao had said something that made A Zhi completely disgusted with him, so she didn’t want to give him food anymore? But that didn’t make sense. If that were truly the case, A Zhi would have simply ignored him—why would she give him an empty food box?
Then what did it mean? Surely she wasn’t using an empty food box to invite him to the Hua family for a meal...
Gu Yanxi’s head spun for a moment. He looked outside—it was already dark. He thought he might be overthinking it, but once the possibility occurred to him, he couldn’t stop his thoughts from going in that direction. An empty food box—wasn’t it telling him that the food was ready, but it was at the Hua family, and if he wanted to eat, he had to go himself?
The more he thought about it, the more convinced he became. Gu Yanxi could no longer care about anything else. He stood up and strode outside. But as he crossed the threshold, he paused, turned around, and went to the resting room behind the imperial study. He had been spending a lot of time there recently and had spare clothes prepared. His current dark attire wasn’t quite suitable—A Zhi had been wearing mostly plain, white clothes lately. He might as well change into a white outfit too.
Arriving at the Hua family with a heart full of anxiety, he found the side gate already closed and locked at this hour. He leaped onto the wall and met Wang Rong’s gaze. Whether it was his own guilty conscience or not, he felt Wang Rong’s expression was somewhat peculiar.
It turned out his feeling wasn’t mistaken, because Wang Rong informed him, "The eldest young lady has instructed that if Lu Xiansheng arrives, he should go directly to the study."
No one was moving about in the courtyard. The study door was slightly ajar. Gu Yanxi’s heart raced as he gently pushed it open.
Inside, the room was brightly lit by candles. Hua Zhi was holding a book, reading. On the tea table where she usually brewed tea, bowls and chopsticks were set out, with dishes covered by inverted plates.
Hearing the noise, Hua Zhi put down her book and looked at him with a faint, teasing smile, watching the tall man feign his usual composure despite his obvious nervousness. "I thought Lu Xiansheng would arrive a bit later. Perfect timing—the food is still warm. Let’s eat first."
Gu Yanxi sat down opposite her and watched as she removed the inverted plates one by one, then served two bowls of rice... Two bowls?
Meeting his gaze, Hua Zhi picked up her chopsticks. "Has Lu Xiansheng already eaten at the palace?"
"No." He hadn’t even noticed when it had gotten dark—how could he have remembered to eat? Gu Yanxi thought silently to himself as he picked up his chopsticks and began to eat. In front of him was a plate of meat, prepared sweet and sour to suit his taste. The other dishes were all vegetarian. Clearly, this plate of meat had been made especially for him. Thinking this, his appetite surged.
Unlike their usual meals together, where they would exchange a few words, today’s dinner was especially quiet.
Gu Yanxi ate four large bowls of rice with that plate of meat, finishing the last piece before setting down his chopsticks.
Ying Chun and Nian Qiu appeared silently to clear the table. After serving tea, they tiptoed away.
Gu Yanxi, however, would have preferred to watch A Zhi brew tea with her tea set, calm and at ease, as if life were truly that leisurely.
But he didn’t dare bring it up.
At this moment, he felt like someone awaiting a decree—waiting for an outcome that would either lift him to heaven or cast him into hell.Hua Zhi's toughness had always been reserved for enemies. How could she bear to make things difficult for someone who had laid their heart bare before her? Holding the warm tea in her hands, she said, "Earlier when I suggested we pause our relationship at that stage, I was wrong. It sounded as if I was taking advantage while pretending to be virtuous. Feelings aren't like a funnel—you can't just block the opening to keep the sand from flowing. Emotions either ferment within the heart or fade away; they never remain stagnant. I wonder, Mr. Lu, which one describes your current state?"
PS: Now that you've seen how emotionally inept Kongkong is, you'll understand why the update was so late. Still managed three updates though—feeling like I'm about to ascend to heaven.
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