Xie Shuo was forced to stand by the door… and listen.

Various clanging noises came from nearby, and disordered chopping noises began to sound. He suddenly had the feeling that he shouldn’t have allowed her to cook.

What would a daughter from a rich family know about cooking? If she were to accidentally cut herself, that would just be bringing trouble upon himself.

His throat was still slightly uncomfortable, so he covered his mouth and coughed.

Ye An had a green pepper in her hand and was about to cut it, but turned around when she heard the cough. “Are you really okay? Do you want some cold medicine?”

Xie Shuo seemed to be very against taking medicine. He frowned, saying, “No, thanks.”

“Find somewhere else to stand; the smoke might cause you to choke later… how about you go outside and take a walk?” Ye An didn’t forget to take advantage of the moment to convince him to go outside.

Xie Shuo turned around and left, leaving her with a view of his silent, retreating figure.

Ye An looked out the window at the glaring sun. It really wasn’t great walking weather, so she just let him go.

The clanging sounds from the kitchen continued until twelve, when lunch was successfully made.

Ye An brought her dishes to the table. She thought that Xie Shuo had returned upstairs and prepared to call him down–but instead found him waiting in the living room.

“Time to eat!” Ye An called him.

Xie Shuo got up and walked slowly to the table. Ye An put a small bowl of mushroom soup in front of him. “Here, taste this. It might be a little hot.”

She sat on his left-hand side, so it was more convenient to hand him the dishes.

Xie Shuo held the spoon and tried a bit of soup.

Ye An watched him nervously. “How is it?”

Xie Shuo swallowed it without speaking, as if unsure whether or not he should rate it.

Ye An: Was it that hard to describe?

Ye An, hurt by his expression, angrily said, “What’s with that terrible expression? Is it that bad?”

Xie Shuo didn’t think that she would suddenly get angry. He paused and finally rated it with two words, “It’s okay.”

Who would have known that this would make Ye An angrier? “You think I wouldn’t notice your phony tone?”

Xie Shuo: “…”

Ye An stomach hurt from anger.

She worked for a whole morning for this meal. It was fine if he wasn’t grateful, but he even dared to look down on it!

What kind of person was he!

She looked at the dishes on the table and suddenly didn’t have the appetite to try any.

“I’ve already said that we should go out to eat. You didn’t want to and insisted on eating at home.”

Xie Shuo frowned. He was afraid of the possibility of her destroying the bowl of soup, so he changed his tone. “The flavor is too strong, but it’s not that bad. Didn’t you also make some other dishes? What are they?”

Ye An looked up at him and noticed his goodwill. She pursed her lips and reluctantly humbled herself. “There are only three others: sauteed shrimp with parsley, stir-fried chili pork, and lotus root with vinegar.”

She picked up the chopsticks and put a piece of the shrimp and parsley dish in his bowl.

Xie Shuo picked up the shrimp and tasted it. He had now learned his lesson and maintained a neutral expression, saying, “It’s all right.”

Ye An was finally at ease, and she gave him a few pieces from the other dishes.

“Try some of the chili pork.”

Xie Shuo lowered his head and ate quietly.

Ye An watched him eat a few bites before starting to eat herself.

To be honest, it was not her first time cooking, and her cooking wasn’t bad enough to the point of being unpalatable. Eldest Young Master Xie was just accustomed to living like a prince, so his taste was inevitably pickier.

Xie Shuo’s blindness made eating more inconvenient, so he ate slowly. Ye An ate first, so she put her chopsticks down and looked at him. She said nervously, “Don’t eat too much if you’re not used to it. I’ll have someone else make some porridge or cut some fruits for you later.”

Xie Shuo raised his head, surprised that she was being so reasonable. He said calmly, “There’s nothing really to be unaccustomed to; this is fine.”

To be honest, her cooking skills had far exceeded his expectations. He originally thought that if she were to even try boiling water, the kitchen would burn down.

Ye An listened happily, and she took advantage of the opportunity to ask, “Since I’ve worked so hard to cook for you, do you want to go outside with me to relax this afternoon?”

Xie Shuo paused, his expression not cold and dismissive for the first time. He responded, “Later.”

Ye An thought that she heard wrong, but she quickly suggested, “Let’s wait until sunset then, so it’s not as hot outside.”

She glanced at his hand that held the chopsticks and suddenly recalled something. Her eyes flashed. “Oh right, didn’t I say that I would help cut your nails? Let’s do that after eating.”

“…” Xie Shuo’s face instantly darkened.

Ye An didn’t notice his changing expression. She waited for him to finish eating before taking the bowl and chopsticks away and bringing him to cut his nails.

The afternoon sun was bright, and the surroundings were silent. Her head was lowered, and her eyes were focused, her lashes fanning out when she blinked. 

Xie Shuo’s expression resembled a statue, cold and expressionless.

His slender fingers were almost translucent under the sunlight, and the blue veins were visible under his skin.

Ye An frowned, murmuring, “Why do I feel like you’ve gotten thinner?”

Xie Shuo didn’t say anything.

Time passed peacefully. The two sat together, giving the illusion of warmth and comfort.

After cutting his nails, Ye An dragged Xie Shuo to the bathroom to have him teach her how to use a razor.

However, she only studied for a bit before giving up because she was afraid of experimenting by herself and didn’t dare to test her skills on Xie Shuo.

If she were to make one wrong move, everything would be over.

Around four o’clock, the sun slanted westward, and the two went on a walk in the garden.

The wind blew gently, and the sun rays gradually softened. Ye An’s body and heart had been warmed by the sun, and as she looked at the man beside her, she thought, it’s time to start the next step in her plans!

However, before she could, reality gave her a rude awakening.

Xie Shuo caught a cold. 

There was no fever, but there was a persistent cough. His most serious symptom was a migraine.

When he was in the car accident, heavy trauma to his brain affected his optic nerve, so he was left blind and with migraines.

Now that he had a cold, the migraines had returned.

Ye An remembered that Xie Baiyan mentioned that Xie Shuo suffered from migraines on occasion, but she didn’t take it too seriously. Only when she saw him suffer with her own eyes did she know how serious it was.

For the first two days, he was unable to sleep. Ye An woke up in the middle of the night to see his face pale and veins bulging. There was sweat on his forehead, and even the pillow was soaked through.

However, he endured it without a sound.

Ye An applied a warm towel compress on his forehead but was of no use.

“Do you want to take some painkillers?”

Ye An helped him sit up and let him lean on her shoulder. She put the painkiller near his lips.

When Xie Shuo was in the hospital being treated for his injuries, he was often fed various pills, so he despised them now. He pressed his lips together, refusing to open his mouth.

Ye An looked at his pale lips, which made her heart hurt for him. Her tone became even softer. 

“Just try having one pill, okay?”

There was a faint fragrance and warmth that came from her body. Xie Shuo pursed his lips for a little while more before opening his mouth under her gentle persuasion.

Ye An fed the medicine to Xie Shuo before putting the cup of warm water to the side and turning back around. She hugged him while stroking his head, coaxing him like a child.

“It’s going to be okay. The pain will go away soon… it won’t hurt anymore…”

Her gentle voice traveled to his ears. She tilted her head up with eyes reddened for some time.

Xie Shuo had originally started to feel a little better after taking the medicine, but after hearing her words, he instantly felt a throbbing pain in his pain. The veins on his forehead began to protrude again.

He squeezed her delicate wrist, enduring the pain as he pushed her away.

Because of the pain, he wasn’t aware of his own strength, and Ye An’s wrist had red marks around it.

Ye An cradled her wrist and observed his taut expression with a baffled look. She was speechless-you take my good intentions as donkey liver even now?

She slandered him in her mind but was too lazy to mention it to him. Seeing the sweat on his forehead, she asked softly, “Do you feel any better? Would you like to take a bath before going to sleep?”

……

Xie Shuo didn’t answer, but he got out of bed and felt his way around to the bathroom while coughing. His back was slouched, and he looked a bit…pitiful.

Forget it, it wasn’t easy for him either.

Ye An’s motherly instinct went into overdrive. She took out a new pair of pajamas for him before running the bathwater and adding essential oils to calm his nerves.

She turned around to tell him not to bathe for too long, but his body entered her line of sight.

The neckline of his disheveled black pajamas was open, revealing his pale neck and collarbone. His natural scent was strong as if he had just had some indescribable exercise.

Further up, the hair on his forehead was damp, and his face held a sickly beauty.

……

How tempting…

Inappropriate images flashed through Ye An’s mind. Her ears became warm, and she suddenly blushed.

Ye An, what are you thinking about?

How can you lust after someone’s body right now? You’re a monster!

“Okay, don’t soak for too long; call me if you need anything.”

Ye An cursed herself and withdrew her stare. She hurried out of the bathroom while blushing furiously.

Xie Shuo began to take off his clothes when he heard the door close. The loose pajamas were pulled down to reveal his buff shoulders and the contours of his muscles.

The water vapor curled up and diffused in the air.

After returning to the bedroom, Ye An fanned herself in an attempt to cool down her heated cheeks.

When did she start to fall so easily to temptation?

They all say that women in their thirties start to become wolves and women in their forties start to become cougars, but she was only twenty-three! This was going against the laws of science!

Ye An used her hands to cover her face, her mood complicated.

……

She had become a pervert…

After taking a while to calm down, Ye An walked to the bed and changed the sheets. Afterward, she opened the window for better ventilation.

The Xie manor was located in an area that was well known for the wealthy residents. The scenery was beautiful, and the moon was clear. A soft breeze blew across her cheeks, and there was a feel of elegance in the atmosphere.

The continuous undulations of the distant mountains were visible under the moonlight.

Ye An looked up and into the distance, suddenly feeling melancholic. With this disability, she was afraid of him reentering his depressed state, and she didn’t know when the next step in her plan was possible. 

She put forth so much effort to see him make some progress, but it may have been all in vain.

After taking a bath, Xie Shuo’s headache had improved a lot, and he fell asleep not long after getting back into bed.

Ye An was still ill at ease and didn’t sleep well. She woke up several more times throughout the night, looking instinctively at Xie Shuo each time.

Because of her anxiety, she slipped into a familiar dream as the sun began to rise.

In the long dim corridor, she fled with all her will, with the sound of the night’s rain was crisp and clear.

Author’s note: Xiao Ye: I admire your body. After I sleep with you, let’s divorce.

Xiao Xie: …

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