Madame Song was extremely happy today. Many visitors were inquiring where she’d found the chef, but she didn’t give them a straight answer, since the fourth madame was only a concubine. Publicizing it would only bring trouble upon the fourth madame. Moreover, she could tell that the fourth madame was a very sensible person. Therefore, Madame Song did not want to cause any inconveniences for the fourth madame.
And so, she only described the chef as someone the monastery had invited and managed to keep the identity of the chef a secret. However, Madame Song had made up her mind that she would definitely return the favor in private, at least so that the Long Household wouldn’t find any fault. Plus, the prince had even come to look after the fourth madame. This alone could was a clear indication of how much the prince valued her.
The female guests didn’t eat much. To their chagrin, they were full by the time half the food had been served. However, they still stayed seated to await al the dishes. If a good dish of food passed across their plates, they would still eat a few bites.
In Bai Xiangxiu’s opinion, these madames seemed to be eating like they were eating cat food. Almost all of them placed their chopsticks down after taking only one bite of each dish. Bai Xiangxiu herself was starving, but because these people wouldn’t move their chopsticks again, she had no choice but to place her chopsticks down as well. Regardless of how hungry she was, she couldn’t eat a lot. Fortunately, she did manage to sneak bites until she was half-full.
After everyone had eaten and drunk to their heart’s content, tea and cake were offered.
After taking two sips of tea, Bai He once again approached Bai Xiangxiu with a smile, “Younger sister Xiu… Madame Xiu, Old Master is asking if you are free. He wishes to meet with you alone.”
The Great Master and Old Master weren’t people who would normally converse while eating. Therefore, it was normal for them to return after they had eaten to the fullest.
Bai Xiangxiu grew a bit embarrassed at the surprise she’d let slip at being asked to meet the old master alone. However, Bai He quickly added, “The eldest young master and the prince are also waiting outside!”
They’re all done eating. That’s way too fast! Bai Xiangxiu then quickly remembered that although this was a feast, it was in the end temple cuisine. Since wine was not permitted at these feasts, it was normal for the male guests to finish their meal quicker. Bai Xiangxiu nodded towards the madames sitting with her before she allowed Xiao Shi to support her out of the hall.
Long Heng frowned when he saw that she was still limping. However, since Old Master wanted to meet her, he couldn’t display a manner of superiority. After all, Old Master was an elder. So he contented himself with a word to Xiao Shi, “Support your mistress carefully.”
Long Heng just felt that he had to instruct Xiao Shi before he led the way to the Old Master. Naturally, Song Jiaoyue was accompanying them. Actually, Grandfather didn’t ask to meet Long Heng. Does he have to be so worried? Alright, I’ll admit I’m worried too.
The cadre walked together with Long Heng and Song Jiaoyue walking in front and the ladies following at the back. Because Bai Xiangxiu wasn’t far behind them, they could still see the shadow of her figure on the ground. She walked in a very beautiful posture, swaying like a willow. Seeing this, Song Jiaoyue smiled faintly, yet Long Heng was the one who spoke up, “Grandfather does not have a good temper. Be careful when you speak to him.”
“Grandfather is a good person.” Song Jiaoyue was afraid that Bai Xiangxiu would be afraid, thus, he hastily tried to comfort her.
Bai Xiangxiu answered obediently, but no one knew if she was answering Long Heng or Song Jiaoyue. Actually, she had never been afraid before. She had some experience in how to deal with the elderly. See, she’d even managed to smooth down Old Madame’s fur.
Most importantly, one of the two men before her was the one she had been secretly in love with. They had already parted ways, but Bai Xiangxiu could tell that Song Jiaoyue looked at her differently this time. At first, Bai Xiangxiu had thought that Song Jiaoyue might have been acting like this because he felt sorry, but as time passed, she realized that she had assumed wrong. Song Jiaoyue seemed to be unknowingly drawing close to her, as if everything was planned.
However, the more Bai Xiangxiu thought, the more she felt it was impossible, because the two women by Song Jiaoyue’s side would always visit her. If Song Jiaoyue had plans to the contrary, would he let those women meet her? Bai Xiangxiu had to admit that she really didn’t understand the minds of these men of ancient times.
As for the other one, he had an appearance and style that suited her taste, but he was already someone else’s man and that someone else had the halo of the female lead to boot. No matter how Bai Xiangxiu’s thoughts ran, she still felt that this man would never belong to her. Most importantly, the description of how he killed her in the book was really too bloody.
She has to admit that in this ancient courtyard, killing someone was just like playing around, all the more so for people in even higher positions. It didn’t help that the male lead was a decisive general who wouldn’t hesitate in the slightest to make that call.
Whenever Bai Xiangxiu faced these two men, she always felt slightly stressed. Those two walking in front of her would stir any woman’s heart! Bai Xiangxiu had never dated before, so it wasn’t weird that she was overthinking things now.
When one pondered too much and their thoughts ran too fast, one would always forget to pay attention to one’s steps. Bai Xiangxiu was someone who worked seriously and required full focus when doing a single task. Now that she’d been distracted by her thoughts, it was only natural that she would stumble. And so she did, and her body started its unplanned descent to the ground. Nevertheless, all humans had an instinct of self-preservation To protect her perky nose from being smashed flat, she naturally wanted to find something to hold onto, and in the split second she had to think, she could only reach for the leg of the person in front.
It couldn’t be helped. After all, this leg was too easy to hold onto!
In the end, her face did not manage to introduce itself to the ground. In fact, the instant she’d latched onto the leg, someone tugged on the back of her clothes. When she came to, she was already upright and standing safely on the ground. The fall and the lift almost happened within a second of each other. How could the petite body of Bai Xiangxiu, someone from a literary family, handle this sort of acceleration?
Her entire body grew weak, and dizziness assaulted her in waves. Pressing her hand to her head, she swayed and wobbled. As expected, she has the appearance and body of a second female lead. Was it really good to be so delicate?
The truth had proven that whether one was the supporting female character or the female lead didn’t matter. One is always good in the eyes of someone who’s fond of you.
A strong arm completely ensconced her body and a vigorous heartbeat immediately cleared her head. Even without guessing, she knew that this scent that tickled her nose belonged to Long Heng. Was he the one that lifted me up? He’s a crude man, but now, he’s pretending to be someone nice. However, she did feel safe in his arms.
The body of the second female lead was extremely petite. When she was held in his arms, her head happened to rest just so on his chest. In many ways, this position was very ambiguous. Bai Xiangxiu immediately blushed and lifted her head as she said in a muffled voice, “Thank you.”
Wait a second, something’s wrong here. Long Heng was the one who lifted her up and carried her, so whose leg had she held onto?
That leg was rather thick. Could it be…
With a flushed face, Bai Xiangxiu looked up and saw the supporting male character Young Master Song Jiaoyue, standing amidst the wind, frowning and blushing.
The hell. I was rejected when I wanted to hold onto his leg. Now that I’ve accidentally hugged his leg, can someone tell me how I should react in this situation? Most importantly, supporting male character! Show some reaction! If you remain expressionlessly silly, how can I apologize?
“My apologies.” No matter what kind of expression the other displayed, an apology was absolutely compulsory.
At this moment, Song Jiaoyue recovered from his shock and hurriedly replied, “It’s alright. Did you injure yourself?”
“I’m alright.” Bai Xiangxiu really felt like crying, but she couldn’t shed even a tear in this situation. Why did you have to go and mention what’d just happened… Bai Xiangxiu really wanted to just slap herself. Can a man’s leg be randomly touched? Look at how dark and gloomy Long Heng’s face is… I’m dying here… I can’t even look at him anymore, what should I do?
“Let’s go!” With a few words, Long Heng pulled Bai Xiangxiu away from the abyss of her thoughts. She almost thought Long Heng would just chop off her hands as punishment for simply hugging someone’s legs. Thank goodness I still have both of my hands. However, she still felt weirdly nervous.