Chapter 254: Chapter 254: Truly... Too Dazzling
Shen Hua sensed in her dizzy state that Cui Yun’s reaction was somewhat strange.
However, the girl had not been awake for long, and after being fed medicine and porridge, she fell into a deep sleep once again.
As night fell, Xie Xun made no mention of departing, and it was clear that he intended to confidently take up residence in the Cui Mansion.
Ningzhu privately expressed her feelings to Nanny Cheng: "Miss Shen has met a good person. Both the Marquis and Heir Xie are so considerate."
But Nanny Cheng was an experienced woman.
The bearing of Heir Xie was not that of caring for a close friend’s sister!
Not to mention his frequent sending of all kinds of snacks, storybooks, and interesting trinkets in the past days, his intense concern just a moment ago was clearly no simple matter!
Fortunately, Miss Shen is worldly-wise; had it been a more naive girl from another family, she might have been bewitched by such flattery.
Heir Xie is a highly sought-after match by the ladies of Shengjing, and he indeed has his ways with Lady Fu.
Such a man is even more troublesome than the Heir of Prince Gong.
Especially since Heir Xie has yet to make his intentions clear, Miss Shen still needs to maintain that hint of affectionate relationship.
In just a short moment, Nanny Cheng thought of many things.
But Ningzhu was rather naïve, and Yicui was solely focused on Shen Hua’s well-being, not caring about anything else. With all these thoughts in her heart, Nanny Cheng had no one to share them with.
Meanwhile, Marquis Cui appeared relaxed, ordering Ji Qing to bring over documents from the Ministry of Justice and sitting at the desk in the inner room to read them one by one.
Ji Xin entered respectfully. She bowed to Xie Xun.
"Heir, please come this way, the side room is ready for you."
Xie Xun intended to stay. Since there was an Imperial Concubine’s Couch in the adjacent room, he could lie down there.
His gaze shifted to Cui Yun.
"Marquis Cui, you’re not going to rest?"
Cui Yun looked up and replied succinctly, "She needs someone by her side."
Xie Xun spoke in a gentle voice, "I am very grateful to you for taking care of Shen Hua these past days."
"If there is something you desire, as long as it’s within my power, I will surely grant it."
Upon hearing this, Cui Yun’s gaze turned indifferent.
At this moment, he really didn’t want to obtain anything from Xie Xun.
The original reason for bringing the lady to Shengjing had also changed.
Similarly, Xie Xun owed him nothing.
Xie Xun knew Cui Yun to be upright and reliable. Given Cui Yun’s rigid and uninteresting nature, he was the kind of man who would marry a gentle and virtuous lady to manage household affairs in the future.
Naturally, he wouldn’t harbor any ulterior motives towards Shen Hua, who was quite a handful; Xie Xun was assured of this.
But...
Xie Xun felt the need to remind him.
"But it is now night, and her condition has stabilized. Your intention to work here is good, but there are differences between men and women, and this is ultimately improper."
"She may call you ’cousin,’ but there is no blood relation. This, both you and I are aware of."
"Moreover, with servants outside to attend to her needs, Marquis Cui truly need not personally keep vigil."
Cui Yun did not object to this, nor did he wish to quibble.
"Heir Xie need not trouble himself with this. I have my own considerations regarding my affairs."
"As for you, Heir, you are being rather overbearing."
Xie Xun: ???
Ji Xin, skilled at reading the room, promptly said, "Please, Heir."
Xie Xun, who had been standing initially, saw Cui Yun unmoved on his seat and seemingly determined to stay awake all night. The conflict and confusion left him somewhat perplexed.
Was Cui Yun taking his role of guardianship for Shen Hua too seriously, as if he truly thought he was her real brother?
Girls understand family closeness and distance best, and in her heart, there would only ever be one ’brother’!
Xie Xun was easy-going.
Thus, he was unwilling to entangle further with Cui Yun.
He sat down again.
"I’m not tired."
"Please bring me some strong tea."
Nanny Cheng bowed to acknowledge, but before she could go and prepare, Xie Xun spoke with his silky voice, "Coincidentally, I also can’t rest easy about Miss Shen, so since I am free now, why not stay here and accompany Marquis Cui?"
Nanny Cheng: ...Isn’t this a provocation?
But Cui Yun merely smirked without expression, as if he paid no heed to Xie Xun.
The man’s indifference penetrated to his very bones.
"The Princely Heir may do as he pleases."
Shen Hua woke up completely in the middle of the night. She had just propped herself up, making little noise, yet Cui Yun, with his keen hearing, put aside his official documents, preparing to rise.
However, Xie Xun was a step ahead of him and had already circled around the screen.
At this, Cui Yun narrowed his eyes. By the time he walked over, Xie Xun was already offering warmth and care.
Yicui had just brought in the medicine. Just as Cui Yun was about to take it from her, Xie Xun again beat him to it.
The medicine was still hot, and Xie Xun skillfully scooped up a spoonful.
All of Shen Hua’s thoughts were on Cui Yun. She clearly remembered their blurry conversation earlier.
She felt somewhat at a loss. She cautiously glanced at Cui Yun from the corner of her eye.
The man’s gaze fell on Xie Xun, indifferent yet conveyant.
Xie Xun brought the cooled medicine to the girl’s lips. Perhaps because her mind was preoccupied, Shen Hua subconsciously parted her lips and swallowed.
Soon, she realized what she was doing and felt some resistance.
"I can drink it myself."
Xie Xun: "Taking offense?"
"Seeing you’ve grown tired of preserved fruits these past days, I prepared some rose cakes. The shopkeeper has been improving his craft for over a decade. The rose cakes are shaped like petals and are very exquisite. I thought you would like them."
Shen Hua seized on the key point.
"How many petals?"
Xie Xun: "Originally, there were seven."
Shen Hua’s brows furrowed.
"But I asked the shopkeeper to make them with six petals."
Shen Hua’s attention was indeed captured by what Xie Xun said: "Six is good."
"What kind of shopkeeper is that, clearly doesn’t know how to do business. Selling seven-petaled items, just hearing it sounds unlucky."
Xie Xun fed her the medicine again.
Subconsciously, Shen Hua bit down on the spoon.
She paused for a moment, then decided not to dwell on it.
If Xie Xun wanted to take care of her, it wasn’t her loss!
The girl naturally accepted it as a matter of course.
Cui Yun stood to the side, taking it all in with his eyes.
It was truly... too glaring to bear.
Indeed, Shen Hua was not being considerate. Not long ago, she had said she wouldn’t get too close to Xie Xun. Yet now, one was feeding and the other was eating, truly as intimate as can be.
Cui Yun suddenly said out of the blue, "Heir Xie seems quite adept at feeding medicine."
Xie Xun chuckled lightly, seeing Shen Hua obediently taking her medicine, a tender look flashed in his eyes: "I have taken care of my family’s elders before."
Cui Yun indifferently remarked, "I did hear that Heir Xie was attending to Old Master Xie at his bedside before he passed away."
Xie Xun paused slightly but offered no explanation.
Shen Hua was well taken care of, and noticing Cui Yun only engaged in conversation with Xie Xun without questioning her about the earlier incident, it was evident that he did not care.
Whatever about that cat, surely, she must have misheard in her daze.
With this thought, her heart settled, and she held the exquisite rose cake, sincerely complimenting Xie Xun: "You are truly filial."
Xie Xun: ...
Shen Hua looked out at the sky, dense as ink.
"What time is it now?"
Xie Xun replied softly, and then added.
"You’ve been sleeping for quite some days, your bones must be sore. You should go out for a walk later."
Indeed, that was the case.
Shen Hua found the idea sensible.
Xie Xun: "When you’re able to get up, I’ll accompany you."
Shen Hua leaned back, eyeing Xie Xun with scrutiny: "Why do you want to accompany me?"
"I’m going out to buy rouge. It’s not appropriate for a gentleman like you to follow me."
"To pay for you, to carry things."
Shen Hua vaguely responded: "Do I look like someone lacking servants to you?"