Chapter 8
The next day, Yuli slept until she woke up naturally. The first thing she did was look at her left wrist. There was nothing unusual. It was just holding hands, she thought. Why am I so fragile? Was it because the light was too dim last night, making me scared?
Yuli decided to have more lamps added to brighten the room, to make it like daylight, so she wouldn’t be afraid of Xie Yao.
After Yuli got up, Xiyun came to serve her.
When Xie Yao was not around, she still preferred to wear practical, narrow-sleeved clothes. Xiyun understood her and naturally brought them for her to wear.
Unexpectedly, just after breakfast, Jingyu came with several people to take out all the clothes from the wardrobes.
Jingyu explained gently, “The Young Master said the Mistress is not used to wide sleeves. This servant has found some seamstresses to alter these clothes to have narrow sleeves for the Mistress’s convenience.”
Both Yuli and Xiyun were a little surprised. Yuli suspected that Xiyun had said something, and Xiyun suspected that Yuli had said something.
After Jingyu and her people left, the two of them compared notes and realized that neither of them had mentioned it to him.
“It seems the Young Master is very meticulous and attentive,” Xiyun said, watching Yuli’s expression.
Yuli couldn’t deny it. Whatever his motives, he was indeed good to her.
But Xiyun found it strange. They were husband and wife, and Young Master Xie clearly liked Yuli very much, treating her like a treasure. Why did he only come for a meal every day and then leave?
Logically, newlyweds should be inseparable.
He looked very young. To have such wealth as a merchant, he couldn’t have built it from scratch. There must be family support behind him. Back in Xihe County, she had asked Mother Song about his family background. Mother Song only said that his parents were doing business in the distant south, that he had no fixed residence, but had a house in the provincial capital.
Yuli was married off so hastily. His parents didn’t even show up. On the wedding day, Young Master Xie didn’t come either. He suddenly appeared at the residence in the provincial capital. She was kept outside and didn’t even see his face. After the ceremony, he left in a hurry, without lifting her veil, let alone consummating the marriage.
Now in the capital, she still hadn’t seen his parents, nor any of his siblings.
A terrible thought suddenly occurred to Xiyun. Could it be that Yuli had been tricked into becoming his mistress?
Thinking of it this way, everything made sense: the emptiness of the residence, the tight security, his occasional visits for just a meal. Perhaps he had a wife at home, and had to go back to accompany her every night. Maybe he even had children…
The more Xiyun thought about it, the more certain she became.
Yuli was so clever; it was impossible that she didn’t know. Perhaps it was for this reason that she was so resistant to Young Master Xie.
The Song family had truly sold their daughter.
The more Xiyun thought, the angrier she became, and the more she felt sorry for Yuli.
Perhaps this Young Master Xie was not a wealthy merchant at all. His identity was fake, and maybe even his name was fake.
Xiyun’s expression suddenly changed, looking terrified and uneasy. Yuli asked with concern, “What’s wrong?”
Xiyun didn’t try to brush it off. She held Yuli’s hand. “Yuli, don’t you find it strange?”
“What’s strange?”
“Everyone in this residence is strange. And Young Master Xie, no matter how busy he is with his business, why would he not even sleep in the residence at night?”
If she didn’t know she was in a novel, Yuli would certainly have found it strange too. She might have even tried to escape several times by now. But she knew Xie Yao’s true identity. He wasn’t some wealthy merchant, but the regent. He lived in the Imperial Palace, surrounded by people every day. It wasn’t easy for him to make a trip here.
Yuli comforted Xiyun, “Isn’t it good that he doesn’t come? I’m happy to have the freedom.”
To Xiyun, although Yuli appeared calm, she had resigned herself to her fate, which made Xiyun feel even more sorry for her.
A mistress was someone who couldn’t be seen in the light of day. Even the mistress of the wealthiest family was looked down upon, gossiped about behind her back, and held up as a negative example for children.
Even if a mistress had a child, the child would not be acknowledged by the main family and would be despised by everyone, both inside and out.
No wonder the maids in the residence were all strange. They were respectful to Yuli, but there was no sense of human warmth or closeness.
They probably all looked down on Yuli in their hearts.
At this thought, Xiyun hugged Yuli.
Yuli found her a bit strange and patted her back. “Are you homesick?”
Xiyun’s nose tingled, and she hummed in agreement.
The two of them held each other for a while. Yuli remained calm, with an air of taking things as they come. Xiyun couldn’t bring herself to be sad any longer.
Yuli was just worrying about what to do when Xie Yao came tonight. After comforting Xiyun, she went to the kitchen. It was best to just make some delicious food according to his preferences.
But before that, she first asked Uncle Hu for some delicious food to treat herself.
She had been hanging around the kitchen for several days in a row, and the people inside had grown accustomed to her presence. They were no longer as cautious as before, but whenever she came, someone was always paying attention to what she might need, ready to hand it to her at a moment’s notice.
Sometimes, no one dared to taste the dishes she made. Other times, they suited their tastes. Today, Yuli made a light hot pot and cooked all the strange ingredients she had leftover from the past few days. After that, she went to take a nap.
When she woke up, the sky was a bit dark. She was about to go to the kitchen when a fine rain began to fall from the sky.
In the spring rain, the trees in the residence sprouted buds. The desolate-looking house finally had a touch of green. Yuli didn’t go to the kitchen; instead, she took a walk around the residence.
The air after the spring rain was fresh, with a sense of openness in the cool breeze. Every breath was full of life.
When Xie Yao arrived in the evening, she was in a good mood when she went to meet him. She wasn’t reserved even when he held her hand.
Today, it seemed he hadn’t eaten. He really liked the dishes she had prepared, especially her specialty, the lemon chicken feet, of which he ate quite a few.
Having someone like and finish the food she made gave Yuli a great sense of accomplishment. After the meal, she didn’t stay far away from him but proactively invited him for a walk.
The residence had a different charm at night. Even just walking in silence and looking at the scenery under the light and shadows felt quite nice.
After one round of walking, Yuli naturally stopped at the second gate.
Xie Yao stopped behind her. She was seeing him off.
Xie Yao’s expression was profound, but he didn’t make things difficult for her.
“Go back,” Xie Yao said, walking towards the gate and gesturing for Yuli to return.
Only then did Yuli raise her face to look at him. “Mm, be careful on your way, Husband.”
After saying this, she turned and left without waiting for Xie Yao’s reaction.
Xie Yao stared at her departing figure until she disappeared around a corner, never once looking back at him.
She had never even looked at him carefully.
Xie Yao’s expression grew somewhat dark in the night. He stood motionless, his gaze fixed on the direction where Yuli had vanished.
Song He appeared behind him. “Master has been watching over her for two years. In the Mistress’s heart, she has only known Master for a little over ten days.”
Xie Yao’s expression was inscrutable. “Has it only been two years?”
To be precise, it had been a little over two years, but Song He couldn’t remember the exact amount. He thought perhaps the Prince had counted the specific number of days in his heart.
Xie Yao: “It feels like several lifetimes.”
He had rehearsed several different scenarios for their reunion, each with a different outcome. There was one where they started as strangers, but it was proving more difficult than he had anticipated.
A husband and wife, once married, should consummate their union on their wedding night, even if they have never met before. After that, they should be intimate and harmonious. But she, on the other hand, treated him like a fearsome beast, not even looking at him.
He was clearly first-rate in appearance, had an outstanding figure, and was both wealthy and devoted.
He had been too indulgent with her.
But he had waited for so long. She was already completely under his control. There was indeed no need to rush.
He wanted to give her the best of everything, and the pleasures between a husband and wife were no exception.
With a profound expression, Xie Yao turned and left. Song He couldn’t help but glance at the corner where Yuli had disappeared before following.
For the next month, Xie Yao sometimes came every other day, sometimes every day. Yuli cooked delicious food for him daily and eventually grew accustomed to having this dining companion.
After dinner, Xie Yao would walk with her. From the cool early spring to the warm late spring, by the time the greenery was lush, she no longer minded holding his hand occasionally.
When he came last night, perhaps because she had eaten the egg tarts that Old Hu had researched and recreated during the day, she glanced at him a few times and found that his expression was not as cold anymore.
But before she could fully register his expression, she looked away.
She was still a little afraid.
The original book mostly described his confrontations with the heroine. For example, in the early stages—the stage she was in now—the heroine’s opening line upon seeing him would be, “What new tricks do you have today?” or, “Have you decided whether to kill me or let me go?” Later, she even told him, “It’s impossible for me to fall in love with you in this lifetime.”
Faced with these provocative words filled with disgust, Xie Yao would only give a dark, cold smile and reply with seemingly gentle words, “We have plenty of time,” or, “It seems you are not happy here.” Then he would kill a batch of people for her to see.
When reading the book, Yuli had only found the male lead’s dark and murderous nature to be thrillingly psycho. But after seeing Xie Yao’s gloominess in person, she couldn’t help but admire the original heroine’s courage. After the admiration, the thought that the batch of people Xie Yao killed might include people around her now, like Uncle Hu and Jingyu, made her skin crawl.
Angsty novels were more thrilling than sweet, doting ones, but if Yuli had to choose, she would definitely choose to transmigrate into a sweet, doting novel. The male lead would ideally be a sunny, cheerful, handsome guy, a clingy childhood sweetheart from a wealthy family. His entire family would dote on her, and she would have several close friends. They would eat, drink, and have fun without worrying about money.
The biggest conflict between the young couple would be fighting over delicious food and fun toys. When she got angry, she would hit him and pound on him, and not only would he not fight back, but he would shamelessly lean in for her to hit him.
Even when he got jealous, he would just pick a fight with the other person, not kill them at the drop of a hat and feed them to the dogs…
She had read plenty of sweet, doting novels. How could she be so unlucky as to transmigrate into a novel of forced possession and torment!
But then Yuli thought, Now that I know it’s an angsty novel, is it possible to change the plot to a sweet, doting one?
Before seeing Xie Yao, she had thought about it seriously for a long time. But the moment she saw him, she immediately dismissed the idea. Just standing next to him made her tense and stiff. The personification of gloom and paranoia was right beside her; there was absolutely no possibility of flirtatious banter.
Why does he have such a personality? The original book didn’t describe his background in much detail. The main plot was the story between the male and female leads, with most of the space dedicated to the mutual torment of “she flees, he pursues,” and a smaller portion dedicated to varied but even more tormenting bed scenes.
The emphasis on Xie Yao’s terror was on his identity as the regent, depicting how he held absolute power, making it impossible for the heroine to escape no matter how she tried.
For example, he committed regicide, killed the crown prince and other princes. He was not accepted by his family and later even committed patricide.
After the patricide, he seemed to become even more psycho, tormenting the heroine mercilessly in bed until she was black and blue.
Yuli rubbed her arms, which had finally gained some flesh. No, no matter what Xie Yao’s personality is, to save my life, I must find a way to turn this angsty novel around.
So, Yuli tried to inquire about his family background. As expected, no one would tell her.
Jingyu, afraid she would overthink, even comforted her, “The Young Master’s main family is in the south. We were all settled here when the Young Master started his business in the capital. The Young Master usually doesn’t mention it. If the Mistress wants to know, you can ask the Young Master.”
Yuli: “Mm, okay.” If only I dared to ask him.
After thinking about it, she decided it was better to just lie flat. Good food, good drink, good sleep. She wasn’t trying to escape, so he had no reason to torment her.
Yuli went on with her life as usual. When Xie Yao came, she would eat, walk, and see him off. When Xie Yao didn’t come, she would live her own divine life.
But life couldn’t always be smooth sailing, especially in such a tumultuous, angsty novel.
When Xie Yao came today, his face was dark and inscrutable, and he spoke little. Seeing the table full of dishes Yuli had prepared to his taste, he suddenly said to her, “From now on, do not prepare dishes according to my preferences.”
Yuli agreed without thinking, but then she heard him continue, “It would be best to forget my preferences.”
Yuli felt something was wrong. She wanted to ask him why. These days, she had been quite casual in her conversations with him, but today his face was a bit gloomy. She didn’t ask, nor did she rashly agree.
Xie Yao looked at her, paused, and said, “Let’s eat.”
He didn’t mention the matter again, and Yuli treated it as if it were over.
He hadn’t eaten before coming these past few days; he wasn’t just keeping her company.
Today, he ate with particular seriousness, finishing all the dishes Yuli had specially arranged.
Seeing him eat happily, Yuli felt a little comforted. But then she found it strange again. He clearly liked the food, so why did he say he didn’t want it anymore?
She couldn’t forget the tastelessness of eating just to stay alive in her past life. How boring such a life must be.
Yuli suddenly thought, Xie Yao is the regent, ruthless and cruel. He must have many enemies. He is surrounded by danger. Perhaps someone would poison the food he loves to harm him.
Yuli felt a little sympathy for him. Suddenly, she felt that beneath his gloominess, he wasn’t so terrifying. She glanced at him. He was concentrating on his food and didn’t look over.
Yuli saw his eyes slightly lowered, his eyelashes long and dense, like a small feather fan.
Yuli’s eyes trembled, and she averted her gaze without a trace.
After Xie Yao finished his meal, he saw that Yuli’s expression was normal, and she didn’t seem to mind his strangeness. He was relieved, but also a little dissatisfied. She didn’t even care about him.
Xie Yao had extremely important things to do, but he had said the day before that he would come, so he still made time, even though Song He said it might frighten her.
Now it seemed she had finally gotten used to his temperament, knowing that no matter how scary his face was, he would never do anything to her.
Xie Yao was too full. When Yuli went for a walk, he didn’t follow, but sat in the hall to rest.
Yuli took a walk while the sky was not yet completely dark.
There were not many plants in this residence. The only green trees were by the lake, where there was a large, crooked-necked locust tree.
The locust tree’s green leaves were newly sprouted, a light and translucent green.
Yuli’s biggest dream in her past life was to have her own house, a cat, and lots of flowers and plants. She wouldn’t have to work and could spend all four seasons in the yard, enjoying the changes of nature.
But this dream was impossible to achieve.
Yuli came to see this locust tree several times a day. Today, she came with Xiyun, chatting as they watched the sky turn from dark blue to pitch black, and the green leaves were no longer visible.
Thinking that Mingyue Residence was still cold and desolate, but had candlelight at night, she decided to break off a branch to take back for a vase.
On her way back, she held the locust branch in one hand and Xiyun’s arm in the other, talking and laughing, completely forgetting that she had left Xie Yao in the room.
At the door, Yuli was almost hanging on Xiyun, laughing and saying, “I’m so tired, I want to sleep without bathing.”
Xiyun smiled and was about to reply when her voice caught in her throat. Yuli turned to see that Xie Yao was still there, just emerging from behind the screen in her bedroom.
Yuli wasn’t particularly surprised, but her playful wrestling with Xiyun was a bit unseemly. She let go of Xiyun. Xiyun bowed to Xie Yao and then withdrew.
The room was already brightly lit as Yuli had previously instructed. The locust branch she had broken off glowed golden-green in the light, complementing her bright smile.
“Husband, you haven’t left yet. Would you like to go for another walk?” Yuli tried to be as natural as possible.
“Didn’t you say you were tired?” Xie Yao walked into the room and sat down.
Yuli looked at the sky. He would have already left by this time of day.
Seeing him pour himself a cup of tea, it seemed he would be staying for a while longer.
He didn’t call for her. She quietly walked away to find a vase and arrange the locust branch.
After dawdling for a long time, Xie Yao still showed no sign of leaving. Yuli’s legs were sore from standing by the vase.
“Come here,” Xie Yao suddenly said.
Yuli’s spirits sharpened, and she walked to his side.