Chapter 46: Lack of Intent, Being Turned Down
Chapter 46: Lack of Intent, Being Turned Down
Meanwhile, supporting female character Bai Xiangxiu was still waiting anxiously for a reply in Winter Garden. It couldn’t be helped. This was the first time she had confessed to a guy in two lifetimes; it was natural to be this tense.
Because she was too nervous, she didn’t eat or sleep well. She was actually a pretty calm person in the modern era, but ever since coming to the ancient times, she would often get fidgety or irritated for no reason. It really wasn’t her fault at all. This was an unfamiliar world with the occasional risk of being beaten to death.
As she waited for a number of days, she began to busy herself with helping out with most of the things around the estate. The old madame was rather pleased with her newfound enthusiasm. Long Heng had also visited her twice, but he only sat around for a short while before leaving and didn’t do anything overboard.
What in the world is the male lead thinking? He’d even come purposefully to tell her that the female lead’s older male cousin had been found, and that the latter had been beaten up quite badly. Actually, she felt rather satisfied by that, because the man had caused her some serious injuries.
It served him right to get beaten up. In fact, it would be even better if he was beaten up until even his own mother wouldn’t recognise him. However, why did the male lead come to tell her that piece of news? Perhaps he knew that Miss Lin had visited her room when she was leaving?
Her whole body trembled. As expected, the male lead wasn’t someone she should antagonize. Could it be that he had come to her place to ask about the female lead? It was strange though; he’d never actually asked anything.
She tossed and turned as she lay in bed, unable to fall asleep. It was quite cold at night, so she actually caught a cold as a result of tossing and turning like that.
Her throat started hurting the next day. It was then that the Song family returned the meal boxes. There was even a gift in return inside. When she opened it to look, she found a box of snacks.
Bai Xiangxiu became excited. Had she finally received a reply? She hurriedly wiped her hands, picked one up and ate it immediately.
“Madame Xiu, please don’t eat it so quickly. Those snacks should be eaten with tea.” Xiao Shi poured a cup of tea for Bai Xiangxiu while speaking. However, when she turned her head, she discovered that tears were leaking from Madame Xiu’s eyes as she stared at the snacks on the table. Her expression seemed a little lonely, and even contained a few traces of sorrow…
“Madame Xiu, what’s happened?” Frightened, Xiao Shi hurriedly ran over to ask.
Bai Xiangxiu’s heart was in a mess right now. She had failed both times she had tried to confess, completely and utterly. It was clear that she couldn’t expect the supporting male lead to save her from her situation. In all the snacks he had sent, there was no heart at all.
Unwilling to give up, she opened up all the snacks, but in the end, all of them were empty. He really had no heart at all! She had taken a knife for him and done so much, but in the end, she hadn’t been able to seduce him with this beautiful face.
In the end, she could only depend on herself to continue surviving in the prince’s estate. However, she needed a new plan, a new backer to save her from certain death. Who was left, who could be her next hope?
Too many ideas were whirling about in her head in that moment. Her thoughts spun until she felt that her mind turn completely blank. She heard Xiao Shi shout from what seemed like so far away as she collapsed in a heap.
Xiao Shi suffered a huge fright and hurriedly shouted outside, “Ye-mama, Ye-mama, get a doctor, quick! Madame Xiu just fainted!”
Ye-mama also suffered a fright. Was this Madame Xiu’s body made of paper or what? She had only just recovered enough to get up from bed a few days ago, and had fainted again already? However, she still ran to get a doctor. Regardless of whether the prince cared about Madame Xiu or not, she sent someone to inform him.
At this moment, Long Heng was being accompanied by Song Jiaoyue. They were both drinking tea as Song Jiaoyue said absentmindedly, “Official Xiu is trying to think of a way to find those bandits. Be careful to not let him find any evidence.”
“The people I have to take care of matters can’t even be detected by the people in the jianghu, so how could that idiot find anything?” Long Heng sneered, his cold aura washing over Song Jiaoyue and sending chills all over his body. What woman would be able to withstand him if he didn’t change this personality of his a little?
If that delicate woman were to see him today, what kind of reaction would she have?
Just as he was thinking this, an old servant came in from outside to report, “Your Highness, there’s a maid passing on a message outside. She says that Madame Xiu suddenly collapsed somehow.”
Song Jiaoyue’s hand trembled. Half of the tea in the cup spilled out and burned his hand, but he didn’t even feel it. He only felt a pang in his heart. He could only sit there, as he sought an appropriate reaction.
Meanwhile, Long Heng had already leapt to his feet, striding towards White Garden as he spoke, “Have they summoned a doctor to see her?”
“They’ve already found one, but they still don’t know why she collapsed.” The old servant replied as she followed.
Song Jiaoyue hesitated for a moment before following them. Afraid that Long Heng would misunderstand, he added, “It must have been caused by her old wounds. It’s all my fault.”
Long Heng assumed he was following along out of guilt. Once they reached the Winter Garden, Song Jiaoyue couldn’t enter and could only wait outside. Meanwhile, Long Heng walked in confidently. Snacks were scattered all over the floor, and Bai Xiangxiu was lying unconscious in her bed.
Her face was extremely pale and her countenance was abnormally calm. Even though she was sleeping, it seemed like there was no life in her. Tension knotted his heart until he hurriedly went to her side. His fingers gently grazed her face as he searched for a sign, any sign. Only when he realized that she had a steady breath did he relax.
When the doctor finally arrived, the prince’s thunderous expression frightened him badly. Without any prompting, he quickly went to check Madame Xiu’s pulse. Following that, the doctor frowned and said, “The madame only fainted because she caught a chill and was thinking too much. She should wake up after taking some medicine and rest.”
Upon hearing this, a thought seemed to strike Long Heng as he turned to Xiao Shi, “Has there been anything troubling Madame Bai recently?” Perhaps his mother had given her too much work to do?
Xiao Shi shook her head and said, “No… Not at all. Madame Xiu hasn’t been troubled by anything these few days.” She actually did seem to have something troubling her, but Xiao Shi wouldn’t betray her mistress’ confidence.
Long Heng frowned. Suddenly, he recalled how strange her reaction had been when he had told her about Official Xiu, as if she was waiting for him to ask her something. She had seemed a little baffled until she’d sent him off. Perhaps she had guessed that he already knew everything and was afraid that he would ask her about that matter? Perhaps she had overthought things to this point because she couldn’t speak of the matter to him?
The more he thought about it, the more likely that it seemed the case. He started to blame himself for being so careless. He shouldn’t mention irrelevant things to her in the future.
The doctor prescribed some medicine, sending Xiao Shi off to brew it. Long Heng sent Shu’er to inform Song Jiaoyue of Madame Xiu’s condition before he took a seat beside the bed. He would watch over her as she slept.
She wasn’t as cautious when she was asleep, so he could draw as close as he wished. This was the first time he had ever wanted to get this close to a woman.
Song Jiaoyue’s thoughts were different from Long Heng’s. She had been completely fine and hadn’t fainted until she had eaten a snack? He’d even heard that she had been crying, then wasn’t it…
He had no more reason to continue standing outside Winter Garden, so he could only return to the Song estate. That night, it was as if he had lost his soul, losing himself in wine and acting like a crazy drunkard.
Madame Song was worried and berated his servants, “How exactly are you servants taking care of the young master if you let him drink so much wine?”
Song Jiaoyue held back his own mother and smiled bitterly, “It’s because I let her down. I’m heartless, I don’t have a heart. If you don’t believe me, touch and see?”
Madame Song frowned. When had she ever seen her son act like this? He had always been carefree since he was a child; he had never shown a side like this before. She comforted him as best as she could, “Who said that my son is heartless! My son has a heart. Don’t go acting so crazy anymore. You’ll be fine after you sleep.”
How would Song Jiaoyue be willing to listen? “How would I have a heart? Where’s my heart? Don’t lie to me… Haha… She’s the one who has a heart, it’s her…” He swayed on his feet as he burst into laughter, overbalancing and crashing to the floor. As the servants hurried over, they were dumbfounded to hear soft snores coming from the collapsed heap that was Song Jiaoyue.
Madame Song interrogated the servants but they hadn’t a clue about their master’s behavior. She could only explain his drunkenness away by assuming he was grief-stricken over something. However, when Song Jiaoyue found out what he had done the next day, he broke out in a cold sweat.
It was already bad enough that he had gone so crazy. If he had accidentally blurted out her matter, how would everyone see her? How would the prince see her? From now on, he could never drink like this to try and make his worries disappear.