Chapter 8: The Smiling Tiger’s Gift (1)
It would have been much easier if she had the original Lin Xueyi’s memories, but unfortunately, the only source of information she could rely on was the novel itself.
She knew that Rong Mingze was fairly close to the original Lin Xueyi’s father, but she had never seen him interact with Lin Xueyi directly.
The reason was actually quite simple. In the story, Lin Xueyi was nothing more than a foolish little villainess who only appeared in the early Chapters. Once she died, the author rarely mentioned her again and her past was never explored either because, so in the end, she was only a minor character.
Because of that, Lin Xueyi was truly lost right now.
[Are they close like... romantically? Or are they just friends?]
She immediately rejected her own guess. [Friends? Please. I’d probably ascend to heaven before I believed a man like him would look at someone as beautiful as Lin Xueyi and think, "Ah yes, a good friend."]
[Something is definitely fishy here...]
Rong Shuyan frowned because he did not smell any fish at all. However, he did not dwell on it for long because he still had to respond to Rong Mingze.
"Third Brother," Rong Shuyan greeted calmly. "you really didn’t have to come all the way here to visit me. I know you’re busy."
The moment he spoke, Rong Mingze finally shifted his attention away from Lin Xueyi.
"Didn’t have to?" Rong Mingze repeated with a smile. "Third Brother, how could visiting my little brother ever be a bother?"
Lin Xueyi immediately grumbled in her mind.
[Yanyan, don’t believe a single word he says! Every time he leaves after visiting you, he spits three times in your courtyard!]
[And whenever he talks about you with his subordinates, he always calls you a cripple!]
[Yanyan, Rong Mingze is bad! Really, really, really bad!]
Lin Xueyi knew very well that Rong Shuyan could not hear her thoughts. Even so, a small part of her wished he could. That way, she would not have to rack her brain trying to find a way to warn him.
But after thinking about it for a moment, Lin Xueyi quickly shook her head. [No, no, no. That would be terrible if Yanyan could hear my thoughts. He’d probably throw me into a hot pot if he found out I call him Yanyan!]
Unfortunately for her, he could indeed hear every single one of her thoughts loud and clear.
"How thoughtful of you, Third Brother," Rong Shuyan said at last. He stopped his wheelchair across from Rong Mingze, while Lin Xueyi quietly took the seat beside him.
Beneath the table, she kept wringing her robe between her fingers, unable to stop wondering if getting too close to Rong Mingze might somehow lead to an affair or maybe they had already had one.
[Rong Shuyan hates me, but I don’t think he’d be happy if he found out his wife was having an affair with his own brother.] Lin Xueyi sighed inwardly. [Men in this era always think their wives are their property. If something like that happened, I’d probably be the one who suffers the most.]
She didn’t want anything bad to happen to Rong Shuyan, but she wanted even less for something bad to happen to herself.
Now that her mind had finally calmed down, Lin Xueyi realized she truly had to be careful with every step she took in this world.
"I’m only doing what any brother should do," Rong Mingze said with a warm smile. He then motioned to the servant standing behind him, signaling him to bring something over. "I know you’ve spent years living with a body that never feels warm, so I brought you something that might help."
The servant carefully placed a black lacquered box on the table. When it was opened, two silk pouches filled with premium spring Longjing tea were revealed, each tied with a neat red cord.
As soon as one of the pouches was untied, the fresh, rich scent of tea spread through the room.
"I heard from the Imperial Physician that tea can also help calm your mind. That’s why—"
"My husband doesn’t drink tea!"
Before Rong Mingze could finish, Lin Xueyi quickly snapped the black lacquered box shut, cutting off the strong aroma before it could fill the room.
Both Rong Mingze and Rong Shuyan turned to stare at her in confusion.
[Scary! So scary! Why do they have to look so much alike?!] Lin Xueyi screamed in her mind.
She then realized that her impulsive action would probably bring her terrible consequences.
"T-This Consort apologizes for being so rude," Lin Xueyi said, lowering her head slightly. Even so, she stubbornly kept both hands on top of the box, refusing to let anyone open it again. "I only wanted to let Third Brother know that my husband’s sense of smell has become very sensitive because of the medicine he just took."
"More than that, the medicine His Highness just took doesn’t go well with tea. That’s why..." Lin Xueyi swallowed hard when she accidentally noticed Rong Mingze narrow his eyes ever so slightly, revealing the silent anger hidden behind his smile.
Forcing herself to keep going, she said, "That’s why... This Consort will keep the tea until His Highness is feeling better."
[Yanyan! Yanyan! This isn’t ordinary tea! It’s poisoned!] Lin Xueyi shouted in her mind. [The poison may not show any effects at first, but if you drink it every day, you’ll slowly become sick!]
"I see..." Rong Mingze replied slowly. "It’s just... I consulted the Imperial Physician before coming here, and he assured me that tea wouldn’t have any effect on Shuyan."
Lin Xueyi held her breath. She didn’t even dare blink. Now that she had taken such a bold step, she had to accept that there would be consequences.
[Damn it! I just remembered that the Imperial Physician treating Yanyan is this smiling tiger’s spy!]
[Ah, forget about him! Yanyan is probably going to think I’m crazy because I made that excuse up!]