Descending the stairs, Shang Hexing headed towards the dining hall.
Only one person was seated at the vast dining table, and Shang Hexing's gaze landed on the slender figure in front of him.
After returning from the mountain villa, Wen Zhi had deliberately changed her clothes, swapping her loose-fitting top for a thin style. The color was not eye-catching, but her figure certainly was.
Wen Zhi hadn't noticed yet that someone was watching her from behind.
She just wanted to finish eating and leave before the others from upstairs came down.
At this moment, her cheeks were puffed out with food when suddenly the seat beside her was pulled back, and someone sat down.
Wen Zhi thought it was someone from upstairs coming down to eat.
But when she turned her head and saw that the other person was Shang Hexing, she suddenly swallowed the piece of meat she had been chewing on, and then she choked on it.
"..."
Not wanting to lose her composure in front of Shang Hexing, Wen Zhi tried to suppress the discomfort of choking hard until her little face turned red and she couldn't bear it anymore, then she hastily stood up.
"Sit down."
It was Shang Hexing's voice, telling her to sit down.
Wen Zhi was extremely tense, pondering her situation in this place. She clenched her teeth and sat down, enduring the discomfort.
Her expression of deep-seated sorrow was caught by Shang Hexing's eyes. He slightly curved his lips upward and extended his hand to her back.
Like a frightened bird, Wen Zhi instinctively shied away from his touch, but then she heard his steady voice by her ear, "Bend forward and stretch your neck out."
Understanding his intention, Wen Zhi complied.
Shang Hexing's palm opened and after a few firm but gentle pats on Wen Zhi's back, her complexion greatly improved.
Good heavens!
She finally recovered!
A servant brought over a hot towel, which Shang Hexing took and wiped his hands with, asking her while he did so, "Feeling better?"
Wen Zhi lifted her head, her cheeks still flushed from the choking, and her apricot eyes were watery, evoking sympathy.
Shang Hexing discreetly averted his gaze.
Wen Zhi didn't understand Shang Hexing's recent expression and took a deep breath to nod, "Much better now, thank you."
Having wiped his hands, Shang Hexing placed the towel aside. The servant immediately took it away and swiftly set new bowls and dishes.
The dishes today looked quite appetizing.
Shang Hexing picked up his chopsticks and, before he began to eat, gestured to Wen Zhi, "Go ahead and eat."
Wen Zhi felt on pins and needles, "…I've already finished eating."
Shang Hexing responded, "Being constantly on edge will only make it difficult for you to rest and eat. Since you're going to live here for a while, you should adapt as quickly as possible."
Wen Zhi explained, "I just have a small appetite."
"It's quite small indeed," Shang Hexing remarked as he withdrew his gaze and reached out for some food with his chopsticks.
Wen Zhi didn't deliberately ponder Shang Hexing's attitude. Right now, she just wanted to stand up and leave.
But since Shang Hexing had just sat down, it would seem very rude for her to just walk away. She had no choice but to suffer through it and sit beside him quietly, watching Shang Hexing dine.
Yet, as she watched, Wen Zhi didn't know why, but she became mesmerized.
Shang Hexing's face gradually overlapped with some images from her dreams…
It was over—she was thinking about last night's dream again.
The face in her dream, the red mole, the streaming sweat, the intense scent…
Wen Zhi suddenly snapped back to reality and shook her head vigorously, trying to throw those images out of her mind.
Her odd movements made it difficult for Shang Hexing to ignore, "What's the matter?"
Coming back to her senses and realizing her recent lapse, Wen Zhi hastily looked for an excuse, "…I usually don't pay much attention to dining etiquette. It's a bad habit, so I was just trying to learn from Mr. Shang's dining etiquette."
Shang Hexing set down his chopsticks and took a sip from his cup, "Table manners depend on the occasion. If there are no outsiders, just eat comfortably. As for me, it's because I'm used to attending various banquets all year round."
Listening to Shang Hexing's steady pace of speaking, Wen Zhi continued the conversation, "Does that habit ever become wearying?"
Shang Hexing replied, "No."
Habits can become a part of oneself, and generally, one doesn't grow tired of them, yet there may still be a desire to change certain habits.
When Wen Zhi raised her gaze and realized Shang Hexing was looking at her, she then became aware that she had actually started a conversation with Shang Hexing.
She gave a wry smile and, seeing Shang Hexing had also nearly finished eating, finally said, "I'm finished eating, I..." excused herself.
Before she finished speaking, Shang Hexing suddenly asked, "You seem to be very afraid of me."
Wen Zhi clenched her back teeth, why did he have to ask so bluntly, putting her in a spot on how to respond?
"Wen Zhi," Shang Hexing called her name, and asked her, "That's the correct way to call you, right?"
Wen Zhi felt a twinge of panic inside but maintained her composure on the outside, nodding her head: "Yes."
Shang Hexing's gaze was gentle, and the aura he emitted didn't put too much pressure on Wen Zhi: "Meng Fan has had a penchant for hyperbole since childhood."
Wen Zhi was puzzled: "What exactly did Meng Fan... what did she say?"
Shang Hexing: "Think about it for yourself."
Think about it for myself...
Like a slideshow playing in her mind, Wen Zhi recalled the remarks made by Meng Fan.
[My uncle is notoriously callous and unemotional.]
[A complete workaholic, nobody ends well with him.]
[Unless necessary, stay away from him. We live in a good era; otherwise, he certainly would have been a cold-blooded tyrant who kills without blinking.]
The image froze on the word 'tyrant', and Wen Zhi, biting her lower lip, didn't quite dare to look directly into Shang Hexing's eyes: "Mr. Shang, Meng Fan and I actually..."
Shang Hexing said indifferently: "Meng Fan said it's not your fault; she took the blame."
"..."
Wu wu wu, good Meng Fan, sharing blessings, but taking on difficulties alone.
After a brief moment of feeling touched, Wen Zhi immediately fell back into confusion, wondering how Shang Hexing knew about her conversation with Meng Fan at the Hot Spring Pool.
She was so engrossed in this question that she didn't notice Shang Hexing was observing her.
At that moment, images from the night before surfaced in Shang Hexing's mind; his Adam's apple moved as he nonchalantly picked up a cup of water from the table and took a sip.
Catching a glimpse of her increasingly anxious expression from the corner of his eye, the smile lines at the corner of his eyes deepened, and he eventually offered an explanation: "I was coming out of Bamboo Valley Egret and happened to run into Meng Fan."
Bamboo Valley Egret?
If she remembered correctly, Bamboo Valley Egret was the private hot spring next to Meng Fan's.
Shang Hexing said he was coming out from Bamboo Valley Egret... so the neighboring Bamboo Valley Egret was his private hot spring!?
Shang Hexing's eyes slightly narrowed: "Meng Fan has been afraid of me since she was a child. I simply asked her whose private hot spring Yun Jianyou was, and she admitted that she shouldn't discuss elders next door."
Wen Zhi nervously interjected, "She... "
Shang Hexing: "Actually, I didn't hear anything; she's just too guilty."
Wen Zhi: "…!"
She knew that Meng Fan was scared of her uncle, turning timid at the mere mention of him, but she hadn't expected Meng Fan to be so scared as to confess without being pressed.
However, since things had been made this clear, it would be improper for her to keep pretending ignorance, so she admitted her fault with a serious demeanor: "I apologize, Mr. Shang; it won't happen again."
Shang Hexing quietly watched her, silent, the hint of a smile hiding in the corners of his eyes.
Wen Zhi stole a glance at him, their eyes met, and she gave an awkward smile.
Shang Hexing averted his gaze: "I don't wish for you to understand me through the words of others and hold prejudices against me."
Wen Zhi was taken aback, not fully grasping the meaning behind Shang Hexing's words.
But he didn't elaborate further, reaching for his chopsticks again: "Are you sure you're done eating?"
"I've finished." Coming back to her senses, Wen Zhi promptly stood up: "I'll be leaving first."
Shang Hexing acknowledged with a hum.
Wen Zhi walked back to her room unusually fast.
She only breathed a sigh of relief once she had closed the door.
She found her phone and dialed Meng Fan's number, but Meng Fan seemed too guilty to pick up, daring only to weakly send a "?" through WeChat.
Wen Zhi thought for a moment, then decided to send a voice message: "Your uncle kicked me out of the house!"