Chapter 379
Just sitting across Lu Xinyi made Lan Xiaoli’s breathing rapid and shallow. She could feel her pulse pounding in her temples. It was a relief that she was sitting; she was deeply aware that her legs were shaking. She was afraid she’d trip or fall down if she was standing.
“I-I heard what happened to you at the campsite…” she stuttered, “I visited you the other day at Lunar Residence, but Miss Tang told me you’re not going to stay there for a week and offered me to bring me along with them to visit you…”
“Thank you for your concern, Miss Lan. I’m feeling much better now.” Lu Xinyi noticed a box of macarons on Lan Xiaoli’s lap. “Is that for me?”
Her expression instantly changed from coldness to excitement upon seeing Lan Xiaoli’s macarons. Lan Xiaoli passed the box to Lu Xinyi’s waiting hands. She was relieved to see that Lu Xinyi’s usual warmth was back on her face.
Lu Xinyi opened the box and saw colorful macarons inside. They were vastly different from the macarons Lan Xiaoli had made before. She could tell that Lan Xiaoli had taken several trial-and-errors to perfect her macarons.
Taking a piece, she bit down and hummed in delight as the sweetness of the macaron spread to her taste buds. Indeed, it was really better than the crumbling macarons Lan Xiaoli had before.
“How is it?” Lan Xiaoli fidgeted on her seat as she waited for Lu Xinyi’s opinion.
“Not bad. Not bad at all. It tasted better than the previous ones you made. You’d already perfected making the macaron shells. The only thing I could say you can improve is the buttercream filling you used. It’s a little too sweet and overwhelming.” Lu Xinyi grinned before popping the remaining half of the macaron in her mouth.
The four continued their conversation as they ate their snacks. Tang Liang had mentioned the schedule the academy released for the special class while Lan Xiaoli started to inform Lu Xinyi about the recent events within the academy.
When Lu Xinyi noticed that Lan Xiaoli faltered with her story, she raised a slender brow on her.
“What’s wrong? Is there a rumor about me going around again?” Lu Xinyi hit the bullseye. With Tang Lilou’s sour mood, Lu Xinyi was assured that it was indeed about her.
“Well…” Lan Xiaoli hesitated.
“Go ahead and tell me, Miss Lan. It wasn’t you who spread rumors about me so, technically, I wouldn’t get even with you,” Lu Xinyi assured her. Her voice was calm and composed. With her lazy posture on the couch, one wouldn’t think she couldn’t be bothered with these rumors.
Lan Xiaoli gulped down the lump on her throat. Lu Xinyi was really scary.
“I don’t know who started the rumors, but…”
“What did they say?”
“That you seduced President Shen to support you, and now you’re trying to get some favors from Tian Lingyu and Huang Shenghao…” Lan Xiaoli admitted in a low voice as if she was ashamed to tell Lu Xinyi.
There was a second of silence followed until Lu Xinyi broke into laughter. Her eyes teared up from laughing so hard. Ridiculous. Truly ridiculous. Was this the best they got to ruin her reputation?
“Miss Lu?” Lan Xiaoli wasn’t expecting this reaction from her. She thought Lu Xinyi would get angry once she heard of it.
Lu Xinyi wiped away her tears and apologized to Lan Xiaoli.
“I’m sorry, Miss Lan. I just found it really funny,” she said in between her laughter. Even Tang Liang found the humor about it, but it was a different case to his sister as Tang Lilou’s scowl deepened.
“One, it’s normal for a wife to seduce her husband once in a while.” That revelation shocked Lan Xiaoli’s heart. She thought that the two were only dating. Who would have thought that President Shen and Lu Xinyi skipped the courting and dating part and married after a week of knowing each other?
“As for Senior Brother Tian and Senior Brother Huang, I don’t know what their basis for it was.”
“Of course, it’s ridiculous. Only Wen Shufen could start a rumor like that.” Tang Lilou scoffed and pierced her cake impatiently. “She’s only good at talking shit about my Xin Jiejie.”
“Wen Shufen? That woman again?” Lu Xinyi cupped her chin. Wen Shufen was really testing her limits. Wasn’t it enough that she already used Han Yixin to challenge her in a cooking battle?
Wen Shufen was the one pulling strings, and yet Han Yixin was oblivious that she fell willingly into Wen Shufen’s trap. Not that Lu Xinyi cared about Han Yixin, but her poor judgment would lead her to humiliation.
“I just love rumors.” Lu Xinyi’s malicious smile appeared on her face again making Lan Xiaoli uncomfortable. “I always find amazing things about myself that I know nothing about.”
“But they are trying to ruin your reputation…” Tang Lilou objected. ρꪖꪕᦔꪖꪕꪫꪣꫀꪶ
“I can’t stop rumors from spreading, and I can’t really change people’s minds who believed them. All I can do is to sit back and laugh at these low-life people who have nothing better to do than talk about me.” Lu Xinyi shrugged her shoulders and picked another macaron to snack on. “Then again, just like what the popular saying says ‘rumors are carried by haters, spread by fools, and accepted by idiots’.”
“That’s true,” Tang Liang added, “There’s also a difference between knowing somebody and hearing about somebody. Just because you ‘heard’ doesn’t mean you know.”
“So you’ll just let them talk behind your back?” Tang Lilou asked.
“I’d be lying if I say I don’t care, but I try my best not to. Also, those who talk a lot about others have lots about themselves.” Lu Xinyi’s word baffled the Tang twins and Lan Xiaoli, but she didn’t bother to explain what she meant.
Wen Shufen. If only she hadn’t consistently tried to block her way, Lu Xinyi would’ve given her some face. However, she kept looking for death. Not only did she dare to use Han Yixin against her, but she also slandered Lu Xinyi’s name. Lu Xinyi wouldn’t let her off easily.
Noticing the confused looks the three were giving her, Lu Xinyi waved a hand, dismissing the issue.
“Don’t worry about it. It may look like I’m having deep thoughts, but in reality—99% of the time, I’m just thinking about what to eat later.” She devoured the remaining macaron on her hand in one go.
The three were left speechless but decided not to comment about her being a glutton. Tang Lilou’s eye twitched. Was her Xin Jiejie being too relaxed about it?
“Anyway, is President Shen treating you well?” she asked. If not, she’d find a way to take her Xin Jiejie away from the demon king.
“What do you mean?” It was Lu Xinyi’s turn now to be confused.
“Well, President Shen is known to be selfish, heartless, and cold-blooded,” Tang Liang explained what his sister meant.
Lu Xinyi snorted. Indeed, Shen Yi was a selfish, greedy, and powerful man who would take care of what he needed first before anything. Ironically, Lu Xinyi was one of his needs. Heartless? Maybe because she’d already taken his heart. Cold-blooded? She wasn’t sure of that.
“We’re okay. Nothing to worry about.”
It was late in the afternoon when the three decided to leave, giving Lu Xinyi enough time to prepare for dinner. Her husband would come home anytime soon. She would rather be prepared to eat enough, or she might find herself hungry later.
With the way Shen Yi couldn’t stop touching her, she was starting to think that it was his way to convince himself that she was fine, that she was truly back to him. Worse was she didn’t mind his advances. Speaking of the devil, he appeared behind her as she adjusted the seasoning of their dinner. There was a heated look in his eyes that she knew too well.
“I’m starving,” she muttered as she turned off the heat of the stove and let her husband pull her into his arms. Lu Xinyi noticed that she was hungrier lately. If it was because she didn’t have a decent meal ever since she went to the campsite or that her husband was just too good that she burned all those calories on their bed, she wasn’t sure.
“So am I,” Shen Yi grumbled which made her roll her eyes.
She stepped away from him and poked his chest with a finger.
“Dinner first before anything!” she insisted.
“Deal!” he replied eagerly.
Lu Xinyi wondered if she made the right decision or not. Her husband wolfed down the dinner she prepared and waited for her to finish. Leaving the dirty dishes in the sink and knowing someone would clean it for them, Shen Yi immediately snatched her up and brought her upstairs.
He carried her back to their bedroom, but instead of laying her down their bed, he took her inside the bathroom.
“What are you doing?” she asked curiously.
“What else but to have a shower. I want to have one with you.”
Not giving her a chance to decline, Shen Yi kissed her passionately and peeled off her clothes. He backed her into the shower without breaking their kiss. Lu Xinyi didn’t resist but smiled against his lips. He hoisted her up against the shower wall as she wrapped her legs and arms around him.
Minutes later, Lu Xinyi found herself still pinned in the wall with him inside of her, trying to figure out how to finish their shower at this rate. Her fingers were starting to turn pruney, and she was starting to get tired of her position. Taking a quick glimpse of Shen Yi’s face, she didn’t think he would stop anytime soon.
Urgh, this husband of hers was so demanding! Selfish indeed! But gods above did she really love him so.
Hours later, Shen Yi finally stopped and fell asleep on their bed, but Lu Xinyi was still deep in her thoughts. Since they arrived, Shen Yi’s behavior was like a kid afraid to lose his favorite toy. A bad comparison—she knew, but her husband was unusually clingy and had given her his undivided attention.
Of course, she was aware that he didn’t like Li Yuren. For some reason, the two couldn’t be on the same page, but Lu Xinyi wouldn’t force him to tell her what the problem was. When he stopped her from hopping down the chopper to talk to General Li, there were different emotions reflected in his eyes.
Afraid to start another rift between them, Lu Xinyi chose to stay with him and hadn’t insisted on meeting Li Yuren. Was he jealous? She wasn’t certain, but the months she had shared with him should be enough to reveal what was in her heart.
Her fingers played with his bangs as he slept. She sighed as she let herself trapped in his arms. She knew she was doomed when she admitted to herself that she was stupidly and happily in love with him. More so now than when they started this contract marriage.