Chapter 13 – A Wolfish Woman (3)

After realising that this playtime—to him, teasing— had become her new habit, and that she would clean his hands after doing so, Shen Fei surprisingly tolerated her childish antics. Perhaps, he was afraid that she would refuse to wipe him clean if he didn’t.

There were times when Zhao Xi would forget to be scrupulous, casually running the wet towel over his skin, and he would keep getting her attention. She was confused at the start—the art of pantomiming was something foreign to her—but later, she understood that he wanted her to go over some spots again. This man could be considered a neat freak.

Silence was their fourth companion, as Shen Fei didn’t like to talk and she didn’t mind him so. There was a synergy between them—even though they had met each other only two days ago, the familiarity, the comfort in the absence of conversation, felt as if they had known each other for two years. Zhao Xi understood a lot of Shen Fei’s small actions, and it wasn’t a problem for him to stay silent. He could rely on her to slowly figure things out and understand him better.

She had another guilty pleasure; like a little ruffian, she enjoyed shocking people.

When the sun rose, dawn breaking against the grey expanse, perhaps at the lack of activities to do and feeling more familiar with his new environment, Shen Fei slept deeper than the first day. Zhao Xi noticed and didn’t wake him up, instead, she moved her bench out to the sun. He was still in deep slumber when she removed the blanket covering him and gently carried him out of bed.

Shen Fei felt himself stirring at the warmth on his skin. His long eyelashes gently trembled as his eyes squinted into a thin line. The bright rays of the sun made him close his eyes immediately. It took a while before he reopened them as they adjusted to the light. He habitually looked at his surroundings and realised that he was no longer in the room but out in the courtyard.

Zhao Xi was seated behind him, a small smile in place, and pulled him backwards till his head was no longer supported by the bench. She loosened the tie on his long hair, letting the ebony strands cascade down into a pail of warm water, and begin to wash them.

“We have a fine weather today. It would be a waste to remain inside and waste the sunlight,” she explained. She loved mornings, the tranquillity in nature and crisp mountain air filling her lungs. She also hoped that Shen Fei would have a dose of the morning’s goodness.

But while Zhao Xi loves the sun, she had the hunch her companion dislikes it. She discerned it from the color of his skin, pale as winter; his skin was that he looked sickly. It was obvious that a person with such countenance must hate the day and stayed indoors, and should probably be a night owl.

As expected, Shen Fei used his non-injured hand to shield his eyes. The light was like an onslaught on his eyes, hurting them.

Zhao Xi didn’t stop him. After she had wet his hair, she crushed the beans used for showering and applied them to his head. Small bubbles appeared as she rubbed and scrubbed his hair and scalp, generously giving him a head massage.

These bath beans, part of her recent purchases, were very expensive. A small bottle cost her two silvers, roughly the price of three blankets. Thankfully, the bath beans were of quality and gave off a fresh scent, making them a good value for money.

Zhao Xi suddenly caught a hold of a different scent. She grabbed some strands of his hair and brought them closer to her nose to smell. The fragrance was totally different from the bath beans, much more potent, fragrant, and even resembled the scent on Shen Fei’s body. It was the same with his clothes. Even though she used the same soap to wash their clothes, his clothes still smelled nicer than hers.

She heard how people said this before: how important households liked to use aromatic incense. Even the laundry room with washed garment and the rest of the residence would always be lighted with incense, ensuring that the scent wouldn’t dissipate with ease. Perhaps it was due to this reason that he always had a pleasant scent from the first day he came to her home.

“Oh, right!” Zhao Xi exclaimed, suddenly thinking of another matter, “Are you literate? Can you recognise many words?”

In truth there was no need to ask, the answer was so obvious—the man had the aura of a scholar. She had another thing in mind.

“Would you teach me please?” she asked. But she knew he wouldn’t do so for free, or even at her behest. Therefore, Zhao Xi told her of her absurd condition: “For every day that you teach me, I will not touch you,” she simply said so with a smile, meeting the man’s dark gaze.

It wasn’t that Zhao Xi was illiterate, it was just that she recognised few words and didn’t know how to read the more complicated terminology in her medical tomes. If Shen Fei was willing to teach her, then… she was willing not sleep with Shen Fei for the time being.