Chapter 14 – The Debauchee and Trickster (1)

Despite feeling tired, Zhao Xi was unable to fall asleep; a part of her felt disappointed. Shen Fei was definitely not a person with loose morals and was cautious towards her. Zhao Xi realized that whenever she got up to use the toilet during the night, his eyes were always looking at her, vigilant, almost distrustful. If she were to guess, he probably never slept during the night.

Probably unaware that Zhao Xi’s eyesight was good in the dark, he did his best to watch her closely; his eyes shone with determination to stay alert and keep his guard up against her.

Zhao Xi saw his utmost caution, and for the first time, she felt that her master’s teachings were incorrect.

Madam told her that all men, like wild savages, were driven by their carnal desires. A woman only had to flirt casually and nine out of ten would be more than willing to join her in bed—the tenth man would hesitate before diving into pleasure just like the rest.

Yet here was Shen Fei—a man definitely different from the men her master had slept with. He was a special case who cherished his body. And to his eyes, she was a lustful succubus on the prowl to devour him.

Believing that Zhao Xi would refrain from touching him when Ping An was around during the day, Shen Fei would only dare to sleep when the sun was up. His sleepless nights have turned him into a kind of vampire that only slumbers when there was sunlight. In turn, she as well, was truly becoming a feared creature of the night.

For Zhao Xi, it was a futile endeavor. It seems like Shen Fei couldn’t understand her.

She wants a man to sleep with her willingly; even if liked that person, she wouldn’t force herself on him. The bear had nothing to do with anything that was happening.

Of course, her habit of playing with his hands and ogling at his body with no reservations may have caused him to misunderstand. She couldn’t find the harm in that, after all, it was what her master had taught her. Like biology, men and women alike are drawn to beautiful things—she was no exception. But she realized this blatant regard for beauty was troublesome; it would be difficult for him to change his opinions about her anytime soon.

Well, if there’s another thing she knew, it was: Time shows a person’s true heart; she didn’t need to rush for him to realize her sincerity.

*

Zhao Xi slowly dried his hair after washing it. She inhaled the scent of his locks, tumbling the ebony locks between her fingers. His hair smelled sweet more than ever. She continued to wipe his face, hands and neck, then gave him some salt water to clean his mouth. Only after she was done did she leave him alone to rest.

She was cooking porridge in the pot using hot coal, and it didn’t require much attention. At the same time, she brewed the medicine and brought Ping An out for a walk. The greedy bear had gotten so fat that his tummy was protruding; if he didn’t exercise, his body would weaken, and he may not be able to survive the harsh winter.

Bears needed to hibernate during winter. Every year during autumn, Zhao Xi would bring the black bear with her, making it run with her and hunt at the same time.

In this season, a variety of fruits could also be found everywhere. Thinking that Shen Fei might like fruits, and since she was bored, she picked the fruits during their course. Before long, she had filled her bag with delicious fruits. The fruits in autumn were fresh. Fruits that couldn’t be consumed before they spoil could also be used to make buns and ferment wine. Even if she picked too much, there was always something to do with the leftover produce.

After picking the fruits, Zhao Xi realized that there was still time to spare, so she cleared the rocks that had fallen off from the cliff and watered the vegetable plot and medicinal plants in the courtyard. By the time she returned, the pot had just started to boil, and the porridge hadn’t turned into a mush.

Zhao Xi felt lazy to stir-fry the vegetables, so she boiled them instead. The food cooking in the big pot was split into layers; the bottom layer contained porridge, and the top layer contained steamed fish, prawns, crabs and any other delicacies they had caught.

She suddenly recalled that she had set out a fish basket two days ago. Ever since rescuing Shen Fei, taking care of his needs had taken up most of her time that she nearly forgot about it. Now that she remembered about it now, she quickly retrieved it, then washed it before putting it into the pot to also steam.

Porridge requires a long time to cook. There was still sufficient time to steam the fish basket.

Knowing how picky Shen Fei is with food, Zhao Xi was very focused while cooking. She added many different condiments to flavor the dishes, used some herbs to enhance the flavor to make the dish even more nutritious. Zhao Xi was very pleased with the finished dish and believed that Shen Fei shouldn’t have any problems with it either. However, the unexpected happened.

His notorious picky mouth was ever present; he removed all the herbs and spices added, discarding them to the side. After all the pepper, star anises, cinnamon sticks, and other ingredients were taken out, the contents inside the bowl of porridge was halved! He ate the fish that was left but he didn’t even touch the crabs or prawns.

Zhao Xi silently observed and understood he doesn’t dislike them, but with only one hand, it was inconvenient for him to crack and peel the crabs and prawns.