Shen Mingzhu instinctively and hurriedly poured a cup of tea for Li Xiyu. She reached out and patted Li Xiyu's back, apologizing slightly, "It's all my fault. The mountain wind is too cold. We should have gone inside to talk." Li Xiyu's face was a bit pale. Seeing this, she held back the urge to cough and comforted Shen Mingzhu, "No, my health has been like this for years. It's not your fault."
"It's okay... it's okay." As she said this, Li Xiyu began to cough intermittently again. She said to Shen Mingzhu, "I'll be fine after I catch my breath."
Shen Mingzhu nodded slightly, trying her best to maintain her composure on the surface. Her hand hidden in her sleeve was tightly clenched into a fist, and a dull pain welled up in her heart.
Li Xiyu used to be in good health, even better than Shen Mingzhu, who was afraid of the cold. She rarely got sick on weekdays, but today she looked pale just because of a chill.
Over the years, although she seemed calm on the surface, in fact, she had never really let it go. Shen Mingzhu didn't even dare to think about the future. What would Li Xiyu do after they found out the truth?
"Sorry," Li Xiyu said with a touch of apology in her tone. She said to Shen Mingzhu, "I'll have to trouble you to move inside again. It's really..."
Shen Mingzhu quickly stood up. Looking at Li Xiyu, she frowned and said, "Sister Xiyu, if you keep talking to me like this, I'll really get angry."
Li Xiyu smiled. She wanted to say something, but all her words were drowned out by her coughing. One cough after another made Shen Mingzhu's heart skip a beat.
After they entered the house and sat for a while, Li Xiyu's face became a bit rosier.
"Mingzhu," Li Xiyu looked a bit worried. She still couldn't help but continue, "This method is too dangerous. Maybe it's not a good plan. How about we think about it again and see if there are any other ways?"
Li Xiyu felt a bit helpless. She had watched Shen Mingzhu grow up. Being three years older than her, she knew Shen Mingzhu's temper and personality very well. Generally, once Shen Mingzhu made a decision, no one could persuade her. So Li Xiyu didn't think she could really persuade her not to do this.
She just hoped that Shen Mingzhu would be more cautious and pay attention to her own safety.
"Sister Xiyu."
Shen Mingzhu responded softly. She looked up at Li Xiyu seriously and said, "I'll be careful. If something really happens, I'll just give up."
"However..." Shen Mingzhu hesitated a bit and said uncertainly, "I hope you can help me with something."
Looking at Shen Mingzhu's expression, Li Xiyu couldn't help but sigh. Looking into Shen Mingzhu's bright phoenix eyes, she suddenly remembered that that person used to look at her like this too. But his gaze was gentler than Shen Mingzhu's, with a softness that made people's hearts melt.
She was stunned. When she came back to her senses, she couldn't help but cough a few times. "Do you want me to find a way to hold back Xie Lang?"
"Sister Xiyu knows me best," Shen Mingzhu said with a touch of solemnity in her tone. "Now only you can keep him from getting suspicious."
Li Xiyu couldn't help but hesitate a bit. Looking at Shen Mingzhu, there was a bit of disapproval in her eyes. "You're not completely indifferent to Xie Lang."
Shen Mingzhu didn't refute. She just lowered her eyes. Her long eyelashes covered the expression in her eyes, casting shadows under her eyelids, making it hard for Li Xiyu to see her emotions.
"This is a matter for a lifetime. You can't keep everything from him," Li Xiyu said, feeling sorry for Shen Mingzhu. She continued gently, "It's easy to tell a lie, but hard to cover it up. Xie Lang is definitely not the kind of person in the rumors. He will surely notice your concealment. If he asks you about it then, what will you say?"
Shen Mingzhu frowned. She instinctively felt that Xie Lang wouldn't agree with her decision, but she still stubbornly found an unreasonable excuse and said to Li Xiyu, "But I can't fully trust him yet."
"Okay."
Seeing that Shen Mingzhu was being insincere, Li Xiyu sighed deeply and said gently to her, "If you really want to do it, I naturally can't not help you."
"Thank you, Sister Xiyu," Shen Mingzhu said guiltily, looking at Li Xiyu. She was a bit reluctant to involve her again, but if she wanted to keep it from Xie Lang, it would be impossible.
"Tomorrow I'll ask Chuntao to tell you. At that time, please keep Xie Lang here for a while. Try to keep him as long as possible."
Shen Mingzhu's tone was a bit dull. "If you can't keep him, don't force it."
"Okay," Li Xiyu reached out and stroked Shen Mingzhu's head. She said gently to her, "Mingzhu, as long as you want to do something, I'll help you."
Looking at Li Xiyu's face, Shen Mingzhu's heart sank a bit. She nodded and said okay.
She must find out the truth. She must know the truth about that incident!
Watching Shen Mingzhu leave, Li Xiyu waited until she was out of sight and the maid closed the door. Then she started coughing violently.
"Miss!"
Li Xiyu's maid, Ciqiu, looked worried. She quickly brought her some medicine.
Li Xiyu took the pills and drank some warm water. After a while, she felt a bit better.
"Miss, why don't you rest for a while? I'll keep watch for you. When it's almost time, I'll wake you up," Ciqiu said.
Li Xiyu smiled when she heard this. She said to Ciqiu, "There's no such thing as almost time. I only have these days, and I don't have many chances to come here. Naturally, I want to spend more time with him."
Ciqiu felt heartbroken. She turned her head and quietly wiped away her tears. Seeing the discomfort on Li Xiyu's face, she felt even more sad.
If it weren't for that incident, she might have seen the young master by now. Why was God so unfair to such a good person like her miss!
Seeing that Ciqiu was about to cry again, Li Xiyu reached out and patted her. She softened her voice and said, "Let's go."
Early in the morning, Li Xiyu was already standing in the main hall. To her surprise, she found that someone had come even earlier than her.
When she saw the face of the person who turned around, Li Xiyu was even more surprised. She let out a little exclamation and said, "Young Master Xie?"
When Xie Lang saw Li Xiyu, a smile appeared on his face. He said to her, "You don't have to be so polite to me. Just call me by my name. You're the prince's sister, so you're naturally my sister too."
Li Xiyu was a bit touched in her heart, but she still said gently to Xie Lang, "You're being too polite, son-in-law. If you don't mind, you can just call me the same way Mingzhu does."
Xie Lang knew what was on Li Xiyu's mind beneath her gentle surface. After all, Li Xiyu was originally going to be the crown princess and even the queen of the country. Her upbringing and means were quite excellent. Anything he did now would be superfluous, and trying to curry favor would seem deliberate.
It would be better to let her see his feelings for Shen Mingzhu. Only then would the person in front of him really accept him.
Li Xiyu was also the family member that Shen Mingzhu had recognized.
Thinking like this, Xie Lang's expression remained unchanged. He said gently to Li Xiyu, "In that case, I won't disturb you, Sister Xiyu. I'll leave first."