After confirming that Sijina had indeed left, His slumped back in his chair and let out a long sigh.
‘That was terrifying.’
‘I never expected that Feng Aotian would actually come looking for me.’
‘Good thing I’m innocent, or I might have met a DeadEnd today!’
‘Come to think of it, the witness Feng Aotian mentioned… could it be…?’
***
Ni Wei was still curled up in the chair, her hands tightly gripping the hem of her skirt.
The girl’s mind was already in chaos.
No one was being bullied here, and her sister wasn’t under any magic control.
The words she had said to Sijina earlier now felt like slaps, hitting her face hard.
She had not only misunderstood His but had dragged an innocent person into it, making her look foolish in public…
“Ni Wei.”
Rafina’s voice came from behind her, still gentle.
“Are you okay?”
Ni Wei shook her head, then nodded, and finally buried her face in her hands.
“I’m sorry…”
The girl’s voice trembled slightly.
“Sister… I’m sorry…”
Rafina gently placed her hand on her younger sister’s head.
“It’s okay.”
***
That evening, Ni Wei didn’t come downstairs for dinner.
Rafina called her several times but still couldn’t get her out.
It wasn’t that she wasn’t hungry; she just didn’t know how to face anyone.
What happened today was too embarrassing.
She’d rather stay huddled under the covers than go out.
But fate had other plans.
Just as the girl was spacing out on her bed, the door suddenly swung open.
His walked in carrying a tray of food.
“Get up and eat properly.”
“Ah! Why didn’t you knock?”
“Would knocking have helped?”
His set the tray on the nightstand, then pulled up a chair and sat down beside the bed.
Ni Wei instinctively pulled the covers higher, leaving only her eyes visible as she stared at His.
“I don’t want to…”
“Eat now.”
His tone was calm but carried an air of finality.
Ni Wei hesitated for a moment, then emerged from the covers and reached for the tray.
His watched as she took small sips of the soup, finally letting out a sigh of relief inside.
‘You absolutely can’t get sick. If you do, and your sister gets mad and leaves to find Feng Aotian, what would I do?’
“Is there anything else you want to eat?”
“N-no… nothing.”
“Okay, you eat first.”
The room fell silent.
His sat at the bedside, not speaking anymore, but also showing no sign of leaving.
This situation made Ni Wei feel extremely uncomfortable.
“Why… why aren’t you leaving yet?”
“I’m waiting for you to finish.”
Another silence.
Ni Wei bit her lip and finally spoke.
“Um…”
“Hmm?”
“About today… I’m sorry…”
Her voice was so soft it was barely audible.
“I misunderstood you earlier.”
Seeing that His didn’t respond, Ni Wei had no choice but to continue.
“I always thought you were up to no good, that my sister was under your control and that’s why she treated you that way…”
Ni Wei lowered her head, her fingers rubbing against the soup bowl.
“You gave us such good jobs, helped cure our bodies… I should have realized long ago that my sister chose to stay with you willingly… but I just…”
Ni Wei sighed.
“You’re a good person.”
“Pfft.”
Hearing the girl’s final “good person” comment, His couldn’t help but laugh out loud.
“What are you laughing at?!”
“Nothing, nothing. I’m a good person, so I deserve to be suspected, right? Hahaha.”
“I didn’t say you deserved it, I just…”
Ni Wei lowered her head again, her voice shrinking.
“I’m sorry…”
“Alright, alright.”
His patted the girl’s head.
“Since the misunderstanding is cleared up, let’s let bygones be bygones. Is there anywhere you want to go for fun? I can give you a few days off to adjust your mood.”
Ni Wei stared at His’s expression for a long time, then asked uncertainly,
“You’re not… trying to cheer me up, are you?”
“No.”
“You totally are!”
“I’m not.”
“You!”
Ni Wei glared at His with a puffed-up face, but somehow felt a warmth in her heart.
This guy had been wronged by her for so long, and today she had brought the church people to cause trouble, yet he showed no anger at all.
What a strange person.
“Alright, I can see you’re fine now, so I’ll head back. If you want to go out and play, just come find me tomorrow.”
With that, His stood up and put the chair back in its place.
“Actually, don’t blame yourself too much. You wanted to protect your sister—I understand.”
The spoon in Ni Wei’s hand trembled slightly.
“But next time, instead of guessing blindly, just come and ask the person involved.”
His’s tone made it sound like an insignificant matter.
But Ni Wei could tell that every word he said was sincere.
***
A while later, Rafina returned to the room and saw that Ni Wei had eaten everything on the tray. She nodded in satisfaction.
“Good, it seems Young Master His was right—you really are fine.”
“Sister.”
“What is it?”
“You… aren’t you going to scold me?”
“If Young Master His said it’s okay, why would I scold you?”
Rafina sat back down on her own bed.
“But I…”
Ni Wei didn’t know how to say it.
She had always been the well-behaved one in her sister’s eyes, yet today she had caused a huge disaster for her sister.
If His hadn’t been so forgiving, she might have been kicked out of the Duke’s Mansion, and her sister would have been affected too.
“Ni Wei.”
Rafina leaned over and stroked her sister’s head.
“We’re sisters, right?”
“Yeah…”
“So you don’t need to be like this. Just be yourself.”
“Sister, you…”
“Alright, go to sleep now. Tomorrow, remember to go find Young Master His on your own.”
With that, Rafina turned around and lay down.
“Yeah…”
***
The next morning, Ni Wei took a long time before finally leaving her room.
She stood in front of the dining room for a long time, until Rafina gave her a gentle push from behind.
“Go on in.”
“I-I know!”
Ni Wei blushed and walked into the dining room.
Inside, His was having breakfast while reading a newspaper.
“…Morning.”
Ni Wei hesitated for a moment, finally forcing out a single word.
“Morning.”
His’s tone was exactly the same as before, as if yesterday had never happened.
Ni Wei lowered her head, walked quickly to the seat next to His, sat down, grabbed a piece of bread, and started eating with her head buried.
Rafina entered as well and placed a glass of milk in front of Ni Wei.
“Slow down.”
“Yeah.”
Ni Wei bit into the bread and secretly glanced at His, only to meet his eyes looking back at her.
The girl immediately lowered her head, but the tips of her ears began to turn red.
“What are you looking at!”
“You’re the one looking at me.”
“I’m not!”
“There’s breadcrumbs… stuck on your face.”
“!”
Ni Wei hastily wiped the corner of her mouth with a napkin, but found no breadcrumbs at all.
“You tricked me!”
Rafina stood nearby, watching their interaction, and couldn’t help but laugh.
***
After breakfast, His went to the study to handle business as usual.
While helping Rafina clear the table, Ni Wei asked,
“Sister, last night he said he wanted to take me out.”
“Well, that’s a good thing.”
Rafina’s face still held a gentle smile.
“Is there anywhere you want to go, Sister? Let’s go together.”
“No need.”
Rafina picked up the dishes.
“I already had my break. There’s a lot of work in the mansion now, and Housekeeper Florin is often away. I’ll stay here.”
“But…”
“Alright, leave this to me. You should go tidy up the study.”
With that, Rafina took the dishes from Ni Wei’s hands and headed to the kitchen.
Watching her sister’s back, Ni Wei suddenly felt an indescribable emotion.
‘Sister… she seems so at ease.’
***
At the door of His’s study, Ni Wei hesitated internally for a moment, then knocked.
“Come in.”
The girl pushed open the door and entered.
His was sitting behind the desk, with several documents spread out in front of him.
“Decided where you want to go?”
“Yeah…”
“Let’s hear it.”
“I… I want to go see the Royal Capital.”
“Oh?”
His raised his head and looked at the girl with interest.
“The Royal Capital, huh?”
“What? Is that not okay?”
“It’s doable…”
His leaned back in his chair.
‘The Royal Capital…’
‘Come to think of it, my father, Duke Blackstone, has been there in meetings for a long time and hasn’t returned to the mansion.’
‘I’ve added quite a bit of property to the Blackstone family lately. Maybe I should report to him.’
“Since you’ve decided, we’ll leave this afternoon.”
“So soon?!”
“From here to the Royal Capital, a one-way carriage ride takes a whole day. Add in time for sightseeing…”
His said with a smile,
“How long do you think your vacation will be?”
“I…”
“Alright, go pack your bags.”
“Oh…”
Ni Wei responded and turned to leave the study.
Watching the girl’s back, His rubbed his temples and began writing a report to present to Duke Blackstone once they reached the Royal Capital.
***
That afternoon, the two took a carriage and left the Blackstone Duke Mansion.
“Since it takes two days to reach the Royal Capital, where will we stay tonight?”
Watching the huge mansion gradually disappear from view, Ni Wei asked with some concern.
“Don’t worry about that.”
His pulled out a map and spread it on the table between them.
“Around dinner time, we’ll pass through Yihanfa Town.”
His pointed to a spot on the map.
“The barbecue here is famous. We’ll rest here tonight and try it.”
“Hmm…”
Ni Wei nodded.
“What? Are you worried I’m going to sell you?”
“N-No way!”
Ni Wei retorted loudly, then lowered her voice a little.
“I know… you wouldn’t do that to me…”
Seeing His’s half-smile, the girl asked tentatively,
“R-right?”
“Of course not.”
Seeing the girl’s expression, His couldn’t help but reach out and ruffle her hair, which made Ni Wei shake her head fiercely.
“Stop patting my head! I’m not a kid anymore!”