When Pei Ruheng woke, the back of his neck still ached sharply.

He struggled to sit up, catching the sound of Pei Rumei nearby, one exclamation following another: “You should have seen Physician Wang’s expression just now — he’s been here this whole time, and that was the first time I’ve ever seen him so pleased.”

“Physician Wang?” he murmured, repeating the name.

“You’re awake?” Chen Baoxiang leaned over with a cheerful smile. “The porridge just finished — would you like some?”

“You.” He frowned. “What are you doing here?”

Before Chen Baoxiang could answer, Pei Rumei flung herself forward, bursting with excitement: “Brother, Sister Baoxiang has remarkable talent! Physician Wang insisted we must keep her here.”

Her? Remarkable talent?

Pei Ruheng laughed despite himself: “Have you forgotten what she looked like the first time she came to see me?”

In truth, he wouldn’t ordinarily have harbored such strong disdain for a woman — but that day at the wedding banquet, he had already been in an irritable mood. Everyone else had sensibly kept their distance, yet Chen Baoxiang refused to take the hint and came sauntering toward him, hips swaying, opening with:

“Clouds imagine her garments, flowers imagine her face, spring breezes brush the balustrade, dew glistens rich — beautiful peony flower, why are you blooming here all alone?”

She had mispronounced two characters in the poem, but that was forgivable. The line she followed it up with was another matter entirely.

With considerable restraint, Pei Ruheng did not react — he simply brushed at some invisible dust on his knee to show his disdain.

Chen Baoxiang then took that as an invitation and sat herself down in his lap.

“Young Master~” she said with a shy and coy air, half-welcoming and half-reluctant.

Pei Ruheng’s patience ran out. He leaned down close to her ear and said softly: “Get lost.”

“Oh, alright.”

She slunk away, then blinked up at him and asked: “You don’t like women?”

“I do,” he said, face utterly expressionless as he picked up food with his chopsticks. “Just not shameless ones.”

……

“That is the remarkable talent,” Pei Ruheng said, thoroughly baffled. “Why on earth would the physician want to keep her?”

Zhang Zhixu listened quietly to the victim’s account, then said to Chen Baoxiang at last: And this is what you called the most wonderful day of your life?

Chen Baoxiang gave an unabashed grin: His version of events and mine seem to have… a few slight discrepancies.

A few slight? These are two completely different stories!

Zhang Zhixu pressed his fingers to his brow.

What kind of mind does this woman have? She can’t detect a shred of ill intent from anyone, and there she goes, perfectly content in the belief that he has feelings for her. By the looks of things, the fact that Pei Ruheng hasn’t driven her off with a broom is already a testament to his good breeding.

Just as he was thinking this — his stomach let out a growl.

Only then did Zhang Zhixu remember: she had barely eaten at the banquet, and then spent a long while transcribing the Materia Medica. Her stomach, already empty to begin with, was now desperately hungry.

Chen Baoxiang was used to going hungry and showed no reaction whatsoever.

He, however, couldn’t stand it. He spoke up: Eat something first.

Had the people back in his old household heard him say this, they would have bought firecrackers to set off at the gate. The Young Master is actually eating of his own accord — what great occasion is this!

Chen Baoxiang, however, turned up her nose: Young Master Pei hasn’t eaten yet — how can I eat first? Wait a moment.

It was as if a rolling pin were scraping through an empty stomach. Zhang Zhixu was deeply uncomfortable — his hands and feet felt weak, and his head began to spin.

And so, when Chen Baoxiang very attentively scooped up a spoonful of porridge to feed Pei Ruheng — her hand inexplicably curved in a different direction, and her mouth dipped down to drink it herself.

Pei Ruheng: ?

Chen Baoxiang: “……”

She stared at her own hand for a moment, then let out a dry laugh: “I was testing whether it was too hot. And it’s just right.”

She scooped up the second spoonful.

Pei Ruheng hadn’t been particularly hungry to begin with, but Chen Baoxiang had a certain quality — no other particular virtue to speak of, but she made eating look absolutely delightful. Whatever she ate, she made the onlookers feel it must be the most delicious thing in the world, and she made people want to try it themselves irresistibly.

He couldn’t help but glance at the second spoonful in her hand.

Just as the spoon was nearly at his lips — Chen Baoxiang suddenly pulled back. Then she raised the bowl, held it toward him in a toast: “Brother Pei — bottoms up.”

Without waiting for Brother Pei to react, she heroically drained the entire bowl of porridge herself.

Pei Ruheng: “……”

The room fell so silent that a falling needle could be heard.

Chen Baoxiang clutched the bowl, barely holding back tears: Immortal, what are you doing?

Zhang Zhixu could hardly explain that he had never once gone hungry in his life. He could only brace himself and say: Love yourself before loving others — if you’re still hungry yourself, what right do you have to let him eat first—

But that porridge was cooked for him — it’s from his own family’s kitchen!—

You’re a guest. Guests eating first is proper etiquette—

Even so, you can’t just grab it from someone’s lips.

While they were squabbling away on the inside, her face was shifting between grimacing and looking innocent — like a quick-change performer.

Pei Ruheng on the bed couldn’t suppress a soft laugh.

Low, slightly hoarse — paired with his pale complexion, his laugh was even lovelier than a sickly beauty.

Chen Baoxiang turned her head and stared at him, momentarily struck.

Pei Ruheng caught himself, looked away, and said: “If you’re hungry, go eat outside with Rumei. Shoumo is here — there’s no need to trouble yourself.”

“But I — I went through so much trouble to come here and feed you,” she said, wearing a miserable expression as she plopped down on the stool by the bedside. “Earlier, Rumei wanted to leave it to the servants. I talked with her from the great openness of this dynasty all the way to karmic retribution and consequence before she finally relented and let me come. I just—”

Unable to hold it back, Pei Ruheng laughed again.

Chen Baoxiang’s eyes went wide. She turned to Pei Rumei at once: “This is bad — your brother’s really hit his head. We’d better have Physician Wang come take a look.”

“No need.” Pei Rumei laughed too, nudging Chen Baoxiang’s shoulder playfully. “My brother rarely smiles like this — you just stay and eat here. I’ll have the food brought over.”

She called Shoumo and they went out together.

Left alone in the inner chamber, Pei Ruheng rubbed his neck and asked, belatedly: “How did I end up fainting?”

“You got drunk,” Chen Baoxiang said, slightly uneasy. “Don’t drink so much next time.”

“Wasn’t it all because you kept pouring it on me?”

“Well… I won’t pour it on you anymore,” she muttered. “But you were looking down on me — I had to prove I had something to show for myself.”

Pei Ruheng fell silent.

His disdain for her was nothing new — she had always swallowed it without a word before. Today she’d actually pushed back.

He had to admit — when she pushed back, she actually seemed like a proper person.

The food arrived. Chen Baoxiang picked up her chopsticks, then paused to ask her inner Immortal with some trepidation: Immortal, we’ve finally gotten to spend time alone with Young Master Pei. Can we manage to eat a little more gracefully this time?

Zhang Zhixu gave a soft, wry laugh: I am always graceful—

And what about just now?—

That doesn’t count. It won’t happen again.

With that assurance, Chen Baoxiang settled in contentedly to eat.

She had to hand it to the Pei family — coming from merchant stock, they truly had money. Even a casual meal offered three kinds of meat. She ate with relish and genuine pleasure.

Zhang Zhixu ate alongside her with relish and genuine pleasure — and couldn’t help but wonder, as he did: How is it possible that someone can make such simple, ordinary food taste this good?

How delightful. Another spoonful.

Across from them, Pei Ruheng watched her — and found his own appetite unexpectedly stirred. What would normally have been a single bowl’s worth, he found himself eating two without quite realizing it.

One meal, two mouths — and all three of them were thoroughly satisfied.