Ning Yin lightly held the pill between his lips, like a fruit waiting to be plucked.

He slowly raised his eyelashes to look at her, his intention unmistakable.

Yesterday, getting the medicine was quite smooth. When she had frowned and choked from the bitterness, Ning Yin had even been patient enough to pat her back to help her breathe…

What was happening today?

Yu Lingxi blinked and reached out to take the pill from between his lips, but Ning Yin raised his hand to catch her wrist.

She tried with her other hand, but before she could touch it, Ning Yin sucked the pill between his teeth.

The medicine was moving further inward rather than outward.

With her wrist firmly caught, at such close distance, Yu Lingxi could see her tiny reflection in Ning Yin’s eyes.

Worried that Ning Yin would swallow the pill, she simply pressed her lips together, tilted her head, and gently bit his lip.

Ning Yin maintained his posture unchanged. After a moment, he lowered his eyelashes, enjoying her fleeting soft fragrance.

Lips pressed against lips, firmly.

With a curl of her tongue, she “stole” the pill into her mouth.

Just as she was about to withdraw, Ning Yin opened his eyes with dissatisfaction and raised his palm to lock the back of her head.

Yu Lingxi, with the pill in her mouth, couldn’t retreat. The intense bitterness spread in her mouth, making her nauseous.

“Bitter?” Ning Yin’s thumb stroked her tightly furrowed brow.

This medicine, made of unknown ingredients, was like torture when held in the mouth. Yesterday, she had managed to swallow it only after drinking an entire bowl of honey water.

Ning Yin’s expression was unreadable as he applied a bit more pressure with his hand, forcing her head to lean forward. He helped her swallow the pill with practical physical assistance until her lips and tongue were so numb with pain that she couldn’t distinguish between bitter and sweet.

The window served as the perfect frame, capturing the overlapping silhouettes of the two.

As their lips parted, the bright, burning light leaked in through the gap between their touching noses, gilding the tiny dust particles floating in the air.

Ning Yin was calm and composed, while Yu Lingxi was breathless, her hand supporting herself on the desk as she tried to steady her breathing.

She had always felt that Ning Yin could learn anything quickly if he put his mind to it, including the skill of dueling with mouths.

But he was used to doing things his way and disdained to put effort into this area.

The previous night, under the influence of the medicine, she hadn’t been clear-headed enough to fully appreciate his skill. Now, Yu Lingxi truly had her eyes opened.

She lay on the desk, with the small white jade porcelain bottle right before her eyes, containing the antidote for her final day.

Yu Lingxi’s eyes flickered. Taking advantage of Ning Yin’s inattention, she swept the white jade porcelain bottle into her sleeve and then spun away.

Ning Yin raised an eyebrow.

Yu Lingxi held the medicine bottle, her almond eyes filled with moist brilliance, and said with unsteady breath: “Tomorrow’s medicine, I’ll get it myself. No need to trouble Wei Qi.”

If every dose was administered this way, she couldn’t bear it.

Ning Yin wasn’t in a hurry. He raised his finger to touch the moisture on his lips and said with a half-smile: “The Young Miss is full of little schemes. Did you check if there’s any medicine in the bottle?”

The smile at Yu Lingxi’s lips froze. She shook the bottle.

There was no sound at all—it was empty.

She looked at Ning Yin and saw him raise the hand resting on his knee, his fingers producing a pill as if by magic.

Ning Yin looked quite innocent as he blinked very slowly: “With the Young Miss abandoning me after using me, I can’t help but be cautious.”

“You…”

Yu Lingxi forcibly swallowed the words “despicable” and could only put the empty bottle back in its place, deflating as she lay on the desk.

Ning Yin laughed softly and leisurely placed the last pill into the bottle, tucking it into his robe.

The light from the window fell on his flawlessly handsome profile, so faint it revealed little warmth.

His eyes were like a quiet deep well, emotions impossible to guess, his thoughts about what mischief unknown.

Yu Lingxi sat properly, arranging her skirt, and observed his expression for a long while.

Ning Yin propped his temple with his hand, slanting his eyes toward her, and said lightly: “The Young Miss has already obtained what she wanted. Why linger?”

Yu Lingxi widened her eyes slightly. This was the Yu mansion—the entire estate was her home. How could he describe her as “lingering”?

“That makes no sense.”

Yu Lingxi said, “Am I only allowed to seek you out when there’s something to gain?”

Ning Yin calmly retorted: “Is there any other reason?”

Yu Lingxi snorted, deciding to ignore him.

The room fell silent for a moment. Yu Lingxi suppressed the lingering bitterness in her mouth and couldn’t help but recall his solitary figure sitting by the window earlier.

Outside the window, the clouds drifted leisurely. The paper kites in the sky had disappeared, either because their strings had broken or the wind had stopped.

Yu Lingxi’s eyes turned, and somehow she blurted out, turning her head to ask: “Wei Qi, shall we go fly a kite?”

…

Ning Yin had never properly flown a kite before.

He remembered when he was very young, around seven or eight years old, a tattered kite flew over the palace wall and hung on a crooked locust tree in the courtyard.

Treasuring it greatly, he climbed the jujube tree with great effort, wearing his cumbersome clothing, and retrieved the kite.

He locked himself in that dim, cramped “bedroom” and spent the entire night repairing it with paste.

The next day, he remembered it was a clear and windy day. He secretly came to the courtyard carrying that ridiculous kite and began running wildly, pulling the fishing line.

He ran so fast, the wind blowing on his face, stirring his robe and hair. The kite rose shakily, but before it could fly over the palace wall, it was viciously yanked down and trampled into a muddy skeleton.

That woman wouldn’t allow him to leave the palace hall, wouldn’t allow him to run faster than others, wouldn’t allow him to show any talent superior to others… The whips fell one after another on his tender back, yet he was laughing, his dark eyes branding the woman’s surprised and crazed expression.

By the time Ning Yin recalled all this, Yu Lingxi had already prepared a kite.

It was an exquisitely crafted azure phoenix with a light bamboo whistle installed at the bird’s head that would produce a clear phoenix-like sound when blown by the wind.

By the waterside pavilion was a large garden, with ample space for flying a kite.

“They say kites can carry bad moods and ill fortune up to the sky.”

Yu Lingxi handed the kite to Ning Yin, asking him to hold it higher. As if seeing through his gloom from the past half day, she smiled gently and said, “Want to try?”

Ning Yin’s eyes flickered slightly.

Though he had no interest in such idle amusement, he still raised the kite as instructed. The wind rose, and Yu Lingxi began running with a smile. The kite departed from Ning Yin’s palm, shakily rising against the wind.

It flew over the wall, ascending until it became a palm-sized shadow.

“Success on the first try. Heaven is helping you, blessing you with happiness and smoothness.”

Yu Lingxi’s face was flushed from running, showing a touch of glamour.

She tugged at the taut kite string and handed the spool to Ning Yin, gesturing, “Take it.”

Ning Yin took it instinctively. The kite soared with the wind, pulling at the reel.

“Hold it tight, don’t let the string break!” Yu Lingxi reminded him, reaching out to help him tug the string.

Ning Yin hesitated, then followed her example and pulled the thin string.

They stood side by side, their clothes brushing against each other. Yu Lingxi glanced at him, released her hand, and asked with a smile: “Feeling better?”

So that was her intention all along.

The bamboo whistle trilled clearly. Ning Yin narrowed his eyes, gazing at the soaring kite. His cold, pale face was tinged with warmth as he leisurely held the kite string and said: “If the Young Miss could make the interfering people disappear, my mood might improve even more.”

Yu Lingxi didn’t understand and asked: “Who’s interfering with you?”

Ning Yin didn’t answer. His gaze fell on two people slowly walking across the corridor bridge. His eyes were dark and cool as he curled his lips in a smile.

“Since the Young Miss forbids me to kill, perhaps she could figure it out herself.”

No longer interested in flying the kite, he handed the reel back to Yu Lingxi.

With no one controlling the kite string, it wavered for a moment in the wind, ready to fall, and finally, with a snapping sound, it broke.

Yu Lingxi paid no attention to where the expensive kite had fallen. She just held the reel with its broken string, thinking: Who had provoked Ning Yin today?

He was not only particularly difficult to deal with but also constantly cold and sharp.

…

Under the corridor bridge, Yu Huanchen and Xue Cen stood shoulder to shoulder, looking toward Yu Lingxi’s direction.

The beautiful, noble young lady and the handsome, upright “guard” looked as harmonious as a painting.

Yu Huanchen and Xue Cen each harbored their thoughts, but their eyes reflected the same concern.

“Acen, let’s go.”

Yu Huanchen broke the silence first, calling back Xue Cen’s wandering thoughts.