Arrogant and domineering because of his good looks: His Majesty always pretends to be righteous

Xia Rongliu tried her best to endure the pain, and Xia Zhanxin asked Li Mindan for ice and put it on Xia Rongliu's forehead.

Xia Rongliu lay on the wooden bed frame, while Xia Zhanxin watched her from the side.

"Sister?" Xia Zhanxin called out to Xia Rongliu. Xia Rongliu couldn't see what Xia Zhanxin was doing, so she could only reply, "Hmm? What's wrong?"

"It's nothing, is your eye feeling better, sister?" Xia Zhanxin asked.

Xia Rongliu had been applying the compress for about fifteen minutes, which was quite a long time. Even the ice had melted quite a bit, and water was flowing down Xia Rongliu's forehead to both sides.

But Xia Rongliu felt very comfortable with this on, so I never thought of taking it off.

"Hmm, she should be able to open her eyes now. I'll take them off." Xia Rongliu was certain that she had opened her eyes ten minutes ago; she just preferred the feeling.

Xia Rongliu reached out to take it off, but a hand took the towel first.

“Lantern Festival…” Xia Rongliu said subconsciously, and when she opened her eyes, she saw Xia Zhanxin’s face above her.

This scene came so suddenly that Xia Rongliu's hand was still in mid-air. Xia Rongliu thought that Xia Zhanxin would be guarding her or something, but she did not expect that Xia Zhanxin would be guarding her head.

She could easily rest her head on Xia Zhanxin's knees if she moved her head even slightly.

A moment of silence ensued... Xia Rongliu felt that the atmosphere between her and Xia Zhanxin had been getting increasingly strange lately, to the point that she kept having a strange feeling.

One possibility is that they are a loving couple who have been together for a long time. She always gets into trouble and gets hurt, while Xia Zhanxin is her confidant who cleans up her messes and treats her wounds.

"Sister, what are you thinking about?" Xia Zhanxin's still childish voice came from above again. "Sister, why are you always spacing out?"

A slight smile appeared between Xia Zhanxin's brows. Xia Rongliu realized something and quickly sat up, the ice pack on her head falling off.

Looking into Xia Zhanxin's innocent eyes, I suddenly felt deeply guilty. She's so young, I don't know where this illusion came from.

Xia Rongliu wasn't quite sure where this came from, and could only lament that she was getting more and more backward as she lived, as if she had wasted the previous decades.

Xia Zhanxin caught it quickly, and Xia Rongliu coughed twice, "Um, my throat is a little sore, could you get me some water?"

Xia Rongliu lowered her head to hide her unease, and Xia Zhanxin immediately got up to pour water when she heard that Xia Rongliu's throat was uncomfortable.

After Xia Rongliu finished drinking the water, she noticed Xia Zhanxin staring at her. Her hand holding the cup trembled involuntarily, and her sense of guilt deepened.

If the water hadn't been finished, the water in the cup would have spilled.

"Sister?" Xia Zhanxin looked at Xia Rongliu with concern. Why did her sister seem absent-minded? Was she feeling unwell somewhere?

Xia Rongliu waved her hand. "It's okay, I'm fine, I'm just a little scared." She felt uneasy.

Xia Zhanxin didn't say anything. He would definitely keep an eye out for Xia Zhishu in the kitchen from now on. This kind of thing couldn't happen again, and it couldn't happen in his own home.

In another courtyard, Li Mindan, Master Zhang, and Xia Zhishu sat on stone benches, with three cups of tea on the stone table.

This courtyard is a side courtyard, but it is the best-maintained courtyard in the Pear Blossom Garden because it is where Li Mindan lives daily. The other places are either for outsiders to visit or are where other people live in this courtyard.

Xia Zhishu sat with his head down, not saying a word, feeling extremely uncomfortable. Li Mindan and Master Zhang just stared at him.

He was filled with resentment, especially Li Mindan's resentment, which was so intense it could practically materialize into a sword. If looks could kill, he would probably be buried by now.

Li Mindan couldn't calm down for a long time. That was her kitchen, which she had spent a long time renovating. Because she loved food, she put a lot of effort into the kitchen.

She had considered the layout countless times, put so much thought into the tableware, and now, the layout remained the same, the tableware wasn't broken, but...

The walls and all four sides were covered with a dark, grimy substance. A swipe of the hand revealed a layer of grease and soot that even a wire brush couldn't remove. The porcelain bowls and plates were a little better, though small black dots dotted their white surfaces.

It looks okay from a distance, but it doesn't stand up to scrutiny up close. It's even more torturous when you're eating; you see a tiny black spot while you're eating, and it's psychologically unbearable.

The kitchen wasn't exactly destroyed, but it was definitely completely ruined and crippled.

Every time Li Mindan recalls this horrific scene, she feels a pang of heartache.

"Don't you know your own limitations?! Can you even cook? How can you be so confident in yourself?"

The courtyard was empty except for the three of them. Li Mindan's voice was very loud, as if it contained anger mixed with some helplessness.

Xia Zhishu was a little embarrassed. He was the one who caused the mess. He thought that moving to a bigger kitchen would be better and that it wouldn't turn into a burnt mess like last time.

Xia Zhishu never expected that he would almost die. He didn't even consider that Lin Yue was watching over him before, which prevented this from happening. Now that no one is watching, it's naturally not appropriate to post this anywhere.

"I'll take care of it," Xia Zhishu promised. He was the one who caused the trouble, so he should be the one to deal with it.

Master Zhang was no better off. He knew Xia Zhishu couldn't cook, but he didn't know that Xia Zhishu's bluffing would ruin the kitchen.

He sighed deeply, "I cleaned it up with him, so I also bear some responsibility for this." He should have asked him about it earlier; he could have just gone and guarded it himself.

Li Mindan fell silent. Anyway, the kitchen was still usable. It wasn't that bad, just much uglier, and... there was a strong smell of cooking oil.

Li Mindan told them, "Don't make it fancy, just keep it as it was."

Xia Zhishu and Master Zhang nodded repeatedly. Lin Limindan got angry whenever she saw Xia Zhishu, so she went back to her room on her own.

As they walked, they said, "This Zhang Xizhao, you can't even call him when he's usually here, but when he does come, he brings a bunch of unruly kids. That's not all, the adults are all so tyrannical."

Li Mindan was speechless. Luckily, Mu Ling wasn't there, otherwise, with her mischievous nature, she would have gotten into a huge fight with those unruly kids.

Xia Zhishu and Master Zhang were left staring at each other, Master Zhang's beard practically bristling with anger.

"Xia Zhishu, you call this just that you can't cook?!"

Xia Zhishu felt a little guilty. "But I really don't know how to cook. I just wanted to try. I thought the kitchen was so big, I could manage."

"Ha, you're really something, you can destroy this kitchen. Even the biggest kitchen wouldn't be big enough for you to build."

Master Zhang glanced at Xia Zhishu, who was described as 'weak,' 'helpless,' and 'pitiful,' and relaxed his tone.

"Fine, I'll start packing tomorrow morning, and you can come in the afternoon."

Xia Zhishu nodded. He would teach the children in the morning, and Master Zhang would teach in the afternoon. That was the same idea.

"Let's go check on those brats, lest they cause any more trouble." He had imagined many possible accidents that might happen during this trip to the park, but he had never considered what might happen to Xia Zhishu.

Master Zhang patted his head with both hands. He wanted some peace and quiet.