Chapter 133
Chapter 133
The soft, sweet fragrance of Ji Hanyi’s body drifted over as she leaned closer. Shen Si lowered his gaze, slowly tracing the long, slender curve of her bowed neck, her snow-white profile, and her fair earlobe.
She still wore no earring. Her bare earlobe looked so simple and demure, yet it stirred endless fantasies in him.
More than once, he had imagined what she would look like wearing the earrings he had given her. To him, that would mean she returned his feelings.
Whenever he indulged in such thoughts, an uncontrollable heat would surge through his body, especially in the dead of night. It was his body’s instinctive response to her.
Now she was standing right beside him. They rarely had a chance to be this close.
The fingers at his side twitched, then lifted slightly to brush the green cuff hanging below the edge of the desk. Just as he always watched her, he did it quietly and unseen. She would never notice.
Ji Hanyi was beginning to grow anxious. Shen Si had called her over to leave her fingerprint, but no matter how she searched the desk, she could not find the ink pad.
She did not want Shen Si to think she was making a fuss. Only after searching twice to no avail did she finally steel herself and look up at him. “Lord Shen, there’s no ink pad…”
Shen Si met her gaze. She seemed flustered and embarrassed, her bright eyes especially lovely. Coupled with her soft voice, there was something delicate and endearingly pampered about her entire being.
Whenever she came close, he wanted to pull her into his arms.
Shen Si reached beneath the desk and took out the ink pad. Instead of setting it down, he placed it in his palm and held it out to Ji Hanyi.
Ji Hanyi stared blankly at the object in his palm, then looked up to find him watching her. He said nothing, and she did not dare ask. Her hand trembled as she dabbed her index finger against the ink pad, then pressed it to the complaint.
A clear fingerprint appeared on the page. Ji Hanyi breathed a sigh of relief and looked up again. “Is there anything else I need to do?”
Shen Si took out a box and handed it to her. “The silver Li Mingrou paid in compensation. Count it.”
Ji Hanyi quickly accepted it and opened the lid. At the sight of all the gleaming silver inside, a little thrill of delight ran through her. She set the box on the desk and carefully began counting.
Naturally, not a single tael could be missing. Li Mingrou was not getting away with paying her a fraction less than she owed.
Ji Hanyi counted with meticulous care, completely unaware of Shen Si’s gaze resting on her.
It was rare for Shen Si to see her clutching a box of silver and counting so earnestly. Her eyes were exceptionally focused, tiny sparks of light dancing within them. She was already such a delicate, exquisite beauty, with red lips, white teeth, and skin like snow. She looked a little innocent of worldly affairs, yet she was so fond of money.
A smile unconsciously touched his lips as he said, “She received thirty strokes of the staff and had to compensate you three times your losses before she was allowed to leave.”
“Are you satisfied?”
Ji Hanyi had just finished counting. There were a full eight hundred taels, far more than she had lost. She was extremely satisfied with the outcome.
Eight hundred taels was no small sum. It was enough to buy her shop outright. Hearing Shen Si’s question, Ji Hanyi quickly looked up at him with gratitude. “Lord Shen, thank you.”
Her eyes curved as she smiled. “Lord Shen, I truly couldn’t be more satisfied.”
Shen Si paused. Her smiling face was reflected in his eyes, and the gratitude in her gaze was sincere. Even his habitually cold eyes could not help but warm.
He merely gave a soft acknowledgment before asking, “Have you eaten?”
Night had only recently fallen, and Ji Hanyi had rushed over, so she had indeed not eaten dinner yet.
She shook her head. “Not yet.”
Shen Si looked at her. “Neither have I.”
Ji Hanyi’s mind went blank. What did Shen Si mean by suddenly telling her that?
The thought had barely crossed her mind when realization struck. She hurriedly said, “Lord Shen, let me treat you to a meal at a restaurant as a token of my gratitude.”
Shen Si’s gaze swept over the way Ji Hanyi clutched the money box tightly, as if guarding her food. The corner of his mouth twitched. He gave a faint nod, then turned and walked out first.
Ji Hanyi watched his retreating figure. Long accustomed to his aloof manner, she quickly followed him.
She had assumed she would have to jog to keep up with him, only to find him waiting for her at the entrance.
They walked one behind the other. Shen Si did not move particularly fast, and Ji Hanyi followed close on his heels. Once they were outside, Shen Si stopped and asked, “Where are we going?”
Ji Hanyi was genuinely stumped. She had not visited a restaurant in a long time and had no idea which establishment might suit Shen Si’s tastes nowadays.
Besides, given Shen Si’s status and background, she could hardly take him to an ordinary restaurant.
Yet it did not seem proper for the host to ask the guest where he wanted to go. After a moment’s thought, Ji Hanyi replied, “Somewhere along the main street in the south of the city.”
Shen Si nodded. Then, to Ji Hanyi’s wide-eyed astonishment, he casually climbed into the carriage she had arrived in.
Ji Hanyi stood frozen outside, wondering if her eyes had deceived her. Rongchun was equally dumbstruck.
The illustrious Left Censor-in-Chief was a second-rank official. Whenever he traveled, his carriage was normally surrounded by a whole retinue of guards. Yet he had actually boarded her carriage – one he surely considered downright shabby.
While Ji Hanyi was still in a daze, Shen Si lifted the curtain over the side window. His cool voice drifted out. “Are you coming in or not?”
At his words, Ji Hanyi instinctively obeyed and hurried into the carriage.
The interior was naturally nowhere near as spacious as Shen Si’s carriage. He was tall, with long limbs, and took up half the compartment all by himself.
Ji Hanyi tucked herself into a corner and sat with perfect decorum, afraid that the cramped space might lead to some awkward incident between them.
Rongchun stood outside the carriage, at a loss. What was she supposed to do now?
Wen’an chose that moment to walk over and told her to read the room and accompany him outside the carriage.
It was perfectly normal for a maid to travel outside her mistress’s carriage, but Rongchun had never been made to do so while serving Ji Hanyi. Still, it was obvious that she could not climb in now, so she accepted the arrangement.
Inside the carriage, Ji Hanyi sat ramrod straight, deeply uncomfortable.
Shen Si, however, seemed entirely at ease.
He leaned back, stretched out his long legs, and closed his eyes, looking somewhat weary.
The carriage was unusually quiet, with nothing but the rumble of its wheels.
Amid the dim silence, however, Shen Si lifted his eyelids slightly. From the corner of his eye, he looked at Ji Hanyi. She kept her head bowed like the most obedient student in a classroom, even breathing with painstaking care.
His gaze shifted to her pale green dress. As the carriage swayed, the hem of her skirt would occasionally brush against his robe, stirring a faint, unspoken intimacy.
The touch was light and soft, yet it left the deepest mark upon his heart.
Ji Hanyi remained completely unaware of Shen Si’s gaze. She was still wondering which restaurant she should take him to.
She had not brought any extra silver with her today. All she had now was the money Li Mingrou had paid in compensation, and she had no idea whether it would be enough for their meal.
At one of the capital’s finest restaurants, a bill could easily run to a thousand taels or more.
Ji Hanyi lifted the curtain beside her and peered outside. When she saw that they had reached South Avenue, she let out a deep breath of relief. They were finally almost there.
Sharing a carriage with Shen Si at such close quarters had left her terribly nervous.
But before she could fully relax, the carriage suddenly lurched to an abrupt stop. Caught completely off guard, Ji Hanyi tipped sideways and fell straight into a warm embrace.