28 On Their Way To Shengdu Village

Xiang Ling hummed softly as she enjoyed the herbal bath inside her cottage in her space. The sweet fragrance of flower petals filled the air along with the light fragrance of herbs that she had used in the bath.

She took her time to wash her hair and body properly before she stepped out of the tub and started getting ready for the day. After drying her hair with a spell, she repeated the steps of hair and skin care from the previous morning and moved to select a dress from her collection.

She was grateful that at least the cottage was open for her while the rest of her space was now sealed. Even though there weren't many treasures in this cottage, she still had some necessary items stored in there that could be useful to her in the near future.

After looking carefully through her vast collection of dresses, she finally picked one that looked perfect for the day. It was a white dress with a faint touch of green in it. There were dark green and black prints of branches on the sleeves and the waist belt. The dress wasn't too bright but didn't look too plain either for her identity as a young lady from a noble family.

She styled her hair with a white peony hairpin and left it loose. She then chose simple jade earnings and a bracelet to complete the look. She kept her makeup minimal to allow her natural beauty to be highlighted.

Once she was ready, she left her space and appeared inside the bedchamber in her courtyard. It was still very early in the morning and as she stepped outside, she was greeted by the soft morning sunlight.

Instead of heading toward the kitchen for breakfast, she headed toward the entrance where the carriage was waiting for her. She had told Fu Xiao to pack their food so that they could enjoy it on their way to Shengdu Village.

As she stepped out of the manor, she was greeted by the sight of a carriage that was waiting outside. The coachman hurriedly placed the stairs for her to climb but before Xiang Ling could do that, her attention was pulled toward the group of people heading toward her.

Fu Xiao was the first one to step out of the manor, followed by Xin Cheng, Li Dao Ming, Wei ZheYuan, and Wei Guang. All four men were there, staring at her as if she was committing some sort of crime.

Xiang Ling turned her confused gaze toward Fu Xiao who looked pale and terrified for some reason. Little did she know that she was the reason behind the girl's terror.

"My Lady, this is Fu Xiao's fault. Masters were on their way to the dining hall when they saw me carrying the food crate. When they asked about you, I... I couldn't lie..." The girl quickly explained as she bowed to apologize.

Xiang Ling let out a small sigh before she dismissed Fu Xiao with a simple signal of her hand. "No need to apologize. Hurry up and place the food inside." She didn't fail to notice the shock on Fu Xiao's face when the girl realized that she wouldn't be getting punished.

"Are you going to Shengdu Village?" Wen ZheYuan asked and Xiang Ling nodded her head in a positive response, causing all four men to exchange silent looks among them.

"It's getting late. I will take my leave now." Xiang Ling said and was ready to climb the stairs and enter the carriage when she was once again stopped in her steps and this time, it was because of Xin Cheng's unexpected revelation.

"We are coming with you."

She turned to look at the man with a stunned look on her face that she didn't try to hide at all. Her gaze shifted between all four of them and she quickly realized that he just talked about all four of them.

"Why?" She was unable to hold herself back from asking.

Xin Cheng folded his arms across his chest as he answered, "Because we are worried about Master Ming. Who knows what is your real intention behind suddenly going to meet him?"

"I'm going there to personally bring him back to the manor." Xiang Ling told him while gritting her teeth in frustration. This Third Master had probably sworn to make her mortal life even more miserable than it already was. He never seemed to cease his attacks at her.

"Only someone stupid will believe that." Xin Cheng responded and made Zhe Yuan, who was about to speak, close his mouth without saying anything.

Xiang Ling took in a deep breath to calm herself down before she put on a forced smile on her lips and spoke, "Alright. Do as you wish but I'm not sharing my carriage with you all. So find your own way to Shengdu Village."

She was about to turn and enter the carriage but stopped again and turned to look at the men. Her eyes landed on Wei Guang and she spoke, "You... come with me." She didn't wait for any response and hurriedly climbed into the carriage.

A moment later, Wei Guang joined her and settled down on the seat next to her. The two of them stayed silent as the carriage started moving and Xiang Ling took a quick look at the remaining three men outside from the window. She was sure that the men would find a way to the Shengdu Village.

Her attention returned to the man beside her when she felt his arm brushing against hers when the carriage wheels of the carriage bumped against something on the road.

Wei Guang was about to pull himself away from her when she suddenly grabbed his hand and placed her fingers against the inner side of his wrist to check his pulse.

She was fully concentrated on reading his pulse that she completely missed the look on Wei Guang's face, not realizing that her unexpected touches were causing a tsunami inside the man.