Chapter 115: I Mean Well

The Chief Steward knew this was his task, so he didn’t need the boss to say a word—he had already stepped forward. However, this wasn’t such a hard job for someone as tender-hearted as him; carrying such a stunning beauty back was truly a virtuous deed.

Indeed, Huo Feng was tall but very slender, so she probably wouldn’t be too heavy. What surprised him was that despite Huo Feng’s usual fiery temper and impulsive nature, she slept like a little kitten. Xiao Tianci had already lifted the little princess in his arms. Seeing the chief steward standing there, staring at Huo Feng, he thought the steward was hesitating.

He didn’t bother with the steward and carried the little princess back first. When he reached her room, he covered her with a blanket, then quietly left and closed the door.

“Who... ah... bang...” As Xiao Tianci was only a few steps away from the small dining hall, he suddenly heard a sharp shout followed by a scream, then the sound of something crashing and breaking.

He hurriedly rushed in to see Huo Feng standing there in a daze, while the small dining table had been overturned. Looking down, the chief steward Lin Jian was lying on the floor, drenched in soup, with some small pastries scattered on him.

What on earth had happened? But Xiao Tianci quickly pieced it together. Looking at the struggling steward, covering his eyes and trying to get up in a disheveled state, then at Huo Feng, who was frozen in place, he frowned and asked, “What’s going on here?”

“He... he...” Huo Feng pointed at Lin Jian but couldn’t quite explain. She just instinctively punched because she felt someone touch her.

Xiao Tianci was close to laughing at his great decision—it felt brilliant. It was the first time he’d seen the elegant, handsome, and composed chief steward so utterly disheveled. Yet his expression remained very serious.

He looked at Lin Jian and said, “What happened exactly? Don’t you know there’s no fighting among our own? How could you forget that?”

Lin Jian, feeling ashamed, lowered his head. “Just now, the boss carried Miss Mei Ge back to her room, so I wanted to carry Miss Huo Feng back, but I didn’t expect this to happen.”

Huo Feng was at a loss for words. Beautiful faces often deceived, whether male or female. If it were Xiao Tianci, surely he would have been taking advantage and deserved it.

Hearing the steward’s explanation, Huo Feng hurriedly stepped forward, “I’m sorry, Chief Steward, it wasn’t intentional. I just felt someone and reacted.”

Xiao Tianci, always fair-minded, first addressed the steward, “Well, it was good of you to try, but didn’t you think of waking her up? And the way you carried her... well, modern people might not mind, but it’s still inappropriate.” Lin Jian looked at the boss in his heart, thinking, “Boss, you can’t be serious—you’re too harsh.”

Xiao Tianci inwardly praised his own sudden idea: since Lin Jian was such a handsome and refined man, why not push him and Huo Feng together to avoid misunderstandings with Ni’er?

He carefully removed some pastries from Lin Jian’s drenched clothes—not that it helped much, just a gesture of care—and comforted him, “I know you didn’t want to wake her. It was well-intentioned. Just a little accident, nothing serious.”

Then he glanced at Huo Feng, shaking his head with a sigh, “Why are you so reckless? The steward meant well, and look what happened.”

Huo Feng, who usually liked to argue with Xiao Tianci, now recognized her mistake and nodded. It was rare to see her lower her head. If it weren’t for his grand plan, he might have taken the chance to scold her properly.

The steward felt a chill. “Boss, what are you playing at? You make me take the blame, but it seems there’s more to come? I’ve already taken the fall, show some mercy.”

Unfortunately, Xiao Tianci had his own plan and was magnanimous in judging right and wrong. “Forget it, no one’s to blame—just a coincidence. Both of you agree, right?”

Both nodded simultaneously.

Xiao Tianci said, “Chief Steward, I’m off to rest. You should go take care of your injuries.”

“Yes!” The steward breathed a sigh of relief.

“Wait.” Xiao Tianci called back the steward who was about to leave, then turned to Huo Feng, “You hit the steward; shouldn’t you do something about it?”

Huo Feng shook her head, unsure what she should do.

Xiao Tianci said, “How about you help the steward check his injuries? That’ll do, right?”

“Boss...” Lin Jian wisely kept silent, understanding the boss’s meaning. “Fine, whatever.”

The steward looked resigned, while Huo Feng had just woken up but felt responsible, especially seeing the steward’s eyes looking like panda eyes. Fortunately, she hadn’t used any spiritual energy, or it could have been much worse.

After considering Xiao Tianci’s words, Huo Feng agreed and followed the steward to his room.

“I’m really sorry, Chief Steward. I didn’t mean to...”

“It’s okay.”

“Are your eyes alright?”

“Fine.”

“Should I get you some medicine or...”

“No need.”

Watching their retreating figures, Xiao Tianci nodded with satisfaction. He hadn’t expected such an accidental outcome to work out so well. If there were a chance, it wouldn’t be bad.

Huo Feng and Lin Jian could make a good match—one fiery and impulsive, the other “rigid and steady.” Others might see him as stiff, but Xiao Tianci knew Lin Jian was more like a mask. That led him to coin a phrase to describe the steward: “rigid and deadpan.”

He wondered if he had Lin Jian’s permission to think this way, but since the steward hadn’t objected, he assumed not. He used to tell him to speak up and not be so stiff, but he never listened. Well, he couldn’t blame himself. It was all for the best, and the steward should understand. Feeling relaxed, Xiao Tianci returned to his room to rest.

***

The steward’s eyes were swollen like a panda’s, but thankfully there was no serious injury.

Huo Feng had accompanied Lin Jian to his room. With the boss present, Lin Jian didn’t ask her to leave.

However, his body was covered in soup and such, so he needed to wash up. After letting Huo Feng in, the steward politely asked her to leave.

Looking at her, he smiled bitterly. “Boss, it’s not that I don’t want to help, but this kind of thing isn’t like a relay race—you can’t just take over so easily.”

“Ah... it really hurts. She’s powerful even without spiritual energy—so fiery.”

Covered in sticky soup, it was uncomfortable. He quickly undressed and took a shower before tending to his injuries. This girl didn’t even realize it herself. As for the boss, he’d been a little ruthless, pushing his loyal and handsome steward into trouble. It was unfair.

What would the boss do next? Surely he wouldn’t try to push her and the steward together even more. That would be a disaster, and he’d suffer for it.

***

Huo Feng returned to her room, sitting on the bed, fuming at herself. What was wrong with her lately, always messing up? She was so frustrated.

Was she really too impulsive? Hmph, it was probably their fault. She was calm and commanding in battle, never worse than her brother.

It must be that lecherous Xiao Tianci’s fault. If not for him, none of this would have happened. She’d have to be more careful in the future to avoid being called impulsive and hot-tempered.

As she sat there lost in thought, her mind cleared suddenly. Something was wrong. The steward always obeyed Xiao Tianci. Without his orders, it was rare to see him do anything, let alone carry her...

Oh, damn it! She clenched her fists angrily—it had to be that lecherous Xiao Tianci. Without his command, why would Lin Jian even think of carrying her?

That scoundrel had pretended to be a good guy and even taught her swordsmanship! Furious, Huo Feng stood up, intending to confront Xiao Tianci, but then she told herself to calm down. What would she say? Even if he had ordered it, it wasn’t a big deal, and Lin Jian was bearing all the blame. One was a lecher, the other had a faulty brain—both were impossible to deal with.

Thinking this, Huo Feng felt powerless and sat back down. How had she fallen into their trap again? Looking down at the carpet’s floral pattern, she imagined it was Xiao Tianci’s face and stomped on it with her foot. “I’ll stomp you—take that, you lecherous scoundrel...”

(Today there are only three chapters, just three. Apologies! Because the book promotion and ranking event kept me busy all evening, I barely wrote today, so the update is a bit short—just over ten thousand words. But I’ll make up for it later and maintain the usual twenty thousand daily updates. When feeling inspired, I’ll write more to catch up.)