Chapter 237: Talked It Out

Su Zhaozhao slept for a long time. When she woke up, it was already noon the next day.

She rubbed her head. Maybe it was because she’d slept so well, but her body felt more relaxed than ever before.

The fever from last night seemed like just a dream.

And all those things she’d been worrying about?

She vaguely recalled Xie Huaizheng assuring her, back when she was half-conscious, that it wasn’t true and she didn’t need to worry.

It was just a false alarm, yet she had been frightened into such a state. Su Zhaozhao felt she had overreacted.

But, she couldn’t really be blamed.

It was only because she cared so much about Xie Huaizheng.

’Worry really does muddle the mind,’ Su Zhaozhao couldn’t help but sigh.

Su Zhaozhao stretched and got out of bed. Just then, the door opened.

Su Zhaozhao looked up and met Xie Huaizheng’s gaze.

He strode over and squatted in front of her. "How are you feeling? Any better?"

He placed his hand on Su Zhaozhao’s forehead and sighed in relief. "Thank goodness, your fever’s broken."

However, now that the fever was gone, Su Zhaozhao’s face was incredibly pale. It was as if this one illness had completely drained her of all vitality.

Xie Huaizheng’s heart ached.

But he blamed himself even more.

If he had just spoken to Su Zhaozhao honestly from the start, she wouldn’t have been so terrified.

"Zhaozhao, I’m sorry," Xie Huaizheng said hoarsely, his voice full of self-reproach.

"No, I don’t blame you. It was my fault too for not trusting you enough," Su Zhaozhao said.

It was that lack of trust that made the revelation such a huge blow.

She had only just started speaking when she realized how weak and feeble her voice was; she couldn’t speak loudly at all.

Xie Huaizheng poured Su Zhaozhao a glass of water.

Su Zhaozhao took two sips and felt a little better.

The water in the kettle was the spiritual spring water from her own space, and it was certainly effective.

"The food in the cafeteria is pretty greasy, and I didn’t have time to cook, so I asked Aunt Yun to make something. I just brought it over. Eat it while it’s hot," Xie Huaizheng told Su Zhaozhao.

He helped Su Zhaozhao to her feet and thoughtfully draped a jacket over her shoulders.

The weather wasn’t cold to him, but Su Zhaozhao was sick. It was better for her to wear a jacket so her condition didn’t worsen.

He’d never imagined he could be so thoughtful, but here he was.

Zhou Xiaoyun had made some plain congee with a variety of light, tasty side dishes, saying it would be easy for Su Zhaozhao to eat right now.

As for Su Zhaozhao, her fever had broken, and since she hadn’t eaten much last night, she was already starving.

She didn’t need Xie Huaizheng to feed her; she started digging in earnestly all by herself.

Xie Huaizheng looked up, watching Su Zhaozhao eat with such focus. She looked like a well-behaved child.

At that moment, Xie Huaizheng felt his heart melt.

He kept putting more side dishes on her plate until Su Zhaozhao’s stomach was bulging. She frowned at Xie Huaizheng. "You eat. I’m full! I can’t eat another bite."

Xie Huaizheng paused for a second, then smiled. "Alright, I’ll eat then."

He finished all the remaining dishes.

After the meal, Xie Huaizheng and Su Zhaozhao went to sit on the sofa.

"Last night, I had a fever and my head wasn’t clear, so we haven’t had a proper chat yet."

"Mm," Xie Huaizheng nodded, feeling a little guilty.

"Let me ask you, when did you find out I wasn’t your fiancée?"

"When we were in Jiang City. I found out after the mission was over."

Su Zhaozhao couldn’t help but think back to Xie Huaizheng’s expression at the time. That was when she’d felt something was off about him.

"Then why didn’t you tell me sooner?"

Hearing the reproach in her voice, Xie Huaizheng sighed deeply and pulled Su Zhaozhao into his arms.

"I’m sorry, Zhaozhao. It’s all my fault. I was just afraid that if I told you, you’d leave me. After all, you only came to me in the first place because you thought I was your fiancé."

Su Zhaozhao couldn’t stop herself from hitting his chest with her fist. "You... you make me so angry, you know that? Xie Huaizheng!"

"I know, I know. I regret it, I really do. You can punish me however you want, just don’t leave me."

Xie Huaizheng let her hit him, only holding her tighter.

Although they had never truly been apart, in this moment, he was overcome with the feeling of having gotten back something he had lost.

"Mm, it’s okay now. It’s good that we’ve cleared the air."

"And you, Zhaozhao? How did you find out?"

"Gu Qingran told me," Su Zhaozhao said.

"Gu Qingran?"

Xie Huaizheng knew her. She was Lin Shumo’s childhood friend.

’But how would she know about this? Is her relationship with Xie Huaizhen really that close?’

"Yes, she told me. She just doesn’t want me to be with Xie Huaizhen, so she accidentally let it slip."

’Thinking about it now, Su Zhaozhao felt like an idiot. It was probably true that love makes you lose your mind.’

’Even a smart person can turn into an idiot when they’re in love.’

Still, it was good to have everything out in the open. As she thought of this, Su Zhaozhao looked at Xie Huaizheng, a trace of suspicion still in her eyes.

"Right, since we’ve talked everything out, are there any other things you’re hiding from me?"

Xie Huaizheng froze. He pursed his lips and buried his face in the crook of Su Zhaozhao’s neck.

He breathed in her faint jasmine scent.

"There is one thing," Xie Huaizheng said. "The relative I mentioned was coming to see me the other day... she’s not actually my relative. She’s my arranged marriage partner, Shu Xue."

Su Zhaozhao: "..."

’What the hell? They had just laid all their cards on the table, and now Xie Huaizheng’s fiancée was already on her way?’

’Then... did that make her the other woman?’

"Don’t overthink it. You don’t have to worry about this, I’ll handle it," Xie Huaizheng said, rubbing Su Zhaozhao’s cheek.

He didn’t want to give Su Zhaozhao anything else to worry about.

After Xie Huaizheng had confessed everything, the lunch break came to an end.

He looked at Su Zhaozhao reluctantly. "Wait for me to come back. Rest well at home, and remember not to catch a chill."

"Okay."

Su Zhaozhao watched Xie Huaizheng leave. As soon as the door closed, she entered her space.

She drank a good amount of spiritual spring water, feeling her body slowly recovering.

In fact, this bout of sickness was much milder than the last. After just one night of fever, she was already back on her feet the next day.

It was nothing like last time, when she had to stay in the hospital for a few days.

Still, she wanted to feel even better.

In her space, new fruit had begun to grow in the black soil. There were bunches of grapes, each one plump and perfectly round.

Su Zhaozhao plucked one and popped it in her mouth. It was delightfully sweet, and the rich grape flavor made her eyes crinkle in pleasure.

’Grapes were a good thing. She could dry them into raisins, or make grape juice and wine.’