When the Female Lead Becomes Obsessive – Chapter 59

Volume Three: Those Years I Was a Wangye

Probing

The weather in Jiajing had only been bright for a short while before continuous downpours began again.

During the plum rain season¹, the fierce winds and heavy rain complemented the lush, leafy branches perfectly.

Wen Nuan took advantage of this heavy rain to plan on tidying up Mingxin Lake at the Lin Manor. The lake water had already become silty and clogged; if left unattended, it would truly become a pool of stagnant water.

Lin Tinghan put down her account book and said in surprise, “What? What’s she doing at Mingxin Lake?”

Ruilin replied truthfully, “The Xian Wang came to the manor early this morning with a large group of people, saying she wanted to take advantage of the heavy rain having just stopped to tidy up Mingxin Lake.”

Lin Tinghan chuckled lightly. “She really is someone who loves to stir things up. Is it still raining?”

Although the heavy rain had stopped, a light, drizzling rain continued ceaselessly.

“Young Miss, don’t worry. This servant has already prepared rain gear for the Xian Wang and won’t let her get wet.”

“Mm-hm, let’s go take a look.” Lin Tinghan was afraid Wen Nuan wouldn’t be safe standing by the lake; if anything happened, she’d worry herself to death.

Ruilin blinked, her eyes sparkling as she looked at Lin Tinghan. “Okay, Young Miss.”

Seeing Ruilin’s joyful expression, Lin Tinghan asked, “What is it? You seem very happy lately. Did something good happen?”

“Nothing good happened to me, this servant is just happy to see Young Miss smiling again. My heart is joyful, so naturally, it shows on my face.” Ruilin smiled.

Lin Tinghan touched her face, somewhat puzzled. “Have I been smiling a lot lately?”

Ruilin nodded emphatically. “Mm-hm, ever since the Xian Wang returned and the misunderstanding between you and her was cleared up, you’ve been smiling much more. Even the shopkeepers from the various stores have asked this servant if something good has happened to you recently, as you often have a smile on your face.”

Lin Tinghan said softly, “Good things, of course, there are good things.”

With Wen Nuan back, she naturally smiled more.

Because Wen Nuan had said she looked beautiful when she smiled, and she liked to see it.

So she would often smile for her.

Lin Tinghan watched Wen Nuan, who was standing in the pavilion, directing the people on the boats on the lake. Wen Nuan stood on the railing of the pavilion, hands on her hips, craning her neck and shouting, as if she wished she could jump into the water herself to help.

“Aiyo, deal with those waterweeds over there! Haul them out, throw them on the bank, and later we’ll pour some kerosene on them and burn them.”

“Where are the people diving down to clear the silt? Keep an eye out, don’t let anyone drown!”

“Ji Chenwei, are you slacking off again!?”

Ji Chenwei quickly sat up in the boat, grinning. “No, this humble one wasn’t slacking. This humble one was observing the celestial phenomena to divine the Lin Manor’s fortune.”

Wen Nuan sneered, “Oh, Baixiaosheng, what have you divined? Let’s hear it.”

Ji Chenwei feigned mystery, waving her fingers vaguely in the air a couple of times, her expression grave. “This humble one has divined that the Lin Manor will surely have prosperous financial luck, great wealth and honor, smooth sailing, a turn for the better after misfortune, and will soar straight up ninety thousand li².”

“As for the Young Miss of Lin Manor, she will definitely have heaven-sent opportunities, all her wishes will come true, continuous good luck, and be blessed with vitality and spirit, becoming the happiest and most fulfilled person in the world.”

Wen Nuan: “…”

Ji Chenwei really had a silver tongue, so articulate.

System picking its nose: 【She’s even better at bullsh#tting than I am.】

“Smooth talker!”

Wen Nuan wanted to find something to throw at her. Her hands were empty. Just as she was about to take off her shoe to throw at Ji Chenwei, she suddenly felt a tightening around her waist. She was grabbed by the waist, and her feet landed on the ground.

Wen Nuan was stunned and turned to look at Lin Tinghan. “Did you just grab me?”

Lin Tinghan’s heart tightened, but her expression didn’t change. “A dignified King, standing on the railing right after it rained, with water all over it. Aren’t you afraid of slipping and falling?”

“It’s fine, I was holding onto the pillar, I wouldn’t have fallen.” Wen Nuan saw the teapot and teacups Ruilin brought over, immediately grabbed a teacup, and threw it at Ji Chenwei, roaring, “Get to work, or I’ll dock your pay!”

“Ah—” Ji Chenwei clutched her shoulder, looking aggrieved. “Got it, Your Highness. This humble one will definitely exert all my efforts, pour out my heart and blood, with utmost loyalty³…”

The moment she saw Wen Nuan pick up the teapot, she immediately shut her mouth and gave a few sheepish laughs.

Wen Nuan placed the teapot on the stone table in the pavilion and looked at Lin Tinghan. “Why did you come?”

Lin Tinghan gazed at Mingxin Lake. “I came to see what kind of mess you’ve made of my Mingxin Lake.”

“This Mingxin Lake is already covered with duckweed as far as the eye can see, and waterweeds are everywhere. Why isn’t it cleaned regularly?” The lakeshore was piled with dredged-up waterweeds, their roots blackened and rotten, emitting a nauseating stench.

“And those two koi I gave you in Mingxin Lake are gone too. But it’s okay,” Wen Nuan turned slightly, letting her see the bucket behind her, “I brought you two more koi.”

Lin Tinghan saw that the koi in the bucket were still the ‘Dragon Whisker Koi’⁴ Wen Nuan had given her before. This type of koi was very rare, a symbol of good fortune. Ordinary families wouldn’t dare to raise this kind of carp; only powerful and noble families could.

And in this Jianing Country, only Her Majesty the Emperor and Her Highness the Xian Wang were qualified to raise these ‘Dragon Whisker Koi.’

And since the Xian Wang wasn’t interested in leisurely pursuits like appreciating flowers, birds, fish, and insects, these ‘Dragon Whisker Koi’ must have been ‘stolen’ by her from the imperial palace.

“Didn’t the Emperor get angry with you?” Lin Tinghan looked moved and asked worriedly.

Wen Nuan’s expression stiffened, and she said awkwardly, “She hit me twice, but I got two koi in exchange. Worth it.”

“The Emperor hit you?” Lin Tinghan’s face changed. She immediately checked Wen Nuan’s body and asked anxiously, “Where did she hit you? Is it serious? Ruilin, quickly go get Doctor Gu.”

“Yes, Young Miss.” Ruilin was just about to leave.

Wen Nuan quickly stopped Ruilin. “No need! She just flicked my forehead twice. It didn’t hurt at all. What doctor? Ruilin, don’t go.”

Ruilin hesitated, unsure whether to go or not.

Seeing Wen Nuan’s forehead was clear, Lin Tinghan relaxed. “Alright, don’t go.”

“Okay.” Ruilin stood to the side.

Lin Tinghan looked at the lively Dragon Whisker Koi in the bucket and said faintly, “The previous two, for some reason, suddenly grew weary of this mortal world. After you left, they departed too.”

Perhaps because the person who often fed them was gone, they suddenly had no attachment left to this world.

They left very abruptly.

Just like the lotus flowers and green leaves that filled the pond, they too lost their vitality in an instant, many of them withered.

Mingxin Lake during that time was like her heart.

Congested, silted up, and difficult to clear.

Letting Mingxin Lake fall into decay was like letting herself fall into depravity.

Wen Nuan was puzzled. “Sudden death?”

Lin Tinghan nodded. “Mm-hm, they just suddenly died.”

Wen Nuan looked at the Dragon Whisker Koi in the bucket, pondered for a moment, and said, “How about we don’t raise koi anymore?”

These things die too easily.

“Then what should we raise?”

Wen Nuan said thoughtfully, “Let’s raise a few Flame Turtles⁵. As the saying goes, ‘bastards live for a thousand years, turtles for ten thousand’⁶. These Flame Turtles can survive no matter how you raise them, they look good, and have a relatively gentle temperament.”

Lin Tinghan: “…But these Flame Turtles are top-grade, usually tribute items, right?”

“No problem. At worst, I’ll let my Imperial Sister flick my forehead a few more times. I’ll catch a few Flame Turtles from her Fanming Lake for you,” Wen Nuan said resolutely⁷.

Lin Tinghan: “…”

She didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. “Forget it. Don’t go provoking the Emperor. The punishment might not be as light as a forehead flick next time.”

“Don’t worry, Imperial Sister pampers me the most. A few Flame Turtles won’t make her angry with me.” Wen Nuan raised an eyebrow at her. “Trust me, I’ll go to the palace tonight, and by tomorrow, I’ll get the Flame Turtles for you.”

Lin Tinghan looked at Wen Nuan, her eyes gentle. She raised her hand, brushed aside the strands of dark hair⁸ from Wen Nuan’s forehead, and smiled sweetly. “…Of course, I trust you.”

Wen Nuan raised her hand, grasped Lin Tinghan’s wrist, and leaned in slightly, wanting to test Lin Tinghan’s feelings for her.

If she didn’t pull away, would it prove that Lin Tinghan also had different feelings for her?

Lin Tinghan didn’t dare to move, watching Wen Nuan lean closer to her, the distance between them shrinking.

She wanted to pull away yet didn’t want to. She wanted to see what Wen Nuan intended to do to her.

Wen Nuan lowered her gaze, looking at Lin Tinghan’s cherry-like red lips, and swallowed past a dry throat.

She tilted her head slightly, making it easier to kiss Lin Tinghan’s lips.

Fingertips clenched the corner of her clothes, nails turning white. Hearts pounded like thunder, roaring in their ears, making both their breaths quicken.

Only inches apart, their breaths mingled.

Neither of them moved away, as if they were making a bet.

She doesn’t dare to dodge?

“Your Highness—”

From a distance came a sky-piercing roar, “Look, there’s a big loach⁹ in the lake—”

Ji Chenwei, holding a slippery loach, flew up from the center of the lake, her toes tapping the water’s surface, creating ripples.

She landed on the railing of the pavilion, laughing loudly. “Your Highness, look, a big loach, hahahaha…”

“Huh? Your Highness, what are you doing? Picking sleep out of Young Miss Lin’s eyes?”

Ji Chenwei was surprised to find the two of them so close!?

If it were a man and a woman, she might think they were about to hug or kiss, but with two women this close, what else could they be doing besides helping each other check for eye sleep?

Wen Nuan: “……”

Lin Tinghan: “…….”

Wen Nuan stood up and glanced at the teapot on the table.

Lin Tinghan, very perceptively, handed the teapot to Wen Nuan. Wen Nuan smashed it towards her, cursing loudly, “Look at your f#cking big loach! Picking your grandpa’s¹⁰ eye sleep!”

Ji Chenwei had just dodged the teapot when the big loach in her hand struggled fiercely. Her foot slipped, and she plunged straight into the lake.

Ruilin, hiding behind a pillar, patted her chest, thankful for her foresight. The moment she saw her Young Miss and the King in an ambiguous situation, she had immediately hidden.

Otherwise, she might have also been thrown into the lake by the Xian Wang to feed the loaches.

Tsk tsk—

An angry Xian Wang was even more terrifying than her own Young Miss.

Ji Chenwei had just poked her head out of the lake surface and hadn’t even said a few words before Wen Nuan pushed her back down, roaring from the shore, “Wash your f#cking head out properly!”

Ji Chenwei was pushed down in a daze. Fortunately, she was a good swimmer and only dared to surface once she reached the center of the lake. Unfortunately, the big loach she had just caught had escaped. Otherwise, couldn’t she have had some meat tonight?

Lin Tinghan watched Wen Nuan’s back. She saw Wen Nuan turn around.

Afraid Wen Nuan would notice something, she quickly took a few calming breaths, adjusting her breathing and complexion.

“I didn’t expect Mingxin Lake to have loaches.”

Wen Nuan watched Ji Chenwei frolicking in the lake and said helplessly, “They probably cleared Mingxin Lake, so these loaches might have swum in from the Linfeng River outside your manor.”

Although the Lin Manor was located on Changning Avenue, its grounds were comparable in size to the Xian Wang’s royal residence. Mingxin Lake was a semi-natural, semi-artificial lake. Originally, it was a marshy lowland at the foot of Linfeng Mountain where spring water collected. Later, as time passed, the springs dried up, forming a depression.

After Wen Nuan found a master to assess the feng shui¹¹, she had the Lin Manor built starting from this depression. During construction, it coincided with the early spring rainy season. Snowmelt from the foothills of Linfeng Mountain flowed into the depression, forming the Linfeng River and Mingxin Lake, bringing vibrant life to the Lin Manor.

“Could you ask Miss Ji to catch a few loaches? I’ll cook and make you some dry-fried loach. Want some?”

Lin Tinghan knew how to cook, and her skills were superb.

Wen Nuan’s eyes lit up. “Okay!”

She shouted to Ji Chenwei, who was splashing about in the middle of the lake, “Ji Chenwei, catch a few loaches! Young Miss Lin is personally cooking tonight, making dry-fried loach!”

Ji Chenwei responded loudly, “Alright, Your Highness! Thank you, Young Miss Lin!”

Seeing Wen Nuan’s eyes light up at the mention of food, the corners of Lin Tinghan’s mouth curved up slightly.

She had done many things in her life and made many decisions.

The only thing she felt fortunate and worthwhile about was learning to cook well, to be able to make one person’s eyes forever light up for her.

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The author has something to say:

Female Lead: To capture someone’s heart, first capture their stomach.

Wen Nuan: Huffs eagerly.

System: Silly child, being sold and still counting the money for them¹².

Ji Chenwei: Look, a big loach!

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