Volume 1, Chapter 41: Curing Your Hidden Ailment~

Lu Miao held her breath, listening to the muffled sounds of coughing coming from next door. He had mentioned feeling unwell—was he actually sick?

After hesitating for a moment, Lu Miao took out her phone and used a delivery service to order some medicine.

Once the delivery arrived, she went downstairs to retrieve it and hung the bag on the study door handle.

Then, returning to her room, she sent Fu Shiyue a WeChat message: "Come out for a second."

Fu Shiyue was currently reviewing construction documents for Hengtong University. His phone buzzed on the desk. Seeing Lu Miao's message, he stood up and opened the door.

Expecting the young woman to be standing outside, he found the hallway completely empty.

Just as he turned to go back inside, his gaze caught the medicine bag hanging from the door knob. Fu Shiyue paused, raising his eyes toward the adjacent room.

The door was left ajar just a crack, and the young woman was hiding behind it, peeking out with wide, watery eyes and secretly watching him.

When she realized she had been spotted, she hurriedly shut the door, her face flushing bright red.

He let out a soft chuckle.

Taking the medicine down, he brought it back into his room.

With her back pressed against the door, Lu Miao typed on her phone: "Take a couple of pills if the coughing is bothering you. This medicine works."

A moment later, she received a reply from Fu Shiyue: "Okay."

Hearing the sound of a door closing next door, Lu Miao rubbed her temples.

Tonight had been thoroughly chaotic.

...

Lu Miao was sensitive to new beds, but sleeping in Fu Shiyue's bed was different. The sheets and duvet still carried the faint trace of his scent—a subtle, lingering agarwood fragrance that wove its way into her breathing, bringing a profound sense of security.

That night, Lu Miao slept very peacefully.

She was woken up the next morning by the sound of cars outside. Initially wanting to linger in bed, she suddenly realized she was in Fu Shiyue's bedroom and scrambled up.

Lu Miao lacked the typical university student's discipline for attending morning classes. Lazily washing up and changing clothes, she stepped out of the room while letting out a big yawn.

"Shiyue, you should go to the company more often. Your third uncle has been acting quite restless lately."

"What did Grandpa say to you?"

"He doesn't have time to deal with company matters; he's too busy trying to arrange blind dates for you. Tell me honestly, how far have things actually progressed between you and Miaomiao..."

Hearing the voices downstairs, she was so startled she almost missed a step.

Why was Madam Fu here?

Fu Shiyue sat with his back to her, while Madam Fu sat opposite him.

The noise Lu Miao made caused both of them to pause their conversation.

Madam Fu looked up and saw Lu Miao, looking slightly surprised. "You brought Miaomiao home to stay with you?"

Lu Miao froze, uncertain whether she should go back up or come down.

Fu Shiyue glanced up at the bewildered young girl on the stairs, a hard-to-detect smile touching the corner of his lips. "It's inconvenient for me to go to her place. From now on, she'll live here with me."

Misinterpreting his intention, Madam Fu gave a light cough. "The young lady is still young, so behave yourself."

Fu Shiyue smiled without answering.

Madam Fu beckoned to the young girl. "Miaomiao, come down and have breakfast."

Lu Miao wasn't used to eating breakfast, but at Madam Fu's summons, she obediently descended the stairs.

With Fu Shiyue and Madam Fu sitting facing each other, she naturally walked over and took a seat beside Fu Shiyue.

"The housekeeper mentioned that Shiyue caught a cold, so I came over to check on him," Madam Fu said, casting a playful, reproachful look at Fu Shiyue. "And you didn't even give me a heads-up. Since Miaomiao is here, it's a good thing I brought plenty."

Opening a hexagonal food box, Madam Fu removed several exquisite small bowls and dishes.

Custard lava buns, spring rolls, shrimp dumplings, Sichuan fritillary and snow pear paste...

Lu Miao looked on in dazzlement. There were so many?

Smiling warmly at Lu Miao, Madam Fu said, "The food is on the lighter side. I hope Miaomiao won't find it too plain."

Lu Miao tasted a little bit of everything, her eyes brightening. "Which restaurant is this breakfast from? I've never had pastries this delicious in Beijing."

Eating good food instantly brought a sense of pure happiness.

"My mom made these herself," Fu Shiyue said.

"You made them?" Lu Miao turned her head in surprise.

She hadn't expected Madam Fu to be such an accomplished cook, let alone to have prepared breakfast early in the morning and brought it all the way to Fu Shiyue.

Madam Fu smiled. "Shiyue loves my cooking, but it's rare for him to come home, so he doesn't get to eat it often. If Miaomiao likes it, just tell me what you want, and I'll come over and make it for you."

Meeting Madam Fu's gentle gaze, Lu Miao paused, feeling a warm wave of emotion as she nodded repeatedly. "Okay."

She always managed to catch glimpses of her own mother in Madam Fu. If her mother were still around, would she have been just as fiercely loving and attentive?

"I'll drop you off at school after we finish eating," Fu Shiyue said, reaching out to ruffle her hair gently. "I have some business to take care of at your university anyway."

Once they finished breakfast, Lu Miao got into the car and asked, "What are you even doing at my university?"

"The Fu Corporation is launching an AI competition at Hengtong, and I'm heading the project." Fu Shiyue handed her a promotional pamphlet. "Want to enter? There's a cash prize for the top three."

Lu Miao glanced at it and waved a hand. "Forget it. I'm an interior design major; where would I get the brains for high-tech stuff like this?"

Fu Shiyue let out a low chuckle.

Hearing that his voice was still slightly raspy, Lu Miao asked, "Is your cold feeling any better?"

"Mmm." Fu Shiyue recalled the medicine from the previous night. "Where did you dig up that folk remedy anyway? Does it also treat athlete's foot?"

Lu Miao glared at him. "What athlete's foot... That's anti-inflammatory medicine!"

Fu Shiyue pulled the medicine box out of his pocket and handed it to her.

She hadn't expected him to carry the medicine around with him. Taking it from him, she could still feel its lingering warmth.

After glancing at the instructions printed on the box, Lu Miao felt a wave of awkwardness. She hadn't realized it actually possessed that secondary use.

"Well, medicines have multiple uses," she retorted defensively. "Who knows, maybe it treats some unmentionable hidden ailments of yours, too."

Lu Miao purposely shot him a sidelong glance.

Fu Shiyue cast a meaningful, heavy gaze at her. "We haven't even reached that stage yet, and you're already worrying about these things?"

Lu Miao's face instantly turned as red as a baboon's posterior.

After stepping out of the car, she noticed the man getting out as well.

"From now on at school, you handle your business and I'll attend my classes. It would be best if we completely ignored each other and didn't even greet one another if we cross paths!"

They weren't actually in a relationship; it would spell trouble if anyone misunderstood.

With that, Lu Miao turned on her heel and marched away, only to find the man walking leisurely behind her with his hands in his trouser pockets.

Her clear, black-and-white eyes narrowed at him. "Why are you following me?"

"I'm heading in this direction too."

With a soft huff, Lu Miao turned and broke into a run.

Meanwhile, a pair of eyes in the parking lot stared daggers at them.

"Yanxi, I just saw your cousin drop that cheap slut Lu Miao off at school!"

"What?!" Fu Yanxi shrieked on the other end of the phone.

"Yeah, and they looked awfully cozy, too," Lu Qingcheng said with bitter resentment. "Yanxi, didn't you take your aunt to the bar last night? Since she saw Lu Miao, didn't she try to stop them from being together?"

"I have no idea what my aunt is thinking," Fu Yanxi muttered, deeply annoyed.

Even her aunt seemed to approve of trash like Lu Miao.

To make matters worse, her aunt had left her stranded at the bar and told her to take a taxi back by herself.

She was her own flesh-and-blood niece!

In the end, her aunt had even warned her not to play any dirty tricks.

"Well, what about telling your grandfather? Your grandfather has traditional values and is strict with the younger generation. He's bound to hate a woman like Lu Miao trying to latch onto Fu Shiyue."

"What if it backfires again?" Fu Yanxi didn't dare take the risk.

So running to complain was a dead end.

"I still have a plan. It'll completely ruin Lu Miao's reputation so she'll never dare pester your cousin again."

"What plan?"