Chapter 315 - "I Don't Need You to Like Me." (1)

Early in the morning the next day, the weather had gotten brighter, and the rain that came down last night finally dispersed, leaving a clean and peaceful morning to start a beautiful day. Birds began to chirp atop the branches of the trees, buŧŧerflies fluttered their colorful wings, and people started to open their businesses.

Lin Xiaofei also woke up early, but she didn't see Qu Xing Xu sleeping beside her. He had gone somewhere even before she woke up, and after he saw how deeply asleep she was, he chose not to wake her. 

After consuming a satisfying meal and took a bath, she finally dressed herself in a black dress, tying her long hair in a high ponytail like an immortal goddess who had come down to sightsee. 

"Ha... Milady, are you truly human? How can someone be so beautiful?" Bai Lu sighed. It was not because she was disappointed, but because she simply couldn't believe she was serving under such a beautiful woman even after being with her for a long time.

Lin Xiaofei softly smiled. "You're getting better at making others feel better, Bai Lu."

Bai Lu smiled like a child who was rewarded with candy and shook her head. 

"I'm just telling the truth, milady. You're way too beautiful that I can't imagine anyone surpassing your beauty!"

Lin Xiaofei sighed in her heart. A beautiful face was not everything to a woman was what she wanted to tell the young maid. But most women in the four kingdoms would beg to differ from Lin Xiaofei's opinion as everyone valued one's true worth through their beauty. 

"Do not be fooled by someone's beauty. Anyone could be beautiful, but not everyone could be said the same inside their hearts." Lin Xiaofei reminded her maids. 

They might be young and all because Lin Xiaofei didn't want them to think that being beautiful was such a wonderful gift. It could also be a curse to the person who owns it and everyone around that person. Simply put, a woman's or a man's beauty could be a double-edged sword.

After dressing up for the day, Lin Xiaofei stepped out of the courtyard and was on her way to Qu Xing Xu's study in order to start checking how everything in the Qu residence was doing. She hadn't checked them this week because she was both preoccupied with some other things and by Qu Xing Xu. 

When she arrived there, she stopped before the threshold upon seeing two men lounging inside the study. When the two sensed her, they turned their heads and their eyes visibly widened twice as big as their original eyes as they couldn't believe what they were seeing.

"Greetings to the two of you." Lin Xiaofei slightly bends her knees to curtsies at them before proceeding to sit on the chair behind the main desk that Qu Xing Xu has been using all this time upon becoming the duke.

Still not recovering from their shock upon seeing Lin Xiaofei, both Ni Zixuan and Qi Yandi followed her figure as she walked. 

"Y-y... You... What are you doing here?" Qi Yandi couldn't help but ask. 

"As the wife of the duke and duchess, I have to look after the residence and handle the household. I came here to do that." Lin Xiaofei raised an uninterested brow as if she was asking why he was asking the obvious.

"But that's Qu Xing Xu's desk and chair." Ni Zixuan frowned and pointed out.

"I know." Lin Xiaofei opened the account book that was on her right. "My husband told me to sit here because it's far more comfortable than that," she glanced at the slightly smaller table on the side. "Now, he's the one using that one."

Ni Zixuan couldn't believe what he was hearing. The table and chair that Lin Xiaofei was using have been what the head of the Qu family has been using for three generations. It was made out of oak, and even after already having three masters who used it, the table continued to look as new as when it was first brought over in the study.

The significance of the desk was great because that's where the head of the family sat. However, Qu Xing Xu made her sit there because it was comfortable? That nonsense was something that Ni Zixuan didn't want to believe.

He was about to say that she must not know the history of the table and if she did, Lin Xiaofei wouldn't dare sit there.

However, before he could even say a thing, Qi Yandi already interjected as he approached the desk.

"Qu Xing Xu is right. That small desk looks too small for you. Thankfully, he gave sister-in-law his desk. Is it comfortable enough for you?" Unlike Ni Zixuan, Qi Yandi was not hostile towards Lin Xiaofei. He was very friendly and outgoing. 

Lin Xiaofei smiled slightly. Her eyes swept a glance at Ni Zixuan and hid her frown. She was wondering what she did to offend him and make him so hostile towards her. They surely had just met yesterday and spent less time with each other. Lin Xiaofei also couldn't remember anything that could make them feel offended.

But she wasn't really thrilled or motivated to know the reason why Ni Zixuan didn't like her because she never planned to make them like her after all.

If they expected her to act like what most brides would do, act like a submissive wife and endure the grievances she received then, they couldn't be more wrong.

"It is. The cushion on the chair is softer than the other, and the desk is wider. It's really nice." Lin Xiaofei nodded and replied to Qi Yandi.

They continued to talk and ignored Ni Zixuan, who continued to glare at her.

---

Author has something to say: *screaming in frustration* I hate Ni Zixuan.. But don't worry, his character will definitely change from evil brother-in-law to one of Lin Xiaofei's knights XD hehe.