The System had actually provided Sheng Muxue with two pills for physical transformation and disguise. The fat woman had already been captured as a female thief, so naturally, she could no longer appear in the public eye. Therefore, this time, after swallowing the pill, Sheng Muxue took on the exact appearance of one of Xie Jinghong’s servants.
The person he replaced was Xie Jinghong’s personal attendant, Gu Qing, who was also his confidant, meaning he would never reveal the switch. He only needed to stay hidden for a period of time. Of course, since Sheng Muxue had taken over someone’s identity, he naturally had to take over their duties as well. These consisted mostly of pushing Xie Jinghong’s wheelchair and caring for his daily needs. This included tasks like helping Xie Jinghong into bed and assisting him in undressing.
Fortunately, Xie Jinghong was quite slim. Despite being a grown man, he was remarkably light. Carrying him did not require much effort. Furthermore, Sheng Muxue genuinely wanted to make amends to him from the bottom of his heart. Otherwise, given his own rebellious young master nature, he would never have deigned to serve anyone else.
However, undressing him was another matter. Sheng Muxue raised an eyebrow as he looked at Xie Jinghong, who was half-reclining on the bed and locking eyes with him, and asked earnestly: “Can’t you take them off yourself?” It was not as if his hands were broken.
A faint glint flashed in Xie Jinghong’s eyes. “I can, but I generally do not do it myself.”
“Then why don’t you try doing it yourself just this once?”
Seeing that Sheng Muxue was clearly reluctant, Xie Jinghong did not press the issue. “Very well, I will handle the rest. You should return to your room and rest.”
Afterward, Xie Jinghong gave him instructions on which room was his and reminded him to avoid speaking with others to avoid exposing his identity. Sheng Muxue naturally understood perfectly well and replied lazily: “Understood.”
Just as he was about to step out of the room, he realized it was already late. Remembering he had not eaten dinner, he turned back and asked: “Do you have any food here?”
“What would you like to eat?”
Sheng Muxue replied grandly: “Anything is fine. I am not a picky eater.”
Xie Jinghong smiled faintly: “The food in the estate is usually prepared by Gu Qing, so that is your responsibility as well. As it happens, I am hungry too. Why don’t you whip something up, and we can eat together?”
Sheng Muxue froze in place. After a long moment, he pointed to his own nose and asked: “Are you sure?”
“Is there a problem?”
“I am asking, are you sure you want to eat something I cooked?”
A sense of impending doom suddenly arose in Xie Jinghong’s heart, but he braced himself and said: “Trying it should be fine. Mainly because in my estate, you are the only one who knows how to cook.”
“Fine, then.”
Since the man had put it that way, Sheng Muxue felt he had to show off his culinary skills for once. Even though he used to struggle just boiling instant noodles, he had at least spent two hundred years practicing his cooking to raise Yun Zheng. Although, every time Yun Zheng ate his food, he would do so with a pained expression. Yet, even after finishing, he would always force himself to lie and praise it, saying it was very delicious.
So, this was all Yun Zheng’s fault. He would eat whatever Sheng Muxue served without complaint, never blaming him for making bad food, which resulted in Sheng Muxue’s cooking skills remaining stagnant for two centuries. He even inadvertently forced Yun Zheng to become a master chef himself.
Sheng Muxue went to the kitchen, surveyed the ingredients, and began to work while humming a little tune. Half an hour later, he walked to Xie Jinghong carrying a bowl of black, thick, bubbling porridge with unidentified leaves floating on top. Xie Jinghong took one look, pinched his nose, and pulled an uncomfortable face. “What is this?”
Sheng Muxue replied calmly: “Cilantro black rice porridge. I saw that your constitution was weak, so I kindly boiled this black rice porridge to help you nourish your body. As for the cilantro, I could not find any other vegetables in your kitchen, so this was the only thing available.”
Xie Jinghong rubbed his forehead, regretting his choice immensely. It was too late to refuse now. He forced himself to take a spoonful. Before he could even swallow it, he began to cough violently, spitting the entire mouthful out.
Sheng Muxue watched the bowl of porridge, which was still bubbling in his hand, with a deflated expression. He muttered to himself: “Is it really that bad?”
Xie Jinghong could not bear to crush his spirits and quickly tried to smooth things over: “It is not bad. It is just that my body is too weak. I cough violently whenever I eat anything hot. I will be fine after a while.”
Upon hearing this, Sheng Muxue immediately perked up: “Then I will leave it here for you. Drink it after it cools down.”
With that, he set the tray down and turned to leave. Just as he reached the door and was about to close it, he gave Xie Jinghong a special instruction: “You must finish it, or I will be angry.”
He had tried his best; he had burned himself out. It was not his fault if he truly lacked talent in that area. However, since he had already made it, he would never allow his hard work to go to waste. Since he could not bring himself to suffer, he would have to let Xie Jinghong suffer instead. Who told him to be so committed to compensating him? It was not as if the food was entirely inedible; wasting food was shameful.
Poor Xie Jinghong remained with his hand still suspended in mid-air, looking at the bowl of porridge with an innocent expression: “…”
Having left the room, Sheng Muxue did not return to the kitchen or his own quarters. He would not be foolish enough to go and drink that atrocious porridge. He planned to head out of the estate to buy something to eat. Staying put and behaving obediently was simply not in his nature.
Si Chen had spent the entire day without catching that fox spirit. However, he did not believe the fox had escaped Luo Yun City. It must still be hiding within the city walls.
Si Chen had always been trusted by Yun Zheng for his swift and efficient work. It could be said that he had almost never disappointed his master. Thus, this time, even though Yun Zheng had not specifically requested it, he intended to work tirelessly, checking every household and inn in Luo Yun City to see who might be harboring the fox. He even led a large troop, carrying the Qiankun Mirror to inspect everyone on the street; the commotion was significant.
As a result, Sheng Muxue, while walking down the street, saw Si Chen leading a group of men searching for him from afar. He could not help but think: this Star Lord Yao Guang is loyal enough, but his brain is a bit slow.
However, he did not want to face the Qiankun Mirror again. Without the System to help him this time, he might actually be exposed. Consequently, Sheng Muxue bought some food and turned to leave. Just as he turned, he heard Si Chen’s voice calling him from behind: “Wait a moment.”
Familiar words, familiar voice.
What a case of enemies meeting on a narrow road. Since he had been called out, Sheng Muxue stopped in his tracks. He had always had excellent mental fortitude; as long as it was not a hopeless situation, he believed he could turn the tables. But this time, he did not intend to speak first. If the enemy did not move, he would not move, adapting to changes with constancy.
Seeing that he remained silent, Si Chen took the initiative to speak: “Young Master Gu, how do you plan to deal with the female thief who was sent to the Xie residence earlier?”
Sheng Muxue imitated Gu Qing’s manner of speaking and tone: “Naturally, I will leave it to my master to decide. As a mere attendant, what right do I have to interfere?”
Si Chen clearly did not suspect Sheng Muxue. Mostly, it was because Sheng Muxue was exceptionally skilled at mimicry; even having only seen the person once, he could imitate them perfectly.
After a moment of silence, Si Chen asked again: “Have you seen a suspicious fox demon?”
Sheng Muxue feigned surprise: “What fox demon?”
Si Chen saw that he did not seem to be faking it. If he were faking, his first reaction would have been to say, “I have not seen one.” Assuming he really had not seen one, Si Chen simply said, “No matter,” and turned to leave.
Sheng Muxue watched Si Chen walk away, a faint, cold smile slowly appearing in his eyes.