The two were effectively strangers. Left to their own devices, the atmosphere between them grew uncomfortably stiff. It didn’t help that Xie Yuechan’s familiarity with the Marquis’s estate was based entirely on secondhand memories.
Hidden behind a jagged crevice in the rock garden, Xie Yuewan watched them like a hawk. Seeing Gu Jing’an remain cold and distant toward Xie Yuechan brought a smirk of satisfaction to her face. She slipped away quietly, intent on putting her plan into motion.
“Oh? Is that a rabbit up ahead?”
Wandering aimlessly, Xie Yuechan spotted a snow-white rabbit huddling on the grass. She felt as though she had found a savior; her eyes lit up instantly. She turned back to press a finger to her lips, signaling Gu Jing’an to be silent, before lifting her hem and creeping up behind the unsuspecting creature.
It was a fluffy, white ball of fur—utterly adorable.
Xie Yuechan rubbed her hands together, her movements swift and precise. With a practiced strike, she snatched the rabbit up by its long ears.
“Does the Marquis’s household raise rabbits?” Gu Jing’an asked, finding the sight curious. He felt a sudden impulse to pat the creature’s head, but Xie Yuechan beat him to it.
Judging by her practiced handling, he assumed she must spend a great deal of time caring for the creature. Perhaps she wasn’t as unbearable as he had thought; at the very least, she possessed a soft heart for—
“It probably squeezed in through a dog-hole. No one in my family keeps these as pets,” she said.
She stared at the rabbit, her mouth practically watering. “What do you think? Should we roast it or stew it?”
“…?”
“Well?”
Xie Yuechan blinked. Why was he looking at her with such utter disbelief? She mirrored his frown, her brows knitting together. “I noticed you barely touched a thing during the banquet earlier. Surely you aren’t suggesting you aren’t hungry?”
Did I misread him? she wondered. This Gu Anshi had clearly looked at the rabbit with a hungry, desperate intensity just a moment ago.
“I am not eating that. Suit yourself!”
He snapped the words with a sudden, inexplicable flash of temper. Xie Yuechan was baffled. She had no patience for guessing the whims of men, so she shrugged it off. “Fine, don’t eat then. Why the terrifying scowl?”
Since the decision was hers, roast rabbit it was!
Gu Jing’an seethed with a quiet, suffocating indignation. Watching the creature—so full of life moments ago—being prepped for the fire only made it worse. He felt a sting of regret; he had actually tried to find excuses for her in his mind just seconds before. This woman was truly terrifying, a creature of pure malice!
Despite his anger, he didn’t walk away. After all, he wasn’t familiar with the layout of the Marquis’s estate.
After sharpening her blade, Xie Yuechan led the way to a gazebo in the garden. She didn’t need to build the fire herself; she simply focused on seasoning the meat with salt, pepper, and fragrant spices. All that remained was to watch the flames and wait.
Slowly, a rich, savory aroma began to drift through the air, snaking its way into Gu Jing’an’s nostrils. At first, he tried to ignore it. But as the scent grew more concentrated, it became an impossible presence. He couldn’t help but steal a glance toward her.
The raw meat had turned from a delicate pink to a shimmering, charred gold. Beads of oil sizzled and danced on the surface. Xie Yuechan brushed on a layer of honey before finishing it with a generous dusting of cumin and white sesame seeds. She ran her knife along the skin; the crisp, scraping sound was a clear promise of a crunch that would give way to tender, juicy meat.
The sight triggered an involuntary swallow from Gu Jing’an.
No! If I keep looking, she’ll notice. He forced his eyes away and closed them tight, cursing his lack of humanity while simultaneously mourning his earlier display of “noble” restraint. If he hadn’t acted so high-and-mighty, he’d probably have a share right now.
Xie Yuechan pretended not to notice his inner turmoil, but she was laughing herself silly behind her neutral expression.
Gu Jing’an kept his eyes shut, but after a moment, the aroma seemed to grow even more intense—as if it were right under his nose. He let out a long sigh, intending to get up and wander the garden until she finished so he wouldn’t lose face.
But when he opened his eyes, he found Xie Yuechan holding out a whole, steaming rabbit leg.
“Well? Are you going to eat or not?”
Xie Yuechan squinted with a smile, offering her spoils with effortless generosity.
Eat up, eat up, she thought. They say those who eat another’s food must speak kindly of them. Maybe you’ll go a little easier on me when the real heroine finally shows up.
It wasn’t that Xie Yuechan hadn’t considered an immediate divorce, but the logistics were a nightmare. For starters, her original self had practically burnt bridges with the Marquis to marry Gu Jing’an; it had taken the Crown Princess’s personal intervention just to salvage a shred of their father-daughter bond.
Furthermore, her reputation in the capital was currently in the gutter. If she divorced and slunk back to her father’s house, she’d only be auctioned off to the next highest bidder—likely another pit of fire. She wanted to open a restaurant and support herself, but with her current notoriety, the shop would probably be trashed before the grand opening. And if she fled the city? She was functionally illiterate in this world’s script. Wandering blindly into the unknown was a death sentence.
After much deliberation, she had decided her best bet was to stay at the Gu manor for now. She’d spend the year reading, learning the ropes, and polishing her image. Then, when the heroine made her debut in a year’s time, she could make a graceful, elegant exit.
Gu Jing’an shot her a complicated look before finally accepting the glistening, succulent rabbit leg.
They sat across from one another, making short work of the meal. While Xie Yuechan abandoned all decorum to eat with her hands, Gu Jing’an remained stubbornly refined, requesting a set of chopsticks to maintain his dignity.
It tasted exactly as he had imagined. No—it was better.
The skin was charred and crisp, the meat tender to the bone, and the salt and spice were balanced to perfection. Having been left unsatisfied by lunch, Gu Jing’an finally felt a sense of contentment.
The gazebo was built over the water, and in the height of summer, the surface was a sea of blooming lotuses. A gentle breeze drifted through, carrying a faint, clean floral scent. With a full stomach, his earlier agitation evaporated, and his expression toward Xie Yuechan softened considerably.
Recalling his harsh attitude from moments ago, he felt a prickle of embarrassment. “My apologies,” he said, his voice solemn.
“Huh?” Xie Yuechan looked up, confused. What’s this guy apologizing for now?
“I was too harsh earlier. I’ve simply never seen… a life taken before. I felt a moment of pity, and so…” He trailed off. He had preached a high moral ground only to cave to his own hunger moments later.
“Because the bunny is so cute, how could we possibly eat it?” Xie Yuechan quoted a famous line from her old world, breaking into a giggle.
Gu Jing’an stared at her, speechless. “…”
“Regardless,” he persisted, “I am sorry.”
Xie Yuechan waved a hand dismissively. “It’s fine. I didn’t take it to heart. Besides, you didn’t even say anything that meant.” Just a “suit yourself”—that didn’t even rank on the scale of insults she was used to. Her skin was thick enough to handle far worse.
Gu Jing’an felt a small weight lift from his chest. However, a lingering thought remained.
“But I do have one question, Gu Jing’an.”
“What is it?” He looked up to see her blinking at him, her expression a mix of playful teasing and sudden gravity. “You blamed me for killing this rabbit because it’s cute, right?”
“Yes,” he admitted. Even if he hated to sound soft, he had always harbored a certain fondness for small, fluffy creatures.
“In my eyes, all things are equal,” she said. “Whether it’s a rabbit, a chicken, a duck, a cow, or a pig—they’re all the same. Death is inevitable. The weeds and wildflowers by the road are living things too; none are inherently more noble than the rest. Humans included.”
She leaned back slightly. “Rabbits eat grass; chickens eat grain and worms; big fish eat little fish. It’s a food chain. Humans are part of nature, so we’re part of that chain too. As long as you aren’t being cruel or abusive to the animal, I think it’s perfectly normal. But then again…” She paused, offering a quick smile to soften the blow. “You are the pampered Third Master Gu. It’s only natural that you’ve never seen the bloodier side of things.”
Xie Yuechan realized her words might be a bit too “avant-garde” for a refined scholar like him, so she quickly added a few comforting platitudes.
But Gu Jing’an was already reeling from her perspective. He had once dismissed her as a shallow, self-centered brat who did whatever she pleased without a single thought for others. Yet today, her words suggested she wasn’t just an empty vessel.
Her worldview was something he had never even considered.