“What was that man’s voice just now?”
The moment Lin Shanyue entered the house, she looked around in every direction, her wide-eyed expression remarkably like a curious squirrel.
Huo Yi had no idea why that comparison suddenly came to mind.
He couldn’t help curling his lips into a smile on the other side of the mirror.
When he’d seen her in danger earlier, he’d instinctively shouted. He’d discovered that his voice could travel through the silver mirror. Since the young woman couldn’t see him, he’d improvised on the spot, hoping to scare off the two thugs.
It had only been a desperate measure. If they hadn’t been frightened away, things could have become troublesome.
Fortunately, she had kind-hearted neighbors who came to her rescue.
She’s really a pampered young lady from a noble household, he thought.
Her sense of personal safety is terrible.
Seeing her searching for him, Huo Yi suddenly felt like teasing her.
“Looking for me?”
Lin Shanyue jumped in fright.
“W-Who’s there?! Who’s speaking?”
“Me… your guardian spirit.”
Her eyes grew even wider. At last, she realized the voice was coming from the silver mirror.
She hurried over, picked it up, and turned it over repeatedly, inspecting every side.
“Stop looking. You can’t see me. Hey, could you quit shaking the mirror? You’re making me dizzy.”
Lin Shanyue immediately covered her mouth in astonishment.
There really are immortals in this world!
She carefully placed the mirror upright again, her expression becoming utterly reverent.
“G-Great Immortal… are you truly my guardian spirit?”
Huo Yi narrowed his eyes, his smile deepening.
“I’m no immortal. I’m a demon.”
“But I really can protect you.”
Being an immortal sounded boring—pure and detached from worldly desires.
Being a demon, on the other hand…
That sounded much more entertaining.
Especially if it meant he could tease this little lady.
“A… demon…”
Lin Shanyue recalled what had happened in the courtyard.
Then understanding dawned on her.
“So… you’ve been sealed inside this mirror? Is that why you’re protecting me?”
“That’s right.”
“I made mistakes in the past, and now I’m making up for them.”
“I’ve been sleeping inside this mirror all this time.”
“I only just woke up.”
“I suppose meeting you is fate.”
“I understand.”
She nodded thoughtfully.
“So… by helping me, you’re accumulating merit, allowing yourself to break free sooner?”
Huo Yi’s grin nearly reached his ears.
“Exactly.”
“You can think of it that way.”
Helping someone had somehow become paying off his own debt.
What a losing deal.
Still, as he looked at the girl in the mirror, he casually tossed over the bag of polished japonica rice Lao Bai had bought earlier.
The mirror truly was extraordinary.
It looked small, yet almost anything seemed able to pass through it.
“You look pitiful.”
“Here’s a bag of rice for today.”
Lin Shanyue’s eyes flew open.
A sack of rice had really appeared before her.
“‘Wuchang Rice’…”
She untied the bag.
Inside was gleaming white rice.
Her face instantly lit up with joy.
“Thank you, Great Immortal!”
Hearing her alternate between calling him “Great Deity” and “Great Immortal,” Huo Yi corrected her.
“My name is Huo Yi.”
“Just call me by my name.”
Although he’d said so, Lin Shanyue didn’t dare be so disrespectful.
After thinking for a moment, she replied,
“Then… I’ll call you Young Master Huo.”
“Works for me.”
“Young Master Huo, I’ll gratefully accept this rice.”
“Is there anything you’d like me to offer you as tribute?”
“Thank you so very much.”
“No need.”
“Go about your business.”
“If I need anything, I’ll let you know.”
Lin Shanyue nodded respectfully before carrying the bag of rice into the kitchen with heartfelt gratitude.
There had to be around ten jin of rice.
Earlier that day, she’d spent an entire qian of silver just to buy two jin.
This single gift had solved one of her biggest problems.
After all, surviving began with having enough to eat.
At the rate she’d been spending money, her ten taels of silver wouldn’t last long.
Now that she had rice, she could finally cook.
Disgusting as those two men had been, she still needed the firewood they’d delivered.
Lighting a stove and hauling water were tasks Lin Shanyue knew well.
She’d grown up in Crescent Town after all.
Even with today’s unexpected windfall, she intended to remain frugal.
Rice was still too precious to eat freely.
She decided to cook porridge instead.
Xiaobao was old enough to eat rice cereal as well.
That settled it.
Today she’d also bought two heads of cabbage, a tiny amount of salt, and a little cooking oil.
Pitifully little.
Still, it was enough to stir-fry a simple vegetable dish.
When she’d chosen this house, she’d insisted on one thing:
It had to come with a kitchen.
Looking back now, she’d been wonderfully foresighted.
If she’d also needed to buy pots, bowls, and cooking utensils…
She truly wouldn’t have known what to do.
Soon, the rich fragrance of freshly cooked rice drifted from the kitchen.
Lin Shanyue swallowed unconsciously.
Smoke curled gently from the chimney.
Her thoughts wandered with it.
Whatever happened in the future…
At least now, life had finally begun properly.
Besides…
She considered herself rather fortunate.
After all…
She had an immortal watching over her.
“Xiaobao! Time to eat!”
Carrying two bowls of porridge and a plate of stir-fried greens, Lin Shanyue returned to the room.
After setting everything on the table, she picked Xiaobao up from the bed.
Then she politely asked the silver mirror,
“Young Master Huo… are you still there?”
There was no response.
She understood.
He probably wasn’t always present.
She carried Xiaobao to the table, blew on the porridge until it cooled, and held a spoonful to his lips.
“Good boy~ Time to eat.”
After such an eventful day, Xiaobao was genuinely hungry.
He opened his mouth wide and swallowed obediently.
Lin Shanyue smiled happily.
“Such a good boy~ One more bite.”
The small bowl was soon empty.
She sat Xiaobao beside her and quietly began eating her own meal.
As she ate, she calculated her future expenses.
This amount of food wasn’t enough for Xiaobao.
A child his age needed proper nutrition.
She had to earn money as quickly as possible.
She needed to buy meat.
Fish.
Anything she could use to make nourishing meat porridge.
Kyoto also sold fresh cow’s milk.
Of course…
It was outrageously expensive.
While Lin Shanyue silently planned how to make a living, Huo Yi hadn’t answered her because he was in the middle of a medical examination.
“Mr. Huo, you still haven’t regained your sense of taste?”
the doctor asked after finishing.
Huo Yi opened his eyes and shook his head.
“Not at all.”
The doctor thought for a moment before saying,
“But all of our examinations show no physical damage to your taste buds.”
“It still appears to be psychological.”
“Perhaps you should see the psychiatry department again?”
Huo Yi rubbed his temples.
“I already have.”
“They diagnosed post-traumatic stress disorder.”
“The explanations all sounded convincing.”
“But none of them actually have a solution.”
Half a year earlier, Huo Yi had been involved in an accident.
Afterward, the third young master of the Huo family had suddenly lost his sense of taste.
No matter what he ate…
Everything was flavorless.
He had spent six months seeing doctors.
Nothing had improved.
Some ordinary people might think losing one’s sense of taste sounded convenient.
Wouldn’t it make dieting easier?
But reality was far crueler.
People without taste often developed severe psychological problems.
Many even sank into serious depression with physical symptoms.
After all…
Living without ever tasting flavor again…
Was an unimaginable kind of suffering.
The doctor looked at him sympathetically.
“I’m sorry, Mr. Huo.”
“We’ll continue looking for a solution.”
…
After returning from the hospital, Huo Yi sat silently at the dining table.
The Huo family’s head butler knew about his condition.
Every day, the chefs prepared different elaborate meals in hopes that something might help.
The dishes looked exquisite.
But once they entered his mouth…
They were all equally bland.
Impossible to enjoy.
Today, however…
Huo Yi absentmindedly took out the silver mirror.
By chance, he saw Lin Shanyue eating.
He froze.
He couldn’t explain why.
It was nothing more than a plate of simple stir-fried greens and plain rice porridge.
Yet suddenly…
He found himself craving it.
Terribly.
Desperately.
“Hey.”
“What are you eating?”
Lin Shanyue had been slowly sipping her porridge when the silver mirror suddenly spoke again.
She jumped in surprise and quickly turned toward it.