Just after she muttered the words “iceberg face,” the person behind her paused mid step. Two seconds later, he resumed walking and returned to his room.
Lu Zhiheng had heard it.
He froze for a moment.
Iceberg face?
She had called him an iceberg face?
Standing by the window, Lu Zhiheng watched her retreating figure.
She stood there as though celebrating something, patted her chest in relief, then turned and walked back into the courtyard.
He recalled the expressions she had worn earlier, from her initial hesitation, to the stiffness when he entered through the gate, to the disbelieving look she had given him after he walked past her.
There had been anger in that look.
Not the crazed fury she had displayed before, but genuine irritation born from being ignored.
He remembered all those outrageous things she had done in the past. He remembered her apology that night. He remembered how she had been avoiding him these past few days as though he carried the plague.
And now, there was one more thing to add to the list.
She insulted him behind his back and called him an iceberg face.
The corners of Lu Zhiheng’s lips shifted slightly.
It was not anger.
Rather, it was a subtle feeling that even he could not quite describe.
So, she was not only capable of avoiding him.
She could get angry too.
Even if she only dared to do it behind his back.
Returning to her room, Su Qinghe flopped onto the bed and buried her face in her pillow.
“Su Qinghe, are you out of your mind?!”
She scolded herself internally.
She had promised to keep her distance from him. She had promised they would mind their own business.
And what had happened?
He ignored her, and she retaliated by calling him an iceberg face?
Fine, she had insulted him.
But why had she said it out loud?
What if he had heard her?
What if he had still been standing by the door?
What if…
Wait a minute.
When she had glanced back earlier, there had been no one in the courtyard.
So he probably had not heard her.
Probably! Rolling over, Su Qinghe stared at the ceiling.
Forget it, whether he had heard it or not, what difference did it make?
Was she wrong?
Iceberg face.
Walking around with that perpetually cold expression, as though the whole world owed him money.
It was true.
She rolled over again, pulled the blanket up to her chin, and closed her eyes.
Yet the image kept replaying in her mind.
The way he had looked at her when entering the courtyard.
That emotionless gaze, as though she were no different from the air around him.
Suddenly, she felt a little wronged.
She had not done anything. She had worked so hard to avoid him.
What more did he want?
Back in the real world, no one had ever treated Su Qinghe this way.
Lu Zhiheng, huh. Wonderful!
The next second, her rational mind and emotional mind began fighting each other.
“Su Qinghe, get a grip. He’s a fictional character. Why are you getting angry at a fictional character? Seriously.”
She kicked the air a few times beneath the blanket, glared at it for good measure, and checked the time.
There was still plenty of time before they needed to head out.
She might as well go back to sleep.
【Breakfast Time · Nine O’Clock】
By the time Su Qinghe came downstairs, the aroma of breakfast had already drifted out from the kitchen.
Zhao Muyan was busy at the stove while Zhou Yichen helped set out bowls and chopsticks nearby.
“Morning, Sister Qinghe!” Zhou Yichen greeted me energetically.
Forcing a smile, Su Qinghe replied, “Morning.”
Her gaze swept across the courtyard.
Liu Yinuo sat beneath the scholar tree drinking tea while Shen Ci stood nearby talking to her about something.
Jiang Nian had also come downstairs. Wearing a pale colored dress, she seemed to be chatting with Lu Zhiheng, her smile as gentle as ever.
Lu Zhiheng responded briefly.
Although Su Qinghe could not tell what he was saying from his lip movements, his replies were undeniably short. His mouth barely moved before closing again.
Seated in a bamboo chair, Lu Zhiheng held a book in his hands.
Hah. So pretentious. Even with the female lead, he’s stingy with words, Su Qinghe thought.
Retracting her gaze, she headed toward the kitchen.
“Brother Muyan, need any help?”
Zhao Muyan turned around.
“No, no. Everything’s almost ready. Go sit in the courtyard and wait.”
Nevertheless, Su Qinghe walked in and voluntarily carried out a plate of freshly cooked pan fried dumplings.
She placed the dish on the table, passing right by Lu Zhiheng in the process.
Without sparing him a glance, she pretended he did not exist.
An eye for an eye.
If he treated her like air, then she would become air too.
Lu Zhiheng turned a page in his book without lifting his head.
But he had not absorbed a single word on the page.
He remembered the phrase from that morning.
Iceberg face.
Then he looked at the woman who was now deliberately avoiding eye contact, every inch of her body proclaiming, I don’t know you.
For some reason, he suddenly wanted to laugh.
【Breakfast Table】
One by one, the seven guests took their seats.
Su Qinghe intentionally chose the seat farthest from Lu Zhiheng, diagonally across the table with Zhou Yichen and Liu Yinuo sitting between them.
Completely oblivious to the subtle arrangement, Zhou Yichen bit into a dumpling and asked, “Sister Qinghe, you were up so early. Did you go jogging?”
Su Qinghe paused briefly.
“No, I just stood by the entrance and admired the scenery.”
“Then let’s go running together tomorrow! I was planning to start morning runs anyway. The air here is too nice not to take advantage of it.”
Su Qinghe gave a perfunctory hum.
Beside them, Jiang Nian said gently, “Yichen really has so much energy.”
Embarrassed by the praise, Zhou Yichen scratched his head.
“I just want to experience everything I can. It’s not often we get to visit somewhere this beautiful.”
Liu Yinuo joined in.
“Then I’ll go with you tomorrow. I should get some exercise too.”
Shen Ci glanced at her.
“You?”
Raising an eyebrow, Liu Yinuo replied, “What? Looking down on me?”
“No. I just remembered that the last time you said you’d exercise was last year.”
Liu Yinuo rolled her eyes at him.
The atmosphere around the table remained relaxed and cheerful.
Only Su Qinghe kept her head lowered, quietly eating without saying much.
Occasionally, when her gaze drifted toward a certain direction, she would quickly avert it.
That direction happened to be where Lu Zhiheng sat eating breakfast.
He had excellent table manners.
His movements were restrained, and he barely made a sound while chewing.
Su Qinghe took one glance before looking away again.
Iceberg face.
Even the way he eats screams iceberg face.
She silently added the remark in her heart.
【After Breakfast】
Su Qinghe voluntarily headed into the kitchen to wash the dishes.
Zhao Muyan had intended to help, but she pushed him back outside.
“You cooked, go rest.”
Standing at the kitchen entrance, Zhao Muyan instinctively glanced in Jiang Nian’s direction.
Jiang Nian sat in the courtyard chatting with Liu Yinuo, completely unaware of his gaze.
Then Zhou Yichen bounded over.
“Brother Muyan! Come skip stones with me! I found a little stream behind the mountain!”
Before Zhao Muyan could react, he had already been dragged away.
The kitchen was left with only Su Qinghe inside.
Lowering her head, she washed the dishes slowly.
Suddenly, she heard footsteps.
Without turning around, she assumed it was Liu Yinuo or someone else.
However, the footsteps stopped at the kitchen entrance.
They neither entered nor spoke.
She turned around. Lu Zhiheng stood in the doorway with a cup in hand.
Looking at her, he paused for a second before asking, “Is there any hot water?”
Su Qinghe froze. This was the first sentence he had spoken to her all day.
She pointed toward the thermos near the stove.
“Over there. Pour it yourself.”
Lu Zhiheng walked in and filled his cup with hot water.
As he passed by her, his footsteps slowed briefly.
Su Qinghe’s entire body tensed, and the bowl in her hands nearly slipped from her grasp.
But he said nothing.
He simply walked away.
Staring at his retreating figure, Su Qinghe waited until he had gone before letting out a long breath.
What was that about?
That pause just now…
Was it intentional? Or accidental?
She suddenly remembered the words she had uttered that morning.
Iceberg face!
No way…
Surely…
He hadn’t actually heard it, had he?