Chapter 23

Look at Ye Heng.

His clear gaze carried a trace of guilt.

After they stared at each other for several seconds, Tang Mingxi struck first. He lifted his chin, his tone far more confident than his position warranted. "I washed them."

Ye Heng's gaze fell on the dishes lying tragically shattered on the floor. Calmly, he asked, "Do you think I washed them badly, or not cleanly enough?"

Tang Mingxi: (.)

"Wasn't that good?" Tang Mingxi argued. "Now we won't have to wash dishes ever again!"

Ye Heng looked at him coldly.

For some reason, Tang Mingxi suddenly remembered how the bastard male lead had killed him in his dream last night. Combined with the other man's icy gaze now, it made him inexplicably uncomfortable.

He had clearly meant well by helping wash the dishes. It wasn't like he had thrown them on the floor—they had slipped and fallen by accident.

Before transmigrating, Tang Mingxi had been an only child, raised spoiled and pampered, with quite a temper to match.

He was angry :)

"Is being able to wash dishes that impressive?" He turned his back to Ye Heng, his tone already somewhat petulant. "I've never washed dishes before, and I cut my hand too."

It was only a tiny cut, but Tang Mingxi was still upset. After saying that, he ran upstairs in a sulk.

[Why does he get to glare at me? :) I didn't even hold it against him for killing me in my dream last night. I helped him wash dishes and he glared at me—did I smash the dishes on purpose?]

The moment he returned to his room, Tang Mingxi pulled Wang Min out of his blacklist and immediately began furiously venting to her.

Wang Min showered him with flattery. To show her outrage, she even sent voice messages. "Yes, yes, yes, our Second Young Master shouldn't have to suffer this indignity. It's all the dishes' fault—the dishes fell to the floor themselves. That bastard Ye Heng doesn't know what's good for him. When our princess graciously lowered herself to wash dishes for him, he should have knelt on the floor in gratitude!! It was his honor!"

Tang Mingxi was burning with anger and completely ignored terms like "Second Young Master" and "princess" slipped into Wang Min's voice message.

Tang Mingxi: [And I cut my hand too qvq]

Wang Min: [Oh my god! How could Her Highness the Princess's precious hand possibly get cut?! These hands should have two hundred billion in insurance! Did you call a doctor? Call 120 right now!! Arrange eight hundred doctors to wait on standby immediately!]

Tang Mingxi: [It's healed already :)]

Wang Min launched into another lengthy crusade against Ye Heng over WeChat, and only then did Tang Mingxi calm down a little.

He put down his phone, lifted his head, and saw Ye Heng standing in the doorway with an ointment tube in hand.

"When did you get here?" Tang Mingxi asked with a blank expression, though his fingers curled slightly as they picked at the bedsheet.

"When the princess graciously lowered herself to wash dishes for me, I should have knelt on the floor in gratitude."

He had arrived pretty early.

Tang Mingxi looked utterly unmoved on the surface, but inside, a volcano had erupted. Ten thousand alpacas had stampeded through his mind, twenty thousand screaming chickens were shrieking at once, and he even wanted to jump from the third floor and end it all on the spot.

Anything would have been better than facing this epic scene of social death.

"Oh." Tang Mingxi's ears had turned completely red, but he forced himself to remain composed.

Inside, he cursed furiously: Does this bastard male lead not make any sound when he walks?!

Was there anything more socially humiliating than being caught talking trash about someone behind their back?

Tang Mingxi no longer wanted to live.

"What are you here for?" Tang Mingxi thought, I'm not over being angry yet.

Even if you're the male lead, it doesn't mean you get away with it. It's not like I abused you—why should I put up with your attitude?

Ye Heng said, "I came to gratefully apply medicine for you."

Great. Bastard, I'll remember this :)

"My wound has already healed."

Tang Mingxi wanted to chase him out so he could have some peace and quiet alone.

Who knew Ye Heng would suddenly kneel on one knee, startling Tang Mingxi so badly that he nearly jumped up.

No way. Was the bastard male lead really planning to kneel in gratitude just to mock him?

That was unnecessary. Really, completely unnecessary.

The next second, Tang Mingxi suddenly realized that his ankle had been grasped by the young man's long-fingered hand.

Tang Mingxi ran cold by nature, and his feet were icy, but Ye Heng's palm was scorching hot. It made the top of his foot tense straight.

Only then did Tang Mingxi notice that there was a fairly large wound on his foot

and that it had been bleeding the whole time.

He had been so dizzy with anger earlier that he had not even noticed the pain.

Tang Mingxi was not used to resting his foot on someone else's knee, especially not the male lead's.

What if Ye Heng got annoyed and snapped his ankle?

He still remembered the original owner's ending in the novel—his Achilles tendons had been severed. Tang Mingxi quite liked his own feet. They were clean and pretty, with full insteps like crescent moons, ten round and well-behaved toes, pale skin tinged with pink, neatly trimmed nails, and little moons at their bases.

"I'll do it myself. Don't touch me!" Tang Mingxi hurriedly grabbed some tissues and wiped away the blood.

Then he squeezed out a tube of ointment and spread it evenly across the top of his foot.

"Hiss..."

It hurt so much qvq.

Ye Heng released him. A smooth, slippery sensation still lingered in his palm, as though he had touched fine icy silk.

The instep coated in ointment looked slick and wet. Tang Mingxi crossed his legs and held the medicated foot up in the air.

Ye Heng looked away.

Tang Mingxi dawdled over applying the medicine for a long time, only to realize that Ye Heng still had not left.

Was he doing this on purpose? :)

The awkwardness of that social death resurfaced perfectly in his mind.

Even the air seemed suffocating.

Tang Mingxi thought, Not talking, huh? Fine.

He would not say anything either. As long as he did not speak, he would not be the awkward one.

Then Tang Mingxi could not hold it in anymore.

Damn it, this bastard male lead was way too patient! Was he the reincarnation of a ninja turtle?

"Why are you standing there instead of leaving? Staying to massage my legs?" Tang Mingxi snapped irritably. "Get lost!"

To his surprise, Ye Heng's gaze actually lingered on his calf for a moment.

Tang Mingxi was left with a: ?

The next second, Ye Heng turned and left the bedroom with the ointment.

About a week passed after that, during which Tang Mingxi found all sorts of excuses to avoid Ye Heng.

After reviewing the original novel's plot again, Tang Mingxi felt that he had been getting too carried away lately just because he was rich.

He could not let his guard down just because the male lead was currently focused on his career and had not come to settle old scores with him.

After all, Ye Heng was best at hiding his strength and playing the pig to eat the tiger.

There was only one year left until the male lead pushed him into a school of sharks, and he had not even learned platform diving yet!

Tang Mingxi, Tang Mingxi, you can't keep falling apart like this!

So, once the wound on the top of his foot had healed.

He began going to the swimming pool again for intensive training.

The next time he saw Ye Heng was two weeks later.

When he returned home, he found his favorite sweet-and-sour dried fish arranged on the slate kitchen island, giving off a sweet fragrance.

Tang Mingxi still could not let go of his social death. This past week, to demonstrate his unyielding backbone, he had not even eaten the food Ye Heng cooked :)

From the tips of his hair to the soles of his feet, he radiated the spoiled stubbornness of "I'm very angry, and you absolutely can't coax me into forgiving you."

Wuwu, but it smelled so good qvq.

"Tang Mingxi." Ye Heng suddenly called out to him.

Tang Mingxi looked at him coolly and arrogantly, as if looking down from on high.

"Riverside Abode has a new chef. Do you want to go?"

"I'm. Not. Going."

Heh, was that any way to invite someone to dinner? Did he think one meal would be enough to appease him?

He was not that easy to placate :)

Ye Heng looked at him calmly and said nothing.

Tang Mingxi gave a cold snort, then turned away.