Bathing

After both hordes of Magic Beasts had passed, Dongfang Wanyu took her to a random spot to rest.

"What have you been doing all this time? Raiding their nests? Stealing their eggs?" Seeing her covered in dirt and looking utterly bedraggled, Dongfang Wanyu could not help questioning her.

Dongfang Minghui's face fell. She had grievances she could not even voice. There probably was not a more miserable female supporting character in the world. All she had done was play cook for once-how had she come back with this whole stinking mess clinging to her?

"If you don't want to tell me, fine. But the next time you run into danger like this, don't expect me to save you again." Dongfang Wanyu's tone was rather harsh. She had to admit that seeing Dongfang Minghui looking so pitiful had softened her heart a little. Otherwise, she would not have let her meddlesome hands drag her along to escape earlier.

"I didn't steal any bird eggs," Dongfang Minghui could not help arguing. As the dignified Ninth Young Lady of the Eastern Estate, how could she do such a thing?

Dongfang Wanyu snorted. "If you didn't steal their eggs, did those Golden Crow Bird eggs crawl into your pocket on their own? How else could you have provoked their entire flock into hunting you down?"

Dongfang Minghui felt wronged. Though the eggs had not crawled into her pocket on their own, the truth was not far off. She was not about to tell anyone something so humiliating.

"Your ninth sister really is your lucky star. If she hadn't brought that flock of Golden Crow Birds here, those Ironclad Beetles might not have retreated so quickly."

Golden Crow Birds were the true natural enemies of Ironclad Beetles. The beetles' shells were impervious to blades and spears, but against the birds' golden, hooked beaks, they crumbled at a single blow. Besides, one crawled and the other flew; they were natural enemies to begin with.

"Tsk, tsk. If I hadn't seen what she looked like earlier, I would never have believed she stumbled into this by accident."

The cool voice made a couple of remarks in Dongfang Wanyu's mind before falling silent on its own.

Since Dongfang Minghui had helped her once again, Dongfang Wanyu decided not to pursue where she had disappeared to for most of the day.

"Find somewhere with water in a bit and clean yourself up properly." Dongfang Wanyu tossed the bundle straight to her.

Dongfang Minghui looked herself over. Her hair was loose and disheveled, her clothes were filthy beyond recognition, and her face was even worse-grease and dust everywhere, a complete disaster.

No wonder the heroine had looked at her with such disdain.

Dongfang Minghui found a lake. Its blue-green water was so clear she could see the bottom, and the scenery around it was lovely, so she undressed and stepped into the water wearing her underclothes. Fortunately, the lake was shallow. She tested the depth near the shore, and even standing straight, the water only reached just above her chest. Even a landlubber like her, who could not swim, had nothing to worry about.

Only after making sure did she boldly walk toward the middle of the lake.

"At last, I can have a bath." These past few days had turned her entire former life upside down. Not only had she been eating in the wind and sleeping beneath the open sky, she had not even had anywhere to bathe-and now she had to take a cold bath. After spending an entire day steeped in the smell of Corpse-Scent Grass, she felt her sense of smell had already gone haywire.

As Dongfang Minghui washed, she grumbled inwardly, unable to stop wondering how much longer she would have to live without a place to call home.

In the end, she realized that decision still lay in the heroine's hands.

At that thought, Dongfang Minghui wailed and submerged her entire face. She loosened her hair so she could give it a thorough wash as well. Just as she was enjoying herself, a voice suddenly intruded.

"This lake is so clean. Let me cool off first."

Two men suddenly approached the shore. On a whim, one of them stripped down to his shorts and jumped into the lake.

With a splash, a great spray of water rose from the surface.

"Ah, young master, be careful you don't catch a chill." The other man picked up the clothes he had tossed aside, then found a rock on the shore and settled down to wait patiently.

Dongfang Minghui's eyes widened in terror, and she choked on a mouthful of water. The moment she heard the man's voice on the shore, she had bent her knees slightly, sinking into the water and holding her breath to keep herself hidden.

But that was no lasting solution. The man swam merrily back and forth like a fish, singing as he went, and even...

Dongfang Minghui covered her eyes and tried to back away toward somewhere with cover. Perhaps she could hide there. But as she retreated, her foot accidentally landed on something, and she suddenly slipped.

"Glug, glug."

She accidentally swallowed a mouthful of water. "Ah, help-"

She could not swim.

The man raised his head at the sound and saw Dongfang Minghui's face covered in droplets. They stared at each other, then-

"Ah-"

"Help-cough-me." Dongfang Minghui floundered in the water for a while, but once she regained her footing, she was fine.

The two screams rang out almost simultaneously.

By the quiet lakeside, a flock of startled birds took flight in a flurry of wings.

Dongfang Minghui tried to cover herself and retreat a little farther.

"Young master!"

The man scrambled and stumbled back onto the shore in fright. With no time to spare, he threw on an outer robe and pulled on one boot, leaving the other still unworn.

Dongfang Wanyu, who had been resting nearby, heard Dongfang Minghui's scream. Thinking something had happened, she rushed over at once.

What she saw was a man with his pale, tender chest exposed, his wet clothes and trousers clinging tightly to him. His hair hung loose, and he looked thoroughly disheveled. A servant stood beside him, holding a pile of clothing. Meanwhile, Dongfang Minghui hid in the water, afraid to come out, her arms clasped over her chest as though she had been bullied.

Almost instantly, Dongfang Wanyu drew her long whip and lashed it hard against the ground. "You've got some nerve."

"Miss, you've misunderstood. This is purely a misunderstanding. If you don't believe me, ask that-young lady. I didn't see anything, truly. I can swear to it." As he hurriedly explained, the man put his clothes back on with his attendant's help. Whether they were dry or wet no longer mattered.

"Seventh Sister." Dongfang Minghui was on the verge of tears. This time, she truly wanted to cry but had no tears left. She had only been away from the estate for a few days, yet one tragedy after another had already befallen her. She could not even bathe in peace without some melodramatic nonsense happening. It was simply unbearable.

Dongfang Wanyu lashed her whip again and snapped, "Both of you, turn around!"

The two obeyed with remarkable speed, turning around and standing ramrod straight.

Only then did Dongfang Minghui dare to walk slowly to the shore. Hiding behind a tree, she took off her wet underclothes and changed into a clean outfit. It was another set of men's clothing. Her wet hair still hung loose as she emerged from behind the tree, looking rather aggrieved.

"Did he take advantage of you?" Dongfang Wanyu asked bluntly.

Dongfang Minghui shook her head, pulled her aside, and whispered, "I went in wearing my underclothes, so he probably didn't see anything. He just startled me. It wasn't really a big deal. Why don't we let them go?"

Dongfang Wanyu looked her up and down. Once she had confirmed that she was unharmed, she said, "But he still saw what he shouldn't have. We can't just let the matter end like this."

"What do you say, young master?" Dongfang Wanyu turned the question back on the man involved.

The young master had a rosy face, white teeth, and youthful features. At a glance, he was clearly a wealthy young gentleman. When had he ever faced anything like this? If Dongfang Wanyu had not rushed over, he would have fled with his servant long ago.

"Uh, what would you have me do, miss?"

Dongfang Wanyu's eyes shifted slightly as she suggested, "Since you saw what you shouldn't have, naturally, you must take responsibility. The best solution is for you to marry my ninth sister. Do you have any objections?"

Dongfang Minghui: "..."

The heroine is about to screw me over completely!

Before the young master could state his position, Dongfang Minghui pulled the heroine aside. "Seventh Sister, stop joking. I haven't lost a chunk of flesh or anything. I only accidentally showed a shoulder. Surely that's no reason to entrust my lifelong happiness to a-a man I don't know at all?"

Her lifelong happiness was at stake. Whatever happened, she had to fight for it.

Dongfang Wanyu raised her brows. "Then what do you want to do?"

Dongfang Minghui waved her hands. "I only wanted to make my position clear, Seventh Sister. I'm not missing so much as an ounce, and I haven't suffered any harm. There's no need for him to take responsibility." A marriage cobbled together at random like this was far too unreliable. There was no emotional foundation whatsoever. She wanted no part of it.

Perhaps because this was the first time she had seen Dongfang Minghui decide something so firmly, Dongfang Wanyu looked at her several times before finally nodding. "I've meddled, then. Don't regret it in the future."

Dongfang Wanyu had intended to act as an older sister for once and fulfill her sisterly responsibilities. Now, however, there was nothing left for her to do.

"Consider yourselves lucky. Since my ninth sister is kindhearted enough to let you off, you may leave." Dongfang Wanyu put away her whip. "But you'd better forget what you saw today. If a fifth person learns of this, you'd better watch out."

The young master had probably never met anyone so overbearing. After nodding and giving his word, he grabbed his servant and ran as though something were chasing them.

Watching them flee in utter panic, Dongfang Minghui could not help laughing aloud.

"You can actually laugh? I've never seen a girl laugh after someone saw her body." Dongfang Wanyu wanted to split open Dongfang Minghui's head and see what was inside.

Dongfang Minghui immediately wiped the smile from her face like a meek little wife, then pursed her lips. "It's already happened. Surely you don't want me washing my face with tears every day, Seventh Sister?"

She's daring to talk back now.

Dongfang Wanyu gave her a cool, indifferent glance. "If you don't care, it makes no difference to me. Still, women ultimately get the short end of the stick in such matters. I won't mention what happened today to anyone else, so you can rest easy."

Dongfang Minghui blinked. She was completely at ease; this sort of thing was hardly a big deal. In this era, though, people were bound to be a little sensitive about it. No wonder the heroine had tried to force the man to marry her.

Thinking of the heroine's harem... Dongfang Minghui pressed her lips together to stifle a laugh. She would like to see how the heroine handled things in the future.

It seemed she would have to be more careful when bathing from now on. At the very least, she could not bathe alone in a lake. She would need someone keeping watch to feel safe.

"I'm hungry. Make something to eat." Once Dongfang Wanyu had said everything she needed to say, she found somewhere to rest with her eyes closed.

Dongfang Minghui was speechless. When had she changed professions and become a cook?