"..."
Amid the curling incense smoke, she lifted her eyes, her lips parting slightly.
"...Greed is not a good habit."
A faint smile rested on Bai Heng's lips as his fingers touched the teacup. He said softly,
"My health has never been very good, so I often see doctors. At first, the doctor said my teeth were bad and advised me to eat more soft food. Later, when I went back for a checkup, the doctor said my stomach had problems too and advised me to eat smaller meals more often."
He responded in a joking manner.
Though he seemed somewhat flippant, that did not mean he was treating those two feelings lightly.
On the contrary, precisely because he wished to take both feelings seriously, he did not want them to carry the heavy burden of compromise.
"You should know that biting off more than you can chew will only leave you unable to swallow it." Ruan Mei slowly exhaled and looked directly at him as she spoke.
Bai Heng calmly asked in return,
"Then I'll spend more time on it. Sooner or later, I'll be able to chew it up... Besides, this is simply following the doctor's orders and treating the illness with the proper medicine. Since I've already found the right remedy, why should I give it up...?"
Ruan Mei said nothing more as rain pattered softly outside.
She turned her head, leaving him only her profile as she gazed at the river scenery drifting across the lake. Then she said softly,
"How do you know I am that remedy? What if the properties of the two medicines are incompatible?"
"That would be a later concern... If something really happened, then it would be the doctor's fault. I'll send that quack a banner saying 'Murderous Malpractice.'" Bai Heng