Thanks for the comments. I"m really enjoying the novel and hope you guys enjoy it too
I wanted to thank Savi who suggested I translate the novel.
I walked to the stern and sat next to Zhong Yuan.
He was sitting cross legged, staring at the water with unbroken concentration. Our clothes had dried under the sun, but there was still a cool breeze and I sneezed a couple of times.
Zhong Yuan neither moved nor spoke.
I rubbed my nose and smiled shyly. Rubbing his forearm, I said, " Umm…I"m really really sorry…"
Zhong Yuan still gazed at the distance. He did not look at me or react in any manner. I knew that he was really angry this time so I spoke guiltily, " I am sorry. I know you rescued me, I was too rash. I …I won"t be like this in the future. Don"t be angry anymore, ok?"
Zhong Yuan gently gripped the side of the boat with his fingers but still did not speak.
I bit my lip and said, " Why don"t you deduct my salary then?"
This time, he turned his face completely so his back was to me. I saw his shoulder twitching . Clearly he was trying to suppress the anger in his heart. His back was stiff. This time, I was scared. It seemed that I had offended him deeply.
Even the offer of a wage deduction was unable to appease him. Heavens, what should I do now….
The boat rocked gently as it moved forward. I saw some lotus shoots next to me. Immediately, I leaned forward to pluck them. Who knew that the roots of a lotus plant were really strong!As I bent forward to pull them, the boat moved backwards and I was about to fall in the water again. Zhong Yuan stretched out his arm casually and pulled me back, the lotus stem in my hand.
I sat down and smiled at him with all my charm, " Thank you.."Zhong Yuan did not say anything. Instead, he turned so I could see only a profile of the arrogant expression on his face. I suddenly realised that he looked quite handsome in profile.
Of course, this wasn"t the time to appreciate his looks. I held the lotus stem and asked him courteously, " Do you want to eat lotus seeds?"
Unexpectedly, there was no answer.
I peeled off a lotus seed, removed the green core in the middle and brought it to his mouth, " You want it?"
The evil man could not resist the temptation and he opened his mouth and chewed the seeds. I felt victorious, so I peeled another one and brought it near his mouth. Very casually, he opened his mouth , so that I ended up feeding him again. But his face was still gloomy.
G.o.d, this guy was really tough to please!
I carefully peeled some more lotus seeds, really hoping that my meticulous service would manage to appease him and eliminate his anger. Unfortunately, this guy was as hard hearted as iron. His mouth moved only to chew the lotus seeds, but the expression on his face was as unforgiving as before. He had yet to utter a single word. I was gradually getting discouraged and wondering whether I should try some other tactic.
Just at that moment, Li"l Second"s boat crossed ours. Li"l Second stood on the boat and looked at us. Then she taunted loudly, " Ha ha guys, I can see what you are up to…"
Her comment made me feel awkward and my face felt as if it was on fire. I realised that the two of us were sitting really close…
When I hesitated, Zhong Yuan finally deigned to sweep a glance across Li"l Second , then muttered indifferently, " Ignore her, let us continue."
I was speechless. Li"l Second, you did really well. At least this guy was finally willing to speak to me. So I ignored the others and diligently returned to my sacred duty of serving the big boss. As I peeled another seed, I smiled coquettishly, " Zhong Yuan, are you still upset ?"
Zhong Yuan"s face was expressionless, " What do you think?"
I fed him the lotus seed, " I think you are a generous soul, he he…"
There wasn"t a single ounce of humility in Zhong Yuan so he accepted my praise calmly and then said, " If you think that I am generous, why don"t you do something to make me happy?"
I was immediately alert, " What, what?"
Zhong Yun did not speak, but smiled in an evil manner.
Five minutes later, I had placed a huge lotus leaf on my head, I was holding a lotus stem in my mouth and my palms were hanging downwards in front of my chest like a puppy. With this odd posture, I was facing the camera.
Zhong Yuan held his mobile and smiled, " Mu er, smile."
So I smiled, but at the same time, I did not forget to bite the stem so the smile was quite miserable.
With a click, Zhong Yuan"s phone recorded my historic moment. In my life, I have done many shameful things, but every time I remembered them, they were just images ingrained in my brain. This time, this shameful event was recorded in a photo. As I looked at it, I felt like crying.
Many years later, when we were married, Zhong Yuan printed this ridiculous photo and framed it. The frame was placed at our bedside, so that I was forced to admire it every day before going to sleep.