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Only after letting out a low, unrestrained groan did he slowly open his eyes.
Reaching out to turn on his shower head, he began to wash away the sweat covering his body, along with the lingering heat that had not yet fully subsided.
The next morning, Shi Kezhen still had to wake up on time and appear in the dining room punctually for breakfast.
Last night… it really was too crazy.
It had left her severely sleep-deprived now.
If only she were at school right now.
At school, she could have lazed in bed for at least a little longer.
“Why hasn’t Yanzhou come down yet?”
“Is he awake?”
Shi Kezhen seemed to hear Mother Shi asking a question, but her mind was somewhat unfocused, and she didn’t catch what the other woman was asking.
She looked at Mother Shi in some confusion, her reaction a bit sluggish.
“Mother, what did you just say?”
Mother Shi frowned as she looked at her.
“What is wrong with you?”
“Why are you so out of it first thing in the morning?”
Shi Kezhen quickly pulled herself together and set down her porridge bowl.
“I’m sorry, Mother.”
“I didn’t sleep well last night.”
Hearing this, Mother Shi probably misunderstood something and offered some pointed advice.
“I told you last night that you must adjust your mindset; it is useless for you to overthink things.”
“Yanzhou is the sole heir of the Shi family.”
“Even after he gets married in the future, it’s impossible for him to only have one woman by his side.”
“If you can’t even come to terms with this, there will be plenty of times for you to cry in the future.”
Shi Kezhen understood the meaning behind Mother Shi’s words but did not explain.
She lowered her eyes and nodded obediently.
“I know, Mother.”
Mother Shi used her customary commanding tone with her.
“Go see if Yanzhou is awake yet.”
“He has a weak stomach, so you must remind him to eat his breakfast on time every day.”
“Alright, I’ll go check on him.”
Shi Kezhen set down her bowl of porridge, of which she had only taken a few sips, stood up, and left the dining room to head up to the third floor.
The first floor of the Shi house contained the living and dining rooms along with the servant quarters; Father and Mother Shi lived on the second floor, while she and Shi Yanzhou lived on the third.
Walking up to Shi Yanzhou’s door, she knocked several times, but there was no answer from inside.
Shi Kezhen didn’t actually know when Shi Yanzhou had returned home last night—or rather, she wasn’t even clear on whether he had come home at all.
“Knock, knock, knock…”
She continued knocking.
After about ten minutes, the door was finally opened from the inside.
Shi Yanzhou stood there with a mess of short hair, his face filled with the irritability of someone who had been woken up.
She had always known that Shi Yanzhou had a terrible temper upon waking up.
“What are you knocking for?”
“It’s annoying!”
Shi Kezhen spoke calmly.
“You have a weak stomach, and you must eat breakfast on time every day.”
“It’s almost half past eight now; you need to get up and eat your breakfast.”
“What breakfast? I’m not eating.”
“Don’t come disturbing me again!”
With that, he slammed the door shut with a tremendous bang.
Looking at the door slammed shut right in front of her face, Shi Kezhen felt a genuine urge to kick it hard.
But no matter how wild she felt inside, her face remained perfectly calm, as if she were wearing a mask that hid any trace of emotion.
She raised her hand and continued knocking.
Three knocks at a time, spaced one second apart—it was extremely regular, so regular that it made Shi Yanzhou grit his teeth inside the room.
The door was violently pulled open once more.
He pointed at her nose and began to swear loudly.
“Are you sick in the head?”
“Do you not understand human speech?”
“I said don’t disturb me and that I’m not eating breakfast!”
“What are you trying to do by knocking non-stop?”
Shi Kezhen looked completely at a loss.
“Mother said…”
“Mother said, Mother said, Mother said!”
“Can you stop constantly using Mom to pressure me?”
‘Do you think I don’t want to treat what your mother says as total nonsense, just like you do?’
‘Is it because I don’t want to?’
Shi Kezhen reasoned with him calmly, as if he were a petulant child.
“Mother is waiting for you in the dining room.”
“If I don’t bring you down, Mother will blame me for being useless.”
Having ranted for a while, Shi Yanzhou’s morning grumpiness had mostly dissipated.
He glared at her fiercely, pointing his finger at her nose.
“Wait outside; you are not allowed in!”
The door was closed once more.
Shi Kezhen stood in the corridor, looking at the closed door and waiting patiently.
After another ten minutes or so, Shi Yanzhou walked out wearing casual clothes, spared her a glance, and muttered grumpily.
“Let’s go.”
***
By the time the two of them arrived in the dining room, it was already nine o’clock.
Mother Shi was still sitting at the dining table, but the tableware in front of her had already been cleared away, leaving only half a cup of cold floral tea in her cup; she had clearly been sitting there for a very long time.
All to wait for the two of them.
Mother Shi first glanced at her son, shaking her head in disapproval, her eyes filled with that helpless look of “I really can’t do anything with you.”
Then her gaze shifted to Shi Kezhen’s face, her eyes turning severe.
“I sent you up to call him, and it took you more than half an hour.”
Shi Kezhen offered no defense, simply walking over to sit down.
The bowl of porridge in front of her was completely cold now; she picked up the spoon and stirred it, having lost her appetite to eat any more.
Shi Yanzhou sat down and immediately began complaining to Mother Shi.
“Mother, I went to sleep late last night and only got a few hours of sleep; why did you have her keep disturbing me?”
Seeing him take his seat, the servant quickly brought over his breakfast and set it before him.
Mother Shi coaxed him in a gentle, pleasant voice.
“Yanzhou, skipping breakfast is bad for your stomach.”
“Have you forgotten that bout of stomach illness last year, how miserable it was when the pain made you break into a cold sweat?”
Shi Yanzhou answered with complete indifference.
“I’ve grown this big, yet I’ve only had a stomachache that one time; you don’t need to remember it for the rest of your life.”
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