Yin Na realized that Huo Jin did not look at it for more than a few seconds. Was it probably because he recalled the woman he had already captured his heart?
The whole time, while eating the noodles, her eyes were fixed on Huo Jin as if she wanted him to see her with those eyes.
Yin Na was so excited about today but things did not act in her favor. She wanted to confess her feelings to Huo Jin, but now after meeting Zhou Xuweng, her fear has revived again.
"What happened? Why are you not eating?" He asked her.
"Nothing," she averted her gaze from him.
"If there's something bothering you, then you can share with me," he told her.
"Huo Jin, do you think I can find a good man?" Yin Na's question perplexed him. "I was a Courtesan. So, in the future, I might face the consequences because of my past life," Yin Na asserted.
"That will never happen. A good man will never look into your past. He will accept you as you are!" Huo Jin affirmed. Yin Na smiled and thanked him for answering her question. She again started to eat.
After finishing their noodle bowls, Huo Jin paid the bills and left for the house with Yin Na in the carriage which was waiting for them, in front of the main entrance of the market.
After reaching the Residence, Huo Jin escorted Yin Na to her room. "General Wang has returned home. I will tell him about today's incident. I shall not hide this from him," Huo Jin stated.
Yin Na nodded her head and recalled that earlier Huo Jin had bruised his hand when Zhou Xuweng pushed him to the ground. She grasped his hand and took him inside her room. "Let me dress your wound before it catches any infection," she said and told him to sit down on the cushion.
"It is not necessary," Huo Jin replied.
"Why? You shall take care of your body," Yin Na said and walked to the other room. Huo Jin looked at his left hand and then sat down on the cushion. Yin Na came with a wooden first-aid kit and brought another cushion near Huo Jin.
Sitting on it, she put the kit on the wooden floor. She gently put her hand under the back of his palm of Huo Jin.
"May I ask how did you end up in the Brothel house?" Huo Jin was curious to know.
"Huo Jin, my own brother, sold me for a small amount of money. Brother Wang rescued me and united me with my real brother thinking he would take care of me. However, he did not care about me. The person to whom he sold me, then traded me for big money with the owner of the Brothel House. I was trained for two years and then I started to serve men at the age of fourteen," Yin Na said. Her voice quivered, however, she did not look into his eyes. She picked the bandage and wrapped it around Huo Jin's hand.
"I even wanted to die," Yin Na said and finally looked at him as she tied the bandage around his hand. "I was angry at Brother Wang for sending me to my real brother, but it was not his mistake either. Brother Wang did what I requested of him," she stated.
"It is shameful that your blood brother did this to you," Huo Jin said.
"I want to ask him why he did that," Yin Na said and her eyes flickered because of the tears in them. "Because of him, I suffered so much. I had lost faith in men. Yi Jiali was my name as the Courtesan. That's why Zhou Xuweng called me out with that name. Huo Jin, he will not do anything to me, right?" She asked him and wiped the tears from the edges of her eyes.
"He cannot do anything, Yin Na. Forget your old life. I know, that's tough but that would be best," Huo Jin opined and assured her that Zhou Xuweng would not be able to even come in front of her.
"Miss, Master Wang has asked you to come to the pavilion," the servant said from the outside. Huo Jin and Yin Na looked at each other. They both stood up and went towards the main pavilion of the house.
~~~~~
In the Palace, Sheng Li left with Ying Lili to the Northern Palace earlier because he did not want her to catch a cold. Also, he had prepared a surprise for her in their private chamber.
"I won't catch a cold easily. You know that I have strong immunity," Ying Lili stated and requested Sheng Li that they should stay outside for a little longer.
"No. Just sit here," he said and pushed her gently towards the bed. She landed on the mattress and confusedly peered at him.
"What are you doing?" She asked him as she saw him near the desk. Sheng Li told her to close her eyes as he approached her. His hands were behind his back.
"Why?" She asked him and tried to look behind his back.
"Just close your eyes," Sheng Li urged her to. Ying Lili closed her eyes and asked him to hurry.
"Don't open your eyes," he whispered in her ear.
"I will not," she replied.
Sheng Li kissed her lips and pulled away. He brought his hands to the front and sat beside her. He gestured to Xing-Fu to hurry, who nodded his head. Sheng Li then gestured to him to leave the chamber. Xing-Fu bowed and stepped backward. He walked out and closed the doors behind him.
"Open your eyes," He said softly near her ear. Ying Lili gradually opened her eyelids and was stunned to see the poem that Sheng Li had calligraphed on a large white sheet. She started to read the poem and found how profoundly it was written.
"When did you learn poetry?" Ying Lili asked him.
"I started learning from the day when I dedicated a poem to you for the first time. We ended up falling into the water that day," he asserted.
"You named the poem– "Fated Butterflies".. I love it," Ying Lili told him and rested her forehead on his shoulder while Sheng Li.
