That soft cry triggered a jolt of pain somewhere in her body. She twisted uncomfortably, only to suddenly have her hand pinned down.
Huo Shiqing's voice was calm and low:"You're running a fever. Sleep. I'll apply the medicine—when you wake up, it won't hurt anymore."
Mu Beiyin's head was groggy, but upon hearing those words, she instinctively closed her eyes.
The man chuckled softly, his gaze sweeping over her waist and then slowly moving downward.
Then he picked her up and placed her gently back into the car."Drive," he ordered coolly.
Bai Ji respectfully raised the partition but asked before it closed,"Sir, what do you plan to do with the Mu family?"
Huo Shiqing's voice was lazy, casual."Doesn't the Lin family have a niece?"
Bai Ji nodded."Yes, Lin Ru's brother does have a daughter."
"Find a way to send her into the Mu family—give Lin Ru some trouble."
Mu Beiyin woke up pressing a hand to her temple, glancing out the window.
Hm, good. It wasn't even noon yet—she had only slept for two hours.
But as soon as she tried to get out of bed, pain wracked her entire body."Hiss…!" She gasped.Why was it getting even worse?!
Just then, Huo Shiqing pushed open the door, a little surprised."You're awake?"
Chu Xiao peeked in from behind."Ah? Miss Mu is up? Then I won't go in. I told him you were just tired and needed more rest, but he insisted I come over."
Mu Beiyin looked puzzled."I just slept two more hours. Is that a reason to call a doctor?"
Huo Shiqing lowered his eyes slightly and chuckled."Mrs. Huo, are you sure... you only slept two hours?"
Mu Beiyin felt irritated by the doubt in his tone. She immediately pulled out her phone and pointed at the screen."I checked the time before I fell asleep. It was eight. Now it's only—"
Before she could finish, her peripheral vision caught the date on the screen.
She hadn't slept for two hours—She'd slept for a whole day!It was already ten in the morning the next day!
Mu Beiyin choked on her breath, her face flushing red."I'm this exhausted... because of you!"
Huo Shiqing smirked with interest but didn't expose her embarrassment."Mm, my fault. Still hurting?"
She could barely stand. After struggling for a moment, she gave up and fell back onto the bed."Hurts."
This time, Huo Shiqing's brows furrowed slightly. He said seriously,"I already applied medicine once. Turn over. I'll do it again."
Mu Beiyin: "…"
She shut her eyes, unwilling to recall exactly where he had applied the medicine last time.
Huo Shiqing brought over the medicine. After a brief silence, she ground her teeth."…That's not the place that hurts. My bones ache!"
This man had nearly knocked her bones out of place—how could they not hurt?
Huo Shiqing paused mid-motion, his Adam's apple bobbing."I've already taken care of your school leave. Just rest at home for a few days."
Mu Beiyin suddenly panicked."You... what reason did you give for my absence?"
If he told the truth, how would she ever show her face again?!
Huo Shiqing glanced at her meaningfully."Mrs. Huo, what exactly is going on in that head of yours?"
Mu Beiyin froze for a moment, instantly wanting to tape her mouth shut. Right—what was she thinking? Who in their right mind would mention that when asking for leave?
She immediately pulled the blanket over her head and said in despair, "I'm going back to sleep!"
Huo Shiqing rose unhurriedly. "You just woke up and you're already going back to sleep? Madam Huo, take care of your health."
Mu Beiyin realized her excuse was completely lame. Her face flushed with embarrassment, and she couldn't even bring herself to respond.
Perhaps noticing her awkwardness, the man let out a light chuckle and gently closed the door behind him.
After Huo Shiqing left, Mu Beiyin remained in bed for another two days.
On the afternoon of the second day, while taking a walk in the backyard, she suddenly noticed a patch of open ground overgrown with weeds.
"Uncle Zhang, why hasn't anything been planted here?"
Uncle Zhang thought for a moment. "It seems that when the garden was first designed, this area wasn't included. If you want to make changes, Madam, just let me know."
That was exactly what she had in mind. She immediately called for people to pull out the weeds and planned to redesign the spot into a small garden.
Halfway through sketching out the design, Mu Beiyin heard the sound of two urgent footsteps behind her.
"Miss Mu, what are you doing?"
Mu Beiyin turned around and recognized the speaker as one of the butlers of Yujing Garden. The young woman beside her was likely her daughter.
Mu Beiyin sensed something was off, but she didn't want to start a conflict. "I was going to remove the weeds and plant some other flowers."
Butler Xu's expression darkened. The look she gave Mu Beiyin was laced with suspicion and disdain.
Her daughter, Xu Lingling, couldn't hold back and harshly scolded, "Miss Mu, next time you want to change something in Yujing Garden, at least give a heads-up! These aren't just weeds—they're orchids planted by Miss Lu. They haven't bloomed for years and just started showing signs of flowering this year. And now you've pulled them out! How could you destroy something she put so much care into?!"
Mu Beiyin froze, then narrowed her eyes slightly.
After Xu Lingling finished, Butler Xu pretended to step in, "Lingling, that's enough nonsense. Miss Mu is the current mistress of Yujing Garden—she can do whatever she likes."
She emphasized the words current mistress, then sighed.
"It's just… Miss Lu and the gentleman have known each other for many years. He's aware that she planted orchids here. If he gets upset, I'm afraid you might be hard-pressed to explain. Why don't I speak to him on your behalf…"
Xu Lingling, visibly angered, snapped, "Mom, stop being so nice all the time! It was clearly Miss Mu who didn't recognize what the plants were. And she calls herself the young lady of the Mu family? Can't even recognize orchids—what a disgrace! Why should you have to take the blame for her mess?!"
Mu Beiyin looked at the mother and daughter, performing their little drama as if she had committed some outrageous crime.
She finally understood where the earlier strangeness came from. These two had never seen her as the rightful mistress of the house. This little play was just a setup to highlight how special Miss Lu was.
But wait—Huo Shiqing clearly despised Lu Xixue. Why would he allow her to plant orchids at Yujing Garden? Unless... this Miss Lu referred to Lu Xixue's elder sister?
Butler Xu shook her head. "Alright, Lingling. It was my mistake for not informing Miss Mu earlier. I'll take the punishment. Don't act impulsively."
Hearing this, Xu Lingling became even more furious. She reached out and gave Mu Beiyin a hard shove—
"It was clearly your fault! Why should my mom be punished for you?! Miss Lu and Mr. Huo are childhood sweethearts—they're meant for each other! Who do you think you are, barging in like some country bumpkin?! You actually think you're Madam Huo?! …Ah!"
Mu Beiyin sidestepped. Xu Lingling missed completely, stumbled, and fell hard onto a nearby stone, crying out in pain.
Butler Xu's expression immediately changed. "Miss Mu! I respected you as Mr. Huo's wife and tolerated everything. How dare you hurt my daughter! You just wait—I'll have you thrown out of Yujing Garden!"
"Throw me out of Yujing Garden?"
Mu Beiyin actually laughed. "Huo Shiqing hasn't even said a word. What gives you the right to go over his head and punish me?"
Butler Xu's face turned ugly, her expression flickering. "Don't doubt it. As long as I speak up, the gentleman will drive you out!"
Mu Beiyin raised an eyebrow. Just where did this servant get such confidence from?