The War Bride

13 | False Happiness

Dai Yichen returned to her room the next day, and the next few ones.

Because of his busy schedule, he didn't linger each time, but long enough to assist her with her meals and changed the dressing on her wound. They exchanged short, casual words, not anything deep yet, but to Luwen, this was progress. While the lord didn't have his guard completely down around her yet, the bond between them was building slowly.

She found herself conscious about the time, her heart pounding quicker in anticipation every time it was time for his visit.

However, she knew she was heading down a foolish route. She wanted to get to know him better, not because she had a mission to gain his trust before killing him, but for an entirely different reason–her interest.

For the first time in her life, a man intrigued her.

And that itself set off a warning in her mind.

Know your place, her inner voice berated her. Do not forget who you truly are.

But every time she saw him, her mind went into a daze. She would forget everything else, including what the matriarch tasked her to do.

This was dangerous.

Conflicting thoughts convoluted her mind. In a struggle to organize them, she kept herself busy–by working on something insignificant and creating them with just her bare hands.

And it worked. The task, though frivolous, was healing her mind and keeping her focused. Till the point she was unaware of her surroundings, not even when the sun set and someone entered her room.

A quiet voice spoke to her. "Xia Junyi."

When she didn't respond, the footsteps came closer. "Xia Junyi."

The voice snapped her out of her world. Startled, she glanced up, only to find Dai Yichen was watching her the entire time. "M-my lord?"

He had been calling the princess's name–not hers–and she responded late. It was a mistake on her part, and she hoped he hadn't noticed something amiss.

"What are you doing?" he asked, unable to keep curiosity out of his tone. "What's that?"

Steadying her erratic heart, she glanced back down at the work in her hands, using whatever scraps of wood she could find in the past hour. "I was bored, so I decided to carve. It's only half-done."

His brows lifted in surprise. "You know how to carve?"

"A little. I learned it from some servants back at home," she lied.

As a matter of fact, she actually learned it from her father, who was a woodworker. When she was young, she would watch him in motion; building tables, cabinets and houses. He would even carve miniatures and give them to her on her birthdays to play with.

As a child with an inquisitive mind, Luwen picked up some skills, but she wasn't as adept as her father was. Suddenly, she felt embarrassed at her mediocre work and hid it behind her back. Including her dirtied hands. It felt unsightly to show the lord this side of her, but her mind immediately circled back.

Why was she self-conscious around him? Why did she always feel the need to show the best side of her?

It wasn't as if this body belonged to her.

Dai Yichen attempted to steal another peek, but she turned away from him. "What were you carving?"

Your name. I was carving your name– "A lantern," she replied quickly, which was true, because she was carving his name at the bottom. "I'm not very good at it. It's not even half-completed."