Stelle and Shenhe returned to the house they rented next to Wangsheng Funeral Parlor.
Then, at the entrance of Wangsheng Funeral Parlor, they saw a familiar person.
"Stelle!!" Hu Tao was much bolder than Xiangling, directly rushing over and jumping onto Stelle.
Shenhe raised an eyebrow. He had intended to reach out and stop Hu Tao, but Stelle had already made a move to catch her, and besides, Hu Tao was also an acquaintance of theirs.
In the end, Shenhe merely raised his arm slightly, then lowered it again.
He silently watched Hu Tao embrace Stelle, and a feeling of unease welled up in his heart again.
"Hu Tao, long time no see." Stelle caught Hu Tao, and seeing her still so energetic, he couldn't help but smile.
"Stelle, how was it, how was it? How have you been these past few days at Qunyu Pavilion? Lady Ningguang didn't bully you, did she?" Hu Tao asked quickly.
"Bully? Ningguang is very nice, how could he bully me…?" Stelle looked at Hu Tao in confusion, not knowing why she would ask that.
"Oh, I know he's a good person. I wasn't talking about that kind of bullying." Hu Tao giggled, stood on tiptoe, and leaned into Stelle's ear, whispering something.
"What are you thinking? How is that possible?" Stelle's face instantly darkened after hearing it.
Hu Tao had actually accurately described what had happened at Qunyu Pavilion.
Of course, Stelle couldn't admit to it. Putting everything else aside, at least in front of Hu Tao, he didn't want to appear so clumsy.
This girl was always thinking of new tricks, and Stelle couldn't let her succeed.
"It's more like I bullied him, you know what I mean?" Stelle pouted and asked Hu Tao.
"Understood, understood, of course I understand." Hu Tao nodded with a smile.
"Ah, sorry Shenhe, I haven't seen Stelle in so long I got a bit too excited." Hu Tao then looked at Shenhe beside him. He had been so engrossed in talking to Stelle that he had inadvertently neglected Shenhe.
"It's fine." Shenhe shook his head. Although it wasn't visible on the surface, what he was thinking in his heart was not those words 'it's fine'.
He had no ill will towards Hu Tao, after all, it was thanks to Hu Tao's agreement that he could stay in the house Stelle and Lumine rented, and Hu Tao had also helped him get a new bed.
However, for some reason, seeing Stelle and Hu Tao so intimate, he couldn't help but feel a slight dissatisfaction towards Hu Tao.
This feeling shouldn't exist, and Shenhe knew it was wrong.
So he still tried his best to suppress that emotion and conversed with Hu Tao calmly.
"Your new bed is ready, but it won't be delivered until tomorrow. Tonight…" Hu Tao looked at Stelle. She didn't know what Stelle planned to do.
After all, she was still thinking of launching a night raid tonight.
"Lumine probably won't be back tonight. I'll sleep at Lumine's place." Stelle replied.
Since Lumine hadn't appeared so late, he probably wouldn't be back tonight, so it would be fine for either Shenhe or him to sleep in Lumine's room.
"Mm-hmm, that's good too." Hu Tao nodded, satisfied with Stelle's answer.
She had been craving Stelle for a long time. These past few days, with Stelle at Qunyu Pavilion, she could only comfort herself. Now that Stelle was finally back, there was no way she would give up.
Tonight, she must launch a night raid!
"Alright, let's not stand at the door. Let's go inside first." Hu Tao put her hands on her hips and said to the two of them,
"Have you two had dinner yet? Do you want me to bring two portions from Wangsheng Funeral Parlor?"
"Sure, that would be great."
---
The food at Wangsheng Funeral Parlor was also very good. Although it couldn't compare to the master chefs at Qunyu Pavilion, it was still cooked by chefs Hu Tao hired with high salaries, who were skilled at making offerings and also very proficient in regular dishes.
This time, Shenhe no longer refused to eat Qingxin or Violetgrass or anything like that. It was clear that he had listened to what Stelle said this morning.
"Well, I'll be going then. Good night, Stelle." Hu Tao stood at the door, winking playfully at Stelle.
"Mm, good night." Stelle nodded. He probably understood what Hu Tao meant, but honestly, he still felt a little nervous.
However, since Hu Tao had made up her mind, even if he refused, Hu Tao probably wouldn't give up.
Given that, Stelle could only think of being careful when the time came.
Additionally, he also had to prepare a new set of bed sheets and duvet covers to change into later.
Lest, when Lumine and Paimon woke up the next morning, there would be no place for them to sit and rest.
Thinking this, Stelle walked back into the house.
"Stelle, what did he just say to you?" Shenhe's sudden question made Stelle's heart inexplicably skip a beat.
"N-nothing, just wished each other good night." Stelle explained, feigning composure.
"Oh." Shenhe nodded and didn't press further.
He just instinctively felt that Stelle's expression was a bit off when he went out to see Hu Tao off, so he just asked an extra question.
Moreover, he actually couldn't imagine what kind of relationship Stelle and Hu Tao had. With almost zero knowledge in this area, Shenhe, even if he suspected, would never guess.
"Alright, Shenhe, we've played all day, it's time to rest. Um… do you want to take a bath?" Stelle asked.
"Yes, if possible." Shenhe nodded. His master had actually taught him spells for cleaning his body, but if possible, he still hoped to take a bath.
Not only for cleanliness but also for relaxation.
"Okay, then I'll get you some bathwater." Stelle nodded.
There was a bathtub in this room, and Stelle and Lumine had even taken a bath together.
…
A moment later, Stelle stood at the doorway.
"How is it, Shenhe? Is the water temperature suitable?" Stelle asked into the room.
"Hmm, no problem." Shenhe's clear, cold voice came through.
When Shenhe lived in Cloud Retainer's abode, he always used cold water for bathing. It wasn't that there was no hot water in the abode, but Shenhe didn't want to bother.
But this time, the hot water Stelle prepared for him seemed quite nice to soak in…
"Then, I'll go back to my room first. Just call me if you need anything." Stelle slowly exhaled. To be honest, with Shenhe right in the room behind him, he couldn't help but have some wild thoughts.
There was no way around it; his current thoughts were already influenced by his physique. He could only suppress them himself, and if he couldn't, leaving quickly was a better option.
"Mm." Shenhe softly responded from the room, and then no other sounds came.
Stelle lingered at the doorway for a little while longer, then quickly left and returned to his room.
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