Lin Fangwei had thought she’d soon see Zhao Sulan’s smiling face, but to her dismay, she saw Zhao Sulan come out looking dispirited.
Lin Fangwei’s pupils shook with shock.
She wanted to go up and ask what had happened, but fearing that Zhao Sulan might become suspicious, she decided to wait until tomorrow to inquire.
After all, now that things had reached this point, haste would be of no use.
As she drove away, Lin Fangwei cursed Zhao Sulan for her uselessness.
Such a simple task, and she couldn’t even manage that, what a fool.
However, when she heard the whole story from Zhao Sulan the next day, she no longer thought of Zhao Sulan as foolish.
She just considered Meng Chuyue too clever.
No, it was Shen Ci who was too outstanding.
That’s why she couldn’t let go.
Though the road was difficult, she had no choice but to travel it.
After much contemplation, Lin Fangwei said to Zhao Sulan, "Given the circumstances, you should visit him every weekend and try to bring him something he likes now and then."
"I was thinking the same thing, but what does Meng Chuyue lack? Would he even care for anything I buy?" Zhao Sulan wondered.
"Whether he cares is his concern, but whether you buy is a matter of your sincerity. He is still just a child, after all; given time, he’ll change his attitude."
Lin Fangwei thought that Lin Yuzhe was just being childish. After all, how could such a little boy hold a grudge over a small matter against his own mother who had been good to him since he was young?
What she didn’t know was that Lin Yuzhe was naturally stubborn and a bit haughty. Once he had set his mind on something, even if he regretted it internally, he would still be obstinate.
Moreover, Lin Yuzhe hadn’t really hated Zhao Sulan... in the past.
But Zhao Sulan’s performance today had been so hypocritical that his dislike for her had actually grown.
In other words, if Zhao Sulan had been truly caring toward him, he would definitely have forgiven her and become affectionate. Conversely, their relationship would only deteriorate.
On that day, Zhao Sulan didn’t notice Lin Fangwei, but both Erhu and Shen Ci’s people did.
Finding her too annoying, Shen Ci and Meng Chuyue decided to give her a taste of hardship.
They had Erhu secretly feed Lin Fangwei a type of spatial fruit with a fragrant aroma.
These sesame-seed-sized fruits, which melted in the mouth, would emit a faint fragrance after eating ten.
Consuming more than twenty pieces would release a strong, lavender-like scent from the body. Drinking the juice of its leaves could counteract it immediately; otherwise, the fragrance would last for a whole fifty days.
Erhu fed Lin Fangwei twenty-one pieces...
Having your body naturally exude a pleasant scent was normally a blessing.
But too strong a fragrance was a disaster.
It attracted not just people but also various insects.
Fortunately, it didn’t attract bees.
Lin Fangwei was in trouble now.
At first, when she discovered she was emitting an unusual fragrance, she was happy.
Fragrant Concubine, who wouldn’t love that?
Perhaps even Shen Ci would grow fond of her because of it.
However, she dared not tell anyone for the time being.
She feared being dissected for research.
She decided to take things slowly.
So when her family asked what kind of perfume she was using because it smelled so nice, she lied and said she had been having some insomnia and was using lavender aromatherapy.
The women in her family found this quite ingenious and started using aromatherapy themselves.
The Li Family’s house was filled with fragrant scents.
Lin Fangwei’s happiness lasted less than two days, however.
The next afternoon, when she went to the Li Family’s Medicinal Garden, a swarm of insects descended upon her.
While there were no bees or hornets, and mostly butterflies, the green flies and little beetles were frightening enough.
She was almost scared out of her wits.
Yet still, she dared not reveal the truth to her family, not even to Li Feng. Instead, she seldom went out, and when she did need to go out, she would preemptively spray herself with lots of floral water or menthol oil, while staying hidden away in her car.
These were truly hard times to endure.
Moreover, in just a few days, Li Feng, who was attentive and genuinely cared for her, noticed.
Unlike Lin Fangwei’s fear of being dissected, Li Feng’s thought was, "You must have eaten something that makes the body produce a scent. Think hard, what have you eaten recently?"