Sentimental General

De Xue looked at him carefully.

Since today he is not working, so he is not in his usual clothes. He is wearing a bright blue brocade robe with narrow sleeves and a jaded belt studded with gems around his waist. A jade crown was sitting on top of his head. Dressed in this kind of attire, he had lost a little of his General's imposing manner and gained a bit more of a wealthy Hou-ye's elegance.

Her gaze fell on the emblem of an eagle flying in the clouds embroidered on his chest. This emblem of the eagle in the clouds is a brazen display of his arrogance.

De Xue smiled secretly in her heart and thought that the eagle's appearance was very similar to him.

Finally, her gaze stopped on his masculine and handsome face and saw his sincerity. Then she nodded and said. "I am more used to you being like this. So, let's go."

Hearing that she was still not happy with his att.i.tude yesterday, He Mu Li lowered his head and placing his face near hers, he said. "Xiao Xue, I was wrong yesterday. I apologize to you."

When she heard his apology, she was stunned and her snow-white ears turned red. She raised her head and her emerald green eyes met his pair of focused and serious eyes. She stared straight at him and this time, she could only see sincere apologies reflecting in his eyes.

"If you want to apologize, it should be more than this and it was not only yesterday......." She blushed and averting her eyes, she said softly.

He Mu Li pursed his lips and knew she had forgiven him. He was not afraid she will settle old scores with him......only afraid she will not settle scores with him. De Xue is a straightforward person and since she had said she forgives him, she will not sulk in her heart. This is what he likes about her.

"You are correct. I had seriously thought about it last night. During this period of time, you have suffered a lot all because of me. Xiao Xue, will you forgive me? I will definitely make it up to you." He gently cupped her little face with both his hands and asked in his deep voice.

Her face was held by his big palms and De Xue felt her cheeks burning hot as fire. His demeanor was very serious and there was no trace of any play acting or deliberate pretense. His face was cold as usual and his sword-like eyebrows lifted slightly with a hint of gentleness, just like the feeling he gave her when he suddenly kissed her that day. She felt fl.u.s.tered and her heart was jumping fiercely.

She lowered her eyes shyly. In fact, she did not feel so angry anymore but she did not want to let him off so easily. "That depends on how you make up for it." She said softly.

"I will definitely make up until Xiao Xue is satisfied." He Mu Li promised.

Then De Xue felt a breath of hot air approaching. She closed her crystal eyes and nervously gripped her small hands, thinking he would kiss her again. But his lips fell lightly on her forehead like a dragonfly skirting over water, giving her the likes of a pampered kiss.

When his big palms loosened his hold on her face, she felt a little empty. In her heart, there were some strange emotions that were incomprehensible. She seems to feel a little happy, a little shy, a little fondness and also a little disappointed.......

Why did she feel disappointed? Was it because he had kissed her forehead instead of her lips? When she thought of this, De Xue became shy and took a big step back, turned around and did not dare to look at him.

He Mu Li did not want to give her too much pressure and only reached out his hand to pull her sleeve. "Xiao Xue, let's go."

When she felt her sleeve was gently tugged by him, De Xue halted her thoughts. Finally, she turned back with her head lowered and followed him with complicated feelings.

***#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#***

They rode in a carriage to arrive at the main road beside the market.

When De Xue realized the carriage had stopped, she looked at He Mu Li with doubts.

He reached out his hand to lightly push back the lock of hair that had fallen down over her temple while he explained to her. "This is the busiest market in the city of Haizhou. It will not be fun to sit in the carriage. Let's get down and take a walk."

Hearing this, De Xue's face showed a trace of joy and her crystal eyes were s.h.i.+ning brightly with happiness.

"It seems during this period of time, it has been really boring for you." Seeing her brilliant smile, He Mu Li's mood also lifted. His big hand gently stroked her cheek and lamented.

"That is absolutely correct. If our roles were reversed and you were kept in the house for 20 days, then you will know how bored it is!" She complained. However, she did not avoid his intimate touch or show any dislike for his action.

"Right, it is my fault. Later, if Xiao Xue likes anything or likes to eat anything, you have to tell me. I will be responsible and consider it as my apology to you." He Mu Li who had never submitted to anyone before was especially softhearted towards De Xue. As long as he can make her happy, he is willing to give in.

"Of course, you will have to be responsible! Just wait for me to empty your pockets." She sneered and threatened.

"If you are able to do it, you can go ahead." His voice was calm and indifferent without showing any worry about being robbed by

His arrogant att.i.tude made De Xue raised her eyebrows and her pair of crystal eyes glared at him. "He Mu Li, you have such an arrogant tone!"

Really, does he think he is the Emperor of this territory?

"Xiao Xue....." His iron arm suddenly encircled her slim waist, giving her a shock and made her freeze. "Why are you still calling me by my full name? I have already addressed you as Xiao Xue, can't you address me likewise?" He had always wanted to correct her and today, an opportunity was presented to him.

"You......Xiao Xue is the name you chose to call me and not a name I allowed you to call me." De Xue turned away without looking at him and her voice tone lacked conviction.

"But I think the name Xiao Xue sounds nice but you always shout out my full name which does not feel nice." He knew that she yields to soft approaches and will fight to resist any pressure, so he did not use reason to convince her, but instead used his feelings to convince her.

In fact, De Xue knew he is the Hou-ye and also the General and every time she shouted out his full name, it was very disrespectful of her. The only thing was he did not mind but if she was overheard by other people, she would be regarded as being ill-mannered.

Before, it was because she was annoyed with him, so she had deliberately opposed him. But now if she were to maintain this att.i.tude, it would seem she did not know her manners and would be considered as rude.

"Then what do you want me to call you? General or Hou-ye?" She looked at him in confusion.

"Calling me as General or Hou-ye is a bit too formal. Our relations.h.i.+p is different from the norm. Let me think.......what should you call me in private?" He Mu Li had a serious expression on his face.

When she heard him say that their relations.h.i.+p was different from the norm, De Xue's heart could not help but jump wildly. Although she felt that his words were very ambiguous, yet she did not want to correct him.

From the beginning, He Mu Li has been secretly observing her reaction and found that she did not resist his closeness. His mood was good and he could see she should also have a good impression of him.

"Let's do it this way. I will call you Xiao Xue and you can call me Li Dage*. What do you think?" Initially, he had wanted her to call him 'Li Ge' which sounded better but he was afraid she would be shy and the term was a bit too intimate according to their current relations.h.i.+p. She definitely would not be willing and if this resulted in putting her on guard, it would ruin everything.

(Dage is p.r.o.nounced as Da Ge which means big [Da] brother [Ge]. This is a way of addressing a man during ancient times if they are familiar with each other. Just using the word 'Ge' is an intimate way of addressing a man, usually used by the man's fiancee or wife.)

"Li Dage?" She repeated his words softly.

"Xiao Xue." His arms pull her closer to him and he liked the new way she addressed him.

De Xue lowered her eyes without a word and He Mu Li also did not speak. The both of them stayed quietly together like this for a while and in the carriage, there was silence with a light feeling of love floating in the air.

After a long while, De Xue gently opened her mouth to break the silence.

"Let's get down, Li Dage."

"Okay, let's go." He Mu Li replied. He took the lead, jumped out of the carriage and then he put his hand into the carriage to a.s.sist her. "Xiao Xue, come down."

De Xue glanced at him and slowly stretched out her soft hand. He Mu Li's big hand grasped her smooth little hand and his other hand encircled her waist to pick her up. In this way, he half carried her out of the carriage.

This is not the first time he had embraced her but this time is the most unsettling for De Xue. After getting down from the carriage, he deliberately did not release her and held her in his arms for a while longer. And she did not want to push him away so quickly and so the two of them maintained their embrace until she heard the noises by the roadside. Finally, she realized where they were and feeling very shy, she pushed him away.

Sensing the little beauty in his arms was struggling, He Mu Li reluctantly released his arms.

"Xiao Xue......." His big hands were still holding her little hands. "Why is your hand to silky and smooth?"

Hearing such frivolous words from his mouth, De Xue was surprised. When she saw the seriousness on his face, it did not seem like he was teasing her.

"Is there something wrong with my hands?" She asked inexplicably.

"I am just curious. Are you not a Forge Master? How can your hands be so smooth and soft?"

Just like a person who often practices with a sword, there would be thick calluses on the hands due to wielding of the sword over a long period of time. It is the same for the Forge Master who had to handle weapons and thick calluses would form on the hands. But the small hand of De Xue is very smooth and soft.

"Oh, it is because of that.......of course, there is a secret." She said with a smile.

"What is the secret?" He continued to ask.

"Not telling you!" De Xue shook her head mischievously and pulled back her small hands which were originally wrapped in his big hands.

Seeing that she had no intention of telling him, He Mu Li did not force her and led her into the bustling market.

***#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#*#***

Haizhou is the closest place to the desert in Lan Country. Therefore, there were many special products that De Xue had never seen before and their eating habits were vastly different from the inland.

The fruits here were very sweet, especially the melons and grapes. This is the first time she had ever tasted such sweet grapes.

After listening to her thoughts, He Mu Li raised his eyebrows.

De Xue discovered that the emotions of this man, who had always lacked expressions wearing the coldest face, can be easily detected by his handsome eyebrows. Whether his mood is good or bad, the heights of his sword-like eyebrows were different and the feelings that emerged were also different.

As he is now, his mood is quite good. His usual sharp eyebrows revealed a soft touch and also his expressions showed it was easier to get close to him.

"This is naturally so. Haizhou is hot and rainy in summer and the climate is most suitable for growing fruits and grapes. Other than these fruits, figs, and peaches are also very delicious. If there is anything you like to eat, you can let Hu Ma know and it is guaranteed you will not be able to finish all of it." He Mu Li expressed his pride in the specialties of Haizhou.

"It seems Li Dage is not only focused on training his army but also very concerned about the people's livelihood in Haizhou." De Xue said with curiosity.

"Of course. I am not just a General, the Hou-ye. Haizhou is also my home. My He Mu Family has been here for generations and according to the He Mu Family, it is very important that the people of Haizhou are able to lead a rich life." Their roots are here, of course, they will hope Haizhou will prosper.

After listening to his words, she seriously looked at his proud expression and could not help but respect and admire him in her heart. It seems that the closer she is to him, the more she learns about him and the more she feels that he is not such a hateful person as she originally thought him to be.

He is overbearing and arrogant but he is also a very powerful General. Now he seems to be a good Hou-ye who takes care of his people. Although he had sent his men to pursue her for a year and made her suffer a lot but after thinking carefully, after they had met, he had treated her nicely. Yes...... in the beginning, he was really arrogant but in actual fact, he had never abused her or bullied her.

De Xue suddenly felt that he is sometimes very bad but sometimes he is very good. Whether he is good or bad, she realized that she did not seem to hate him as much and now she had even started to appreciate him.

"What is the matter? Are you tired?" Seeing that she had not spoken for a long while, He Mu Li stopped walking and asked with concern.

But De Xue only looked at him and her bright green eyes s.h.i.+mmered with brilliance.

He could not help but reached out his hand to brush the corner of her eye with his thumb. "Your eyes are very beautiful, like green gems........if you continue to stare at me like this, I will be defeated."

Hearing the laughter in his voice and his teasing words, De Xue's face turned red and swept her green eyes over him once again. Seeing that he was not play-acting, she blinked her eyes in confusion and did not feel angry. Then she turned and started to walk forward but her rosy lips slowly rose into a curve. Her eyes shone with happiness that she herself did not even understand.

When he saw her shyness, He Mu Li silently followed behind her. After a while, he nonchalantly walked up to her side and began to talk to her, telling her the interesting tales about Haizhou.

De Xue found the stories very strange and her green big eyes looked into his face as she listened with interest. Her face changed expressively as she listened to him telling the different stories.

She looked very adorable and He Mu Li smiled in his heart. Seeing her so focused on him, it made him speak more energetically. He is not a man of many words but he only discovered today that the urge to speak depended on the person listening and if the person is his kitten, he is happy to keep on talking.

From the day the two of them had gone out to the market, the feelings between them were obviously much better. As long as He Mu Li had completed his official duties, they would often stick together when they were free. They would come and go together and they happily got along with each other very well.

This made Hu Ma very happy. She even secretly discussed with the Housekeeper and believed that the He Mu Family should be preparing for a happy occasion soon.