Since he had decided to implement his plan of killing three birds with one stone, He Mu Li began to treat De Xue seriously.  The first thing he did was to find out everything about her.

According to his observations these few days, he realized De Xue is a simple and straightforward person.   There is nothing wrong with having that kind of temperament but it is very strange. 

He did not think that with her simple mind, she could actually be able to escape from him numerous times when he hunted her.  In the past, he actually thought she is someone who is cunning but now it seems that she does not have such skills and neither does she have a calculative mind.

For the simple-minded De Xue to be able to constantly escape successfully from the pursuit of his men……was it just her good luck or were his men too useless?

When the guards of Hou Mansion who were sent out to hunt down De Xue knew of their General’s doubts on their capabilities, they felt aggrieved because they had really tried their best to carry out Hou-ye’s orders.  But every time when they discovered her whereabouts, she would always be able to move a step ahead of them.  They were also puzzled and always felt that a powerful force was secretly helping her.

He Mu Li was interested in this powerful force.  For this force to help De Xue……..was it because of her ability or was it for other motives?

Since he had regarded De Xue as the prey that he must capture, he will not allow anyone else to covet her!

Hence, he carried out an in-depth investigation regarding De Xue’s past and the powerful force behind her.  As a result, he received a very interesting feedback.

It turned out that De Xue’s father is the well-known warfare and weapon Sifu*, De Ruo Qing.

(A Sifu is a highly-skilled man or woman who is the Head of a school or a sect.) 

That time when He Mu Li’s father was still alive, he had sent his men to invite this Sifu to be the aide of the General but was rejected by De Ruo Qing.  In fact, there were countless people who had requested for De Ruo Qing’s help but he refused everyone. 

As it is, De Xue is the only child of De Ruo Qing.  Although the surname ‘De’ is not common, the thought of De Xue being the daughter of De Ruo Qing never crossed He Mu Li’s mind.

It is said that De Ruo Qing loves his daughter very much and he taught her all that he knew in his life and did not hold back anything just because she is a daughter.  Therefore, in He Mu Li’s opinion, it is not surprising for De Xue to have such high skills in smelting weapons.  Other than having a natural talent for it, her father’s careful development of her skills should also be considered as one of the main reasons for her expertise.

But if this is the case, why did De Ruo Qing allow his daughter to lead her life wandering alone in the world outside?

As to this question, he received interesting news that made him ponder.  It is said that De Ruo Qing loves his daughter very much and had hoped that De Xue would marry his most favored first disciple who was following his footsteps but De Xue ran away from home because she was against this idea.

However, after De Xue left home, De Rou Qing did not chase after her but instead took care of her in secret. 

On this point, He Mu Li could guess the reason for it.  De Ruo Qing hoped his daughter would be able to experience the hardships of life outside and understand her father’s painstaking effort for her.  He intended to let her suffer a little hardship and then she would return home obediently to get married according to his arrangement.  He could have also harbored the idea of giving her some freedom to do whatever she wanted. 

However, De Ruo Qing was worried about his daughter, so he sent people to protect her.  As a result, De Xue had been secretly sheltered by her father and was able to happily enjoy her work as a swordsmith.  She had never been harmed by anyone who envied or hated her for her skills until she met him.

Thus in this way, De Xue was able to escape from the pursuit of He Mu Family all this time and it was all due to De Ruo Qing’s men who were helping her in secret.  Everything went smoothly until the last time when He Mu Li sent out his elite guards to catch her that she finally fell into his hands. It was all because she came to Haizhou which was an area under He Mu Li’s territory of influence but an area that was out of De Rou Qing’s control. 

He Mu Li muttered to himself irresolutely.  Based on De Ruo Qing’s love for his daughter, it would not be long before someone will come to Hou Mansion and take De Xue away.  No…….before that happens, he must conquer the kitten’s heart, otherwise, when the time comes, she will follow the person to flee home, then it be difficult for him to catch her again.

After going through all this in his mind, he decided to have a talk with De Xue.

During this period of time, he realized that his kitten was avoiding him.  He did not want to force her.  He wanted to give her time to adapt to living in Hou Mansion and also accept his existence.  But now, he thinks it is the right time to develop feelings between both of them.

While He Mu Li was making preparations to prevent De Rou Qing from entering Haizhou and to delay the time that someone will appear to take De Xue from him, he had made up his mind to speed up the process of capturing De Xue’s heart.

If he wanted to conquer the heart of De Xue, he must have an entry point and He Mu Li did not hesitate to choose the excuse of repairing ‘Hurricane’ to hasten the process of cultivating their feelings. 

These days, he asked Hu Ma to take good care of De Xue and because she wanted to give face to Hu Ma, De Xue finally agreed to repair ‘Hurricane’ for him.

The elderly woman knew De Xue was able to repair the sword and she praised her highly.  She also said that God had eyes and that the He Mu Family was unable to find any capable swordsmith to repair ‘Hurricane’ for twenty years.  When the Family was finally able to find a capable swordsmith, she did not anticipate the person would be so beautiful and also possess such a unique talent……De Xue and her Young Master is really a couple perfectly matched by Heaven!

De Xue gave up looking for explanations as to Hu Ma’s intentions and did not struggle with her anymore.  She did not want to see the elderly woman feel sad and thereafter she decided to let Hu Ma say whatever she wanted. 

The only thing was that Hu Ma kept asking her........if the damaged precious sword is not repaired, would anything happen to Young Master if he is fighting on the battlefield?

After listening to this kind of talk, she did not feel anything wrong with it.  But after listening to Hu Ma for two times, three times and more than ten times, it made De Xue feel that if she did not help to repair the sword, it was a terrible act against He Mu Li and it was a deliberate act on her part to put him in possible danger.  She was not a petty person to consider only the minor aspects of a situation and as a result, make the elderly woman worry on purpose. 

Therefore, with the assistance of Hu Ma, He Mu Li was able to successfully extract a promise from De Xue.

She promised she will help him repair ‘Hurricane’…….but it is for this one time only!  De Xue did not forget to add the last important part of the sentence.

Seeing that she had finally given her nod in agreement, He Mu Li’s usual cold expression changed to a gentle expression and thanked her with sincerity.

This, in turn, made De Xue who had always been on guard against him, unable to parry him and suddenly blushed. 

“Xiao Xue, thank you.  I feel so happy that you are willing to repair ‘Hurricane’.  Tell me what materials you need and I will get them ready as soon as possible.”

Obviously, the words carried the same meaning but just because he changed the wording and changed his voice tone this time that De Xue could not find anything harsh words to reply.

“You……I have to study the damage to ‘Hurricane’ before I know what materials are needed.  After I am certain, I will write out a list for you.”   De Xue mumbled a reply and did not dare to look at his face.  She only hopes that he will leave quickly because she felt she is about to blush again.

But He Mu Li did not leave, instead, he approached her step by step making her scream in her heart……..please leave quickly!

“Xiao Xue, what’s wrong with you?  Do you feel uncomfortable?”

Suddenly, a rough big palm was placed on her forehead.

She gasped in surprise and then looked up at him.  Is he deliberately teasing her?

But his expression seemed to be very serious with traces of care and pity completely void of laughter which made De Xue’s heart trembled slightly.

“If you don’t feel well, don’t force yourself.  Although I really want ‘Hurricane’ to be repaired quickly, I don’t want you to be tired.”  He Mu Li’s low voice echoed in her ear.

De Xue looked at him in shock and saw a deliberate gentle smile on his face.

However, contrary to He Mu Li’s expectation, his soft-hearted approach did not soften the beauty but instead frightened her.

“…….He Mu Li, did you take the wrong medicine?  Don’t suddenly change to another person, it is very frightening.”

Cough!  He awkwardly gave a dry cough.

“I said I will help you to repair ‘Hurricane’.  What I had promised you, I will definitely accomplish and I will not go back on my words.  Don’t play any tricks on me.  I don’t know what Hu Ma told you but it will be alright as long as you keep your original attitude towards me and don’t pretend to be gentle with me.  I feel goosebumps all over my arms!”   De Xue screamed at him as she stroked her arms.

Before this, Hu Ma had constantly told her that the Young Master is a very cold person and does not know how to be gentle.  So she guessed he had made changes because Hu Ma must have talked to him.  She also knew that he had always been very obedient to Hu Ma.

Seriously speaking, before this he was a bit cold and she was more used to the He Mu Li who was straightforward and stern.  Just now that He Mu Li with his deliberate appearance……felt so fake!

Just now, the gentleness he showed was totally different from the gentleness when he kissed her before.  It was more like acting out a play but the gentleness when he kissed her the other time caused her heart to palpitate…….

The memories that she had tried hard to suppress all the time, at this moment surged up and made De Xue unable to face him. 

“I want to return to my bedchamber first.  Whatever there is to be discussed, we can talk tomorrow.”

She fled in a hurry and there was inexplicable grief in her heart.  His deliberate action still hurt her sensitive heart.

He Mu Li was a bit stunned.  He had strived to be considerate and gentle towards her but he still could not touch the beauty’s heart.   He thought she would change her mind and felt more affectionate towards him but instead, he had scared her away.

He knotted his eyebrows and seriously thought about the problem.  Suddenly, the words she said just now echoed in his mind.   She said…….she did not want him to act and preferred him with his original attitude.

His original attitude?  Does she mean there is a problem with his attitude?   But he is more considerate than before.

After thinking for a long time, the hall slowly became dark.  No one dared to come in and disturb him until the crescent moon hanging in the sky could be seen outside the window.  The gloomy expression on He Mu Li’s face slowly changed.  His eyebrows lifted up and his eyes revealed a hint of happiness as if he had finally figured out something.

Is it the difference between his behavior and his attitude?   What she censured should be his deliberate behavior.

One needed to deliberately express a certain behavior because the heart is not present but if the heart is present, why should there be a need for deliberate expression? 

It is true when one is practicing with swords.  When the sword is present, the heart will be present…….. 

He seems to be able to understand she did not feel happy because she was felt the difference.

However, he also realized that when he did not treat her with sincerity, she could detect the difference.  In other words, he had to really concentrate whole-heartedly on capturing her heart. 

He had never thought about the need to pursue a woman and had never met a woman who could touch his heart.  But this time, he really wanted to capture the heart of this straightforward and cute kitten.

 

The next morning, after breakfast, He Mu Li invited De Xue to go out and visit the city of Haizhou with him. 

After living in Hou Mansion for more than 20 days, this is the first time, he was inviting her to go out.  De Xue could not help but be surprised.  “Are you not afraid I will run away?”

She has been under house arrest ever since she stepped into Hou Mansion and had never once ventured out the door.  In the Mansion, wherever she goes, there would be someone following her and she knew that these arrangements were ordered by He Mu Li.

“In the past, I have been impolite.  Xiao Xue is a person who honors her words.  Since you have promised to repair ‘Hurricane’ for me, you will certainly keep your promise.  Why should I be afraid you will run away?”   He replied solemnly.  His face still had his usual cold hard expression but there was a hint of softness between his eyebrows.