章 78: Invisible barrier

He hated crowds, generally anyone being too close to him was not to his liking, especially when those trying to get close were women.

The strong perfume, the noise and the lustful gaze they send his way most of the time, made him so annoyed that he just wanted to kill someone.

This was also the closest that he was able to look. The white veil covered mostly the face, if one looked closely, intently for a certain amount of time, the white veil could not fully hide the marks on the previously beautiful face.

Subconsciously reaching for it, when he was holding the edge of the veil, the abrupt realization of what he was intending to do made him halt.

Gao Lan Mei's eyes narrowed, "Heh. I do not want to ruin your appetite, Your Highness. Mind if you do not remove my face cover?" then she carefully removed his long fingers that were holding the end of the veil. "Else, I will make you responsible."

With a cough, "Responsible for what?" tone mocking, then added, "What's to hide anyway? You were already ugly since before." He said instead.

But truthfully, the first time he saw Gao Miss was the time at Medical Pavilion. He only heard rumors about the young miss of the Gao Household being spoiled and a rebellious waste.

Ignoring his remark again, this seemed to be done a lot today by Gao Lan Mei, she instead tightened the wrap of medical strip on his hand to retaliate.

"You!" Greeting his teeth, feeling the pain from the wound on his palm, also indicating that it was done intentionally, "Have you forgotten why it's there in the first place?" he asked accusingly.

With a sly glint of her eyes, "What are you talking about Your Highness? Please do not move your hand too much. My effort to treat it will be wasted." Making her voice sad, dejected for the effort that was not appreciated.

"You are right. Let me return the favor then." He reached for her hand that was also wounded on the palm and tried to treat it with 'care'.

Knowing his intention, of course, Gao Lan Mei would not allow him to do what he pleased. She immediately stood up and moved away from him.

"No worries Your Highness. I appreciate the concern though, I assure you I can take care of this myself." She said assuring.

To not giving him the chance to refute, she called for the guards outside and told them that the prince was ready to leave.

"Thank you for today, Your Highness, I do not want to waste more of your time. I will coordinate further with the Medical Pavilion or Xi Ma directly for the herbs." Her tone so serious.

Wei Jiayi could feel the crack in the air, with her last sentence that clearly meant her dismissal of him. It's like an invisible barrier that shouted, 'Stay away!'

She moved towards the exit as a courtesy to guide them out, but he could still feel the unwelcome atmosphere from her, making him wonder what he did wrong.

The silent treatment was not comfortable. He could feel her coldness and aloofness as if she were upset.

What made her act this way? She normally responded cheekily and did not back down even if he insulted her.

He'd already learned from their short interaction that even though she was weak, she would not allow anyone to look down on her.

Not missing the red stain on her sleeve because of their mixed blood from earlier, it was very noticeable. Staring at her back, the inky black hair that swayed every time she took a step, he wanted to touch it, but remembering what she did as revenge, he immediately discarded the idea.

A four-man sedan chair was waiting outside the Gao Manor for him.

Even after he got on it, then leaving to head back to his Palace, Gao Lan Mei never spoke another word to him again.