On Our Wedding Night, I Discovered the Crown Prince’s Hidden Illness
Chapter 362: The Meaning of Giving a Comb

Chapter 362: Chapter 362: The Meaning of Giving a Comb

Jiang Rou pinched her own little bunch of hair, smiling contentedly.

Looking up, she saw the ribbons in Leng Yu Yan’s hair and asked with curiosity, "Sister, why don’t you wear a beautiful hair bun yourself? Look at my aunt; she almost despises herself if her head isn’t full of golden hairpins."

Leng Yu Yan laughed, "I left in a hurry and didn’t bring a comb."

Her words had just reached the ears of Jiang Xuan, who was coming out to look for his daughter.

He paused in his stride, then turned and went back to his room.

Jiang Yu huffed, stroking the many hairpins in her hair, all of which were quite valuable. She wore them hoping that Ah Li would see.

She wanted even more for Ah Li to know that she, Jiang Yu, had the means and the wealth to make him a well-kept groom.

After playing with Jiang Rou for a while, Leng Yu Yan returned to her room.

In the afternoon.

Leng Yu Yan was preparing to look for Ye Yiheng, who hadn’t been seen around lunchtime and whose whereabouts were unknown.

Just as she was about to close her room door, Jiang Xuan called out to her, "Miss Yu."

She turned around, pointing at herself, "Are you looking for me about something?"

"You helped treat Little Rou’er’s arm the other day, and you cured so many people’s stomach pains on the boat yesterday. I have no way to thank you enough, so please accept this modest gift!" he said, placing a small wooden box in her hands.

Leng Yu Yan tried to refuse, "It was nothing more than a helping hand, not worth mentioning."

Jiang Xuan smiled, "Take a look inside the box first."

The box was light and small, which couldn’t contain much, so with suspicion, Leng Yu Yan opened it.

Inside was a sheep horn comb.

Jiang Xuan smiled again, "It’s not a valuable thing, but please accept it!"

Exactly what she needed, Leng Yu Yan nodded slightly, "Thank you! How much silver should I give you?"

Jiang Xuan quickly waved his hands, "It’s all in thanks, how could I accept your silver?"

Leaving behind these words, Jiang Xuan hastily departed, fearful that she would not accept the gift.

Leng Yu Yan’s grip tightened on the box. She opened her door and placed the box on the table, rummaging through her bundle for silver coins, determined not to accept someone else’s comb for nothing.

If Jiang Xuan wouldn’t take silver, she’d have Little Rou’er help send the silver to him.

Just then, Ye Yiheng returned.

He saw a delicate box on the table and opened it out of curiosity, seeing a comb inside.

Instantly, the comb he had spent half the day carving paled in comparison.

Clutching the wooden comb he’d carved behind his back, the nicks he made with his dagger hit the teeth of the comb, and suddenly, fresh blood dripped onto the floor.

Leng Yu Yan grabbed the broken silver, turning to see him staring blankly at the box on the table, and quickly explained, "This is from Jiang Xuan..."

Before she could finish, he interrupted, "And you accepted it?"

"I did try to refuse."

The expression on Ye Yiheng’s face turned chilly at once, "But you still took it."

Leng Yu Yan showed him the broken silver in her palm, "I truly did refuse at first, but then I thought I needed a comb, so I thought of buying it with money."

Seeing the silver, Ye Yiheng’s expression softened slightly but he still asked in a stern voice, "Do you know what it implies when a man gives a woman a comb?"

Leng Yu Yan shook her head in confusion, "I don’t know, what does it mean?"

She really didn’t know the implication of a man giving a woman a comb; in the few years since she’d arrived in this time, no one had explained this point to her.

Seeing his frosty expression, she couldn’t accurately guess the implication of a man giving a woman a comb, but she generally assumed it had something to do with romantic affection...

So she hastily added, "If I buy it, then it can’t be considered a gift from him."

While speaking, she reached out to pull on his sleeve, and with that pull, she saw the hand he was hiding behind his back.

Clutching a wooden comb in his hand as pale as cold jade, the wound on his fingertip pressed against the sharp tooth of the comb, with blood dripping drop by drop onto the floor.

"You’re hurt!" she exclaimed, grabbing his hand. "You were injured making this comb, weren’t you?"

Her eyes showed undisguised concern, and because she was a head shorter and looking down while speaking, he couldn’t see the expression in her eyes.

Ye Yiheng responded indifferently, "I made a wooden comb, how could it compare to a sheep horn comb?"

"Sit down, I’ll bandage your wound," she said as she searched for the first-aid kit. Turning around and seeing that he was still standing, she grew anxious, "Why aren’t you sitting down yet? You’ve lost so much blood from your hand!"

The man remained standing in place, unmoving.

On the run and in exile, he found he couldn’t even compare to a man operating a boat. His pride as the Crown Prince began to crumble.

Leng Yu Yan saw that he wouldn’t sit, didn’t insist, and simply grabbed his hand.

That’s when she noticed his palm and fingers were crisscrossed with cuts, some had already bled, and others opened anew with the slightest touch, bringing tears to her eyes.

Composing herself, she carefully disinfected his wounds, applied medicine, and then bandaged them.

But she couldn’t help it, a crystal tear splashed down onto the back of his hand.

His hand was icy, her tears scalding, and this searing warmth jolted Ye Yiheng back to his senses.

He looked at the girl in front of him, saw the redness in her eyes, the tears on her face, and he murmured, "Are you feeling sorry for me?"

Leng Yu Yan sniffed, "No, I’m just distressed to see such beautiful hands become like this."

Ye Yiheng pulled her into his arms, "Yanyan, I’ve wronged you!"

After a pause, he added, "Let’s buy the sheep horn comb, and I’ll give Jiang Xuan the silver."

Wrapped in his embrace, her line of sight fell exactly on the corner of the table, where two combs lay, one glossy and good-looking, the other plain and unadorned.

But deep down, she liked the unadorned one more.

She shook her head, "No!"

He let her go slightly, gently squeezing her shoulders, "But the one I made is rougher, the sheep horn comb should comb nicely."

Leng Yu Yan wiped the tear marks off her face and gathered up the things on the table before darting out.

On the deck, she saw Jiang Xuan.

Jiang Xuan had thought she would definitely come to him, perhaps even styling a pretty updo, but the her he saw was still sporting the same simple hairstyle as before, and she was holding the box with his comb in her hand.

"Miss Yu, what’s this?"

Leng Yu Yan pushed the wooden box towards him, "I can’t accept your comb, I had intended to buy it with money, but my brother made me a wooden comb, so I’m returning this to you."

"The newly made wooden comb might not be very smooth and could catch the hair. This sheep horn comb is softer, you keep it."

Jiang Xuan stepped back, not accepting the box.

Leng Yu Yan shook her head, "My brother said that a man giving a woman a comb has implications, although I don’t know what they are, I absolutely cannot accept your comb!"

With that, she stepped forward, pushed the box into his hands, and then turned and ran away.

She had made herself very clear; she hoped he would understand that their relationship was nothing more than that of a ship owner and a passenger.

As for his intentions, she didn’t want to know at all.

Jiang Xuan’s grip on the wooden box suddenly tightened, the tendons on the back of his hand standing out starkly.

Isn’t it said that when giving a gift, one should cater to the recipient’s likes? How was it that he couldn’t even give away a comb?

Not far away, Ye Yiheng watched this scene, then glanced at his left hand, which was almost entirely bandaged, and a hint of a smile graced his lips.