Chapter Forty: Returning from the Outing

Update Time: 2013-06-09

Yuwen Lingxi followed closely behind Qiao Zhi into the room, where he was immediately greeted by Qiao Zhi’s sly grin. “Brother Yuwen, be honest—have you fallen for that girl?” he teased.

“What do you think?” Yuwen Lingxi, usually cold and distant, responded with a radiant smile.

That smile was like an iceberg melting or a snow lotus blooming. Those who knew Yuwen Lingxi well understood that when such a smile appeared, someone was bound to suffer. Qiao Zhi, acutely aware of this, wasted no time in dashing out the door.

Yuwen Lingxi’s smile vanished in an instant, his face resuming its customary indifference. Only his occasionally flickering gaze betrayed the rapid calculations racing through his mind.

Had he been moved? Perhaps.

Winter days were short, and darkness fell swiftly. By the time Lianyue and her two companions stepped into the small courtyard where the Yue family resided, night had already descended.

Yaoyao sniffed the air deeply, murmuring in a dreamlike tone, “It smells so good~”

Lianyue’s stomach answered with a loud rumble.

The two exchanged glances and, delighted, hurried toward the main house. As soon as they entered, their eyes locked onto the dishes set out on the table in the center of the room, swallowing hungrily.

Their reaction was understandable. At eleven or twelve, they were at the age of growth, and after an afternoon’s excitement, their hunger, previously suppressed by their high spirits, was instantly awakened by the aroma of food.

The people inside found their greedy expressions amusing. Someone couldn’t help but chuckle, and soon the whole room was filled with laughter.

Lianyue finally tore her gaze from the table and noticed the number of people present. Embarrassed, a flush quickly spread across her cheeks.

As for Yaoyao, she seemed completely immune to the laughter, her eyes still fixed on the delicious food as her little hand began inching toward a dish.

Standing beside her, Lianyue quickly pulled her hand back, earning a silent look of protest from Yaoyao.

The laughter in the room only grew louder, especially from Master Zhou Man of the Zhou family, who laughed heartily as he slapped his thigh.

Lianyue held tightly to Yaoyao’s hand, preventing her escape, filled with regret and blaming this string of embarrassing incidents on Yaoyao.

“All right, that’s enough laughter,” a gentle voice, soft as silk, calmed the room.

Lianyue looked gratefully at her mother, whose beauty was serene and dressed in white, and called out sweetly, “Mother~”

Yaoyao, whose eyes had been glued to the table, was drawn away by Lianyue’s voice. She called out “Master” awkwardly and obediently stood still, her gaze lowered to her toes. Despite Yaoyao’s seamless cooperation with Meng Yanran in the main hall earlier, deep down she still held a measure of awe and respect.

But Lianyue felt differently. This was her mother. Even though they’d never met at her birth, the bond of blood tugged between them, and her affection was wholly genuine.

Meng Yanran smiled and beckoned to the two of them. Lianyue obediently led Yaoyao over.

Yuwen Mo, smiling kindly, asked Lianyue, “Niece Yue, were Lingxi and the Sixth Prince with you just now?”

Lianyue nodded. “We just parted ways. They’ve returned to their quarters.”

Yuwen Mo’s smile became even brighter, nodding with satisfaction.

“Big brother, could you put that smile away? It gives me the creeps!” Zhou Man, ever blunt, interrupted, and then turned to Lianyue, putting on what he thought was a friendly smile. “Niece Yue, next time you go out to play, remember to invite Ziwen along.”

He dragged over his son Zhou Ziwen. “Hehe, this is my son, Zhou Ziwen. You should get to know each other.”

Lianyue studied the boy, about her age, who’d been forcibly pulled over. His skin was fair, his features scholarly—gentle and refined, in stark contrast to his rough and boisterous father. Lianyue glanced at the courteous Zhou Qian standing nearby and quickly decided that Mrs. Zhou must be very beautiful.

Yuwen Mo, seeing Zhou Man’s eagerness, responded with an indifferent curl of his lips.

But Zhou Man noticed and wasn’t pleased. He roared, “Yuwen Mo, what do you mean by that? Are you showing off? Even if you have the token and are the eldest, as long as Niece Yue hasn’t entered your family’s gate, my family still has a chance!”

Only then did Lianyue realize what was going on, recalling why Uncle Zhou had praised his son so much the day before—so that’s what it was all about.

“Can someone explain what’s going on?” Meng Yanran’s voice drew everyone’s attention again. She’d only just regained her memory today, and no one had thought to tell her that her precious daughter was already betrothed, complete with a token.

When Lianyue and Yaoyao went to see the Misty Sea, she had already arrived at the courtyard and learned from Lianyu that Lianyu had married and had children. She’d heard something of Yue Lingjun’s and Lanshui’s upbringing, and felt deeply guilty for not having been there for her children, so she was especially attentive to Lianyue’s affairs.

Naturally, it was not for Yuwen Mo or Zhou Man to explain, nor would Lianyue dare recount it herself. In the end, it fell to her elder sister Lianyu, who was always enthusiastic about teasing Lianyue. She detailed the whole engagement between Lianyue and Yuwen Lingxi, with Yue Lingjun chiming in occasionally.

By the time Lianyu was halfway through, Lianyue had buried her face in her mother’s embrace, for it was hardly something to be proud of.

Yaoyao, meanwhile, was innately curious about such matters and listened with great interest.

Yuwen Lingxi, Qiao Zhi, and Meng Chuchen—who had been absent—were brought in by disciples of the Hidden Sect while Lianyu was telling the story, catching the tail end of the tale.

After hearing the whole account, Meng Yanran didn’t say much, though only she knew what she truly felt.

She gently patted Lianyue’s back and spoke in her soft voice, “All right, now that everyone’s here, let’s eat. Yue, aren’t you hungry?”

Before Lianyue could answer, Yaoyao’s stomach rumbled loudly again. Fortunately, Yaoyao never knew the meaning of embarrassment and simply waited happily for her master’s permission.

Both girls were so hungry that as soon as the elders picked up their chopsticks, they couldn’t help but dig in heartily. The mood at the table was unexpectedly harmonious. Only then did Lianyu understand why her mother had chosen to hold dinner here rather than in the Hidden Sect’s guest hall.

Only Yuwen Lingxi found it strange, feeling as if Meng Yanran’s gaze kept landing on him, though whenever he looked up, she seemed not to be.

After dinner, Yuwen Mo, Zhou Man, and the others took their leave, leaving Meng Yanran and her children alone.

Mother and her children sat together in the room.

“I’m sorry.” With just these simple words, Meng Yanran brought tears to everyone’s eyes. The bittersweet emotions could only be understood by those who lived them.

Lanshui, usually so strong, fell to her knees before Meng Yanran, choking out, “Your Highness…”

Meng Yanran hurried forward to help her up, tears in her eyes. “Shui’er, Lianyu has told me everything. Why are you still so stubborn? Why put yourself through this?”

Having kept her feelings bottled up for so long, Lanshui suddenly found support, and wept in Meng Yanran’s arms. “Your Highness, Shui’er has suffered so much… I missed you so much…”

Watching Lanshui weep, Lianyu and her siblings felt a strange sense of relief. They all knew how much Lanshui had suffered over the years, but she always bore it alone. They had tried to comfort her, but to no avail.

Since that incident, the once gentle Lanshui had changed, always keeping a distance, even from her siblings.

Now, seeing her like this was truly heartening.

It was a long while before Lanshui’s sobs subsided, and she embarrassedly moved out of Meng Yanran’s arms.

Yue Lingjun unobtrusively wiped away his tears and said, “Mother, according to our old rules, shouldn’t Lanshui be punished?”

Lianyu, breaking into a smile, agreed. “If you hadn’t said it, I would have forgotten. Yes, she should be punished—and severely!”

Seeing the puzzled looks on Lianyue, Chuchen, and Yaoyao’s faces, she explained, “When Mother first adopted Lanshui, she would kneel at the slightest provocation. So Mother came up with a rule: if Lanshui knelt again, she’d have to hug each of us ten times as punishment.”

Yaoyao’s eyes darted back and forth. She asked doubtfully, “But can you still hug now? Aunt Lan said that as boys and girls grow up, they can’t hug each other. Since then, Chuchen has never hugged me again!”

Yaoyao’s words stunned everyone, leaving them speechless—except for Lianyu, who noticed Yue Lingjun’s face flush at Yaoyao’s remark.

Lianyue, coughing from surprise at Yaoyao’s words, knew exactly what she meant. If Yaoyao took this so seriously, could it be that she…?

She cast a sympathetic glance at Meng Chuchen, whose face was ashen. Only then did she remember the special connection between the two. She needn’t say anything—Yaoyao’s plea had been made clear. Judging by his expression, the situation did not look promising.

Lianyue secretly prayed for Yaoyao and, nestled in Meng Yanran’s arms, drifted off to sleep to the sound of her mother and siblings chatting away.