Chapter 3
Lu Yan was not at the residence; the Lu Family said he had entered the Capital by imperial decree.
The Capital was far away, and no one knew what the Emperor wanted of him. At the very least, he would not return for half a month.
“Ah Qiao, just wait another half a month, all right?”
I didn’t know why I didn’t like Miss Yuzhe.
Clearly, when she called me Sister Ah Qiao, her smile was so sweet.
Clearly, I loved hearing praise for my cooking, but her compliments made me unhappy:
“Sister Ah Qiao, your cooking is truly delicious. No wonder you’ve captured Brother Meng’s heart so firmly.”
But aside from me, both Meng Heshu and Baier liked her very much.
Baier, who usually listened to me best, pushed his bowl away for the first time.
Rice spilled, and soup dripped down the edge of the table.
“I can’t eat. I want to go out with Sister to buy pastries!”
Unable to bear him wasting food, I scolded him a bit.
Baier wiped his tears, still refusing to admit his fault.
Miss Yuzhe came over to smooth things over:
“Sister Ah Qiao, children are greedy sometimes. You can’t always make them eat proper meals.”
Baier, wiping his tears, shot me a resentful look:
“Why is my Mother you? Why isn’t my Mother the Fairy!”
Baier’s words made Meng Heshu, who was standing outside the door, freeze. He lowered his eyes in silence.
It felt as if someone had gouged out a piece of my heart.
When I was pregnant with Baier, it was very hard. The baby was in the wrong position, and I suffered through a day and night of pain before giving birth.
Whenever Baier was naughty, Meng Heshu would tell him how much his Mother suffered to bring him into the world.
Baier would hurriedly cover Meng Heshu’s mouth with his hand, then point to his own chest:
“Father, don’t say it. If Mother hurts, Baier hurts here too.”
The next day was my birthday.
I cooked a table full of dishes that Meng Heshu loved, and went out to buy the pastries Baier wanted.
By the time night fell and the food in the kitchen had been reheated for the third time, Meng Heshu returned with Baier.
I saw the Silver Hairpin Baier meant to give me, now tucked into Miss Yuzhe’s hair.
Meng Heshu noticed my gaze lingering on the hairpin, and only then remembered it was my birthday.
He hurried to explain that Miss Yuzhe had been in low spirits, so they accompanied her out for the day.
The hairpin was just something Baier had put in Miss Yuzhe’s hair for fun, not a gift for her.
Miss Yuzhe stroked Baier’s head:
“Baier, be good. Give the hairpin to Mother, all right?”
Baier hid behind Miss Yuzhe, his lips quivering before he burst into tears:
“Why should I give it to her?
She doesn’t look as pretty wearing it as the Fairy does!”
Meng Heshu’s face darkened as he sternly scolded Baier, but Miss Yuzhe protected him like a loving mother.
I didn’t know why.
I felt as if I had become a bad and superfluous person.
The food in the kitchen grew cold again. I had no heart, no appetite to reheat it.
I cooked myself a bowl of noodles.
Maybe I was muddled from crying, and put in too much salt.
A bowl of noodles so salty it tasted bitter made me feel that these days were unbearably hard.