Chapter 24

Zhang Yunniang gave him one racket and kept the other for herself.

The first game of the freshly-released badminton competition has officially begun.

She explained how to use it, stepped back a little, laid a line of grass and vines in the middle, raised her chin, and gestured for people to catch it.

Considering that it was the first time for the player, she started by feeding the ball conscientiously.

"Watch it, catch it, and hit it back."

A spherical object flew over and Jun Qingmo hit it out reflexively. Before he could react, the spherical object flew back again.

He didn't hesitate either, and the two of them started playing back and forth.

This was Jun Qingmo’s first time playing this. It was a bit like playing Cuju, but more convenient.

Exercise really makes people feel refreshed. The two played for more than an hour. During a short break, Zhang Yunniang went to bring out the boiled sweet soup to quench their thirst.

Oh, it’s so refreshing to live without having to earn money. If I could live my whole life without worrying about money, life would be so wonderful.

She can cook a lot of sweet soups, such as mung bean soup, red bean soup, and fruit sweet soup.

Just eat it as a snack.

She didn't dare put too much sugar in it. For herself, it was to maintain her figure, while for Jun Qingmo, it was not good to eat too much sugar.

"Second brother, I heard your laughter outside the yard. Did you find something interesting again?"

"Brother." Jun Qingmo put the sugar water aside, bowed and greeted him.

Jun Qingxuan often came to visit him, and from time to time he would bring some food from outside or some interesting gadgets.

"Badminton. Do you want to try it?"

"In that case, I'll give it a try."

"I'm a little tired. Yunniang and Big Brother, please play a couple of games."

Zhang Yunniang rubbed her hands. When she was playing with Jun Qingmo just now, she had been feeding the ball to him. To be honest, she didn't have much fun. She briefly explained the rules to him, and Jun Qingxuan was very interested and said he understood.

"My Lord, I won't hold back."

Zhang Yunniang juggled the ball, looking very provocative.

"It's still unclear who will win."

"Second Young Master, you are the referee, but you cannot be partial to relatives or friends~"

Jun Qingmo curled his lips into a smile and coughed to hide it. Even if he had to be partial, it would only be Zhang Yunniang. This person actually didn't trust him. Could he make a fuss?

Jun Qingxuan only saw the person opposite him give a wicked laugh, and something called "badminton" flew towards him.

Zhang Yunniang still fed a ball first, and the opponent hit it back effortlessly.

After feeding five or six of them, the fight officially began.

Jun Qingxuan felt that the angles were becoming more and more tricky, so he had to run around on the court, and soon he was sweating profusely.

But gradually, he found the pattern, began to be able to control the direction of the ball, and also developed tricky playing styles.

Now, both of them were jumping up and down and running around on the court.

We had a lot of fun for a while.

Laughter spread throughout the courtyard.

Jun Qingxuan had never experienced such pure joy, and his eyes were a little moist.

In this palace, he had been hiding, living a life worse than that of pigs and dogs, with no chance of entertainment or fun. No one wanted to interact with him, for fear of offending King Anle.

At this moment, he regained some of his childish innocence and felt the joy brought by the sport.

Jun Qingmo looked at the unrestrained and flamboyant appearance over there, his eyes full of envy. He used to play Cuju and was also so energetic.

The slight loss was fleeting. Zhang Yunniang taught him that the past was the past and people should look forward. In those dark days, living as a human being was a luxury.

Now he can live with dignity without having emotions that affect his will.

"Oh, no, no, no."

Zhang Yunniang waved her hands, put her hands on her hips and panted. She was really tired.

She was sweating profusely, but she felt very refreshed.

Jun Qingxuan stood there, feeling the pleasure of playing and frolicking just now, his back looking extremely lonely.

Seeing him standing there with his head down and no movement, Jun Qingmo called out "Brother" in some confusion.

The man slowly turned around, tears rolling down his cheeks, his eyes smiling, but his expression looked like he was about to cry.

"This is the first time in my life that someone is willing to play with me."

He put down the racket in his hand and wiped his tears awkwardly. But the more he wiped, the more tears appeared on his face.

When his grandmother was alive, although she didn't treat him harshly, she looked down on him from the bottom of her heart. She just raised him and didn't have much affection for him.

What had he done wrong? What had his mother done wrong? It was all Prince Anle's fault, his eyes filled with cruelty.

This dirty palace should disappear.

It was difficult for him to survive in the past, but now he is not without a chance.

He lowered his eyes to hide the expression in them.

A faint fragrance wafted into my nose, and a slender hand stretched out in front of me, holding a clean handkerchief.

Zhang Yunniang didn't say anything extra, just handed over the handkerchief.

She often doesn't want others to see her vulnerable side, especially when she is an outsider, so she gestured to Jun Qingmo to go away, and walked away after getting a response.

In this palace, flattering the powerful and bullying the weak is a common practice. The subordinates will fawn over whoever the master likes, and bully whoever the master hates.

The inner courtyard of the palace was filled with smoke and foul smell.

Zhang Yunniang had just tried to avoid those troubles as much as possible before, but she was not completely unaware of them.

Jun Qingmo felt the same way about Jun Qingxuan's past. He walked over, tugged at the man's sleeve, and wanted to say something comforting, but the man just squatted down and burst into tears on his knees.

He was at a loss and touched the person's head to show reassurance.

"Yuan Jin, I'm sorry to have embarrassed you." Jun Qingxuan's eyes turned red, and he wiped the clothes that he had wetted with some embarrassment.

"Yunniang said that crying isn't just a way for women to relieve their sorrows; men have the right to cry too. Emotions need to be released. Cry if you want to, laugh if you want to. Afterward, everything will be the same. Crying itself isn't shameful; what's shameful is knowing how to cry."

Jun Qingxuan laughed in silence. No one had ever told them that people can cry.

In his opinion, crying is the most useless thing and a sign of cowardice. Since he was ten years old, he no longer uses crying to solve problems.

No matter how many embarrassments he encountered later, he never cried.

For some reason today, facing kindness, he found it difficult to cope.

"Yuan Jin, I envy you so much that I'm jealous."

For the first half of his life, Jun Qingmo enjoyed every honor and favor, with everyone in the mansion fawning over him, and he never felt the darkness and hardship. Even when he fell into trouble later, he would find Zhang Yunniang willing to stay by his side to take care of him, comfort him, and help him cheer up.

"From the beginning to the end, I have been just a human being."

His tone was dejected. Sometimes, he didn't know how he was still alive. He had endured so much and had grown up to this age.

"Master, Second Young Master, you've sweated a lot after exercising, come and wash up."

Zhang Yunniang came over with the toiletries. She had just washed herself and felt refreshed instantly.

When Jun Qingmo saw her, a smile appeared on his lips. Yes, he should be content.

Thanks to the people who didn't abandon him when he was in trouble, he was still able to live with self-respect and self-love. He shouldn't be resentful and give up on himself.

"It's almost noon, would you like to have dinner here with me, my Lord?"

"Why don't you hide and eat it secretly now?"

Jun Qingxuan couldn't help but teasingly, thinking back to when these two had teamed up to hide the preserved fruits.

The masters’ meals are prepared individually by the courtyard, and they are served in the canteen, where they are distributed according to the number of people and the quantity.

Zhang Yunniang didn't have a big appetite, and Jun Qingmo's appetite wasn't great at the time either. She ordered the maximum amount of food for one person, which was barely enough for the two of them.

Later, Jun Qingmo's health improved and his appetite improved.

So I just started cooking in my own yard.

"The food here is simple. If you don't mind, just stay and have some."

This was the first time Jun Qingmo took the initiative to invite someone to dinner, which meant that he had accepted him in his heart.

Jun Qingxuan felt his change and readily agreed.

"Brother, just stroll around the yard. Let's go to the kitchen and cook together. I'll call you when it's ready."

"A gentleman stays away from the kitchen. Are you going too?"

Jun Qingxuan opened his eyes wide, looking very pure and innocent. He was hungry one day and full the next, but he managed to make do with it.

"Those empty theories are worthless in the face of survival."

Jun Qingmo was extremely arrogant, and he felt very proud of his current awareness.

Jun Qingxuan followed behind the person and stood at the kitchen door. He saw two people inside preparing meals in an orderly manner with a clear division of labor.

His jaw dropped. Was the person who was cutting and picking vegetables so skillfully his second brother who had lived a life of luxury for many years?

The man who was previously paralyzed in bed and needed help from others to get up and lie down, can now control his wheelchair by himself without any hindrance.

How could he, a man with all his limbs, stand there and wait for food? "What can I do?"

"Can you make a fire?" Jun Qingmo found him the easiest job that didn't require any skills.

"Yes, I'll light the fire."

When Zhang Yunniang saw someone coming over, she immediately moved aside. She had already started the fire anyway, so she just needed to add some firewood.

The two people over there, like old friends of many years, were discussing the dishes for a while, and would also ask Jun Qingxuan for his opinion.

The room was filled with trivial daily conversations, and the sunlight filtering through the gaps between the bricks and tiles made Jun Qingxuan's jealousy grow stronger.

If, if only, he had someone like this by his side, how nice it would be.

The heartwarming scene before my eyes is so beautiful that I want to tear it apart.

The firelight reflected in his eyes, warm, soft and surging.

Look, he is just like the rat crawling in the gutter, afraid of the light and people.

A dirty heart holds dirty thoughts.

He doesn't deserve to be treated kindly by others.

"I'm going to cook. Stay away and be careful not to get splashed with oil."

Jun Qingmo held the spatula with the demeanor of a chef.

Jun Qingxuan smiled at him, and those dirty thoughts just now disappeared in an instant.

"Well, even though I'm not a gentleman, I should still learn from this."

There were four dishes and one soup, two meat dishes and two vegetable dishes, and the taste was pretty good. Jun Qingxuan felt the fragrance of the food in his mouth, and it felt really good.

Cracks have appeared in my cold and hard heart, and it seems that I have to change my plans for some things.

Previously, Jun Qingmo was one of the only two people in the mansion who had never treated him maliciously, and he always remembered this kindness.

So, he will repay.