After a good night's sleep, Xiao Yunying felt refreshed, as if yesterday's troubles had vanished.
She spent a long time comforting herself last night, saying that worrying about these things is useless, and what's meant to happen will happen eventually.
We'll just have to deal with whatever comes our way.
The weather was pretty good this morning. Although it was a bit windy and cold, the sun was out.
She stretched outside the door: "The sun is quite warm, so I don't think the weather will get any worse."
Once the weather warms up and the ground thaws, we can prepare the land and start transplanting the seedlings.
The door opened, and Xiao Yunying turned around to see Zheng Yunwan come out. She said, "You must have felt stuffy in the house. You can open the door to let in some fresh air. It's still a bit cold now. Come out again around noon, when it will be warmer."
Zheng Yunwan said softly, "Sister Yunying, my cold is almost better now, and I can help you with your work."
Seeing that her complexion was much better than yesterday, Xiao Yunying exclaimed, "You're in such good health. If it were me, I don't know how many days it would take to recover from a cold."
"Sister Yunying is destined to enjoy a life of luxury, unlike me, a rough man who has been tough since childhood. A cold won't bother me."
This was a bit off-topic, and Xiao Yunying was afraid that she would recall her unpleasant past, so she brought up other things: "If you feel better now, and the weather is quite nice today, let me take you into the city to buy some things."
Zheng Yunwan nodded in agreement. Since she was going to stay here for a long time, she did need to buy some daily necessities, including a change of clothes.
"I'd like to trouble Sister Yunying to accompany me."
As she spoke, she lowered her head and blushed, as if she had thought of something.
Xiao Yunying assumed she was just embarrassed and smiled without saying anything.
Little did Zheng Yunwan know that she had applied the medicine to her injuries and that she was even wearing Xiao Yunying's undergarments, which was why she felt a little shy.
When the carriage that had brought the children returned, Xiao Yunying locked both the front and back doors and took Luo Xin and Zheng Yunwan to the city.
First, they took Zheng Yunwan to a clinic to have the doctor take her pulse. After confirming that her cold had almost completely subsided, the doctor prescribed some medicine to help her recover.
As she suspected, Zheng Yunwan was malnourished and needed to replenish her body.
Afterwards, she went to Jinxiu Pavilion to order several outfits. Xiao Yunying thought it would help the girl gain some weight, so she only made one winter outfit and two spring outfits.
We ate lunch at Huiweilou Restaurant.
Zheng Yunwan saw Xiao Yunying greet the shopkeeper and staff familiarly, and then lead her straight up to the third floor to the private room she shared with the Chen family.
I remembered that she had told me she co-owned a restaurant in the city, so I guessed this was the one.
Zheng Yunwan didn't ask any more questions. Xiao Yunying was very satisfied with her honesty and obedience, and that she wouldn't talk too much when something happened.
After dinner, I took Luo Xin and Zheng Yunwan to the market for a stroll, bought some daily necessities, and some snacks for the little girl.
While Luo Xin and Zheng Yunwan were picking out beaded flowers at the stall, the voice of a storyteller came from the teahouse next door.
Xiao Yunying listened for a few moments and realized they were talking about a centenarian general.
"Yun Wan, did this centenarian general establish a law that prohibits strangers from selling children or forcing others into prostitution, except for blood relatives?"
Two days ago, when I was looking for Luo Yang and Chen Yuanxuan who had been abducted, I think I overheard the officials mention it.
Zheng Yunwan shifted her gaze from the beaded flower in her hand: "Yes, this centenarian general is a great hero. He not only guarded the border and protected the country, but also formulated many laws that were for the benefit of the people. His deeds are widely known, and almost no one is unaware of him."
"He really was a great hero who served his country and its people."
In this era of clear class distinctions, let alone slaves, even the lives of ordinary free people were nothing in the eyes of the powerful and wealthy.
This centenarian general, despite holding a high position, still always thought of the common people, making him a rare and kind person.
Xiao Yunying asked curiously, "Is this general already a hundred years old, and that's why you call him the centenarian general?"
Zheng Yunwan shook her head: "This centenarian general has already died on the battlefield."
"Ah?!" Xiao Yunying said with some regret, "What a pity."
The jewelry stall owner chimed in, "Young lady, don't you know about the centenarian general? 'Centenarian' is a respectful term used by ordinary people to address a general. Back then, the general was still alive, and we hoped he would live to be a hundred years old, so we respectfully called him the centenarian general."
Xiao Yunying gave an awkward "Ah": "I've been frail and sickly since I was a child, and I've always stayed at home and rarely go out. I rarely come to the city, so I haven't heard much about this general. Um... Yunwan, have you taken a good look at that pearl flower?"
She abruptly and quickly changed the subject. The stall owner didn't continue talking about the centenarian general, but instead began to describe how suitable the beaded flower was for her, all for the sake of his business.
Zheng Yunwan put down the beaded hairpin and picked up a wooden hairpin carved with cherry blossoms: "This will do for me."
Xiao Yunying noticed that she had been looking at the beaded flower for a long time, so she must like it, but it was too expensive for her to buy.
"I'll take both this hairpin and that pearl flower."
Xiao Yunying paid with copper coins and stuffed the hairpin and pearl flowers into Zheng Yunwan's hand: "From now on, you are one of my family members. Consider this a gift from me to you when we first meet."
Zheng Yunwan looked down at the wooden hairpin and pearl flower in her hand: "Sister Yunying, I don't need to wear flowers. It's a waste for me to wear such beautiful pearl flowers."
"What do you mean by waste? I don't like hearing that."
Zheng Yunwan murmured, "When I came home from the variety show last year, my mother took away the only two silk flowers I had and gave them to my sister-in-law. She said it would be a waste for an unmarried girl like me to wear them, and that dressing up in such a flamboyant way would make me seem frivolous and that it would be difficult for others to criticize me."
She had already used nicer words to put it; her mother's original words were much harsher.
Xiao Yunying pulled Luo Xin forward and said rather casually, "Your mother is talking nonsense. You are at the prime of your life. If you don't dress up now, are you going to wait until you're seventy or eighty to dress up?"
Besides, we dress up nicely not just for others to see, but more to make ourselves feel good.
You should think of it this way: those who say bad things about you—if they're women, they're just jealous; if they're men, it's because their female relatives aren't as good as you. It's not really because you're not good enough.
Zheng Yunwan obediently followed beside her and listened attentively to what she had to say.
“I understand. Sister Yunying is right. From now on, those people are meaningless to me. Why should I ruin my good mood for some people I don’t care about?”
"That's the right way to think. When things go wrong, reflect less on yourself and blame others more, and you'll find things going smoothly."
Don't overthink things anymore, and don't worry too much about what others think. Life is short, just a few decades; your own happiness is the most important thing. It's exhausting to worry about even wearing flowers.
Listening to her "twisted logic," Zheng Yunwan unknowingly relieved her own frustration and felt quite moved.
Sister Yunying... is really completely different from others.
She knew what she had gone through, but she didn't look down on her at all and was still willing to take her in and treat her so well.
If Sister Yunying were a man... how wonderful that would be...
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
