Chapter 31 Quirks and Petty Accusations
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Huixin suddenly raised her red and swollen eyes, her words dripping with anger, her protective instincts undisguised: "He'er just escaped death, seriously injured and unconscious, and in your mouth... she's become lazy?"
Slander! Utter slander!
She came here to eat vegetarian food and worship Buddha, hoping that Buddha would bless her daughter with good health and restore her mind.
The once well-educated and reasonable Madam Lin was angered by her own words. Wen Zhixu softened his tone and said, "Madam Lin, that's not what I meant."
"If anything happens to He'er, I...I will definitely—"make a paper effigy, write your birth date and time on it, and stab you to death with a needle!
Huici added oil to the lamp and came out of the house. In the moonlight, she saw her best friend confronting her son. All rules, etiquette, and hierarchy seemed to have vanished between the two.
"What's all the noise about?" Huici asked in a deep voice.
The two fell silent.
“Master Lin has woken up,” Huici said, giving her son a meaningful look. “He’s clamoring for steamed buns from the Imperial Academy at Master Wen’s residence.”
Preface to the text: "..."
This is terrible! In a Buddhist monastery, the woman wants to eat meat.
“There’s only plain porridge and side dishes in the nunnery.” Huixin pouted, having already forgotten the argument from before. “…Xiaoxu, He’er is hungry. Think of something.”
Wen Zhixu almost laughed in exasperation: "You don't mean to make me go hunting in the back mountains, do you?"
Huixin, who had no principles or limits in front of her daughter, looked at him expectantly: "Can I?"
"!"
This is insane! Is Lin Xihe poisonous?! Even setting aside the fact that there's no meat or vegetables in the nunnery, what could possibly be on the back mountain in the middle of the night?!
The door to the side room creaked open, and half a furtive face peeked out from the crack: "I'm starving..."
Before he could finish speaking, his stomach rumbled loudly, especially clear in the quiet night.
Wen Zhixu glanced at her and said, "Here's some owl meat for you."
Following his words, the demon's eyes darted around, "Little meat? What kind of meat?"
Wen Zhixu remained silent, looking away. Never mind, why bother pointing it out? If he doesn't even recognize an owl, how could he possibly know how to raise a bird?
Seeing that he skipped the answer, Lin Xihe was a little angry: "Hey, I've taken care of you at least! Otherwise you would have been burned to a crisp by now."
After changing his clothes, Wen Zhixu leaned against a pillar in the corridor; his fever had mostly subsided. Moonlight streamed down from the eaves, illuminating half of his body.
Male guests were not allowed to stay overnight in the nunnery, so he could not bathe; he only wiped his face and hands clean.
A night breeze carried a faint, unpleasant odor. It smelled even more pungent than pickled vegetables... like the stench of smelly stockings.
His servant held up a tray and asked, "Second Young Master, Miss Lin's... what should we do with this?"
The plate contained two dark, wrinkled fabrics, so dark that their original color was no longer discernible.
Qingwu quickly took the tray and hurried to the backyard to wash her young mistress's stockings.
Seeing that he didn't speak, the girl in the room poked her head out. Her long black hair cascaded over the door frame, tangled and intertwined, which also conveniently concealed the slight guilt in her eyes.
Wen Zhixu wrinkled his nose, turned and left—his obsessive-compulsive disorder had flared up.
Faced with a large table of late-night snacks, Lin Xihe had long forgotten about that nemesis.
The late-night snack was all vegetarian, with wild vegetables that were freshly picked, simply pickled, and then blanched, resulting in an exceptionally delicious taste.
Even plain congee requires special attention. Adding ingredients like goji berries and red dates instantly warms an empty stomach.
But what's up with that pretty lady in a nun's robe sitting across from her?
Lin Xihe tested the waters several times: with each sip of porridge she took, the woman's eyes welled up with tears; if she didn't eat, the woman would gently wipe the corner of her eyes with a handkerchief.
With no one around, the candlelight cast two swaying shadows on the wall.
This was a bit awkward, as Lin Xihe didn't recognize the person in front of her.
"Sister?" she asked tentatively.
The person opposite silently wiped away tears.
Lin Xihe blurted out again, "Master?"
Upon hearing this, the man cried even harder.
"..." Lin Xihe was at a loss. She touched her nose and asked again, "What is 'little meat'?"
Huixin then moved to the window and propped up the window frame. The moonlight illuminated the old cedar tree in the courtyard, and she pointed at it with her hands behind her back: "He'er has been able to draw owls since she was little, how come she can't recognize her now that she's grown up?"
Lin Xihe squinted at the clump of tree shadows. A mountain bird perched on a branch, staring back at her with wide eyes.
My mind went blank.
"Isn't that an owl?!"
Linxihe, having eaten and drunk her fill.
I'm furious.
The sound of a wooden clapper could be heard in the distance. It started slowly and then sped up, each strike seeming to urge the listener on.
Just like accepting her adoptive father, Lin Xihe accepted the fact that she had a biological mother in a second. Since she had transmigrated, her parents were "assigned" along with her identity, much like opening a blind box—she had no choice.
The nun before me had fair skin and no wrinkles around her eyes, clearly the appearance of a young woman. However, the weariness in her eyes hinted at her age.
Lin Xihe thought about it again. In ancient times, people married and had children early. It was quite common for someone in their early thirties to have a daughter who was just about to come of age.
If we calculate based on her age before she transmigrated, Huixin is only seven or eight years older than her.
“Sister, no,” Lin Xihe forced herself to change her words, “Mother.”
As soon as she uttered the word "Mother," Huixin suddenly burst into tears.
"..." What should we do?
Before dawn, the young nun had been hesitating outside the room for a long time. When Qingwu opened the door, she saw the young nun gesturing towards the direction of the prayer hall.
Lin Xihe actually understood: "Morning class?"
"Yes!" The little nun nodded vigorously, her eyes wide open.
Lin Xihe recalled the solemn-faced abbot and felt a surge of anxiety, like when she was taking her child to school and getting stuck in traffic. She was really afraid that her elderly mother would be late and punished by copying scriptures.
"Mother," Lin Xihe gently patted Huixin's back, "Hurry up and go to school, or you'll be late."
She rubbed her aching body and led Huixin to her meditation room.
"Mom, where are your textbooks? Don't forget to bring them."
Huixin couldn't understand what her daughter was saying, but she tried her best to keep up: "...Scriptures?"
"Hmm!" Lin Xihe pulled out an eco-friendly bag from her inner sleeve—she showed it to the old woman based on the style she remembered, and the old woman sewed several for her.
Scriptures, wooden fish drums, prayer beads... everything needed for morning prayers was put into Lin Xihe's eco-friendly bag.
"Are all the stationery ready?" Lin Xihe asked again, like a mother hen.
Huixin was confused and didn't understand, but that didn't stop her from nodding.
"Hurry up, don't be late, or the abbot will come and complain about you to me."
"...?"
The long corridor leads to the solemn main hall.
Huixin, carrying an eco-friendly bag, kept turning back to look at it. Huici's gaze involuntarily fell on the bag, examining it closely—it was quite nice. The perceptive girl magically pulled another one from her sleeve and handed it over: "Auntie, this is for you, put your school supplies in it."
Huici: "?" School supplies?
Lin Xihe waved to the two of them: "Recite the scriptures diligently and make progress every day!"
The two nuns: "..."
The abbess slowly surveyed the nuns in the hall. In a corner, Huici and Huixin sat on prayer cushions, each with a strangely shaped cloth bag beside them. The bags were embroidered with black and white thread, depicting an animal she had never seen before: its fur was black and white, with two swirling circles around its eyes, giving it an endearingly clumsy appearance.
The abbot's gaze lingered on the two round, plump paws for a moment, his brow furrowing slightly.
That's... a bear?
Throughout the morning class, the host seemed somewhat distracted, glancing around frequently.
.
The sound of the bell rang out, accompanied by the sound of horses' hooves, and Lin Xihe returned to her residence first.
She glanced at the neatly packed small porridge bucket; this was a task assigned to her by her cheap old man.
Every month on the day of the porridge distribution, Lin Zhaoheng would queue up, appearing devout, hoping to win back his wife's heart.
In reality, he has a concubine, a second daughter, and a youngest son, and the four of them live happily together.
As they passed a breakfast stall, Lin Xihe signaled to the driver to stop.
Many people stood in front of the fried dough stall, queuing up to wait for the fried dough to come out of the oven.
Qingwu spread out a handkerchief and placed it on the wooden stool, then invited Lin Xihe to sit down: "Miss, would you like to buy some cakes?"
Lin Xihe waved her hand: "No, I get dizzy from carbon monoxide."
At the next table, a young man sat with his back to her, and the fried dough in his hand suddenly didn't smell so good anymore.
What does "晕炭" mean? It doesn't sound like a nice thing.
Lin Xihe ordered a bowl of soy milk. Just as she was about to drink it, she noticed several women and children staring at her.
...What? She got this beautiful just from drinking some soy milk?
Upon closer inspection, her gaze swept over her head and landed precisely on the table behind her. One of the women and children blushed with excitement.
Lin Xihe glanced sideways at the young man at the table behind her. Okay, that's all for now; she'd been overthinking it.
The young man had a straight back and an elegant posture. Although she couldn't see his face clearly, Lin Xihe was willing to call him a "handsome guy with a killer back view".
The handsome man turned his head, his dark eyes precisely catching Lin Xihe's furtive glance.
"Why is it you?" Lin Xihe thought to herself, feeling unlucky.
Wen Zhixu wasn't angry at all. He raised his chin and asked leisurely, "Did you eat the owl meat?"
"You!" She grabbed her chopsticks and started poking at the owl. "You're the one who eats owls!"
Owl? A novel way of putting it. Wen Zhixu pondered this while dodging her "attack."
Qingwu scooped up some sugar and put it in the young lady's bowl, then gently tugged at her sleeve with her chubby hand: "Miss, please calm down."
The women and children who had been peeking around turned their attention to Lin Xihe—who was angrily poking at the air in front of Wen Zhixu with her chopsticks.
A child, unable to contain himself any longer, rang out in a clear, sharp voice: "Coward."
"..."
Soon, someone recognized Lin Xihe: "Hey! Isn't that the young lady from the Lin Imperial Censor's residence?"
Upon hearing this, the gazes around them instantly changed.
The onlookers' attention kept shifting back and forth between Young Master Wen and Miss Lin.
Rumors circulated that the second young master of the Wen family was quite dissatisfied with this marriage. Who would want their wife to be a fool?
"Miss Lin isn't stupid. She can eat and drink, and she can even glare at Young Master Wen."
The people once again confirmed the rumor that "Lin Xihe, who had come back to life after dying, had gone mad."
Wen Zhixu and Lin Xihe sat back to back.
A refined person is eating breakfast.
Instead of eating breakfast properly, she switched to a more convenient weapon—she used a porcelain spoon to attack Wen Zhixu's shadow for a while.
Wen Zhixu didn't turn around, remaining seated. He glanced down at the menacing shadow on the ground and said, "Aren't your hands tired? There's a shadow on the ground."
Caught red-handed, Lin Xihe quickly turned around, lowered her head, and pretended to drink soy milk in big gulps.
Suddenly, the morning light that had enveloped her was blocked by shadows.
Wen Zhixu looked down at the large bowl, whose rim was bigger than her face: "I was unaware that Miss Lin had a habit of licking the rim of bowls."
Lin Xihe had already finished the bowl of soy milk, and the porcelain bowl in front of her was empty, but she had a brain fart and insisted on pretending to drink soy milk.
Having been tricked by Wen Zhixu, Lin Xihe was not about to admit defeat: "This is performance art, you old-fashioned bumpkin!"
A blush rose on her cheeks, like a general who had avenged himself on the battlefield. She raised her chin, and the morning light outlined a dashing curve on the tip of her upturned nose.
Wen Zhixu was so angry that he plunged headfirst into the carriage.
The two carriages rode side by side, their curtains opening simultaneously, causing their gazes to collide as they jostled.
Neither of them would give in.
This isn't a solution either; we can't just fight.
Wen Zhixu had no choice but to speak up: "My sparrow is at Miss Lin's residence."
Lin Xihe propped herself up with her hand, her fingertips pressed against the corners of her eyes, her eyelids pulled low by her fingers: "Yes, I am its savior."
Lin Xihe, who considered herself his benefactor, glanced at him casually, as if to say: How are you going to thank me?
“Miss Lin,” Wen Zhixu’s respectful tone pleased someone, “when may I take it back to my residence?”
"That won't do," Lin Xihe politely declined.
Upon hearing this, Wen Zhixu's eyelids twitched inexplicably.
Does this mean they won't pay back?
“The sparrows that Miss Lin took in were purchased from a legitimate sparrow shop. The shopkeeper and the waiter are all witnesses and confirmed that they were indeed raised by Mr. Wen.”
“It was bitten by a stray cat, and it has two bloody holes in its belly.” Lin Xihe took out two stones with blood-like patterns from her bosom, stretched out her arm, and walked straight between the two cars. “These are called flower stamen stones. They have a miraculous effect of stopping bleeding and promoting tissue regeneration. I will apply medicine to it when I get back to the mansion.”
The sunlight made her hands shine brightly.
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