Chapter 131 I'll Be Here
"Why are you here?" Ye Wanning was stunned, and quickly went up to help him wipe the rain off his face.
“I knew you were going to Cixi Hall, and I was worried you’d get wet in the rain.” Pei Zhi handed her the oil paper package he was carrying. “These are sweet cakes for the children. I just took them from the kitchen, and they’re still warm.”
The two shared an umbrella as they walked towards Ci'an Hall. The rain was too heavy, and the umbrella couldn't cover both of them. Pei Zhi tilted the umbrella towards Ye Wanning, getting half of himself soaked.
Seeing this, Ye Wanning pushed the umbrella towards him again: "Don't get wet, you'll catch a cold."
Pei Zhi laughed, "It's alright, I'm strong." He pushed the umbrella back, "If you catch a cold, who's going to make me red bean buns?"
Ye Wanning didn't say anything more, but moved closer to him, trying to keep them both under the umbrella.
Upon arriving at the entrance of Ci'an Hall, they saw Xiaodouzi and several other children peering through the window. As soon as they saw them, they ran out joyfully: "Brother Pei! Sister Wanning!"
Little Bean rushed over, and Pei Zhi quickly picked him up and wrapped him in his coat: "Don't get wet in the rain, come inside quickly."
The children gathered around the oil-paper package, happily eating sweet cakes. Ye Wanning looked at their smiling faces, turned around to wipe Pei Zhi's clothes, but he grabbed her hand: "Don't wipe them, they'll dry in a bit."
The rain gradually subsided, and Pei Zhi, holding an umbrella, escorted Ye Wanning and the children home. On the way, Xiao Douzi sat in Pei Zhi's lap, singing the nursery rhymes Ye Wanning had taught him, his laughter filling the air amidst the rain.
Back at the General's Mansion, Ye Wanning quickly found a set of dry clothes for Pei Zhi to change into, and then boiled a bowl of ginger soup. Pei Zhi drank the ginger soup and smiled as he watched her busy work: "From now on, if it rains again, I'll go with you. I'll never let you run alone again."
The moon was high in the sky, its light filtering through the window curtains and falling on the dressing table. Ye Wanning sat in front of the mirror, loosening her hair, which cascaded down like a waterfall, carrying a faint scent of shampoo.
She picked up the peach wood comb and was about to comb her hair when Pei Zhi came up from behind and took the comb from her hand: "Let me comb your hair for you."
Ye Wanning was taken aback and turned to look at him: "Do you know how to comb hair? Don't hurt my hair."
Pei Zhi smiled: "Of course."
(Note: The original text "He took off his armor, changed into a cloth robe, and came to the stream with Ye Wanning" is abruptly connected to the context of the hair-combing scene. It has been adjusted to maintain the continuity of the characters' interaction.)
He squatted down beside Ye Wanning and slowly combed his hair in front of the mirror. He was very gentle, the comb teeth slowly gliding through her hair, occasionally touching her scalp, making her want to laugh because of the tickle.
As soon as the morning light touched the stream, Ye Wanning arrived at the streambank carrying a wooden basin. Inside the basin was Pei Zhi's casual clothes, with a little ink stain on the collar—Pei Zhi had accidentally gotten it on while writing military books in his study yesterday.
She squatted by the stream, dipped her hand in soapberry water, and gently pounded the fabric with a mallet. But the ink stains seemed to be stuck to the fabric; no matter how many times she pounded them, they didn't fade, and instead, her wrists ached from the impact.
"You're using the wrong force. You need to tap towards the edge of the ink stain." A familiar voice came from behind. Ye Wanning turned around and saw Pei Zhi walking over with a food box.
Pei Zhi wasn't wearing armor today, just a plain cloth robe with his trousers rolled up to his knees, revealing his muscular calves. It seemed he had just returned from the military camp.
"Why are you here?" Ye Wanning put down the mallet and rubbed her wrist.
Pei Zhi didn't speak, but squatted down beside her and took the mallet. He wrapped his large hand around hers, lifted it up with her, and gently tapped it at the edge of the ink stain: "See, this is how you tap, and the ink stain will spread."
The stream water splashed up from the mallet, landing on their sleeves and leaving small wet patches. Ye Wanning could feel the warmth of his palm traveling up her arm, and the tips of her ears began to heat up.
"I don't want to, I'll do it myself." Ye Wanning tried to pull her hand away, but Pei Zhi held it even tighter.
"Don't move. Once you've learned it, you can wash things even when I'm not home." Pei Zhi chuckled close to her ear, then paused and looked down at her. "But I'll still do the rough work from now on. Just take good care of yourself."
Ye Wanning's face flushed red. Just as she was about to speak, Pei Zhi had already diluted the ink stains, wrung out the water, and put them into a wooden basin. He then took out an oil paper package from the food box: "These are red bean buns I just bought. They're still warm. Have some to tide you over."
Ye Wanning took a bite; the sweet aroma mingled with the scent of grass by the stream, warming her heart. Pei Zhi took the remaining clothes and began to beat them, his movements practiced and much faster than hers.
"How come you can even do laundry?" Ye Wanning asked curiously.
“When we were at the border, we washed our own clothes,” Pei Zhi laughed. “Back then, I thought that when I got a wife, I would never let her do these kinds of chores.”
The peaches in the orchard behind the hill were ripe, the trees laden with pink peaches hanging like little lanterns. Ye Wanning followed Pei Zhi into the orchard, her eyes lighting up—the peaches on the topmost tree were especially large, pinkish-red, and looked incredibly sweet.
"I want to pick that one!" She pointed to the biggest one at the top of the tree and tiptoed down to get closer.
Pei Zhi smiled and ruffled her hair: "If you can't reach it, I'll do it."
He rolled up his sleeves, stepped on the protrusions on the tree trunk, and climbed up in a few quick movements. The branches were slightly bent under the weight. He reached out and picked a peach, waving it at Ye Wanning: "Want this?"
"Yes!" Ye Wanning nodded vigorously and reached out to take it.
Pei Zhi deliberately moved the peach to the side, and Ye Wanning subconsciously reached out to catch it, but lost her balance and almost fell onto the grass. Just as she was about to fall, Pei Zhi jumped down from the tree and caught her waist.
"You did this on purpose!" Ye Wanning slapped him, pretending to be angry.
"If I didn't tease you, how could I hug my wife?" Pei Zhi laughed, wiping the peach on the corner of his clothes, and then carefully peeling it with a knife.
The peach flesh was pink and tender, still juicy. Pei Zhi held the peach to Ye Wanning's lips: "Take a bite, is it sweet?"
Ye Wanning opened her mouth and took a bite. The sweet juice instantly spread in her mouth, not sour at all.
She was about to speak when she saw Pei Zhi staring at her mouth and smiling.
"What's wrong?" She touched her mouth.
"It's stained with peach juice." Pei Zhi reached out and gently ran his fingertip across the corner of her mouth, his touch as tender as if he were touching a fragile pearl. "Eat slowly, no one's going to take it from you."
Ye Wanning's ears turned red, and she lowered her head to continue eating. Pei Zhi leaned against the tree watching her, occasionally reaching out to brush away peach leaves that fell on her shoulder.
"Pick a few more to take back to the children at Ci'an Hall." After finishing one, Ye Wanning pointed to another tree.
"Okay." Pei Zhi nodded and climbed up again. This time he didn't tease her, and steadily handed the peaches he had picked to her. "Be careful, don't fall."
The lights were still on in Ci'an Hall, and several children, including Xiaodouzi and Xiaohua, surrounded Ye Wanning with bright, sparkling eyes.
"Would you like to tell a story today?" Ye Wanning sat on a small stool and hugged Xiaohua.
"Okay!" the children answered in unison. Little Bean even moved a stool and placed it next to her, "Brother Pei, you should listen too!"
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