Chapter 10 You Have Another Sister "My heart belongs only to you."...
The birthday banquet didn't end until 3:45 PM.
The servants busied themselves cleaning the yard and restoring it to its original state.
Banban rushed excitedly into the courtyard, "Cousin, why didn't you come today? I've been waiting for so long, and I even had Sister Congyun invite you three times!"
Hearing his cousin's happy yet complaining words, Ying Zheng sorted through the bamboo slips and put them into a bag. "I can't go." He lowered his eyelashes nonchalantly and turned his head to notice a tray of things floating down from the clouds.
"Why can't you come? Are you angry with me?" Banban couldn't understand. "I should have called you sooner."
"No," Ying Zheng avoided the question. "Then what is it?"
"Oh." Banban let Congyun put down the tray. "These are all the gifts I received. I'm sharing some with my cousin. There's also some good food. There was a particularly delicious wonton soup with seaweed at noon today, and I asked my mother to specially save a bowl for you!"
The so-called "cloud swallowing sea mist" is actually duck meat soup. The white, silky meat shreds and the thick soup look like white mist, which is exactly what the name means.
Not only that, she took out the gifts one by one, saying, "These are for my cousin's third birthday."
Caught off guard by the pile of objects, Ying Zheng's eyebrows drooped unconsciously, his eyes filled with astonishment.
Banban kept taking things off the tray, saying, "This jade disc is so beautiful, so white, it's a perfect match for my cousin. Let's use it as a gift for his fourth birthday."
"I like this little pony, and I'm giving it to my cousin for his fifth birthday."
"I don't like this inkstone, but my cousin will surely like it, so you can have it too!"
"A wolf-hair brush too, here you go!"
“I received so many cloth picture books, I chose one with a good story…” She hugged it to her chest reluctantly, afraid that she would change her mind, and stuffed it into Ying Zheng’s hands, “Here you go!”
Ying Zheng was momentarily stunned. "These were all gifts from others."
“No matter who it’s given to, it’s a birthday gift.” Clearly, she didn’t think there was anything wrong with what she said. “If it makes people happy, then it’s a good birthday gift.”
As she spoke, she leaned closer to examine his expression closely. "Are you happy?"
Ying Zheng stared at her small face. "I mean, these are yours."
“It’s mine, I’ll give it to you.”
“My cousin is so pitiful. Sister Yun said that he hasn’t properly celebrated his birthday in recent years. I feel sorry for him.”
Is it genuine sympathy or just a ploy to rub salt in the wound?
Ying Zheng: "..."
She was innocent and straightforward; these items were wiped clean, presumably because she had played with them for a while before placing them one by one on the tray.
He looked through all the items one by one, then bent down to look carefully at her small face, and said softly, "Banban, thank you."
"You're welcome." Banban was delighted, feeling quite pleased with himself for having done a good deed appreciated. "Cousin, give me a kiss."
She tilted her little face up, her hands behind her back, fidgeting shyly, her eyes sparkling with eager anticipation.
She stared intently at his face more than once. Ying Zheng wasn't stupid; he could guess that she liked his face.
He glanced at Cong Yun.
Cong Yun, with her back to them, seemed oblivious to the shameless words her mistress had uttered, and focused intently on tidying up the trays.
The boy, leaning slightly forward, exuded a light aura as his lips lightly touched her cheek.
She was a head shorter than him, and her shoulders and arms were incredibly soft. Her face was chubby, but her eyes were unusually large. Beneath her thick eyelashes, her cheeks were pink and delicate.
He didn't dare touch her too hard, for fear of breaking her skin.
Ying Zheng looked away, a bitter feeling rising in his heart. After a moment, he looked at Banban again and smiled slightly.
Banban liked it when her cousin kissed her; after the kiss, the two would hold hands and sit down to play.
Ying Zheng took the black box, opened it, and found a white jade agate bead necklace inside, decorated with gold ornaments, with a small gold rabbit hanging in the center.
Banban liked it very much and asked someone to put it on her, saying, "This little rabbit is me."
"It's you." My cousin is like a newborn rabbit, sometimes mischievous, sometimes obedient, and quite a handful. "The rabbit is your zodiac animal."
Banban counted in order, "Is my cousin born in the Year of the Tiger?"
Ying Zheng sighed and said irritably, "After teaching you for so long, you've finally made some progress."
She muttered, feeling resentful at being looked down upon, saying that of course one had to memorize the zodiac signs.
Banban's sixth birthday has passed, and he is heading towards his seventh.
Because he had offended the Crown Prince of Zhao, Ying Zheng did not leave his home for two months. It wasn't until winter snow once again covered the entire city of Handan that the streets were decorated with lanterns and colorful decorations, and everyone wanted to go out and see the excitement.
Ying Zheng went out for a while and returned with injuries he hadn't seen in a long time, his clothes torn in many places. Banban cried for a while, telling him not to go out again.
He ignored me, went out again with a stern face, and fought with increasing ferocity.
He was indeed like a tiger, unwilling to admit defeat and vindictive. He remembered clearly who treated him well and even more so who treated him badly.
He was suspicious and adept at reading other people's minds. He repeatedly outmaneuvered Prince Yan of Zhao. Not long after, he heard that Prince Yan had injured his leg and would need to rest in bed for half a month to recover. He then arrogantly ordered Zhao soldiers to capture Ying Zheng alive and torture him.
Unfortunately, after several days of investigation, there was no evidence to prove that his injury was caused by Ying Zheng. After all, he was a prince of Qin, and given the situation between Qin and Zhao in the past two years, he could not be killed even if there was no apparent fault on the surface.
Crown Prince You harbored resentment and tried every means to get rid of him.
Out of curiosity, Banban asked her cousin how he had done it, "Cousin, you were all alone, how did you manage to injure Zhao Yan?"
Ying Zheng looked down on him, his tone disdainful, "He loves beautiful women and frequents brothels. It would be easy to deal with him."
"A brothel?" Banban asked, bewildered. "What does it sell?"
He was getting into his story when she suddenly pressed him with this question, and he choked up abruptly, saying, "In short, it's not a good place. Don't go asking about such troublesome things."
He gave vague answers, but Banban wouldn't listen. "I want to hear it!"
Ying Zheng: "No."
"I want to hear it!"
"You're being naughty."
"I'm very well-behaved, where am I not well-behaved? If you're not going to say it, don't say it in the first place, this is just seducing me."
"...?"
"—What seduction?"
I'm really scared of her.
There's a misconception that the less knowledge one has, the bolder they speak.
She insisted that he explain himself, but he wouldn't, and the two started arguing.
Cong Yun was secretly surprised, thinking that Zhao Yan was nine years older than Ying Zheng and was only sixteen years old at the time, yet he was already so fond of the beauties in brothels.
What alarmed her even more was that Ying Zheng, even though he was Gongsun, was not even eight years old. It was one thing that he was tall, but he was also precocious.
Then he also became contemptuous, Zhao Yan, who was sixteen years old, could not even beat Ying Zheng, who was eight years old, which shows how absurd his martial arts had become.
During dinner that night, Banban inquired about brothels with Zhu Shi and Ji Xiu.
Zhu was slightly startled, her brows furrowing in displeasure. "Where did you hear such a thing? Your father?"
Ji Xiu was shocked and forgot about his meal. He almost grabbed his wife's watch on the spot and cried out, "I didn't! Madam! I didn't!"
“My cousin told me,” Banban recounted the events of the afternoon. “He wouldn’t tell me.”
Upon hearing this, Zhu turned pale with fright and became extremely nervous. She quickly ordered the door to be closed, her whole being as frightened as a bird startled by a bow.
Ji Xiu broke out in a cold sweat.
"Banban!" Madam Zhu scolded, "You are not allowed to say such things again."
She was shocked. She never expected that Ying Zheng would tell his daughter such a thing without any attempt to hide it from her. This was more than just simple trust.
"I didn't tell anyone." Banban was startled and didn't understand what had happened, but instinctively sensed danger. She bit her lip timidly, "I didn't tell anyone, only my father and mother."
She would never tell anyone about her cousin.
Ji Xiu rubbed his forehead, unsure of what to say.
Zhu's face turned serious. "The people in the brothels are all prostitutes, women who make a living by selling their bodies. The men who go here to have fun are no good." She said this because she felt that Banban should know some dirty things early on, as she was too naive and easily harmed.
Banban didn't quite understand, but she roughly knew what a prostitute did, so she was indignant. "I knew Zhao Yan was no good, humph."
Ji Xiu thought to himself, does going to a brothel necessarily mean someone is a bad person? Not necessarily. Isn't this how men have always been? Indulging in lust has nothing to do with whether someone has talent or not.
However, he didn't say this, because if he did, he would definitely get a beating.
The three were talking about brothels when Zhu suddenly gagged, "Ugh—"
The father and daughter were terrified and hurriedly opened the door to send someone to fetch the doctor.
Not long after, Madam Pang and Ji Changyue arrived. Banban couldn't squeeze in, so Huanchun came over and took her to have dinner, telling her not to disturb her mother's medical treatment.
She was worried about her mother, so she ate the meal without any appetite. When evening finally came, she finally had a chance to go over to her. Just as she was about to rush over affectionately, one or two people beside her called out "Hey, hey" and stopped her from getting close.
Pang's face beamed with joy. "Banban, don't offend your mother anymore. You're a grown girl now, you need to be more sensible."
Banban looked bewildered. "What serious illness has Mother contracted?"
Ji Xiu said, "Your mother is pregnant, but we don't know if it will be a brother or a sister yet. It will be several months before the baby can be close to your mother."
Banban's eyes widened instantly, a sense of panic welling up inside her. Tears welled up in her eyes, and she cried out like a thunderclap, "I don't want any younger brothers or sisters!! I don't want any younger brothers or sisters!"
Those around, unaware of the situation, showed slight changes in expression, quite astonished. How could a child be so domineering?
Zhu was heartbroken and tears streamed down her face. She wanted to hug her daughter and comfort her, but Pang stopped her and took a handkerchief to wipe her eyes. "Once the child is born, she will know how good her younger brother and sister are. Children are all like that."
That night, Banban couldn't sleep, and her pillow was soaked with tears.
A light drizzle began to fall outside; it was hard to tell whether it was colder outside or her bed.
She curled up, her mind filled with the suffering she endured in the orphanage in her past life. In this life, she finally had loving parents, and she was unhappy that other children were coming to take away her parents' love. Was that wrong...?
If you can't figure it out, just keep thinking about it.
— “Plain”.
Someone called her, the voice sounding particularly abrupt in the quiet night, not from outside, but from inside.
Banban turned around and saw a slightly dark figure standing by the bed. It was her cousin's voice. She didn't know when he came in. Why was there no sound when he opened the door?
She was heartbroken and didn't feel scared or confused. She instinctively rushed over and buried her face in his arms, sobbing softly, "Cousin, are you here to comfort me?"
This was a huge deal for her. She cried bitterly, wanting to vent all her grievances. In the darkness of the night, he was her only support.
He touched her sweaty forehead, wiped away the tears on her face, and picked her up. "No."
The room was dark, so Banban couldn't see his expression, but his words were warm: "What?"
Is this not meant to comfort, but to make people laugh?
"Now you know, right?"
"Know what?" Banban sobbed, not understanding what he meant.
“Your father and mother love you, but they will have other children,” he stroked her wet hair, slowly leaning down to get closer to her face, his expression gradually becoming clear in the darkness.
She couldn't understand his gaze, yet his direct stare burned into her heart. She instinctively flinched back, then heard his gentle words, almost seductive, "Only your cousin treats you the best. Your cousin won't let anyone surpass you."
She was stunned, having never seen her cousin like this before. She shrank back, forgetting to cry. "...Is what my cousin said true?"
When have I ever lied to you?
No, there isn't.
After thinking about it for a long time, Banban realized that her cousin had never lied to her about anything.
"So, you should prioritize your cousin the most." He smiled faintly. "Didn't we agree to listen to me?"
Banban was somewhat unwilling, "What if your father's concubine gave birth to another sister? My cousin also has other sisters."
"Who cares about any other younger brothers and sisters? How can they compare to you?" Ying Zheng said naturally, not taking outsiders seriously at all. "In my heart, there is only you."
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
