Chapter 5 A Mysterious Intuition: "Can you bear to leave me?"...
Banban was startled and before she could react, a hand pinched her cheek. She looked up at him blankly, not understanding why their height difference was so obvious, even though they were only a year apart.
How tall will he grow when he grows up...?
"Why are you always staring blankly at my face when you speak?"
She suddenly came to her senses, and in her embarrassment and anger, she made a rash fuss, "I didn't, I didn't, I didn't! Let me go, let me go! My cousin is bullying me!"
She was like a spinning top, bumping around aimlessly.
Ying Zheng released her, and she immediately fell to the ground like a silkworm cocoon, her feet sticking out in the air, her toes thrashing about, the golden bells jingling throughout the room.
Banban struggled to prop herself up on her arms, pouted, and widened her eyes.
He raised a finger and suddenly moved closer to her, saying, "Don't cry."
Just because you say it's not allowed doesn't mean it's not allowed.
She opened her mouth and cried out, but her mouth was covered after she only cried out once.
Fifteen minutes later.
Ying Zheng bribed the wailing people with a plate of golden water chestnut cake.
As Banban ate her pastries, her dark eyelashes still glistened with tears. The person who had just covered her mouth to stop her from crying was now writing something with his back to her, and his fierce demeanor had vanished.
But the way he raised his voice with a blank expression was really a bit scary.
He was still angry.
Why are you angry?
She stopped eating the pastries altogether, grabbed a small piece, and rushed to his side, saying, "What are you writing? Stop writing and talk to me."
"I have nothing to say to people who go back on their word and whose minds are only on food."
"..."
"???"
Banban glared at him fiercely, almost throwing the pastries in her hand. She thought for a moment before finally stuffing them all into her mouth. "How did I go back on my word?"
"Eat first before you talk." Foam sprayed onto his clothes.
Ying Zheng took a half step back, his words carrying a weight.
"My birthday is the 27th of last month."
Banban paused for a moment, swallowed the pastry in her mouth, and remained bewildered for quite a while.
Was it the 27th of last month?
It was as if he had sought out Congyun and arranged to meet her at midnight to admire the flowers together.
There was silence between them, and an awkward atmosphere filled the air.
After a while, she touched her forehead awkwardly, "But I was sleepy early this morning."
"Yes, she's sleeping as soundly as a tortoise." Ying Zheng had someone bring over freshly cooked duck soup and longevity noodles. He originally intended to share a bowl with her. This dish wasn't particularly special, but it was made by Yue Ji herself, symbolizing 'longevity.' The meaning was different, so naturally, he wanted to share it with this special person.
No matter how much you shout, she won't listen; if you anger her, she'll even bite.
Seeing that she was slowly remembering, he snorted coldly and vowed not to talk to her anymore.
She poked and tugged at him, feeling wronged for some reason. Perhaps it was because her cousin never got angry with her; at most, he would just ignore her in the past, when they weren't familiar with each other.
He was truly cold-hearted and unmoved.
She was at a loss, thought for a moment, then turned and left.
Ying Zheng immediately put down his brush. After a brief moment of surprise, his gaze became completely indifferent. His chest heaved, and it took him a long time to pick up the brush again, close his eyes to regulate his breathing, and then open them again to calm down.
When Yueji returned from outside, she called him to come out and rest. There were some chestnuts on the stove. Looking back and not seeing anyone, she asked curiously, "Where is Chengyin? I heard someone say she came to visit you."
"have no idea."
The voice was calm and indifferent.
But he was still a child, and his words revealed a hint of annoyance and anger.
Tsukihime was surprised and laughed out loud, "Did you two have a fight?"
Ying Zheng refused to speak, silently turning the roasted chestnuts.
Yueji laughed with her head tilted back. Now that she was at home, she didn't need to hide her face. Her moon-white long dress with wide sleeves accentuated her stunningly beautiful face, which resembled a blooming red peony. However, her teasing was also evident in her words.
“I never knew you could be so emotionally expressive. You’re usually as cold as an ice cube.” She cupped her son’s face in her hands and rubbed it repeatedly. “Your mother sees that you have so many things hidden in your heart. It’s good that you’re like this.”
“…Mother.” Ying Zheng struggled a couple of times, his ears turning bright red, and his complexion looking terrible.
“Chengyin is naive and straightforward,” Yueji instructed earnestly. “She won’t hold grudges. How can you, as her older brother, be so petty? Mother will send someone to invite her over for a meal later. You can coax her a little, understand?”
Ying Zheng moved his lips.
"Alright, it's settled then." How could Yueji not know her son well? She knew exactly what he was going to say the moment he opened his mouth.
As the mother and son were talking, a commotion came from outside. Upon closer listening, it turned out to be the sound of Banban shouting and yelling.
What are we supposed to do?
Before Yueji could get up, her son ran past her in a flash.
Banban ran in a hurry and bumped into Ying Zheng as she entered the room. She quickly asked someone to lift the red cloth and chattered, "Cousin! Your sword is old, I'll give you a new one."
Happy birthday!
"You can't be angry with me anymore, I didn't mean it." She couldn't admit it, so she smiled sweetly and acted coquettishly, "I didn't use you as a tool to slack off."
Ying Zheng stared blankly at the sword that the servants were carrying.
The scabbard, a blend of black and dark red, surprisingly complemented his robes perfectly.
"Why did you leave just now...?" he asked.
"Let's go buy this!" Banban tilted her head back, looking at her with pleading eyes. "Am I observant? I noticed the wear and tear on your sword among all these items at a glance."
Yueji came out and circled the sword twice, praising it with admiration, "It's truly a fine sword, Chengyin is so thoughtful." She smiled and picked her up, "Oh dear, why are you all sweaty? Are you worried that your cousin will get angry with you and ruin his health?"
Banban pestered her, "Auntie, I want to eat longevity noodles again, can you make some more?"
Ying Zheng: "My birthday has already passed."
Tsukihime readily nodded, "You can still eat there, just wait."
Banban insisted on helping her cousin carry the sword, her enthusiasm overwhelming Ying Zheng, who couldn't bear to remain cold. He genuinely liked the gift, but, "I'm angry, not because of the gift itself."
"Oh, I know." Banban nudged his shoulder, and the two went inside together and sat by the fireplace. "I'll definitely keep my word from now on!"
He was angry because she lied to him.
Banban pretended not to know, "I want to eat roasted chestnuts."
Ying Zheng handed her a few chestnuts, peeled them for her, and wiped her sweat.
Banban grumbled, recalling the words on the Changchun flower border, "I can't even recognize the words my cousin wrote in the mud." She only recognized Chinese characters, and she didn't recognize traditional characters very well, let alone the strange ancient scripts.
"I'll teach you." Ying Zheng pursed his lips, lifted his fine eyelashes, and his dark pupils were resolute. "I'll teach you."
"..." She just said it casually!
After a long pause, realizing they had just had a disagreement, she felt awkward refusing, so she said, "Then don't be mean to me."
That evening, the two ate longevity noodles together and sat hand in hand on the steps to admire the flowers.
Originally, Banban was about to change her mind. The next morning, after paying her respects to Madam Pang, she heard that Ji Xiu also wanted to hire a tutor for her. Startled, she hurriedly said that she wanted her cousin to be her tutor.
After all, her cousin dotes on her and allows her to slack off. The tutor he hires might be very strict, so of course she would choose her cousin.
The calligraphy practice was scheduled for after dinner, as Ying Zheng would still be receiving lessons from Ji Hao during the day.
Unfolding the bamboo slips, Banban was very confident, boasting shamelessly, "My cousin only told me how to pronounce these characters, and I could remember them instantly."
Although she grew up in an orphanage in her previous life, where she was often hungry and cold, she had been to school. Wouldn't it be easy for her to match the pronunciation with the written form? She was absolutely certain of it.
Ying Zheng did not laugh at her for being overconfident, and actually guided her in reading.
Today he only wrote ten characters, read them aloud with her twice, and then pointed to one of them, asking, "What's the pronunciation of this character?"
She felt dizzy and disoriented, all her previous confidence gone. All she wanted was to go back to the moment when she pinched her mouth shut, refusing to say anything out of line.
The characters were thick and dark, twisting and turning like snakes coiled together. She thought for a long time before tentatively asking, "Cheng?"
She peeked to check her cousin's expression; if he dared to laugh at her, she would immediately get angry.
She was relieved when he didn't laugh at her.
"And this one?" Ying Zheng asked, pointing to a different character.
"It seems to be a continuation as well."
"It's sound, stupid."
He tapped her on the head. "You can't tell the difference when I shuffle it like this? Chengyin, this is your name. Have you memorized it?"
"Then what about this 'reading princess'?" Banban pointed to the first character.
"Didn't I just say the order was scrambled?" Ying Zheng said patiently, holding her small body in his arms. "This character is pronounced Zheng."
“Zheng is my cousin’s name.” She leaned down on her side, resting her head on the back of her hand, and smiled sweetly at him. “We’re sitting next to each other, and our names are the same too.”
"Of course." Ying Zheng straightened her head, paused for a moment, and then continued to teach her to read.
She only stayed for a short while before complaining that she was tired and needed to rest.
Ying Zheng thought his cousin was too impatient. Actually, she wasn't stupid. Practicing dance was something that took years to complete. It was fine that she didn't have the patience, but Yue Ji said that she had an exceptionally good singing voice.
Just then, the Qin state began to promote music.
He left her to review what she had learned that day.
Banban sat cross-legged to the side, counting how many melon seeds he had peeled, then stuffed them whole into his mouth and chewed them, savoring the delicious taste.
After eating for a while, she peeled a handful and brought it to Ying Zheng.
He didn't eat it, so she ate it herself.
"Why is my cousin studying so hard?" She had known him for about three years and saw him studying diligently almost every day, or practicing martial arts in the yard.
There is never a moment of rest.
In their previous life, the headmaster treated them harshly, but they also had holidays every week.
It is truly remarkable that he could persevere in studying diligently every day without anyone supervising him.
Ying Zheng did not turn around. "I will definitely return to my father's side someday." He could not and had no time to slack off.
He spoke simply, and Banban only vaguely understood. Recalling the conversation between Pang and her father that day, she anxiously asked, "Will I still be able to see my cousin in the future?"
"Can you bear to leave me?" He sensed her unease.
Banban nestled close to him, her voice crisp and matter-of-fact, "Of course I can't bear to part with her."
He smiled, continued reading, and took her hand under the table.
She was still eating after a while.
Ying Zheng gently tapped her head, "Eat less, or you'll suffer from sores in your mouth and nose."
"Mmm!" Banban covered her mouth, and pulled out a small water bottle with a pink flower embroidered on it from somewhere. "I asked Congyun to make some sweet tea to cool you down."
She didn't know who her cousin's father was. Her parents didn't say, but she guessed he wasn't an ordinary person. Otherwise, why would the whole family still be unwilling to accept that he had married another woman, and would they still try to test the man's attitude?
In this regard, Banban has a mysterious intuition.
Holding up the small pot, she asked in a flattering tone, "Cousin, would you like to try some? It's very sweet."
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