Chapter 14 "As long as you're happy, that's all that matters."...
Chapter Fourteen:
Ye Qingxi didn't know how long he had been fighting when he picked up a bottle of mineral water, only to find that he had already drunk it all.
This was the last bottle of mineral water in Mu Shaowu's room. Ye Qingxi thought for a moment, stood up, told Mu Shaowu, and went out to get it from the refrigerator in the kitchen.
He had just come down the stairs when he saw that Mu Feng had returned at some point.
He was sitting alone on the sofa, the living room light was a pale white, which inexplicably made him look lonely and desolate.
Ye Qingxi walked over slowly, her steps light.
Hearing the noise, Mu Feng raised his eyelids and saw that it was him.
He straightened his facial muscles and gave a fairly gentle smile. "Why did you come down? Are you hungry?"
Ye Qingxi shook her head, "I'm thirsty, come down and get some water."
He gazed at Mu Feng, and before Mu Feng could force a smile, he noticed the weariness and sadness in Mu Feng's eyes when he opened them.
He was sad, Ye Qingxi wondered. Why?
Is it for Ye Qingxi's grandfather?
Mu Feng beckoned him to sit down next to him, then picked up a water glass from the coffee table and handed it to him.
Ye Qingxi took the water and slowly drank it.
After she had finished drinking, Ye Qingxi put down her water glass, turned to him and asked, "Grandpa, have you eaten? Are you hungry? Would you like some cake?"
"A cake? Your dad bought you a cake?"
“My aunt bought it,” Ye Qingxi said.
Really? That's really rare; it's impressive that she still has this awareness.
"Where's your uncle? Has he come back? Did he buy you anything?"
"I'm back. My uncle gave me two teddy bears, they're huge," Ye Qingxi replied, trying to sound like a child.
Mu Feng nodded slightly, feeling somewhat satisfied.
Last night, Mu Shaoting and Mu Shaoyan met Ye Qingxi for the first time, but they didn't give her anything. Mu Feng could understand—they were still students and hadn't graduated yet. Students usually received gifts from their elders and weren't responsible for giving gifts. But while he could understand, he was still somewhat dissatisfied that his two children hadn't given Ye Qingxi a gift and had left early.
As far as Yu Mufeng was concerned, he never wanted Ye Qingxi to suffer any injustice in his life, not even from his own children.
Otherwise, how could he live up to Ye Min and the trust Ye Min placed in him?
Seeing that he was in better spirits than before, Ye Qingxi spoke again, "Grandpa, would you like some cake? I saved a piece for you."
Listening to his soft words, Mu Feng felt that he was indeed sensible. As expected of Ye Min's child, he was just like his grandfather, gentle and considerate.
"good."
He stood up, walked to the refrigerator, and saw the two cakes that Ye Qingxi had left behind.
Mu Feng reached out and took out the cake, then led Ye Qingxi into the restaurant.
He naturally placed one of the pieces in front of Ye Qingxi, but Ye Qingxi just sat there obediently and did not pick up the fork beside her.
Why aren't you eating? Don't you like it?
Ye Qingxi shook her head and asked him, "Isn't Uncle coming back tonight?"
Mu Feng paused, his fork of cake in his hand. He then realized that the two pieces of cake Ye Qingxi had left were not intended for the two of them to each have one, but rather for him and Mu Zheng to each have one.
He is indeed a thoughtful and good child.
"He's going home tonight, so you can eat."
As Mu Feng spoke, he picked up the fork next to Ye Qingxi and helped him put it into the cake.
Ye Qingxi hesitated. He felt that he had eaten too much dessert today, especially since it was so late. Could he digest another piece of cake?
"Why aren't you eating yet?" Mu Feng asked, puzzled.
"I want to give it to my dad," Ye Qingxi said. "I've already eaten two pieces, but my dad only ate one."
Mu Feng chuckled, scooped a piece of cake with his fork, and brought it to his lips.
"You eat it, your father can't eat it."
Ye Qingxi: ...
"Fine," Ye Qingxi said helplessly. Since Old Master Mu had spoken, Mu Shaowu probably wouldn't be able to eat anymore, even if he could.
and……
Ye Qingxi blinked. He seemed to have digested a lot of what he ate that afternoon, and there was room in his stomach again.
Ye Qingxi took the fork and stuffed the cake on top into his mouth. He had to admit, the cake was really delicious. Even though he had eaten it before, he still thought it was delicious.
Ye Qingxi unconsciously curled up the corners of her lips.
As Old Master Mu looked at it, he thought to himself, "He really likes it."
The fact that Ye Min likes them so much and is willing to give them to Mu Zheng and Mu Shaowu first shows that Ye Min has indeed raised the children very well; they are very well-behaved and considerate.
"Were you happy spending time with your father today?" Mu Feng asked with concern.
Ye Qingxi thought for a moment and nodded somewhat awkwardly.
He still has some resistance to matters related to relationships, resisting knowing how others feel about him and also resisting admitting his own feelings for others.
"If one day he makes you unhappy, or you feel unhappy being with him, remember to tell me."
Ye Qingxi looked up, somewhat puzzled as to why he suddenly brought this up.
"Don't be afraid." Old Master Mu looked at him, his eyebrows curving slightly as if he wanted to laugh, but since he wasn't a person who liked to laugh, his eyebrows quickly straightened again. Because of this expression, what he said next sounded serious and solemn.
“Your grandfather entrusted you to me, and I brought you back to my home, not so you could suffer. I’m the head of this family, so you don’t need to worry about anyone else, not even your father. If he treats you badly, just tell me, and I won’t let you call him ‘Dad’ anymore, and I won’t let you stay with him. I’ll raise you myself.”
Ye Qingxi: ...Wow, that's so direct.
"So, you can tell me anything that happens to you." Mu Feng's tone wasn't harsh, but his words carried a lot of weight. "Whether it's good or bad, just be happy. If you're unhappy, tell me, and I'll naturally take care of it for you and help you solve it, including your father."
Ye Qingxi: ...Well, there's no need to value me so much.
Ye Qingxi was somewhat surprised. He thought that a feudal patriarch like Mu Feng would not express his feelings and thoughts so directly. He didn't expect that Mu Feng would be so straightforward with him.
That's really strange.
Much later, Ye Qingxi slowly realized that Mu Feng wasn't actually expressing his feelings directly; he was just making a promise to her, a promise that he wouldn't let her suffer, a promise that he would always protect her.
The reason he made this promise was simply because he didn't have the surname Mu and they weren't related by blood. Therefore, Mu Feng hoped that he could live with confidence in the early stages of entering the Mu family.
He has never said such a thing to his children, and he never will.
Because they were born with his blood, they didn't need to. They knew very well that as long as they didn't leave the Mu family and sever their relationship with Mu Feng, even if they caused a huge problem, Mu Feng would only punish them and clean up the mess after he was furious. He wouldn't ignore them or abandon them.
But Ye Qingxi is different. He is not a child of the Mu family, so Mu Feng wants him to know his importance to him, so that he will have the confidence to refuse and get angry when he encounters things he doesn't like.
Throughout his life, Mu Feng raised four children. Except for Mu Shaoting, who was a girl, he was more cautious and gentle when raising her. He treated the other three boys with almost the same iron fist.
Ye Qingxi was the only child he had never raised before, and he genuinely hoped that he could raise him well and make him feel the same way he did in the Ye family. So, unusually, he used all the tenderness he had almost lost in Ye Qingxi.
Ye Qingxi looked into his eyes, lowered her head, and took a bite of cake.
Seeing that he didn't speak, Mu Feng didn't press him.
He always showed more patience and empathy towards Ye Qingxi. He thought that Ye Qingxi was only five years old and not very familiar with him, so she might not know how to respond to what he said.
It's alright, he doesn't need to answer, he just needs Ye Qingxi to remember.
Make a note of this, so that when he's unhappy about something, he'll naturally come to him.
Then he will know that he wasn't lying to him, that he was serious.
"Do you want to visit your grandfather tomorrow?" Mu Feng changed the subject.
Upon hearing this, Ye Qingxi looked up at him, "My grandfather..."
"He's not feeling well and has been sleeping these past two days, but he might wake up tomorrow. I'll take you there when he does, okay?"
This is clearly a way of comforting a child.
Actually, without even asking, Ye Qingxi knew that Ye Min's condition must be bad.
Otherwise, Mu Feng wouldn't have had that expression just now.
He had been busy with Ye Min's affairs these days, and Ye Qingxi didn't want to add to his burden, so he nodded in agreement, pretending that he knew nothing and hadn't guessed anything.
"Good boy/girl," Mu Feng praised.
"Let's eat cake," he said.
Ye Qingxi lowered her head and continued eating her cake.
Mu Feng sat beside him, eating in silence.
After he finished the cake, Mu Feng took two bottles of ice water from the refrigerator and two bottles of room temperature mineral water for him, telling him, "Drink this."
He meant room temperature.
Ye Qingxi nodded and extended her hand, but Mu Feng did not give it to her.
He helped him carry it up to the third floor, and only handed the water to Ye Qingxi when they reached the door.
Ye Qingxi watched his retreating figure as he turned to leave, and after thinking for a moment, she chased after him.
Mu Feng turned around and asked him, "What's wrong?"
Ye Qingxi noticed the gray hair peeking out from his hair; he wasn't young anymore, he was already sixty.
"Grandpa, please take care of yourself too," Ye Qingxi said. "Don't get sick."
In the book, Mu Feng was ill for quite some time after Ye Min's death.
After recovering from the illness, he looked even older.
He had seen too many people pass away, his lover and friends, and it was inevitable that he would feel sad. When his spirits were broken, all the ailments he had accumulated before came rushing back.
At sixty, one is no longer at an age where one can easily fall ill.
Ye Qingxi hoped that this time, he wouldn't get sick again.
Mu Feng hadn't expected that he had specifically chased after him to say this.
Looking into Ye Qingxi's clear eyes, he assumed that she was worried that her grandfather, who was not related to her by blood, might also be sick because she had just mentioned her biological grandfather.
“Okay,” he replied. “I definitely won’t get sick.”
"You need to rest on time," Ye Qingxi said.
"I'm going back to sleep now."
Eat on time.
Mu Feng: ...
"Wear more clothes, it's getting cold these days."
Now Mu Feng had something to say: "I'm wearing quite a lot."
Ye Qingxi glanced at the outfits he hadn't had time to change into; there were indeed quite a few.
"Alright, you're the one who needs to eat on time, rest on time, and wear more clothes. Remember to wear your coat tomorrow," Mu Feng said. "Don't get sick again in a couple of days. By the way, did you take your medicine tonight?"
Ye Qingxi: ...No, not really.
"Remember to eat before bed," Mu Feng instructed.
"Okay." Ye Qingxi nodded. "Then Grandpa, I'm going to sleep now. You should get some rest too."
"good."
Ye Qingxi turned around and walked towards Mu Shaowu's room.
Mu Feng looked at him.
Looking at his thin and small body.
He was so young, like a newly sprouted seedling, unable to withstand the wind and rain.
However, a storm is brewing.
At this moment, Mu Feng suddenly felt a pang of regret that he had entered his twilight years.
He couldn't accompany Ye Qingxi through the rest of his life, nor could he forever shelter him from the wind and rain and hold up the sky above his head.
He hoped he could fulfill his promise to Ye Min, and he hoped he could see Ye Qingxi live a happy and fulfilling life. He could proudly say to Ye Min, "I, Mu Feng, keep my word. How about that? I haven't let you down, have I?"
But he was destined to only accompany Ye Qingxi for a third of her life.
The future is something he has to face on his own.
—May he never suffer hardship or tribulation, and may he enjoy good health and all things going smoothly.
Mu Feng turned around and walked step by step toward his room.
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