Watching Xiao Yeyang devour the dumplings, Daohua couldn’t help reminding him, "Slow down, don’t burn yourself."
After a trip out of the city, Xiao Yeyang was truly hungry. He nodded hastily and continued to eat voraciously until he had finished most of the dumplings in his bowl before he felt less hungry.
Daohua sat quietly beside him, not removing her veil since the dumpling stall was located at the street corner.
Xiao Yeyang took a bite of a dumpling and glanced at Daohua. Through the thin, white veil, he gazed at her hazy face and felt an extraordinary sense of tranquility in his heart.
Seeing that Xiao Yeyang’s bowl of dumplings was almost empty, Daohua asked, "Are you full? If not, I can ask the owner to make another bowl for you?"
Xiao Yeyang nodded, "The dumplings here taste quite good."
Daohua smiled and signaled to Wang Manman to ask the owner to make another bowl.
Soon, a steaming bowl of dumplings was served.
Seeing Xiao Yeyang eat until he was sweating profusely, Daohua couldn’t help but take a handkerchief to wipe his forehead.
Xiao Yeyang stopped eating and waited for Daohua to finish wiping his forehead before continuing with a smile, "Do you want to try some?" As he spoke, he scooped up a dumpling and offered it to Daohua.
Daohua gave him a stern look, "Xiao Yeyang, behave yourself. We’re in the middle of the street."
Xiao Yeyang, disappointed, pouted and withdrew the dumpling, eating it.
After feeling almost full, Xiao Yeyang slowed down, occasionally stirring the dumplings in his bowl and glancing at Daohua.
Seeing his hesitant look, Daohua felt a headache coming on. She sighed and took the initiative to ask, "What’s wrong with you today?"
Xiao Yeyang, as if finding someone to confide in, immediately snorted, "My father has ordered me to return to the capital to attend Xiao Yechen’s wedding." His tone carried a hint of grievance.
Daohua’s face showed understanding, she thought so. Xiao Yeyang was rarely affected by others these days. His dejection today was due to the Prince. She pondered for a moment before asking, "Do you want to go back?"
Xiao Yeyang shook his head decisively, "Of course not."
Daohua smiled, "Then don’t go back."
Xiao Yeyang looked at Daohua, clearly seeing her bright, star-like eyes through the veil, "But if I don’t go back, it’ll be defying my father’s order. He might dislike me even more in the future."
Daohua fell silent for a moment, "Do you care about that?"
Xiao Yeyang frowned and snorted coldly, "I used to care when I was a child, but not anymore."
Daohua asked again, "You really don’t care?"
Xiao Yeyang fell silent, then nodded affirmatively and said with a sneer, "This is the first time he’s written to me since I came to Zhongzhou, and it’s for Xiao Yechen. He has never considered my feelings, so why should I care about his?"
Daohua responded, "If that’s the case, what are you still struggling with?"
Xiao Yeyang was taken aback, then laughed at himself, "Yeah, what am I struggling with after all? Maybe... it’s the fear of being called unfilial?"
Daohua reached out and patted Xiao Yeyang’s arm on the table, "Xiao Yeyang, only the person concerned truly understands their own feelings, others cannot empathize. You don’t need to pay too much attention to what others think, as long as you feel you’re doing the right thing, then go ahead and do it."
"Your life is your own, living according to what others think, what’s the point in that?"
A smile appeared in Xiao Yeyang’s eyes, and after thinking for a while, he added, "But some say that if I don’t win my father’s favor, I won’t be able to inherit the Prince Residence’s title."
Daohua questioned, "Do you believe that everything you want should be obtained by pleasing others and compromising yourself?"
The smile in Xiao Yeyang’s eyes deepened, and he took Daohua’s hand in his. The knots in his heart unraveled completely, and his brows relaxed as his entire demeanor became more buoyant.
Indeed, Daohua understood him.
Daohua quickly glanced around, then glared at Xiao Yeyang and swiftly withdrew her hand.
Xiao Yeyang, a bit regretful, pinched his hand and asked with a smile, "Why are you outside on such a hot day?"
At these words, Daohua’s eyes instantly crinkled with laughter.
De Fu and De Lu, seeing that their master’s anger had dissipated, both breathed a sigh of relief.
Indeed, only Miss Yan could manage their master.
Back at the residence, Xiao Yeyang immediately had De Fu prepare hot water for a bath, and during it asked, "Do I really reek of sweat?"
De Fu shook his head, "Not at all, Miss Yan just said she was teasing you."
Xiao Yeyang smiled, "That girl, getting naughtier by the day."
De Fu laughed, "That’s because Miss Yan and our master are getting closer."
Xiao Yeyang loved hearing this, and remained in high spirits until he had finished bathing.
Seeing De Fu taking away his dirty clothes, Xiao Yeyang immediately called out to him, "Wait." He quickly walked over and pulled out a handkerchief from his clothes. fɾeewebnoveℓ.co๓
This was the same one Daohua had used to wipe off his sweat earlier, and since she disliked that it was now covered in his sweat, she hadn’t wanted to keep it.
Xiao Yeyang called for water to be brought over, and personally washed the handkerchief, then hung it on the rack to dry. Once it was dry, he took the handkerchief to the desk, picked up a pen, and wrote the story of this handkerchief on it.
After the ink had dried, he folded the handkerchief into a square and placed it inside a wooden box in a hidden compartment of his bed.
Looking at the several handkerchiefs treasured in the wooden box, Xiao Yeyang silently smiled and then took them out one by one to look at them.
The first handkerchief was left by Daohua when she dressed his wound upon their first encounter.
The second handkerchief was from when he was fifteen years old on his birthday, and Daohua gave him a piece of a sunflower sea.
The third handkerchief was left by Daohua when she came into Jiguang city to take care of him during an epidemic outbreak.
The fourth handkerchief...
As he looked at the handwriting on the handkerchiefs, Xiao Yeyang’s mind would inevitably conjure up the scenes from those times. These handkerchiefs recorded how that girl, Yan Yiyi, had managed to take root and sprout in his heart.
"I wonder if she remembers any of these things?"
Comments
The readers' comments on the novel: The Humble Family's Daughter Has A Spatial Pocket!