"Xiao Honghong? You didn't go back to sleep in your Matchbox?" I turned over and found poor Xiao Honghong squashed beneath me.
Luckily, its centipede shell was quite hard; otherwise, I really might have squashed it to death. It explained with particular pride and as if it were the most natural thing in the world, "The bed is bigger and more comfortable to sleep on. What's the matter, woman? You don't allow Master Hong to sleep in your bed??"
"So last night... You slept beside me the whole night??? We shared the bed?" I exclaimed in surprise.
Xiao Honghong replied irritably, "Don't act like you're at a loss. I, a pure and innocent worm, slept with you, and I didn't complain."
"Uh, I was flattered, please see the truth, Master Hong." After teasing Xiao Honghong, I buttered it up, "You've gained a lot after eating the chicken leg, huh? The Matchbox must be too cramped for you now, the bed is more comfortable, right?"
The rotund Xiao Honghong couldn't fit into the Matchbox anymore, so it could only flap its wings and follow me around wherever I went.
I woke up late and didn't catch my mom and Zhang Che.
All I saw was the pig's feet soup my mom had made for me, and a note pressed under the bowl.
The gist of the note was this:
My mom had just started learning the Mysterious Art and needed to go to a specific place to study every day.
As for the pig's feet soup, was this because I injured my hand, and she was trying to heal like with like?
When we were less well-off, we couldn't afford expensive ingredients.
I'd never before had a proper soup boiled by my mom.
This was the first time.
I took a sip—it was really quite delicious.
Not long after,
As I was gnawing on the tender, stewed sinew of the pig's trotter, Lin Huan walked in, "Wanwan."
"Grand... Grandfather, why have you come? If there's anything... anything you need, you could have sent someone to call me, and I would have come to see you."
I quickly wiped my greasy hands clean, and took the chance to wipe my mouth as well.
That's it, my image as a well-behaved granddaughter in front of Grandfather is gone.
Lin Huan's gaze was fixed on my cast hand, his eyelids slightly reddened, his expression terribly solemn.
Covering my cast hand, I said, "It's nothing serious, it was... Uncle Zhang, he insisted on putting a cast on it, but it's really just a minor injury, Uncle Zhang is making a big deal out of it."
I'm sorry, Uncle Zhang, but to stop Grandfather from worrying further, I can only temporarily put the blame on you.
"I have to leave for an errand, I'm going to meet a distinguished visitor for you, I'll be back soon," Lin Huan said, his eyes sharp as a hawk's, glancing from my plastered hand and then turning to leave.
I had just heaved a sigh of relief, about to tilt my head back and gulp down the rest of the pig's trotter soup.
But Lin Huan turned back suddenly, just in time to see me lifting the soup bowl with gusto.
I nearly closed in on myself right there and then.
Too... too hasty... Careless!
"Wanwan, my dear granddaughter, always so kind-hearted. Even with such an injury, you haven't blamed anyone," Grandfather approached me, strongly rubbing my hair and making a mess of my strands, "If only I could have taken you back home sooner, it's my fault for being so stubborn, making you and your mother suffer so much."
"Grand..." Grandfather, I haven't really suffered.
I was just about to comfort Lin Huan when he strode away from the Waterside Pavilion, my words cut short after a single uttered syllable.
It turned out that deep down, Grandfather had always blamed himself for ignoring my mom, for not taking us mother and daughter back home.
Perhaps, if he had taken me to the Lin Family from a young age, my current circumstances would be different.
But I... really like... myself as I am right now.
I finished all the pig's trotter soup, washed my face, combed my hair, and only then did I leave.
The disciples waiting at the entrance to the Waterside Pavilion were nearly frantic, "Miss Wan, you're finally ready. The gentleman in the reception hall hates to wait more than anything. If you don't go now, he's likely to tear down the Lin Family's main residence."