Chapter 358: Growing Up
Editor: Atlas Studios
Looking at the servant who was sweating profusely, Mu Yangling blinked and nodded. “Don’t worry, I’ll go to Xingzhou Prefecture tomorrow.”
Shu Wanniang also said, “Go and see if Haoran is seriously injured. If he craves something he shouldn’t eat, ask him to endure for a while.”
However, Mu Yangling decided to enter the mountain today to see if she could catch a deer.
Shu Wanniang looked at her daughter reproachfully. “Didn’t I already say that Haoran can’t eat venison now?”
Smiling, Mu Yangling said, “Mother, don’t worry. I definitely won’t let him eat it.”
Indeed, Mu Yangling did not let Qi Haoran eat. She only let him watch her eat.
Mu Yangling only cut a large piece of venison and asked someone to start a fire in the house. She cut the venison into pieces and roasted them on the iron plate. As she roasted them, she said to Qi Haoran, “It’s equivalent to you eating them. When you recover, I’ll go into the mountains to hunt a deer for you. At that time, you can eat as much as you want.” With that, she picked up a piece of venison and dipped it in some sauce before stuffing it into her mouth. Mu Yangling immediately sighed in satisfaction. The venison was really delicious.
Qi Haoran looked at Mu Yangling eating the delicious venison in a daze and felt a little regretful. He shouldn’t have agreed to use this lousy excuse.
Fan Zijin rushed in from outside. The moment he entered the courtyard, he smelled the venison. He stopped in his tracks and was suspicious. Could Haoran have lied to him?
But why would Haoran lie to him with the excuse of being injured?
Fan Zijin entered with doubts. The moment he entered, he was greeted with such a scene. When he saw Haoran eagerly watching Mu Yangling eat the venison, he was instantly furious and glared at Mu Yangling.
When Mu Yangling saw Fan Zijin, she immediately clapped her hands and stood up. She greeted him with a beam, “Brother Zijin, you’re here? Come and sit down. You must be tired after a day of traveling, right?”
Although Mu Yangling did not have much brains, she was not someone who did not care about others’ feelings. Fan Zijin suppressed the anger in his heart and sat beside Qi Haoran with a dark expression.
Mu Yangling gave him a piece of roasted venison.
Ignoring her, Fan Zijin turned to ask Qi Haoran, “Where are you hurt?”
Qi Haoran pointed at his chest and did not say anything in disappointment. It was fine if Mu Yangling did not comfort him, but she actually provoked him.
Fan Zijin frowned. “Has the doctor checked your wound? Why didn’t you rest in bed? Why did you come out to roast venison?”
Although these words were meant to teach Qi Haoran a lesson on the surface, they were actually aimed at Mu Yangling.
Mu Yangling put down her chopsticks and looked over with a serious expression. “That’s right. I know it’s uncomfortable to be sick, but even Bowen doesn’t eat things he shouldn’t eat. Yet you still want to eat venison.”
Fan Zijin looked over with a frown and said unhappily, “Aren’t you eating now? Since you know that he’s craving it, why are you roasting venison in front of him?”
“To teach him a lesson, of course…”
“How can you teach a patient a lesson like this?” Fan Zijin said angrily. “Instead of talking sense into him and comforting him, you actually fanned the flames at the side. Haoran is a patient. It was fine in the past, but you’re not allowed to bully him now.”
Mu Yangling stared at him and scratched her head. “But when Bowen makes a fuss about eating something he shouldn’t eat, my father does that. Then, Bowen won’t mention it next time. We have to reason with him, right? Otherwise, what if he secretly eats it later?”
In the past, Bowen had dared to do this. When they coaxed him, he agreed on the surface. However, when nobody was looking, he went to the kitchen to secretly eat it. Later, their father changed his methods and told him that he would have to take medicine for a few days after eating that thing. Then, their father ate those foods in front of him. That way, Bowen would not eat them secretly when he was sick. He would just eat more when he recovered.
Only then did Qi Haoran know that Bowen was the cause. Hearing this, he immediately stopped the two of them from arguing. “It’s all my fault. I shouldn’t have made a fuss about eating venison.”
“Shut up,” Mu Yangling and Fan Zijin said in unison. Then, they glared at each other. Fan Zijin said, “Bowen couldn’t help but eat secretly because he’s a child. How old is Haoran? Is he such a person? If you explain the logic to him and coax him a little, how can he not listen to you?”
Mu Yangling said, “Since you’re so good at taking care of patients, let’s see how well you can take care of Qi Haoran.” After saying that, she snorted. “Qi Haoran has a child’s temper. Sometimes, Bowen is even more obedient than him.”
This time, Qi Haoran was displeased. He shouted, “When did I have a child’s temper?”
Thus, the three of them parted on bad terms.
Fei Bai shrunk his neck and stood outside, not daring to enter.
Mu Yangling returned to her room and calmed down. After thinking about it, she felt that she had not been calm just now. After all, Qi Haoran was a patient and should be coaxed. She wanted to turn around and go back to apologize, but there was a ball of fire in her heart.
It was Mama Wang who took care of Mu Yangling. There weren’t many young female servants in the General’s Residence as Qi Xiuyuan had sent those girls away because they weren’t too fond of Mu Yangling. Hence, every time Mu Yangling came, it was Mama Wang who took care of her.
Seeing the anger on Mu Yangling’s face, Mama Wang comforted her with a smile. “Calm down. It’s not a big deal. You young people are really hot-tempered. Actually, Fourth Young Master doesn’t really want to eat venison. That child is just sick and lonely, that’s why he thought of ways to invite you over. Look, even though Young Master Zijin is so busy, the minute he heard that Fourth Young Master was back, didn’t he drop everything he was doing and rush back? Fourth Young Master is someone who is susceptible to coaxing. As long as you coax him, he’ll be happy.”
Mu Yangling was stunned. “He wants me to come over and see him?”
Mama Wang nodded. “That’s right.” With a sigh, Mama Wang said, “When a person falls sick, they’re more emotionally vulnerable. However, Eldest Young Master isn’t at home. Otherwise, Fourth Young Master wouldn’t have made such a fuss.”
Mu Yangling’s heart relaxed, and then she felt a sharp pain in her lower abdomen. She immediately pressed her stomach and bent down slightly. Thinking that she had a stomach-ache, she immediately said, “I need to go to the bathroom. Please carry on with your work.”
However, not long after, Mu Yangling came back with a pale face and whispered into Mama Wang’s ear. Mama Wang’s eyes lit up and she said happily, “So you’ve grown up, Miss? No wonder you’re so quick-tempered today. This is a good thing, a good thing! Please sit down. I’ll get you a basin of hot water.” Then, she hurriedly ran out.
She also knew that girls were thin-skinned and did not dare to impose on others. After bringing in hot water, she took some money and hurriedly ran out of the residence to buy things.
There were no young ladies in the residence. Plus, the things the servants used were relatively rough, so Miss Mu naturally could not use those. Hence, she had to go out and buy them.
After comforting Qi Haoran, Fan Zijin frowned slightly when he saw this upon coming out. Just as he was about to ask, Yanmo walked over quickly and whispered a few words into his ear. He could only turn around to deal with the matter at hand and forget about this.
On the other hand, the more Qi Haoran thought about it, the more uncomfortable he felt. Seeing him lift the blanket and get off the bed to look for her, Fei Bai hurriedly stopped him. “Master, Young Master Zijin asked you to lie on the bed and not move.”
“I’ve been lying down for a few days. If I continue lying down, I’ll turn moldy. I’ll go talk to Ah Ling.”
After saying that, he clutched his chest and walked out. Coincidentally, he bumped into Mama Wang, who was panting as she ran back. Qi Haoran looked at the basket Mother Wang was carrying in confusion. “Ah Ling asked you to go shopping?”