Reborn Lady

Chapter 100

Yin Hui suddenly found out that Wei Luo was a bit of an upright person. He had scolded her for allowing Xiao Heng to play with ink as soon as he came in, but he then held Xiao Heng’s little hand with one hand, leading him to write.

Yinzhan came in with a plate of cherries.

The cherries were sent from Shandong. The cherries there grew well and were offered as tributes every year. The Emperor thought of his three sons, and ordered the local officials to send a batch of cherries to each of them when they ripened. He did not send them to the capital as the cherries would be spoiled on the way.

After King Yan received the cherries, he ordered people to put them in the ice storage, and sent a basket to each courtyard every day, according to the rule of one catty per master.

The cherries were round, and each one was as big as a copper coin. The ones being delivered to Chengxin hall were also chilled.

Yin Hui wiped her hands, picked up a cherry and peeled it off. After removing the pit, she tore it into several small pieces and sent them to Xiao Heng’s mouth one by one.

Xiao Heng opened his mouth obediently, eating with gusto.

Basically, after Xiao Heng finished eating one, Yin Hui could eat two.

When Yin Hui was about to feed her son another one, Wei Luo glanced at her.

It was a hot day, and he had just come back from outside. Facing these sweet and sour cherries, it was no wonder he was hungry.

Yin Hui gestured to the two maids.

After Jinzhan and Yinzhan retreated, Yin Hui peeled another cherry, removed the seed, stood up, and handed it to Wei Luo.

When Wei Luo opened his mouth, Yin Hui withdrew her hand, threw it into her mouth, and sat back on the chair, squinting at him with aggrieved eyes, “I want to feed you. I spent my time teaching Xiao Heng to read, but you scolded me instead, so I don’t want to feed you anymore.”

Wei Luo didn’t really want to eat the cherry, but upon seeing Yin Hui’s expression, he fell silent for a moment and then explained, “I thought you were merely wasting paper and ink.”

The Yin family possessed considerable wealth, and Xiao Heng had also amassed a considerable fortune. Wei Luo was worried that the child might grow up to be a pampered, rich brat.

Yin Hui didn’t take kindly to his remark, “Do you truly see me as so ignorant?”

Wei Luo pressed his lips together.

Yin Hui gazed out of the window at the sky, then gently retrieved her son from Wei Luo’s arms, saying, “It’s time for our meal. I’ll take Xiao Heng to wash his hands, and you can enjoy your cherries at your own pace.” After that, the young one obediently followed his mother for handwashing.

Wei Luo observed their departure, then turned his attention to the bowl of cherries. Suddenly, he realized that she wasn’t ignorant but was growing more daring, willing to tease and even talk back to him.

With ink staining his right hand, Wei Luo absently picked up two cherries with his left hand. The first one had a fresh taste, while the second seemed rather ordinary.

Sensing that Yin Hui and Xiao Heng were about to finish washing up, Wei Luo collected the plate and headed to the main hall. Just as he reached the curtain, he witnessed Brother Heng stepping out and rushing to his father, exclaiming, “Cherry!”

Wei Luo’s hands were still dirty, so he directed the nurse to allow Xiao Heng to savor the cherries first before retiring to the inner room.

Yin Hui, on the other hand, was still waiting to cleanse her hands, absorbed in scrubbing her son’s ink-stained hands and requesting an additional cup of water.

Noticing Wei Luo’s presence, she cast her eyes downward, wordlessly reprimanding herself for her previous outburst.

Changing the water, she then glanced at the third master before tactfully stepping aside to give him space.

In that moment, Yin Hui perceived Wei Luo’s left hand extended towards her, holding a cherry with the pit removed.

She met his gaze.

Wei Luo said, “Sorry.” When one makes a mistake, extending an apology is necessary.

For a man who typically remained stoic and valued brevity in speech, it was akin to bowing his head in acknowledgment of his wrongdoing.

Yin Hui paused, then leaned in to delicately take a bite of the cherry. Though she exercised great care, her lips still grazed his palm.

She felt a tinge of discomfort and continued washing her hands while quietly savoring the cherries.

Wei Luo proceeded to roll up the sleeve of his right hand with his left, but his right hand was stained. As a result, the cuff of his left shirt hung loosely, grazing his ink-stained hand.

With her head lowered, a wisp of hair slipped down from behind her ear, and her cheeks flushed slightly from the vigorous scrubbing.

After changing the water twice, both hands were clean.

“Let’s have dinner,” Yin Hui said as she walked out after drying her hands. Wei Luo followed.

When the wet nurse saw them, she said with a smile, “Wu Lang ate three cherries in a row. The rest is for you, Third Master, Madam. I’m afraid Wu Lang will get sick if he eats too much.”

Yin Hui looked at Xiao Heng’s lips stained full of juice and finally laughed again.

The cherries were intended for consumption after dinner, but the wet nurse was concerned that Xiao Heng might desire them, so she took him away after the meal.

Yin Hui placed the cherries in front of Wei Luo, saying, “We had some during the day. You were outside in the wind and sun, so eat more of it. Take a water bag when you leave tomorrow morning to quench your thirst on the way.”

Wei Luo replied, “I don’t need it. Let’s keep these for you to enjoy.”

Yin Hui recalled the ten years in her previous life when Wei Luo didn’t pay much attention to food. It was as if the taste of food mattered little to him, as long as he had enough to eat.

“Three catties a day, as much as Xiao Heng consumes. You can have them as snacks. Besides, I heard that consuming more fruits and melons can improve your complexion. Look at you; you’ve been tanned recently.”

Yin Hui insisted that he should eat them. Therefore, Wei Luo had no choice but to consume the remaining half of the plate of cherries.

That night, while Yin Hui went for a bath, Wei Luo walked over to her dressing table and stood there for a while, gazing at the enigmatic expression on the handsome, cold face depicted in the portrait.

On the day of the Dragon Boat Festival, the people of Pingcheng flocked outside the city to witness the traditional dragon boat race. Few knew that a dragon boat race would also be held within King Yan’s Mansion.

As Wei Luo was participating in the dragon boat race, he rose early to join the Northwest Guard Station’s dragon boat team at the inner city river.

Yin Hui, accompanied by Xiao Heng, headed to Concubine Xu’s residence right after breakfast.