NOVEL WEB Chapter 3: Healing Wounds
Hualing was taken aback and quickly stepped forward, saying, “Let me have a look, miss, don’t move.” Pulling the girl’s hand away, she saw that her forehead was just slightly red, nothing serious. Hualing rubbed it with her palm and asked, “Are you feeling better now, miss?”
Far from just feeling better, Liu Jiyu was so scared that she felt her eyelids drooping instantly. “I’m fine.”
Liu Jiyu pushed away Hualing’s hand and anxiously glanced at Mei Shuyu, who was a head taller than her, she stuttered, “B-b-brother, I’m… I’m sorry…”
The young man just looked at her without saying anything. Soon, tears welled up in the little girl’s eyes, as if they were about to fall.
Mei Shuyu glanced at her and said, “It’s okay.” Having said that, he walked past her without looking back. However, being ignored made her want to cry even more.
What was the agony he had felt that night? The sharp words of the little girl were still imprinted in Mei Shuyu’s mind. “You’re just a lowly bastard, how can you be worthy of me? I once saw you beat one of your maidservants to death with a cane. You’re a ruthless and dark-hearted villain, completely unworthy of me.”
Was the love he had held for so many years wasted just like this?
Forget it, forget it. If it’s wasted, then let it be wasted. From now on, he would pretend that this love never existed. However, even as he thought about that hurtful moment, the clear almond eyes of the little girl and the mole beneath them kept floating in his mind. It was truly making him go crazy.
The young man chuckled and slowly loosened the tightly clenched hand within his sleeve. From this moment onward, they will walk on their own path.
Suddenly, Mei Shuyu heard hurried footsteps approaching him. He furrowed his brow as he heard someone calling him from behind.
“Brother, wait for me!”
What else did she have to say?
Mei Shuyu suddenly stopped and turned around, only to capture the scene of a little girl rushingly ran towards him and falling in his arms. The emptiness in his heart was then gradually filled in at that moment. His nose was now filled with the sweet scent of the girl, and in his arms was her delicate body.
The young man’s brows furrowed even more as he lifted the girl out of his embrace, coldly staring at her. “Seventh miss, what is your intention? The words spoken that day were perfectly clear. Are you implying everything that happened that night was all a dream?”
Liu Jiyu was taken aback and about to say something, but the young man continued speaking. “I am nothing but a lowly bastard. Seventh miss, please do not come looking for me anymore, lest you tarnish your reputation. When the kite is ready, it will be sent to you then. Farewell.” Mei Shuyu glanced deeply at her before he finally turned around and walked away.
Even after the young man’s figure disappeared around the corner, Liu Jiyu remained standing in her original position, completely lost in thought.
Hualing stepped forward, tugging at her mistress’ sleeve. “Miss, what are you doing? Young Master Mei has always been reserved and cold. Aren’t you just making yourself suffer by seeking him out?”
Only then did Liu Jiyu come back to her senses and sighed. “I just wanted him not to make the kite, but he didn’t even give me a chance to speak.”
“Why not let him make it then? Since it already happened like this, let him be. Miss, hurry back to the courtyard. It’s scorching hot out here, be careful not to get heatstroke. Let’s go.” Hualing urged her mistress to return to Miao Miao Courtyard. Liu Jiyu glanced back at the nearby corner and then turned to walk ahead.
At the corner, the young man listened to the conversation between the two people. He lowered his gaze, a hint of self-mockery crossing his lips. As he heard someone approach him, he immediately composed himself and continued walking forward.
The newcomers were two maids carrying a tray, one of whom was quite attractive. With a hint of flirtation in her eyes, she greeted the young man with a soft and coquettish voice. “Greetings, Young Master Mei.” Unexpectedly, the young man didn’t even glance at her and continued walking straight ahead.
The maid, feeling both embarrassed and annoyed, spat towards his retreating figure once he was far enough, as if that somehow relieved her frustration. “Pah, he’s just a lowly bastard, yet he still dares to act high and mighty.”
***
Liu Jiyu usually suffered in the summer heat, spending most of her time curled up in Miao Miao Courtyard and refusing to even step out into the front yard. On this day, Madam Sui came to find her.
“Mother~”
The little girl nestled in Madam Sui’s arms, hugging her neck and acting coquettishly. Madam Sui chuckled inwardly, then pulled the girl down from her embrace and pinched her chubby cheeks. “You’re already this big and still love to act like a spoiled child. You really have no shame.”
Liu Jiyu once again nestled in Madam Sui’s arms, feeling content. In her previous life, she married into the Shen family, and except for the one time she returned home when she got married, she never saw her family again.
With these thoughts, Liu Jiyu felt like she was about to cry, but then she said softly, “In front of Mother, Yinyin will always be a child. If I don’t act spoiled with you, then who else can I act spoiled with?”
The little girl’s words were sweet and soft, with a faint shaky sound. Madam Sui thought that her daughter was about to cry and carefully inspected her face.
“What’s wrong, Mother?”
Liu Jiyu rubbed her chin against Madam Sui’s hand as her big watery eyes looked at her mother with confusion.
Madam Sui smiled and hugged her close. “It’s nothing, I was just thinking, my Yinyin has grown up so much. And when you grow up, it means you’ll get married.” Madam Sui’s words carried a hint of melancholy, showing her genuine reluctance.
Upon hearing this, Liu Jiyu stiffened. “I don’t want to get married. I want to stay by Mother’s side forever.”
Madam Sui chuckled at her daughter’s remark and said, “Silly Yinyin, as you grow up, you’ll have to get married. How could you stay by Mother’s side forever?”
After a moment of thought, she asked Liu Jiyu again, “Don’t you like your brother Shen Huan? You told me recently that you liked him.”
Liu Jiyu almost blurted out that she didn’t like Shen Huan, but she managed to bite her tongue in time. If she had said it, Madam Sui would have become suspicious.
“But how could he compare to you, Mother?”
Liu Jiyu continued to nestle in Madam Sui’s neck, acting spoiled. However, when Madam Sui couldn’t see, her expression suddenly cooled. How should she cut ties with Shen Huan?
Currently, she and Shen Huan were getting along well. If she suddenly became distant, it would surely raise suspicions. This could complicate things, making it hard to deal with. She needed to think about this matter carefully. She needed a plan.
“I heard that you and Meimei are having the third young master from the Mei family make kites for you?” Madam Sui suddenly said.
Liu Jiyu responded with a sound of affirmation, then asked, “What about it, Mother?”
Madam Sui reached up to ruffle her hair and said with a smile, “Nothing much. I just suddenly remembered how much you used to cling to that stern-faced boy when you were younger. As you grew older, you seemed to drift apart somehow, but he has always been kind to you.” As Madam Sui spoke, Liu Jiyu recalled her childhood with Mei Shuyu. They could indeed be considered as childhood sweethearts.
When they were young, Mei Shuyu was a quiet and aloof boy, and nobody really got close to him except for little Jiyu, who enjoyed playing with him. However, as they grew older, Liu Jiyu found him dull and stopped playing with him. Yet, Mei Shuyu continued to be kind to her.
Every year during the New Year, Lantern Festival, Mid-Autumn Festival, Dragon Boat Festival, and her birthday, Mei Shuyu would carefully prepare gifts for her. Liu Jiyu, on the other hand, rarely gave him anything in return.
Thinking about it, perhaps Mei Shuyu’s feelings for her had been there since they were children? With these thoughts, Liu Jiyu realized how unfair she had been to that young man. She couldn’t believe she had spoken those hurtful words to him. She couldn’t imagine Mei Shuyu, nervously and hopefully, confessing his feelings to her, only for her to respond with such sharp and hurtful words.
It was no wonder that Mei Shuyu, who usually indulged her, was now treating her with coldness. Yet, despite this, he still agreed to make a kite for her.
Liu Jiyu felt a deep sense of indebtedness to Mei Shuyu. She didn’t know how she could ever make amends for the hurt she had caused him.