Huancheng Shen Shen

Capítulo 12

Author's Note: Oh yeah~ The devilish male supporting character has arrived, yay!

Chapter Fifteen: Peace Reconciliation

As soon as Song Xiaohua entered the courtyard, she saw Lu Ling squatting in the porch with his head down, earnestly drawing something on the ground with a small twig. Song Wuque was squatting on his lap, his little head drooping, watching intently...

The scene was actually very harmonious, warm, and loving, but for some reason, Song Xiaohua felt a lump in her throat when she saw it.

Stepping through the puddles on the bluestone slabs, he hurried into the courtyard, only to meet Lu Ling's eyes, which were filled with suspicion and wariness. He paused for a moment before realizing that, in Lu Ling's eyes, his current attire must make him appear as a trespasser with ulterior motives.

"Ling'er, don't you recognize me?"

Lu Ling blinked, still not quite understanding what was happening, when Song Wuque, perched on her lap, sniffed and gave her a sharp, high-pitched cry.

See? In crucial moments, it's still the dog that can see through appearances to the essence...

"Mother?" Lu Ling called out hesitantly, then, seeing the familiar wide smile on the newcomer's face, he immediately jumped to his feet and threw himself into Song Xiaohua's arms. Completely ignoring the poor Song Wuque who was thrown flat on his back, whimpering...

"Mother~ Mother~" Lu Ling buried her face in Song Xiaohua's neck and called out in a muffled voice over and over again.

"Yes, yes, it's me, it's me!" Song Xiaohua felt warm and soft in her heart and patiently answered again and again.

"Ling'er thought her mother had left and wasn't coming back, that she didn't want Ling'er anymore."

"How could that be, silly boy? Didn't I tell you? I will never abandon Ling'er. Even if I have to leave, I will take Ling'er with me!"

Lu Ling looked up, her little face already wet with tears: "What about Daddy? Will Mommy take Daddy with her?"

Song Xiaohua pursed her lips, wanting to retort, "I don't care if he dies!", but ultimately couldn't bear to say such things about his own father in front of the child: "Ling'er, think about it, your father is such a grown man, why would he need me to carry him? If he really wants to walk, he has two legs to walk on. Even if he doesn't need legs, he can ride a horse or hire a carriage, don't you think?"

Lu Ling was immediately confused by this jumbled and incomprehensible rambling. After thinking hard for a while, he nodded somewhat uncertainly.

"Alright, I'm covered in mud, I need to change my clothes first." Song Xiaohua pinched the little radish's smooth, rosy cheek with satisfaction: "By the way, Ling'er, can you keep a secret for me?"

"able!"

"I can't tell anyone about how I dress, not even Dad. It's just you and me; it's our little secret. Okay?"

“Okay!” Lu Ling agreed without hesitation, then tilted his head and looked at her carefully: “But why is Mother dressed like Father?”

Song Xiaohua grinned maliciously: "Because... I want Ling'er to have two fathers!"

Lu Ling was startled and frantically waved her hands, "No, no! Everyone else has one father and one mother, Ling'er doesn't want two fathers!"

"Silly boy, I was just kidding!" Song Xiaohua laughed and pinched him again, then said seriously, "But if you don't keep this secret, then you'll definitely have two daddies!"

Lu Ling nodded his head repeatedly, like a chicken pecking at rice, while Song Xiaohua happily went back into the house, showing no remorse whatsoever for having fooled a child…

After changing his clothes, he came out and saw Lu Ling and Song Wuque striking the same pose as before, drawing on the ground. He went over to take a look and found that they were writing with a stick dipped in water.

"Ling'er, you can read at such a young age?"

"I don't know much. Uncle Huo taught me, and my father also teaches me some when he has time."

"Oh... what are you writing now?"

The Three Character Classic.

"Are people inherently good at birth?"

"Did Mother memorize it too?"

"Uh... I've heard a little bit about it."

Song Xiaohua leaned closer and took a closer look. The characters were crooked and some strokes had dried out, making them difficult to identify, but it was clear that they were traditional Chinese characters.

She then suddenly realized that she might now be semi-illiterate.

All those foreign language computers and various professional courses inside my belly are definitely useless.

Fortunately, I used to enjoy watching Hong Kong and Taiwanese films, and I learned quite a few traditional Chinese characters from the subtitles. In addition, I occasionally exchange emails with my Hong Kong colleagues at work, which also use traditional characters, so I've managed to recognize almost all of them.

Even if the writing style is slightly different, I estimate that with more practice and practice, literacy shouldn't be a major problem.

However, classical Chinese and poetry have always been her Achilles' heel, so nowadays she might only recognize the individual parts of the textbook, but be completely lost when put together...

How tragic! After studying so hard for over a decade, I've ended up like this...

Just as he was overwhelmed with grief and indignation, he suddenly heard the courtyard gate open, and someone returned.

As soon as Lu Ziqi pushed open the door, he saw Song Xiaohua turn and go inside. He smiled helplessly, turned around and closed the door. When he turned back, he saw her come out again, carrying a bundle. Her expression was unfriendly…

“Ling’er…”

“Ling’er…”

The two were in complete agreement on the need to get rid of the children and stay away from the "battlefield" before the conflict began.

Having learned from experience, Lu Ling was afraid that her mother would get angry again and disappear for a long time, so she dawdled and didn't want to leave. However, she eventually had no choice but to give in to Lu Ziqi's imposing gaze.

Song Xiaohua couldn't stand seeing Lu Ling's pitiful appearance, and her anger flared up again. She took a few steps towards Lu Ziqi, stood in the middle of the bluestone path, and thrust the bundle forward with one hand: "Why are you being so fierce? Take it!"

Lu Ziqi was slightly taken aback, feeling wronged; he hadn't been fierce at all...

"What's this?"

"Here's the clothing I'm giving you as compensation! Take it, take it, we're even!"

She took it, opened it, tied it up, and returned it, saying, "I don't want it."

He resolutely refused, his eyes flashing with a fierce light: "These are the best clothes you've ever worn. Let me tell you, don't go looking for trouble or deliberately cause a scene!"

Without anger or resentment: "It's precisely because it's good that I don't want it."

Furious: "You... do you want the bad one instead of the good one?!"

"Working in the fields every day, coarse linen clothes are worse than silk and satin."

“…Fine! You’re ruthless!” Song Xiaohua snatched the bundle away, really wanting to smash the smug face in front of her: “I’ll go get it changed for you tomorrow!”

Does your hand still hurt?

The sudden change of topic always worked, and Song Xiaohua was once again led by the nose, completely dumbfounded: "There's one more thing... what's it to you?"

"Remember to go to the pharmacy to change the dressing tomorrow."

"Oh, fine... It's none of your business?"

Lu Ziqi chuckled and shook his head. He went to the kitchen, picked up a bottle in one hand and a cup in the other, and said, "Being blamed without understanding the situation deserves one cup as punishment; although it wasn't due to official business, I was still angry because of something else, so I deserve another cup; not explaining the requirements for the clothes clearly resulted in you having to make a trip tomorrow, so this third cup is the most unforgivable punishment."

Song Xiaohua stared blankly as he talked to himself, drinking one cup after another. When she heard his explanation for the third cup, she finally couldn't help but laugh.

"Since you've laughed, does that mean you're no longer angry?"

"Who has time to be angry with you all day long? Oh right, didn't you say you don't drink? But judging from your attitude, you don't seem like it!"

Lu Ziqi looked at the object in his hand, a hint of dazedness appearing in his gentle smile: "I won't drink, not because I can't, but because I truly don't want to..."

Song Xiaohua didn't quite understand what he meant, but his expression made her reluctant to press him further. After thinking for a moment, she asked, "Also, you just mentioned taking your anger out on someone? What exactly was it about?"

Lu Ziqi looked up at her and said one word seriously: "Hungry".

"…………"

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The air after the rainstorm was moist and fresh, carrying a faint scent of earth and flowers, which was very pleasant.

Lu Ziqi was dressed in a long black robe, the hem and the surface of his shoes covered with mud. The evening breeze blew a few strands of hair, gently brushing his cheeks. He looked pale and slightly tired.

Song Xiaohua felt that, in fact, he was not annoying at all when he wasn't stern and lecturing people.

"I... shouldn't have just thrown your things away without asking, and besides, I might indeed be a little... not very good at managing a household."

Lu Ziqi smiled and said, "Besides, you also have a bit of a temper."

"Your temper isn't much better!"

"That makes sense. As the saying goes, 'It takes two to tango'!"

"Tch! He's just saying that to get back at me, he's obviously just trying to fool me!"

"There's plenty of time. Let's get used to each other gradually, okay?"

"It's a deal!"

As soon as those four words were uttered, Song Xiaohua's heart stirred, and her right hand, which had been swearing a vow with a high five, suddenly felt itchy.

Should I tell him what happened this afternoon? But how should I explain it? That I, a woman, dressed as a man and spent the whole afternoon chatting idly with a strange man in a teahouse?! ...

“Oh, right, there’s one more thing…” Lu Ziqi spoke first, pulling her back from her wandering thoughts: “From now on, do not discuss politics recklessly.”

"Huh? What politics?" Song Xiaohua was stunned for a moment, then suddenly realized when she glanced at the wine bottle: "You mean that saying about drinking and getting promoted? What kind of politics is that? It's just an unspoken rule... something that everyone knows but isn't actually written!"