Je vends des vêtements et j'achète du vin à boire avec toi

Chapitre 47

Bao'er ate a few bites herself, then had Long San feed her a few more, and the meal was finished smoothly. Long San completely lost his temper with this child; this little girl was even harder to handle than Feng Ning, and he was afraid of upsetting Feng Ning if he didn't serve her well. He barely ate any himself, focusing entirely on her. He couldn't help but marvel at Feng Ning's skill yesterday, managing to feed Bao'er and stuff herself at the same time. He hadn't noticed anything yesterday, but experiencing it today, he realized it truly required considerable skill.

Long San quickly devoured the remaining food on the table, then instructed the shopkeeper to deliver a pot of porridge to Feng Ning's courtyard. He left some silver, took Bao'er to retrieve the medicine packet, bought a medicine jar, and headed home.

On the way, Long San asked, "Why are you alone at the gate so early in the morning?"

Bao'er replied, "Auntie and Auntie are not here, there is no one in the courtyard, and the Empress is in so much pain that she can't move. Bao'er is scared and wants to go to the gate to see if she can find someone to help her."

Long San felt a pang of heartache. Such a young child, how panicked she must have been in this situation. He held Bao'er tighter in his arms, blaming himself, "It's all my fault." If he hadn't tempted Feng Ning with delicious food, she wouldn't have overeaten and gotten sick. If he hadn't once planned to abandon them, they wouldn't have ended up here, and Feng Ning wouldn't have developed this chronic illness.

Bao'er, of course, had no idea what Long San was thinking. She shook her head and said, "Uncle is here, Bao'er is not afraid anymore, and Her Majesty will be alright too. Her Majesty said last night that her favorite person in the world is Uncle."

Overjoyed, Long San hurriedly asked, "Really?"

Bao'er nodded, and Long San asked again, "What else did your mother say?"

Bao'er tilted her little face up and thought carefully: "The Empress also said that Uncle always laughs, which is annoying."

Long San's smile froze on his face. How could he have liked it just now, and now he disliked it? Bao'er continued, "The Empress said she was scared, but with Bao'er by her side, she's not scared anymore." As she said this, a little smugness appeared on the little girl's face: "Bao'er is very powerful."

Long San smiled wryly, then lowered his head and touched Bao'er's little face: "Yes, Bao'er is very capable." He was also being tormented by this little girl, feeling anxious and distressed.

The two, one big and one small, went back to the room. Feng Ning was woken up by the noise. Long San put Bao'er on the bedside and bent down to touch Feng Ning's face: "Do you feel any better?"

Feng Ning nodded, feeling extremely weak, and couldn't help but rub her face against his large hand in a coquettish manner: "What should I do? I'm afraid I won't be able to eat anything for the next couple of days, right?"

"Still thinking about eating?" Long San glared at him. "I'll brew the medicine for you in a bit, then you can take it."

Feng Ning pouted unhappily. Just then, someone called out from the door. It was the restaurant delivering porridge. Long San went out to receive it. When he turned back, he saw that Bao'er had kicked off her shoes and climbed onto the bed to snuggle up with Feng Ning. The mother and daughter were whispering to each other.

As soon as Long San entered the house, he heard Feng Ning ask Bao'er, "Why did you go out without combing your hair?" Bao'er then honestly replied, "Uncle said this is a new hairstyle..." Upon hearing this, Long San quickly called out, picked up the medicine packet and pot, and went to the kitchen to brew the medicine.

When he returned with the medicine, he was startled to see Bao'er alone on the bed: "Where's your mother?"

"The outhouse," Bao'er answered crisply. Long San frowned, put down the medicine, and went out to find Feng Ning. As soon as he stepped out of the room, he saw her curled up, taking small, labored steps back, wrapped in a short cloak with the hood covering her head. She hadn't washed or changed, and she needed to be properly covered before going to the outhouse. Long San rushed forward, picked her up, and put her back on the bed.

"Why don't you put a chamber pot in the room?" Long San was angry when he saw how hard Feng Ning was working.

"The room is too small and poorly ventilated; it would stink too much to put a chamber pot there," Feng Ning said, wrinkling her nose as if she could already smell the stench. Bao'er chimed in, "Neither Bao'er nor Your Highness likes it."

As Long San handed the medicine to Feng Ning, he thought to himself, "Yes, neither of you likes it. You just like running to the outhouse." Seeing his dark expression, Feng Ning ignored the unpleasant smell and gulped it down, pinching her nose. Only then did Long San's expression soften slightly, and he patted her face as a compliment.

After finishing their medicine, the two adults and one child in the room seemed to have nothing to do. Long San glanced at the pot of porridge on the small cabinet and said to Bao'er, "If you're hungry, tell Uncle, and Uncle will heat up some porridge for you." Bao'er nodded, while Feng Ning, clutching her blanket, protested, "Wasn't that for me?"

Long San pulled up a chair and sat down on the edge of the bed, glaring at her: "You're in this state, you should get some sleep first. You can drink something when you're more refreshed."

Feng Ning muttered to herself, she really felt quite ill this time, with no strength left. Sure enough, there's no such thing as a free lunch; there's always a price to pay. She closed her eyes, but still couldn't give up, and asked, "Is there meat in the porridge?" Long San snorted, too lazy to even reply.

At this moment, Bao'er shifted somewhat awkwardly on the bed. Long San noticed this and became very alert: "Bao'er, what's wrong?"

Bao'er blushed and whispered, "Uncle, I need to poop."

Her words were incredibly powerful. Feng Ning opened her eyes abruptly, and Long San stood up with a "whoosh," scooped up Bao'er, and rushed outside. Bao'er cried out "Wah!" as Long San carried her away from the house. Feng Ning blinked, feeling a mix of amusement and tears.

What should we do? She seems to like Long San more. If he really leaves, what will happen to her and Bao'er?

Just as she was feeling conflicted and upset, Long San returned carrying Bao'er. Feng Ning quickly covered up her distress with a smile, asking, "Are you done? Did you wipe it clean?"

Bao'er blushed and shook her head seriously. Long San looked embarrassed, put Bao'er back on the bed, and said, "If you get pregnant again, then call me Uncle."

Bao'er nodded, then burrowed under the covers, burying her face in Feng Ning's arms. Feng Ning, puzzled, quickly asked, "What's wrong?"

Bao'er whispered in Feng Ning's ear, "Uncle runs very fast, like the wind, whoosh!" Bao'er even gestured with her little hand to show how the wind blew.

"And then?" Feng Ning asked.

Bao'er blushed and said, "Bao'er thought it was very fun, but when we got to the outhouse, there was no poop."

Feng Ning was stunned for a moment, then suddenly realized what was happening and couldn't help but burst into laughter. Her laughter caused her stomach to ache, and she curled up into a ball. When Bao'er saw her mother laughing, she also giggled foolishly. While laughing, Feng Ning rubbed Bao'er's stomach and said, "Bao'er, you can't do this. It's not good to hold it in."

Long San looked at the mother and daughter rolling around on the bed, laughing incessantly, and his face turned green. He had no idea that little babies were so difficult to handle; if they walked slowly, they'd poop all over you, and if they ran too fast, you wouldn't be able to poop at all!

Feng Ning laughed until she could hardly breathe. She found Long San's expression even funnier. She imitated Bao'er's tone and said in a high-pitched voice, "Uncle, you can't use light-body skills to poop."

Bao'er covered her head, blushing and giggling. Long San's face turned red and white. Looking at Feng Ning, who was still restless despite being sick, he finally pounced over and hugged her tightly, saying angrily, "You little rascal."

Feng Ning screamed, laughing and fussing in his arms. Bao'er squeezed between the two of them, calling out "Uncle" and "Empress" at different times. For a moment, the small house was filled with laughter and joy. Long San and Feng Ning temporarily forgot about their worries, sorrows, grudges, and mysteries.

Author's Note: Look, look, is being a stay-at-home dad easy? My little Long San, you'd better get some practice!

36

36. The persistent and entangled Third Master Long...

The next afternoon, Long San completed a troublesome task with remarkable efficiency—moving. He didn't move to Feng Ning's dilapidated little house, but rather moved himself and Feng Ning and her daughter to a newly found courtyard house.

The courtyard wasn't large, but it was neat and clean. The house was twice the size of Feng Ning's original residence, with side rooms built into the main house and wing rooms, making it much more convenient for using the toilet, washing, storing miscellaneous items, using water, and getting around. There was also an old woman named Cao and a young maid named Xiao Zhu serving in the courtyard.

Feng Ning and Bao'er shared a room, Long San had his own room, Aunt Cao and Xiao Zhuzi lived in a side room, and there was another room that Long San had turned into a study.

Feng Ning was naturally unwilling to move; she was filled with apprehension about her future with Long San. He had come after her, and he had stayed, but what had happened could not be undone. Even if she didn't think about the past, she felt she couldn't overcome the current feud and trouble between the Long and Feng families.

She just wanted to live a peaceful and comfortable life, and she wasn't afraid of hardship or fatigue, but the past humiliations and the contempt of others were too much for her fragile heart to bear.

However, Long San didn't give her a chance to refuse. Taking advantage of her being in a deep sleep after taking her medicine at noon, he secretly abducted Bao'er, carried her in a carriage, and took her to the new house. When Feng Ning woke up, she was already in the new house.