The sweltering heat of several consecutive days finally ceased today.
Upon waking early, Li Wanran saw the world outside shrouded in mist, with a steady cool breeze blowing—it felt incredibly comfortable against the skin. She, Banxia, and Zhuqing sat in a row by the window, doing embroidery while enjoying the cool air. Looking at the dark sky, Li Wanran had a sudden whim and set a small silver prize as a wager, betting on when the rain would fall.
Li Wanran bet on the afternoon, while Banxia and Zhuqing bet on the morning. Afterward, the three sat there together, staring up expectantly for any sign of rain. Unfortunately, none of them won the prize; their eyes grew sore from watching, yet not a single drop fell from the sky.
The heavy downpour they had all anticipated finally arrived late that night, just as Li Wanran had finished washing up and changed into her nightgown for bed. The sound of raindrops heavily battering the leaves, the eaves, and the earth, combined with the howling wind and the rustling of swaying branches, composed a pleasant melody.
No wonder so many people like falling asleep to the sound of rain; it’s much better than the cicadas from a few days ago, Li Wanran mused while standing by the window.
Seeing her still standing there watching the rain, Banxia stopped smoothing the bedsheets and stepped forward to drape a cloak over her. “The weather turned cold the moment the rain started. You shouldn’t stand here; you might catch a chill.”
Li Wanran didn’t reject her kindness. Tucking the cloak around herself, she smiled. “My body is quite robust.” As she spoke, she clenched her fist and bent her arm, attempting to squeeze out some muscle to prove her point.
Banxia was amused by this childish gesture. While leaning back down to finish the bed, she teased unreservedly, “With your small frame, you should just forget about it.” In her view, even if the mistress held that pose all night, she likely wouldn’t produce a single ripple of muscle.
Li Wanran maintained her indignant pose to protest, but Banxia just curled her lips into a smile, keeping her thoughts to herself. Since the mistress was having so much fun, she wouldn’t dampen her spirits.
Though she refused to admit defeat, looking at her slender arms, Li Wanran began to have second thoughts. When she was younger, she took advantage of her age and lack of restrictions to wander everywhere. When visiting relatives in the countryside, she often ran wild across the hills with a group of children. By the end of the day, her physical activity was more than sufficient. Perhaps because of that foundation, she had rarely been sick since childhood.
As she grew older and people began to cast strange looks at her for the slightest move, she rarely visited the countryside anymore. Her range of movement was limited to her home alley and its vicinity. She transformed from a “wild girl” in the neighbors’ eyes into a “quiet, likable, and praiseworthy good girl.” Now, she was served every day, having everything handed to her, and had even less exercise. Consequently, her strength had diminished significantly.
An alarm suddenly went off in Li Wanran’s mind: she couldn’t continue to degenerate like this! To live a long life, a healthy body was indispensable. She couldn’t allow herself, in an era of poor medical conditions, to become someone who gasped for breath after walking just a bit too far.
While Li Wanran was still contemplating how to exercise and improve her physical fitness, a call suddenly came from outside: “Salute to the Fourth Master.”
She looked outside in confusion. The sky was like a black cloth spread over everything—pitch dark, such that one could not see their own hand. So late, and with such heavy rain outside, why had he come? Moreover, if Li Wanran remembered correctly, shouldn’t he be with Song-shi right now?
Muttering to herself, she went out with Banxia to greet him. Upon leaving the inner chamber, she saw Yinzhen standing in the main hall with a cold face and an icy aura, looking exceptionally solemn. He looked exactly as if someone owed him millions of taels and had snapped at him when he went to collect the debt. The hem of his robes and his shoes were soaked by the rain. Su Peisheng was busy ordering people to fetch hot water for him to wash.
Yinzhen kept spare clothes at her place. Seeing this, Li Wanran immediately sent Banxia to fetch a set for him to change into.
“Why did you come in such a heavy rain? The roads are slippery at night; what if you catch a cold or get hurt?” Li Wanran’s eyes were full of worry.
Seeing her come out, Yinzhen’s cold expression thawed significantly. Hearing her words, he found it amusing. “I am a grown man; do I fear such things?” Out of habit, he reached out to take her hand, but then worried about passing his coldness to her. He paused and withdrew his hand, telling Li Wanran to go back and lie down first. “I’ll be ready in a moment. Go back and rest; don’t catch a chill and fall ill.”
Hearing this, Li Wanran didn’t insist on staying. She spoke a few words of concern, urged him to drink ginger soup, and then obediently returned to the inner chamber to rest. There were so many people serving Yinzhen; her presence wouldn’t add much. Besides, she couldn’t really help and might only get in the way.
By the time Yinzhen finished bathing and entered the inner chamber, he saw that Li Wanran was already lying in bed, sleeping soundly.
“You little heartless thing, you really didn’t wait for me.” A rare, boyish expression appeared on Yinzhen’s solemn face as he gently pinched Li Wanran’s cheek. Seeing her frown in her sleep and turn her head in an attempt to escape his “evil clutches,” he raised an eyebrow and let go, as if his prank had succeeded, before removing his outer robe and getting into bed.
As soon as he lay down, the sleeping Li Wanran rolled right into his arms. Her movement was so swift that Yinzhen doubted if she was actually faking sleep. After observing her carefully for a long while, he confirmed she was truly asleep. However, the current position left Yinzhen unable to move, which was quite tiring.
He let out a light sigh, wanting to move Li Wanran slightly to find a more comfortable position. Unexpectedly, as soon as he started to move, Li Wanran hugged him tighter, mumbling in her sleep. Yinzhen held his breath and listened intently for a long moment before catching what she said: “Master Fourth, don’t go.”
He stared at Li Wanran steadily. After a while, he carefully adjusted his position, his cheek pressed against her forehead and one hand gently patting her back, as if coaxing a child to sleep. His low, husky voice carried an indescribable tone: “I won’t go.”
Early the next morning, Li Wanran woke up in a daze and found that Yinzhen hadn’t left yet. Banxia heard the sound and brought water in for her to wash, whispering that the Fourth Master was afraid of waking her and was getting ready in the eastern secondary room.
After washing her face, Li Wanran peeked over and saw several figures silhouetted behind the screen. Over there, Yinzhen also heard the movement on her side and was surprised she had woken up so early today. Usually, when he got up, Li Wanran was still unwilling to leave her dreams. Once he was fully dressed, he strode back and smiled. “I intended to let you sleep longer, which is why I went over there. It seems my effort was in vain.”
Li Wanran’s mind was still a bit foggy. She sat on the daybed, looked up at Yinzhen, and smiled at him. However, looking at Yinzhen in his dark robes, her eyes suddenly lit up. She got up, took the blue belt she had finished just a couple of days ago from the cabinet, and presented it to Yinzhen like a treasure. “Take a look—do you like it?”
Like it? How could he not like it? Yinzhen looked down at the belt in Li Wanran’s hands, wishing he could change into it immediately. However, no matter how much his heart churned, he didn’t show a hint of it on his face.
The young woman’s eyes were bright and shimmering, full of expectation as she watched him. A mischievous smile touched the corners of Yinzhen’s mouth, and the look he gave her was as if it could draw silk. His tone was incredibly tender. “Did you make this for me with your own hands?”
As he hoped, a flush rose from Li Wanran’s earlobes and quickly spread across her cheeks, turning them red like ripe cherries—making one want to take a bite. Yinzhen’s gaze gradually deepened; he suddenly felt like going nowhere and just staying by her side.
Li Wanran endured her bashfulness and nodded sheepishly, giving a soft “Mm-hm.”
Having received the answer he wanted, the smile on Yinzhen’s face could no longer be suppressed. He let out a light laugh, his predatory gaze locked onto Li Wanran, and then he stretched his body back and slowly opened his arms. He clearly intended for Li Wanran to put it on him herself.
Su Peisheng, standing by the screen, suddenly felt a bit sorry for himself. I just spent all that effort helping you dress, Master.
This was the first time Li Wanran had helped Yinzhen change, but not having eaten pork didn’t mean she hadn’t seen a pig run. She had often seen how Su Peisheng served Yinzhen. Thus, she fumbled her way through putting the belt around Yinzhen’s waist with unpracticed movements.
“It looks good!” Li Wanran took a step back and looked him over, giving a satisfied thumbs-up in praise. With the belt she had painstakingly crafted, Yinzhen looked even more handsome.
The clear, elegant fragrance that had lingered at the tip of his nose dissipated as Li Wanran stepped back, leaving Yinzhen feeling strangely empty. He looked down at the somewhat untidy blue belt at his waist, and the emptiness in his heart was instantly filled to the brim.
At this moment, Su Peisheng, who had been acting as an invisible man, glanced at the door and quietly reminded them, “Master, the kitchen staff has been outside for a while. You and the Gege should have breakfast.”
Any longer and the food will get cold. Whatever else you two want to do, wait until after the meal! Although books said that people in love could be full just by drinking water, Su Peisheng scoffed inwardly—try letting someone just drink water without eating. Seeing their sweet, affectionate silhouettes, he sighed softly. This was when they, as servants, had to step in. After all, they didn’t dare allow the masters to feel the slightest physical discomfort.
Fortunately, upon hearing this, Yinzhen took Li Wanran’s hand and sat at the dining table, sparing Su Peisheng from having to remind him again.
In the sweltering heat of summer, people easily lost their appetite. The kitchen mostly served cold dishes with a few hot ones at this time. Perhaps because of the belt, Yinzhen had a sudden whim to pick up a bowl of soup and feed Li Wanran, causing Su Peisheng’s eyes to widen.
Good heavens. Not only does Li Gege not serve the Fourth Master during the meal, but she can actually make him feed her instead. While marveling at this, he mentally raised Li Gege’s rank even higher, thinking that he absolutely must not offend her.
Not only was Su Peisheng shocked, but even Li Wanran herself was so startled that she didn’t dare open her mouth. She looked at the surrounding servants and shook her head pitifully, indicating that she wanted to drink it herself rather than be fed.
It wasn’t that Li Wanran was afraid to let him feed her; it was mostly that there were too many people around, and she felt embarrassed. Yinzhen seemed not to understand her meaning; with a half-smile, he continued to hold the spoon, as if he wouldn’t put it down unless she drank. Li Wanran had no choice but to awkwardly drink from his hand. By the end, she was able to finish it with a straight face.
What is shyness? She didn’t know anymore. In any case, Yinzhen himself didn’t think there was anything wrong with it.
After the meal, the two rinsed their mouths again. It was no longer early. Li Wanran perfunctorily straightened Yinzhen’s collar and prepared to see him out. However, he suddenly smiled and stepped forward, stopping less than half a foot away from her. He leaned in and whispered in her ear, answering her initial question.
“I like it very much.”
With that, he saw with satisfaction that Li Wanran’s cheeks flushed red once again. Finally, under her indignant gaze, he gently pinched her cheek. He added that he would come to see her again at dinner and told her to wait for him so they could eat together.
Li Wanran slapped Yinzhen’s hand away with a thwack, rubbed the spot he had pinched, and turned away. She let out a cold huff and grumbled, “Come if you want; I won’t wait for you.”
“Oh, you.”
Yinzhen laughed dotingly and shook his head, pointing a slender finger toward her before turning to return to the front court.