The Lucky Heiress

Places like my buttocks and inner thighs, that get rubbed when horse riding, are aching…

Compared to this, the slight ache in my arm, shoulder, and fingers from archery feels fine because Wei Ruo usually exercises her arms and shoulders by collecting herbs and doing farm work.

But areas like the inner thighs can’t be exercised while doing other things.

Wei Ruo regretted a little at this moment, she shouldn’t have been negligent last night! If she knew, she would have prepared her own medicinal bath pack! That would have relieved at least half of the soreness today! She wouldn’t look so pitiful then!

“Miss… wouldn’t it be better if you didn’t get out of bed?” Xiumei looked at Wei Ruo leaning against the wall and found it both pitiful and funny.

“Meimei, are you laughing at me? Are you? You don’t love me anymore, do you?”

“No no, really Miss, I’m not laughing! I promise I pity you more than I mock you!”

“You just let it slip! You did laugh at me!”

“Miss, I didn’t want to laugh, but it’s the first time I’ve seen you walk this way, I couldn’t help it. But believe me, I’m not mocking you! I think the way you walk is cute!”

“Hmph, bad Meimei!” Wei Ruo mumbled, “Laugh if you want, I’ll let you get away with it, but I can’t let others in this house see me like this, especially that stinky kid.”

Wei Ruo could already imagine how Wei Yilin would tease her seeing her like this.

It’s fine to be a laughingstock for her own people, but she couldn’t entertain those who wished her ill with her misfortune.

Wei Ruo thought for a moment and said to Xiumei, “I won’t be eating in the dining hall this afternoon or evening. Can you go and tell mother for me, just say that I got hurt from horse riding yesterday and it’s not convenient for me to move.”

Whether Lady Yun believes it or not didn’t matter, because going over to the dining hall is not possible anyway.

“Then Miss, where will you eat? Should we go to the small kitchen next door and cook something ourselves? Miss, you haven’t tasted the dried mushrooms that Madam Xu sent over, and also the sweet potato leaves we brought back last time are still fresh.” Xiumei suggested.

As Xiumei said this, Wei Ruo’s cravings started to stir.

She’s not particularly picky, but compared to the food she and Xiumei usually eat, the food made in the Wei Family’s main kitchen tastes rather bland.

It’s not that the cooks in the main kitchen have poor skills, but rather, they use far fewer condiments than they do.

“Let’s go next door!” Wei Ruo decided, even if she had to limp, she would go to the neighboring kitchen for food!

So Xiumei left for Cangyun Garden, informing Lady Yun about Wei Ruo’s condition.

Luckily, Wei Mingting had mentioned to her the night before that Wei Ruo, having tried horse riding and archery for the first time, had exerted herself a lot and would most likely be sore the next day, so she should take care of her more.

So, Lady Yun not only agreed to Wei Ruo not eating in the dining hall but also instructed the main kitchen to prepare an extra meal to be sent to Tingsong Garden for Wei Ruo.

After Xiumei returned to Tingsong Garden, she helped Wei Ruo get out of bed. When they were about to leave Tingsong Garden, Wei Ruo had Xiumei check to confirm that nobody was around before they went out.

And then, suffering the pain, Wei Ruo hopped her way to the doorway of the neighboring pavilion, called Yingzhu Pavilion.

As soon as Xiaobei opened the door, Xiumei and Wei Ruo went in. Xiaobei didn’t even have time to ask a question.

“Young Miss, what happened to you?” Xiaobei asked.

“I’m wrecked.”

Wei Ruo said and looked toward the Octagonal Pavilion in the courtyard, and sure enough, Wei Jinyi was sitting there, having fully recovered from his illness.

Except for particularly windy days, he would sit inside the pavilion reading and writing.

Wei Jinyi was also looking at Wei Ruo at that moment.

Watching her hopping towards him, her posture was weird but somewhat cute.

When she got up close, Wei Jinyi asked, “What happened? Are you injured?”

The slight furrowing of his brow and the solemnity in his eyes hinted at a touch of concern.

“I wasn’t injured; I just rode a horse yesterday.” Wei Ruo responded, then exhaled with resentment, paused, and added somberly, “For the first time.”

Upon hearing this, it seemed as though Wei Jinyi came to comprehend something. Watching Wei Ruo huff and puff, a trace of a smile spread across his usually serious face.

Perhaps because he seldom laughs in front of others, Wei Jinyi used his hand to conceal half of his face.

“Wei Jinyi, I’m your lifesaver, your sister with whom you’ve shared life and faced adversities together. How could you mock me at a time like this?”

Wei Ruo vocalized her resentment, being upset enough to call out Wei Jinyi’s full name.

“I’m not mocking you.” Wei Jinyi replied.

No mockery, just… a slight upward curve of his lips.

But he indeed had no intention of ridiculing her and found himself smiling at her huffy yet somewhat melancholy expression, not knowing why.

Perhaps he hasn’t interacted with people like her for quite a long time.

Wei Ruo, watching Wei Jinyi, his lips bearing a shallow smile, couldn’t help but sigh, ‘He looks so good when he smiles! Indeed, those with good looks become even more beautiful when they smile!’

This was the first time Wei Ruo saw Wei Jinyi smile.

But why was his first smile because of her unfortunate circumstance?

Wei Ruo sighed helplessly, “You can laugh if you want, as long as you lend me your kitchen. Meimei wants to cook something delicious for me.”

“Mm,” Wei Jinyi uttered.

Though he still spoke little, she could feel that he wasn’t as resistant as before.

Wei Jinyi instructed Xiaobei, “Go and help.”

“Okay!” Xiaobei gloomily followed Xiumei into the small kitchen.

Xiumei stir-fried young sweet potato leaves, fried some mushrooms, and used an old hen from the small kitchen to make a nutritious chicken soup with astragalus and wolfberries from Wei Ruo’s medicinal herb cabinet.

This old hen had been assigned to Wei Jinyi by the big kitchen after he had fallen ill, to help replenish his strength.

Xiumei asked Xiaobei, and Xiaobei sought Wei Jinyi’s permission; only after they were sure it was okay did Xiumei start cutting up the chicken.

The chicken offal and blood that was taken out was not wasted by Xiumei, who went back to Tingsong Garden to get some herbs to go with. She had run out of hotpot condiments from her prepared mix, but she still had some bits of herbs remaining that were perfect for cooking with the chicken offal and blood.

While Xiumei and Xiaobei were busy in the kitchen, Wei Ruo sat in the pavilion watching Wei Jinyi write.

Normally, she certainly wouldn’t have the leisure to do so, but that day, once she sat down, she didn’t easily plan on changing her location.

She had seen Wei Jinyi sitting in the pavilion reading and writing many times before, but she had never seen his work up close.

She didn’t know if it was a coincidence or if she just hadn’t paid enough attention, but all she had ever seen of his work was the books he read; she had never seen any of his calligraphy or paintings.

“You have such beautiful handwriting!”

Although Wei Ruo didn’t know much about calligraphy (the most she could say about her own brushwork was that it was barely passable, having been honed out of necessity for dealing with shop matters), she knew what kind of writing looked nice and had artistic beauty.

Wei Jinyi’s script was exactly that. The saying ‘the style is the man’ wasn’t the least bit wrong. His writing was filled with vigor and grace, possessing both a gentle side and a strong side. In short, it was very attractive.

Wei Jinyi didn’t respond, not because he didn’t want to interact, but because he didn’t know how to respond to such a comment.

“With all the books you’ve read and your beautiful handwriting, why don’t you try to pass the exam for civil service like Big Brother?” Wei Ruo asked curiously..