After Becoming The Young Darling Of A Wealthy Family - Chapter 3

Huo Yinli had been “invited” over by Feng Ye. Feeling too embarrassed to refuse, she could only sit awkwardly in the living room and wait, her mind still filled with anxious thoughts about what had happened at noon.

What if I make that little sister cry again?

Huo Yinli stood up, subconsciously taking a step backward, and then called out softly, “Auntie.”

“You must be hungry, Xiao Li.”

Feng Ye replied to Huo Yinli with a beaming smile. She gently set Wen Ruanqing down and asked in a warm tone, “Why do you like Sister Xiao Li so much?”

Wen Ruanqing slowly let go of Feng Ye’s hand. Her steps were unsteady, and she let out a soft “a” sound from her mouth. Step by step, wobbling like a little penguin, she spread her arms and walked toward Huo Yinli with clear determination.

Huo Yinli’s eyes widened. She didn’t understand why Wen Ruanqing was rushing toward her, but panic-stricken, she stepped forward to steady her. “Uh.”

She let out a muffled grunt. Wen Ruanqing had taken her final step a bit too hastily. Because her balance wasn’t quite right yet, she tumbled straight into Huo Yinli’s arms. Feng Ye had taken a quick step forward to catch her, but seeing the two children hugging together, she chose not to interfere.

“Phew.”

Wen Ruanqing looked up from Huo Yinli’s arms, her face breaking into a bright smile. Her eyes sparkled like stars as she babbled a few tuneless sounds. Finally, she raised her hand to show Huo Yinli: “Mmh!”

I’m giving the bracelet back to you.

Wen Ruanqing looked at Huo Yinli with an expression full of anticipation. Seeing no reaction from her, she grew a bit anxious. She lowered her head to look left and right a few times, then grabbed Huo Yinli’s finger. Compared to hers, her small hand made it look like a classic case of “a big hand holding a little hand.” Pulling it took a lot of effort, causing her to let out a strained “Yi—” sound.

Oh dear, this is so tiring.

Wen Ruanqing wanted to make Huo Yinli understand that she didn’t want the bracelet.

Huo Yinli didn’t grasp her meaning. She only knew that a soft, sweet-smelling little sister—carrying a faint scent of medicine—had burrowed into her embrace. She rarely interacted with children of this age and had initially felt a bit resistant in her heart. However, looking into Wen Ruanqing’s bright eyes, all her reservations melted away.

“What’s wrong?”

Huo Yinli softened her voice, pitching it a bit higher. Her finger was held by Wen Ruanqing and rocked back and forth slightly, a hint of a smile surfacing in her eyes. “She put on the bracelet I gave her. I’m so happy.”

Eh? Really?

Wen Ruanqing couldn’t quite figure out the logic before she was scooped up by Feng Ye. She simply abandoned the question entirely, turning around to nestle in Feng Ye’s arms while keeping her eyes fixed on Huo Yinli.

“How clever.”

Feng Ye patted Huo Yinli’s head. Her eloquence and expressiveness only made her more curious about what kind of person her mother was.

Wen Tingyin walked over to Feng Ye’s side, wrapping her arms around Feng Ye’s waist. She pouted, looking a bit displeased. “Mommy.”

“Our little treasure is clever too, right?”

Feng Ye pinched Wen Tingyin’s nose dotingly. After that, she looked at Wen Ruanqing, who was also staring back at her with wide, innocent eyes.

“Alright, time to eat at the table!” Feng Ye was in a great mood. She placed Wen Ruanqing into her baby high chair first, then lifted Wen Tingyin and Huo Yinli onto their chairs one by one. “Auntie didn’t know what you liked to eat, so I had the kitchen make sweet and sour pork ribs, steamed egg custard, some green vegetables, and pork rib soup. I’m not sure if it suits your taste.”

Huo Yinli sat perfectly straight. Looking at the people around the dining table, her expression was exceptionally solemn as she nodded vigorously. “I like it.”

Wen Tingyin also chimed in, “I like it too!”

“It’s wonderful that you like it.”

Feng Ye scooped rice and served dishes to the two older children. Only after finishing that did she start attending to Wen Ruanqing. “Little treasure, let’s drink your medicine first.”

A bowl of Chinese herbal medicine was brought over. The moment Wen Ruanqing saw the medicine, her brow furrowed. She raised her hands to cover her mouth and shook her head frantically. “Mmh.”

I don’t want to drink it. It’s way too bitter.

It pained Feng Ye to see her like this, but Wen Ruanqing’s body needed to be slowly nursed back to health—she couldn’t skip it. She coaxed gently, “If you drink it all up, I’ll give you a candy, okay?”

It was Wen Tingyin’s first time seeing Wen Ruanqing take medicine. Seeing her little sister react so adversarially, she slid smoothly down from her chair and walked over to Wen Ruanqing’s side. Her little face crumpled with worry as she looked at her. “Sister, you have to be good. You can only get better after taking your medicine.”

As she spoke, her lips turned downward, and she added with a crying tone, “Sister looks so uncomfortable.”

Hearing Wen Tingyin’s voice, Wen Ruanqing turned her head to look at her, her round eyes blinking. “Ah.”

She reached out and patted Wen Tingyin’s face. The force was light, but Wen Tingyin understood her meaning instantly. A look of pleasant surprise flashed across her face, and suppressing the urge to jump up and down, she looked left and right before saying in a lowered voice, “Sister!”

Watching the interaction between them, Huo Yinli felt a faint pang of envy in her heart. She rested one hand on the table to prop up her face, her cheek pressing out like a piece of marshmallow. She smiled faintly but did not crowd in.

“Let Sister feed you.”

Wen Tingyin carefully held the spoon to Wen Ruanqing’s lips, looking at her sister with absolute seriousness. “Ah, open wide.”

Wen Ruanqing resisted, leaning backward, her eyes welling with tears. Yet after hesitating for a long moment, she opened her mouth and swallowed it down. “Yi.”

Ugh, so bitter.

Wen Ruanqing’s entire face wrinkled up. She covered her mouth and kept shaking her head. “No, no.”

Feng Ye sighed. Pulling Wen Ruanqing into her arms, she had the servant bring over a medicine feeder. She firmly poured the rest of the medicine down Wen Ruanqing’s throat. By the time she finished feeding her, her own eyes were red with heartbreak. “Alright, alright, no more drinking. Let’s have some food, okay?”

“Woo.”

Wen Ruanqing’s eyes were swimming with tears. She coughed twice, shrinking aggrievedly into Feng Ye’s embrace. She sobbed a couple of times, feeling as though her tummy was full of bitter water and her tongue was completely coated in bitterness. She kept spitting outward, trying to get rid of the bitter taste in her mouth.

“Here.”

A piece of tissue was tucked into Feng Ye’s hand, and in the next second, a piece of candy was placed into Wen Ruanqing’s lap. Huo Yinli had walked over at some point. She stood perfectly straight, her demeanor calm. “Can she eat this candy?”

Feng Ye nodded. She let Wen Ruanqing lick it a few times to wash away the bitterness before wrapping the candy back up; she didn’t dare let Wen Ruanqing swallow it whole to prevent it from getting stuck in her throat.

“Both of you were wonderful! Such good babies.”

Feng Ye held Wen Ruanqing’s hand and asked softly, “Is our little treasure happy?”

The moment this question was asked, Huo Yinli and Wen Tingyin stood straight at the same time, their eyes locked onto Wen Ruanqing, terrified they might miss her answer.

Nestled in Feng Ye’s arms, Wen Ruanqing looked at the two older sisters in front of her. After a few seconds, she nodded vigorously:

“Mmh!”

After dinner, Feng Ye sent Huo Yinli back home. Afterward, she bathed the two children, carried them to bed, and put them to sleep.

Wen Tingyin was incredibly clingy with Wen Ruanqing. She had even insisted on handling the milk Wen Ruanqing needed to drink that night. Ultimately, the two sisters fell asleep hugging each other.

Coming out of the shower, Feng Ye witnessed this scene. Her heart softened instantly. She snapped a photo and sent it to her lover, Wen Si, but the other woman was on a plane and couldn’t reply.

“Goodnight, my babies.”

The faint light of the bedside lamp glowed. Downstairs, the lights were left on to illuminate the way for the person returning home. When Wen Si pushed open the door, it was already past two in the morning. Her face carried an expression of deep exhaustion, but her brow and eyes remained gentle.

“Madam Wen, you’re back. Do you need me to prepare some food for you?”

A servant promptly brought over a pair of slippers. Wen Si shook her head and waved her hand dismissively. “Go get some rest, don’t worry about me.”

She took off her thin outerwear. Just as she was about to turn around and head upstairs, a warm body burrowed into her embrace. Wen Si’s pupils trembled slightly, and then her expression softened with warmth. “Have you been waiting for me this whole time?”

Feng Ye wrapped her arms around Wen Si’s waist, looking up at her with a lilting tone. “No, but I heard the sound of the door opening.”

“Your ears are that sharp?”

Wen Si smiled and pinched Feng Ye’s nose, then lowered her head to share a lingering, passionate kiss with her.

Looking at Wen Si’s noticeably thinner frame, Feng Ye touched her lover’s face with deep affection. Wen Si’s features were sharp, possessing a highly striking and commanding appearance. But it was precisely because of this that Feng Ye had fallen in love with her at first sight.

Even though their romantic journey back then had been exceptionally full of twists and turns.

“Our little treasure came home today. Was she good?”

Wen Si held Feng Ye’s hand as they sat down on the sofa. “You’ve had a hard time. I’m always running around outside, making it difficult to help share the burden of taking care of the children.”

“It’s fine.”

Feng Ye didn’t quite agree with Wen Si’s words. “It was my choice. After giving birth to our eldest treasure back then, we were separated for too long. Now that I have the time, I naturally want to spend more time with them. How could it be considered hard? Besides, we have nannies at home to help out.”

Neither of them lacked money; they belonged to one of the top, most powerful families in the city. Lacking neither wealth nor love, their schedule was quite leisurely.

“Oh right, a new family moved in next door, did you know?”

Feng Ye leaned against Wen Si’s chest, playing with her fingers. “Why didn’t I know about this before?”

Wen Si explained, “That family moved in a week ago. It’s just that I didn’t see them, and with my business trip right after, I didn’t get a chance to tell you.”

“What line of work are they in? I saw their child today. That child is truly beautiful and smart. I can see our little treasure likes her very much.”

Feng Ye let out a soft sigh. “As long as their family background is decent, it wouldn’t hurt to let them become close friends.”

Wen Si nodded, patting Feng Ye’s hand. “Rest assured, that family consists of scientific researchers, which is why they aren’t home often. If you feel that child has a good character, it’s fine to interact more.”

“It looks like that child’s mother is always away. It must be hard on her too,” Feng Ye lamented. “She looks like such a pitiful little thing.”

Wen Si stroked her hair. “Your heart is just too soft.”

The two of them looked into each other’s eyes, seeing reflections of themselves in each other’s gaze.

“Mommy.”

A faint voice echoed from the staircase. The two of them turned their heads in unison, spotting a little head sitting on the stairs watching them.

Wen Ruanqing had woken up shortly after Feng Ye left the room. She rubbed her eyes, feeling uncomfortable from her diaper sticking to her bottom. She whined a couple of times and felt a wave of thirst in her throat, so she sat up to look around for Feng Ye. But Feng Ye wasn’t there, and she didn’t cry.

Perhaps because she had stayed in the hospital for too long before, she wasn’t particularly clingy with Feng Ye at night. On the contrary, she was quite independent.

“Mommy.”

Wen Ruanqing had “escaped” yet again. She slid off the bed, standing in place for a few seconds before clumsily putting on her shoes. However, she was operating entirely on the instinctual response from her past life—that one must wear shoes upon getting out of bed. Thus, she had no idea she had put them on the wrong feet.

Slipping out through the crack in the door, she saw the lights glowing downstairs and wanted to head down. Wen Ruanqing tottered along, leaning against the wall, vaguely remembering that one could take the elevator down.

The second floor wasn’t high for an adult, but to her, it looked like a sheer cliff.

So did the elevator.

Wen Ruanqing plopped down right in front of the elevator door. Looking up at the unreachable elevator buttons, she tugged innocently at her clothes. She raised her hand to try, only to find she couldn’t reach them at all.

The tall, rectangular box looked as though it could swallow her up in an instant. The longer Wen Ruanqing stared at it, the more frightened she became. She puckered her lips, holding back her tears before working hard to crawl toward the staircase opening.

The stairs were there; she could manage.

“Ah.”

Looking at the flights of stairs stretching downward, Wen Ruanqing was completely stunned. They were so long and terrifying, as if she would accidentally tumble all the way down if she took even a single step.

But Mommy was down there.

Wen Ruanqing’s tears spilled over instantly. Her crying was very quiet. Looking at the light downstairs, she bit her lip and began moving her body downward. First, she extended one foot, then she grabbed the banister bars below with both hands, shuffling down bit by bit.

“Heh.”

Heave-ho. So tired, so tired. This is exhausting.

With great difficulty, Wen Ruanqing managed to shuffle halfway down. Finally, she could catch sight of her two mothers’ backs. Her eyes lit up instantly. She immediately pressed her face between two banister bars, but because she was entirely out of strength, the voice she called out with was tiny: “Mommy!”

Did… did Mommy notice?