Running a Food Stall to Support My Deceptive Omega - Chapter 25.1

Hearing the words that escaped Mu Jinyu’s mouth, Rong Heng’s hand stiffened for a split second, and her urge to push the other woman under the water intensified.

But Mu Jinyu had already turned around in a frantic rush, pulling away from her and shrinking into a corner.

Rong Heng watched her—huddled like a frightened quail, terrified that she might do something untoward—and closed her eyes. She was nearly driven to a laugh by sheer irritation.

“Get out,” Rong Heng said sternly.

Having received her orders, Mu Jinyu couldn’t wait to scramble out. Before leaving, she even pulled the door shut for Rong Heng.

Bang—

The sound of the door closing was a bit loud, causing the water in the bath barrel to ripple.

As if venting, Rong Heng raised her hand and slapped the surface of the water several times, sending splashes flying everywhere.

After running out, Mu Jinyu sat alone by the stove, the furthest spot from the utility room. Turning her back, she pressed both hands against her cheeks. She didn’t know if they were red from the steam or from being startled by Rong Heng’s bold actions.

As expected, these few days were simply too dangerous; the two of them would become entangled if they weren’t careful.

Should she move out?

The moment the thought appeared, Mu Jinyu dismissed it. Moving out would incur extra expenses, and she wouldn’t be able to look after Rong Heng. It really wasn’t worth it.

It was better to just remain cautious as she was now. Besides, a Kunze’s heat only lasted a few days, and the mark wouldn’t last more than a week. She could hold out.

Mu Jinyu nodded, seemingly cheering herself on. Once her wavering heart stabilized, she sat in place and waited.

Even though she was far from the utility room, the sound of splashing water still reached her ears. The spot on her back that had been touched felt a tingly, numbing itch, making it uncomfortable whether she hunched over or sat up straight. No matter how she sat, she couldn’t get comfortable.

She kept her cold fingers pressed to her cheeks, but unfortunately, even when Rong Heng finished bathing and came out, the temperature of her face hadn’t dropped.

Seeing Rong Heng emerge with wet hair, Mu Jinyu suddenly remembered she had forgotten to remind her not to let her wounds touch the water. She hurried over to Rong Heng, wanting to take her hand to check the injury on her arm.

Rong Heng dodged her, looking at her with an expression reserved for the dead.

Mu Jinyu explained, “Let me see your wound. Did it get wet?”

Rong Heng ignored her concern. With a flick of her long sleeve, she walked toward the main house.

Receiving no answer and unable to see the wound, Mu Jinyu followed closely behind Rong Heng, step for step. Just as she was about to cross the threshold of the main house, Rong Heng stopped abruptly and glared at her.

“Get out.”

Did this Qianyuan truly have the audacity to think she could sleep in the same room?

Harshly rebuked, Mu Jinyu stopped. Her amber eyes blinked a few times, looking at Rong Heng with some confusion.

She wanted her to leave?

But… wasn’t Rong Heng the one who had been insisting on sleeping with her lately? Was it no longer necessary?

Mu Jinyu couldn’t quite name the feeling in her heart. Her heart skipped a beat—perhaps out of a slight sense of disappointment. But immediately after, she felt a gradual sense of relief. If Rong Heng didn’t need her to sleep nearby anymore, then the two of them could maintain their distance and go about their own business.

She pulled her foot back and stood properly outside the door, confirming once more, “Did your wound really not touch any water?”

Rong Heng merely looked at her indifferently and shut the door without answering.

Mu Jinyu vaguely felt that the current Rong Heng was a bit off; not only was she more forceful than before, but she also seemed to dislike her.

Her eyes cast downward, the amber light in them dimming slightly. Yet, she didn’t give up and added, “The medicine is in the first drawer of the dressing table. Apply it yourself.”

“The wounds on your body are serious. You should take proper care of them. Don’t take it lightly.”

Having finished, Mu Jinyu turned and moved with very slow steps toward the other room. Halfway there, she stopped and scratched her head, unsure if Rong Heng even understood what she was saying. But she suppressed the urge to turn back and explain it a few more times, forcing herself into the other room.

The bed in this room was small, but with her sleeping alone, it felt quite spacious. She didn’t have to be cautious about bumping into someone else.

Mu Jinyu was exhausted every day; she fell asleep the moment her head hit the pillow, no longer burdened by the worries and concerns of her waking hours.

On the other side, Rong Heng lay in bed, unable to get comfortable. The bed was filled with Mu Jinyu’s scent. She had already thrown the quilt onto the floor, yet she still couldn’t get rid of it.

Even more hateful was that her own body, which she had just bathed and scrubbed several times with soap, was now annoyingly exuding Mu Jinyu’s scent. It smelled terrible.

Her breathing quickened with anger. The two red moles beneath her eyes grew even more vivid. Her hand gripped the edge of the bed frame, making the wood creak and groan. She nearly left finger marks in the timber.

Sleep was impossible. She sat at the dressing table and glanced at the first drawer but didn’t open it. Her fingers tapped on the table, occasionally moving as if writing down key words.

Before being poisoned, she had been dealing with the flood disasters in Jingdong East Circuit, Jingdong West Circuit, Qingzhou, Qizhou, Yanzhou, Jizhou, and other places. The two Jingdong circuits had suffered floods for consecutive years; the people were already destitute, and the effects were rippling across the entire Great Rong nation. If this matter wasn’t handled well, the situation would inevitably become unstable.

Who in the court didn’t want her touching those regions?

She had been poisoned within her own manor, which meant her residence had already been infiltrated. Were her mother and other family members safe now?

A layer of worry clouded Rong Heng’s eyes. She planned to go out early tomorrow morning to scout the situation, then contact her subordinates and wait for an opportunity to act. Since she was poisoned, no one would know her true status until she was found. She didn’t need to appear in public; she only needed to hide in the shadows and seek a chance for revenge.

Rong Heng sat at the dressing table for nearly the entire night, her mind constantly analyzing the current political landscape. Leaning back against the chair, she rubbed her temples with her fingers. Her face was translucent and her lips pale; she felt weak all over.

Due to the lingering effects of the poison combined with the chill of the night wind, her head throbbed painfully. It felt as if thousands of needles were piercing inward and thousands of hands were pulling outward.

She forced herself to stop thinking and get some sleep so she would have the energy to do what needed to be done during the day.

But she couldn’t do it.

The moment she was idle, her head would be filled with various voices, tearing at her nerves like vengeful ghosts. They allowed her not a moment of peace. Her breathing became increasingly labored, and cold sweat broke out over her body, dragging her into an icy abyss.

“Heh.”

Rong Heng let out a cold laugh.

She hadn’t expected that her most leisurely moments would be the time when she lost her memory and acted like a fool. It was as if fate itself were mocking her.

Her fingers tightened, leaving several blood-red nail marks in her palm.

She could no longer endure it. Like a specter, she drifted out of the main house and into the room where Mu Jinyu was sleeping.

This Qianyuan was actually sleeping so well.

Rong Heng stood by the bed, her long hair hanging down and trailing over Mu Jinyu’s body. Her dark eyes stared at the person on the bed, a hint of crimson seemingly appearing within them.

The morning light was like a slit-open fish belly, with blood slowly flowing out and staining the entire horizon red. Rong Heng stood by the bed and stared at Mu Jinyu for a long time.

Ultimately, she climbed onto the bed, snuggling close to Mu Jinyu’s side and burying her head against Mu Jinyu’s arm. Her nose was filled with the scent of a tall, straight parasol tree, and her entire body was enveloped by it. She felt as though she were lying among the leaves, with sprawling branches lifting her up and shielding her from all the chaos.

It was as if she had arrived in a paradise.

Rong Heng could not accept that she would compromise because of a Qianyuan. She thought that once she woke up, she would kill her.

Rong Heng drifted into unconsciousness, finally welcoming a moment of peace.

Mu Jinyu woke with a start. The sky was bright outside, and the sun was high. The warm, brilliant sunlight spilled over the bed, making her feel cozy all over. Outside the window, insects chirped and birds sang while the shadows of trees swayed.

Inside the room, Mu Jinyu tried to move her numb arm but found she couldn’t. Her eyes, still somewhat groggy and dazed, looked to her side. When she saw clearly what was lying next to her, her eyes gradually widened.

She sat up abruptly and recoiled!

Thud—!

She fell off the bed, clutching her back and grimacing in pain, though she didn’t make a sound.

Rong Heng was still asleep on the bed.

Mu Jinyu changed her position, leaning on the edge of the bed. Her gaze was just like the first time she had seen Rong Heng—looking her over from left to right. No matter how she looked, she found it hard to believe.

Didn’t Rong Heng not want to sleep near her yesterday? Why had she appeared in her bed today? And she was even lying on the same side.

Mu Jinyu’s cheeks flushed again. Her pupils trembled, and her eyes grew misty. She didn’t dare wake the person on the bed, tiptoeing out of the room to daze in the courtyard.

She truly couldn’t understand Rong Heng’s thoughts. One moment she wanted to be close, the next she didn’t—she was so mercurial.

A smile involuntarily appeared on Mu Jinyu’s lips. She quickly pressed it down with her hand, but the moment she moved her fingers, the smile returned to her face. For some reason, she actually felt quite happy.

After dazing for a good while, Mu Jinyu finally began humming an out-of-tune melody. After washing up, she headed out to buy food.

She still remembered that her kitchen knife was dull, so the first thing she did was go to the tool shop to buy a new one. She also bought a small pointed knife, similar to a paring knife, for peeling.

Having bought the knives, she went to the breakfast street. She had intended to buy two meat he (stuffed pancakes) larger than a palm, but as she approached the stall, she smelled a heavy gamy scent.

A meat he is similar to a roujiamo—a flatbread sliced open at the edge and stuffed with various vegetables and meat. However, unlike the leavened dough used for roujiamo, the crust of a meat he is made from unleavened dough. The texture of a meat he is crispy and crunchy, whereas a roujiamo is soft and chewy.

To make the crust, flour and eggs are mixed, kneaded into a dough, cut into small blocks, and pressed into long strips. The strips are rolled up like flower buns. The bottom opening is sealed with dough, and the top is pressed inward with a finger and pinched shut. This creates a cylindrical dough piece. The piece is then placed in a furnace, pressed flat, and baked.

When it comes out, it is a crispy, layered flatbread, like a thousand-layer cake. A knife is used to cut along the edge, and cold-dressed vegetables or pig’s head meat is stuffed inside. This is the famous meat he of this region.

However, since the pork smelled a bit gamy, Mu Jinyu didn’t buy the ready-made ones. Instead, she circled to the meat market and bought four liang (approx. 200g) of pig’s head meat, planning to make them herself at home. She also bought food for the little calico cat, about a dozen eggs, and some seasonal vegetables to keep on hand.

Money really flew when spent; just buying these few things had cost nearly a hundred wen.

At home, Rong Heng had long since woken up. She stared blankly at the ceiling, momentarily unsure where she was. She sat up and realized she wasn’t in the main house but in the other room.

How did she get here?

Rong Heng tried hard to recall what had happened, but she realized she couldn’t remember a thing. Could it be that Mu Jinyu had carried her over?

This Mu Jinyu was truly strange. She had been speaking to her so gently yesterday, yet today she had left her alone in another room. How annoying.

Rong Heng climbed out of bed in a huff and went to the courtyard. She didn’t find Mu Jinyu at home, nor did she find any food. She grew even angrier.

She picked up the little calico cat, which was sleeping on the other bed, and cradled it in her arms. Holding the cat’s thin, pointed face, she smoothed its fur with her fingers while asking, “Last night, you stayed by her, slept?”

“She gave you, food to eat?”

“Meow~”

The little calico cat’s head tilted back from the grooming; it didn’t understand a word Rong Heng was saying.

Rong Heng tapped its nose. “Stupid.”

The cat: “…”

After playing with the cat for a while, Rong Heng walked under the persimmon tree and looked up. She still remembered Mu Jinyu climbing the tree yesterday and breaking off a branch for her to play with. Could she also climb it?

No sooner said than done.

Rong Heng placed the small stool Mu Jinyu usually sat on under the tree. She stepped onto it, stood on her tiptoes, and began reaching for the branches.

The persimmon tree was short, and the branches grew low, so she caught one easily. Climbing up was also simple; she gripped a branch, used her arm strength to pull herself up, and she was there.

Sitting on a branch while hugging the trunk, Rong Heng realized she could see over the courtyard wall. She saw rows of blue-tiled houses just like her own, clustered together in squares. The streets, paved with stone slabs, intersected in straight, parallel lines, dividing the houses into one grid after another. Large grids contained smaller grids; it looked incredibly orderly as far as the eye could see.

Rong Heng sat on the branch, her eyes sparkling as she gazed into the distance. Her legs dangled and swung—she found it quite interesting.

Below the tree, the little calico cat circled the trunk, meowing twice. Seeing that Rong Heng was ignoring it, it flexed its four legs, backed up, and then charged at the tree.

A leap!

Its sharp claws extended, all four digging into the bark. A predatory “wuu-wu-wu” sound came from its throat. Its eyes were fixed upward as its four paws worked in tandem, scrambling to climb.

Before long, it reached Rong Heng’s side and was scooped up into her lap. One person and one cat huddled together, both with wide, curious eyes, staring at the scenery outside.

When Mu Jinyu walked into the alleyway leading home, carrying bags in both hands, she was immediately startled by the sight of Rong Heng and the cat in the tree.

“What are you doing—!”