She tried hard to calm the turmoil in her heart, as well as the deep fear of Mu Sheng, as she walked up to him.
“Grandpa, the medicine is almost cool. Once it’s cold, it won’t be as effective. Shall I feed you while it’s still warm?” She crouched beside him and stirred the medicine with a spoon while asking him this.
Mu Sheng lightly nodded, seemingly a little absent-minded as he never once looked at her.
Oftentimes, he would look out the window in a daze. His gaze was on the Mu family’s backyard.
There were rumors that the Mu residence’s backyard had always been carefully tended by Mu Qingcheng.
She loved flowers, especially moonflowers, so for a time, beautiful flowers bloomed in the backyard.
From afar, it was incredibly magnificent.
She liked to trim the twigs in the backyard the most, and then at noon, she would sit comfortably on the swing.
Ever since she was gone, the backyard had been a deserted place. The moonflowers she had planted, which were left unattended for a long time, withered and rotted away.
The servants wanted to cut the flowers and replant them, but he flew into a rage and forbid anyone from stepping foot into the backyard, much less let them touch an inch of the land there.
The Mu residence’s backyard, from then on, became a restricted area, and no one could enter.
The petals withered and scattered into the mud. Only after several years of desolation in the backyard did he order people to tidy up the place, albeit the moonflowers were never planted again.
He was afraid that they would invoke memories.
“Grandpa, here.” Mu Wanrou scooped up the medicine, feeding it to his mouth.
Gradually, Mu Sheng opened his mouth to accept the medicine. His eyes, however, were still looking out the window, mournful and grieving.
Suddenly, a stream of tears leaked out from his eye rims; they rolled down and ‘splashed’ into the bowl of medicine.
Seeing his eyes wet, she was a little at a loss. She stood up and carefully asked, “Grandpa, what’s wrong?”
He was expressionless, alas, and kept his mum.
No one knew that today was Mu Qingcheng’s death anniversary.
Every year, on this day, he would coop up in the study for the entire day and quietly gaze at the backyard. Unfortunately, the moonflowers were no longer in full bloom.
He would also never see that carefree figure on the swing again.
Unable to figure out the reason for his tears, she merely bowed her head in fear and continued feeding him medicine until not a drop of it was left.
…
“The Kingdom of Love was a prosperous country, where there were songs and dances every day. There were praises to the officials, and the King was also a sober and calm person. One day, he brought his most beloved daughter, his five-year-old Love, on a journey, and because Love was kind-hearted, she treated the servants as her kin. To keep everything under wraps, the King only brought two guards with them…”
On the bed, Yun Shishi held a fairytale book in her hand. When she flipped to the page of the ‘Real & Fake Princess’ story, she found it interesting, so she read it aloud to Youyou.
The boy leaned in her embrace. Amid her gentle and low voice, his eyes struggled to remain open as he grew sleepy.
At this moment, the bedroom door suddenly got slowly pushed open, and Little Yichen popped his head in to take a gander. After taking a bath and changing into a set of pajamas, he returned to his bed to toss and turn all about. He rolled here and there, but no matter what, he could not fall asleep.
He only felt emptiness in the big room.
Hence, he put on his slippers, walked through the long corridor, and fumbled to her room.