Ye Mo raised a handsome brow as he examined the boy standing in front of him. What he said next was ridiculous. “Kid, do you only call me that when you’re asking for a favour? You aren’t normally this polite.”
It may have been true that he’d hated Liu Ran at first, but after days of living together, he’d had a change of heart when he saw how hardworking and diligent Liu Ran was.
But this kid would call Yang, Liu, and Ling ‘Brother,’ yet he would not refer to him the same way! He had been quite displeased about it.
After all, he was one of Liu Ran’s brothers-in-law!
Liu Ran merely furrowed his brow. He had already put aside his ‘dignity’ and called him ‘Brother Mo.’ Did he really have to respond to him like that?
“Hmmph, I just don’t want to call you Brother Mo on a regular basis! Do you have a problem with that?” Liu Ran got slightly fired up.
Ye Mo’s mood got even better, “There you go! You called me that once again, didn’t you? Seems like you finally learned some manners in school. Best not be rude to your Brother Mo, got it?”
And then he reached out a hand, asking for the gift, “Come on, give it to me. I’ll bring it back for you.”
Liu Ran stared at the palm in front of him and, unwillingly, gave him the item.
He didn’t want to ask for Ye Mo’s help, because of the way he had replied, but he had no other choice.
“Thanks.” With that, Liu Ran turned away and left.
Ye Mo looked at the package wrapped in cloth in his hand. He raised his brow, Whatever could this be?
He gave it a squeeze, and it seemed to be a solid object – possibly a wooden carving. He didn’t know what it was, since he didn’t open it, and he wouldn’t do so, because it would be rude to the recipient.
Back home, everyone was waiting for him to begin the meal.
“Mo, wash your hands and get a seat, quickly. We’ve been waiting for you,” Ye Liu waved at him.
Ye Mo nodded as he placed his baskets by the well and washed up.
“Darling, that kid, Ran Er, asked me to bring you this,” he passed the gift to Liu Duo.
Liu Duo giggled and accepted it. She unwrapped the cloth and was surprised by what she saw. Was that a sculpture of her?
It didn’t look like her, but that red beauty mark was distinguishable. It must be her.
“Ran Er is such a good kid, giving the birthday girl a present,” Aunt Ye smiled.
She had met Liu Ran, and she knew why he was living with them.
Aunt Li was next to comment, “That’s right. He’s a good kid, and he works hard too.”
Liu Duo was full of smiles. She wrapped the sculpture nicely in the same piece of cloth. She planned to place it by her dresser, where she could look at it every day.
“Alright, let’s eat, or else it’ll get cold soon,” Liu Duo called out to everyone.
If she didn’t pick up her chopsticks, the rest probably wouldn’t either.
She ate a mouthful of noodles and couldn’t help but praise, “Ling, your cooking has improved! This tastes wonderful!”
Not only could he cook well, he knew how to sew too. He was also good-tempered, gentlemanly, and had a dashing appearance. She could find no fault in him.
My dear Ling is so perfect, she thought, as her smile deepened.
It was not that the other three brothers weren’t good enough, but when compared with Ling, one was stoic, the other mischievous, and the third domineering. Even though each had their own characteristics, Liu Duo’s favourite would have to be Ye Ling.
As the saying went, the best way to a man’s heart was through the stomach. It seemed to work the other way round as well!
Ye Ling was happy to hear that Liu Duo enjoyed his cooking, “Eat more, if you like.”