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Chapter 30 ☆ Little Lotus Leaf (Part 2)
Shen Yan looked down at Cheng Nuonuo’s face, which was as white and tender as if water could drip from it. Her eyes were always full of innocence and admiration, as if he was her entire world.
Feeling the softness of Cheng Nuonuo against his chest, Shen Yan forced out a bitter smile. Deep down, he couldn’t deny that he believed Cheng Yaoyao was telling the truth.
Which one is the real Nuonuo? The innocent and weak one, or the terrifying one he saw that night?
Back inside, Zhang Xiaofeng and Han Yin examined Cheng Yaoyao’s face closely and were amazed. That morning, Cheng Yaoyao’s face had still been swollen, even slightly festering, but now the swelling had gone down.
Cheng Yaoyao held up a small mirror and looked carefully at her right cheek. The scar on her fair and tender skin was glaring, but at least it was shrinking. She hadn’t dared to look in the mirror for the past few days.
Cheng Yaoyao smiled and said, “I guess the anti-inflammatory medicine is working. I also applied some of the herbs that Old Lin left behind.”
Cheng Yaoyao suddenly became cautious and didn’t tell anyone that Xie San had sent her medicine.
“That’s good. I think at this rate, your face won’t be scarred,” Han Yin said with a smile. “I didn’t expect those herbs from Old Lin, which looked so dirty, to be this effective.”
Suddenly, there was a scream from outside. Cheng Yaoyao was so startled she nearly dropped the mirror. Han Yin jumped up and said, “It’s Cheng Nuonuo! What happened?”
Everyone stuck their heads out, and Shen Yan ran the fastest. “Nuonuo, what’s wrong?”
“No… I was just scared by a bug,” Cheng Nuonuo quickly hid something behind her back and lowered her eyes, as if she were really frightened.
“I thought we ran into some hooligans,” a male educated youth said.
The others dispersed.
Cheng Nuonuo tightly grasped the jade pendant in her hand, her expression was complicated.
Since the night Cheng Yaoyao was injured, she has never used the spiritual spring to cook again.
The injury on Cheng Yaoyao’s face was a gift from the heavens. How could she let Cheng Yaoyao benefit from the spiritual spring? With the various ingredients she had secretly added to the food and the constant brown sugar water every day, Cheng Yaoyao’s face really did start to swell and fester. Cheng Nuonuo was so pleased that she hummed in her dreams.
Until today, when Cheng Yaoyao had confronted her in public, Cheng Nuonuo decided to show her worth to regain everyone’s favor. She took out the jade pendant and waited for a long time, but the spiritual spring did not appear.
Why not?
Cheng Nuonuo felt as if she had been struck on the head with a stick. Her hands and feet trembled with panic as she placed the jade pendant on a bowl, trying to concentrate and feel the presence of the spiritual spring. Time passed, and Han Yin peeked out to urge her to finish cooking, but the spiritual spring remained silent.
Could it be because I haven’t kept the jade pendant close to Cheng Yaoyao these days? Cheng Nuonuo tried to comfort herself. That must be it! Fortunately, she had saved some spiritual spring water in a small bottle before. Determined, Cheng Nuonuo poured two or three drops of the spiritual spring water into the pot.
Dinner consisted of a plate of cold-mixed purslane [1]is a type of edible succulent plant used in salads., a pot of pickled vegetable and mushroom soup dripping with lard, a plate of fried zucchini, and two steamed buns made of white flour and cornmeal for each person.
Cheng Yaoyao sipped the soup slowly. The comforting taste made her feel incredibly relaxed. She couldn’t help but think that Cheng Nuonuo’s magical ability was still quite useful.
Tick.
Suddenly, a dripping sound echoed in her ears, like water falling into a spring, ethereal and almost filled with discontent.
Cheng Yaoyao was startled and looked around.
Han Yin asked, “What are you looking for?”
“Nothing. It sounded like a mosquito buzzing near my ear,” Cheng Yaoyao replied, shaking her head. Was she hallucinating because she had been lying down for too long?
That night, Cheng Yaoyao started to have a fever again. She dreamed of a misty scene with a small lotus leaf swaying in front of her eyes, the tender green leaves drooping slightly.
Cheng Yaoyao tossed and turned, unable to sleep due to the burning sensation and thirst in her chest. She rushed out of bed barefoot, ran to the table, grabbed a glass of water, and drank it in one gulp. The dryness in her throat eased, but the burning in her chest remained.
She wiped the water from the corner of her lips and touched her cheek. The left side of her face, still intact, was as soft as tofu, and she was almost reluctant to part with it. Drinking more water really could nourish the skin. Cheng Yaoyao glanced at Cheng Nuonuo’s bed. She was lying there quietly, but very stiff. Was she asleep? Cheng Yaoyao wiped her feet with a wet towel and climbed back into bed. But this time, before going to sleep, she carefully checked under her pillow, making sure there was nothing there before lying down.
Cheng Yaoyao slept until dawn, without any dreams.
By the time she decided to go to work, the wound on her cheek had healed, leaving only a hint of pink on her fair and tender face.
Cheng Yaoyao put on a pink blouse, braided her hair, and deliberately exposed the wound on her cheek before heading to work. Her slender pink figure passed by the edge of the field, catching the attention of both young and old men who couldn’t help but turn their heads to stare at her.
“Didn’t they say Cheng Zhiqing’s face was disfigured? How come she’s more beautiful than before?” one of them asked.
“Didn’t you see the cut on her face?” another responded.
“You call that a cut? The ones I get from the seedlings every day are bigger than that!”
The women were also surprised, especially those who had spread rumors about Cheng Yaoyao’s disfigurement. The women in the village had mixed feelings about her, mainly because she was so beautiful that she seemed almost unreal. While they might feel jealous of a pretty widow or the young girl from Lin Dafu’s family, Cheng Yaoyao’s beauty placed her in a category of her own, beyond their envy.
When they heard that she was disfigured, it was as if a phoenix had fallen to the level of a chicken, and the women felt they could now criticize her. But seeing her now, with her appearance, figure, and skin, she didn’t seem disfigured at all. In fact, she had an indescribable charm that was even more pronounced than before. If there were a scholar in Tianshui Village, he would probably describe her as “charming.”
Cheng Yaoyao’s eyes, often referred to as peach blossom eyes, were full of allure and seemed to have the power to captivate anyone who looked into them. She wasn’t intentionally trying to seduce anyone, but rather, she was simply searching for someone. The person she was looking for was tall and easy to spot, standing by the edge of the field and talking to someone.
The girl in front of him seemed petite in comparison, playing with her braid while talking, looking very delicate. The man looked down at her, his posture suggesting a mix of strength and gentleness.
Cheng Yaoyao’s expression suddenly turned cold, freezing Lin Jiajun, who had been coming over to greet her. He watched as she walked past him like a gust of fragrant wind, the word “Cheng Zhiqing” stuck in his throat, unable to come out.
After she passed, he nudged the handsome young man next to him with his elbow and said, “Second brother, isn’t she as beautiful as a Guanyin?”
“She’s a girl, don’t talk nonsense,” Lin Jiaqi replied seriously.
“Tsk, after serving in the army for a few years, you’ve started to sound more and more like our dad,” Lin Jiajun said, walking away, feeling bored.
Lin Jiaqi turned around to see that Cheng Yaoyao had already walked a long distance away.
Cheng Yaoyao walked proudly across the field, ignoring the stares of the villagers. After crossing the ridge and turning a corner, she quickly put on her bamboo hat, knowing that no one could see her now.
Scars on the face should not be exposed to the sun. What if the pigmentation worsened? Cheng Yaoyao carefully touched her cheek, but a deep voice from behind startled her: “Don’t touch the wound.”
“What’s it got to do with you? I’ll touch it if I want to!” Cheng Yaoyao turned around and glared at him. “When did you start following me secretly? Weren’t you just chatting and laughing with her?”
Xie San: “…”
When they were on the ridge of the field, Cheng Yaoyao had walked past him like a triumphant cat with her head held high. Of course, Xie San had noticed her.
Cheng Yaoyao, now that her wound had healed, seemed to have forgotten the pain. She was filled with both new and old grievances, glaring at Xie San like an angry cat. Xie San, seeing that her face was better, felt relieved. But when he saw her so angry, he was confused about what she was upset about.
However, her spoiled and arrogant demeanor was full of energy, which made him happier than her previous listless state.
In a rare gentle tone, Xie San asked, “Does your face still hurt?”
“None of your business,” Cheng Yaoyao snapped back, raising her chin arrogantly. “I’ve already discussed it with Han Yin. I’m going to move to the village party secretary’s house.”
Xie San’s expression changed instantly, anger flaring in his eyes.
Startled, Cheng Yaoyao took a step back and asked, “What…what’s wrong?”
After a long pause, Xie San finally said, “The village party secretary has a son at home.”
“So what? Everyone has men in their families,” Cheng Yaoyao retorted, imitating Han Yin’s words. “The village party secretary’s house has plenty of empty rooms. I can have one to myself. Besides, the second son of the Lin family is a good person, and that Lin Jiajun… he’s also pretty nice.”
Thinking of the mischievous Lin Jiajun, Cheng Yaoyao added insincerely. Anyway, since Xie San didn’t want her to stay at his place, she wanted to show him that she had other options!
Xie San stared at her intensely, his jawline tensing up. After a while, he coldly smirked and said, “That’s great. It’s up to you.”
“…It’s none of your business!” Cheng Yaoyao’s eyes turned red. “Why don’t you just take care of that little bald guy of yours!” [2]refers to someone as “bald” or “little bald” is a way to mock their appearance in some Asian cultures, often implying they are not attractive or desirable.
“?!” Xie San was bewildered. Seeing how unreasonable she was being, his expression turned cold.
The two glared at each other. Cheng Yaoyao’s peach blossom eyes, naturally filled with affection, couldn’t look fierce enough, even when she was angry. But she was determined as she pointed at Xie San and declared: “From now on, we’ll keep our distance. You don’t talk to me, and I won’t talk to you.”
It was like a child drawing a line between territories. Xie San laughed in exasperation, his lips curling into a sarcastic smile: “And at work? We’ll stay separated too?”
“…Let’s break up!” Cheng Yaoyao paused to think. She had been following Xie San around before because it triggered certain plot events. Now that her memory was complete, there was no need for her to cling to him anymore! Yes, that’s it! She wasn’t intending to pester Xie San anymore.
Feeling confident, Cheng Yaoyao nodded and said, “Besides, we’ll be assigned dormitories in a few days, and the secretary will give me an easier job. I won’t have to look at your face anymore!”
“Look at… my face?” Xie San finally showed a strange expression. Was Cheng Yaoyao dizzy from the sun? She was the one who always got angry at the slightest provocation. Who was really the one looking at whose face?
Cheng Yaoyao didn’t care. She unilaterally declared victory in the argument, then swung her braids and pushed Xie San aside, intending to walk past him.
As she brushed against Xie San, her body suddenly trembled.
She wasn’t sure if she had made a sound, but it felt like she had been electrocuted from head to toe. Her cheeks burned, and she fell down weakly.
Before she hit the ground, a pair of strong arms caught her, holding her steadily in a warm embrace.
***
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Vyl[Translator]
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