Wenren Qingyi tugged at her sleeve and sneaked a glance at Mu Zibai's thick clothes. Mu Zibai had changed, but Wenren Qingyi was still wearing what she'd had on during the day.
It was late at night, and gusts of mountain wind swept past. Wenren Qingyi shivered and said, "It's pretty cold out here."
Then she sneaked another glance at Mu Zibai.
"It is pretty cold." Mu Zibai shuddered and wrapped his clothes even tighter around himself, afraid he might catch a chill.
Wenren Qingyi: "."
She gritted her teeth in secret, then said, "Your clothes look pretty thick."
"They are pretty thick." Mu Zibai opened his clothes to show Wenren Qingyi. They were lined with fleece. Of course they were thick.
Wenren Qingyi smiled and had just reached out when Mu Zibai wrapped his clothes back around himself. She froze on the spot.
"Um, I'm pretty cold." Wenren Qingyi held back her rising temper and said through clenched teeth.
Mu Zibai nodded and said thoughtfully, "I'm not cold."
He gave her a guileless smile.
Wenren Qingyi couldn't take it anymore. She stood up in a huff, planted her hands on her hips, and snapped in her usual imperious tone, "Couldn't you at least try to win me over?"
Mu Zibai asked in return, "Why should I try to win you over?"
Wenren Qingyi drew in a sharp breath, nearly choking on it. She said, speechless, "I'm your sister-in-law, after all. Shouldn't you get on my good side? If my sister wakes up, I can put in a good word for you."
Mu Zibai suddenly understood. Wenren Qingyi breathed a sigh of relief. At last, her blockheaded brother-in-law had caught on.
"So what does that have to do with whether you're cold?" Mu Zibai asked, looking confused.
Wenren Qingyi rubbed the bridge of her nose and covered her face, unwilling to speak.
She moved farther away, making it clear she didn't know him. How could he not understand something so obvious? Just how dense was her brother-in-law? He didn't even know how to make a girl happy. When her sister woke up, he'd never get along with her.
She glanced at Mu Zibai and sighed. Wenren Qingyi felt the heartache of trying to prop up a wall that wouldn't stand. What would happen if her foolish brother-in-law got divorced by her sister?
He didn't know how to care for people or show them tenderness. Sigh.
"Haha, all right, I was just teasing you," Mu Zibai said with a laugh. He knew perfectly well what was going through Wenren Qingyi's head; he'd only wanted to tease her.
Still, lately, he couldn't quite figure out what this girl was thinking.
He took off his outer robe and draped it over Wenren Qingyi's shoulders.
"Hmph, you stinky brother-in-law! You're the worst. I don't want to talk to you ever again." Wenren Qingyi puffed out her cheeks angrily. He'd known all along and had pretended not to understand. And she'd even been trying to help him! She'd never bother with him again.
Mu Zibai propped his head on one hand and watched Wenren Qingyi sulk. For some reason, he found it both funny and heartwarming.
This girl was hopeless, yet she insisted she was an expert. She was only thirteen, but she was always acting like a little adult.
Mu Zibai reached out. Wenren Qingyi paused and asked, "What?"
"You said you weren't going to talk to me anymore. Give me back my clothes."
Wenren Qingyi scooted away and said, "No way. I forgive you."
Mu Zibai sighed. Looking at Wenren Qingyi's innocent, pure little face, he asked, "Let me ask you something."
"Go ahead. I know a lot," Wenren Qingyi said confidently, patting her little chest.
"Do you?" Mu Zibai said, unconvinced. "If you had the power to wake your sister, but might lose everything in the process, would you still save her?"
Wenren Qingyi fell silent. She stared blankly for a moment. She'd thought Mu Zibai would ask her some kind of academic question. How had it turned into this?
She couldn't find the words at first and sank into silence. She didn't know how to answer; she was torn.
After thinking it over for a long while, she said, "That's a strange question. My sister has always been the most important person in my life. If it were really possible, I'd save her. Besides, you said I might lose everything. It's not certain."
"That makes sense." Mu Zibai nodded. This girl hadn't blurted out that she'd save her sister without thinking; she'd taken the time to consider the question.
Mu Zibai smiled and was about to pat her on the head, but Wenren Qingyi dodged. She gave him a strange look, as if suspecting he had ulterior motives.
Her expression said, "Don't come near me." Mu Zibai couldn't help laughing.
"Do you regret marrying my sister?" Wenren Qingyi asked, her expression stern, with a hint of fierce cuteness.
"No, of course not. I'm going to grow old with your sister," Mu Zibai said. How could he ever regret it? Even if she had him welded to Wenren Lingmeng, he'd be willing.
Only then did Wenren Qingyi nod in satisfaction. Now that was more like a brother-in-law. She asked, "What if my sister stays like this forever and never gets better? Would you still stay by her side?"
Mu Zibai looked into Wenren Qingyi's eyes. Clear and innocent, they held a feeling he couldn't quite put into words.
"Of course. One day as husband and wife counts for a hundred days of affection. What are you worrying about, little girl?" Mu Zibai said with a smile.
"I'm not worried. If you ever betray my sister, I'll cut it off."
Mu Zibai: "!"
Terrifying. Was his little sister-in-law threatening to snip off his manhood? Did she have to be so scary?
But did this little girl even know what that meant?
Seeing Mu Zibai's strange look, Wenren Qingyi explained, "I've heard my parents say that to each other whenever they argue."
Mu Zibai suddenly understood. He'd just uncovered something earth-shattering. Thinking of Wenren Lanzhang's upright demeanor, the man was going to get snipped too? How terrifying!
A thousand miles away, Wenren Lanzhang sneezed and remarked that his padded coat seemed to be letting in a draft today.
Wenren Qingyi looked at Mu Zibai, a trace of envy in her eyes. She was a little jealous of her sister, for finding someone who treated her so well.
Her sister would be so happy if she knew.
No! Wenren Qingyi's eyes suddenly turned fierce. How could she think that? He was clearly a lecher with bad intentions, a scoundrel, not a good person at all!
He was always picking on her, teasing her, and smacking her bottom. How could that make him a good person?
Mu Zibai had no idea what was going on in Wenren Qingyi's mind. He'd only noticed her expressions changing as rapidly as a face-changing performance in Sichuan opera.
What was she thinking?
It couldn't be anything good. She was probably thinking up all kinds of ways to bad-mouth him in her head.
"Brother-in-law, tell me more about Dream of the Red Chamber," Wenren Qingyi said, gazing at Mu Zibai with wide, eager eyes.
One look from her plunged Mu Zibai into silence. After a long while, he said, "Don't look at me like that again. I'm still young, and I'm not interested in a steady job."
Wenren Qingyi: "???"
She didn't understand what Mu Zibai meant.
"Ahem." Mu Zibai coughed twice and said, "Where was I?"
"Daiyu Burying Flowers."
Before you continue