Finest Servant

Chapter 59 Story (Part 2)

There's a saying that goes, "It's not the scolding of a woman you should fear, but her tears." In dealing with Second Miss Xiao, Lin Wanrong found that there was no logic to be found. He shook his head helplessly and said, "Alright, tell me, what kind of poem do you want to hear?"

Xiao Yushuang clapped her little hands excitedly and said, "I knew it, Lin San, you're a good person. Please recite one poem each about wind, flowers, snow, and the moon."

Lin Wanrong glared at her fiercely, and Xiao Yushuang playfully stuck out her tongue. Perhaps feeling that her request was indeed too much, she said, "Alright, alright, just recite any poem you like. I'm just testing you."

Lin Wanrong glanced around the garden. It was late autumn, and leaves were falling everywhere. He thought of Beijing's Fragrant Hills, which by now should be covered in red maple leaves. A hint of nostalgia flashed in his eyes as he softly recited:

"Red leaves rustle late in the evening, a long pavilion, and a cup of wine.

The remaining clouds return to Mount Taihua, and the sparse rain passes the central ridge.

The color of trees follows the distant pass, and the sound of the river enters the faraway sea.

The imperial city will be reached tomorrow, yet I still dream of fishermen and woodcutters."

Although this poem's structure was not perfect, its artistic conception was profound, reflecting Lin Wanrong's current melancholy mood.

"The imperial city will be reached tomorrow, yet I still dream of fishermen and woodcutters..." Xiao Yushuang repeated blankly, then suddenly looked at him and asked, "Lin San, are you homesick?"

Despite her young age, this girl was clever and had seen through the hint of sadness in Lin Wanrong's heart. He glanced at her and smiled, "It's just a casual recitation, Second Miss Xiao, you're too kind."

Xiao Yushuang laughed and said, "So you're this talented, but when I saw you copying the Three Character Classic the other day, why couldn't you write the characters?"

Lin Wanrong found it amusing but replied, "Second Miss, I don't really like memorizing things like the Book of Poetry and the Three Character Classic. The characters from my hometown aren't written like this, and we don't use brushes there either."

Xiao Yushuang exclaimed, "Oh, I see. So, my unintentional action has actually brought a great talent to the Xiao family. Hehe, when the time comes, my mother and elder sister will surely praise me."

After spending some time with Second Miss Xiao, Lin Wanrong found that aside from her occasional little temper, everything else about her was quite pleasant. He joked, "I'm not some great talent, I'm just here to make a living."

They chatted for a while, but Xiao Yushuang was still sitting on the ground. From the looks of it, it would take some time for her to recover from the injury on her buttocks.

Second Miss Xiao frowned and said, "Lin San, I can't move right now. Can you stay and talk to me? You're good at telling stories, right? Tell me a story, I love listening to stories."

Lin Wanrong also thought to himself, if he were to find a servant to help her now, he wouldn't be able to keep the fact that he had beaten Second Miss Xiao of the Xiao family a secret. He decided to stay with her for a while longer until she was calm enough to leave.

Lin Wanrong closed the door and walked back to her side, sitting down again and saying, "Okay, what kind of stories do you like to hear?"

The little girl's face was full of excitement, "I like all kinds of stories, no one has told me a story in a long time."

Lin Wanrong asked in surprise, "Did someone used to tell you stories before?"

Second Miss Xiao nodded, "Yes, when I was a child, my mother used to tell me stories. Later, my mother got too busy, so I would bother my sister every day to tell me stories. Later, my sister got busy too, and no one told me stories anymore."

Second Miss Xiao unconsciously lowered her head, a hint of sadness crossing her face. Lin Wanrong thought for a moment and understood that it must be because Madam Xiao and Second Miss Xiao were too busy to pay attention to Second Miss Xiao's feelings, which made her become so unruly and willful. Thinking of this, he felt a little sympathy for the little girl.

Seeing the little girl looking at him eagerly, Lin Wanrong didn't know what kind of story to tell her. The story of the Big Bad Wolf and Little Red Riding Hood? The Black Cat Detective Team and the Golden Gourd Dolls? Meteor Garden and Crayon Shin-chan? The last time he told a story to his younger sister was more than a decade ago when they were both young, and he couldn't remember what he had said.

"Lin San, what kind of story are you going to tell me?" Second Miss Xiao asked anxiously after a long silence.

"Oh, okay, I'll tell you the story of Liang Shanbo and Zhu Yingtai." Lin Wanrong thought of some classic dramas in a hurry, regardless of whether it was appropriate or not.

The little girl curled up her knees, clasped her hands on her knees, tilted her head and listened attentively to him telling this story that had been passed down for thousands of years.

Liang Shanbo and Zhu Yingtai was probably China's earliest romance drama, with unparalleled emotional appeal. When the little girl heard about Ma Wencai forcing Zhu Yingtai to death, and Liang Shanbo and Zhu Yingtai transforming into butterflies and flying away, she was already in tears, angrily saying, "This Ma Wencai is such a bad guy. Liang Shanbo is also a fool. How couldn't he see that Zhu Yingtai was a woman?"

Lin Wanrong laughed and said, "It is precisely because he couldn't see it that this story has been passed down for thousands of years. If he had seen it, then it would have become a story of a happy ending, and it wouldn't have been widely circulated."

Second Miss Xiao wiped away her tears and glared at him, "You wooden person, how can you still laugh? I'm about to be driven crazy by that guy surnamed Ma."

Second Miss Xiao was truly a kind-hearted girl, so engrossed in the plot that she felt deeply dissatisfied with Lin Wanrong's joking manner.

"Why can't two people who love each other be together?" Second Miss Xiao asked softly, tears glistening in her eyes.

"The world is unpredictable and ever-changing. You're still young now, but when you grow up, you'll gradually understand," Lin Wanrong tried to comfort her. Speaking to Second Miss Xiao was like speaking to his younger sister, so he spoke in a natural and affectionate manner.

The little girl snorted and said proudly, "Who says I'm still young? I'll be seventeen after the Chinese New Year. My mother said that she had already married my father at my age."

When she mentioned marriage, the little girl's face involuntarily turned red. Lin Wanrong chuckled but didn't say anything.

"Lin San, your story was so good. Will you tell me a story every day from now on?" Second Miss Xiao blinked her beautiful and innocent eyes at him.

"No," Lin Wanrong was startled and jumped up. He could tell a story once, but if he had to do it every day, he would become the king of fairy tales.

"Why not?" Second Miss Xiao pouted and looked aggrieved. "After beating me up like this, can't you at least tell me a few stories?"

After the little girl's tantrum earlier, she became lovable in every way. Lin Wanrong felt a little guilty for spanking her little butt, so he said, "I'm a servant of the Xiao family. How can I tell you stories every day? People will gossip about it if they find out."

"You remember that you're a servant of our family now? How come you forgot when you beat me up?" the little girl retorted.

If the little girl had been insulting, it would have been easy to handle, but Lin Wanrong and she had chatted for a while, and they had become more acquainted with each other. He didn't mind her interrupting him now and then, so he could only smile bitterly and say, "Let's make a deal. I'll tell you a story at most once a day, and when I'm busy, you can't disturb me."

As long as he used the excuse of being busy, he was sure that the little girl wouldn't bother him. Lin Wanrong chuckled to himself a few times.

The little girl wasn't as cunning as he was, so she nodded eagerly and said, "Don't worry, I understand. I won't disturb you when you're busy."