Forbidden to Bully the Storybook’s Heroine – Chapter 26

A Sweet Demeanor

Song Muyun’s current room was in a good location, not too far and not too close to Yue Shang House. She arrived after a short walk.

Jiang Yao swaggered over and knocked on the door. She heard Song Muyun’s rather cold voice say just one word, “Enter.”

“Muyun, I bought you some pastries. Come and try them.”

She called out as she pushed the door open with a creak.

The person who had just sounded somewhat indifferent immediately stood up, looking over with pleasant surprise.

“Jiang Yao, you’re here!”

“Mhm, come eat them while they’re still warm.”

She took a warm, oil-paper-wrapped package from her bosom. Song Muyun reached out to take it but didn’t eat right away. Instead, she pulled Jiang Yao over, pushed her down to sit on the couch, and asked in a low voice, “Weren’t you teaching the Eighth Prince archery? How are they learning?”

Jiang Yao said, “The Eighth Prince is doing great, but Murong Qing can’t shoot at all. So useless.”

She pouted and began to bad-mouth Murong Qing without holding back. “There are plenty of men who are skilled in both civil and military arts these days. Don’t you go finding someone like him who’s bad at martial arts. He wouldn’t even be able to protect you when you go out.”

Song Muyun nodded obediently, the fluttering butterfly ornament behind her head trembling. She lowered her long eyelashes and said softly, “I know. I like men who are good at martial arts.”

Seeing how sensible she was, Jiang Yao was struck by her sweetness. She stretched out her arm just to pat the beauty’s soft head.

The beauty actually complied. Seeing that Jiang Yao wanted to pat her, she stretched her neck forward to accommodate her.

So obedient it made one’s heart soften.

So this was what she was like when she wasn’t being cold. She had never even seen her like this in her dreams, but now she was seeing it all.

As for Murong Qing, that shriveled calf thing¹ would never get to see Song Muyun treat someone with such gentleness. She bad-mouthed Murong Qing to Song Muyun every day, and she could see that Song Muyun was growing to dislike him more and more. Mission accomplished!

“In the future, if you want to get married, I’ll help you pick a suitable man.”

Jiang Yao said magnanimously with a wave of her hand.

Song Muyun paused. The shy expression she had a moment ago inexplicably turned a fraction colder. She nodded. “Then I’ll have to trouble you.”

Jiang Yao didn’t notice and continued, “You sit too, don’t just stand there. Did anyone bully you while I was away?”

She asked in a low voice.

For some reason, Song Muyun felt a little unhappy, but she tried her best not to show it. She just shook her head, her voice its usual clear and light tone, “No.”

“Mhm, good that there wasn’t. Go on, try them.” She pointed at the oil-paper package.

Song Muyun opened the oil-paper package. Inside were two types of pastries, one pale yellow and one white. There were three of each, just enough to sample the flavors without getting too full to eat dinner later.

Has she always been this thoughtful?

The beauty lowered her head, lost in thought. She placed a piece of wandou huang² into her vermilion lips³ and took a small, delicate bite.

Even watching a beautiful person eat is a joy to the heart and a delight to the eye⁴.

Song Muyun preferred light-colored clothes and always wore white, giving her the air of a little fairy from the clouds.

A little fairy like her should stay up in the clouds forever. How could she be allowed to fall into the mud and dust of the mortal world?

“Is it good?” Jiang Yao asked.

Song Muyun nodded lightly.

Jiang Yao said no more, just propped her chin on her hand and watched her eat. Under her gaze, the coldness on Song Muyun’s face completely faded, and she gradually grew shy again. A blush once more crept onto her cheeks, and her long lashes fluttered like the wings of a butterfly.

“Are… are you leaving this afternoon?”

After finishing the pastries, she took a sip of clear tea to wash away the sweetness in her mouth, then fiddled with her sleeve as she looked at Jiang Yao.

Jiang Yao was lying on the soft couch, shaking her head with her eyes closed in a rather unladylike posture. “Not leaving. I’ll stay here and keep you company.”

A flash of joy passed through Song Muyun’s eyes. She nodded lightly. “Then let’s read this afternoon.”

“Read? You mean storybooks⁵? I didn’t bring any. Should we go buy one now?”

She asked.

Song Muyun shook her head. “Not storybooks. I bought a poetry collection from the bookshop⁶. Shall we read it together?”

Her eyes were bright, sparkling with tiny flecks of light, as if she were full of anticipation.

Jiang Yao’s face instantly stiffened. As someone who didn’t like to study or read, her first instinct was to refuse. But looking at Song Muyun’s expectant face, she couldn’t bring herself to say no.

Finally, she gritted her teeth and agreed. It’s just a poetry collection, right? How hard could it be!

Song Muyun, after all, came from a family of fragrant books⁷. It was normal for her to love reading.

Jiang Yao comforted herself inwardly. The two of them leaned together against the windowsill and opened the brand-new poetry collection.

“Looks nice.”

That was the only dry comment Jiang Yao could muster.

Every poem in the collection was very cultured. She could recognize the individual characters, but once they were combined, she had no idea what they meant.

Sigh, what a headache.

The poetry collection was making her drowsy. She turned her head to look at Song Muyun, only to see her reading with great relish, a faint smile playing on her lips.

Tsk.

Learned people really are different.

Jiang Yao gave up on the poetry collection and just stared at Song Muyun instead. She didn’t know how long she’d been watching when Song Muyun’s pale hand reached up, felt for a teacup to the side, and glanced at Jiang Yao as she took a sip, only to find her staring fixedly.

Her face flushed red in an instant. Song Muyun clutched the book’s page tightly and asked in a small voice, “What are you looking at me for? Read the book.”

Jiang Yao replied subconsciously, “The book isn’t as beautiful as you!”

Boom. Song Muyun turned completely red from her neck to her face to her ears. Her hand clutching the book’s page tightened, crumpling it badly, but she didn’t seem to notice at all. Instead, she lowered her head to avoid Jiang Yao’s gaze.

The little fairy was shy.

Jiang Yao averted her eyes, thinking to herself how cute Song Muyun was. She got shy from just a couple of glances. Being more skilled in martial arts, Jiang Yao usually only dealt with men. This was the first time she realized how different women and men were.

Just a few extra glances and a woman would blush. If it were a man, he probably would have long since started shouting some shameless things.

Song Muyun’s voice grew even softer, her cheeks a translucent red against her pale skin, like tender tofu. “There’s nothing beautiful about me. Don’t talk nonsense.”

Although Jiang Yao was no longer looking at her face, she reached out, wrapped an arm around her waist, and pulled her into her embrace. She raised an eyebrow, her gaze falling on the woman’s long, slender, snow-white fingers. Her low yet soft laughter rang in her ear. “You are beautiful. How am I talking nonsense? Your waist is slender, too. Even more slender than my younger sister’s.”

Held in the other’s arms, Song Muyun didn’t resist. She only looked up in surprise upon hearing that. “You have a meimei⁸?”

Didn’t the Prime Minister and his wife only have one daughter and one son? How could she have a meimei? Could she be the daughter of a concubine…

Seeing Song Muyun had misunderstood, Jiang Yao quickly explained, “A tangmeimei⁹. My tangmeimei. She usually likes to read, too. You two should get along well.”

It was strange, really. Her second uncle was clearly a military general, yet the cousin he fathered was wholly devoted to reading. Her own father was clearly a civil official, yet she only liked to brandish swords and spears.

If not for the age difference of several years between her and her cousin, her mother would have thought their babies had been switched at birth.

“Is that so? Then you must introduce me to her.”

The two were extremely close. Unconsciously, Song Muyun was now nestled in Jiang Yao’s arms, looking up at her with a pair of dark, moist eyes, her entire being exuding a sweet demeanor.

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