Forbidden to Bully the Storybook’s Heroine – Chapter 7

Off to See Yunyun Again

When Song Muyun heard someone had requested her, her face went pale.

Since entering Yueshang House, only the Seventh Prince ever requested her, and he mostly came around noon. But it was only just morning now…

The proprietor waved her round fan, looked Song Muyun up and down, and said, “Hurry now, don’t keep the honored guest waiting.”

Honored guest… that must be the Seventh Prince.

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Jiang Yao had ordered a full table of food and wine, but it hadn’t arrived yet. Only a single plate of pastries had been served.

The door creaked open, and she sat up straight to look toward the entrance.

It was Song Muyun who entered.

Song Muyun probably hadn’t expected the person inside to be her. She froze for a moment, and on a second look, the rims of her eyes seemed a little red, though a closer inspection revealed they weren’t.

“Miss Jiang.”

She called softly.

Jiang Yao nodded and beckoned to Song Muyun.

Song Muyun treated her differently. If the Seventh Prince had beckoned, she would have ignored him until he dragged her over by the hair. But for Jiang Yao, she obediently and meekly walked over.

Jiang Yao pointed to the chair in front of her, her voice a bit languid. “Sit. You did a good job feeding me yesterday. Let’s continue today.”

She had woken up extra early and hadn’t had more than a couple bites of anything, so she’d gotten hungry on the way. She was counting on eating here.

Song Muyun froze again. Few people came to Yueshang House just to eat. The food here wasn’t considered the absolute best—it certainly couldn’t compare to the chefs at the Prime Minister’s Residence. Why would she run over to Yueshang House to eat instead of dining at her own home, and request her to serve, no less…?

Song Muyun couldn’t help but look at her, a trace of confusion appearing on her cool and distant face. Jiang Yao noticed but couldn’t be bothered to explain—mainly because she didn’t know how. Am I supposed to say I was afraid that lunatic Murong Qing would come bully you, so I came over to protect you?

That… that would be too kind. The fierce Miss Jiang was used to having a hard mouth and a soft heart¹; she could never say something so friendly.

“You haven’t had your morning meal either, have you? Have some pastries to tide you over.”

Jiang Yao lifted her chin, and Song Muyun saw a plate of exquisite, beautiful pastries shaped like peach blossoms.

She used to eat these kinds of pastries often, but she hadn’t had them again since entering Yueshang House.

“Yes. Thank you, Miss Jiang.”

She answered, then picked up a peach-blossom pastry and began eating it in tiny bites, holding a handkerchief that had been washed until it was slightly faded underneath to catch the crumbs.

Jiang Yao propped her head on her hand and watched Song Muyun eat. The more she looked, the more she was captivated by her beauty. For such beauty to be wasted on Murong Qing—who could stand that!

“Tsk, have a sip of tea to wet your throat.”

Song Muyun was so obedient, doing whatever Jiang Yao told her to do. If she told her to eat pastries, she ate pastries. The pastries were so dry, yet she didn’t even know to take a sip of tea to moisten them.

“Thank you very much, Miss Jiang.”

Jiang Yao was the first person to be so considerate to her after her fall from grace.

Song Muyun pressed her lips together and took small sips of tea.

The warm tea flowing down her throat was wonderfully comforting.

The dishes soon arrived one after another. Song Muyun remembered what she was supposed to do and quickly picked up her chopsticks to feed Jiang Yao, still following her instructions and feeding her whichever dish she pointed to.

Without that nuisance Murong Qing here to interrupt today, she was clearly more relaxed. The corners of her mouth were faintly turned up, and her face showed no trace of sorrow. She was the very picture of refined and unparalleled elegance.

“I want some fish.”

Jiang Yao gave the order, and Song Muyun immediately and obediently picked up a piece of fish, carefully removed the bones, and brought it to Jiang Yao’s lips.

Jiang Yao beamed, taking the fish into her mouth with a happy bite. She had just about eaten her fill when she saw Song Muyun was still trying to feed her without pause. She tilted her head to dodge the chopsticks, then lifted her chin to gesture at the many dishes on the table. “No need to feed me anymore. You eat for a while. I can eat by myself from here.”

She was here to enjoy herself and protect Song Muyun, but if she kept enjoying herself like this, all the food would get cold.

Song Muyun looked up at her in a daze. Jiang Yao tapped the table, urging her to eat quickly.

“I… I’m not hungry.”

The little fairy-like figure in white hurriedly lowered her head, perhaps finding Jiang Yao’s kindness too much to dare accept.

“Eat something even if you’re not hungry. Don’t just watch me eat. I can’t eat with you staring at me like that.”

How could she not be hungry? She was brought here so early. Besides, I’ve heard the women of Yueshang House are meticulous about their figures and eat very little at each meal. How can that be okay?

Song Muyun is already as thin as a sheet of paper; she doesn’t need to watch her figure. She felt that women looked better when they were a little plumper.

Hearing her words, a blush crept onto Song Muyun’s snow-white profile. She said in a very quiet voice, “Then… then I won’t look at you. Please, eat.”

She thought Jiang Yao was unhappy with her watching and that it was affecting her appetite.

But by the conscience of Heaven and Earth², Jiang Yao was just looking for an excuse to make her eat.

She could eat until her stomach burst and still not finish all the food on this table.

Jiang Yao took a deep breath, her voice softening for once. “Aiya, I don’t like eating alone. Eat with me. There’s no one else here. Come on, eat something.”

Before Song Muyun could react, a pair of chopsticks had been pressed into her hand. It truly seemed like Jiang Yao wanted her to eat with her.

The little fairy pressed her lips together, not daring to lift her lowered head. Her voice was very soft, with a strange hoarseness. “Miss Jiang, thank you.”

She was always thanking her, as if she had done something incredibly moving, when in reality, it was all just a matter of lifting a hand³.

Jiang Yao didn’t respond. She tore the leg off the Jiaohua Ji⁴ and placed it in a clean bowl beside her. “Try this. It’s good.”

Song Muyun quietly said thank you again. Jiang Yao picked up a piece of pork rib for her, and she said thank you again.

Since her fall into Yueshang House, she didn’t know how long it had been since someone had treated her so well.

She had witnessed the ugliest side of humanity, but she never expected that one day, she would be able to see its kind side again.

“Stop with all the thank yous and eat more. Look how skinny you are. A gust of wind could blow you away.”

These words made Song Muyun blush again, but she didn’t argue. She didn’t think she was very thin, but if Miss Jiang thought she was too thin, then she would just have to eat enough to get a little fatter.

Watching the little fairy eat was a delight in itself. Her lips were small and rosy, and she could only eat a tiny bit of rice and a single bite of a dish at a time, yet her cheeks still puffed out slightly. Her eyes and brows were coolly beautiful.

Jiang Yao found herself staring, mesmerized. By the time she snapped out of it, the tips of Song Muyun’s ears were already flushed crimson.

Even in the past, no one had ever stared at her so intently.

“Ahem.”

To keep from being mistaken for a pervert, Jiang Yao cleared her throat twice and lowered her head, shoveling rice into her mouth.

Having practiced martial arts since childhood, she didn’t eat with the delicate, slow elegance of most sheltered young ladies. She ate rather quickly and was finished in no time.

She took a storybook from her robes and sat by the windowsill to read.

Seeing this, Song Muyun was about to get up, but Jiang Yao just lifted an eyelid. “Don’t mind me. Keep eating. Come over only when you’re full.”

“I’m full.”

Song Muyun replied the instant the words left her mouth.

Jiang Yao looked over. The small celadon bowl was spotless, with only a single bone lying beside it—the bone from the Jiaohua Ji leg. Full after one chicken leg?

“Come here.”

She beckoned to Song Muyun.

Song Muyun placed her hands before her stomach and walked over with proper, small steps to stand before Jiang Yao. But the next second… a pale, slender hand landed on her belly.

Before Song Muyun could even react, Jiang Yao had already pressed down on it a few times. She then looked up with a perfectly straight face. “You’re not full. Go back and eat some more.”

Her stomach isn’t even sticking out!

Her mind seemed to go blank. She could only follow the command and walk back in a daze. It wasn’t until she was sitting at the table again, chopsticks in hand, that it dawned on her. How could… how could Miss Jiang just touch someone so casually…?

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The author has something to say:

Yunyun (head bowed shyly): Miss Jiang is too much, how can she just touch someone’s stomach like that…….

Yaoyao: What’s wrong with me touching my wife’s stomach!!!!

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