Teahouse Daily Life (4)
Qinqin’s money is my money, and my money is still my money
The sun was already high in the sky.
Murong Yan, Song Shuqing, and Zi Yan were sitting on the first floor, chatting and eating pastries.
Meanwhile, Ming Qin has just gotten up and went to visit the madman who had refused to have New Year’s Eve dinner with everyone the previous day due to his research. The young shadow guard, worried that the elderly man might be hungry, took a lunch box to deliver food to Wang Wei.
“Qinqin hasn’t come back for so long. She’s probably been kept as a guinea pig by that old man Wang Wei again,” Song Shuqing said, yawning while cutting fruit with a dagger.
Boiling water for tea, Zi Yan tilted her head and asked, “Is Imperial Physician Wang very close to Qinqin? Did they meet in the palace?”
“I remember they got familiar with each other during a guard assignment given by our master,” Song Shuqing recalled as she placed the cut fruit on a plate. “After all, Qinqin is so honest, and Wang Wei is very bossy. Whatever he asks her to do, she does. Qinqin doesn’t know how to refuse, so he naturally found her very useful.”
“Seeing it that way, Qinqin is indeed very likable and polite, getting along well with everyone,” Zi Yan remarked as she poured tea for everyone.
“Hey! Dear Zi Yan, how can you only talk about Qinqin?” Song Shuqing, resting her head on her hand, asked, “What about me? I get along well with everyone too, and I’m so likable and polite! Why don’t you praise me?”
Always calling Wang Wei 『that old man』, 『crazy old man』, and 『that guy』, Song Shuqing showed no self-awareness, her eyes wide open in protest.
Knowing her lover’s mischievous and playful nature, Zi Yan pursed her lips and didn’t say anything. She quietly got up to serve Murong Yan tea, but was gently refused with a wave of her hand.
Pouring herself a glass of clear water, Murong Yan glanced at Song Shuqing across from her and softly said, “Ah Qin is indeed very likable.”
“Hey! Both of you are ignoring me, isn’t there any justice left?” Song Shuqing took the tea Ziyan handed her and pretended to be angry, setting it down heavily.
Reaching out to gently hold the shadow guard’s hand to comfort her, Zi Yan turned to the woman drinking water and suddenly asked curiously, “Princess, how did you meet Qinqin back then?”
Swallowing the water, Murong Yan tilted her head, thinking about how to answer.
“I know,” Song Shuqing raised her empty hand with a smug look, “it was when Qinqin was running for her life and climbed into the Princess’s room seeking help. After that, to repay her, she brought delicious food every day. The Princess was captivated by Qinqin’s straightforwardness and fell in love with her.”
“…”
Zi Yan couldn’t bear to look at her beloved shadow guard, sighing, “Why can Lord Song make it sound so easy…”
“Song Shuqing isn’t wrong,” Murong Yan nodded slowly and took another sip of water. “My encounter with Ah Qin was indeed uncomplicated, just a series of coincidences.”
Or perhaps, what seemed like perfect coincidences were actually destined.
After all, they were meant to be together.
“But if the person climbing the tower that day hadn’t been Ah Qin, things might have gone differently. If it had been a man, I might have injured him as soon as he approached, or even killed myself on the spot…”
Tilting her head curiously, Zi Yan asked, “What if it had been a woman like Qinqin?”
“Hmm… I don’t know about an ordinary woman, but if it had been Shadow Guard Song climbing Cangyue Tower, I might have thrown her down the tower…” Murong Yan’s voice was light, “Or had her taken away by the pursuers on the spot.”
With an expression that said it was only natural.
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“I think so too,” Song Shuqing nodded seriously with a confident look.
She turned to Zi Yan, who seemed a bit stunned, and said, “My dear, don’t doubt the Princess. She’s that cold-blooded and would really do such a thing.” The memory of being threatened with a hairpin by Murong Yan made the shadow guard shiver.
“Yes, after all, you’re not as likable as Ah Qin.” Putting down her porcelain cup, Murong Yan spoke calmly, her words piercing.
Gasping, Song Shuqing opened her mouth to retort but couldn’t come up with any substantial evidence, so she turned to Zi Yan for help, “Zi Yan, look at the Princess, she’s so sharp-tongued! Tell her how likable I am.”
But Zi Yan just held back her laughter, finding her lover’s rare defeat amusing.
“As long as Zi Yan likes you, why do you need so many people to like you?” Playing with the tea set on the wooden table, Murong Yan raised an eyebrow, “I thought the Shadow Guard Camp valued monogamy. I didn’t know Shadow Guard Song had such thoughts? Are you… too energetic?”
“I…” Not knowing which part to admit or deny first, the usually clever Song Shuqing was at a loss, her face scrunched up in frustration.
Seeing this, Zi Yan finally couldn’t hold back her laughter, “Lord Song is indeed very likable.” She added some tea to the shadow guard’s empty cup.
As she was about to change the topic to divert Song Shuqing’s attention, Cao Yun walked out of the room.
“Lord Cao, you’re awake?” Zi Yan greeted him, picking up a new empty cup, “Would you like some tea to sober up?”
Nodding, Cao Yun, who was rarely seen looking disheveled, sat down with a puzzled expression, “It’s strange, my head seems to have a big bump on the back, it hurts a lot.”
Murong Yan blinked, feeling guilty despite not being the culprit, took a sip of water. Fortunately, she was good at controlling her expression, and no one noticed her discomfort.
“I’m back!” Coincidentally, Ming Qin, the most culpable one, opened the door and cheerfully greeted everyone, “Ah Yun, you’re awake!”
“Yes, good morning, Qinqin.” Rubbing his head, Cao Yun greeted his junior sister.
“What happened to your head?” Ming Qin took a piece of cut fruit and sat next to Murong Yan, looking at her senior brother’s pained expression.
“It was swollen when I woke up this morning. I must have accidentally hit it while drunk yesterday.” Waving his hand to indicate he was fine, Cao Yun took a sip of tea.
“I see.” Ming Qin nodded seriously, “Since Senior Brother has a low alcohol tolerance, it’s normal to bump into things. You should be more careful in the future, don’t drink too much.”
Listening to their conversation, this time it was Murong Yan who couldn’t hold back, covering her mouth and laughing silently.
Looking back and forth between the two shadow guards with similar poor alcohol tolerance, and at the bump on Cao Yun’s head caused by Ming Qin’s rough handling, Murong Yan wasn’t sure whether to tell them the truth.
“By the way,” Cao Yun took out two strings of copper coins from his pocket and handed them to Ming Qin and Zi Yan, “Qinqin, Miss Zi Yan, it’s the New Year. These are red envelopes, a small token.”
Murong Yan also took out a small bag of silver from her sleeve and handed it to Zi Yan across from her, “I’m much older than you, so take this.” She didn’t give anything to Ming Qin because she had already secretly placed a stack of silver notes under the shadow guard’s pillow earlier.
Unaware of this, Ming Qin didn’t mind at all that Murong Yan didn’t give her anything. She just took the copper coins from Cao Yun with a big smile and happily thanked him.
On the other hand, Zi Yan felt a bit at a loss, unsure whether she should take them or not, hesitating.
“Don’t worry, take them. These two are wealthy,” Song Shuqing nudged her stiff back, urging her, “I’m so jealous, I don’t get anything.”
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Carefully taking the coins, Zi Yan stood up and formally thanked them. She couldn’t remember the last time she received red envelopes.
Eighteen years ago? Twenty years ago?
She didn’t know.
Even before that, as an older sister, she was always required to be tolerant. Even if she got money, it was spent on snacks for her younger siblings…
Zi Yan blinked and handed the two items she was holding to Song Shuqing.
“Hmm? What are you giving me?” Song Shuqing pushed the woman’s hand back and gently touched her cheek, tenderly advising, “This is your money, it belongs to you. You can handle it however you like. Whether you want to save it or buy rouge, it’s up to you.”
She smiled lightly. “If the rouge you want to buy is too expensive, I have some here.” Tilting her head, Song Shuqing jokingly said, “Although my purse is always flat, I can still manage my wife’s pocket money without any problem.”
“Eh?”
Hearing her senior sister’s words, Ming Qin tilted her head. While handing the copper coins to Murong Yan, who always managed her finances, she asked, “But when we were young in the camp, Senior Sister always said, 『Qinqin’s money is my money, and my money is still my money』.”
Imitating Song Shuqing’s tone from their youth, she gestured as she spoke.
“Yes, even later, our master’s wife couldn’t stand it and repeatedly told Qinqin to keep her money herself, only then did Junior Sister Song’s scheme fail.” Cao Yun calmly added while raising his cup.
“Hey! Can you all stop exposing my past?” Rolling her eyes, Song Shuqing waved her hand dismissively, “That was all in the past. Besides, it was Da Linzi who started it, don’t blame me.”
Leaning over to Zi Yan, she softly explained, “Don’t listen to them. I was just mischievous back then, joking around. I won’t do that anymore. Your money is yours, so keep it properly.”
Feeling the concern in everyone’s eyes and the whispers from the person next to her, Zi Yan felt her heart warm.
She, who always considered others, who always sacrificed for her family, felt pampered in this little teahouse far from home.
Cao Yun, who was taciturn and meticulous; Murong Yan, who was calm and mature; Ming Qin, who was passionate and straightforward, made her, the eldest sister, feel an unprecedented warmth, as if she had gained new support.
And then there was Song Shuqing.
The lover she kept in her heart.
Her eyes grew hot.
“Here, keep this.” Song Shuqing took out a red envelope and a clean handkerchief from her pocket and handed them to the woman who had her head down. “These are for you. I originally planned to give them to you later, but it seems I should give them now, otherwise, if they don’t see it, they’ll say I’m stingy.”
Deliberately looking aside, she stared at the teacup on the table. “Although, right now, it seems like the handkerchief is more useful to you than the red envelope.”
Gently patting Zi Yan’s head, Song Shuqing had a look of relief, “You’re such a crybaby. Luckily, I had the foresight to prepare extra handkerchiefs.”
The previously touching atmosphere was completely disrupted. Seeing the woman who was just teary-eyed now clenching her fists and about to hit her, Song Shuqing quickly stood up and ran away.
“Hey, hey, hey, don’t be mad! I stocked up on dozens of them during the New Year sale.”
Standing at a distance, the shadow guard was clearly teasing, but her eyes were full of mischief, “With such a caring and generous wife like me, Zi Yan, you really must treat me well.”
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The little teahouse was bustling as usual today.
The author has something to say:
Cao Yun is really having a tough time in this teahouse that resembles a girls’ dormitory…
To ensure that good people have a perfect ending, the senior brother also has his own CP, who has already appeared in the story.
Ever since the senior brother got together with his CP, Song Shuqing has been teasing him relentlessly every day. With this clue, everyone can guess who it is ~ it’s a BG (boy-girl relationship).
Someone commented, “The Shadow Guard Camp seems to produce little dogs,” and I think that’s quite true (laughs).
Ming Qin is a bit like a silly and adorable Samoyed, the senior sister is a bit like a Husky testing the edge of danger (very foolish but in a way that makes you can’t scold her), and Cao Yun is like a silent but loyal and handsome Doberman.
In the next three chapters, I will explain the deep friendship among the comrades, and also describe how Cao Yun and Song Shuqing escaped from the Crown Prince’s pursuers and how he lost his arm. The senior brother’s romantic storyline will be a little bit but not too much, and there will be scenes with both the main and supporting CPs. Everyone can see if they are interested in reading further~
LP: Re-translated on June 02, 2024