The cautious yet slightly apprehensive and excited expression on her face made everyone unable to hold back their laughter.
Gao Xuan even went out of his way to carve two carrot flowers and placed them next to the shredded pork. With this plating, the Peking-style shredded pork looked increasingly delightful, elevating the dish’s level by several notches!
"Big sister."
Smiling at Xiao He, who stood excitedly before her with the plate in hand, Lin Yuan gently stroked the strands of hair on her forehead and softly advised, "Go on, but rember, no matter what happens, you mustn’t lose your composure."
Xiao He was currently lost in the excitent and anticipation of reuniting with her mother, barely grasping the aning behind Lin Yuan’s words. She simply nodded and went out with Shopkeeper Liu.
Lin Yuan didn’t want to witness the scene of their eting, even if it was a blissful and warm picture. She just wanted Xiao He to bravely face it on her own.
Sitting quietly on a stone bench in the backyard, Lin Yuan rhythmically tapped her fingers on the table, absentmindedly counting numbers.
One, two, three... eight, nine, ten, eleven...
Before she could utter twelve, Lin Yuan heard hurried and chaotic footsteps approaching. Her heart skipped a beat, and she suddenly looked up to see Xiao He, ticulously dressed, stumbling distraughtly back into the backyard.
Her eyes, like those of a startled doe, were filled with panic, and her long eyelashes trembled erratically.
Xiao He instinctively entered the kitchen but quickly retreated before stepping inside.
She looked around the backyard in confusion, finally fixing her gaze on Lin Yuan.
Sensing sothing amiss, Lin Yuan slowly stood up and softly called, "Xiao He?"
Xiao He, pale-faced and biting her lips tightly, had her emotions completely disrupted by Lin Yuan’s call.
"Big sister!"
With a loud cry, Xiao He ran towards Lin Yuan and threw herself into her arms.
Only when she had fully embraced Xiao He did Lin Yuan realize she was sobbing uncontrollably, her tears soaking even her own shoulder.
It wasn’t yet sumr, just early spring; her clothes were not thin, so the tears soaked in so quickly, which showed how heavy Xiao He’s tears were.
Unlike the previous sobs, this ti, Xiao He was truly wailing, like an aggrieved child, releasing all her pent-up emotions in a torrent.
The chefs in the back kitchen all heard Xiao He’s cries and rushed out, looking at her with concern.
Gao Xuan’s face clearly showed so anxiety and restlessness. He wanted to rush over to inquire several tis but eventually stopped, only able to look on with concern and pity at Xiao He’s anguished figure.
Shopkeeper Liu also closely followed Xiao He into the backyard, sighed continuously upon seeing Xiao He crying like this.
Lin Yuan gently patted Xiao He’s back, soothing her softly, but no matter how she comforted her, she couldn’t find the right words.
From the mont Xiao He returned, Lin Yuan had already guessed that things hadn’t gone smoothly.
If the mother and daughter had truly reunited, Xiao He wouldn’t have returned so quickly, nor would she be so distraught, not knowing where to go.
And just as Lin Yuan suspected, when Xiao He excitedly brought her carefully made dish to Lady Chen, Lady Chen rely looked up at her and pretended not to recognize her, continuing to serve dishes and pour wine for Jin Wannian.
Watching Lady Chen attentively serve an old man, even calling him "Sir" and referring to herself as a "concubine," how could Xiao He not understand the situation before her?
Her mother had remarried and beco this old man’s woman.
And she was just a child abandoned by her mother. Even though she had always hoped to reunite with her mother soday, facing this scene, she couldn’t help but suppress her excitent, placed the dish on the table, and left without looking back.
No wonder her big sister reminded her not to lose composure; it turned out her big sister already knew about her mother’s remarriage.
Rembering Lin Yuan’s advice, Xiao He, even though her heart was in great pain, did not show the slightest trace of displeasure or disappointnt in front of Lady Chen. She held her head high and proudly returned to the backyard.
But an act is always an act; without Lady Chen in front of her, Xiao He imdiately revealed her true emotions and ran into Lin Yuan’s arms, crying loudly.
From Shopkeeper Liu’s eyes and gestures, Lin Yuan roughly understood what had just happened. She felt both indignant at Lady Chen’s heartlessness and guilty for not thinking things through.
If she had told Xiao He the truth about Lady Chen before, it might have given Xiao He the chance to choose for herself whether to et Lady Chen or give her ti to consider.
"Xiao He, I’m sorry, big sister didn’t tell you beforehand..."
"No, big sister, that’s not it."
Before Lin Yuan could finish, Xiao He interrupted her with sobs, raising her tear-streaked little face and sniffling as she said, "Big sister, thank you for telling she was here. Even if you had told she had remarried, I still would have gone to see her."
Wiping away the tears on her face, Xiao He cald down a bit: "Actually, this is just fine. Seeing that she’s still alive, I feel relieved of a burden."
Lin Yuan was taken aback, not expecting Xiao He to say sothing like that.
Indeed, a single woman leaving ho alone in this not very peaceful, chaotic era wasn’t a good thing.
At first, Xiao He never ntioned her mother, perhaps thinking she had already t with so mishap.
Xiao He chattered softly to Lin Yuan about her feelings, and Lin Yuan just silently listened.
She said she was happy just to see Lady Chen again today. Even if Lady Chen didn’t want to acknowledge her, and even though she had remarried, a weight in her heart had lifted.
After all, she was her real mother. No matter what she did that she shouldn’t have done, there was no way for a daughter to bla her.
Lin Yuan couldn’t help feeling ashad for not being as forgiving and broad-minded as Xiao He, and also felt it wasn’t worth it that Lady Chen had abandoned such an understanding and filial daughter.
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