Early winter, the branches are withering, the moonlight is pale, casting sparse shadows on the ground, sowhat desolate.
A boy’s thin silhouette walked out from this desolation, branch shadows cast between his brows, cold and gloomy.
However, when their eyes t, his pitch-black pupils suddenly swirled with light, his entire deanor changed abruptly, calm and gentle, seemingly very well-behaved.
Tang Xiaobai’s heart softened, and she unconsciously lowered her voice: "It’s so late, why are you here alone?"
She had seen him when she ca in earlier.
At that ti, she was still a bit far away, and if not paying attention, she might have thought he was a night-watching servant.
But Tang Xiaobai was very familiar with her little ancestor’s figure and recognized him at a glance.
It’s just that Gu Family and Tang Jiaojiao were also there, so she did not call out.
Unexpectedly, after making a round, he was still here.
"Nothing to do, ca out to see if Second Miss is back yet?"
He was waiting for her...
Tang Xiaobai suddenly didn’t know what to say.
She stared at him for a while before softly saying: "It’s chilly at night, wear more when you co out."
He responded with a "hmph".
"Go ho, you have to get up early tomorrow." Tang Xiaobai said gently.
He didn’t move.
Tang Xiaobai thought he had sothing important to say, so she let the maids take a few steps back and asked quietly: "What’s wrong?"
His eyelashes suddenly trembled, his eyes bright: "Today is my birthday."
Oh?
Tang Xiaobai blinked.
Such a coincidence?
"Tao Zi, co with , everyone else can go back first!" She quickly had an idea.
...
At this hour, the main kitchen had already extinguished the fire.
"Ah Xiao, go light the fire!" Tao Zi, skilled in cooking, commanded Li Mu without hesitation as soon as she entered the kitchen.
Li Mu was flustered.
How would he know how to light a fire?
Tao Zi glanced at him: "I need to knead the dough. If you don’t light the fire, should Second Miss do it?"
"I can!" Tang Xiaobai rolled up her sleeves, ready to get involved.
Since it’s cooking longevity noodles for the birthday star, how could the birthday star cook themselves?
It’s only lighting a fire. Although she hadn’t done it before, she had seen it on TV.
Seeing is understanding!
Just about to step forward, she was pulled back—
Li Mu glanced at the delicate, snowy white young girl and silently walked towards the stove.
Circled to the back of the stove, picked up a piece of firewood, frowned at it, glanced inside the stove opening, and then put the firewood inside—
"Wait!" Tang Xiaobai shouted.
Li Mu looked up at her, puzzled.
"You need to light it!" Tang Xiaobai sighed helplessly.
"Don’t say you can’t?" Tao Zi rushed over upon hearing, staring at Li Mu strangely, "You don’t even know how to light a fire? Then what have you been doing before?"
Regarding this, Tang Xiaobai was also a bit curious.
When she first t Qin Xiao, although not as spotless as now, his hands were clean, without cuts or calluses.
At the ti, she thought it was the author’s forced setting, but now that Tao Zi asked, she also wanted to know if there was a reasonable explanation.
"Never worked in the kitchen before." Li Mu answered coolly, looking up at the young girl.
The young girl wisely stopped Tao Zi from asking further.
After Tao Zi was sent off to knead the dough, the young girl slowly moved beside him, watching the flas rise in the stove opening, and whispered: "Never worked in the kitchen before, then where have you worked?"
Li Mu slightly turned his face to look at her, the firelight reflecting the rosy cheeks brimming with vitality.
"I’ll tell you later, alright?" Li Mu said softly.
She also turned her face to him, blinked, and suddenly smiled with her eyes curving: "Alright!" The dimples at the corners of her lips seed filled with honey.
Tao Zi moved quickly, kneading, rolling, and heating water, all in order.
Tang Xiaobai wasn’t idle either, rummaging through the kitchen for ingredients.
The noodles stead hot out of the pot, topped with thinly sliced lamb, and a few leaves of mustard greens.
Tang Xiaobai glanced: "Oh dear, it’s missing a poached egg!"
Soup noodles without a poached egg lack soul.
Tao Zi had to heat oil again.
Seeing the lard lt in the pan, Tao Zi reached for an egg, only to grasp nothing.
"I’ll do it!" The Second Miss eagerly held an egg to crack along the pan’s edge, but Tao Zi was too late to stop her, the egg broke open and slipped into the pan.
Suddenly, the oil splattered.
Tang Xiaobai jumped back, and soone blocked her in front.
"Second Miss... are you hurt?" The young boy strained his voice, seeming quite tense.
Tang Xiaobai couldn’t help but laugh: "Just oil, it didn’t splash on !" She said, poking her head past his side to look.
Tao Zi quickly flipped the egg and served it, golden and radiant, atop the lamb soup noodles, the aroma wafting.
"I’ll chop so scallions!" Tao Zi said.
"Ah Xiao doesn’t eat scallions." Tang Xiaobai said, handing the chopsticks to Li Mu.
Tao Zi couldn’t help but feel jealous: "Second Miss only cares about Ah Xiao..."
"I care for everyone!" Tang Xiaobai chuckled, patting her face, "Next ti on Tao Zi’s birthday, I’ll... hmm... crack an egg for you?"
"That’s a promise!" Tao Zi bead.
Li Mu silently bit into the poached egg.
Caring for everyone...
...
After finishing the noodles, it was already the hour of Hai.
People in ancient tis slept early, and Tang Xiaobai was young, usually asleep by this ti.
Now she was yawning continuously, tears welling from drowsiness.
"Second Miss should rest." Li Mu felt sowhat guilty.
He received many birthday gifts at the Crown Prince Mansion today, but his heart still felt empty.
Before, birthdays just passed like that, but this year he had a young girl next to him who accommodated his every whim, prompting him to wonder how this young girl would celebrate his birthday.
Now he knew, and was content, but it had tired her.
Tang Xiaobai wiped the corners of her eyes, nodding and pulling his sleeve: "I have a gift to give you!"
On a birthday, how can there be no birthday gift?
"It’s late, perhaps we should wait until tomorrow?" Li Mu suggested.
Tang Xiaobai shook her head: "Once midnight passes, it won’t be your birthday anymore!"
...
"This...ah..." Tang Xiaobai pointed her finger but first yawned a big yawn, rubbing her eyes and pointing again, "Third Cousin Gu gave three horses to learn riding, which one do you like? I’ll give it to you as a birthday gift! You can learn to ride with , then in spring..." she yawned again, "we can go horseback riding together in the countryside..."
"Second Miss is giving a horse?" Li Mu laughed.
"Do you like it?" Tang Xiaobai rubbed her eyes.
"I do," he looked at her, the young girl was already too sleepy to keep her eyes open, "if soone gave Second Miss a horse, would she like it?"
"If soone gave Second Miss a horse, would she like it?"
"Of course—"
...
"Is this... for ?" Tang Xiaobai looked at the brilliantly glowing little red horse in front of her, suddenly recalling her last conversation with Ah Xiao the previous night.
Did soone actually give her a horse?
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