Her hand was soft, and due to her persistent high fever, even the lightest touch on his head carried a scorching temperature. Just like her, warm enough to startle one’s heart.
Wei Yun quietly looked at her, feeling her body temperature and the sincerity in her words.
Something stirred in his chest, prompting him to make a promise.
“Sister-in-law, don’t worry. In the future, no matter where you go, even if you marry someone else, Xiao Qi will always be your brother, protecting you just like Big Brother would.”
“Sister-in-law, today you are the young madam of the Wei household, and in the future, you’ll be the principal madam. Even if you remarry, there will always be a place for you in the Wei household.”
Hearing this, Chu Yu couldn’t help but smile, finding Wei Yun’s words somewhat childish.
“If I’m the principal madam of the Wei household, what about your wife?”
Now that Wei Yun was the only one left in the Wei family, after Wei Zhong’s burial, he would inherit the position of Marquis Zhenguo. Naturally, Wei Yun’s wife would become the principal madam of the Wei household.
Chu Yu’s question made Wei Yun pause. He seemed not to have considered this issue before.
Seeing Wei Yun’s blank expression, Chu Yu laughed cheerfully, finally seeing some childlike qualities on his face.
She coughed lightly and said to him, “Think about this question carefully, seriously.”
“Mm.” Wei Yun nodded seriously. “I will ponder it well.”
Hearing this, Chu Yu laughed even more heartily. Wei Yun was still somewhat bewildered, not understanding what Chu Yu was laughing about. After Chu Yu finished laughing, her voice gradually subsided, and her gaze fell on Wei Yun. She said with some resignation, “You… are a silly child.”
Wei Yun still didn’t understand, and Chu Yu stopped teasing him. Seeing that daylight was breaking, she took the medicine from Chang Yue’s hand and said to him, “Go to sleep. It’s already dawn. People shouldn’t push themselves like this.”
Wei Yun pressed his lips together, seeming somewhat hesitant. Chu Yu raised an eyebrow, “Is there something else?”
“I… Sister-in-law…” he spoke softly, “Can I… sleep in the outer room?”
“Hm?”
Chu Yu was a bit surprised, then heard Wei Yun say in an almost inaudible voice, “Here… I feel at peace.”
He didn’t say more, but Chu Yu understood.
At this moment, for Wei Yun, she was perhaps a safe harbor. She had already seen him at his most vulnerable, so he could freely show all his joys and sorrows here.
Losing his brother and father, being wrongly imprisoned, single-handedly supporting a noble house – such things would have perhaps already broken any other fourteen-year-old boy. Yet he could still maintain a composed demeanor, and even in that crucial moment when the Emperor inquired, he could remain calm and feign that loyal appearance.
He was constantly under high tension, and only by Chu Yu’s side did he feel at ease.
This was a post-traumatic response, Chu Yu understood. Faced with such a Wei Yun, she could only nod, “You can sleep in the outer room.”
Joy flashed in Wei Yun’s eyes, but he carefully suppressed it, maintaining his outwardly calm demeanor. Chu Yu didn’t expose him, waving her hand to have someone escort him out. She lay down on the couch, covered herself with the blanket, and fell asleep once more.
Before sleeping, she vaguely heard Wei Yun calling her from the outer room, “Sister-in-law?”
She responded with a nasal sound, then heard him ask, “Sister-in-law, do you have nightmares?”
“I do.”
“Then don’t be afraid when you have nightmares,” he said with his eyes open. “I’m here. They say generals carry a blood aura that keeps evil spirits at bay. Sister-in-law, whatever’s in your dreams, I’ll protect you.”
Wei Yun’s words seemed strange, but Chu Yu understood that he wasn’t saying this for her to hear but for himself.
The one afraid of nightmares wasn’t Chu Yu, but Wei Yun.
Chu Yu felt a twinge in her heart. If Wei Yun had openly cried and wailed, she might not have felt this heartache. But him saying such things so calmly and composedly inevitably made one feel pity.
Chu Yu didn’t speak for a long time. Finally, she said steadily, “Don’t be afraid, I’m here.”
Hearing these words, the tension Wei Yun had been holding suddenly relaxed.
It seemed he had been waiting for these words for a very, very long time.
When Wei Yun opened his eyes again, it was already the hour of Shen (3-5 PM). It seemed he hadn’t slept so peacefully in a long time. He didn’t dream, there was nothing, just a sound sleep as if he was that carefree young man before everything happened.
Chu Yu had already risen and was chatting with Jiang Chun in the courtyard.
Jiang Chun had reported to her all that had happened in the Wei household while Chu Yu was ill. Now that Wei Yun had returned, it was time for the burial.
Wei Zhong and the others should have been buried long ago, but according to the customs of Great Chu, when family members were buried, a direct male descendant had to hold the eternal lamp for them before they could be interred. Only if there were no male descendants left in the household would there be an exception.
Now that Wei Yun was still alive, they had to wait for his return no matter what. Now that Wei Yun was back, Jiang Chun had sought out a master to determine a date for the burial: the fifth day of the tenth month.
This date was just two days away, but Chu Yu had been preparing for the burial for a long time, so it wasn’t particularly rushed. Liu Xueyang had also returned to the capital with the five young masters on the day Wei Yun was released from prison, and they would arrive soon.
As Chu Yu and Jiang Chun were confirming the dates, Wei Yun woke up. After washing up, he heard Chu Yu and Jiang Chun discussing matters in the courtyard, so he had someone push his wheelchair to take him out.
When he arrived in the courtyard, Chu Yu was telling Jiang Chun some amusing stories, her eyes full of mirth.
Wei Yun stopped there, quietly watching the two of them.
Chu Yu was reclining on the ground, her black hair scattered, flowers pinned in it, her white wide-sleeved robe spread out on the ground, looking casual and at ease. Jiang Chun knelt opposite her, her hair in a high bun, her demeanor graceful and dignified.
The afternoon sunlight was pleasant, falling on the two of them, making the entire scene especially peaceful. Wei Yun watched quietly, feeling a warmth spreading in his heart just from this silent observation.
He didn’t dare to go up and disturb them, but Chu Yu noticed him first. She turned her head, saw Wei Yun, and said with a smile, “Xiao Qi is here.”
That smile directed at him seemed to brighten the whole world.
That brightness came silently, yet irresistibly.
He pushed his wheelchair to her, nodded, and said, “Elder Sister-in-law.”
Then he looked at Jiang Chun and said, “Second Sister-in-law.”
“Have you eaten?” Jiang Chun looked at Wei Yun and asked with a smile. Wei Yun nodded, “I’ve just had some snacks.”
Jiang Chun nodded and said to Wei Yun, “I was just discussing the burial arrangements with your elder sister-in-law. We’re planning to set it for the fifth day of the tenth month. What do you think?”
Wei Yun didn’t speak. After a moment of silence, he slowly nodded.
After the three of them had discussed the entire process, Jiang Chun went to prepare the things that weren’t ready yet. Chu Yu and Wei Yun watched her leave the courtyard, and then Chu Yu’s gaze returned to Wei Yun.
“What were you thinking just now? You hesitated for so long before answering. Is there any problem with the fifth day of the tenth month?”
“There’s no real problem,” Wei Yun smiled, his expression somewhat dazed. “It’s just that I thought I would be very sad.”
“Before, every time they discussed the burial of my father and brother with me, I felt very painful. I didn’t want to hear a single word, always feeling that once they were buried, they would truly be gone forever.”
Chu Yu nodded, not saying much. Wei Yun’s gaze fell on Chu Yu, “But today when your sisters-in-law talked to me about this, I didn’t find it so hard to accept.”
“I’m grieving, but…” Wei Yun sighed, “I eventually have to let go.”
Eventually, he had to acknowledge that some people had already left.
Chu Yu looked at him quietly, wanting to say something, but feeling that her words might be too inadequate. She could only smile, “Suddenly, I’m very envious of those silver-tongued people.”
“Hm?” Wei Yun was a bit confused. Chu Yu looked up at the bright red maple leaves in the courtyard and said with a smile, “If I were like that, I could probably say many more comforting words to you, and perhaps you would be happier.”
Hearing this, Wei Yun smiled.
“Actually, with my sister-in-law here, I’m already very content.”
He lowered his eyes, hiding the expression in them, and slowly said, “Sometimes I dream that in this world, there is no such person as sister-in-law, only myself.”
“In the dream without me, what is it like?”
Chu Yu was somewhat curious. Wei Yun was silent for a while. Just when Chu Yu almost thought he wouldn’t speak anymore and was about to change the subject, she suddenly heard him open his mouth—
“I dreamed that I came back alone with my father and brother, and when I entered the door, I heard crying throughout the courtyard. Those cries made me feel utterly desperate. They kept wailing, never stopping. In the dream, I didn’t dare to speak, didn’t dare to cry, didn’t dare to make any sound. I just held my father’s spirit tablet, carrying my long spear, not moving at all.”
“Then I was thrown into prison for a very long time… When I came out, my Second Sister-in-law was gone, my Mother was gone, and only the other sisters-in-law were left, kneeling around me, crying and begging me to give them divorce papers. The entire dream was filled with crying, never stopping. Everywhere I looked, it was either black or white, making one’s heart feel cold.”
“I had nowhere to rest—”
Wei Yun seemed a bit dazed as if he had lived through such a life.
No way to go, nowhere to stop, carrying the burden of countless blood debts and the expectations of the entire family, moving forward without a moment’s pause.
“I could only keep going forward. No matter how bitter, how difficult, how long, how desperate the road was—”
“I had to keep moving forward.”
As Chu Yu listened to his words, what appeared in her eyes was the Wei Yun from her previous life.
He liked to wear black and white. When he appeared, the world seemed to be filled with an air of death and cold.
People called him the Living King of Hell, not just because he had killed many. It was also because when he appeared, it made people feel as if he had brought hell to the mortal world.
However, listening to Wei Yun’s words, Chu Yu vaguely understood that Wei Yun from her previous life wasn’t bringing hell to the mortal world at all.
It was clear that he had been living in hell all along. Unable to escape, he dragged everyone down with him.
Realizing this, Chu Yu’s heart trembled slightly, and an indescribable tenderness welled up. Her gaze fell on Wei Yun, and after a long while, she raised her hand and plucked a white flower from her hair.
She held the flower in front of Wei Yun, who was slightly startled, not understanding what she was doing.
Chu Yu smiled and asked, “Do you like this flower?”
Wei Yun didn’t quite understand what Chu Yu was asking, but he honestly answered, “I like it.”
“Then I’ll give you this flower,” Chu Yu said as if joking, “From now on, you won’t be unhappy anymore, okay?”
Wei Yun was stunned. After a long time, he lowered his eyes and reached out to take the perfectly bloomed white flower from her hand.
“Okay.”