Chapter 16

Chapter 16

Song Yun was already starving.

Today, after returning from court, the master went straight to his official duties and wouldn't return. Thus, after chatting with her children for a while, the mistress had breakfast served early.

Now Song Yun finally understood why Wei Yuerong had tea and snacks upon waking. After all this activity, Song Yun felt even more exhausted than when he used to attend classes with Ruan Hang, and he was ravenous.

Yet, Song Yun and the others still couldn’t eat—they had to wait for the family members to finish first. The dining hall had two large round tables. At the central main table sat the mistress, flanked by Ruan Cheng and Ruan Hang, with Ruan Ying and Miss Sixteenth, and then the other young ladies raised under the mistress’s care. The second table was for the remaining young ladies.

The Ruan family had many children, and Ruan Zhengye particularly enjoyed gathering them all for meals, resulting in a rather crowded scene. Fortunately, the presence of the children made the atmosphere much more lively and cheerful, with laughter and chatter filling the room.

All the concubines dispersed to serve the young masters and ladies, distributing chopsticks, serving rice, and arranging dishes. Song Yun wasn’t sure where he should go and was about to shadow Wei Yuerong when Wei Yuerong gave him a discreet glance, signaling him to follow Ruan Hang instead.

But for some reason, Song Yun felt a little afraid of Ruan Hang now—all because Ruan Hang had been so harsh with him last night. Even the scent of his pheromones made Song Yun apprehensive. Hesitating, he still edged forward a few steps and stood beside Ruan Hang.

Song Yun served him a bowl of jade-green rice porridge. The Ruan family, being from Yangzhou, preferred a lavish breakfast spread, with an array of side dishes and both sweet and savory pastries on the table. His mouth watered at the sight, and before he knew it, his stomach growled loudly.

Ruan Hang seemed to hear it and glanced over at him. Song Yun felt embarrassed, but it wasn’t his fault—Ruan Hang was eating heartily while he could only watch. It had never been like this before.

Ruan Hang ate with refined manners, never wolfing down food like Song Yun did. He would take a bite of a bun, set down his chopsticks, then pick up a spoon for a sip of porridge. Though he ate quietly, Song Yun couldn’t help but drool as he watched Ruan Hang enjoy soup dumplings, three-delicacy buns, shaomai, and glutinous rice cakes… When Song Yun reached over to refill his porridge, the smell of the food made his stomach growl again.

This time, Ruan Hang didn’t look back, but Miss Sixteenth beside him heard it.

“Brother, are you hungry too?” she asked innocently, holding out a red bean bun for him. She seemed too young to understand proper decorum.

Song Yun was flustered—he didn’t know whether to take it or refuse, standing there awkwardly.

Just as he hesitated, Ruan Hang took the bun from her hand and placed it back in her bowl, saying, “Shiliu, eat it yourself. Second Brother will take him for something delicious later.”

Satisfied with this answer, Miss Sixteenth went back to eating.

Soon, breakfast ended. The young masters and ladies dispersed to their studies, while the mistress returned to her quarters to handle household affairs. Wei Yuerong stayed behind to direct the maids in cleaning up, and Song Yun helped while silently grumbling about Ruan Hang. Empty promises—he had left for school right after eating. If Song Yun had really waited for him to bring food, he’d have starved.

In the end, Wei Yuerong proved more reliable, inviting him to the Moon-Store Pavilion for breakfast.

Though he hadn’t been there many times, Song Yun already felt at home in the Moon-Store Pavilion. The moment he stepped into the courtyard, he relaxed, his face breaking into a smile. Seeing him so happy, Wei Yuerong couldn’t help but chuckle.

They ate in the inner room, where a low table between two cushions was placed by the window—Wei Yuerong’s usual spot. Several maids had already laid out their breakfast, and Song Yun prepared to sit down.

But before he could, Wei Yuerong specifically asked for an extra goose-down cushion for him.

“Why just for me?” Song Yun asked curiously.

Wei Yuerong burst out laughing, as if surprised by the question and unsure how to answer. Finally, he said, “Because you need it.”

Puzzled, Song Yun only realized the cushion’s necessity when he sat down.

He really did need it. The realization made his face burn with embarrassment, especially since Wei Yuerong was still laughing.

“Stop laughing at me. I’m not completely clueless,” Song Yun protested softly.

Wei Yuerong quickly said, “Alright, alright, I won’t laugh. Eat now.” But he was still smiling.

Song Yun was so hungry he felt dizzy. The bowl of dumplings his mother had given him before leaving last night had long digested. He couldn’t afford to worry about anything else and quickly grabbed a bun to eat.

The Ruan household observed strict hierarchies in food and clothing. For example, the master, mistress, and young masters and ladies usually ate pale green Yutian rice, while in the past, the late dowager had enjoyed imperial-grade red rice exclusively for herself. Wei Yuerong’s breakfast wasn’t as lavish as the main household’s—his porridge was made of plain white rice, clearly not the best quality fare.

This surprised Song Yun. Even as a lowly page, he usually ate the same food as Ruan Hang. Still, the kitchen knew how to curry favor, sending over some exquisite pastries. Song Yun, never one to be picky, ate with satisfaction.

As he ate, Song Yun heard a voice outside—it sounded like one of Ruan Hang’s maids. Soon, she was led in by Wei Yuerong’s maid.

It was indeed her—the same girl who had woken him up that morning.

“Did Second Young Master send any instructions?” Wei Yuerong set down his chopsticks and asked.

“No,” the maid replied, her cheeks flushed as if she had run over. She carried a food box. “Second Young Master told me to bring breakfast for Brother Song Yun. I didn’t know where he was—it took me forever to find him.”

“He really sent food for me?” Song Yun beamed as he took the box, thanking the maid before bringing it to the low table.

Once she left, Song Yun opened the box to find several pastries from the main household’s breakfast—a basket of crab roe soup dumplings and his favorite emerald-green shaomai.

Brightening, he placed the dishes on the table and said to Wei Yuerong, “Let’s eat together.”

Wei Yuerong smiled with amusement. “Second Young Master truly cares for you.”

Song Yun nodded as he bit into a soup dumpling, but then his expression dimmed with sadness. “No, he doesn’t. He’s really mean.”

Amused, Wei Yuerong asked, “What did he do?”

“He…” Song Yun hesitated, then couldn’t hold back. “He lied to me last night and kept bullying me. He’s just awful now—nothing like before.”

Wei Yuerong laughed again, showing no sympathy.

“You’re still such a child,” he remarked with a chuckle.

Song Yun grew even more indignant, but the breakfast Ruan Hang had sent softened his anger. In the end, he just sighed quietly while holding his bun.

Wei Yuerong found him utterly endearing and teased, “What’s troubling you? You’re too young to sigh like that.”

“Nothing,” Song Yun muttered. He felt no one understood him.

Then he remembered what the mistress had said to him that morning and seized the chance to ask Wei Yuerong, “This morning, the mistress asked me if the young master liked me. What should I have said?”

Wei Yuerong smiled. “You answered just fine.”

“Not really. Everyone laughed at me—I heard them,” Song Yun grumbled.

“They weren’t laughing because your answer was bad. They laughed because you’re adorable,” Wei Yuerong explained.

“But I don’t want people laughing at me all the time,” Song Yun insisted. “What should I say to avoid that?”

Seeing how serious he was, Wei Yuerong finally gave it some thought. “You could say, ‘I dare not claim the young master’s favor, but I serve with diligence.’ That would suffice.”

Song Yun’s eyes widened in realization. “Oh! Why didn’t I think of that? I’m so stupid.”

But Wei Yuerong chuckled and asked, “Do you think that’s a good way to speak?”

Unsure what he meant, Song Yun thought it over and answered honestly, “It seems good, right? The mistress would probably be happier hearing that.”

“Mm,” Wei Yuerong agreed, then asked, “But what about you? Would speaking like that make you happy?”

Song Yun considered it and seemed to understand. His expression fell. “Not really. It feels uncomfortable. I don’t actually want to talk like that.”

Wei Yuerong nodded. “The mistress told you to learn from me, but I don’t want you to become like me. I’d rather you think less about whether others are pleased and more about whether you’re pleased when you speak.”

Song Yun tried to imagine that. Though he wasn’t the brightest, Ruan Hang had always been patient with him. Still, living in a master’s household, he had to carefully weigh every word before speaking. It often troubled him, and though he chattered like a sparrow at home or around Ruan Hang, elsewhere he stayed silent, having learned to speak as little as possible.

When could he ever speak without worrying only about pleasing his masters—when could he think about his own happiness too?

“How do I become like that?” Song Yun asked.

“I don’t know,” Wei Yuerong admitted honestly.

Song Yun couldn’t put it into words, but he understood. Hopes were often just hopes—but if they were good hopes, life might become a little more worth looking forward to. At least hope was something he could control. If possible, he’d like to become someone freer, not just better at pleasing others.