Chapter 7
Third Sister Yu Jianjia
However, it seemed that she could only use this special spiritual dewdrop sparingly. She was already feeling dizzy and nauseous from producing this dewdrop in her palm, in addition to the drop she had drunk in her dream previously.
Yu Youyao clenched her chunky fingers together. When she opened her palm again, the dewdrop was already gone.
Although something so bizarre was happening to her, she was not only unafraid, she was even feeling excited.
For some reason, she suddenly recalled the nightmare that she had previously.
She thought about it carefully. Back when she fainted in the temple hall, the child Buddha from her jade pendant had moved to her forehead, and she had a nightmare after that.
There had to be a connection. Plus, that dream had felt so real. It was terrifying. Since waking up, she’d purposely avoided thinking about it, unwilling to remember it, but still, she had been imperceptibly affected by the nightmare. Even the way she considered matters had become more like an adult, and the way she spoke had become incredibly logical.
It was as if she had lived many additional years. Wasn’t that just too strange?
Was it possible that it was not just a dream, but something that was going to happen when she grew up?
The more Yu Youyao thought about it, the more likely it seemed. She recalled that in her dream, she had been locked up in a small courtyard and had become a medicine-human, providing blood to others. In the end, they had even dug out her heart. She couldn’t help but shiver, then she ran to her bed in fright, crawling under her covers to hide.
…
The next day, Yu Youyao woke up bright and early—a rare occurrence.
Little Youyao was dressed by Chun Xiao. Her snow fox fur was inlaid with a red dress coat, and there were large pink roses embroidered on it. She looked truly precious and delightful.
Seeing how happy the young girl was, Chun Xiao could not help but tease her, “Young Mistress, why are you so happy so early in the morning?”
“You want to know?” Yu Youyao asked with a blink of her big eyes.
Chun Xiao nodded. “I really want to know.”
“I won’t tell you.” After saying that, Yu Youyao burst into a fit of giggles, her beaming little face rosy and adorable.
She had thought long and hard last night. Finally, she had come up with a great idea.
In her dream, the adult Yao Yao was having such a miserable fate because she was alone and helpless with no one to protect her. As long as her grandmother was well and lived a long life, no one would dare to treat her like a medicine-human, nor take her blood and dig out her heart.
Taking advantage of the fact that Chun Xiao was talking to the maidservants, Yu Youyao produced a spiritual dewdrop. She felt that the effect of the spiritual dew would be too obvious and Grandmother would definitely notice it, so she only added a tiny bit of it.
From now on, she would put a tiny drop of it in her grandmother’s tea every day, so that it would gradually help to improve her health.
Although Yu Youyao was still young, she was vaguely aware that all of this that was happening to her was too mystical. It was better not to let others know about it.
Yu Youyao instructed Chun Xiao to bring the Ru Kiln teapot to her grandmother’s room.
Chun Xiao stuffed the handle of it back into her young mistress’s hands, and she couldn’t help but laugh. “Don’t you think that Old Madam has a teapot of her own?”
Yu Youyao lifted her eyebrows. “How can my tea be considered the same?”
Chun Xiao smiled as she sent the Ru Kiln teapot over, thinking, “The Old Madam’s house does not need any more tea, but it would be good to have Young Mistress’s filial piety.”
Ever since Yu Youyao turned seven, she had moved out of Old Madam Yu’s house and into the south wing of the An Shou Hall, which was only a few steps away.
In the An Shou Hall, the pattern of the velvet carpet symbolized longevity and good fortune. On each side of the inner door, there were cabinets of antique vases, which were all exquisite and beautiful. In the corner, there was a tall vase that was half as tall as any person, and it held elegant branches of red plum blossoms.
Not far from the main hall, there was a part.i.tion screen with patterns of carved flowers and birds. Behind the screen was an ebony shrine with a jade Bodhisattva statue that was white and flawless, with warm and l.u.s.trous color tones. It was white jade of superior quality, and just a single one of it would cost more than priceless.
At this moment, Old Madam Yu was already up and talking to Nanny Liu. Naturally, she was overjoyed when she saw her granddaughter so lively and bubbly, with her little face pink and rosy, looking very well. “Yao Yao, why are you up so early?”
“I woke up early to come visit you, Grandmother.” Yu Youyao took the Ru Kiln teapot from Chun Xiao’s hands and poured a cup of tea for her grandmother, following the customary etiquette of greeting her grandmother rather impressively. “Grandmother, please have some tea.”
“Good! Good! Good!” When Old Madam Yu saw this, she laughed heartily. She received the cup of tea from her granddaughter’s hands, lifted the lid, and lowered her head to take a sip.
The tea which she used to find so ordinary now tasted sweet in her mouth, with a subtle fragrance that relaxed her. As she drank it, she also felt her body becoming refreshed and energized.
She couldn’t stop herself, and finished the entire cup of tea.
Yu Youyao poured another cup of tea for Nanny Liu. “Nanny, it’s been hard on you taking care of Grandmother and me. Have some too.”
Grandmother could not live without Nanny Liu’s care. Nanny Liu needs to be well too, so that she could take care of Grandmother and her for a long time.
“Little Yao Yao, you’re really a smart little thing.”
Nanny Liu did not receive the tea immediately. She turned to look at Old Madam.
“Why are you looking at me? Yao Yao is so young, and you’re always helping to take care of her. She’s serving you tea personally, of course you can drink it.”
Old Madam Yu had a look of reproach. She did not feel that there was anything improper about her granddaughter’s actions. Instead, she only felt that her granddaughter had suddenly matured and understood how to be considerate. Her heart was incomparably warmed.
Nanny Liu happily took the cup of tea and drank it happily. “The tea that Eldest Miss served personally is indeed extraordinary. It smells nice and it feels calming. Old Madam is really blessed that Eldest Miss already knows how to be filial at such a young age. Even a servant like me gets to benefit from it.”
Old Madam Yu’s heart sank when she heard this. While holding her granddaughter’s hand, she realized that the once chubby hand seemed to have become a lot thinner, and her granddaughter almost looked slender now.
In just a few days, her granddaughter had changed a lot. There was also a sense of calmness in her eyes now. She had changed from being a mischievous monkey to a big girl.
Old Madam Yu asked Yu Youyao about her health again, and Yu Youyao replied that she was fine.
But Old Madam Yu was still worried and asked Chun Xiao for confirmation, only relaxing completely when Chun Xiao affirmed it. She then instructed the maidservants in the room to prepare a meal.
Soon, more than ten types of snacks, dishes and desserts were placed on the table.
Old Madam Yu was getting on in years and Yu Youyao had just recovered from a serious illness, so it wasn’t suitable for them to eat anything too meaty or heavy. Therefore, the food on the table was generally light and easy to digest.
The grandmother and granddaughter pair finished their breakfast happily as they fed each other and enjoyed each other’s company.
Just then, Yang Shuwan came to visit with her daughter, Yu Jianjia, and her son, Yu Shansi.
Perhaps because she had not slept well last night, Yang Shuwan’s face was covered with a thick layer of powder, but it could not hide the dark shadows under her eyes and her haggard face.
Yu Jianjia, who was following behind her, was dressed in an embroidered silver-white coat dress. She had a slim figure and a red fur collar around her neck, which made her pale face look even more frail and weak.
Like a delicate white lotus flower in the lotus pond on a fine summer day.
She looked really pure and flawless.
…