Chapter 842: Treasure
Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios
A surge of heat rushed to his head, and he suddenly had the urge to rub and play with it. He had to use all his strength to suppress this ridiculous thought.
If Yu Youyao paid attention to him, she would realize that Yin Huaixi’s ears were red.
Unfortunately, Yu Youyao was enduring the pain and was not in the mood to pay attention to this. The pain was a little better than before, but it was still very painful. She let out a small whimper from her throat and tried her best to endure it.
Gradually, she felt that Yin Huaixi’s hand that was holding her foot was a little hot. It was hot with sweat, and for no reason, it was so hot that the soles of her feet were numb. The numbness crawled along her calves like ants, making her body go limp.
The process of enduring was too difficult.
Yin Huaixi suddenly remembered that once, when his father had brought them up the mountain to play, his mother had accidentally sprained her ankle. As his father ma.s.saged his mother’s feet, he had even joked to make her happy.
Hence, he cleared his throat. “In the past, there were two brothers living in a village. The two brothers were both old enough to get married, but there was no girl in the village that they liked. The two brothers decided to look outside the village. One day, the two of them pa.s.sed by a village and b.u.mped into a girl at the entrance.”
Yu Youyao’s eyes widened. For a moment, she forgot that her feet hurt. She quickly asked, “Is that girl especially beautiful? Did both brothers like that girl at the same time and want to marry her?”
She had already imagined a scene of two brothers competing for a woman.
Yes, that was what it said in the book.
Yin Huaixi was amused when he heard this. He shook his head and continued, “The Eldest Son felt that this girl was the person he wanted to find. In contrast, the Second Son felt that this girl didn’t look very good and planned to continue looking elsewhere.”
Ah?! Why was it different from what she had expected? Yu Youyao quickly said, “What happened after that?”
As Yin Huaixi told the story, his hands did not stop ma.s.saging her. “The Eldest Son asked the local people about that girl. As she wasn’t good-looking, no one had ever proposed to her, and she had received a lot of gossip. However, he didn’t care and asked about the local tradition of proposing.”
“The locals told him that when a man proposed, he had to use cows as a betrothal gift. Ordinary girls only needed one or two cows. Virtuous and beautiful girls needed four or five cows, and the most they needed was nine cows. Such girls were like fairies. There were no such girls in the area at all, and no one had ever given nine cows.”
Yu Youyao couldn’t help but ask, “How many cows did the Eldest Son use to marry the girl?”
Yin Huaixi revealed, “The Eldest Son bought nine cows and drove the cows to propose the next day.”
“Ah?!” Yu Youyao was shocked. Could this be a story of blind love?
Yin Huaixi lowered his head and continued, “He knocked on the door of the young lady’s house. When the young lady’s father found out why the Eldest Son had come, he was very shocked. He quickly told the Eldest Son that his daughter was just an ordinary young lady, and to just give them one or two cows. The villagers would laugh at her if he sent so many cows over.”
Yu Youyao listened attentively, and her attention shifted to the story.
Yin Huaixi couldn’t help but heave a sigh of relief. “The Eldest Son said, ‘Your daughter is the best girl in the world. I think she’s worth nine cows. Please accept her.’ After his fruitless persuasion, in order to marry her off, the father could only agree.”
“After he got married, the Eldest Son always treated his wife as the best girl in the world. Five years later, the Second Son still hadn’t found a girl he was satisfied with, so he could only return to his hometown. He walked into the village and saw a girl who looked like a fairy at the entrance. He couldn’t help but use the excuse of asking about his brother to go forward and talk to her. The girl brought the Second Son to the Eldest Son. The brothers were very happy to reunite after a long time. The Second Son asked the Eldest Son why he didn’t see his sister-in-law.”
Yu Youyao was stunned for a moment. “Could that fairy-like girl be the wife whom the Eldest Son married back then?”
Yin Huaixi nodded. “The Eldest Son said, ‘You’ve already seen her, right? The person who brought you back just now was your sister-in-law.’ The Second Son couldn’t believe it no matter what and asked. ‘Brother, but you said that your sister-in-law was the same as before.’”
Yu Youyao was also at a loss. “Why is it that in the Second Brother’s eyes, his sister-in-law has become a fairy? In the Eldest Son’s eyes, his wife has never changed.”
Yin Huaixi continued, “The more the Second Brother thought about it, the stranger he felt, so he went to look for his sister-in-law. His sister-in-law smiled and said, ‘Before I met your brother, everyone, including my parents and relatives, felt that I was ugly and not worth a cow. Even I thought so.’”
“However, your brother felt that I was worth nine cows. As time pa.s.sed, even I thought that I was worth nine cows. Unknowingly, I had become like this.”
Yu Youyao was enlightened. Appearance came from the heart!
A person’s life was not fixed. A person’s appearance and personality would also change according to their heart. The human heart changed according to the environment a person was in and the people they interacted with.
Yin Huaixi said gently, “In the Eldest Son’s heart, his wife had always been the best girl in the world, so he felt that his wife has never changed. She’s still the most beautiful girl. She was in the past, is now, and will always be. She wouldn’t change just because time pa.s.sed and her face gradually changed. This also made his wife firmly believe that she’s worthy of nine cows, so she became the woman who is worth nine cows, the person she was supposed to be.”
Yu Youyao was stunned. She and Yin Huaixi were in the story itself.
In everyone’s eyes, this stupid, mischievous, and uneducated little girl was treated like a treasure by her “cousin” who was living under someone else’s roof. As time pa.s.sed, she also became what a treasure should be.
Yin Huaixi lowered his head. “In my heart, you’re the best girl.
Yu Youyao’s heart trembled as she made up for what he had yet to say in her heart. It had been like this in the past, now, and ever since. It would not change because of the pa.s.sage of time.
Since she was favored by a person, she was willing to be generous for the rest of her life.
Yin Huaixi lowered his head and ma.s.saged her for half an hour. The bruise on her ankle had already faded. Her foot was still swollen, but her slender and beautiful appearance was also revealed.
He had suddenly told her about this piece of history to divert his attention and Yu Youyao’s attention.
“The ma.s.sage is already done.” Yin Huaixi tore off a piece of cloth from her skirt and wrapped it around her feet before finally letting go.
There was still the beauty of the soft jade in his palm, making him feel a little disappointed and relieved.
Only then did Yu Youyao suddenly realize that the ma.s.sage had ended, and the sweat on her body had never stopped. The hair at her temples was even drenched.
Yu Youyao’s entire body was covered in sweat. All the strength in her body seemed to have been drained by the pain just now. Her sitting body couldn’t help but fall.
Yin Huaixi quickly reached out and pulled her into his arms. “Are you feeling better?”