Chapter 23: Who is the Master of this House?

  Xue Shaoping was dressed up, sitting in front of the dresser selecting accessories, she had an important business dinner tonight. Sutu Xuan was half lying on her mother's big bed, occasionally pulling at the tassels on the pillow.

  "How does this earring match with what I'm wearing?" Xue Shaoping turned her head to ask her daughter, the pearl earrings swaying on the side of her face.

  "It's okay." Situ Xuan said listlessly.

  Xue Shaoping took off her earrings and looked at her daughter in the mirror, saying casually: "What's wrong with you today, looking so listless?"

  Situ Xuan said: "No, I just have a bit of stomach discomfort."

  "What's wrong, stomachache?" Xue Shaoping's face turned serious, "Last time you came back from camping and got a stomachache, didn't Mom tell you to pay attention to your diet?"

  "It's probably no big deal, I got back from school late yesterday afternoon and didn't eat dinner, just casually gnawed on an apple, and that's how it ended up."

  "Why aren't you eating?" Xue Shaoping patted her daughter's leg sympathetically.

  Situ Xuan muttered: "Aunt Yao didn't leave anything for me again."

  Xue Shaoping stopped talking and continued to compare the two earrings in the mirror, only after a long time did she say: "Have you told her that we're going back home for dinner?"

  "It's no use saying anything." Situ Xuan sat up and hugged Xue Shaoping's arm before his mother asked, drawing out his voice to say: "Mom, I think Aunt Yao doesn't like me."

  "For no reason at all, why doesn't she like you?" Xue Shaoping looked at her.

  "Situ Xuan thought for a moment and said, 'Maybe she saw that I sometimes quarrel with Qiyun and thought I was bullying him. Originally, her starting point might have been good, she hoped that my relationship with Qiyun would be better... Wu Jiang came to our house yesterday, also starving.'"

  "What's this kid thinking?" Xue Shaoping smiled.

  "Mother, you don't believe me but believe outsiders?" Siu Yuk exclaimed in anger.

  "Baby, I've told you before that respect and kindness are mutual. It's not impressive to be kind to those who are stronger than you; it's being kind to those who are weaker than you that shows a broad mind. Qi Yun's aunt is after all someone who comes to our house to work, we're right to treat her with generosity. If she does something wrong, it's laughable to scold her. In short, I don't like hearing you talk about her behind her back. You are the master of this household, you should learn how to make her understand that. This is the way to resolve your differences."

  Situ Xuan heard this and hung his head in silence, Xue Shaoping hesitated for a moment, then said: "This Yao aunt's personality is a bit strong, but no matter what she says, she is still the elder sister of Yun's family. As the saying goes, when beating a dog, one must consider its master. If we're not careful and make it difficult for Yun to save face, things will get ugly."

  She finally put everything on, picked up her handbag and rushed out the door. When she reached the entrance of the house, she turned back to instruct her daughter: "Oh right, later you tell your Aunt Yao for me that the ice sugar silver ear in the kitchen is stewing, when it's done, put it in the fridge to chill, remember, I want it to be icy cold when I get back."

  Xīu Xiǎo thought for a moment, then ran out to the second-floor railing and flattered Xue Shaoping: "Mom, this outfit looks really good on you."

  Xue Shaoping left, Situ Xuan immediately entered the kitchen and said to Yao Auntie who was chopping vegetables: "Auntie, is today's ice sugar silver ear done? The weather is hot, remember to help me chill it, I hate eating warm food the most."

  Aunt Yao stopped and looked at her for a moment without saying anything.

  Cai Tu Jue didn't waste any words, humming a tune as she turned around and left. At the kitchen door, she ran into Yao Qi Yun. Seeing Cai Tu Jue's great mood, he was taken aback for a moment and tried to smile at her. Cai Tu Jue still ignored him, walking away before turning back to remind Yao Aunt again, "It has to be iced."

  After finishing, she made a very scary face at Yao Qiyun and ran away, leaving Yao Qiyun standing there with a puzzled expression.

  Mr. and Mrs. Situ returned home not too late, but Mr. Situ had a bit too much to drink and was leaning on the sofa, complaining of dizziness. Mrs. Situ asked her daughter to get him a wet towel and said, "Before we went out, I asked Sister Yao to stew some ice sugar silver ear, you eat some before sleeping, maybe you'll feel better."

  Yao's aunt was also quite perceptive, and quickly brought out two bowls from the kitchen, placing them in front of Mr. and Mrs. Sutu Jusan. Xue Shaoping picked up a bowl, took a sip, and furrowed her brow. However, she didn't say anything to Yao's aunt, but instead called out to Sutu Yuan, who was jumping around and handing his father a towel.

  "How can you be so careless when you're having fun? Mom told you repeatedly before she left, to remind your Aunt Yao to chill the desserts in the fridge. Your dad might have had too much to drink and this will help him sober up."

  Cai Tuo's face was full of grievance, "I said it, and not just once. If you don't believe me, ask Aunt Yao, if you still don't believe me, she can also be a witness!" She pointed at Yao Qiuyun who was just walking out of the room.

  "Didn't I tell you that Aunt Yao wouldn't listen? You just know how to push Yunyun to clean up the mess for you." Xue Shaoping said discontentedly to her daughter.

  Situ Xuan did not argue again, and with a calm face, he silently stared at Yao Qiyun, as if waiting for him to say something. At the same time, Yao Qiyun also sensed the somewhat uneasy gaze that his aunt had cast upon him.

  He silently glanced back at Si Tu Jue, then said to Xue Shao Ping: "Auntie, don't scold her, she didn't cheat you. How about this, I'll go get some ice for you and Uncle Si?"

  Situ Xuan's face suddenly showed an expression of "Did you hear that? You wronged me!", and said, "I knew it, everything is blamed on me."

  Xue Shaoping also stopped speaking, lowered her head and stirred the sugar water in the bowl with a spoon for a while before putting down the bowl and not bringing it to her mouth again.

  Aunt Yao felt something was off and quickly explained, first saying: "Eating too many cold things is not good." Thinking about it now, she realized that saying this to Xue Shaoping wasn't suitable either. She then rubbed the apron on her clothes and said: "I didn't know you were talking about it, I just thought it was what Sutu Yue's child meant..."

  Xue Shaoping smiled slightly, "Yao sister, you're also confused. Situ Xuan is my daughter, in this family, her words are my words, what's the difference?"

  "Never mind, never mind. I'm not hungry either. It's okay to forget sometimes, just don't next time."

  "En, you're right." Xue Shaoping helped her husband upstairs and said to Yao's aunt, whose face didn't look too good, "It's okay, Auntie Yao, thank you for putting the things away."

  After they went upstairs, Aunt Yao still stood there with an awkward face. Yao Qiyun didn't say anything and helped her clean up the two desserts that hadn't been touched much back to the kitchen. It wasn't until then that Situ Yue took action to serve himself a bowl and drank a mouthful along the rim of the bowl.

  Yao Qiyun, who had just finished washing the dishes, handed her a spoon and whispered, "Eat this at night, and you won't be afraid of getting fat."

  He was also afraid that Situ Xuan would ignore him, but unexpectedly she snatched the spoon from him and gave him a white eye, "I'm willing to get fat, die of anger."

  Since the two had a falling out, she had been cold and distant towards him, and even her occasional displays of temper seemed like something from long ago. Although she still didn't have a good expression on her face, Yao Qiyun somehow felt a sense of familiarity and closeness from her habitual small temper, just like a faint ray of light piercing through the gloom that had been lingering in his heart for many days.

  His tone also became lighter, "It's best to be fatter than a pig, let me die a few more times."

  At this time, Yao Auntie, who had not yet recovered, slowly walked in. Sutu Jin finished eating a few mouthfuls and slipped out with an unchanged expression.

  "Who would have thought that a girl like her had such cunning, starting rumors and even dragging you into it..." Auntie took off her apron with a heavy sigh.

  Yao Qiyun leaned against the edge of the sink, staring steadily at the person in this world who was most similar to her in blood, and let out a sigh.

  "Auntie, do you really think today's events were Master Situ's intention?"

  Although Aunt Yao always says that the main reason she stays in the Situ family is to take care of her nephew, the Situ family has never been ambiguous about paying wages. Every month, Xue Shaoping personally hands over the money to Aunt Yao on time. However, this time, two days have passed since the usual payday, and Xue Shaoping seems to have forgotten, or at least hasn't reacted in any way.

  Yao Aunt never mentioned money, she ate and lived at the Situ's house, there was no expense, but school is about to start, several children at home need to pay tuition fees, if not waiting for rice to be cooked, she really didn't have to leave her hometown. Yao Qiyun would occasionally give her some money privately, all of which were taken back home to relieve the urgent situation. Xue Shaoping was still calm and collected, but Yao Aunt could see her displeasure that day, afterwards she became even more diligent, however, she always suspected that this female employer had a hidden thorn in her heart, and was uneasy.

  Just as she was being urged by a phone call from home and was about to ask Yun to help her persuade Xue Shaoping, Xue Shaoping suddenly said to her before going out: "Sister Yao, I have a lot of things on my mind now. Your salary has been handed over to Si Tu Yue, and she will give it to you every month from now on, so don't worry."

  After finishing speaking, Xue Shaoping went out the door. However, how could Yao Auntie "rest assured"? The friction between her and Sutu Jin had been going on for more than a day or two. Although that girl never made a big deal about things, when would she become a good person?

  Let her go and see Situ Xuan's face, it's better to tear off her old face. Unfortunately, the situation is stronger than people, thinking about the situation at home, how can she still be tough? Aunt Yao thought for a long time, but couldn't take care of so many things, taking advantage of everyone except Situ Xuan not being at home, she gritted her teeth and went to knock on her door.

  The door opened quickly, and the expected embarrassment did not appear. As soon as Sutu saw Aunt Yao, he patted his own head, quickly took out a month's salary from the drawer, scolded himself for being forgetful, and handed it over to his aunt, not one cent more or less.

  Ms. Yao, a sharp-witted person, couldn't help but understand the implication. She sighed inwardly, thinking that after all, Xu Ziyu was indeed Miss Xue's biological daughter, and this move was just another reminder of who paid her salary and who was the real master of the house. The message was conveyed without needing to say more. Ms. Yao put the money in her pocket and thanked her lightly before leaving. But she hadn't walked far when she was stopped by a young girl behind her.

  After all, she was young and vigorous, with a sharp tongue, and Aunt Yao knew it well. But when under someone's roof, one had to lower their head. At this point, she could only grit her teeth, stop in her tracks, turn her back on Sutu Xue, and wait for the other's sarcasm.

  But then she fell silent for a moment, and only heard Situ Xuan say in a soft voice: "Auntie, I really like Yun."

  Yao's aunt was taken aback, turned around and said indifferently: "That's your business, what do I count as? Where can I intervene in these things? If you say this in front of your mother, that would be a serious matter."

  "Sister, you're right in what you said, but since you're Qiyun's relative, I should show respect to you as an elder. If I've done anything wrong before, please don't take it to heart. We live under the same roof, and if you treat me with kindness, I'll return it sevenfold. If you really can't stand me, that's fine too, but there's no need to make Qiyun uncomfortable in the middle. It shouldn't be hard for us to get along peacefully. Some things, just pretend you didn't see them. Oh, and by the way, I'll remember to give you your salary on time every month from now on."

  Yao's aunt's back was stiff.

  "There's still something cooking in my pot." She said, and then hurried back into the kitchen.

  Yao Qiyun returned home from his internship at Jiu An Tang, deliberately coming back a bit late because he had heard on the phone yesterday that Si Tu Jue and Wu Jiang had agreed to meet up at Si's place today. He didn't want to see them being affectionate with each other, so he adopted an ostrich mentality.

  Auntie picked up a stone from beside the trash can in the living room, saying she couldn't understand what use Sut Yuet had for bringing this thing back, playing with it properly for a while before throwing it away.

  Yao Qiyun learned from his aunt that Wu Jiang had been there, but had already left. He took a look at the stone and saw that it was slightly larger than his fist, one end was dark brown, no different from ordinary stones, while the other end was broken, revealing the green and white colors inside, which looked like a piece of raw jade material.

  There were always many strange things around Sī Tū Méi. Yáo Qǐyún asked her aunt if she wanted that stone, saying: "I'll go ask her if she still wants it."

  Auntie handed the stone over to his hand and didn't say a word. But Qī Yún had a feeling that even Auntie could see through his little thoughts.

  He grasped a stone and took several steps forward, walking up to her tightly closed door and knocked on it.

  "Ah Wei, are you inside?"

  Cai Tuo Ai didn't open the door but asked from inside, "What's up?"

  Yao Qiyun had no choice but to say truthfully: "Are you really going to throw away that stone in the living room?"

  "What's the point of keeping this brick, throw it away, that Wu Jiang guy can't come up with anything good either." For some reason, even through a door, Yao Qiyun could also hear the annoyance in Si Tu Jue's voice.

  "What's wrong with you, your voice sounds strange."

  "Never mind me, you go."

  Her intention of driving him away was so obvious that Yao Qiyun, who had thought that his relationship with her had improved over the past few days, felt his mood plummet to an even deeper low.

  "Open the door, I have something to say to you."

  At this time, the remorse in his heart completely overwhelmed his rationality. Perhaps this remorse had been growing endlessly since she left with tears, and finally wrapped him up like a cocoon, making it hard for him to breathe.

  He overestimated himself too much, he couldn't accept that two people under one roof had become complete strangers, and he couldn't bear it for even a day.

  He knocked on the door again, and immediately heard a muffled sound from behind the door, as if something soft had fallen on it.

  "I told you to leave, can't you hear?" Ci Tu's voice was rough but with a hint of sobbing.

  Yao Qiyun's heart was in a flurry, unable to imagine what had happened to her, perhaps she had been bullied somewhere else. In his anxiety, he couldn't care about anything else, and rushed into Mr. Sutu's room to take the spare key, forcibly opening the door to Sutu Xue's room.

  Situ Xuanzheng was sitting at her desk with her back to him, and as soon as she heard that he had opened the door, she let out a sharp cry and burrowed into her blanket, covering herself tightly. Yao Qiyun picked up a fallen teddy bear by the door and walked over, wanting to pull her out of the blanket without saying a word, so that he could see what was wrong with her.

  The two of them were each pulling on the thin quilt, refusing to give in. In the end, Situ Xuan was no match for him in terms of strength and soon had her head exposed from under the quilt. She still wanted to cover herself up, but Yao Qiyun, with his sharp eyes and keen mind, had already noticed that something was off about her.

  "What's that red stuff on your face and neck?"

  It was impossible to hide it any longer, so Situ Xuan reluctantly pulled down the entire quilt and recklessly pushed his whole body in front of Yao Qiyun. "Fine, you want to see my ugly appearance, right? Look then, let you have your fill!"

  Yao Qiyun hesitated for a moment, then reached out to gently press the skin on her cheek. The red and swollen area wasn't an injury, but rather a symptom of an allergic reaction that spread from her neck all the way down to the edge of her collar. She must have been itching terribly, as she cried with a sad face, still subconsciously reaching out to scratch.

  "You nearly scared me to death." Yao Qiyun's clenched heart finally relaxed a bit, grabbing her scratching hand and saying with a mix of anger and amusement: "What's the use of hiding?"

  "Oh, so you're happy now? I'm going to be a laughing stock and never want to see anyone again." Si Tu Jue struggled with his hand and wanted to scratch again, but the more he scratched, the itchier it became, and that red mark was getting more and more obvious, as if it had spread all over his body.

  Yao Qiyun had to suppress her disobedient hands again, scolding: "If you scratch again, your skin will be broken, and when the time comes, you'll be covered in scars. See how you can still look pretty then." As soon as he finished speaking, he raised her sleeves, and if this continued, she would probably end up looking like a cooked crab.

  "What did you eat, or have you come into contact with something weird?"

  "I didn't! I just took that broken stone with Wu Jiang to ask an expert, and as soon as they said it was useless, we came back. Everything has been fine, even lunch was eaten at home, but somehow it ended up like this." Si Tu Jue replied honestly, without any more energy for arguing.

  Yao Qiyun's heart skipped a beat and she quickly asked: "What did you have for lunch?"

  "Your aunt then made a mixed grain bun and millet porridge."

  "Don't move... Ah, be careful or I'll pick you up." Yao Qiyun feared she wouldn't listen, so he intentionally spoke sternly and put down her hand, hastily going downstairs.

  "Yao Aunt saw him and asked disapprovingly, 'What's she being difficult about again?' Yao Qiyun didn't respond, and directly entered the kitchen. After searching around, he finally found the other half of the miscellaneous grain steamed buns stored in the refrigerator. He took one out, broke off a small piece, sniffed it first, then put it in his mouth to chew slowly until he confirmed his judgment, and suddenly sucked in a breath."

  "What's wrong with you, child?" Aunt Yao also rushed back to the kitchen, looking at him in surprise at the chaotic scene.

  Yao Qiyun's face turned iron-green as he held up the half steamed bun in his hand and asked his aunt in a forced calm tone, "Aunt, what did you use to make this mixed grain bun?"

  Yao's aunt was taken aback and smiled: "Of course, miscellaneous grain rice balls are made from miscellaneous grains?"

  "Alright, I know you added walnut powder and hazelnut powder in there! I told you that Situ Xin doesn't eat nuts, she's allergic to them. It's not that she doesn't like the taste, it's just that every time she eats them, something goes wrong. Allergies are no small matter, if not handled properly, they can lead to big problems. What were you thinking, going to such great lengths to do this?"

  Yao's aunt was also startled by her nephew's appearance, and when she came to her senses, she said: "You speak to me like this because of that little girl? Don't say I didn't do it on purpose, even if I did, I just thought she was being picky, and when we were eating, she didn't notice anything either. Just a small problem and you know how to put on an air as if the sky is falling in front of you."

  Qī yún turned around and put the steamed bun back in its original place, with his back to his aunt. Perhaps this way he could breathe and speak more smoothly, and not be confused by his own temporary anger. He sighed and said: "Aunt, I advise you again, don't do such meaningless things, it's not good for anyone."

  "What good can I get from you? You don't even treat me well, so just let her parents fire me and I'll go back to my hometown, it's more convenient. If it weren't for you..."

  "Don't mention it because of me." Yao Qiyun waved her hand and walked past her indifferently, taking out a medicine box. "What you said is also right, if the people here make you so disgusted, then you might as well go back. As for the money, I'll think of a way to send it to you until my nephew and niece can take care of themselves, and you won't have to worry about anything."

  Yao's aunt was stunned for a while, and then she started to sob, "You really think you're a member of the Situ family now, and I'm just your servant? You should let your dad hear what you said."

  Yao Qiyun found the medicine he wanted, his face relaxed, and after closing the medicine box, he said in a low voice: "Say whatever you want. Don't do that again, consider it my request."

  Aunt Yao watched as her nephew rushed upstairs in a flurry, stamping her foot and saying: "You're being bewitched! If you keep this up, you won't get any good results!"