The Laid-back Life of a Stepmother

After performing a set of sword and fist techniques, the father and son duo had their collars darkened by sweat, with tiny beads glistening on their foreheads.

Xu Yuxuan pouted as he ran to Wen Ye, but she extended her index finger to gently push against his little chest, saying, "Stay right there." Xu Yuxuan looked puzzled: "Mother?"

Wen Ye replied, "I've already had warm water prepared. You need to wash off all that sweat."

Hearing the hint of disapproval in Wen Ye's words, Xu Yuxuan lowered his head to sniff himself: "I don't smell!"

Wen Ye calmly said, "Even if you don't smell now, you'll start to stink by evening if you don't wash."

Xu Yuxuan huffed, "Then Father should wash too. He's bigger than me, so he must smell worse!"

After saying that, Xu Yuxuan turned to look for his father but let out a surprised "Huh?": "Where's Father?"

Wen Ye popped a grape into her mouth and answered, "Your father already went in to wash."

When it came to self-awareness, the son, being younger, just couldn't compare to the father.

Seeing Nanny Ji approach again, Wen Ye urged, "Hurry up and go wash, or by the time your father is clean, you'll be the one who smells."

Xu Yuxuan didn't want to stink, so he vigorously shook his head: "I'll wash!"

Nanny Ji had gone to the west side courtyard to fetch Xu Yuxuan's clean clothes. The bathwater was already prepared in the side room.

★

This year was even hotter than the last, so Wen Ye had prepared the necessary items for escaping the heat long ago, just waiting for Madam Lu to make the final decision.

Having gained experience from the previous year, after the New Year, Madam Lu specifically reduced the number of invitations she accepted, focusing more on matters within the residence. This time, they planned to stay at Xi Quan Mountain for a whole month.

Of course, they might not stay there the entire time; Madam Lu also considered two other locations as backups, to be decided later. As usual, Duke Xu and Xu Yuejia would remain at the Duke's residence, while Wen Ye and Madam Lu would take the two children on the trip.

This time, Madam Shen was also invited. Madam Lu had written to her half a month ago.

Madam Shen had spent her life managing the Wen Mansion. Now, except for Wen Ran, who was only eight years old and far from marriage, all her other children were married. Wen Ran was obedient and sensible, entirely focused on her studies, filial, and kind to her nieces and nephews, making her very unburdensome.

With a lighter heart and a more open mind, Madam Shen considered Madam Lu's invitation for a moment before accepting. After all, with two daughters-in-law now, she didn't need to worry too much.

However, after Wen Ye and Madam Lu left for half a month, Xu Yuejia was involved in a case that implicated a wealthy merchant from Linzhi County, which was conveniently close to Xi Quan Mountain.

The case was somewhat "complex," taking nearly half a month to complete the investigation.

·

Upon returning from Xi Quan Mountain to escape the heat, it happened to be Xu Yuxuan's actual birthday. Since he was still young, they didn't tell him about it. On that day, Wen Ye casually made him a bowl of longevity noodles.

This bowl of noodles was different from what Xu Yuxuan was used to. There was only one strand, but it was very long, enough to fill half a bowl like regular noodles.

Xu Yuxuan, who had already learned to use chopsticks, lifted the slightly yellowish long noodle from his bowl and asked curiously, "Mother, why are these noodles so long?"

Wen Ye explained, "These are called longevity noodles. The longer they are, the longer you'll live." Xu Yuxuan was immediately intrigued. He wanted to stand on a stool to see how long the noodles in his bowl were.

In front of Xu Yuejia and Wen Ye, Xu Yuxuan didn't have to follow strict rules. Under Xu Yuejia's guidance, Xu Yuxuan, though young, had gradually learned that actions such as standing on stools were only acceptable in front of his parents.

With the help of He Xiang, Xu Yuxuan successfully stood steady. When he saw that the noodles were even longer than himself, his little mouth opened in surprise. After sitting back down, he looked at the noodles in his bowl, clearly reluctant to eat them.

Xu Yuxuan glanced left and right, noticing that Wen Ye and Xu Yuejia each had a bowl in front of them. His eyes lit up: "Mother, you have some too?" Wen Ye answered with a simple "yes": "There was extra dough, so I couldn't waste it."

Hearing this, Xu Yuxuan then looked at Xu Yuejia: "Father~"

A child's thoughts were easy to read; his expectations were written all over his face. Xu Yuejia glanced at him, then picked up his chopsticks and lifted the noodle in his bowl. Under Xu Yuxuan's hopeful gaze, the noodle appeared shorter than expected.

Having both a young and an older pair of eyes on her, Wen Ye remained composed: "I had no choice. By the time I got to your father's bowl, there wasn't enough dough left."

Although she knew how to make food, Wen Ye had truly kneaded dough only a few times in her two lifetimes. If the dough was too thin, she'd add more; if it was too stiff, she'd add water. This back-and-forth continued.

Originally, she had only planned to make one bowl. The ones in front of herself and Xu Yuejia were just an unexpected addition.

“My noodles aren't long either,” Wen Ye said to show that she wasn't being partial, picking up the noodle in her bowl, “Husband, one shouldn't be too greedy. Living for another seventy or eighty years is enough for us, but Xuan'er is the one who needs to live to be a hundred years old.”

Xu Yuxuan probably only understood half of it, firmly disagreeing: "No! I want Mother and Father to also live to be a hundred years old!"

After saying that, he tried to divide his bowl of noodles into three portions.

Xu Yuejia stopped him in time, saying, "Father has enough." Wen Ye almost burst out laughing. Xu Yuxuan looked confused.

★

Ever since she found out that Xu Yuxuan was actually a few months older than his official age, she often wondered if the child would still grow taller? What was the normal height for a four-year-old? Did Xu Yuxuan measure up?

Perhaps she was bored out of her mind, but during their nighttime play, Wen Ye brought up this topic casually to Xu Yuejia.

Xu Yuejia was feeding her fruit at that moment.

When he heard the question, he felt both speechless and not surprised, knowing it was exactly something she would ask.

Xu Yuejia set down the fruit plate and began to recall: "My elder sister was tall and slender. As for Xu Yuxuan's father, I haven't met him."

Wen Ye replied, "But you’ve seen Xu Yuxuan's aunt, right? Qi Yunqin. Siblings usually resemble each other."

Xu Yuejia reflected: "She was about the same as my elder sister."

Wen Ye suddenly felt playful: "I thought you'd say something like, 'It's been too long, I can't remember,' like those male leads with 'white moonlight' (first loves) in novels."

She had just finished reading such a novel a couple of days ago.

Xu Yuejia thought of the novel she had asked him to buy from the bookstore and bring back to the mansion, saying, "I have a good memory; I haven't lost it."

Qi Yunqin was not only Xu Yuxuan's aunt but also his savior. She had stayed in the residence for half a year to recover from her illness. How could Xu Yuejia not remember her appearance?

After a moment of thought, Xu Yuejia added: "If you're interested, there are portraits of her in Xu Yuxuan's possession." Not just of Qi Yunqin, but also of Qi Yuehe and Qi Guangbai.

When Xu Yuxuan grew up and learned about his true origins, at least he would still have portraits of his closest relatives.

Xu Yuejia's reaction was both expected and unexpected for Wen Ye.

She teased: "I thought you'd ask me if I was jealous." Xu Yuejia replied confidently: "You wouldn't be." He was well aware of what most appealed to her in him.

At the same time, he was grateful that he possessed those qualities that caught her interest.

Wasn't that a form of fondness too?

Wen Ye indeed wasn't jealous, but that didn't stop her from deepening her appreciation for Xu Yuejia.

"Why don't you tell me about those years after you became an official?" she suggested.

Xu Yuejia gazed at her: "I'm still alive; are you already looking back nostalgically?"

Wen Ye almost didn't react in time, laughing: "I wasn't saying that!"

She was just curious if the teenager Xu Yuejia was as appealing to her as the present version.

This made her recall that on the day Xu Yuejia became the top candidate in the imperial exams and paraded through the streets, she was the only one from the Wen Mansion's younger generation who hadn't bothered to go see him.

Xu Yuejia paused for a long time before saying: "You'll be disappointed."

Wen Ye: "In what aspect?" Before she could finish, the topic had already gone off in a completely different direction.

Xu Yuejia: "…It's not what you think."

Wen Ye arched an eyebrow: "Really? But I haven't lost my memory either."

Xu Yuejia remained silent for a moment before finally saying: "Fine, I'll tell you."

After graduating from high school, Xu Yuejia was the first of the top three scholars in the founding of the Jin Dynasty to not stay in the Hanlin Academy, instead choosing to serve as a county magistrate in a remote county.

The reason for this was twofold: first, to reduce the excessive prestige of the Duke Xu's estate, and second, because he hoped his knowledge could be applied in practical ways. Before arriving in Linzhi County, Xu Yuejia was a pampered and noble young man, with no particularly outstanding qualities.

However, the small county, which could only be reached after a treacherous journey, was far more decayed and unsavory than Xu Yuejia had imagined. It seemed there were only men there.@@novelbin@@

Two years later, he was transferred back to Sheng Jing.

At ​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​​‌‌‌​​​‍that time in Sheng Jing, the struggle for the imperial throne was at its peak. As the previous emperor’s health waned, the successive generations of Zheng family, though holding insignificant government positions, were crucial to the power struggle. Because they refused to side with any faction, they were consecutively slandered and falsely accused.

Xu Yuejia, who did not wish to be caught up in the chaotic struggle for power, secretly gathered evidence to exonerate them of their unjust accusations.

This action enraged the then highly influential Prince Nine, and also displeased the previous emperor. As a result, Xu Yuejia was demoted first to Xunyang, then to Wuzhou.

Speaking of this, Xu Yuejia paused for a moment and said, “If I had been transferred to Wuzhou first instead, Xu Yuxuan’s life would have been different.”

Wen Ye murmured softly, "It was just a moment away."

Xu Yuejia said, "I actually advised against it, but she still insisted on giving birth to the child." The 'she' he referred to was naturally Xu Yuxuan's birth mother, Xu Yuejia’s first wife.

Wen Ye was not aware of this hidden story. She turned her gaze back and said, "That doesn’t sound like something you would say." Xu Yuejia openly admitted, "At that time, my heart still carried some remnants of bad habits."

Afterwards, he reflected seriously. He wasn’t the one carrying a child, so he didn’t have the right to decide whether to keep it or not. No matter who the person was, even if she was his wife.

Wen Ye quietly gazed at him. No wonder he was willing to take contraceptive measures and refrain from extramarital affairs. Even on the first night of their wedding, when they were still strangers, he simply complied with whatever she requested.

No wonder he didn’t demand that she reciprocate.