Chapter 4: Xiaoxi’s Mouth Stays Silent

Chapter 4: Little Creek Keeps His Mouth Shut

In the kitchen, the herbal medicine stove was blazing, the medicine pot gurgling and steaming as the thick, pungent smell of herbs spread out and drifted into the courtyard.

With two sick people in the house, He Jin couldn't handle it all by himself, so Li Wan was helping brew the medicine.

Wen Xi entered the kitchen and properly greeted them first: "Sister-in-law, Brother Jin."

Li Wan was gently fanning the fire with a palm-leaf fan. Hearing Wen Xi's voice, she frowned. "Didn't Mother tell you to rest properly? Why are you out of bed already?"

Wen Xi said, feeling awkward. "I'm fine. Scholar Yan is awake... Would you like to go check on him?"

He Jin glanced at the sun outside and said, "By my reckoning, it's about time he woke up. Sister-in-law has already brewed his medicine—we'll take it in to him in a bit."

The pot on the stove was for Wen Xi's medicine. Li Wan picked up Yan Fengan's medicine pot and poured the decoction into a coarse ceramic bowl to cool.

The two herbal smells mixed together, making the kitchen seem even more bitter.

Wen Xi said in a low voice, "I'll deliver it to him."

Li Wan glanced at his pale, bloodless face. "You're sick yourself, and you're still trying to take care of him?"

"His health is what matters. I'll be fine."

His words got He Jin thinking. He'd thought the eldest son's family was already humble enough, but who knew this family would end up with someone even more self-sacrificing.

Thinking of the kind of person Wen Liu was, then looking at this honest, simple kid before him, He Jin couldn't help but remark, "Third Brother is really lucky to have married you."

But whether their scholar brother would appreciate it was another question.

Wen Xi was cursed with bad luck—what fortune could he have? If not for wanting to curry favor with the Yan family and keep his place in this household, he wouldn't have forced himself to swallow his fear and resentment to wait on Yan Fengan hand and foot.

The family had spent so much money to marry a husband for the third son precisely to have someone care for him. Feeding him his medicine wasn't hard work, and Wen Xi was so eager, Li Wan didn't fight him on it.

"Go ahead then. Be careful not to burn your hands."

Wen Xi nodded. Once the medicine had cooled enough, he picked up the bowl with both hands and carried it to the bedroom door, where he heard Chen Lanfang's voice from inside.

"My boy, are you feeling any better today?"

Yan Fengan leaned against the headboard, his dark eyes staring at her somberly. His voice was soft, with a hint of hoarseness. "Much better. Thanks for asking, Mother."

A simple answer, yet it gave Chen Lanfang's heart a jolt.

This wasn't the first time Chen Lanfang had asked, but it was the first time Yan Fengan had answered her so calmly.

People who are sick for a long time often develop bad tempers. The rumors outside that her son had gone mad and hit people were exaggerated, but not entirely made up.

Her son had always had a strange temper, and since waking up from his fall, he'd become even more moody and violent. All day he'd either scream and shout, bang his head against the wall, or recklessly smash things in the room.

Everyone in the family who brought him medicine or food had gotten hurt by him. She and Yan Shichang, the old couple, had no choice but to have the doctor prescribe a calming sedative alongside the medicine for promoting blood circulation and removing stasis.

Once in the morning and once at night. After taking it, Yan Fengan would get sleepy, and even when he was conscious, he could only lie in bed, weak and limp, unable to do anything dangerous.

But this also made him resentful. When his parents and siblings came to visit out of concern, they'd often get cold, harsh words from him.

Hearing Yan Fengan's respectful reply now, Chen Lanfang was deeply moved.

"Thank heavens, thank heavens! I knew my son would get better."

Had she known the marriage-for-luck ritual would work so well, she should have arranged it sooner.

With her son clearly getting better, Chen Lanfang even looked at Wen Xi more kindly. She reached out and waved him in from where he was hovering at the door.

The medicine in Wen Xi's hands was still steaming. Chen Lanfang took it from him and set it on a stool nearby, saying, "Little Creek is a good kid—he's sick himself, but he still thinks about taking care of you."

In this household, the people Wen Xi feared most, besides his father-in-law and mother-in-law, were Yan Fengan. When he was crazy, he was afraid of being hit; when he was awake, he was afraid of being yelled at. Yan Fengan had humiliated him so many times that the psychological scars ran deep.

Sensing Yan Fengan's gaze on him after his mother finished speaking, Wen Xi kept his head down, trembling with fear, not daring to look at him, silently praying that Yan Fengan wouldn't say anything embarrassing in front of his mother-in-law.

Yan Fengan said, "Since Mother picked him out, he must be fine."

Wen Xi was taken aback. Hearing those words from Yan Fengan was like seeing the sun rise in the west—didn't this man despise him? Why would he agree with his mother?

Was he saying the opposite of what he meant?

Yan Fengan's tone was soft, and Wen Xi couldn't tell what he was feeling. He couldn't help but look up to see his expression—but the moment he looked up, Yan Fengan caught him.

Their gazes collided. Wen Xi was so scared his heart nearly jumped out of his chest. He quickly lowered his head again in a panic.

Yan Fengan's words also took Chen Lanfang by surprise. If his expression hadn't been so respectful and sincere, she would have thought he was being sarcastic and complaining that the husband she'd chosen for him had been swapped.

After all, swapping Wen Liu for Wen Xi had been the parents' decision, made while her son was unconscious and had basically no choice but to accept it.

Fearing he'd go back to his old ways once he recovered, she said seriously and sincerely, "Since you got hurt, Wen Liu has never once come to see you on his own. Someone so cold and heartless is not a good match. Now that you've married Little Creek, always remember that he is your husband. You must not think about those shady people anymore, you hear?"

Yan Fengan looked at Wen Xi, whose head was practically buried in his chest, and nodded. "I know."

He was respectful in word and manner, so Chen Lanfang had nothing more to say. "You're finally clear-headed for once. Let Little Creek keep you company for a while. I'll leave you two alone."

Then she turned to Wen Xi and said, "By the time Fengan finishes his medicine, yours should be about ready. Drink your medicine and then both of you rest well. I hope you both get better soon."

With that, she left the room.

When other people were around, Wen Xi could hide himself and make himself less noticeable. But now it was just the two of them in the room. No matter how quietly he breathed or how low he hung his head, he couldn't escape Yan Fengan's line of sight.

This man had once said that just looking at him made him sick, yet now he kept staring at him for some reason.

Wen Xi felt both scared and awkward. When he sat on the stool and picked up the medicine bowl, his fingers were trembling.

Yan Fengan noticed his reaction, and his gaze softened a little as he said, "You should be sixteen by now, right? Why do you still look like such a little thing?"

Wen Xi didn't understand what he meant by "little." Remembering how Yan Fengan had mocked him before, he figured the man meant he was skinny and weak.

Growing up in the Wen family, he never had enough to eat and had endless work to do every day—there was no way his body could grow properly.

Yan Fengan ate better than ordinary farm families; the family gave him the best of everything first. Even though he was thin now, he was still tall and big. Compared to him, Wen Xi naturally looked small and skinny.

This man knew exactly why, but he still asked just to embarrass him. How annoying.

Wen Xi acted like he hadn't heard him. Keeping his head down, he stirred the medicine with a spoon, blew on it a couple of times, and brought it to Yan Fengan's mouth.

After hesitating for a moment, Yan Fengan slowly opened his mouth. As the medicine went down his throat, his brow, which had just smoothed out, furrowed again. "So bitter."

What herbal medicine isn't bitter? Wen Xi ignored him, keeping his eyes down as he repeated the same motion, spoonful after spoonful into Yan Fengan's mouth.

When half was left, Yan Fengan weakly pushed Wen Xi's hand away. "I'm not drinking anymore."

Whether he drank it or not didn't really matter, but what would the Yan family think if they saw?

Even such a small task as helping Yan Fengan drink his medicine was something he couldn't manage well—wouldn't his in-laws be upset if they found out?

Wen Xi didn't know whether Yan Fengan genuinely didn't want to drink it or was deliberately making things difficult for him, so he urged, "If you don't take your medicine, how will you ever recover?"

Only then did Yan Fengan raise an eyebrow and say, "So you can talk after all."

From past experience, the best move was to just take it and ignore this man; if he talked back, who knows what nasty things he'd say.

Wen Xi wanted to glare at him but didn't have the nerve, so he only whispered, "Please just drink it."

Yan Fengan let out a sigh. "I really can't handle the bitter taste—I'm not trying to give you a hard time."

Was he actually explaining himself to him?

Wen Xi was still puzzling over that when Yan Fengan sighed again. "Forget it." He took the bowl from Wen Xi's hands, pinched his nose with one hand, and tilted his head back and downed the rest in one go.

His body was far too weak, and the medicine was bitter, so he immediately broke into a violent coughing fit. Startled, Wen Xi didn't have time to think and quickly patted his chest to help him breathe.

After all that fuss, once he calmed down, Yan Fengan's pale cheeks had a slight flush.

A self-deprecating smile crossed his face, and he was still a bit breathless as he spoke: "I never thought... my body would get this useless."

Wen Xi couldn't help but think to himself: You've always been a weak scholar who never did any manual work, and now you're sick on top of that—how could your body possibly be strong?

He wasn't used to this kind of back-and-forth with Yan Fengan, nor did he want to stay around him, so he racked his brain and managed to blurt out, "I... I'll go get you something to eat."

Yan Fengan's porridge was still simmering on the stove, so Wen Xi quickly returned with the food.

He hadn't eaten since last night and was genuinely hungry, but days of taking medicine had killed his appetite, and the plain white porridge only made him feel worse.

After eating half, he waved Wen Xi away. "Take it away—I'm not eating anymore."

Aside from the medicine, Wen Xi wouldn't say anything else. Since Yan Fengan said he was done, he carried the remaining porridge back to the kitchen.

His two sisters-in-law seemed used to his poor appetite, and no one asked about the half-bowl of leftover porridge.

Wen Xi still had injuries, and after he finished caring for Yan Fengan, Chen Lanfang wouldn't let him do any more work. After lunch and his medicine, she sent him back to his room to rest.

Lying in bed during the day without doing any work was something Wen Xi had never even dared to imagine, but his mother-in-law's tone wasn't a joke, so he had no choice but to obey and return to his room.

He wasn't used to taking naps, and he didn't dare get into Yan Fengan's bed, so in the end he just moved a stool over to Yan Fengan's desk and rested there.

He could manage to get by during the day, but when night came, Wen Xi was truly at a loss.

The weather was gradually turning colder. Last night he had slept on the floor against the wall and woke up with a fever. If he continued like this tonight, his condition would likely worsen tomorrow.

Seeing a doctor and taking medicine all cost money, and if he stayed sickly for too long, it was hard to guarantee the Yan family wouldn't take a disliking to him.

But sharing a bed with Yan Fengan was also genuinely difficult for him.

First, he felt awkward about it, and second, he was afraid the man might lose his mind in the middle of the night. Though Yan Fengan seemed fully conscious during the day, who could guarantee his condition wouldn't relapse?

The Yan family seemed to think the same way, for before bed, Chen Lanfang brought over another bowl of calming medicine.