All Hail Cousin Brother

136 Treat You Well Forever

Those eyes were filled with arrogance. When they stared at her, she did not even dare to breathe loudly.

“Cousin.” Zhou Linghuai called out to her with a smile. His calm voice was filled with grace. “I won’t hurt you.” He rubbed the little girl’s soft head gently, and even his heart softened. “Never.”

Yu Youyao squatted in front of her cousin, her eyes sparkling. The smile on her lips widened bit by bit, becoming pure and happy. “Cousin, I’ll treat you well for the rest of my life.”

For life!

Zhou Linghuai gently chewed on these words. When he thought of his legs, a crazy desire suddenly surged in his heart. He smiled and said, “Eat first.”

Yu Youyao nodded happily and reached out to get the soup bowl.

There were wontons floating on the bright yellow soup. The faint medicinal fragrance was not bitter, but it was very delicious. In the soup, there were three milky-white and semi-transparent sea cucumbers. They looked, smelled, and tasted good.

Yu Youyao liked seafood so much that even her eyes lit up. “Ah, it’s white sea cucumber. Grandfather sent it over years ago. There were more than ten of them in total. I’ve never been able to bear to eat them.”

Zhou Linghuai’s expression changed on the spot.

Yu Youyao did not notice her cousin’s expression. She happily took a bowl and scooped a bowl of soup for him. She even specially scooped out a white sea cucumber. “Cousin, the meat of the sea cucumber is soft and tender. It tastes delicious. Try it.”

Sea cucumbers were expensive seafood, and white sea cucumber was even rarer. There was a saying that goes “it takes ten thousand years for a rabbit’s fur to turn from black to white.” The Medicine Scripture recorded that it was warm and nourishing.”

Just as Zhou Linghuai was about to refuse, he saw the little girl looking at him expectantly, and his throat tightened.

Seeing that her cousin was sitting there without moving, Yu Youyao urged, “Sea cucumbers are nutritious and warm. They’re best for you to eat. In the future, you have to eat more sea cucumbers. I still have many Black Sea Cucumbers and Red Sea Cucumbers that my maternal grandfather sent over. Although they’re not as rare as White Sea Cucumbers, their effects are not bad. Get Chang An to bring some back later.”

The veins on Zhou Linghuai’s forehead twitched uncontrollably.

Eating strange things like sea cucumbers required a lot of courage.

Of course, he wasn’t prejudiced against sea cucumbers.

The seafood in the south had always been in high demand in the capital. Sea cucumbers, which grew in the deep sea, were known as one of the eight treasures of the sea because it was not easy to fish them out. They were as famous as bird’s nest, abalone, and shark fins. They were often the last dish in the hall.

Seeing that her cousin was staring at the sea cucumber without moving, Yu Youyao thought that he did not know how to start eating.

The entire white sea cucumber had actually been cut into small pieces, but the outer skin was connected, so it looked like a whole piece. Yu Youyao picked up a piece of sea cucumber and brought it to her cousin’s lips. “Cousin, try it.”

Now, he couldn’t refuse even if he wanted to.

Zhou Linghuai held the armrest of the wheelchair with one hand. The veins on the back of his hand were obvious, and the joints of his fingers were green and white. He moved his lips, but under the little girl’s bright eyes, he still forced his mouth open.

The little girl smiled and sent the sea cucumber into his mouth naturally. Zhou Linghuai suddenly felt that the originally unbearable sea cucumber tasted soft and delicious after entering his mouth. There was a faint fragrance of dark lotus flowers and a hint of medicinal fragrance. It was actually very delicious.

Yu Youyao asked expectantly, “Isn’t the sea cucumber delicious?”

Zhou Linghuai hesitated for a moment before nodding. “It’s indeed delicious.”

“Then, Cousin, eat more.” Yu Youyao smiled happily, and a hint of slyness flashed across her bright eyes. As her gaze was too bright, Zhou Linghuai did not notice it.

Nanny Xu said that sea cucumbers were a dish for longevity. The Empress Dowager in the palace had to eat three sea cucumbers a day. Sea cucumbers were also indispensable in the emperor’s imperial meals.

The medicinal cuisine made by sea cucumbers was better than ginseng. Cousin’s body was weak and could not eat too much nourishing food. He could not eat too much medicine like ginseng, but he could eat sea cucumbers every day.

Yes, from now on, she will cook a sea cucumber dish for her cousin every afternoon.

Seeing that his young master was being jinxed by Cousin Yu and was even eating the sea cucumber that he had always hated, Chang An’s eyes widened in shock and disbelief.

Suddenly, he calmed down.

No matter how ridiculous it was for Young Master to be with his cousin, he would not find it strange in the future.

After dinner, Yu Youyao returned to the study to practice her calligraphy. It had only been a few days since she had used the bamboo brush that Ms. Ye had given her, but her cousin had already sent her the seven-purple and three-sheep jade brush.

The jade tube was smooth and had been used for many years. The tip of the brush was a little soft. She was not used to it in the first two days. It was her cousin who held her hand and helped her to write her name stroke by stroke, over and over again.

After getting used to it, she felt that the words written with the Seven Purple and Three Sheep brush were sharp and tactful. They were indeed more suitable for her.

Yu Youyao pursed her lips and chuckled. She put down her brush and turned around to see that her cousin had rolled up his wide sleeves, revealing a rather thin wrist. However, she saw that his wrist was blessed with spiritual luck and his bones were strong. The ink in his brush was fresh and smooth, and it was thick and suitable.

This was the first time Yu Youyao had seen her cousin paint. Her eyes lit up and she quickly leaned over to take a look.

When she saw what her cousin had drawn, Yu Youyao’s fair face turned red. She quickly covered her face with her hands, not daring to face anyone.

As Zhou Linghuai spoke, a “Bamboo Orchid Painting” appeared on the paper. He put down his pen and turned to look at Yu Youyao, who was covering her face and not daring to look at him. “Cousin, what do you think of this painting?”

Yu Youyao covered her face and nodded vigorously. “Cousin, your painting skills are superb, so naturally, it’s excellent.”

Just now, she had only taken a few glances, but she already felt that the brush was exquisite and the ink was clear. On the other hand, the ink was beautiful and smooth, drawing a cold and deep scene with a careless stroke.

Zhou Linghuai chuckled. “Cousin, aren’t you going to take a closer look?”

She thought that he couldn’t tell that she was deliberately pretending not to know that he didn’t eat sea cucumbers and was trying to tease him.

Yu Youyao was so ashamed that she quickly shook her head. “No, no, Cousin. You use ink like a god…”

Her cousin was trying to remind her that he had yet to give her the fan that he had promised.

How could she dare to look at it anymore!

Yu Youyao looked dejected. She had learned double-sided embroidery, and previously, she had been praised by her grandmother and Nanny Liu. Even though she felt a little embarrassed, she couldn’t help but feel a little smug. Learning double-sided embroidery from Nanny Xu had been fun, but after practicing for a few days, her enthusiasm was reduced, and she no longer paid much attention to needlework.

Nanny Xu would even remind her in the next few days.

As time passed, Nanny Xu no longer forced her to practice needlework.

If not for her cousin’s reminder, she would have almost forgotten that she had exchanged the fan for the cursive script not long ago.

Now, that cursive script was hanging on the wall of her study.

However, she had forgotten about the fan.

“Little liar!” Seeing her covering her face in embarrassment, Zhou Linghuai couldn’t help but laugh.