Four Harmonies and Good Fortune

Chapter 557 Warmth and Coldness
Xie Yuyan turned her gaze to the book in her hands.

The room fell silent instantly.

Despite the cooler weather due to the rain, Xie Yuyan felt somewhat scorching, probably because there was too much hot water in the bucket.

The water rippled again, and Xie Yuyan felt something brush past her feet. Her toes instinctively twitched, and her face began to turn red.

She secretly took a deep breath, raised her eyes, and saw that Wang Yan was also holding an account book and looking at it, as if everything that had just happened had nothing to do with him.

Since that's the case, she'll just assume that the mugwort leaf just drifted by by accident.

When they met for the second time, Xie Yuyan glared at Wang Yan.

He subtly withdrew his foot again, then sat upright on the small stool, seemingly regaining some semblance of dignity. However, his legs were too long, and sitting there awkwardly was truly... unseemly, and it exuded a malicious intent from the bottom of his being.

How can a person be so two-faced?
When he approached again, Xie Yuyan took the opportunity to lift his foot and step on him, thinking he would step on him squarely, but unexpectedly... he missed and splashed quite a bit of water.

Xie Yuyan lowered his head in surprise.

Wang Yan looked astonished: "My lady...why is this?"

As he spoke, he pointed to the hem of his shirt.

"It just dried a little, but now it's wet again. What should I do?"

The wicked are the first to complain.

His usually sharp eyebrows and eyes were now full of smiles; having succeeded once, his face was even more smug.

Taking advantage of Wang Yan's inattention, Xie Yuyan kicked again, this time hitting him squarely.

As for his other foot, it was as slippery as an eel, playing hide-and-seek with her in the wooden tub. She would clearly touch it, but it would slip away again.

The two of them splashed water back and forth, making a constant stream of splashes. The clean ground was covered with water stains. If it weren't for the torrential rain outside, Yang Qin, who was guarding the door, would have heard the commotion.

After playing around for a while, Xie Yuyan's nose was already damp with sweat, and Wang Yan naturally picked up a handkerchief to wipe it away for her.

Xie Yuyan seized the opportunity, lifting and lowering his foot, finally catching both of his feet.

Before she could even feel smug, Xie Yuyan met Wang Yan's slightly deep gaze. Her heart skipped a beat, and she instinctively tried to get her feet off the wooden tub, but Wang Yan's feet had already trapped her.

Wang Yan's voice rose with a laugh: "You stepped on me and then tried to run away? What kind of logic is that?" As he spoke, he grabbed her hand.

His palms were still warm, showing no sign of coldness. So he had been deliberately playing the victim earlier. Xie Yuyan said, "Or are you going to retaliate by stepping on me again?"

Wang Yan laughed, his face full of indulgence and patience: "Since my wife caught me, then I'll be punished by... washing my wife's feet."

Xie Yuyan was about to refuse.

Wang Yan shushed him, then looked outside the door: "Don't soak for too long, you'll catch a cold."

As Wang Yan spoke, he picked up a cloth, reached into the wooden tub, and grabbed Xie Yuyan's foot.

He first helped her wash thoroughly before wiping her clean with a towel. His technique was a bit clumsy, but he was patient enough. Watching her pull her feet back under the blanket, he looked away with satisfaction and wiped his own feet as well.

Hearing that there was no more movement inside the house, Yu's mother, who had been standing in the outer room for a while, quickly walked in and handed the clothes in her hands to Wang Yan.

Wang Yan calmly accepted it.

Looking at the water stains on the ground, Yu's mother pretended not to know anything, moved the wooden bucket away, and carefully wiped the ground clean.

After she finished her work, Wang Yan washed his hands, changed his clothes, and came out. Now that he was dry, Wang Yan naturally abandoned the small stool he had been using and sat down next to Xie Yuyan without any hesitation.

The two didn't speak, but instead huddled together looking at the book.

Mother Yu looked up and felt that the house was quiet and warm, completely shut out from the wind and rain outside.

Stepping out of the house, Mother Yu closed the door again. Yang Qin, who was waiting outside, asked, "Is Sister-in-law still asleep?"

Mother Yu nodded and said, "It seems we'll have dinner indoors too." After all, someone's hiding inside.
Yang Qin was somewhat disappointed: "I thought I would be able to talk to my sister-in-law today."

Mother Yu smiled and said, "We're all in the same courtyard, young master, you can come another day."

Yang Qin stretched out his hand: "I haven't seen my sister-in-law for two days." He had to go to the academy early in the morning, and when he returned, his sister-in-law was still discussing matters with someone in the house, so he didn't want to disturb her.

Mother Yu comforted Yang Qin, saying, "Madam will be fine once this busy period is over." In fact, there would be more and more opportunities to not see each other in the future, and it would be even more difficult to meet again once Madam was married off.

……

The rain was heavy and torrential. Although it stopped briefly, the raindrops started falling again very quickly and continued until nightfall without any sign of stopping.

Wang Bingchen spent the entire day discussing government affairs with officials from the Secretariat. When he came out, he found that the courtyard was flooded.

When the steward saw his master come out of the room, he immediately stepped forward and said, "The food is ready, we'll bring it up right away."

Wang Bingchen subconsciously looked towards the main courtyard.

The steward pursed his lips: "Madam... after waiting for a while and seeing that there was no movement from your side, I used it first."

Wang Bingchen knew that this was just an excuse. Ever since he had a few words with his wife last time, his bedding had been sent to his study, and his meals had been the same.

He ate, did official business, and slept in the same place every day, as if he were imprisoned there.

No further messages came from the main house.

Thinking this, Wang Bingchen glanced at the tray held by the servant and immediately glared at him, his beard bristling and eyes wide: "It's sweet bean soup again? How many days has it been? Can't you change it?"

The servant hesitated for a long time before finally saying, "Madam said that Master has a fever and needs to have his fever reduced."

Wang Bingchen wished he could rush into the main house immediately and ask which doctor said he had a fever. Truly, women and petty men are difficult to deal with.

Too lazy to argue with her, Wang Bingchen returned to his study, picked up official documents, and ate while reading them.

The manager waited cautiously to the side.

"With so much rain," Wang Bingchen finally couldn't help but say, "I'm afraid there will be another disaster in the summer."

The steward responded, "Usually, it's the madam who accompanies the master when he talks. No matter what the master says, the madam can respond very well. In short, she won't let the words fall on the ground. They don't have that ability."

Fortunately, Wang Bingchen had something to ask today: "How's the price of rice? Has it gone up?"

The steward honestly replied, "No."

Wang Bingchen clearly thought he had misheard and repeated, "I was talking about the price of rice." Prime Minister Wang had a habit of frequently inquiring about the price of rice in Bianjing, so the stewards in his household had to know this.

The steward said, "Sir, the price of rice hasn't gone up; in fact, it's gone down today."

Wang Bingchen was somewhat surprised: "What?" As long as there is any disturbance, those merchants will find ways to raise prices. Today, with such heavy rain, why is it raining instead?