From Now On, He should Treasure Each Day He Had Left
The little children woke early. Da Fan was bursting with energy and kept stomping the bed with his feet, as if he was about to smash it into collapse. Su Jingyang, who had only slept for a short while, struggled to climb up, tidied himself, and had the wet nurse come in to feed them.
Taking advantage of this brief lull, Su Jingyang ate breakfast with Rong Ci.
As he spooned porridge into his mouth, his eyes kept drifting toward Rong Ci, who was already nearly finished eating.
He had thought for a long, long time last night… Ah Li was right. Even though the system had forced him to stay here, and even though he had been forced to care for the children largely on his own, resentment didn’t change anything. Keeping himself trapped in pain every day only created a vicious cycle, and the people who worried about him and loved him would suffer right along with him. He would be tormenting himself, and tormenting others.
If Ah Li and the Crown Prince truly were the protagonists, then the time he would remain in this world probably wasn’t much longer… From now on, he should treasure each day he had left.
Whether it was for the children or for Rong Ci, he would try to leave fewer regrets. That way, even after he left, his heart would feel a little more bearable.
“The places I need to inspect today are a bit far. I might come back late, so you don’t need to wait for me to eat dinner.” Rong Ci wiped his hands, rose, and prepared to leave.
Su Jingyang tossed down the spoon in his hand, stood up with him, and not only walked him to the door, but he also even leaned in and kissed him on the cheek.
A flash of surprise crossed Rong Ci’s eyes. He immediately held Su Jingyang’s hand and smiled, tugged him into his arms, and lowered his head to kiss him on the lips.
Rong Ci lifted his hand and stroked Su Jingyang’s face, studying him carefully for a moment. Today, Su Jingyang… felt different. The melancholy that had been common these days was lighter, and between his brows shone a peaceful, slightly brighter spirit.
Su Jingyang tugged his hand down. “Why do you keep looking at me? Don’t delay. Go on.”
Su Jingyang had just let go of Rong Ci’s hand when he sensed something was off and grabbed it again, lowering his head to look. There were many tiny cuts in Rong Ci’s palm, as if made by a blade. Su Jingyang had never noticed them before.
Frowning, he lifted his head and asked Rong Ci, “How did you get these injuries?”
Rong Ci glanced down and, unconcerned, pulled his hand back. “Reinforcing the barrier array requires a bit of my blood. It’s a very small amount. It’s fine.”
“You really do work hard as a clan leader.” Su Jingyang believed him when he said that. The wounds were small and didn’t look serious. He didn’t press further. After seeing Rong Ci off, he went back to continue caring for the children.
Ah Li, as usual, often came to keep him company. Rong Hua occasionally stopped by too, teasing Su Jingyang a bit to make him laugh. Su Jingyang, however, hadn’t seen Ah Xuan in a long time. When he asked Ah Li, he only heard that Ah Xuan was practicing martial arts and writing.
Su Jingyang once carried the two children with Ah Li to watch Ah Xuan practice martial arts. Ah Xuan was young and had a weak foundation, but he was extremely serious and focused. He practiced for a long time until his body trembled, his face flushed red with sweat, and he still didn’t complain about being tired. A natural toughness shone from that small body, and Su Jingyang couldn’t help feeling deep admiration.
Su Jingyang looked down at the two children in his arms, who were gnawing on their fingers, and couldn’t help thinking that once they grew a little older, Rong Ci would probably teach them martial arts and conditioning too. He only hoped that these two little crybabies would be able to endure like Ah Xuan in the future.
Rong Ci stayed busy for another half month before finally having a bit more time. Each day, he only needed to go out for about an hour before returning. Most of the remaining time was spent accompanying Su Jingyang and the children.
His palm wounds, however, increased day by day, and the sight of them made Su Jingyang feel more and more uneasy. Each time Rong Ci came back, he would also look at Su Jingyang with a thoughtful expression, making Su Jingyang suspect he was doing something secret and significant. When Su Jingyang questioned him, Rong Ci only smiled it off.
When Rong Yu and Rong Xi reached four months, something finally happened that moved Su Jingyang to tears. The two children finally stopped clinging only to him!!!
That day, Rong Ci held Xiao Fan for about two quarters of an hour, and Xiao Fan didn’t struggle or cry. He obediently nestled in Rong Ci’s arms and sucked on his hand. A bright spark of hope flared in Su Jingyang’s heart, yet he didn’t dare celebrate too early, in case he ended up disappointed. Ah Li and Rong Hua happened to come over, so Su Jingyang hurriedly had them try holding the children too. The result was unbelievable. Neither of them cried. Neither of them fussed.
Su Jingyang shouted something like heaven and earth, shaking with excitement, eyes shining, nearly ready to go set off firecrackers in celebration!
Four months, a full four months. He was finally about to live again!!!
He wouldn’t have to change diapers every day. He wouldn’t have to coax children until he broke down every day. He wouldn’t have to wake up every night because of the sound of the children turning over. He wouldn’t have to stay cooped up because taking the children made it inconvenient to go out… He was free. He was relaxed. He could finally sleep through the night!!!
That night, Su Jingyang decisively handed the children to the wet nurse, took a bath, then climbed onto the bed with two dark circles under his eyes from sleep deprivation, grinning as he prepared to make up sleep.
Ah, the world is finally quiet.
Ah, the world is finally beautiful.
Su Jingyang wrapped himself tightly in a small blanket and closed his eyes in bliss.
Half an hour later, Rong Ci’s helpless voice sounded. “Weren’t you very sleepy? Why are you still tossing and turning and not sleeping?”
Another half an hour later, Rong Ci asked, “Are you hungry? Do you want to get up and eat something?”
Yet another half an hour later, Rong Ci said, “Or… should we have someone go ask whether the children have fallen asleep?”
Someone was sent to ask. They returned and said that the two little young masters had already fallen asleep, very well-behaved, and hadn’t cried or fussed at all.
“…” Su Jingyang stared at the bed canopy, dazed, and didn’t speak for a long time.
He felt like he might be sick. After hearing this, there was f*cking a faint sense of melancholy in his heart.
Those two little heartless brats. On the first day of sleeping separately, the least they could do was cry a couple times for appearance’s sake, to show even a bit of reluctance. Yet they let go the moment they were told to, so decisive and composed, so perfectly in sync, as if that deep attachment before was only an act for fun… Or did these two little things know he was going to leave, so…
Seeing that he seemed a little down, Rong Ci said, “If you really can’t bear it, I’ll have them brought back.”
Su Jingyang hurriedly insisted that he could handle it. “Don’t bring them back! I want to sleep by myself!”
Su Jingyang flopped around on the bed like a salted fish, changing positions multiple times. In the end, he finally fell asleep sprawled out like the character da, lucky the bed was big. Otherwise, Rong Ci would have been squeezed with nowhere to lie.
In the middle of the night, Su Jingyang woke and realized he was lying in Rong Ci’s arms. His hand instinctively groped to the side, only to find empty space. He jolted upright, drenched in cold sweat, and screamed, “Where are the children?!”
Rong Ci was startled by his panic. He helplessly sat up and pressed him back down to sleep, telling him the children were both with the wet nurse. Su Jingyang stayed dazed for a long while. His fragmented brain finally caught up, and only then did he let out a breath of relief, lifting a hand to cover his eyes.
Su Jingyang felt so wronged that it turned bitter. The children adapted quickly, but he ended up with aftereffects. Tragic!
Even though the children no longer rejected strangers, Su Jingyang still didn’t hand everything to others. During the day, he continued to watch them himself. There were simply helpers now, which made things far easier than before.
Caring for them now felt like he had cleared a game on hard mode through endless hardship, and then been asked to play on easy mode. It was completely effortless.
Aside from Rong Ci and Su Jingyang, the person who held the children the most was Ah Li. He was especially happy, running over every day. He would hold this one for a while and kiss him, then hold that one for a while and kiss him, unwilling to put either down.
Rong Yu and Rong Xi were already very good at rolling over. A blanket had been spread on the floor of the room. Su Jingyang often placed the two of them on it to roll and play while he, Rong Ci, and Ah Li watched the fun nearby. Every time they successfully rolled over, the two children would look toward Su Jingyang. So Su Jingyang would clap enthusiastically, and they would giggle with delight.
These days were lighter for Su Jingyang, and his mood improved along with them. He was more or less back to his usual brightness, smiling more. Rong Ci and Ah Li saw it and both secretly felt relief.
When Su Jingyang received a letter from Xu Mei, he was immediately itching to go and packed up, prepared to visit Wangyue Manor.
Rong Ci naturally went with him and quickly arranged the matters in his hands. Wherever Su Jingyang went, Ah Li would certainly bring Ah Xuan along as well. Rong Hua, upon hearing the news, hurried over too, wanting to go together.
With two children, wet nurses, and a group of guards, their entire party traveled in grand procession. After more than ten days on the road, they finally arrived at Wangyue Manor, where Mu Jin and Xu Mei personally came out to welcome them in.
Mu Jin and Rong Ci hit it off remarkably well. As soon as they arrived, the two went into the courtyard to spar and compare sword techniques. Xu Mei brought Su Jingyang and the others into the room, then had each of their children laid out on the bed.
Xu Mei’s son, Mu Yun, lay there with a profound expression, one small fist propping his chubby chin. He barely moved, as if he had entered meditation and was contemplating the philosophy of life. Rong Yu and Rong Xi, meanwhile, were lifting their legs to smash the bed, performing rollovers, and babbling loudly, keeping themselves so busy they had no time to spare.
Su Jingyang looked at them with envy. “Ah Yun is so quiet and well-behaved!”
Xu Mei’s eyes lit up as well. “Ah Yu and Ah Xi are so lively and adorable!”
After speaking at the same time, the two of them exchanged a look and couldn’t help laughing. As expected, other people’s children always seemed better.
Xu Mei turned and teased Ah Li. “Ah Li, back then I wanted to marry into your family, but I ended up having a boy. How about this, how about we arrange a marriage for the grandkids’ generation in the future, what do you think? I don’t even know why. I just feel like I have fate with you. I really want to become in-laws with you.”
Ah Xuan didn’t know if he understood, yet his face actually reddened at the side. Ah Li patted his little head and answered with a faint smile, “Sure.”
Xu Mei happily squeezed Ah Li’s hand. “Then it’s settled!”
Xu Mei noticed that Rong Hua was sitting off to the side again, lost in thought. He clicked his tongue, got up, and forcibly dragged Rong Hua over. “Do you dislike my son that much? Every time you come, you won’t even hold him once.”
Rong Hua looked at Mu Yun and felt a splitting headache. He said to Xu Mei, “I don’t like holding children. They smell like milky stench. Forget it.” Rong Hua craned his neck toward the outside as he pulled his hand away. “Hey, hey, hey. Their sword discussion looks exciting. I’m going over to ask for pointers!”
With that, he slipped away.
Su Jingyang was secretly surprised. In Rongcheng, Rong Hua occasionally held Ah Yu and Ah Xi too, and he had never seen him complain about the milky scent. Xu Mei looked depressed, though, so Su Jingyang naturally didn’t say it out loud.
Xu Mei stayed by the bed with Su Jingyang and Ah Li, teasing the children. He suddenly seemed to think of something and asked Su Jingyang with a somewhat serious expression, “By the way, after Rong Hua left Wangyue Manor and went back, did he have any… unusual behavior?”
Su Jingyang and Ah Li exchanged a look. Xu Mei understood immediately. He had the wet nurses watch the children and led them to sit at the table.
Only then did Xu Mei frown slightly as he explained, “You might not know this, but Mu Jin has a friend named Hao Jiasheng. This Young Master Hao currently manages the Liyang Commerce Guild, so he has quite a background.
After he saw Rong Hua at Ah Yun’s full-month banquet last time, he hasn’t been able to forget him. He keeps running to Wangyue Manor every few days, but Rong Hua seems to really dislike him and always avoids seeing him. He even came to ask me about Rong Hua. I pretended I wasn’t close with Rong Hua and didn’t tell him a single word.”
Su Jingyang thought that Xu Mei probably didn’t know that when Rong Hua had visited Su Jingyang before, he had already encountered Hao Jiasheng on the return trip. The full-month banquet wasn’t their first meeting.
Xu Mei continued, “Rong Hua was so annoyed he left. Mu Jin told me that Young Master Hao chased after him that day and only came back half a month later, with a knife wound on the road. It was pretty serious.”
Su Jingyang was startled. No wonder Rong Hua had taken so long to return last time. He had been hiding from Hao Jiasheng.
Su Jingyang felt that Hao Jiasheng was truly strange and baffling. He had originally assumed he was just a useless little scholar, yet he kept hearing stories about him.
“His wound still hasn’t even healed, and he keeps coming to ask me about Rong Hua, asking about where he is. He really won’t give up.” Xu Mei sighed. “How did Rong Hua attract such a rotten peach blossom? Mu Jin is on good terms with him, and I feel awkward refusing to see him every time.” As he was sighing, a maid came in and reported, “Furen, Young Master Hao has arrived and requests to see you.”
Xu Mei showed Su Jingyang and the others an expression that said, see, I told you. He quickly realized Rong Hua was outside right now. His eyes widened, and he hurried out, wanting Rong Hua to hide first. Su Jingyang and Ah Li, seeing this, also took Ah Xuan by the hand and ran out with him.
However, it was too late.
When they hurried out, Hao Jiasheng had already entered and spotted Rong Hua. He stared at Rong Hua, eyes bloodshot red. His expression was ecstatic and bright. He took a step forward, and Rong Hua immediately took a large step back.
Rong Hua looked at him as if he were looking at a lunatic, cold and sharp, his voice full of hatred. “If you’re sick, take medicine. Stop clinging to me. Do you think I didn’t stab you hard enough last time?!”
Hao Jiasheng said, “Rong Hua, as long as you’re willing to look at me properly, you can stab me once, ten times, what does it matter?”
“Get lost. Don’t call my name.” Rong Hua grew violently irritable. He stared at Hao Jiasheng’s face, stared at the deep sorrow in his eyes, and a surge of vicious anger smashed into his chest. He raised his hand, yanked the sword from Mu Jin’s grasp, and hacked toward Hao Jiasheng.
Hao Jiasheng kept his gaze fixed on Rong Hua’s face. He stood with spine straight, not dodging, not avoiding, calm and composed, without the slightest fear. In the end, Mu Jin hurriedly intervened and snatched the sword away from Rong Hua.
Mu Jin sheathed the sword with a difficult expression. Seeing Xu Mei signal him with his eyes, he stepped in front of Rong Hua and said to Hao Jiasheng, “Brother Hao, I think you… should leave for now. Don’t come and pester again in the future.”
Rong Hua, his expression dark and frightening, noticed that Ah Li and Su Jingyang had come out. He instinctively walked to their side.
Hao Jiasheng, however, refused to leave. His gaze stayed locked on Rong Hua. When he saw Su Jingyang, he didn’t react much. When Ah Li abruptly entered his field of vision, Hao Jiasheng froze for a moment, shock flashing across his face. His lips moved, yet no sound came out at all.
Next, stiffly, his rigid gaze slowly shifted, inch by inch, even carrying a cautious hesitation, toward the right…
Then he saw Ah Xuan, standing beside Ah Li.
Ah Xuan held Ah Li’s hand. A pair of clear black-and-white eyes quietly watched him, the gaze like a spring, pure and clean.
It was clearly just a child with an immature face. There was clearly nothing unusual about the child at all. Yet the moment Hao Jiasheng saw Ah Xuan, it was as if he had been struck by a tremendous shock in an instant. His face and eyes flushed explosively red.
Tears nearly burst out. He completely lost the extraordinary presence he had just had. His legs went soft, and with a heavy gasp, he stumbled backward so wretchedly and actually collapsed, falling to his knees on the ground!
Author’s Note:
If you don’t like it, then drop it decisively. There’s no need to keep saying it under the chapter. I’m not padding, and I’m not dragging things out. I know very clearly what I’m writing. Please let me keep my heart as still as water and finish this story to the end.
Thank you all.
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