Transmigrated as a Cannon Fodder Wife A in Ancient Times - Chapter 22

Chapter 22

“Are you done eating? If you’re done, come with me to the study,” Lu Zijin looked at Wei Lan and said.

“I’m done,” Wei Lan replied obediently.

Lu Zijin smiled at her and stood up. “If you’re done, let’s go.”

Wei Lan followed Lu Zijin reluctantly, and they went to the study together.

Yun Xiang glared fiercely at Wei Lan’s back. She knew her miss didn’t like anyone disturbing her in the study, yet now she was bringing this useless Wei Lan along.

Wei Lan didn’t know what Yun Xiang was thinking. She followed Lu Zijin into the study.

Lu Zijin met with the shop managers at the end of each month to discuss matters, so her study was large and even had a soft couch. Sometimes, when tired, Lu Zijin rested on it.

Wei Lan looked around the study and saw a wall of bookshelves behind the desk. As expected of Lu Zijin, she was truly wealthy.

Lu Zijin noticed her looking at the books and said, “Take any book you want to read. Release some scent.”

“Oh,” Wei Lan said, knowing she’d have to be absorbed again.

No plaster covered Wei Lan’s neck, and the scent of fresh snow gradually seeped from her mark.

Wei Lan figured she’d released enough and walked to the bookshelf to pick out books. Unfamiliar with this place, she chose a few travelogues to learn more about the Great Zhou Dynasty.

She glanced at the wooden chair and then at the seemingly comfortable soft couch. She walked to Lu Zijin and said, “Madam, can I lie on the soft couch to read?”

Lu Zijin looked up, saw Wei Lan asking obediently, and smiled faintly. “Of course you can.”

“Thank you, Madam. You’re the best,” Wei Lan said sweetly, then quickly walked to the soft couch, took off her shoes, lay down, and started flipping through the travelogues.

Lu Zijin began handling the past few days’ affairs. Still in her dew period, she couldn’t meet the shop managers, so she had servants wait outside. She wrote instructions on paper and had the servants deliver them to the managers.

Lu Zijin worked quietly, and Wei Lan was equally silent. Soon, the only sound in the study was the rustling of pages.

Wei Lan read the travelogues for a while and grew sleepy. Written in classical Chinese, they were dull. As she read, her eyes closed, and she fell asleep unknowingly.

Lu Zijin finished a few tasks and looked at Wei Lan. She saw Wei Lan had fallen asleep at some point, with a travelogue upside down on her chest, sleeping soundly.

Lu Zijin stood up, stretched her limbs, and took the papers she’d written. Seeing Wei Lan sleeping deeply, she walked to the door, opened it, and stepped out briefly. She handed the papers to the servants, instructing them to deliver them to the shop managers quickly.

After giving her orders, Lu Zijin returned to the study.

She looked at Wei Lan for a moment, then walked back to her desk to continue handling mansion affairs.

The past year had been tough for her, especially after her brother’s death. The Lu family’s relatives all wanted a share of the wealth, and even lesser households dared to eye her, frequently sending people to propose marriage, coveting the Lu family’s fortune.

Back then, she was alone. She had no time to grieve for her brother and took charge of the mansion’s affairs. Fortunately, some in the Lu Mansion were loyal to her, but many were scheming to profit from the chaos.

She had to make tough decisions, giving up several businesses to stabilize the situation. Even this year, though the mansion was on track, many matters still awaited her attention.

For instance, the mansion’s servants. When her brother was alive, his word was law, and the servants were obedient. This past year, she focused on the external shops, neglecting the servants. She hadn’t disciplined them much. Now, she could use Wei Lan’s situation to make an example and keep them in line.

Lu Zijin thought this, her gaze falling on the sleeping Wei Lan. The little Qianyuan slept soundly, her lips pursing slightly, perhaps dreaming of something. Lu Zijin’s eyes softened. She was quite cute.

She only glanced at Wei Lan a few times before resuming her work.

By noon, Lu Zijin had nearly finished the piled-up tasks on her desk. She stood, stretched, and walked to Wei Lan, who was still asleep. Wei Lan had been absorbed almost daily, which was indeed exhausting.

Lu Zijin sat by the soft couch, gently touched Wei Lan’s cheek, and said softly, “Lord, wake up. It’s time to eat.”

Lu Zijin’s hand was soft. Wei Lan, half-asleep, instinctively nuzzled her face into Lu Zijin’s hand, rubbing affectionately.

Lu Zijin’s lips curved slightly. “Good girl, get up.”

Her hand brushed Wei Lan’s cheek, sliding to her neck. Her fingertip teased the swollen mark twice. As expected, Wei Lan shrank her neck, dodging the touch.

“Don’t touch. It feels weird,” Wei Lan mumbled softly, opening her eyes. She saw Lu Zijin smiling down at her, her hand still on the mark.

Wei Lan looked at Lu Zijin with a wronged expression, as if accusing her of waking her up.

Seeing her sleepy look, Lu Zijin laughed. “Time to eat. You can sleep after.”

Her fingertip deliberately rubbed the mark again, and Wei Lan couldn’t hold back. Her scent leaked out.

“Hmm, why are you touching me?” Wei Lan rubbed her eyes and looked at Lu Zijin. Whenever Lu Zijin touched or bit her mark, she felt a strange sensation, like an electric current passing through her. It wasn’t unpleasant, even slightly comfortable, but Wei Lan wasn’t used to it.

“I’m helping you wake up. Get up. I’ve had them prepare lots of good food,” Lu Zijin said seriously, as if her actions were perfectly proper.

Hearing about good food, Wei Lan’s mood improved slightly. She got up and followed Lu Zijin out of the study obediently.

Lu Zijin smiled and ordered, “Bring warm water for the Lord to wash her face.”

“Yes,” the maids in the courtyard hurried to prepare.

Lu Zijin led Wei Lan back to the bedroom. A junior maid soon brought a copper basin with warm water.

Wei Lan was about to wet a cloth to wash her face, but Lu Zijin stopped her. “I’ll do it.”

Lu Zijin took a cloth, dipped it in the basin, wrung it out, and folded it neatly. She walked to Wei Lan.

She held Wei Lan’s shoulder with one hand and wiped her face with the cloth in the other.

Lu Zijin’s movements were gentle, her gaze fixed on Wei Lan. Wei Lan felt embarrassed under her stare.

Though Lu Zijin often bit her, Wei Lan had to admit she was quite beautiful. Being stared at like this, Wei Lan’s ears turned red, and she looked away, avoiding Lu Zijin’s eyes.

Lu Zijin noticed Wei Lan’s red ear tips while wiping her face. She saw Wei Lan looking at a nearby stool, not at her.

In the past, if a Qianyuan looked at her this way, Lu Zijin would have been angry. She didn’t like being coveted by Qianyuan. But with Wei Lan, she wasn’t upset and even felt like teasing her.

Her hand with the cloth slid to Wei Lan’s neck, the warm cloth gently wiping the mark.

“Does it hurt?” Lu Zijin asked softly.

Already shy, Wei Lan felt even stranger being touched there. She shrank her neck, her voice softening. “Don’t touch there.”

“Good girl, almost done,” Lu Zijin said, rubbing the mark again. She noticed Wei Lan’s cheeks flush red.

Lu Zijin’s smile grew. Usually, Wei Lan was impatient in bed, eager for her to finish absorbing so she could leave. This shy look was quite novel.

Lu Zijin found it amusing but didn’t want to tease too much. She wiped gently a few more times and stopped. “Done. Sit and rest. The food will be ready soon.”

“Hmm,” Wei Lan sighed in relief, nodded at Lu Zijin, and sat on the stool.

Lu Zijin placed the cloth on a tray held by a junior maid and waved them away.

The two junior maids, one holding the basin and the other the tray, had been in the room. They saw Lu Zijin and Wei Lan’s interaction but didn’t dare look directly, only stealing glances. They noticed their miss and the Lord’s affectionate behavior and whispered to each other.

“Miss treats the Lord so well, even wiping her face herself.”

“Right? Did you see? The Lord’s face turned red. She must really like Miss, or she wouldn’t be shy.”

“I think so too. Who says the Lord isn’t favored by Miss? Miss clearly dotes on her.”

Wei Lan sat at the table, sipping honeyed tea, unaware of the maids’ speculations. Her shyness was instinctive. As an introvert, being stared at for so long naturally made her blush.

Lu Zijin sat beside her and ordered the maids to serve the meal.

Hearing this, Wei Lan’s eyes lit up. The food here was truly delicious, better than any modern restaurant she’d been to. Lu Zijin’s soft life was truly fragrant.

Lu Zijin saw her perk up at the mention of food and smiled. “Eat plenty later. I had them prepare ginseng chicken soup. You’ve worked hard these days. Eat more tonics to replenish.”

“Thank you, Madam,” Wei Lan said. Though Lu Zijin was a bit intense when biting her in bed, she was generous, especially with good food, which Wei Lan greatly appreciated.

Soon, various dishes were served. Wei Lan grew hungrier looking at them but glanced at Lu Zijin obediently. “Madam, can I eat?”

Lu Zijin chuckled lightly. “Of course you can.”

“Then I’ll eat,” Wei Lan said, picking up a stuffed eggplant. The eggplant here was delicious, crispy outside and tender inside, filled with fresh pork. Wei Lan ate three in a row.

Seeing her good appetite, Lu Zijin stood and served her a bowl of chicken soup. “This is century-old ginseng, a great tonic. You’ve lost a lot of scent these days. You need to eat more of this. It has herbs, but it tastes good. Try it.”

“Thank you, Madam,” Wei Lan said, taking a sip. It was delicious, with tender, melt-in-your-mouth chicken.

“Hmm, it’s good,” Wei Lan couldn’t help praising.

Compared to Wei Lan’s hearty appetite, Lu Zijin ate little. Managing the mansion’s affairs this past year left her no time to relax, reducing her appetite and interest in food.

Seeing Wei Lan eat so eagerly, she found herself with a bit more appetite and ate more than usual.

Wei Lan picked up a crispy fried pork chop. The fat was fried to a perfect crisp, not greasy, and paired well with the dipping sauce, suiting her taste perfectly.

Lu Zijin finished eating and sat sipping chicken soup, watching Wei Lan eat.

When her father and brother were alive, they had big appetites. Lu Zijin hadn’t expected a female Qianyuan to eat so much. Despite Wei Lan’s large appetite, her figure was slender, almost like a Kunze.

It had been a long time since she ate with someone else. Watching Wei Lan, Lu Zijin briefly thought this was nice.

But the thought quickly faded. Wei Lan was just a figurehead for her. She wouldn’t get closer to her. This fleeting thought, Lu Zijin believed, was due to her dew period. After tomorrow, she wouldn’t think of Wei Lan so often.