Yearning For Warmth, Day and Night - Chapter 30
Chapter 30: Taste
To Wei Hui’s surprise, she didn’t develop a fever that afternoon and felt quite well. Eleven, concerned she might be hungry, asked if she wanted to eat. Wei Hui waved her off, telling her to go downstairs and bring her a cup of hot water. Through the busy comings and goings of Eleven’s slender figure in the room, Wei Hui suddenly realized that having another person in the room wasn’t so annoying after all.
She didn’t actually have mysophobia, but she had always preferred quiet and, due to her health issues, didn’t like people getting close to her. So, she simply claimed to have mysophobia, making others keep their distance. Over time, the servants who came to work knew she had mysophobia, and none of the previous servants, except for Aunt Zhang, had ever even entered her room.
Wei Hui could tell that Eleven already knew she didn’t have mysophobia, but she held back from saying anything. And indeed, if someone truly had mysophobia, how could she cover her with a blanket while she slept, or frequently accept her touch? Even when sick, someone with mysophobia wouldn’t tolerate it.
So, Eleven knowing this wasn’t surprising to her, but the child had never asked. Eleven was always like this; unless necessary, she wouldn’t overstep.
Wei Hui’s thoughts wandered for a bit, then she noticed Eleven had already entered with the hot water. Eleven placed it on the bedside table and said to her, “It’s a bit hot, you can drink it later.”
“Mm.” Wei Hui responded indifferently and began to examine the documents on the bed. Although Eleven had never dealt with such things before, the documents were neatly arranged according to the order Wei Hui had given her. Wei Hui glanced sideways at Eleven, her lips moved slightly, but she ultimately said nothing and lowered her head.
Eleven didn’t know how Wei Hui’s health was doing now. Wei Hui didn’t rush her to leave, so she sat on the chair by the bed. Having nothing to do, she watched Wei Hui out of the corner of her eye.
Her skin was almost transparently pale. After a nap, her long hair wasn’t messy but softly cascaded behind her, with a few strands falling onto her chest, resting on the documents. From time to time, she brushed them behind her ear, her expression calm.
“What are your plans for the future?” Just as Eleven was observing Wei Hui, a sudden voice broke the silence in the room. Eleven snapped back to attention, hearing Wei Hui’s question.
What are your plans for the future?
Eleven was dazed for a moment. When she first left the Wang family, all she wanted was a place to settle down, not to wander from place to place. But after coming to the Wei family, she went out a few times and realized she was too unfamiliar with this world, so unfamiliar that she felt a bit of fear. So, she honestly shook her head: “No plans.”
Wei Hui turned her head to look at her, her features appearing deeper in the fragmented sunlight, her gaze profound. No plans. For her, it was a good thing. This way, she could accept her proposal to have a child and enjoy wealth for the rest of her life.
But then, she began to resist this idea.
Thinking about the child’s interaction with Twelve, in just a few days, it had already become a concern in her heart. How could she not miss a child she carried for ten months?
She had previously said that pursuing a romantic relationship with Eleven would be cruel to her, but now she felt that making her pregnant and giving birth would be equally cruel.
Overthinking was truly undesirable. Wei Hui started to have a headache again. She parted her lips: “If there’s nothing else, you can go out first.”
Eleven obediently stood up, thought for a moment, and said, “Do you have a very important meeting tomorrow?”
Wei Hui smiled: “Mm?”
Eleven lowered her head to meet Wei Hui’s eyes and said, “I think, I think, I don’t have anything to do at home, and you’re not feeling well. I’d like to accompany you to the company. Do you think that’s okay?”
She was worried about any sudden situations Wei Hui might encounter, like in the pet store today. At least she could help a little, as few people knew about her illness now.
Wei Hui looked at her deeply, neither agreeing nor disagreeing, simply saying, “Go out first.”
Eleven didn’t dare to disobey and bowed her head as she walked out.
The door closed. Wei Hui leaned against the headboard, reaching up to rub her temples. Her mind was still filled with the image of Eleven leaning out the car window, saying goodbye to Twelve. Perhaps when she eventually sent her away from the Wei family, she would be in the same posture, or perhaps she would cry even harder. Thinking this, Wei Hui felt an inexplicable irritation. She lowered her head to continue looking at the documents, but couldn’t focus on a single word.
Eleven left the room and went back to her own. After much deliberation, she decided to talk to her only friend.
Eleven: “Miss Du, are you there?”
Du Yue Ming quickly replied: “What Miss Du? Just call me Yue Ming.”
Eleven bit her lip: “Miss Yue Ming.”
Du Yue Ming: “If you call me Miss again, I’ll be angry!”
Eleven had no choice but to type: “Yue Ming.”
Du Yue Ming: “Good girl, what’s up? Want to see Sisi? I’m not home right now.”
Eleven pursed her lips and quickly replied: “No, I just wanted to ask if you know any way to become smarter.”
Du Yue Ming: “…”
Eleven looked at the ellipses she sent with some bewilderment. Then Du Yue Ming called her: “Eleven, are you joking with me?”
“What, what’s wrong?” Eleven was a little bewildered by the sudden questioning, and her tone inevitably became cautious. Du Yue Ming heard the timidity in her voice and laughed: “Nothing, I thought you were messing with me. Why did you suddenly ask that question?”
Eleven didn’t know how to explain what had just happened, so she simply said, “Nothing, I just feel like I’m very stupid and can’t do anything.”
Du Yue Ming originally wanted to offer some comfort, but then she remembered that Eleven genuinely couldn’t even use a basic phone, which piqued her curiosity. She asked, “Eleven, do you have a family?”
Eleven answered clearly and concisely: “No.”
Although Du Yue Ming was prepared, her breath still hitched: “You’re… an orphan?”
Eleven heard those two words without any discomfort, her voice crisp: “Mm.”
Du Yue Ming felt rather upset. She asked Eleven a few more questions about her past. Eleven, interacting with a friend for the first time, spoke openly, telling Du Yue Ming almost everything except for the times she was wrongly accused of being a habitual thief. Du Yue Ming sniffled on the other end: “Eleven, you’re too tragic.”
Eleven, however, had never thought that way. She felt very lucky to have met her grandma, to have survived, and now to have met Wei Hui and to have Du Yue Ming as a friend. But Du Yue Ming said in a husky voice, “Lucky my ass. You should have met me sooner.”
Then she thought of her own scoundrel personality. If she had met Eleven earlier, she might have just lured her into bed, and it would have ended in two months, making Eleven even more pitiful then. She shook her head again: “Never mind, it’s better that you met that Buddha first.”
Eleven smiled, hearing her refer to Wei Hui as ‘that Buddha’: “Why ‘that Buddha’?”
“Oh, that was the nickname we gave her in school.” Du Yue Ming said, rattling off old stories about Wei Hui’s school days. Eleven listened attentively, even imagining the scenes that would appear. At this moment, she felt a sense of reality about Wei Hui; she wasn’t so high and mighty, not so distant, as if she were right beside her, within reach.
She really liked that feeling.
The two didn’t say much more. Du Yue Ming’s end was a bit noisy, and Eleven could hear someone calling her. Not wanting to waste her time, Eleven made an excuse and hung up. The two arranged to meet next time. Eleven didn’t refuse; she now considered Du Yue Ming a friend, so she agreed: “Okay.”
Du Yue Ming was still beaming after hanging up the phone.
“Yue Ming, what’s making you so happy?”
“Did you make a date with some girl?”
“I think she has a new target, doesn’t she?”
Du Yue Ming looked at her sisters and waved her hand: “What nonsense are you talking about? I just made a new friend.”
Their gazes at her were self-evident. Du Yue Ming rolled her eyes and left the gathering.
Eleven saw Wei Hui come downstairs for dinner that evening. She was wearing loose casual clothes, no makeup, and her complexion looked much better than before, almost indiscernible. Eleven felt a slight relief and sat next to Wei Hui to eat dinner together.
Dinner hadn’t even finished when Wei Hui received a call. Her face grew serious as she said, “What did CEO Shen say?”
“It’s alright.”
“Mm, I’ll send it to you later.”
She said, standing up, meeting Eleven’s gaze. Her dark eyes deepened, and she turned to say, “No need, wait for me for two minutes. Has everything been confirmed with CEO Du’s side?”
“Oh, right, help me buy a set of clothes…”
Her voice faded as she walked further away. Eleven saw Wei Hui go up to the second floor, enter her room, and close the door. She then lowered her eyes and continued eating.
That evening, when Eleven was drinking milk, Aunt Liu came in with a bag and said, “The Third Miss asked me to give this to you.”
Eleven blinked: “What is it?”
Aunt Liu smiled: “It’s probably clothes, why don’t you take a look?”
Eleven put down her milk cup and opened the bag. Inside were indeed clothes, a professional suit, light pink. She held the clothes, a little confused: “Did the Third Miss say anything else?”
Aunt Liu shook her head: “No.”
Eleven placed the clothes on the bed, scratched her head. Just as she was puzzled, her phone screen lit up, and Wei Hui’s name appeared: Accompany me to the company tomorrow.
So, she had heard what she said and agreed. Eleven glanced at the clothes and typed a reply: Okay, Third Miss.
Wei Hui, receiving the reply, stood by the window, put down her phone, her gaze heavy.
…
The next day, the weather was pleasant. Eleven stood in front of the mirror wearing her brand new work attire. She had applied light makeup and tied her long hair into a ponytail, looking clean and sharp. Eleven had never seen herself like this; there was a sense of unfamiliarity, an unreality that washed over her. Her hand unconsciously touched her cheek.
After lingering in the room for a while, Eleven heard a knock. She opened the door and heard Aunt Liu say, “Little Miss, Third Miss is waiting for you to have breakfast.”
She finished speaking, then looked Eleven over and smiled: “You look really good dressed like this.”
Eleven smiled self-consciously and lowered her head, following Aunt Liu into the dining room. Wei Hui glanced sideways, her eyes brightening. Eleven’s complexion was already fair, and the light pink blazer over a white shirt made her skin appear even more luminous, like jade. The blazer’s cut was excellent, narrow shoulders and a slender waist, the smallest size, and it fit Eleven perfectly. Although not curvy, it was still somewhat delicate. Eleven felt a little uncomfortable under Wei Hui’s gaze and smiled at her.
Wei Hui lowered her eyes: “Come and sit, let’s eat.”
Eleven obediently sat beside her. After breakfast, Pei Tian also arrived. He too was slightly surprised by Eleven’s attire but didn’t ask further. He said to Wei Hui, “Third Miss, the car is ready.”
Wei Hui parted her lips: “Eleven, let’s go.”
Eleven followed behind Wei Hui. Just as they were about to get in the car, Wei Hui called out, “Wait a moment.”
She opened her bag, took out a small bottle, sprayed it twice on Eleven, leaned in to sniff, and nodded: “Get in the car.”
Eleven held her breath as Wei Hui approached. When she heard “get in the car,” she took a deep breath, and it was full of fragrance, exactly like Wei Hui’s scent.
She now carried the scent of the Third Miss.
This thought flashed through Eleven’s mind. She scolded herself for thinking such things, but her heartbeat couldn’t help but quicken by a few beats, and even her earlobes flushed with warmth, as red as the evening glow.