WMSG Chapter 76
by VolareChapter 76: Chapter Seventy-Six: Still a Fiery Temper
They spoke against the cold wind on the road, but Ye Yueshen mostly listened. He wasn’t in the mood to chat, also because the cold made it hard to open his mouth.
The round-faced young man was named Ye He, a name he chose himself.
Ye Yueshen was too embarrassed to ask directly; he mentioned it himself while talking about funny things that happened while he was working.
Ye He worked in a restaurant, and his living quarters were bought with “Ye Yueshen’s” money. It was a courtyard with two rooms, originally shared by Ye He and another “Ye Yueshen’s” Jianghu big brother.
“Ye Yueshen” also helped them find a livelihood: a dye shop he opened himself. From the shopkeeper to the accountant, all the authorities were Jianghu “friends” that “Ye Yueshen” had gathered from various places, and the workers inside were the same.
The dye shop hadn’t been open for two months before most of the people, from the accountant and shopkeeper to the workers and guards, had run away, naturally taking “Ye Yueshen’s” money with them.
The big brother who lived with Ye He also ran away, stealing Ye He’s wages before he left. So, Ye He found a job as a server in a nearby restaurant, and he was left alone in the small courtyard. Occasionally, other waiters from the restaurant who couldn’t make it home too late would spend the night there.
Ye He pushed open the door and invited Ye Yueshen in, saying, “That bastard not only stole my money but also broke my leg. I had no choice but to pawn the iron pot and water tank to hire a doctor, but I earned the money back and redeemed them all.”
Ye Yueshen had pretty much figured out his situation and the whole story. He was in a bad mood after being chased out by Ye Lingshen, so he said coldly, “It’s good you’re okay.”
Ye He didn’t say anything more, inviting him into the house and giving Ye Yueshen a box of slightly hardened wedding pastries to eat: “These are what was left over at the shop for us to share. At first, I couldn’t bear to eat them, but then I realized I couldn’t finish them all. I only ate half of the last batch when the cook gave us a new batch to share. Brother, have some to tide you over; I’ll go cook.”
Ye Yueshen stood up: “I’ll do it.”
“How could I let you do that?” Ye He quickly stopped Ye Yueshen.
“It’s okay.” Ye Yueshen went to the cramped kitchen. There weren’t many ingredients; Ye He usually ate three meals a day at the restaurant, so he didn’t need to cook much himself.
Ye Yueshen found a large bowl of lard and a small basin of leftover rice, with a slightly dry and hard layer on top. Ye Yueshen stir-fried the rice with the lard, and the two of them sat on the firewood, sharing the meal around the stove.
“Yue-gege…” Ye He also noticed that something was wrong with Ye Yueshen. Not only was he particularly depressed, but he had also condescended to come to his small house and share leftovers with him.
After hesitating for a moment, he asked, “Have you run into some trouble?”
Ye Yueshen didn’t speak. He stood up and reached out to Ye He: “Give me the bowl; I’ll wash it.”
“No, no, no, you don’t need to wash it.” Ye He quickly snatched the bowl and threw it into the basin, turning around to shoo Ye Yueshen out: “There’s no one else here. I forgot to fetch water this morning; I’ll wash it later.”
Ye Yueshen thought for a moment: “Then I’ll go fetch water.”
While Ye He was stunned, Ye Yueshen had already taken the bucket to the courtyard and squatted down by the well.
“I’ll do it, I’ll do it, I’ll do it…” Ye He quickly chased after him. He wouldn’t dare let Ye Yueshen fetch water; he was afraid Ye Yueshen would fall in.
After fetching the water, Ye He breathed into his hands, rubbing his red hands, looking for Ye Yueshen. He found Ye Yueshen adding firewood to the stove.
Ye He was amazed. He hadn’t expected Ye Yueshen to be able to do these things. In the past, Ye Yueshen was always surrounded by people, everyone listening to him and calling him brother, but no one really dared to put their arm around him.
Usually, when Ye Yueshen ate with them, it was in a bright and clean restaurant, and he would never eat food cooked in their dirty pot.
Ye He stood there, watching Ye Yueshen light the firewood in the stove. The light in the house was poor, and the firelight reflected on Ye Yueshen’s red cheeks. Ye Yueshen blinked, his curled and thick eyelashes slightly raised. Ye Yueshen looked at him.
Ye He was captivated. Coming back to his senses, he scratched his head sheepishly.
Ye Yueshen took the initiative to speak: “I can’t go back to the Marquis’s residence for a while. Is it convenient for you to take me in temporarily?”
“Ah?” Ye He was baffled, looking at Ye Yueshen in surprise: “Yue-gege, you want to live here with me?” He pointed his index finger down.
Ye Yueshen nodded: “If it’s inconvenient…”
“Convenient, convenient.” Ye He looked at him happily: “It’s not inconvenient, I just don’t want you to suffer here. But speaking of which, although there are two rooms here, that one hasn’t been lived in for a long time. It’s desolate, gloomy, and cold. Why don’t you sleep on the same kang with me? It’s warmer.”
Ye Yueshen didn’t have anything to be picky about: “Okay.”
Ye He was genuinely surprised. He walked over and squatted down next to Ye Yueshen, unable to resist looking at him, but too embarrassed to stare directly.
“Also, can you take me with you to work?” Ye Yueshen asked, “I want to find a job too.”
“Don’t scare me…” Ye He looked at him worriedly: “Your presence alone could buy all the waiters in the shop as slaves.”
Ye Yueshen looked down at his clothes, asking seriously, “Can you lend me another set of clothes?”
Ye He: “…”
Even when Ye Yueshen was wearing his old clothes and went to the shopkeeper to ask for a job, Ye He still felt like it wasn’t real.
The restaurant was called Food Moon Pavilion. Ye Yueshen gave himself a new name, Little Ten. The shopkeeper stroked his chin, sizing him up, frowning for a long time without saying anything.
He looked at Ye Yueshen’s delicate skin and was afraid of causing trouble for the owner by keeping him, worried that he was a plaything raised in the deep inner courtyard of a noble family, the kind of person who suddenly wanted to find a job because they had run away.
The shopkeeper didn’t dare keep him, so Ye Yueshen could only stay at Ye He’s house, helping Ye He clean the house and cook for him.
Three days later, Ye He returned excitedly and said to him, “Yue-gege, the shopkeeper told you to go over tomorrow!”
Ye Yueshen’s eyes finally showed a bit of light. He forced a smile: “Okay.”
“Oh, Yue-gege, be happier.” In the past few days, Ye He had also figured out something was wrong but hadn’t dared to mention it. Now that there was finally good news, Ye He plucked up his courage to comfort him: “It’ll all be okay. You’re a dragon among men; you’ll make a comeback sooner or later. The shopkeeper said he won’t have you running errands. He wants you to learn accounting from him, sitting behind the counter. How impressive!”
Ye Yueshen frowned. Three days ago, he went to the restaurant with Ye He. Food Moon Pavilion was a large restaurant with a lot of foot traffic, and he was worried about being recognized.
“I have to…” Ye Yueshen went to rummage through his clothes, unhesitatingly tearing off a piece of fabric from his inner garment. He was going to cover his face.
Early the next morning, he used thread to sew the fabric together and tied it into his hair, making it secure so it wouldn’t fall off.
He originally thought he would have to explain for a long time, but the shopkeeper didn’t have any objections and even found him a comfortable soft chair to sit on.
Ye Yueshen didn’t need him to teach anything. The waiters called out the names of the dishes, and Ye Yueshen memorized them. He specifically wrote them according to the menu, afraid that others wouldn’t understand his simplified characters and cause trouble.
He calculated quickly, without using an abacus or needing the shopkeeper to teach him. The shopkeeper seemed very satisfied with him and even gave him a plate of exquisite pastries to take a break.
Ye Yueshen said thank you, and then, after the shopkeeper left, he wrapped all the pastries on both sides in a handkerchief to take home to Ye He to eat that night.
The two of them sat on the kang covered with a patched quilt, eating pastries. Ye He’s eyes sparkled: “This is top-quality pear blossom Crispy! The shopkeeper is actually willing to give you so much! See? I told you, you’ll do well wherever you go!”
Ye Yueshen smiled: “Then you eat more.”
After Ye Yueshen also joined Food Moon Pavilion, they stopped cooking. They relied on Food Moon Pavilion for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, like all the other waiters, standing outside the kitchen with bowls, letting the cook scoop a spoonful of leftover dishes, and scarfing down the rice in a few mouthfuls before going back to work.
Ye Yueshen felt that he didn’t eat slowly, but he still couldn’t keep up with them. He stood under the wall, and even though he tried to act like everyone else, everyone could tell at a glance that he was refined, a crane standing among chickens.
Moreover, he covered his face while eating, sending food into his mouth from under the cloth, so that no one could see his face.
On the fifteenth day of the first month, the restaurant was crowded and stayed open very late. Only when there were a few tables of drunken customers left in the hall did Ye Yueshen have time to go to the back kitchen to find something to eat.
He stood under the wall, finishing his soup-soaked rice. The cook took good care of him, serving him a bowl of newly made dishes, with a braised lion’s head, braised fish with cabbage, and fried quail.
Ye Yueshen was a little embarrassed. He felt a little cold outside the corridor, so he took a few steps towards a sheltered place, ending up at the flowing water garden connected to the back courtyard where the lanterns were placed.
Several men, drunk, were talking loudly about the current situation, each slurring their words: “His Highness the Fifth Prince is riding high now; it’s really like thirty years east of the river, thirty years west of the river.”
“Brother Li, are you also blinded? I see that His Highness the Fifth Prince did have his moment of glory before, but in the past few days, His Highness the Fifth Prince’s several petitions in court have been rejected by the Emperor.”
“I’ll only say this to you guys. I heard from my wife the other day that at someone’s banquet, the Emperor intends to bring the Second Prince back to the palace to repent behind closed doors.”
“Ah? Wasn’t he already imprisoned in a separate courtyard? Repenting behind closed doors in the palace means a lighter punishment, right?”
“Don’t even mention a lighter punishment; it’s possible that it’ll be dismissed altogether. Suddenly abolishing the Crown Prince during the New Year caused unrest in the court without any explanation.”
Ye Yueshen took a bite of the lion’s head, feeling a bit cold and fishy, making it difficult to swallow. He clearly thought it tasted delicious just now.
He didn’t hold it properly, and the lion’s head rolled away, falling into the snow with a sound. Ye Yueshen froze. He wasn’t sure if the people over there had heard it.
He didn’t move, and there was no sound from over there either. After a while, Ye Yueshen lightly stepped away, intending to sneak away. As soon as he turned around, he ran headfirst into a fierce-looking drunkard.
“Who is it?” the drunkard shouted. Seeing that Ye Yueshen was also masked, he didn’t dare to let Ye Yueshen go easily, worried that he was a spy sent out from the palace.
“Brother Li, don’t make a fuss.” Another drunkard walked over to dissuade him, pretending to be calm: “Isn’t this the little accountant behind the counter just now?”
Ye Yueshen remained silent.
The fierce-looking drunkard at the front asked him, “Are you the little accountant?”
Ye Yueshen had no choice but to answer, “I’m not the accountant; I’m the one who calculates the bills.”
“Ah… the one who calculates the bills.” The drunkard staggered over and ripped off the cloth covering Ye Yueshen’s face. Ye Yueshen was caught off guard. The cloth covering his face was tied directly to his hair with a thread. After the cloth was removed, most of his hair almost came loose.
Even worse, it hurt. His scalp was pulled painfully. But Ye Yueshen didn’t have time to react. In his extreme tension, he could only think about how to escape.
The drunkard didn’t give him time to react, either. After seeing his face, he went crazy. He threw away all pretense and became emboldened, spewing out vulgarities: “What bill calculator? I think he’s the shopkeeper’s lover.”
After speaking, he pounced on Ye Yueshen. Ye Yueshen exclaimed and threw the bowl at his head. The remaining two drunkards saw their companion being hit, and the malicious smiles on their faces deepened instead: “Oh, he’s still a fiery temper.”
Seeing that he was being forced into a corner, Ye Yueshen picked up a stone from the ground, but before he could hit them in the face, several people were groaning and being beaten aside.
A man stood with his back to Ye Yueshen, blocking Ye Yueshen behind him. When he turned his head, the ogre mask he revealed in the hazy moonlight startled Ye Yueshen.
Gong Xunwu tried his best to change his voice, saying in a hoarse tone, “Don’t be afraid.”
“Thank you, righteous man, for coming to my rescue.” Ye Yueshen bowed to him: “Has sir eaten yet? How about I presumptuously invite sir to drink as a token of my gratitude?”
Gong Xunwu stared at him intently. Soon, the restaurant staff came and dragged away all the troublemakers, and also told Ye Yueshen to treat the distinguished guest well.
Ye Yueshen assumed he wasn’t willing: “If it’s inconvenient for sir…”
“Convenient.” Gong Xunwu said.
“Good.” Ye Yueshen gestured for him to come inside: “Please, sir, go to the elegant room on the second floor first. It’s late and the cold wind is biting outside. I’ll be right back.”
Gong Xunwu looked at him for a while before turning and entering the door. He couldn’t help but look back and found that Ye Yueshen was bending down to pick up the cloth covering his face, then hastily re-tying his hair.