Sweet Rebirth: The Little Healer

”Heh, you guessed wrong,” Zhao Nuanyue said with a triumphant smile. ”It’s not canned food. You see this glass jar? It’s filled with a face mask, for skincare. Look, my skin is so fair and soft. It’s all thanks to these masks.”

As she spoke, Zhao Nuanyue touched her own face.

Although Hua Yusen didn’t know what a face mask was for, he couldn’t help but give Zhao Nuanyue’s fair, supple face a gentle pinch. It felt incredibly smooth and fair, and he figured the stuff in the jar must be quite good. ’My sister is a girl, and she cares a lot about her looks. She’ll probably love this.’

”Haha, alright.” Hua Yusen nodded. ”This is a really nice gift. Yufen should love it. It’s a very thoughtful gesture.”

”Of course it’s good! Look at me! My skin’s so nice because of it,” the Little Red Carp chimed in proudly, pinching her own chubby cheeks.

”Haha, that’s even better,” Hua Yusen chuckled. ’The Little Red Carp is just too adorable. No wonder Zhao Nuanyue and Zhao Nuan Yang dote on the little one so much.’

’Even though she’s their adopted sister, they’re raising her like their own daughter, completely doting on her.’

When they arrived at the Hua family’s home, Feng Wanru was in the kitchen, preparing lunch with the nanny.

This was Zhao Nuanyue’s first formal visit, and Feng Wanru was already quite satisfied with her prospective daughter-in-law. So, while preparing a farewell banquet for her own daughter, she was also determined to be a good host to her.

Hua Yufen was in her room packing her luggage, while Hua Yulin was in the yard walking the dog.

The moment the Little Red Carp saw the big dog, she stopped dead in her tracks.

”Sister, Brother-in-law, I want to play with that doggy!” the Little Red Carp said, pointing at the large dog and starting to squirm out of Hua Yusen’s arms.

Zhao Nuanyue hesitated. The dog was huge, and the Little Red Carp was a mischievous little thing. Worried she would get hurt, she tried to talk her out of it, saying, ”Little Red Carp, you’d better not go. It’s too dangerous.”

”I’m not scared, I’m not scared!” The Little Red Carp could hardly wait. ”I wanna play, I wanna play!”

Seeing this, Hua Yusen chuckled and said, ”Let’s have the Little Red Carp stay here and play with Yulin. I’ll take you inside first. My parents are in there!”

”Okay, okay, you guys go ahead,” the Little Red Carp said, already scampering toward the big dog.

Still worried, Zhao Nuanyue hurried over to Hua Yulin’s side. ”Yulin, the Little Red Carp is dying to play with the big dog. Could you please keep an eye on her for me?”

”Of course,” Hua Yulin said with a smile. ”Once the dog gets used to her scent, he won’t bite her. You don’t have to worry.”

The Little Red Carp nodded along, her small hand already stroking the big dog’s fur. ”See? The big doggy is so well-behaved.”

Well-behaved?

Hua Yusen and Hua Yulin, who knew better, were both stunned. Their family dog, Hei Hu, had a notoriously fierce temper.

But when they saw Hei Hu actually enjoying the Little Red Carp’s petting, his eyes closing in pleasure, the two of them had to admit she was one of those people who are just a natural with animals.

Seeing this, Zhao Nuanyue nodded as well. ”Alright then, Little Red Carp, you play with your Second Brother, but don’t be naughty.”

”Uh-huh, I’ll be good!” the Little Red Carp nodded vigorously, having already taken the leash and run off with the dog.

Hua Yulin followed after them, not forgetting to turn back and reassure Zhao Nuanyue. ”I’m right behind them, Sister-in-law. Don’t worry!”

Only after the Little Red Carp and Hua Yulin had run some distance away did Zhao Nuanyue finally look away.

Hua Yusen took Zhao Nuanyue’s hand and smiled. ”Don’t worry, they’ll be fine. Let’s go inside.”

Once inside, seeing that her future mother-in-law was personally cooking, Zhao Nuanyue certainly couldn’t just sit around. She went to the kitchen to help.

Feng Wanru was even more pleased when she saw how deftly Zhao Nuanyue cooked. And when she saw the finished dishes, they looked, smelled, and tasted wonderful.

Watching from the side, Feng Wanru was all smiles. ’My son is a lucky man,’ she thought. ’At the very least, he’ll never be lacking for good food.’

”Nuanyue, I feel so bad making you cook on your first visit,” Feng Wanru said with a smile. ”Here, let me take over.”

”It’s no problem, Auntie. I’m almost done,” Zhao Nuanyue replied with a smile. ”Why don’t you go tell everyone to get ready for lunch?”

”Well, I’ll leave you to it then.” Since Zhao Nuanyue insisted, Feng Wanru didn’t argue. She took off her apron and left the kitchen.

In the living room, Hua Zhiqiang and Hua Yusen were talking. Feng Wanru went straight upstairs to call her daughter down for the meal.

”Mom, what dragged you out of the kitchen?” Hua Yufen asked with a laugh as she continued packing.

”Heh, your sister-in-law is here, and she’s taken over the kitchen. Her cooking is even better than our Aunt Li’s,” Feng Wanru said, her eyes crinkling with a smile. ”It seems your brother didn’t just fall for her looks. That Zhao Nuanyue can really hold her own in the drawing-room and in the kitchen. She’s a real catch.”

Hua Yufen listened and chuckled. ”So you’re satisfied now?”

”I am. It’s a blessing for your brother to have a woman like her by his side, isn’t it?” Feng Wanru retorted. ”He survived a near-death experience this time; it must mean good fortune is coming his way. I’m not worried about him anymore. At the very least, your brother’s judgment of character is much better than your father’s.”

”Tell me about it!” Hua Yufen laughed. ”At first, I didn’t think Zhao Nuanyue was good enough for him. But then I realized, especially when I see the way he looks at her... he’s so happy. Happier than any high position or great wealth could make him. I knew then that he couldn’t live without her.”

”Sigh, that’s right. He’s my son, so of course I can feel it too,” Feng Wanru said wistfully. ”I just hope that after he marries, he doesn’t forget his own mother!”

Hearing this, Hua Yufen shook her head with a helpless laugh. It seemed all mothers felt this way when their sons got married. They were happy, of course, but there was also a sense of loss, knowing their son would now be closer to another woman.

”Mom, don’t let your imagination run wild. Big Brother isn’t an unfilial son,” Hua Yufen said, defending him. ”And think about it, he’s not young anymore. Most men his age already have children. If the Guo Family hadn’t kept dragging things out, he would’ve been married long ago.”

”Hmph, it’s a good thing the Guo Family dragged their feet and didn’t go through with the marriage. If he had married her, he would have brought a real troublemaker into our home. And with that family’s character, kicking our Hua family when we were down... breaking off that engagement was absolutely the right decision,” Feng Wanru said disdainfully. ”Zhao Nuanyue’s family background might not be impressive, but she herself is a wonderful person, good in every way. A woman like that brings prosperity to a family.”

’As for someone like Guo Dongmei, she’s hyper-competitive and always clawing her way to the top. She might be cunning, but she can’t handle anything truly important.’

When her mother mentioned Guo Dongmei, Hua Yufen remembered that one of her colleagues lived nearby and had told her some things about Guo Dongmei’s recent situation.

”Mom, have you heard what’s been going on with Guo Dongmei lately?” Hua Yufen asked, a look of schadenfreude on her face.