Family Meal With Father And Brothers.

"Why don't you just take both of us with you to the River-Cut Village? We badly miss you, and in your absence, we don't have much going on here." Zhu Wan said, after scrubbing Tang Yu's pink toe nails. There was no buildup underneath her toenails, thus, she didn't have to poke anything out. Instead, she got on rubbing the heels with a bristle brush to loosen the dead skin, and remove them.

"Wan wan is right." Zhu Taotao picked up the thread immediately. "We were brought here to serve you, so we should be where Young Miss is." She held her breath in anticipation, throwing her master's hair in a loose high bun, letting her scalp and hair absorb the fermented rice water.

"Sure thing, if both of you don't mind sleeping in the same room with my husband and I." Tang Yu's eyes were closed, as she responded.

Crimson flush quickly crept up across the servant girls' cheeks, immobilizing their hands for a tenth of a second.

"We have six rooms there; all occupied. Neck area please." The culprit, as cool as cucumber, pointed out.

Zhu Taotao, with a puckered face as if strongly sucked by vacuum, picked a washcloth, and jumped into exfoliating the neck area. Her sister didn't dare to put any more words either.

….

Tang Yu approached the round dining table flanked up by four chairs. It was laden with various foods.

Servants scurried around carrying and placing the rest of the dishes. The words on Tang Yu's suicide spread like wildfire and prompted a long flurry of gossips in all corners inside the magistrate's manor. Atmosphere was heated and also kind of juicy under the good care of gossip mongers. The energetic voices died away in barely hearable whispers after coming to this room until Tang Yu's presence deadened that as well now.

Zhu Taotao pulled out a chair.

The appetite-inducing aroma hanging densely over the table, permeated the entire room. The tinkling of copper utensils created from subtly hitting each other in the process of making room for the upcoming ones almost drowned out the light sound of nearing footsteps.

"Father, you came." Tang Yu smiled gently; as it was going to be her last meal in this house for a while, she wanted to share it with Tang Yangran.

"Yu'er..." The county magistrate entered, sporting a nervous experience. Tension was pressing on each and every fiber of his body. "Your brothers—" he stopped, changing his words, "Tang Bai, and Tang Song wanted to join you over lunch...I—" He trailed off.

"Bring them in!" Tang Yu laughed off her father's expression. She craned her neck just in time to catch a glimpse of a pale hand sprawled on the door frame, and half of a face peeking out. "C'mon you two, I'm not going to truss you up in my cupboard, you know. You've outgrown the closet already."

Both lads, spit of each other, walked in with a stiff gait. Tang Song was reddened on the face, ashamed. Guilt, as pointed as a needle, tore a big hole in his conscience. They did frame Tang Yu some four years ago on their mother's persuasion.

On the contrary, Tang Bai shook it off of his mind. The cupboard imputation was nothing but a paltry payment they owed to Tang Yu. Even with them doing nothing, she used to erupt like a volcano, and spew out lava at their very sight!

Now, she changed overnight?! You better pull this joke somewhere else! He was above buying this shit. Tang Yu's inherent rage had to be simmering along, inside her! Heh! He exclusively came here to bring her violent mood swings to the fore!

"Sit down." Tang Bai hooked his foot with a leg of a chair, dragging it out. He flopped in it, and pointed the one opposite him to his twin.

"Tang Bai! Where are your manners?" The county magistrate reprimanded. He didn't want the once in a blue moon harmonious atmosphere to lapse into chaos. He sincerely prayed for the air not to shift into the regular discord, and dived into weaving a suitable explanation to present before his daughter.

Tang Bai's shoulders curled forward, before he slid down in his chair, as though he wanted to minimize his presence.

"Father, please don't mind him. My little brother is still in his growing phase. This sour grape of an attitude won't exist a few years later; he will grow out of it." Tang Yu took her seat; at her gesture, Zhu Wan and Zhu Taotao started serving.

The twin's eyes widened like saucers. It was very the first time in their living memory that Tang Yu called them her brothers.

Every servant, anticipating drama by standing nearby, was shell shocked by the air of harmony that was prevailing in what should've been fire of animosity.

Tang Yu tore a dumpling in the middle, dunked half of it in the scalding soup; its accompaniment. Vapour curled up from the piece strangulated between her chopsticks, a few tiny crumbles dislodged from the filling through the tear, as she let it cool off for about two seconds before sending it to her mouth.

She nodded in an apparent approval. The insides was perfectly cooked, which consisted of beef and veggies.

"Has the kitchen finally successfully prepared it to your liking?" Tang Yangran asked, choking back his rising emotions. This was the first time he lucked out to have a meal with all his children together. The tall strands of noodles dangling from his chopsticks shook lightly, as if attesting his sentimental state.

Finally?

Tang Yu didn't miss the glaring keyword. She was reminded of the tantrums that went over food on a regular basis. The host was indeed very picky eater.

"It's really good. You should try one as well." She said with a smile, and finished the other half.

A tiny piece of meat ended up falling from the noodles mass, before Tang Yangran shoved the mass into his mouth. He paid heed to his daughter's words, grabbing a dumpling, dipping it in the strew, eating it happily.

Tang Bai, fuming mad, was stealing sidelong glances at Tang Yu. Affection really blinded his father! There had to be a trick, she was hiding up her sleeves in order to sell them down the river!

Tang Yu went for the next dish. It was another type of dumpling, shaped like long cylinders with its both ends open. The filling trapped inside the wheat based dough — she believed — were mushroom, potato and cabbage. However, the mushroom very much approximated the taste of meat. She could read all of Tang Bai's thoughts like a parrot. It was as readable as ever with the boy's expression speaking volumes. Even so, she could never bring herself to engage in a shouting match with a twelve years old the way the host used to.

Her mental age was thirty!

Tang Song busied himself in scooping up, and delivering one after another spoonful of shark's fin soup. He liked it above and before everything else.

As for Tang Bai, he dipped a chicken fillet in the bowl of chili sauce, feeling sour and a little angry.

"You two, Tang Bai and Tang Song, open your ears and listen very carefully. Especially you--" Tang Yangran posited his gaze on Tang Bai. "--You won't breathe a word of yesterday's pond incident in front of Mu Yunsheng. Your sis fell in it accidentally, and he doesn't need to be in know of it."

Tang Bai brought out a scowl on his cloudy face, driving his chopstick into the meat, poking a hole in his fillet. The red sauce rose up inside the bowl and spilled over the edge.

The other one shifted his weight side by side in his chair uncomfortably.

'Uncomfortable? Hopefully, you didn't rat on me too much.' Tang Yu squinted her eyes. Come to think of this, these two little devils were under Mu Yunsheng's tutelage for a little upward three years. During this period, the latter had been given free accommodation and food by the county magistrate in his dwelling; in the outermost guest chamber of course. He diligently taught these two brothers everyday for three hours in return. As a result, Tang Song ranked number one in his class, and Tang Bai somewhere inside the top ten.

Tang Yangran wanted Mu Yunsheng to impart his invaluable knowledge to his daughter as well. But, Tang Yu had a strong inclination for truanting from academy, so much that she used to bunk off five out of seven days. The other two days, she would be a back bencher, and yawn away the lectures, worse yet, taking forty winks.

First year, she used to show up once in a while before Mu Yunsheng. Last two years, that took a nap as well!

In short, Tang Yu, by no means, had a lick of thirst for knowledge. She just didn't want to give her father a chance to pinch and scrape on her in the education section. Because, he was burning his money in the process of educating his sons anyway! Why should she be left behind?