CHAPTER 377: CHAPTER 345: SPRING OUTING (FIRST UPDATE)

Once in the carriage, Li Run lifted the curtain and waved goodbye to his mother standing at the gate.

Afterwards, the curtain fell, and the light inside the carriage dimmed.

For the first time going out alone with the Young Master, the young girl seemed very reserved, sitting properly with her hands clasped on her lap.

"Today we are going to the suburb." Li Run looked at the girl, his voice extremely gentle, "If Fifth Sister gets hungry or thirsty, you must tell me promptly, and I will have someone bring you food."

"Hmm." Li Huairu nodded.

Seeing she remained as usual silent and sparing of words, Li Run smiled, "I’ve said so much, yet you only reply with one word; that’s rather rude."

The young girl suddenly raised her head, with a bit of tension in her eyes, seemingly unsure of what to do.

Li Run reminded her, "You should say thank you to your brother."

After hearing this, the young girl obediently said, "Thank you, Young Master."

Li Run’s smile deepened; he had two younger sisters, one aged eight and the other nine, who also called him Young Master. Yet, for some reason, he always felt the sweetness from the young girl before him surpassed that of his sisters.

The journey was somewhat long, and considering there were two children in the carriage, the driver intentionally slowed down to avoid bumps.

Li Huairu gradually fell asleep, leaning on the cushion with her eyes closed.

Li Run worried she might accidentally bump her head, gently shifting her to lean on his shoulder.

The young girl seemed truly sleepy; even being moved, she showed no signs of waking, her breathing was very light, almost imperceptible.

Li Run occasionally lifted the curtain to check the road.

By the time they reached the suburb, more than half an hour had passed.

Today was the third day of March, the Shangsi Festival, and it was bustling outside.

The moment the carriage stopped, vendors’ calls rang out around them.

Li Run hadn’t yet had time to wake Li Huairu, but the young girl already opened her eyes.

Realizing she had been leaning on the Young Master’s shoulder, she felt somewhat embarrassed, rubbed her eyes, and asked, "Are we there?"

Li Run nodded, "Does Fifth Sister want to get off now?"

Li Huairu shyly tugged the corner of her mouth.

She heard the bustling sounds outside, her heart curious about what was happening, wanting to see for herself.

Li Run lifted the curtain and, after getting off himself, invited her out.

The young girl bent her waist, letting half her body extend out of the carriage first, immediately seeing the kites on the nearby stall.

They were in shapes of swallows, butterflies, goldfish, and owls, dazzling to the eyes.

She also saw children not far away holding reels, running with kites; a colorful swallow-shaped kite flew higher and higher, adorning the clear blue sky.

Li Huairu had neither seen nor played with kites before; she couldn’t even name them, just following her inner longing, she said to Li Run, "Young Master, I want that."

Li Run followed her gaze and took a look, then withdrew his sight, "You want a kite?"

Li Huairu asked him, "Is the thing that flies in the sky called a kite?"

"Yes." Then he asked her, "Which one do you want?"

"The butterfly." Li Huairu stretched out her small hand, pointing to the prettiest one among all the kites.

"Alright, you wait here, I’ll be right back."

After saying this, Li Run instructed the driver to watch her, and himself walked to the stall, took out money, and bought the butterfly-shaped kite.

Upon returning, he noticed an emotion of excitement in the usually silent young girl’s eyes.

As if infected, Li Run also bent his lips, handing the kite to her.

The young girl held it in her arms, gently touched it, then shook her head towards him, "I don’t know how to play."

Li Run glanced around; seeing none of his childhood friends had arrived yet, he chose a less crowded lawn and took Li Huairu over.

Letting her hold the kite, he took the reel from her hand, tested the wind direction, then instructed her to walk back a distance with the kite; when it seemed about right, he started to jog lightly.

Before long, the kite swayed and flew into the sky.

Li Huairu’s eyes filled with wonder as she watched the butterfly soar upwards.

Seeing her stand stupidly still, Li Run shouted, "Fifth Sister, come quickly!"

Li Huairu snapped out of her daze and ran towards him.

She originally intended to take the reel from his hand, but unexpectedly, she slipped and fell forward, bumping directly into Li Run, making both unable to maintain footing, tumbling onto the ground.

The kite, due to the sudden force, charged away from the reel, flew higher and farther, eventually falling, disappearing into the woods.

Li Huairu hadn’t expected things would turn out this way; she sat up, reaching out to help Li Run, but saw he had already gotten up. Fortunately, the lawn was clean, and his clothes hadn’t gotten dirty.

"Young Master, I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to." The young girl’s expression was perplexed.

Li Run looked at her and chuckled, "What a silly girl."

The little girl felt even more guilty.

"Alright, I’m just teasing you. The Young Master doesn’t blame you, get up now. If the butterfly kite is gone, it’s gone. At worst, I’ll buy you another one."

"I don’t want it." The little girl shook her head.

"Don’t like kites anymore?" Li Run asked her.

The little girl kept silent.

It’s not that she didn’t like it, she just felt she was clumsy and couldn’t do anything right, and didn’t want to trouble him.

Li Run said, "If not a kite, then I’ll buy you a few bamboo dragonflies; these are quite fun too."

While speaking, the two had already walked to a stall selling bamboo dragonflies. Li Run bought her two and personally taught her how to play.

With the lesson learned from the kite, Li Huairu was extra careful with the bamboo dragonfly this time.

But even so, one of them still flew away and got lost.

When Li Run’s close friends arrived, they saw him bending over looking for something in the grass.

One of them couldn’t help but laugh, "What is our Young Master doing here?"

Having found the bamboo dragonfly, Li Run straightened up, glanced at the person indifferently, handed the item back to Li Huairu, and said, "Helping my sister find something."

"Your sister?" The person widened his eyes, "I know all your sisters, when did another one appear? Could it be your father has..."

Before he could finish, Li Run frowned and interrupted, "What nonsense are you spouting?"

The other person chuckled awkwardly, seeming to realize that gossiping behind others’ backs was not very gentlemanly, and quickly changed the subject.

Li Huairu, somewhat afraid of strangers, shyly glanced at the few people and quietly hid behind Li Run.

"Don’t be afraid, they’re all my friends." Li Run turned his head and looked at the little girl. She was holding a bamboo dragonfly in each hand, her head slightly lowered, making it hard to see her expression.

The person who spoke earlier couldn’t help but be curious again and looked at Li Run, "Hey, seriously, which concubine gave birth to this sister of yours?"

He had often visited the Kangding Bo Mansion before but seemed to have never seen her.

Li Run didn’t hide it and said truthfully, "Earlier this year, we went back to our hometown for the ancestral rites. There was an earthquake, and after the disaster, we found a homeless little girl. My mother felt sorry for her so we brought her back."

"So that’s how it is. This girl is indeed quite pitiful, no wonder she’s so introverted and afraid of strangers." The friends sighed upon hearing this, and their initial playful teasing of Li Run disappeared.

Among this group, Li Run was the youngest, while the others were between twelve and fifteen years old.

After learning about Li Huairu’s experiences, everyone couldn’t help but feel compassionate, calling her little sister, and buying her sugar figures and glazed fruit skewers, eager to give her all the treats and toys from the mountain.

Li Run glanced at Li Huairu, whose hands were too full to hold all the snacks and toys, and took some from her, "I say, you guys, don’t overdo it!"

"I don’t like the sound of that," one friend said, "We genuinely see her as a sister, and what, you’re jealous of this little bit of affection?"

Li Run couldn’t be bothered to argue with them; it wasn’t about jealousy at all. He just worried that their sudden enthusiasm might scare the shy and timid little girl beside him.

Thinking this, Li Run turned his head to look and saw the little girl’s cheeks flushed, eyes darting between the snacks in her hand and him, with all the joy in her heart evident on her face.

Li Run asked her, "Do you like what the brothers bought for you?"

Li Huairu nodded yes.

Li Run further said, "The food and toys at home are better than those outside. Why don’t you like the ones at home?"

Li Huairu thought for a moment, "Outside is more fun."

Li Run chuckled silently, not showing any annoyance at her "preference."

After buying the snacks and toys, the group followed the creek upstream, joining with scholars on an outing to play the floating cup game.

After a day of interaction, not only Li Run but even the few childhood friends became closer to Li Huairu, calling her sister at every turn.

Every time they called her, the little girl smiled, a smile that was innocent yet pure.

...

By the time they returned home, it was already dusk.

Chulu came out to greet them, took the things from Li Huairu’s hands, and then led the two to see Mrs. Yao.

Knowing that children get hungry easily, Mrs. Yao had already prepared some snacks, but seeing her foster daughter holding a half-eaten skewer of glazed fruit, she said she wasn’t hungry.

Mrs. Yao affectionately ruffled her hair, "Ruru, where did you go with the Young Master today?"

Li Huairu snuggled into Mrs. Yao’s embrace, turned her head to look at Li Run, and after a long while, said, "The mountain."

Mrs. Yao sensed that after going out, her foster daughter’s mood was much more cheerful upon returning.

After hearing from Li Run about what happened on the mountain today, Mrs. Yao advised him, "Ruru is only six years old, she’s at an age where she can play with you. Make sure you take her with you wherever you go, so she can see more of the outside world and slowly get used to it."

Li Run nodded.