"Ouyang Zhiyan, Mr. Meng has asked you to come over..." Zhiyan was engrossed in what she was listening to when a sudden violent knocking interrupted her from outside the room.
"What's the matter?" Ouyang Zhiyan opened the door, looking displeased at the visitor.
"Hmph, have you forgotten the task set by Mr. Meng? If you don't go now, be careful or you'll be locked in confinement again!" A male servant dressed in green scornfully taunted with a face full of disdain. Just a bastard thinking she could become a young lady after changing environments? Pah!
"If there's nothing else, you can leave. Remember not to knock on the door like that in the future; you'll have to pay for any damage." Zhiyan gave the visitor a cold look and slammed the door shut, thinking she was still the old Ouyang Zhiyan whom any servant could yell at without consequence.
The servant outside stood there stunned. He, he had actually been rebuked by a mere child? Huffing with anger, his chest heaving and face turning the color of liver, well, fine, don't blame him for not warning her. She should just wait for Mr. Meng's punishment! With a flick of his sleeve, he left in a huff...
Ouyang Zhiyan didn't take the incident to heart at all. After three days and three nights of torment, her body was already utterly exhausted. Now relaxed, drowsiness overcame her once more. She lay down on the bed, pulled the brocade quilt over her, and soon fell into a deep sleep.
She slept for a whole day and night, and her sleep was anything but peaceful; sometimes screaming, sometimes murmuring softly, sometimes crying, sometimes behaving wildly in her dreams. At one moment, she dreamt of being chased in the modern era, and at another, she dreamt of kneeling as punishment in ancient times...
"Yanyan, Yanyan, wake up..." A tall figure stood in front of the bed. The man was handsome, and his eyebrows were filled with anxiety as he looked tenderly at the person troubled by nightmares.
"Father, it's time for dinner." Ouyang Jin, clad in a white robe, stood respectfully to the side and reminded the man. Ouyang Peng had just returned from traveling and had hurried here to see Zhiyan even before he had a chance to drink tea.
"You, as her brother, still have the mind to eat when Yanyan is like this." Ouyang Peng gave his son an unhappy glance. He couldn't bear to think how this little one had coped during the days he was away, a trace of regret flashing through his ink-colored pupils.
"Ah, don't!" Ouyang Zhiyan screamed and suddenly woke from her nightmare.
"Yanyan, what's wrong?" A rich and magnetic voice sounded beside her, and Ouyang Zhiyan came to her senses, realizing she had just had a nightmare. The scenes from the dream were so vivid—abandonment, betrayal, assassination... It made her relive the overwhelming loneliness once again: a vast world where nobody could be trusted...
"Yanyan." Ouyang Peng watched the person on the bed with concern, bending over to gently stroke her back.
Ouyang Zhiyan looked up, her eyes as black and glossy as midnight filled with a layer of mist, feeling the large hand on her back. Suddenly, her nose tingled, and tears streamed down her face.
No one had ever cared for her like this in her memory, not even her boyfriend from her past life had ever shown such a worried gaze. The heartfelt concern and tenderness compelled her to want to draw closer, to rely on someone.
"Wuwu, don't abandon Yanyan. Yanyan will be good, wuwu..." Overcome by emotion, Zhiyan threw herself into the man's arms, wrapping her arms around his neck and breaking into loud sobs. The loneliness from her previous life, and the insecurity since traveling through time, all came pouring out at once.
Ouyang Peng's heart ached at the sight, and he suddenly tightened his hold on Zhiyan's arm. "There, there, Daddy's back now, and I'll stay by your side forever from now on!" Ouyang Peng said while gently stroking her back to comfort her.
Ouyang Jin stood by, his normally indifferent face showing ripples of emotion. His brows slightly furrowed, he looked at Ouyang Zhiyan sobbing on Ouyang Peng's shoulder, her little face like pear blossoms bathed in the rain, and he surprisingly found it somewhat displeasing to the eye.
"Wuwu, Yanyan is not a hateful ghost, Yanyan is not a bastard, wuwu..." As soon as Ouyang Zhiyan cried out, she felt much better, only she didn't want to leave the warm embrace tinged with a fresh scent, and without realizing it, she tightened her arms around Ouyang Peng.
"Who said that? Yanyan is the little Princess of our Ouyang Family, Daddy's little treasure. Who dares to bully our Yanyan?" Ouyang Peng's brow furrowed, a trace of anger spreading across his face. What on earth had happened during the days he was away? Or was it that the servants were two-faced?
"Come on, let's go have something to eat first," Ouyang Peng said softly, standing up and carrying Zhiyan outside!
The meal took place in the hall, and when the servants saw the person in Ouyang Peng's arms, they were all so shocked their eyeballs nearly popped out. They had always looked down on Zhiyan, even calling her a bastard, but they never imagined that the same "bastard" they scorned was now being held by their respected master. The disparity was too much for them to adjust to all at once.
Ouyang Zhiyan took in their expressions, her lips curling into a mocking smile. She had no interest in dealing with these spineless, opportunistic wretches, but that didn't mean others wouldn't. Sure enough, as she took her seat, a commanding voice sounded from above.
"What's this? Has the house gone topsy-turvy in my absence? Can anyone tell me how Zhiyan got those scars on her arm?" Ouyang Peng narrowed his eyes, sweeping his cold glare across the room, silencing everyone. They wished they could bury their heads into their necks.
Ouyang Jin frowned, surprised that his father would value a sister with no blood relation to himself so highly. From the moment he returned, his father seemed only concerned about her, not even sparing a glance for his own son, as if in his eyes, it was he who was the neglected bastard. His fists clenched, his handsome face hardening further.
"Daddy, Yanyan's hungry," Ouyang Zhiyan seated in Ouyang Peng's arms, one hand clutching at the front of his robe, said sweetly.
"Whatever you want to eat, Daddy will get it for you," he said with utmost indulgence, looking down at the person in his arms, his dark eyes deep and dazzling like the stars in the night sky, his face full of tenderness.
"Yanyan wants to sit next to big brother." Zhiyan gazed with innocent, large eyes, building a rapport around her. Although she enjoyed Ouyang Peng's love very much, she could not show it too openly. The young man next to her, exuding cold air, obviously had some reservations about her.
"Haha, alright, if Yanyan likes her brother, Daddy is the happiest." Ouyang Peng laughed heartily, gently placing Zhiyan down from his arms.
Ignoring the icy stares, the girl trotted over happily and, with a beguiling smile, climbed onto the stool before focusing on the delicious food on the table.
Ouyang Jin watched her with suspicion, his gaze studying Zhiyan. He remembered her as weak, timid, incompetent, and frightened, always avoiding him as far as possible. Now, though, not only did she not flee, but she also smiled at him. Had her mind suddenly cleared, or, emboldened by their father's doting, was she revealing her true nature and starting to play games?
"Brother, aren't you hungry? Or is there something on Yanyan's face?" Ouyang Zhiyan's lips pouted slightly, her eyes questioning, then she innocently wiped her face with her hand, leaving it greasy, seemingly noticing something amiss. Switching to her other hand, the powder from the osmanthus cakes she had been eating promptly transferred to her face.