HMIME Chapter 26: Eating Hotpot in the Rain

The spring rain was always fine and continuous, like a thin layer of mist enveloping the world. The rain was soft and gentle, creating only a faint rustling sound as it fell on the leaves. Yet, it lasted for a long time, from morning until afternoon, without stopping, as if it wanted to soak the entire world.

The sky remained somewhat overcast, but fortunately, it wasn’t hot or stuffy, which kept people from feeling agitated.

Bai Lu sat by the window, holding a cat in his arms, leaning against the windowsill and staring blankly at the rain outside.

After a while, perhaps because the cat didn’t like the dampness, it wriggled out of Bai Lu’s embrace and jumped to the warm brazier, where it squinted its eyes and curled up, tucking its front paws underneath.

Bai Lu stood up as well. Since it was raining outside and he couldn’t go out, staying inside was too boring. He looked at his skinny arms and decided to do some push-ups to exercise.

He took off his outer garment, rolled up his sleeves, and just as he was about to get down on the ground, the cat stood up curiously, walked over to Bai Lu, circled around him twice, then agilely jumped onto Bai Lu’s back, kneading it a few times with its small paws before comfortably lying down.

Bai Lu: “…”

Bai Lu maintained the plank position with the cat’s cuteness sealing his movements.

Coincidentally, Chu Ya came in and saw this scene, feeling very complex.

He felt guilty and sincere as he said, “Sorry, A-Bai, I didn’t know your body was so weak that it could be pressed down by a cat. I’ll try to be gentler tonight.”

Bai Lu ground his teeth, “Shut up and take it off.”

Chu Ya grabbed the cat by its nape and lifted it off Bai Lu, placing it aside casually. Bai Lu breathed a sigh of relief and got up from the ground, clapping his hands, “Why did you come back so early today?”

Chu Ya smiled, “Since it’s raining today, I’m planning to take you to Tingyu Pavilion for dinner. The ambiance there is quite nice.”

Bai Lu looked at him strangely, “Eating outside on a rainy day, what’s wrong with you?”

“…This is the romance of ancient people.”

So Chu Ya was particularly concerned about certain details. Bai Lu suspected that during their previous romantic times, Chu Ya might have spent every day watching romantic tutorials online, such as “Teach You 108 Romantic Tricks in Three Minutes.”

Despite his complaints, Bai Lu obediently followed him to Tingyu Pavilion because Chu Ya said that if he didn’t go, none of the palace kitchens would open tonight, leaving him with no hot meal to eat.

Given the choice between instant retribution or enduring hunger all night, Bai Lu decisively chose the former.

However, when they arrived at Tingyu Pavilion, Bai Lu began to understand Chu Ya’s definition of ancient romance.

Tingyu Pavilion was surrounded by three walls, with only one side open. Beneath the walls was a railing made of white jade, and above hung octagonal pearl curtains, preventing rain from blowing in.

The open view allowed one to see the entire misty rainy scenery, and the fine sound of rain was very soothing.

More importantly, in this cool and damp weather, there was a small stove on the table in the middle of Tingyu Pavilion, with a copper pot hanging on top, simmering with thick red broth, emitting steam. Next to it were several plates of thinly sliced lamb, fish, beef, and various kinds of vegetables for dipping.

Eating hotpot on a rainy day was undoubtedly in the top ten list of happiness.

“You mentioned wanting to eat this before, didn’t you?” Chu Ya pulled out a chair for Bai Lu, and at the same time, kissed his forehead gently. “It’s cool today, perfect for it.”

Bai Lu avoided his kiss, sat on the chair, and picked up the chopsticks, “Let’s eat. Don’t touch me.”

Chu Ya was somewhat helpless, “You let me do that to you at night, but you won’t let me kiss you during the day?”

Bai Lu slapped the table with his chopsticks, gritted his teeth, and glared at him, “You forced me to do that at night! If I could beat you, would I let you touch me?! If I don’t, consider me kind-hearted!”

“…” Chu Ya wisely skipped over this explosive topic, picked up the long public chopsticks, and dipped the slices of meat into the steaming copper pot, then personally prepared the dipping sauce for Bai Lu.

There were no servants in Tingyu Pavilion, only the two of them. Listening to the sound of rain outside, feeling the moist air with fine mist, and eating hotpot, the chopsticks held the romance and comfort exclusive to the mortal world.

Bai Lu’s vigilance was also melted by this comfort. Chu Ya looked at him and felt that the time was right. He opened his mouth, “A-Bai, tomorrow is Qingming Festival.”

Bai Lu, chewing on a bamboo shoot, turned to look at the light rain outside, “Oh, I know.”

Chu Ya hesitated for a moment, “I may not have the right to say this, but I’ve set up a memorial tablet for your mother in the palace’s ancestral hall. If you’re willing, you can go and pay your respects.”

Bai Lu’s hand paused, and he looked at Chu Ya, his eyes dim and unclear, “What are you doing this for?”

Unable to determine whether Bai Lu was angry or simply asking, Chu Ya pondered for a moment before saying, “I have no other intentions, nor am I trying to excuse myself. I just want to give you a place where you can talk to your mother. If you feel uncomfortable, I’ll have it removed immediately.”

Bai Lu remained silent for a while, then lowered his gaze, speaking softly, “It’s unnecessary, but I’ll go tomorrow.”

The light rain that had drifted throughout the day before Qingming Festival had washed away much grief. Yet, on the day of Qingming Festival itself, the rain stopped, and the world seemed to have been washed clean, with a clear blue sky and the fragrance of earth and grass in the air.

Chu Ya brought Bai Lu to the palace’s ancestral hall, indicating the direction of the door for him and reaching out to straighten his collar, saying softly, “Go ahead. I won’t accompany you.”

Bai Lu was slightly surprised, “You’re not going in?”

Chu Ya smiled bitterly and shook his head, “No, if there really are spirits in heaven, Auntie wouldn’t want to see the son of her enemy.”

Bai Lu didn’t know what to say and could only nod hastily before turning and entering the hall.

As soon as he entered the ancestral hall, Bai Lu smelled a strong scent of incense. The altar was cleaned very neatly, and the censer was filled with thick incense ash. It seemed that Chu Ya had been having incense offerings made here for the past few days.

In the center of the altar was a memorial tablet with his mother’s name written on it. Bai Lu stood a meter

away, looking at the tablet, feeling a mix of emotions.

Bai Lu had never believed in these things before. He thought that once a person died, they were truly gone, and no matter how much a living person did or how many tears they shed, the deceased would never see it. However, his own experience of reincarnation had overturned this belief. Bai Lu dared not say that there were truly no souls in the world.

He walked over, lit three sticks of incense, and inserted them into the censer.

Then he looked at the tablet engraved with the familiar name, his eyes reddening suddenly. Worried that there might truly be a spirit in heaven, he wiped his eyes with the back of his hand, forcing back the tears.

He looked at the tablet and forced a smile, “Don’t worry, I’ve grown up. I’m doing well. I’m very capable, and no one dares to bully me…”

A few seconds later, he suddenly choked up, slowly squatting down, lowering his head, and burying his face in his arms.

“But Mom, I miss you so much…”

Outside the ancestral hall, Chu Ya looked up at the slowly drifting clouds in the sky. A white bird flew past quickly and perched on the eaves, tilting its head against him.

Chu Ya also looked at the white bird and whispered softly, “If there truly are spirits in heaven, please protect him.”