Chapter 22: Chapter 22: Yun Jiao’s Singing Voice
Yun Jiao later found out that Cai Jinhua had been talking about her again.
But her aunt had scolded her right back.
’Hmph. Ever since I didn’t give her fruit that time, she’s held more and more of a grudge against me.’
But Yun Jiao wasn’t about to let Cai Jinhua ruin her mood.
With marbles in hand, Yun Xiaowu and his brothers had become the kings of the kids in Bailong Village. A crowd of "little followers" trailed behind them wherever they went.
Yun Jiao was too busy to spare a thought for Cai Jinhua; she was either going to forage at the beach or playing with her brothers.
"Jiaojiao, come on! Marbles are really fun. You should play, too."
Yun Jiao looked at her brother sprawled on the ground, butt in the air as he shot marbles, and shook her head.
"No."
She was a little girl who liked to stay clean.
"Come on, just give it a try."
Yun Xiaowu pressed a marble into her hand.
Yun Jiao squatted down. ’No way she was going to sprawl on the ground like her brothers.’
"Use this one to hit that marble on the ground over there. If you hit it, it’s yours."
Yun Jiao looked at the red glass marble in her hand, then gave it a toss with her soft, pale little hand.
CLINK...
"Wow! You hit it!"
"It went flying!"
"Jiaojiao, you’re so good at this!"
Her brothers immediately started showering her with praise.
The corners of Yun Jiao’s lips curved upward. Her eyes were bright and beautiful, especially when she smiled and they curved into little crescents. She looked so soft and squishable you just wanted to pinch her cheeks.
The other little boys couldn’t help but steal a few extra glances at her, envious that Yun Xiaowu and his brothers had such a pretty sister.
"Your turn again, Jiaojiao."
After playing marbles with her brothers for a little while, Yun Jiao found it boring.
She wanted to go in the sea much more.
"Brother, I want to go in the sea."
Yun Xiaowu replied, "We can’t. Dad and our oldest brother are busy building the house. We’re not allowed in the water without them watching."
Yun Jiao pouted, unhappy.
Whenever she was unhappy, her eyebrows would droop, her big eyes would get watery, and the corners of her mouth would turn down, making her look pitiful and wronged.
It broke her brothers’ hearts.
"Let’s go find Mom and Auntie," one of them suggested. "They’re going to the beach to forage for dinner. We can’t go in the water, but at least we can play by the shore."
’Fine,’ she thought. ’I guess that’ll have to do.’
Yun Xiaowu and his brothers abandoned their beloved marbles. They gathered up their sister, called out a goodbye to their friends, and left.
A few girls watched from a distance, incredibly envious.
"Yun Xiaowu and his brothers are so good to Yun Jiao."
They were girls too, but they weren’t allowed to just play when they came outside. They had to gather firewood, or else they’d get a beating.
In truth, Yun Jiao wasn’t the only girl in the village doted on by her family; she was just the most noticeable one.
An adopted daughter, spoiled by all her brothers and the adults in the family, too.
Comparisons are odious, and the children who weren’t doted on at home were particularly envious of her.
’Hmph, what’s so great about her?’ Yun Zhaodi thought maliciously. ’She’ll just have to be married off in the future anyway.’
"Maybe the Yun family is only so nice to her because she’s pretty," she continued. "They’ll be able to sell her for a good price in the future!"
Her own older sister had been sold off that way. They’d called it a marriage, but even at her young age, Yun Zhaodi knew the truth of the situation.
"What nonsense are you spouting? Be careful! If her brothers hear you, you’ll be in for it!"
Yun Zhaodi’s third-oldest sister scolded.
Yun Zhaodi rolled her eyes at her. "Hmph, we’ll just wait and see."
Meanwhile, Yun Jiao sneezed.
"What’s wrong, Jiaojiao? You’re not catching a cold, are you?"
Her brothers all stared at her nervously.
Getting a cold was awful. Not only did you have to get a shot—that long needle in the butt hurt like crazy.
You also had to take super-gross medicine.
Yun Jiao sniffled and shook her head. "I’m not sick. Let’s hurry and find Mom."
Shen Yunlian and Wang Mei were indeed heading to the beach to forage, and they didn’t stop the children when they heard they wanted to come along.
"Grandpa Yun, what about the boat?"
Yun Jiao ran over to Mr. Yun, trailing at his heels like a little shadow. She tilted her pretty, spotless face up at him and asked in a soft voice.
She certainly hadn’t forgotten that Mr. Yun promised to buy a boat.
"So Jiaojiao remembered that, huh?"
Grandpa Yun was skillfully pushing a wheelbarrow full of sand.
"We’ve already put a deposit on the boat. Your dad is going to check on it tomorrow. If there are no problems, he’ll pay the rest, and we can bring it back with us."
Yun Jiao nodded happily, her two little pigtails bobbing with the movement.
’Once we have a boat, we can go out to sea,’ she thought. ’I’ll pester them to take me then.’
"Jiaojiao, let’s go! We’re heading to the beach."
Yun Jiao immediately said goodbye to her grandpa and ran toward her brothers, her short little legs churning.
Yun Xiaowu reached out and took her hand.
Yun Xiaowu was humming a song he’d recently learned: "Little, oh, little Erlang, off to school with his satchel on his back..."
The school played this song over its loudspeaker every day, so the whole village could hear it. With its catchy tune and easy-to-remember lyrics, pretty much all the kids had learned it.
Yun Jiao skipped along beside her brother, softly singing along, "...off to school with his satchel on his back."
"Holy crap!"
Yun Jiao copied him, "Ho-ly cra-ap~"
Yun Xiaowu’s sudden outburst earned him a few smacks.
Yun Xiaowu cried, "Stop hitting me! Stop! I get it, I shouldn’t swear!"
Shen Yunlian’s face was grim. "Yun Xiaowu, how many times have I told you not to swear in front of your sister!"
Yun Jiao looked at Shen Yunlian with innocent eyes.
"No, that’s not it! Jiaojiao was just singing! Mom, listen, she sounds so good when she sings!"
Her voice was beautiful in a way he couldn’t quite describe. All he knew was that it was much, much better than the recording they played over the school’s loudspeaker.
That was why he couldn’t help but blurt out "holy crap."
"Jiaojiao, sing something for her, quick!"
Yun Xiaowu looked at her expectantly.
Yun Jiao sang, "The sun is bright up in the sky, the flowers are smiling at me. The little bird says ’early, early, early,’ why do you have on your little backpack..."
This time, it wasn’t just Yun Xiaowu who was stunned. Shen Yunlian, Wang Mei, and all the other Yun family boys listened in a daze.
Normally, children Yun Jiao’s age all had similar, undeveloped voices.
They’d always thought Yun Jiao’s speaking voice was a bit more pleasant than other children’s, but that was it.
They never imagined that when she sang, her voice would be beautiful beyond description.
It was ethereal and gentle, like the surface of a calm sea under a warm sun.
"That’s truly beautiful,"
Wang Mei couldn’t help but exclaim in praise.
Yun Xiaowu lifted his chin high, as if he were the one who had been singing.
"Of course! I mean, look whose sister she is."
Yun Jiao continued to hum.
Merfolk could cry tears of pearl, and their songs were dreamlike, capable of weaving illusions and bewitching the mind.
Yun Jiao was human now and had lost the ability to cry tears of pearl. Yet, when she cried, her tears still fell one by one, like threaded pearls, translucent and sparkling in the sun.
Her voice no longer had the power to weave illusions or bewitch the mind, but she had been blessed with an enviable set of pipes from a young age.
It was what people meant when they said some were "chased by God to be fed"—a natural-born talent.
But she was still little, and her voice carried a soft, milky quality; it hadn’t matured yet.
After hearing one song, everyone on the road wanted to hear more.
It was somewhat addictive.
Yun Jiao sang another song, but when they asked for yet another, she crossed her little arms, puffed out her cheeks, and turned her head away, showing her brother nothing but the back of her head.
Her actions made it perfectly clear that she was angry and didn’t want to sing anymore.
Comments