Chapter 67 [VIP]

Chapter Summary: Good News.

"Is there something you need, Lord Su?" Yu Jing asked in return. She had just drunk some wine, and her tone was somewhat soft, unlike her usual sharpness. Su Siyang was about to mock her a few times, but upon hearing her words, those words stuck in his throat, and he couldn't say anything.

He paused for a long time before speaking, "Your Majesty the Empress Dowager is drunk. Please go back and rest early."

Yu Jing, who was initially full of resistance, softened upon hearing his words and nodded lightly in response, "Alright, thank you for your concern, Lord Su."

After Yu Jing finished speaking, she walked past. Su Siyang stood under the corridor, watching Yu Jing's retreating figure, a tremendous sense of powerlessness welling up inside him. He had never felt this way before; he wanted to reach out and grab her, but he couldn't grasp her at all.

Seeing that Yu Jing had left but Su Siyang was still standing under the corridor, Qinghong called out with some concern, "My lord."

"Let's go." Su Siyang came back to his senses and continued walking outside.

The moon is very big and round tonight. Its gentle light shines down, and you can see the path in the yard even if you're not under the corridor.

When Yu Jing arrived at the Imperial Garden, she dismissed A Yu and the others. She placed the food box on the round table in the pavilion. She was a little worried that the mooncakes she had made last night might have spoiled. Although she had already asked A Yu to check, she was still somewhat uneasy, so she got up and opened the lid of the food box.

When Xie Xuan arrived at the gate of the Imperial Garden, A Yu stepped forward and said to him, "This servant greets Lord Xie."

"Get up," Xie Xuan replied, stopping in his tracks. Before he could finish speaking, A Yu added, "The Empress Dowager is in the pavilion in the middle of the lake."

"Okay." Xie Xuan replied and hurried over. From afar, he saw Yu Jing standing in the pavilion, dressed in Xiangfei red, with the pearl tassels on her phoenix headdress swaying slowly with her movements.

"Que Que!" When Xie Xuan's voice came, Yu Jing was startled and almost dropped the lid of the food box. Seeing Xie Xuan coming over, Yu Jing quickly closed the lid.

Xie Xuan approached, leaned in to take a look, and asked with a smile, "What delicious food have you prepared?"

"Guess!" Yu Jing said to Xie Xuan, her eyes crinkling.

"Hmm, mooncakes?" Xie Xuan pondered for a moment before speaking.

"How did you guess it so quickly?" Yu Jing asked in surprise, opening the lid of the food box and sitting down with Xie Xuan as she spoke.

When the mooncakes were placed on the table, Xie Xuan was taken aback, then asked with delight, "These mooncakes... were they made by Queque herself?"

"Mm," Yu Jing replied, a little embarrassed. "Although it doesn't look very appealing, it tastes quite good. I tried it with Ayu yesterday. You should try it!"

Before Yu Jing could finish speaking, Xie Xuan had already picked it up and taken a bite. Yu Jing looked at Xie Xuan expectantly: "How is it?"

"Mmm, delicious!" Xie Xuan replied with a smile.

Yu Jingyi smiled contentedly: "It's good that it's delicious."

"It was quite late when you got back last night. You must not have slept well, right?" Xie Xuan looked up at Yu Jing and reached out to touch her under-eye area. She was wearing makeup, so her complexion was not visible.

"No," Yu Jing denied, then changed the subject, "The moon is so round tonight!"

When Xie Xuan heard Yu Jing say this, he turned his head and looked up. The moon was big and round. He suddenly remembered when he was in Jinzhu Town, the moonlight covered the lake and the lake surface was scattered with a fine light.

"I'm not in the capital, so please take good care of yourself..." Xie Xuan said softly.

Yu Jing nodded in agreement, "Okay."

As soon as Yu Jing finished speaking, she felt a cool breeze brush past her lips, followed by a warm sensation carrying the fresh scent of the surrounding grass and trees, along with the faint sweetness of mooncakes. Their breaths mingled, and Yu Jing could only hear her own heartbeat, thumping like a drum. Xie Xuan kissed her passionately for a long time, and the pearls on Yu Jing's hair ornament swayed gently with her movements, round like little moons in the sky.

"Wait for me to come back."

Yu Jing nodded slightly, her heart tightening as she recalled the Old Man of the Moon's words. There were some things she needed to say now, but if Xie Xuan didn't return, she feared she would never have the chance to speak them again. After hesitating for a moment, she ultimately remained silent.

They sat in the pavilion for a long time, doing nothing but quietly admiring the moon. Xie Xuan held her hand and gently stroked her palm.

"It's getting late, I should leave the palace. I'll depart early tomorrow morning, no need to see me off," Xie Xuan instructed.

"Mmm," Yu Jing responded, staring blankly at Xie Xuan's retreating figure. His scarlet robes were eye-catching, his long hair, tied high, swayed with each step. The young man seemed carefree and unrestrained; everything would change when he returned to the palace. A pang of sadness welled up in Yu Jing's heart. She didn't understand why, and absentmindedly placed her hand on her chest. Her heart was pounding, thumping in rhythm with Xie Xuan's footsteps.

After returning home, Yu Jing couldn't sleep. In the middle of the night, she got up and picked up Sheng Hua's most boring military book. Usually, she would get sleepy after reading for a while when she couldn't sleep, but this time she had been reading for an hour and was still very awake. Yu Jing couldn't bear to read any longer, so she put the book down and decided to go out for a walk.

The moment the palace doors were opened, A-Yu, who was on night watch outside, was startled. A-Yu had been asleep, but upon hearing the noise, she quickly raised her head and saw Yu Jing: "Your Majesty the Empress Dowager!"

"It's nothing, I just couldn't sleep and wanted to go for a walk. You can stay here, you don't need to come with me," Yu Jing replied.

"Should I come along?" Ayu suggested, somewhat worried.

"It's alright, it's alright, go to sleep." Yu Jing waved her hand. Since Yu Jing had said that, even if A Yu was still worried, she could only give up. However, she didn't dare to sleep anymore and just stared blankly as Yu Jing walked out.

Yu Jing took a few steps and saw that A Yu was still looking up at her. Her heart softened a bit, and she called out to A Yu, "A Yu."

When Ayu heard Yu Jing call her, she quickly got up and replied with a smile, "This servant is here."

"Please accompany me for a walk."

"yes."

"The moon is so big and round tonight!" Yu Jing exclaimed as she looked up at the sky.

“Today is the Mid-Autumn Festival,” Ayu replied casually.

"Yes, today is the Mid-Autumn Festival," Yu Jing murmured, gazing at the moon.

After walking around Cining Palace with Ayu for a while, they got a little tired and fell asleep on the couch inside the palace.

Queque, you have arrived in Youzhou. Everything is fine. War has broken out, so there may be some delays. If you do not receive a reply, do not worry or fret!

When Yu Jing was at a loss for words in her first letter, Xie Xuan's letter arrived from Youzhou. Although only a little over a month had passed, when Yu Jing saw the letter, it felt like a lifetime had passed.

He picked up his brush, dipped it in ink, and pondered for a long time.

Xie Xuan, I had lotus root and meat patties for lunch today, a new dish from the kitchen. The outside was crispy and crunchy, and the meat filling was savory and sweet—it was delicious! I'll definitely try it when you return! I don't know if there will still be lotus root left when you come back, but that's alright; there will surely be other good food then. It's cold and harsh in the army, so please don't deprive yourself. I look forward to your safe return! I'm doing well in the palace! Don't worry about me!

For the next two months, she received no further replies from Xie Xuan. It seemed he was preoccupied with the war and had no time for anything else. Yu Jing had only learned of Xie Xuan's movements by inquiring about the previous dynasty's battles in Youzhou. She was happy to hear of Xie Xuan's successive victories. However, her happiness was mixed with worry, as Xie Xuan's triumphant return...

Winter has now arrived, and on November 13th, the first snow of the five years of Jinghe fell. After that day, it snowed continuously, and the weather became extremely cold.

When Ayu entered the hall carrying the items, Yu Jing was sitting in front of the dressing mirror, staring blankly at the pair of red agate earrings. Yu Jing was becoming increasingly strange; although the recent news from the previous dynasty had all been good, she seemed noticeably melancholy. She knew that the red agate magnolia hairpin was a gift from Xie Xuan, so she naturally assumed that the red earrings were also a gift from Xie Xuan.

"Your Majesty the Empress Dowager," Ayu called softly.

Inside the hall, silver charcoal burned, carrying a faint fragrance of moon-patterned incense, a stark contrast to the icy, snowy landscape outside. Yu Jing heard the voice and turned to look at A Yu. A Yu hesitated for a moment, then said, "Your Majesty the Empress Dowager didn't eat much for lunch. The kitchen prepared some milk mixed with bird's nest; Your Majesty, please have some."

“Okay.” Yu Jing replied, and A Yu brought the milk and bird’s nest soup to the table. Yu Jing put down the earrings she was wearing, got up and walked to A Yu’s side.

The rich milk had a subtle sweetness, and the bird's nest, wrapped in the soft milk, was smooth and refreshing, very appetizing. Yu Jing was eating when she heard A Yu's voice beside her.

"Lord Xie is a brave and skilled warrior, and recently there have been many reports of victories coming from Youzhou. He should be able to return to the capital soon. Your Majesty, please do not worry. Perhaps Lord Xie can even return before the New Year!"

Yu Jing knew that A Yu was trying to persuade her with good intentions, but A Yu didn't know the details of the matter, and naturally didn't know what Yu Jing was worried about.

Yu Jing finished the bird's nest milk in the bowl in one gulp, and then asked, "Is there any good news from Youzhou today?"

Ayu shook her head and said, "This servant has not heard of it."

"However, Youzhou is so far from the capital that even with the fastest courier service, it would take seven or eight days. It has only been six days since the last report of victory was sent. I think the report of victory should arrive tomorrow. Your Majesty, please do not worry."

"Hmm." Yu Jing responded somewhat perfunctorily, "Have someone keep a close eye on things, and as soon as there's any news..."

Before Yu Jing could finish speaking, A Yu interrupted, saying, "Your Majesty, rest assured, as soon as there is any news from the court, this servant will come immediately."

Yu Jing was quite full after drinking the milk and bird's nest soup. In addition, the silver charcoal in the palace was burning brightly. After sitting for a while, she felt sleepy and said to A Yu, "I am a little sleepy and want to sleep for a while. If it is not about the previous dynasty, please do not wake me."

She hasn't been sleeping well lately, so she figured that since she was sleepy, she should let herself sleep a little longer.

"Yes." Ayu responded and took the empty bowl out.

Yu Jing lay down on the couch, covered herself with the quilt, and soon fell into a deep sleep.

"Your Majesty the Empress Dowager! Your Majesty the Empress Dowager!"

When Yu Jing heard A Yu's voice again, she didn't know how much time had passed. She only felt that the hall was very cold, probably because the charcoal fire had gone out. The hall was very dark, and she could only vaguely see the furnishings. Yu Jing felt a little flustered and quickly summoned A Yu in.