Chapter 32 (Chapter 32) The Fox

Are you serious?

With just a few words, both of them understood the truth.

Huiyi tossed a pebble into the water, and a clear, tinkling sound emerged from the continuous pipa music of cascading pearls, causing ripples to spread across Lin Lanting's heart.

Cheers erupted continuously, and some of the more cheerful young men even began to dance and gesticulate wildly, gradually creating a lively atmosphere.

What do you think?

A promise is a promise, and although she is not some holy emperor, she is still a woman of her word.

He choked for a few breaths, the melody slowed down by half a beat, and Lin Lanting could only manage to utter one sentence.

"That's too fast, isn't it a bit much?"

It's as if Huiyi is about to have an affair.

This made her very unhappy.

"Mind your own business. Your head is full of filth all day long. You might as well go wash your brain in the water!"

Having been scolded again, Lin Lanting's face darkened, and the tune he played on the pipa became less cheerful.

The autumn banquet concluded with both hosts and guests enjoying themselves.

Huiyi and her elder sister walked along the path, chatting idly as they reluctantly parted.

A musician in a snow-white robe approached, carrying his zither. His gaze was gentle and refined, and he greeted the two with impeccable manners.

"Xi Bai greets the two princesses."

Upon closer inspection, one could tell that the musician was quite beautiful, and when she slightly lowered her brows and eyes, she possessed a certain elegance reminiscent of a young woman.

She has a fair and delicate appearance, without the arrogance of Xie Sanlang, making her a very pleasant-looking person.

"My aunt said you were a musician in the Imperial Music Bureau?"

Seeing that she looked pleasing to the eye, Huiyi couldn't help but ask a few more questions.

Li Huaiyu glanced disapprovingly at her sister, then tugged at Huiyi's sleeve, trying to calm her down.

After all, she was already married and had a husband.

As sisters who grew up together, Li Huaiyu knows her younger sister's preferences best.

They prefer fair-skinned and handsome young men.

Back in the countryside of Lingzhou, my younger sister often said that the village head's youngest son, who had fair skin, was handsome, and that she wanted to marry him when she grew up.

Later, when they arrived in Chang'an, there were more and more fair-skinned and handsome young men. The younger sister got tired of talking and simply stopped.

The musician before him was exactly the kind of person his sister liked, and now that his sister had called him back, Li Huaiyu couldn't help but overthink things.

Lost in thought, she heard the musician whisper, "Your Highness, Xi Bai is a musician from the Left Music Bureau."

Huiyi nodded solemnly and praised earnestly, "Hmm, you played the zither quite well."

The musician named Xi Bai smiled, his smile gentle, and his words were pleasant to hear.

"To receive the princess's praise is Xi Bai's good fortune. I only wish that one day the princess will favor me and let me hear her music."

Huiyi felt a warmth in her heart, and her smile deepened.

No one in this world dislikes hearing kind words, even if the other person has ulterior motives.

"I understand. I will listen to your music from the Left Music Bureau from now on. You may leave."

Xi Bai bowed and thanked her with his zither. In the instant he bowed, Huiyi saw Lin Er striding towards them.

She couldn't see his expression clearly, but for some reason, Huiyi had a strange sense of guilt.

"So that's why I couldn't wait for the princess. Turns out she was held up by something."

It was clearly a bright and enthusiastic laugh, but it sent a chill down Xi Bai's spine as he stood to the side with Baoqin.

He politely took his leave, and only left the chilly feeling behind when he was far away.

Huiyi didn't want to talk to Lin Erduo and ignored him. She only said to her elder sister, "Elder sister, let's go back too."

Li Huaiyu nodded, and the two sisters stepped out of the Ningguo Princess's residence, surrounded by a group of palace servants.

Unexpectedly, I saw someone.

Xie Yun, whom everyone thought had long since departed.

Upon seeing Li Huaiyu, the man who had been waiting for an unknown amount of time immediately strode over and headed straight for him.

When she was a few steps away from the sisters, Huiyi reacted and shouted, "Stop him!"

The guards surrounding Xie Yun immediately stepped forward and separated him from any further movement.

"Huaiyu".

Unable to get any closer, Xie Yun grew anxious and couldn't help but call out.

It had only been ten days since their divorce, but Xie Yun seemed to have changed quite a bit.

I look much more sloppy and I've lost a lot of weight.

As a couple who had been together for a long time, Li Huaiyu was the one who could best notice this change.

But she doesn't want to care anymore.

He walked straight into the car without looking to the side, and didn't respond to Xie Yun at all.

Xie Yun stared intently at Li Huaiyu, then murmured another name, his expression filled with sorrow.

"Let's go back."

The carriage curtain was lifted, and Li Huaiyu finally gave her ex-husband a few words, but they weren't pleasant.

Xie Yun wanted to say something, but saw that the carriage had already started to leave, leaving only a cloud of dust.

With his face turning pale, Xie Yun remained silent for a long time before finally leaving in a sorry state.

Huiyi chuckled to herself several times, prompting Lin Lanting to ask, "Are you that happy?"

Huiyi was in high spirits at the moment, so she was willing to talk to Lin Er. She said with a smile, "Of course, my sister is finally not revolving around Xie Yun anymore. It is so refreshing to see Xie Yun get his comeuppance!"

"Let's go back."

Following her older sister's words, Huiyi smiled and ran into the car, her skirt fluttering like a lotus flower.

As if infected by the other person's emotions, Lin Lanting also smiled.

Outsiders, unaware of the situation, would assume the young couple had said something and were admiring their affection.

...

Before long, the Qixi Festival arrived, and the young women of Chang'an began to worship the Weaver Girl and pray for skill.

The Lin family had a pavilion, which they would set up and decorate in the afternoon so that the women of the family could climb up to the decorated pavilion and thread needles under the moon after dinner.

The evening meal was eaten by the whole family. Although Lin Zhongshu and Lin Dalang were both refined and quiet, they couldn't resist the lively nature of Madam Guo and Lin Er. Needless to say, the dinner table was bustling with activity.

Madam Guo enthusiastically served food to each of the children. Not only that, but when she saw her eldest son serving food to his wife, she kicked Lin Er under the table several times as a subtle hint.

Huiyi actually saw everything, but she didn't know what to say, so she could only watch with amusement as Lin Er twisted his face and picked up some food.

The moonlight is beautiful tonight, but threading a needle under the moon is still too challenging for Huiyi.

It took a lot of effort to thread it through four holes, but Aunt Lu had already finished.

Fortunately, with her mother-in-law, Madam Guo, there was a safety net, so Huiyi didn't feel too embarrassed.

Beside Sister Lu was her son, Ji'er, a very well-behaved little boy, as quiet as a girl.

Watching his mother thread the needle, he blinked and watched intently, occasionally letting out a clear, cheerful laugh.

Huiyi liked well-behaved and adorable children. Looking at Ji'er, she smiled and said:

"Won't it be time for her to start school next year?"

Sister-in-law Lu smiled and nodded in agreement, “That’s right, Father said he wants to invite a good tutor back to teach us.”

Huiyi said, "Why go through all this trouble? Just send them directly to the Chongwen Academy in the palace. It's full of great scholars hired by my father. My elder sister's daughter, Hui'er, was sent there, and Ji'er is about the same age as her, so she can keep her company."

The Royal Academy is not a place that can be entered casually. Sister-in-law Lu was still a little embarrassed, but Madam Guo was quick-witted and immediately thanked her youngest daughter-in-law on behalf of her eldest grandson.

Not only that, but they also veered off to other topics.

"Princess, please work harder with Erlang and have a baby soon, so that in a few years you can go to school with your older brother and sister."

Caught off guard by the sudden mention of this, Huiyi's hand trembled, and she failed to put on the dress again.

Looking up at her mother-in-law and sister-in-law, she saw that both of them had a mischievous and teasing look on their faces.

Although she had nothing to do with Lin Er, Huiyi still felt a little embarrassed when she met his gaze.

"Oh, we're not in a hurry, not in a hurry."

Madam Guo chuckled and agreed, "That's true. You're all still young. It's fine to have children a few years later. They'll all be like the princess."

Calming her mind, Huiyi looked at her mother-in-law's loving face and said in a friendly manner, "Mother, there's no need to call me so formally. My childhood name is Xinu, and both my parents call me that. Mother and sister-in-law, please don't be so formal."

The two couldn't possibly refuse their daughter-in-law and sister-in-law's overtures, and immediately beamed with joy, calling out "Xi Nu" repeatedly.

Madam Guo, upon hearing the mention of childhood nicknames, recalled some amusing incidents and asked her two pretty daughters-in-law with a smile, "Speaking of childhood nicknames, do you know what Erlang's childhood nickname is?"

Although Madam Lu had been married into the Lin family for many years, she knew nothing about her brother-in-law's private affairs. Upon hearing this, she became interested, and she and Huiyi stared intently at Madam Guo.

When Madam Guo saw how supportive her daughters-in-law were, she was even happier.

"Then I'll have to explain properly!"

"You don't know, Erlang was born prematurely, and he was very thin and weak, so..."

As Madam Guo's laughter subsided, several women burst into laughter from the pavilion, with Huiyi's laughter being particularly loud.

Downstairs, the three men, father and sons, who were discussing politics, all looked over, and more or less became curious.

"What funny story could have made you laugh like that? It makes me want to go and hear it."

Lin Lanting crossed his legs, his face practically screaming "I want to know!"

"What are you listening to? Have you finished the article I asked you to write yesterday?"

Lin Zhongshu spoke calmly, but Lin Lanting's smile vanished upon hearing this. He complained, "Father, you know I'm no scholar at all. You might as well just have me copy books."

"Then copy it five times."

Upon hearing this, Lin Zhongshu immediately made a firm and resolute decision.

And so, on this auspicious day of the Qixi Festival, Lin Lanting returned home with a punishment.

It's still what he hates the most.

He returned to the east courtyard with a sigh, where the maids were frantically trying to catch spiders.

This is also a custom of praying for skill. On that night, a spider is caught and trapped in a box. When you get up the next morning, if the spider's web inside is round and dense, it means that the woman has gained skill.

Conversely, this woman is clumsy.

Although these are some superstitious customs, they are undeniably fun, and every year during the Qixi Festival, countless spiders are trapped overnight and forced to weave webs.

Huiyi had already caught the spider; she had caught it herself.

When I was a kid in Lingzhou, I often went with my third brother to catch all sorts of random things, like climbing trees to steal bird eggs.

Occasionally, you might touch a caterpillar on a tree or get your hand pinched by a shrimp or crab in the water.

Catching a few small spiders is no big deal.

After putting the spider she had chosen into the box, Huiyi began to dye her armor.

Every year, the nail dyeing for the Qixi Festival is handled by Jinque and Yinque, and this year is no exception.

Huiyi sat on a soft couch, stretching out her arms to the golden and silver sparrows, leaning back in a state of complete enjoyment.

The dyeing process is complete; all that's left is to wrap it in gauze and wait overnight.

Hearing Lin Er's distinctive footsteps, Huiyi suddenly opened her eyes, her gaze filled with laughter.

That laugh sent chills down Lin Lanting's spine.

"What are you looking at?"

"Do I have flowers growing on my face?"

Lin Lanting sat down casually and touched his face.

Huiyi harbored a wicked intention, and she couldn't suppress the smile on her lips.

"My mother told me something interesting tonight, and I wanted to ask you about it."

That's probably why everyone was laughing so hard back then, Lin Lanting thought.

His intuition told him it wasn't a good thing.

"What?"

Lin Lanting pretended to be calm as his right eyelid twitched.

Huiyi deliberately spoke slowly: "Your mother said that you were born prematurely and were very thin and small, like a pitiful kitten. She was afraid that you wouldn't make it, so she gave you the nickname 'Li Nu' (meaning 'cat')."

"A cat? Isn't that just a kitten?"

"A dignified military general, whose childhood name is Little Cat!"

Haha~

As if it had been suppressed for thousands of years, the laughter was like thunder, making Lin Lanting's ears ring.

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Author's note: No updates tomorrow. [crying emoji]