Chapter 12 Chapter 12 Return to Beijing, Princess Zhongshun
After Wu Tianyue coaxed Daiyu, he secretly took Daiyu out for several days, either buying things or shopping.
After sending her home in the evening, he secretly went back to learn puppetry, intending to give Daiyu a surprise later.
Seeing that Daiyu was happy, Lin Ruhai turned a blind eye to the two of them going out. The two of them had a lot of fun playing secretly, and the number of their quarrels also dropped sharply.
But happy times are always short-lived. Before the two of them had enough fun, it was time to return to Beijing.
Daiyu bid farewell to Lin Ruhai with tears in her eyes and boarded the boat back to Beijing.
Fortunately, Wu Tianyue, who is full of energy all day, is here, so I am not alone during this trip to Beijing.
The two of them quarreled all day long, and before Daiyu even realized how long the journey was, it was time to part again.
Daiyu left the boat and went ashore in a depressed mood. Just as she was about to say goodbye to Wu Tianyue, she saw him and Jia Lian accompanying the carriage waiting for her at the Zhongshun Palace of the Zhongshun Dynasty. He had no intention of saying anything to her, and she could not help but grit her teeth and feel angry.
As he turned to leave, he saw Prince Zhongshun mount his horse and leave first. The nanny who had just greeted the two of them came over quickly and said, "Greetings, Miss Lin."
Daiyu hurriedly returned the greeting, and then heard the maid say, "The princess is waiting for you in the mansion."
Before Daiyu could reply, Wu Tianyue, who had already finished his conversation with Jia Lian, came over and said to her, "Come with me to the palace first and see your mother before returning. Your grandmother already knows about this and has agreed to it."
Jia Lian also stepped forward to comfort Daiyu: "Brother has something to do and needs to return home first. I will go to see the princess with the prince first, and brother will come to pick you up later."
"Yes." Daiyu knelt down and responded. She didn't let Wu Tianyue support her. She took Zijuan's hand and got on the carriage of the prince's palace.
Once they entered the city, the carriages and horses continued to head west.
Daiyu heard the noisy sounds outside gradually subside, and knew that they had entered the inner city. She lifted the curtain slightly and looked out, only to see that the carriage passed the Rongguo Mansion and went straight to the foot of the imperial city.
Someone sent by Princess Zhongshun was already waiting in front of the palace gate. When Daiyu saw the carriage stopped, she hurriedly lowered the curtain.
When the people waiting at the door saw Wu Tianyue and others coming, they stepped forward to pay their respects and greeted Daiyu through the curtain.
The carriage started moving again, entered the gate and drove all the way. After another quarter of an hour, it arrived at the hanging flower gate of the outer courtyard. Daiyu got off the carriage, got on the sedan chair, and swayed towards the inner courtyard.
Daiyu felt as if she had walked for an eternity, a journey even more tedious than her first foray into the Rongguo Mansion. Just as she was feeling tired and nervous, she heard the maid who had been waiting at the door come up and raise the curtain of the sedan chair: "Miss, we're here."
Daiyu turned her head slightly to look at Wu Tianyue beside her, let out a breath, and then held the nanny's hand, walked through the hanging flower gate, walked through the corridor, the hall and the main hall, and arrived at the main courtyard at the back.
A gorgeously dressed woman came to greet them at the door: "The young lady is finally here. Your Majesty has been waiting for you for a long time and is so impatient."
Seeing that the person was dressed better than the mistress of the Rongguo Mansion, Daiyu couldn't guess who she was and didn't know whether she should bow or not.
Just as she was hesitating, she saw the nanny retreat. Wu Tianyue walked forward, stood beside Daiyu, and said to the woman with a smile, "How could you trouble me to come and pick me up in person, sister?"
"I'm here to pick up Miss Lin," the woman replied, then smiled and said to Daiyu, "My name is Xia Jin, and I serve the Majesty. You can just call me by my name."
Seeing that she was not an ordinary maid, Daiyu thought she must be someone like Yuanyang, the head maidservant beside Lady Jia, so she knelt down and addressed her as "sister".
Xia Jin hurried forward to support her hand, and smiled as she led her into the house: "The young lady is the master, I can't accept your courtesy."
When they entered the main room, Daiyu raised her head slightly and saw a woman with delicate and fair skin.
She was seen sitting steadily in front of the hall, with a slender waist and a moderately plump figure, her hair as black as lacquer, and bright eyes. She looked intelligent and energetic, and her aura was even more powerful than that of Jia Lian's wife Wang Xifeng.
Daiyu took a glance and knew that the person in the hall must be her mother's good friend Princess Zhongshun, so she bowed her head and knelt in greeting.
"Help him up quickly." Just as he started to move, he heard the woman at the top laugh softly, "Good boy, come here and let me take a look."
Daiyu walked forward slowly and greeted politely, "Greetings, Princess."
Princess Zhongshun pulled her over and looked at her carefully. Although she was a little thin, she was very beautiful and had the charm of Jia Min back then.
She couldn't help but think back to the past. She had been engaged to Prince Zhongshun since childhood. At that time, the Jia family had different political views from the emperor, so she had to avoid suspicion. Jia Min was also a sickly person. Although the two had read each other's poems and had a spiritual connection for a long time, they had only met a few times and exchanged a few words.
Seeing Daiyu, who looked similar to him, he couldn't help but feel a bit of admiration and asked with a smile, "What are you studying now?"
Daiyu thought back to the first time she met her grandmother, who had asked her the same question. She had said at the time that she had read the Four Books, and when she asked about her sisters, her grandmother said that they only knew two words.
After a moment's deliberation, she replied cautiously, "I have not read much, but I know a few words."
Unexpectedly, the smile on Princess Zhongshun's face faded and she frowned. Daiyu couldn't help feeling a little flustered and subconsciously turned her head to look at Wu Tianyue.
Before he could make a move, he heard the princess sigh slowly, "Learn slowly in the future. Your mother wasn't in good health back then, but she was still one of the most talented people. You must not tarnish her reputation."
Wu Tianyue, standing nearby, didn't understand why Daiyu responded that way, but he respected her and waited quietly. Seeing her bewilderment, he smiled and defended her, "How could Sister Lin possibly damage her mother's reputation? She should be doing her a favor."
Princess Zhongshun was a little surprised to hear him address her so intimately, but when she saw Daiyu blushing, she realized that she was just being modest. She stopped worrying about the address and felt sorry for Daiyu. Why was this child so cautious at such a young age? She must not be very happy living in the Jia Mansion.
So he smiled and comforted her, "I have always loved women with talent and learning. When I was young, I also wrote a few poems, but I can't compare to your mother. Besides, I am a good friend of your mother and have always treated you as my own daughter. You are the same with me as with your mother. Don't worry too much."
Then he pointed at Wu Tianyue and said, "Brother, don't even think about having any concerns. You can't even learn to be a little humble."
"It's so tiring to hide it. I have talents that surpass others, so why can't I let others know?" Wu Tianyue was somewhat surprised that his mother could still write poetry and couplets when she was young. Upon hearing this, he smiled and said, "If someone is better than me, I won't be jealous. Instead, I will admire him."
Princess Zhongshun listened and smiled, shaking her head: "You have no shame."
Daiyu also relaxed a little because of their conversation. Seeing that Princess Zhongshun was gentle and kind, she couldn't help but want to ask what her mother was like when she was young.
Before he could form his words, he heard footsteps outside and a maid came in and said, "The prince is here."
Before he could finish his words, Prince Zhongshun strode in.
Daiyu quickly collected herself and stood up to bow.
"We are family, no need to be so polite." King Zhongshun waved his hand.
Wu Tianyue pulled Daiyu to sit down again. Daiyu glanced at him and saw that he had inherited both his father's strong physique and his mother's beauty. He was neither as big as Prince Zhongshun, nor as feminine as his mother with delicate features.
"Why are you looking at me?" Wu Tianyue felt her gaze and asked in a low voice.
Daiyu shook her head slightly, sat up straight and respectfully listened to Prince Zhongshun and Princess Zhongshun talking. She felt a bit like a family sitting around the fire.
Soon the meal was served in the hall outside. Daiyu ate with the three of them and then left the table to chat.
After a short conversation, Prince Zhongshun looked at his watch and ordered, "It's getting late. Xia Jin, take the young lady to rest first."
Wu Tianyue asked, "Is Sister Lin's room tidied?"
"The Queen has already instructed me to clean up Xianyun Tower." Xia Jin replied with a smile.
Princess Zhongshun also said casually, "Xianyun Tower is large and open, and the scenery is beautiful. It is the best place to recuperate. You used to feel that it was too close to me and I was restricting you, so you didn't want to live there. Then let your sister rest there."
After saying this, he turned to look at Daiyu and said, "Your things have been moved back to the Jia Mansion. I asked Lu Chen in advance and arranged the house according to the information she gave me. You can go and see if you like it. If you are not used to it, I will ask someone to change it."
Daiyu had not expected her to be so thoughtful, and was deeply touched: "Your Majesty is so kind to me, how could I not be used to it?"
Princess Zhongshun shook her head and smiled, "People are always different. You can see it first."
"I'll accompany Sister Lin to see it." Wu Tianyue stood up and was about to leave.
Seeing Daiyu's reserved attitude, Prince Zhongshun and his wife smiled and said, "You should go and have a look too."
Daiyu stood up and bowed to take her leave.
Xianyun Tower was not far from the main courtyard, and the two of them arrived there in just one incense stick of time by sedan chair.
Daiyu followed Wu Tianyue into the courtyard. Seeing that it seemed even larger than the main courtyard of Rongguo Mansion, she asked nervously, "This seems against the rules. I don't live in the mansion all the time."
"This is just a yard. You'll be coming here from time to time in the future, so how can you not have a place to rest?" Wu Tianyue said, "Come on, let's go in and take a look."
As he said this, he pulled Daiyu into the main courtyard.
Zijuan and others came out to greet her. Seeing familiar people, Daiyu finally relaxed.
Wu Tianyue accompanied Daiyu to look at the furnishings one by one and replaced any that were inappropriate.
Seeing that he was still tossing and turning, Daiyu said, "Please take a break. I'm tired."
"The young lady has just arrived on a long journey and must be very tired. Prince, please let her rest." Xia Jin said with a smile.
Wu Tianyue then stopped and said to Daiyu, "Then you should rest first. I will come to see you tomorrow morning."
Seeing Daiyu agreed, Wu Tianyue came out and went to Princess Zhongshun.
When the couple saw him coming, they joked, "You didn't want to go before, so why is it so easy to call me sister now?"
In response, Wu Tianyue said confidently: "I thought she was a villain before, but after getting along with her, I felt that she was a good person, so she naturally changed."
The two smiled and shook their heads. Prince Zhongshun was afraid that he would get angry and take it out on others in the future, and something unexpected would implicate him, so he warned: "She is a cousin of the Jia family and cannot stay here for long. Although your mother can take care of her in the name of Jia Min's old friend, there will inevitably be omissions. Don't just play around in the future, visit her from time to time."
Wu Tianyue was impatient to listen to their nagging, so he nodded and yawned with his hand covering his mouth.
"It's getting late. Go back and rest first. Go to the palace to pay your respects tomorrow."
"I understand." Wu Tianyue agreed and returned to his yard. He didn't say a word all night.
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