58 Baby
◎It's unfair for you to be with a eunuch◎
"Where are we going now?" Rong Qianyu asked.
Xue Ji said mysteriously, "I'll take you somewhere."
He held an umbrella for her, and she held his arm, and they walked together to a remote house in the suburbs of Beijing. Although the location was remote, the house was not dilapidated, there were no weeds, and it was tidied up quite elegantly.
Rong Qianyu thought it was just another property he had purchased. "Master Xue, you said you didn't have any other houses, but isn't this another one?"
Xue Ji followed behind to explain, "This is my master's ancestral home. He was a famous eunuch of his generation. He's been doing this work for thirty or forty years, and he'd do it for at least a hundred people a year. My house was confiscated at the time, so I lived with my aunt. Then there were natural disasters, and my aunt couldn't afford to raise so many children, so she gave them away or sold them. But I never blamed her for sending me to the palace to be a eunuch. Family hardships should be shared. Now it seems like a joke, but at the time, this little thing caused me years of distress."
He never told this to anyone, and Qingyun had followed him for many years but was unaware of this past event.
Rong Qianyu didn't know much about the affairs of the Great Zhou Dynasty. It was possible that the person who became the eunuch in charge of the Secretariat was no ordinary person, probably someone who had been educated.
These words, these stories now spilling out of his mouth, were Xue Ji's deepest, softest place, a source of frustration for a time. Now, he had finally found someone willing to listen to his complaints. He had wrapped his true self within the shell of the eunuch Xue Jiming, revealing his truest, most vulnerable self to Rong Qianyu.
Either he is extremely loyal or extremely treacherous, and Xue Ji is obviously neither.
If all had gone well, he would have had a bright future, discussing state affairs with the newly minted scholars, speaking freely and, as Qingyun had said, he would have had two or three children long ago. But there are no ifs in this world. His family, once affluent, fell on hard times, and from then on, the ambitious young man's bright future was ruined for a few taels of silver.
"No matter how hard or difficult life is, there are ways to survive. Working as an apprentice, or performing for money are all fine. Why must it be this path?"
He said that Rong Qianyu had never known how hard these jobs were, but now this road must be very difficult to walk.
Who would have such a handsome and smart boy and have the heart to send him to the palace to be a eunuch?
"Monthly allowance, public expenses, the master's reward, rice and grain every month, plus some miscellaneous money, during festivals, doing this is better than working in the wind and sun. It's also respectable to be a palace servant. Moreover, the palace provides food and clothing, and I can send money home if I don't spend it all, which reduces expenses."
He talked about the past, which now seemed nothing, all over.
Although Rong Qianyu didn't understand much, she knew that they had lived under someone else's roof and suffered hardships in their childhood. So she placed her hand on Xue Ji's to offer some comfort. "I know you're not the kind of person who curries favor with the powerful, but sometimes you have to go against your conscience to survive. They don't know, but I understand you."
The two sat in the room where they had once performed purification. Looking at the scene before them, Xue Ji could still vaguely feel that he had once cried for a long time while lying on this bed, but he had no choice in order to survive.
Seeing him talking freely now, the pain doesn't seem to have left any scars on him. He is still that sober boy.
"My family fell into poverty when I was six, I entered the imperial palace as a castrated woman at seven, and my aunt died of tuberculosis when I was fourteen. Ultimately, my family no longer needed my money."
Rong Qianyu listened attentively: "What happened next?"
"Later, I followed the eunuch Bingbi as an attendant, much like Qingyun does now, running errands and delivering messages. I was educated and could write, and I was also eloquent, which made him very popular. Fu Hua and I happened to meet each other back then, and we got along quite well. So, things started to get better over time."
Speaking of Fu Hua, Rong Qianyu suddenly became curious again, "How did you and Fu Hua know each other?"
“…”
"Go ahead."
"..." Xue Ji still didn't speak.
He deliberately dodged the question and didn't want to answer. Rong Qianyu guessed that there was probably something hidden. "Xue Jiming, hurry up and tell me!"
Xue Ji shrank back a little, "I'm with him, because of a woman!"
"Why, he took you to a brothel? A eunuch visiting a brothel?"
"Of course not. It was Cui Rumei. We knew each other at that time. In the end, it was me who helped him find Cui Rumei."
"How do you say that?"
This was another hidden secret. As expected, once the case was exposed, she found out a lot. This damn eunuch was hiding a lot of things from her.
Xue Ji continued to talk about the past, "The Crown Prince was sixteen at the time. He met Cui Rumei while out and about. Later, the Queen found out about the plan I had devised for him. I was able to capture her without being punished. It was many years ago, and I was only seventeen at the time. If it happened now, I definitely wouldn't do it. That woman Cui Rumei is not worth helping at all."
He was anxious to distance himself from the matter, fearing that he would make Rong Qianyu angry again because of Cui Rumei.
Seeing him being so cautious, Rong Qianyu was actually amused by him, "What are you doing? I didn't blame you, so you confessed without being asked?"
"I'm just afraid you'll think too much."
"What about your master?"
"My aunt brought me to him to perform a purgation on me, but I almost didn't survive the operation. I was scared and moved around a lot, so the surgery wasn't done properly. I recuperated for half a year and almost missed the selection that year. Later, I took the initiative to have another purgation. There's no anesthesia for this type of purgation, and most people just have to endure it. Many people have died, but I'm the only one who's still alive and kicking after having it done twice."
"You're all white? Why bother?"
The selection of eunuchs in the Great Zhou Dynasty usually requires half white, but he took the initiative to request full white. One operation has already taken half of his life, and he wants to do it again. I think he must be determined to die.
Not only is he cruel to others, he is even more cruel to himself.
He never regretted it, but now he feels a little sad about the situation. "Now that I've come this far, I can't leave myself any options for retreat. For the sake of my family, this is the only way to go far and finally be free of any ties or worries."
Didn't he plan to get away with it? He had no worries before, but now that he has feelings for her, he finally realized that being a eunuch is so difficult and he is really powerless.
"I came here to give you something. I must give it to you. Then I will be at peace even if I die in the future."
He dug out a bag wrapped in red cloth from the beam.
"What's this?"
"This is... castration. Mine... is more important than my life. Now you know, if I die, bury it with me. Then you can be reborn into a good family in your next life."
The removed treasure and the surgical contract were wrapped in oil paper, then wrapped in a large red cloth, and finally hung from the roof beam. This was called "Red Cloth Rising", symbolizing the eunuch's good fortune and promotion. In the future, he would be redeemed from the eunuch by paying a large sum of money to the eunuch's eunuch master.
This should be the thing he cares about most in his life.
"Does it hurt? It hurts a lot."
Xue Ji smiled and shook his head. "It doesn't hurt, not as much as when you ignored me. I thought you wouldn't come. If that's the case, I'll keep my word and won't bother you again. I've given up, but I know very well that my disabled body doesn't suit you."
Seeing him suddenly like this again, Rong Qianyu was always worried, "Why did Master Xue suddenly lose his confidence?"
"I... I'm telling you this. I don't want to hide anything. Although I haven't been exactly upright and resolute over the years, I can still be considered a good person. I've had selfish thoughts for a long, long time. I don't know when I fell in love, and my playfulness turned into concern, a concern that haunted me. In all these years, you're the only one who's made me lose my mind."
The only two things he held dear were in this room, his treasures, his treasures.
His voice was hoarse, and he looked at her with burning eyes. He hadn't dared to expect a response from her, but in the end, he didn't let her down. He hugged Rong Qianyu, and his arms gradually tightened, for fear that if he let go, she would run away again.
Rong Qianyu raised her head and gently kissed the side of his face. "Then you should listen to me from now on. I'm also conflicted. You know I don't want our relationship to become like that... I understand your feelings, I can see it, and I have to give you a response."
Every time I hold her hand, I always have a natural desire to protect her. I bend down to kiss the back of her hand, hold her in my hands, and cherish and love her seriously.
"I'm sorry to have you following a eunuch..."
"Master Xue, I'm hungry. What shall we eat?"
"What do you want to eat?"
"It's Mid-Autumn Festival now, I want to eat mooncakes and osmanthus wine! I also want to eat crabs!"
"Walk!"
This was the first Mid-Autumn Lantern Festival after the smallpox epidemic. The two of them walked along the bustling streets, weaving through the bustling crowd. As they were walking, they suddenly heard the sound of gongs and drums coming from the front, and people rushed to follow the sound.
Xue Ji pulled her to his side, holding her tightly for fear that they would be separated by the crowd.
The sky is full of stars, and the river banks are filled with paper boats and lanterns. Children are laughing and having a great time.
"Are you happy today?"
"Master Xue is a good person!"
Xue Ji didn't want her to call him that. "Can't you...call him something else?"
Rong Qianyu took a bite of the osmanthus cake and looked at him with a smile, "Does Xue Lang like it?"
Xue Ji: "My name is Jiming."
"No."
He took away the sweet-scented osmanthus cake and crabs in front of her and said, "Scream or not, scream or not!" to force her to submit.
"I'll call you when I'm done serving you," Rong Qianyu suddenly came closer, "Ji..." She said one word and then started to act coquettishly, "I won't say it!"
At midnight, the fun was over and it was late at night. The two of them walked arm in arm and went to an inn.
The waiter came out to greet people and asked, "How many rooms do you want, sir?"
The two looked at each other and said in unison, "Two."
Walking upstairs, looking at the two adjacent rooms, Xue Ji was still unsatisfied. "Then you can rest. If you have anything, just knock on my door."
He went into the house and lit a candle. More things had happened in the past half day than in a whole year. Only when he was alone and quiet could he slowly savor the thrilling events of the day.
The two beds were touching each other. He touched the partition and thought of his sweetheart opposite him. His heart was overwhelmed with love and he had never been so happy.
At three quarters past midnight, Xue Ji still couldn't sleep. He heard a sound coming from the opposite room, knocking on the partition, and the frequency gradually became faster. Xue Ji responded, and Rong Qianyu started knocking again.
Xue Ji knocked a few times, and the sound suddenly stopped. After a while, Rong Qianyu ruffled her hair, took off her clothes, leaving only a single piece of clothing, and ran to the house opposite.
"Why are you here?" Xue Ji saw that her hair was loose and quickly pulled her onto the bed.
Rong Qianyu was only wearing a single layer of clothing and clung to him tightly. "I'm cold, and I'm afraid of the dark. There are mice in my room. I want to sleep with you."
Xue Jiye knew what she meant and wanted to tease her vaguely, "Is there really a mouse? Then I can help you catch it?"
Rong Qianyu immediately held him down, "No need for that, no need for that. The mice would run away just by looking at you!"
The two people's body temperatures merged together, feeling the gentleness and tranquility of each other's breathing. Xue Ji couldn't sleep even more. "Can we sleep like this?"
Rong Qianyu closed her eyes and murmured, "What do you want to do if you can't sleep? This wooden board is soundproof."
"I'm a eunuch, what can I do?"
"I'm tired," Rong Qianyu rubbed into his arms like a kitten, "I have to go back to the palace tomorrow... I don't know when Your Majesty will be well again..."
As she was talking, she fell asleep again. She hugged Xue Ji tightly and snuggled in his arms.
He raised his hand and untied her bun, letting her brown curls spread out. He held her hand and lifted up the loose hair, then gave her a gentle kiss. "Don't worry, I will take good care of you from now on." He fell asleep holding her.
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