Chapter 182 She spoke his name softly, and Xiao Yan wanted to keep her
Ayane spoke softly, but every word was like a bucket of cold water poured over the head of the shaken Princess Cheng, chilling her whole body.
Xie Tianyu's deep affection, every word he said after returning home, and the hesitation and wavering she had just felt were all like a huge joke and a slap in her face. Even the tears on her shoulder that had originally moved her became sticky and burning.
Princess Cheng lowered her head and looked at her wrists which were so skinny that they were just bones. This morning, Gu Helian had mocked her for being so skinny that she was almost a skeleton and looked so ugly that it was unbearable to look at.
But before Nanny Jiang mentioned her pregnancy, Xie Tianyu didn't see it.
He just looked at her with eyes full of affection, just like he did every day in the past. The guilt, longing, regret and love seemed to have been ingrained in his bones and could be used at any time.
Seeing that Princess Cheng looked pale, Ayane reached out and bandaged the wound on her finger.
"I don't know what love is, but I know that true care for someone goes beyond words. Please don't ignore everything else just for a few sweet words."
She said nothing more, only said:
"The wound on your hand is quite deep. Don't touch water for the next few days."
Nanny Jiang was away in the outer room for a long time. When she brought back some water, she found that Princess Cheng's hand had been bandaged.
"Princess, your hand..." Nanny Jiang was surprised.
"The princess was in great pain just now, so I applied medicine in another way. Madam Jiang, please help the princess wash her hands and change her clothes. There are blood stains on her body." Ayane said.
Upon hearing this, Nanny Jiang noticed that there was a stain on Princess Cheng's body. "How did it get stained with blood? Princess, please wait a moment. I will go get you some clothes."
Seeing Nanny Jiang hurriedly walk around to the green gauze cabinet, she skillfully rummaged through the back room where the clothes were originally placed.
Princess Cheng looked at the figure coming through the gap in the window frame and was stunned for a moment. For some reason, she suddenly remembered what Ayane had just said.
“…True care for a person goes beyond words.”
"I have only seen you twice, and I was able to detect your changes. We have slept in the same bed for more than ten years, but he couldn't see your bloody hands..."
Xie Tianyu can't see it.
Where is Nanny Jiang?
Princess Cheng was startled by the sudden thought.
Nanny Jiang had taken care of her for decades, having stayed by her side since she was a child. She knew everything about her and was very considerate to her.
But on the way back from the old concubine just now, she didn't ask her a single question, and even after she came back, she was just helping Xie Tianyu to explain.
It was when Ayane mentioned it that Nanny Jiang suddenly remembered that her hand was still bleeding. It was also when Ayane mentioned it that she noticed the blood stains on her dress...
Princess Cheng suddenly tightened her grip, and felt a chill running down from her head to her feet, her face turning pale.
"Princess, would you mind wearing this one? I remember you liked this one the most in the past." Nanny Jiang came out with a dress in the color of autumn fragrance embroidered with dark blue bamboo patterns.
Princess Cheng recognized that this was a gift from Xie Tianyu and it was also Xie Tianyu's favorite.
Her palms tightened: "Change."
"Princess?" Nanny Jiang was stunned.
Princess Cheng's voice was slightly stiff: "The old concubine is seriously ill. This color is too eye-catching. Change into something plain."
Nanny Jiang lowered her eyes to look at the dress in her hands. Was this color eye-catching? But thinking of what Doctor Sun said, that the old concubine might not survive the night, she didn't refute it in the end. She simply put the dress in her hands and said, "Then this old servant will go pick another one for you."
Nanny Jiang went into the inner room again, and Princess Cheng looked at her back with an unfathomable expression.
…
After Princess Cheng returned home, Tang Ning was worried about her, but the news from there could not be sent back for a while.
During the day, she chatted with Song Ru who had just woken up for a while, and then sent someone to the Fu family to deliver a return gift. She also sent an apology gift to Qian Qiyue who was frightened yesterday, and then went to Heli Hall to look through the books that had been brought back from the Lu family.
It was not until dark that Xiao Yan came back from outside, exhausted.
Seeing that there seemed to be someone in Heli Hall, he turned his head to look at Uncle He. Uncle He whispered, "The girl came here after noon and has been reading at Yueli Terrace."
Xiao Yan's eyes softened, and after waving his hand to stop the people, he went straight into the inner room.
It was already dark outside, but the lights were still on in Heli Hall. The surroundings were a little unclear, but by the Yueli Terrace, against the backdrop of the remaining sunset glow on the lake outside, one could vaguely see a figure resting on the small couch where he usually took care of the memorials.
The small four-legged couch was just big enough for him to lie down with his clothes on, but it seemed much larger for the petite Tang Ning.
She was lying on her side on the couch, seemingly asleep, her long and wide dress hanging down close to her body, outlining the exquisite curves of her waist. The book in her hand half covered her chest, and her long black hair had fallen down a little.
Only a faint trace of afterglow remained, as if it had leaped over the fence by the lake and danced on her eyelashes. With the sound of the wind outside, it gradually faded towards the edge of her face, and finally only a hazy light and shadow remained.
Xiao Yan stood not far away and watched for a moment before deliberately making some noise.
Tang Ning opened his eyes dazedly, and saw a figure in the dark. Although he couldn't see his face, he subconsciously said vaguely, "Brother?"
Xiao Yan came out from the other side: "Why are you sleeping here? Aren't you afraid of catching a cold?"
Tang Ning grumbled as he stood up: "I wanted to read a book, but who would have thought that this place is too comfortable for me."
There are medicinal springs and geothermal energy beneath the Heli Hall, and a cool breeze beside the Yueli Terrace. When the two are mixed together, the warmth is particularly sleep-inducing.
Tang Ning rubbed his eyes and stood up, only to find that it was completely dark outside. He suddenly woke up and asked, "Why is it so dark?"
"If you sleep a little longer, it will be dawn."
Xiao Yan smiled, walked to the side, lit the candle, and waited until the lampshade was put in place.
After the surroundings were bright again, he looked at the sleeping girl with rosy cheeks and asked: "Have you eaten yet?"
Tang Ning shook his head: "Not yet."
"Then use some with me."
"good."
After Xiao Yan called someone in to serve the meal, he saw several books on the table in front of him, all of which showed signs of being flipped through. He picked them up and stacked them aside before saying,
"The academy is already under construction. The Jingzhaosi has received the order and will speed up the work. They have already recruited a group of migrant workers from the south of the city, and with the addition of a group of people serving as laborers, I think the academy will be completed in three months at most."
An academy is different from an ordinary mansion and does not have so many rules and rituals. It only needs to be spacious and bright, sturdy enough to shelter students from wind and rain, and allow them to study.
Xiao Yan could vaguely guess Xiao Haitang's "ambition". Originally, she planned to build the academy according to the best specifications. But then she thought that if that were the case, it would be too ostentatious and different from the Rong family's previous behavior, which violated the original intention of "finding a way out" for poor students. Secondly, if the academy failed for too long, most of the momentum that Tang Ning had accumulated with the help of the Lu family would be dissipated.
Three months, at the latest.
It would be best if it could be completed within two months.
For this purpose, Xiao Yan spent a lot of money and used Emperor An's order to put pressure on him, wanting to set up the academy first and then slowly supplement it if needed later.
Except for the most important library, which was built according to the best original plan and could be further rebuilt after the academy started to accept students, the rest was kept simple.
Xiao Yan said to Tang Ning, "A lot of people should have submitted invitations to you recently. Although some of them are opportunistic and utilitarian, there are also many gentlemen with good reputations and morals."
"You should first carefully identify them and ask Hang Li and the others to go out and find out their background. If you are still unsure, you can ask Cao Dejiang and the others to take a look for you."
Tang Ning nodded excitedly: "Okay!"
"And have you thought of a name for the academy?" Xiao Yan asked.
Tang Ning shook his head: "Not yet, brother, do you have any good suggestions?"
Xiao Yan said calmly, "Your academy, of course you can name it yourself."
Tang Ning uttered an "Oh" and propped up his chin, mumbling softly, "I haven't thought about it yet."
She originally wanted to use her grandfather's name to name the academy, Qian'an Academy or Rong's Academy, but she felt that others would criticize her for taking advantage of her grandfather's posthumous reputation. Moreover, if she used her grandfather's name, people in the capital would also think that the academy had selfish motives, and even His Majesty would be suspicious.
Since the day this academy was established, its purpose was to cultivate scholars from humble backgrounds to compete with the aristocratic families.
If the academy that the emperor supported in every way ended up being named after the Rong family, not to mention whether Emperor An would feel uncomfortable, even those upright court officials who originally supported him would probably have doubts in their hearts.
Tang Ning suddenly glanced at Xiao Yan and said, "By the way, brother, I see you've been to school. I've never asked you before, but do you have any education?"
Xiao Yan paused: "Why do you think of asking this?"
"I'm just curious. If it's inconvenient, you don't have to tell me."
"It's no inconvenience."
Xiao Yan's eyelashes drooped slightly: "My mother used to call me Yuan Sheng."
"Yuan Sheng?"
"Well, she hopes that I can be as bright and shining as the rising sun."
"Yuan Sheng..."
Tang Ning pondered the name and felt that it sounded nice no matter how it was pronounced.
Xiao Yan felt as if his heart was sinking into warm water when he heard the tenderness in her voice as she called him. He wanted to keep her, so he had to let her know some things little by little.
Seeing the little girl's defenseless look, he said calmly, "That name is too unimpressive. Don't tell others about it, or I won't be able to scare them in the future."
Tang Ning laughed when he heard this: "Okay, I won't tell anyone else."
When Canglang came in with the food, he happened to hear these words outside the door. His expression changed slightly, and he couldn't help but glance at Jinyun who was following beside him.
The name "Yuan Sheng" was used by the master when he was young. Although only a few people knew it at that time, and because of the master's noble status, others did not dare to call him by this name, but it is not impossible that no one remembered it. How did the master tell the girl this?
Jinyun was silent for a moment: "Be respectful to the girls from now on."
Cang Lang: “…”
Jinyun knocked on the door and said, "Master, news has arrived from Prince Cheng's mansion."
Xiao Yan's voice came from inside.
"Enter."
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