Chapter 17: If we were to discuss...
Zhu Qiqi's matter caused quite a stir. Fan Fenyan, who had already made a deal with Su Mengzhen, directly entrusted the matter to Yang Wuxie to handle. As the saying goes, the one who understands his opponent best is always his opponent's opponent. Su Mengzhen was happy to see this happen, so the plan documents for Jinfeng Xiyu Tower were handed to Zhu Qiqi that very night.
The gambling dens in the south of the city were still too much of a threat. Jin Feng Xi Yu Lou wasn't prepared to swallow this cancerous growth, but they had plenty of ideas to make things difficult for it. Zhu Qiqi, having recovered, said she wanted to break Li San's teeth. This was the first time in her life she had suffered such humiliation, and she couldn't let it go easily. About a day or two later, Li San's mouthful of teeth was wrapped in a piece of brocade and sent over.
Shen Lang had nothing else to do in the capital, so he thought of sending A Niu back and bringing some herbs for the old woman. But Zhu Qiqi wouldn't allow it. She secretly slipped A Niu an ounce of gold and a jade bracelet, and then told A Niu to leave the capital overnight, leaving only a letter for Shen Lang and Xie Huailing, saying that she would be willing to be a cow or a horse in the next life to repay her.
Shen Lang sighed upon reading the letter, but he did not scold Zhu Qiqi. He simply said to her, "Qiqi, you can just say so if you want me to stay. It would be a mistake if something happened to A Niu on the way."
Zhu Qiqi still couldn't forget what Xie Huailing had said about her on the way back to Jinfeng Xiyu Tower. Hearing this, her emotions churned in her throat again: "I had everything arranged. I gave him a lot of money and asked him if he agreed first. He himself said he wasn't sure if he would bother you again... I even sent four servants to protect him!"
This time she really thought things through more. Perhaps it was because she was genuinely bothered by Xie Huailing's remarks. After all, A Niu's wishes came first, and Shen Lang knew he had misunderstood her, so he comforted her for a while.
One letter was in his hands, and the other had to be returned to Xie Huailing. Xie Huailing hadn't been seen for several days since then, and Su Mengzhen had instructed her to have her own things to do and not to disturb her. If it were the old Zhu Qiqi, she would have insisted on getting to the bottom of things, but the current Zhu Qiqi had been scolded while crying in Xie Huailing's arms, and had to admit that her words had some merit. Besides, Xie Huailing would most likely ignore her tantrums anyway, leaving her in a dilemma.
In the end, he thought that delivering Ah Niu's letter was indeed the important thing, so he returned to his enthusiastic and burning-hot state.
Where is Xie Huailing? What is Xie Huailing doing?
.
The books, brought by the maids, were lined up on the shelves, replacing the original playbooks and storybooks. The soft couch was also moved to the wall, and white gauze was hung up. A tea table was placed in the center of the bedroom, its elegant color dispelling the room's leisurely atmosphere and making it more like a scholar's study than a woman's boudoir.
Zhu Qiqi was startled when she came in, almost not recognizing this place she had been to several times before. Xie Huailing was lying on the table, doing something, so Zhu Qiqi tiptoed over and whispered in Xie Huailing's ear, "What's going on? Is Su Lou Lou going to let someone else stay here?"
"That's a good idea. Next time, say that to him in front of him." Xie Huailing propped her head up with her hand. What she had just blocked was a piece of Xuan paper, covered with ink dots of all sizes and ink marks that looked like earthworms crawling on the surface.
Zhu Qiqi couldn't make anything out of the Xuan paper. She put down A Niu's letter and said with some doubt, "Then why did your bedroom change so much? It doesn't look like a young lady's boudoir at all. It looks more like a scholar's study."
Xie Huailing corrected her: "It's not that vulgar."
"You're making such a big deal out of nothing..." Zhu Qiqi couldn't see what was so good about this incredibly simple furnishing. "Never mind, I don't understand anyway. This is a letter from A Niu to you. He went back last night, and I brought it to you. What are you drawing? It looks pretty bad."
"..." Xie Huailing didn't tell her that she was writing calligraphy, and quietly pulled the Xuan paper down a little. "This is called abstract art. It will be valuable in a few years."
Zhu Qiqi couldn't understand her complex and conflicted pride. Coming from a wealthy family, she was also quite adept at appreciating paintings, and she became even more confused: "What is that? This painting is worth money?"
"Generally speaking, this kind of thing becomes valuable after the artist commits suicide or dies."
Xie Huailing didn't want to talk much with Zhu Qiqi, but when it came to writing, anyone could easily defeat her. She told Zhu Qiqi to sit down, crumpled the paper into a ball and threw it into the wastebasket, then took out a new sheet and handed the pen to Zhu Qiqi as if she had unloaded a burden.
The brush, soaked in ink, was held steadily. Zhu Qiqi was completely bewildered. Before she could speak, Xie Huailing fed her a piece of flower cake. The flower cake had just been taken out of the food box and hadn't been opened by Xie Huailing even after half an hour. When it was put into Zhu Qiqi's mouth, it still smelled wonderfully fragrant and was indescribably sweet.
"Please help me." Xie Huailing really didn't want to continue writing. No matter how long she wrote, she couldn't get to the point. Sure enough, she still had to find someone to write for her.
Zhu Qiqi was very easy to talk to, and while eating the flower cake, she started writing for her. Xie Huailing said a sentence and she wrote it down. Her small regular script, adorned with flowers, was just like her, and her beautiful handwriting was much prettier than Xie Huailing's own. In short, the gap between her and Xie Huailing was even greater than that between Xie Huailing and Zhu Qiqi.
As Zhu Qiqi wrote, she couldn't hold back her questions. The more Xie Huailing said, the more she wanted to ask: "You want two pots of good wine and tea, and a small stove? Why don't you just tell the maid directly? Why make a list?"
Xie Huailing would never admit that she was struggling with her own earth-shattering handwriting. She had never cared about saving face in other matters, but she was irreconcilable in this one. She turned her face away from Zhu Qiqi, her eyes wandering off somewhere: "They can't remember, so make a list so they can arrange it."
Zhu Qiqi felt something was off, but couldn't quite put her finger on it. She touched her head, put down her pen, and stopped writing. She turned Xie Huailing back to her: "If you can't even remember what you need them to do, I might as well just get the things over for you. I'm not bragging, but when it comes to this, there aren't many people in Bianjing who can beat me."
As she spoke, her smiling eyes became even more lively. Zhu Qiqi always enjoyed doing things with enthusiasm, and her smiling eyes were full of joy.
Xie Huailing went along with it: "Tell me how much it cost."
Zhu Qiqi laughed even louder: "I'd be a fool to ask for your money!"
After laughing, all the strange worries in her heart disappeared, and she reached out to hold Xie Huailing's hand. Xie Huailing was suddenly pulled by the hand and saw Zhu Qiqi lightly biting her red lips, exhaling and asking her, "Tell me the truth, have you been angry with me these past few days?"
"Aren't you angry with me?" Xie Huailing asked her.
Zhu Qiqi was speechless, her mouth agape for a few seconds. She couldn't deny it, and slapped Xie Huailing: "I'm so angry! Shen Lang didn't tell me anything, he looked down on me, and I suffered so much. After being rescued, you still said it was my fault… but…"
But after she calmed down and realized that Shen Lang didn't dislike her, she found there was nothing to refute. She was a straightforward and outspoken person, and understood that the problem lay with her. Although she valued her reputation, she wasn't afraid to admit wrongdoing when it came to matters of principle.
"I didn't just scold you, I scolded Shen Lang too. Let's just let this go, but I really won't bail you out next time." Xie Huailing was slapped and tried to back away, but her hand was being held and she couldn't escape. "Ouch, ouch, ouch... If you're reckless, you'll only hurt yourself. You should be more careful. As for what Shen Lang thinks of you, you might as well go and ask him directly. If you don't get the answer you want, just throw a pot of boiling water on him until you're satisfied."
Zhu Qiqi's carefully crafted serious expression crumbled as she covered her mouth and laughed, "If he can't be splashed, who can catch him? It would take me months to find him in the blink of an eye."
She and Xie Huailing rekindled their old relationship. Before leaving, she took the list she had written and boasted that she would take care of it all and deliver it to her within three days.
Seeing her expression, Xie Huailing told her something else.
Zhu Qiqi stared wide-eyed, looking at her in disbelief: "Where are we going to get this? It's not early summer yet."
Xie Huailing shrugged and said, "There's just no other way, so I'm asking you."
"You, Xie Huailing, are deliberately making things difficult for me." Zhu Qiqi folded the list neatly. She was quite quick-witted in this regard. "Let's see how it goes. Humph, it won't stump me."
.
Autumn winds sweep away fallen leaves, and a light drizzle falls in the season.
At dawn, I saw the sky hang down like a thin curtain, dampening my clothes and chilling my face; the clouds were damp and their sound lingered.
Su Mengzhen listened to the sound of rain, the golden wind and drizzle shrouding the pavilion in a gauze-like mist. He hadn't even had breakfast yet, but his desk was already covered with documents; official duties were never-ending.
After reviewing several documents, the rain outside grew heavier, the scent of drizzle reaching his nose, soon to pour. The scenery outside was shrouded in an indistinct hue of water. A slight ache returned to his lungs. Su Mengzhen donned his cloak, and Yang Wuxie knocked on the door.
Yang Wuxie wasn't there to report, even though he was carrying a handful of documents. He strode into the study and said, "Miss Biao's maid has arrived."
Su Mengzhen continued writing, then stamped the document again: "What is it?"
Yang Wuxie seemed to realize that something was amiss, and said, "Miss Biao invites you to have a meal, but you will only be going alone."
This was a very strange thing, and the only news from Xie Huailing in more than ten days. Su Mengzhen put down his pen. He remembered Xie Huailing's words and often thought of them. She said she would "come and invite him." The words were strange and inexplicable, but he felt a strange, ambiguous feeling of waiting for a storm to break out, as if he were about to fight to the death, or as if Liufenbantang had handed him a trap.
But they are different, so where should we begin?
Su Mengzhen hung the pen back on the pen holder, wiped the ink stains from her fingertips, and asked, "What has she been doing these past few days?"
Yang Wuxie replied meticulously: "Miss Biao is decorating her bedroom. She met with Miss Zhu Qi twice. The second meeting was four days ago. Miss Zhu Qi brought her some things, just a stove and a couple of jars of wine."
"I'm going." Su Mengzhen wrapped his clothes tighter around himself.
A chilly wind seemed to seep into him, and the rain poured down relentlessly. He entered the Yellow Tower alone. At that moment, he had a premonition that a violent storm, with thunder and lightning, would soon arrive; this was no ordinary morning.
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