Chapter 11 Waiting She felt that she must be sick, maybe someone...
In the Palace of Heavenly Purity, Xiu Yu borrowed Xuan Ye's warm room to change back into his men's clothes. Xiao Tao put the melon-shaped hat on Xiu Yu, with some reluctance in his eyes: "Princess, you are leaving the palace this time. When will Xiao Tao see you again?"
Xiu Yu pinched Xiao Tao's cheek like a master and said with a smile, "Don't worry. In a few days, you and I will be together every day. That will be a day and night companionship that we have never experienced before. I'm afraid you won't be used to it by then. To be honest..." She lowered her voice, "I'm still more used to hearing you call me Master."
"I didn't say it out loud, but I was yelling in my heart." Xiao Tao tugged at Xiu Yu's vest again and said, "Master Yu is back again! Be careful when you leave the palace and don't let others see you. If you are really seen, I'm afraid rumors will spread in the palace. The concubines might even want to know where this handsome young man like you came from."
"Don't worry. I, your master, am not good at this. When it's time to hide my shortcomings, I will do it well." Xiu Yu looked at his handsome appearance in the kaleidoscope, and he felt deeply that it was a pity that he was not a man. What a pity!
Xiao Tao brought out her skill of flattery from three hundred years later and said with a smile: "My master is not only good at hiding his shortcomings, but also good at showing off when it's time to do so. You are the same!" As she said that, she gave a thumbs up.
Xiu Yu glanced at Xiao Tao with a smile, took her hand, and said regretfully, "It's a pity that I can't take you out." There was reluctance in her eyes: "How about this, the emperor said that he might leave the palace on the fifth day of the new year. If he really has time to go out, I will ask him to take you with him."
"I'm afraid this isn't a good idea." Xiao Tao was being very cautious. "In the eyes of the Emperor, you and I are just acquaintances. If you rashly make such a request, won't it arouse his suspicion?"
"Haven't you heard of love at first sight?" Xiu Yu raised her eyebrows slightly: "Don't worry, I know my limits."
Transformed from a beautiful princess in palace attire back into a young man in men's clothing, Xuanye couldn't find the right words to describe the feeling he felt. Would the phrase "celestial concubine" be appropriate? It seemed like something was missing.
"Your Majesty?" Xiu Yu saw that Xuanye seemed to be lost in thought and said softly, "I'm done."
"Oh." Xuanye stood up and said, "Let's go, I'll take you out of the palace."
The carriage stopped outside the Meridian Gate. Xuanye and Xiu Yu sat in the carriage together. Xiu Yu called out "Your Majesty" and Xuanye called out "Yu'er". They both spoke at the same time.
Xiu Yu Yanran said, "Your Majesty, please speak first."
Xuanye simply said, "Today I have to start writing, so I can only send you here, and then let Liang Jiugong take you back to the inn." After a slight hesitation, he added, "It's not that I didn't mean to send you off, this..."
"Of course I know that." Xiu Yu lifted the carriage curtain and got off first: "This time, even if Yu'er takes you back to the palace?"
"Huh?" Xuanye was stunned for a moment, then quickly realized that Xiuyu was going to see him through the Meridian Gate, thinking it was just a way to send him back to the palace. He also got off the carriage, clasping his somewhat restless hands behind his back. "I'm going back to the palace. On the fifth day of the lunar month, I'll find a way to see you and try your cooking to see if it's truly better than the imperial chef in my palace."
Xiu Yu lowered her eyelids, then raised her head again to look into Xuanye's eyes and continued, "If Your Majesty is truly free, why not bring Xiao Tao along? You're a good judge of people; Yu'er and Xiao Tao really hit it off right away."
"It's great to see you hit it off right away!" Xuanye felt more and more that Liang Jiugong was really good at doing his job. He just picked a servant and he was able to make the girl he liked happy. He should give her a good reward later. "Don't worry, I'll take Liang Jiugong and Xiao Tao with me when the time comes."
Xiu Yu's pretty face lightly lifted as she smiled, "Then, Yu'er will be waiting for you in the inn."
Her eyes were filled with excitement and twinkling stars. Xuanye thought he really couldn't indulge in it any longer, so he nodded, finally hardened his heart, turned around and walked into the Meridian Gate.
Only when he was out of sight did Xiu Yu walk to the other side of the carriage, lift up her robe, and sit on it. "Eunuch Liang, I'm sorry to trouble you again."
"Won't the princess sit in the carriage?" Liang Jiugong saw the emperor's feelings for this Yu'er princess, and his face became more respectful. "It's very cold this morning, it's warmer inside the carriage."
"It's okay." Xiu Yu became even more arrogant, and simply put one leg on the carriage, pretending to be one of those dandy young men from the Eight Banners. "I'll take you back. What's wrong with me accompanying you to endure the cold?"
Isn't this enough to be loyal? Liang Jiugong entered the palace as a slave since he was young, and he had never received such "courtesy" from his master. Even though he was a "future master", it was enough to move him.
Liang Jiugong said gratefully, "Please sit down, Princess. I am about to whip you."
When the carriage stopped in front of the inn, Liang Jiugong quickly got out and then helped Xiu Yu out. He glanced around and saw that the streets were still deserted. He lowered his voice and said to Xiu Yu, "Princess, all the selected beauties should have arrived in Beijing. You are one of the most prominent among them. You must be very careful before you can enter the palace. If you can hide, then do so. Everything can wait until you are serving the Emperor."
Xiu Yu pondered for a moment, then lowered his voice and said, "I understand. Thank you, Eunuch Liang, for your advice."
After hearing what Liang Jiugong said, Xiu Yu actually started to act like the "lady of noble family" that she had disdained to act like in the past in the next few days. She locked herself and Lihua in the inn and would not even leave the guest room unless it was necessary.
Going out for exercise every day was a good habit that Gege had never broken in the past ten years. But she had actually broken it in the past few days. Lihua felt a little puzzled. Bringing the brewed tea to Gege's hands, Lihua said, "Gege, you've been acting strange since you left the palace that day. What happened in the palace?"
"No." Xiu Yu was concentrating on drawing on paper. When he heard Li Hua's question, he looked up and smiled, "When I was in the palace, everything was fine."
Seeing the princess's bright smile, Lihua felt relieved, but her curiosity started to stir again: "Then, the emperor treats you well, too?"
"Yeah." Xiu Yu nodded. "He treated me to a fireworks display, and also..." She lowered her eyelids, considering Lihua's feelings for a moment, and continued, "He also found me a little girl."
As expected, Lihua felt a strange feeling in her heart. She asked calmly, "Are the servants who can serve in the palace more beautiful than the servants in my mansion? Are they more eloquent and capable of doing things?"
Xiu Yu smiled and held Lihua's hand, saying, "Our Lihua is a kind and simple-minded girl. Gege only hopes that you can live a good life with Liuzi outside the Great Wall. You may have the opportunity to meet the little girl in the palace later. If you have any instructions or instructions, why not tell her then?"
"Princess..." Lihua had been feeling down lately, simply because the fifteenth day of the first lunar month was drawing closer, and so was the day she and Princess would part ways. They had grown up together for over a decade, so how could they bear to be apart?
"Alright!" Xiu Yu stood up and hugged Lihua. "To be honest, whether in terms of character, appearance, or talent, the emperor is a good husband. You should be happy for your princess."
"Of course I'm happy for you, Princess." Lihua took a deep breath and said with a helpless smile, "You're right, Princess. I'll give instructions to the maid who will serve you in the future. I'll happily accompany you these few days, and I'll also be happy to see you off to the palace when the time comes."
On the fifth day of the first lunar month, Xiu Yu woke up early again, seemingly unaccountably. She emerged from bed in a light blue nightgown and cloak, her long hair caressed and tucked away behind her. She walked to her desk and casually flipped through a few pages of chess manuals, unable to concentrate. Perhaps this was what it meant to be "distracted." She thought she must be ill. Perhaps the emperor was just saying it casually; could she really take it seriously?
"Princess, were you woken up by the cold again?" Lihua heard Xiuyu sighing and got up as well, jokingly saying, "It seems the capital is still colder than the outside of the Great Wall, huh?"
Xiu Yu glared at Li Hua and said, "Didn't we agree yesterday that we'd make dumplings today? Shouldn't I, your princess, think about how many different fillings to make to please a little girl like you?"
"Princess, you're really killing me by saying that!" Lihua helped Xiuyu sit down in front of the dressing table and gently combed her hair with a wooden comb. "In my opinion, Princess, you should first think about what clothes and hairpins you want to wear today. You can't wear men's clothes anymore, can you?"
"I'm not wearing men's clothes today." Xiu Yu picked up a jade hairpin and played with it in her hand: "Tell me, which one looks better, the light yellow one, or the purple one? Or the pink one?"
"Princess, no matter what she wears, she looks like a fairy." Lihua looked at the beauty in the mirror and used less force in her hands, fearing that she would comb off the 'fairy's' long hair.
Xiu Yu pursed her lips and smiled faintly: "You, like Xiao Tao, are good at talking."
Lihua felt unhappy when the little girl in the palace was mentioned again, so she simply stopped talking this time.
Xiu Yu suddenly realized she'd just spoken out of turn. Now, this little girl who had been with her for over a decade was still jealous of Xiao Tao, as if Xiao Tao had taken away her place and favor. But Xiu Yu didn't know what else to say. After more than a decade of companionship, she truly considered Li Hua her own sister. She was destined to be imprisoned behind those palace gates, and she only hoped her sister would have a good life outside the gates, in the vast expanse of land and sky.
Lihua silently took out the apricot-colored dress and said, "Princess, wear this today. Although it's not bright enough, it's still very pretty."
"Okay." Xiu Yu stood up and said with a smile, "The clothes our Lihua chose for me must be the most suitable clothes for me to wear today."
In the Forbidden City, in the Qianqing Palace, Xuanye was casually flipping through the battle report. In fact, there was nothing good to see. Victory was in his grasp, and all that was left was to clean up the mess.
"Liang Jiugong." He looked at the Western clock on the table and asked, "When do you think it would be best for me to leave the palace?"
As soon as he finished speaking, a servant came in and said, "Your Majesty, the Empress Dowager invites you to the Cining Palace."
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