Chapter 33
At night, Feng Huanhuan fell asleep under the coaxing of Feicui. However, after Feicui lowered the curtain, a pair of sad eyes slowly opened.
It was late spring in the courtyard, the leaves were about to turn into dust, and a hint of early summer was coming. These days, Feng Huanhuan sat at the stone table under the wintersweet tree and stared at the Kunpeng lantern on the eaves.
Her world was suddenly silent, with only the sound of her heartbeat remaining.
She hadn't seen Han Fengci in these days. She didn't look for him, and he didn't show up as usual.
The two familiar people were just like a chance encounter. What should she do, or was it wrong from the beginning?
Looking through the lanterns at the old curtain, only the rising sun and setting sun remain.
That day, there was light snow mixed with rain.
Early spring is coming. Feng Huanhuan held the door frame, and Feicui put on a cloak for her behind her.
"Miss, you are not well yet, please go to the warm room."
Feng Huanhuan shook her head slightly and coughed a few times: "No, I haven't been out for a few days. I should go find him."
"Miss! Master Han won't be at home."
Feicui spoke in a louder voice. She had been going to Han Mansion quite often these days.
Today I will deliver soup, tomorrow I will deliver snacks, all made by the young lady herself. In order to learn how to make these, her hands were frozen and ulcerated, and she collapsed all of a sudden. The cold mansion was deserted, with only Silver Wolf.
"It's been a while. Where has he been?" Feng Huanhuan's eyes were dazed. "I want to see him."
In the end, Feicui was no match for Feng Huanhuan. The two of them went to Han Mansion in the snow. As Feicui expected, there was only Silver Wolf.
Silver Wolf opened the door and saw that it was Feng Huanhuan. He immediately stepped forward to greet her: "Miss Feng, Han Liqing is not at home."
"Then...where did he go?" Feng Huanhuan asked.
"I don't know." Seeing Feng Huanhuan's pale face, Silver Wolf felt a little reluctant and added, "I will not know your whereabouts. It's not that I am lying."
"Yes." Feng Huanhuan smiled faintly, "If he wants to leave, no one will know."
But no matter it's windy or snowy, I just want to find you, Feng Huanhuan thought so.
"When will he return?"
"Miss Feng." Silver Wolf was a little embarrassed and said, "I... don't know."
Feng Huanhuan smiled and returned home without staying any longer.
After that, every day, rain or shine, she would come to Han's house and stand for a while. Silver Wolf always comforted him, and every day he swore that he really didn't know where Master Han had gone. She also asked her father, and he said that Han Fengci had taken leave.
Han Fengci seemed to have evaporated from the face of the earth, leaving no trace at all.
This was something she had not expected, why he refused so much.
Isn't it just to let her marry her? She smiled self-deprecatingly.
Whenever she looked up at the Kunpeng lantern, it seemed as if all the unfounded bad emotions would fade away, leaving only a blooming red wintersweet flower, which hid her encounter with him and her understanding of him.
The melancholy wind blew across my cheeks, and another half month passed.
On this day, the Feng family welcomed a happy day - Feng Wubai would return tomorrow.
At the same time, in Bai Tiao's boudoir in the Prime Minister's Mansion, stood a man in black.
The affection in his eyes only grows stronger even after going through thousands of mountains and rivers.
Bai Tiao's lips trembled, and he tried his best to restrain his guess and asked, "I wonder who you are."
Yes, she didn't use a questioning tone.
Feng Wubai slowly pulled down the black mask on her face, and a face that was 70% similar to Feng Huanhuan came into her eyes. It was the face she had been thinking about day and night.
He became thinner, darker, and stronger, and there was more solemnity in his eyes.
The two people's eyes met and blended. No one spoke, but it seemed as if they expressed countless thoughts.
Bai Tiao's tears fell like beads, and Feng Wubai wiped the face of the person in her dream one by one.
It is soft and tender, no longer a floating shadow or night mist.
"Tiao'er, I'm sorry I came back late." Feng Wubai pulled Bai Tiao into his arms and hugged her tightly, "Tiao'er, you've suffered."
"I don't feel bitter, because I have you in my heart." Bai Tiao sobbed, "Wu Bai, I miss you so much."
Baitiao rarely expresses his emotions.
Only when facing Feng Wubai, she could be willful, cry, and be unreasonable. This was the reason why she was willing to bear everything and wait for him for many years. But if he came back a little later, she would not be able to hold on.
Thinking of this, she slowly broke free from his arms and looked at those eyes, "Wu Bai, I..."
Before Bai Tiao could speak, Feng Wubai said first: "Tiao'er, I know, I know everything. Thank you for your hard work."
Bai Tiao was a little confused and dazed, which was in stark contrast to her usual cold and aloof self. Feng Wubai laughed, "Why? Have you been with Huan'er for so long that you've learned to behave like that little girl?"
"You, stop talking nonsense." Bai Tiao's face turned red, and she drooped her eyelashes, pretending to be angry.
"Good Tiao'er, don't be angry." Feng Wubai took out a bright yellow scroll from his arms, shook it in the air, and said with a smile: "Look what this is?"
Bai Tiao was very confused and she didn't dare to think about that aspect.
"Tiao'er, open it yourself." He stuffed the scroll directly into her arms.
Until she felt the soft and silky touch with her own hands, she paused for a moment, causing her hands to tremble as she unwrapped the scroll. Feng Wubai held her hand in time and unwrapped it with her.
By the Will of Heaven, the Emperor proclaims:
Bai Tiao, the daughter of Left Prime Minister Bai Tianting, is beautiful and intelligent, virtuous, and has outstanding talents and is a noble woman.
Feng Wubai, the eldest son of the Feng family, is a young general who gallops across the battlefield with his heroic spirit and the demeanor of a god of war.
When I heard that the young general wanted to marry her, I felt very pleased and moved.
The two of you are made for each other. I have specially granted you this good marriage. You will be a perfect match on the tenth day of May.
He was given a mansion, ten thousand carriages of gold, and three thousand households to celebrate the occasion.
In addition, I have specially bestowed upon you twenty pieces of jewels and eighty rolls of fine silk from my private treasury as dowry for Bai Tiao, the daughter of the Left Prime Minister.
So ordered.
Bai Tiao couldn't believe the red ink in the scroll. She tried to open her eyes wide and blinked desperately, but not a single word disappeared. She looked at Feng Wubai, who was staring at her with a funny look, as if he had returned to the old days and was deliberately watching her make a fool of herself.
At this time, Bai Tiao still didn't understand anything.
This man, I'm afraid, has returned a long time ago. Looking at the tenth day of May, it's still two months away, it's very hasty, most likely he asked for it. Although she was a little angry, she still carefully rolled up the imperial edict in her hand and held it to her chest as if she had found a treasure.
After a few breaths, she reluctantly returned the imperial edict to Feng Wubai.
She was waiting for him to propose marriage.
But at the moment, she had not forgotten his smiling face just now. So, she turned around and sat at the tea table, looking at him, a little serious: "Tell me, when did you come back?"
Feng Wubai scratched his head and smiled awkwardly. The look on his face was almost the same as when Huan'er had done something bad. They were indeed siblings.
She pretended not to see it and asked again: "When did you return? When did you enter the palace?"
Seeing that he couldn't escape, Feng Wubai was afraid that his wife would run away, so he confessed the truth: "It's been a while, the emperor has issued a secret order."
It turned out that when Lan Yueming and Feng Huanhuan rushed into the Prime Minister's Mansion that day, the rustling sound that Lan Yueming heard in Bai Tiao's boudoir was made by Feng Wubai.
"Ah, Lan Yue's ears are too sharp. I almost failed to hide my body." Feng Wubai complained: "I wanted to meet you that day and tell you to rest assured that I would take care of everything and not to bother with that sickly person. But I waited and waited, and you didn't come back. I should go. I only had half a day free that day."
In this way, the two missed the chance to meet each other. Bai Tiao felt very regretful and blamed the third prince.
The two of them stayed together for a while, and when longing covered their brows, all words seemed superfluous. Bai Tiao lay quietly in his arms, like a kitten or a little fox.
"Finally, I'm no longer out of reach." Feng Wubai sighed, and then he became serious for a while: "From now on, I can hold you as long as I want."
Bai Tiao pinched his thin waist, but it was stiff and didn't move at all. Feng Wubai chuckled, "Does Tiao'er's hand hurt?"
She was a little exasperated, "How can a little girl pinch the young general's abdominal armor?"
"Yes, yes, it's my fault. I made Tiao'er unable to pinch me."
Bai Tiao felt warm all over when she saw those amorous eyes. She turned away and changed the subject: "Huan'er has always believed that the man in black that year was someone else. Find a chance to confess to Huan'er."
Feng Wubai nodded: "I'm sorry, Tiao'er, I made you feel wronged."
"No, Huan'er is very good. She has kept this matter to herself and never let anyone know. Over the years, I understand how sad she is. I would feel the same way if it were me. And Huan'er has grown up and is very protective of me as her sister. If it weren't for her, I don't know how much I would have suffered from the Third Prince's siblings."
When the Third Prince was mentioned, Feng Wubai's affectionate eyes suddenly turned extremely cold, as if everything was solemn.
"That sickly fellow, let me take care of him."
It was supposed to be a serious matter, but unexpectedly, Bai Tiaopin laughed softly: "You are really the same kind of person as Huan'er. Huan'er is also sickly all the time."
"I'm her brother. I raised her, so of course she follows me." He nodded proudly. "That little girl says whatever she sees. What a good quality. Honesty and sincerity."
"Yes, yes, you are both sincere people. I will take good care of you two." Bai Tiao said with a smile.
"You can't go back on your words. Huan'er is still young, and her mother passed away early. An elder sister-in-law is like a mother. I have no plans to take a concubine in my lifetime, and I have an unreliable father. You can't despise us."
Although Feng Wubai's words were out of tune, she knew that he was promising her, so how could she not be moved? She held his hand and said word by word: "Wubai, I will never let you down, and I will never let the Feng family down in this life."
In fact, she had just made a secret decision that after getting married, she would ask to leave the Prime Minister's Mansion and no longer be the Prime Minister's daughter.
This was for Feng Wubai and the Feng Mansion. Her father had changed beyond recognition and would cause disaster in the future. She was already married and had no attachment to the Prime Minister's Mansion. The Feng Mansion was her heaven. In the future, she could visit her mother openly.
How could Feng Wubai not understand Bai Tiao's thoughts? When he returned, he had already gone to Guanyin Mountain to pay respect to Aunt Wan. He was just waiting for that day to give Bai Tiao a surprise.
It was not until the sky was filled with sunset glow that Feng Wubai left her boudoir, looking back every few steps, at Bai Tiao's urging.
She didn't covet this temporary reunion. Now a huge stone in her heart had fallen. She had a backer. The grass and trees in this mansion had nothing to do with her. It was just that Handan had been with her for many years and knew her habits very well. She was afraid that Handan would find out something fishy. After all, Handan had been not honest these days.
Here it comes again.
Handan was carrying a big belly and leaning on her waist, looking like she was having a hard time walking. The maids followed her carefully from behind, and there were maids supporting her on both sides. She couldn't sink even if she sprained her ankle, let alone fell.
Bai Tiao retracted his gaze and smiled faintly, "What are you going to say today?"
Handan stopped walking. She had not expected that Bai Tiao would be standing in the courtyard to enjoy the scenery today, so she asked, "Miss Bai, why are you so interested in enjoying the scenery today?"
"You know me well. After all, you've been with me for so long, and you know how often I go out."
Bai Tiao was a woman who could make people angry. She would say hurtful things in the most gentle tone. Handan's chest rose and fell with anger. What she hated most was being reminded of her origin as a Bai Tiao girl.
She was certain that those servants must have been gossiping about her behind her back.
She looked at Bai Tiao fiercely, but Bai Tiao didn't even give her a half look. Yes, she has always been so high and mighty. Outsiders may think she is cold, but in fact, only she knows that Bai Tiao doesn't trust anyone, and that's just her armor.
Bai Tiao seemed to see through her thoughts. She smiled and said, "Handan, do you know why I am always tolerant of you? Even if you do something wrong, I never punish you."
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