Lu Ziyan looked at this scene, the lazy smile on the corner of his lips faded, and his face became frighteningly gloomy.
Xie Wan Ning couldn't stand this kind of atmosphere. She whispered, "I'll go change my clothes."
Upon hearing this, Concubine Shu, who was sitting at the top of the table, turned her head and told the maid behind her to lead the way.
Only after walking out of the hall did Xie Wan Ning breathe a sigh of relief.
Only her outer shirt was stained with wine, and she naturally brought spare clothes with her to the banquet. After changing her clothes, she was in no hurry to go back and continue facing the situation.
He thanked the nanny who had been waiting outside and said, "You go back to serve my aunt. I'll go for a walk to get rid of the alcohol."
She had indeed just drunk a few glasses of fruit wine, and her cheeks were rosy and pink.
The old maid looked at her, bowed with a smile, and said, "The old servant will withdraw. The weather is cold, so the princess can just walk around here. Don't stay outside for too long."
After everyone left, Xie Wan Ning stood there for a while before walking towards the corridor not far away.
On the corridor, palace lanterns were bright, and each lantern had a different pattern. Er Qing followed behind her and said with longing: "The lanterns in the palace are much more exquisite than those in the folk."
Xie Wan Ning turned around and looked at her, "Do you like the palace?"
Er Qing quickly shook her head, "I don't like it, and I don't like Lu... I don't like King Zhenbei."
This title really made Xie Wan Ning stunned for a moment before she realized that the King of Zhenbei was referring to Lu Ziyan.
She laughed. In this life and the past, only Er Qing had not changed.
What she didn't want, Er Qing also didn't want.
The master and servant walked on the corridor for a while. Although it was not snowing heavily like the end of last year, it was still freezing cold. A gust of cold wind blew by, and Xie Wan Ning shrank her neck unconsciously. Er Qing hurriedly said, "I will go get you a cloak."
Having said that, Er Qing turned around and trotted away without waiting for her to speak.
Xie Wan Ning had actually already taken a deep breath and was ready to return to the palace, but when she saw this, she shook her head slightly and simply continued to stroll around.
Although the palace lanterns were bright, it was night after all. On the rockery outside the corridor, under the moonlight, she could vaguely see a bunch of withered red plum blossoms. She suddenly remembered the branches she had picked with her own hands at the Qucheng Marquis Mansion last year.
After thinking about it, she walked over, prepared to pick and choose and pick a few branches to take back. After all, the twelfth lunar month had passed and red plum blossoms were rare.
Before she could grasp the cold branch, a hand with slender knuckles suddenly appeared from the diagonal edge and plucked the branch she liked.
Xie Wan Ning was stunned for a moment, then turned her head to look at the person coming, her pupils widened a little, "When did my cousin come?"
"I came earlier than you," Ji Chengfeng said, "Which ones do you want?"
"..." Xie Wan Ning didn't say anything.
Ji Chengfeng lowered his eyes to look at her, shook the flower branch in his hand, and said, "It's quite cold. I'll pick some for you as a token of my gratitude for reading my palm."
Hearing this, Xie Wan Ning almost choked on her own saliva.
She coughed softly and said reluctantly, "Please help me choose."
Ji Chengfeng nodded, and carefully picked a few branches that looked good from the withered red plum blossoms.
Such a pair of hands holding a pen look even whiter under the hazy moonlight, and the slender fingers look very beautiful even when they are broken.
Xie Wanning's gaze fell on his face unconsciously.
Her cousin was very good-looking, with a slender and upright figure. He had a gentle and gentle temperament, but he also had the unyielding character of a scholar...
"What are you looking at?"
The sudden voice startled Xie Wan Ning. She looked up and met his gaze which had been lowered without her knowing when. She felt embarrassed as if she had been caught. She took a step back and said, "You look very bookish. You must have read a lot of books."
Ji Chengfeng was silent for a moment, then said, "It's OK."
"..."Xie Wan Ning was also choked. If he wasn't well-read, how could he become the new top scholar?
What's more, his death made the emperor cry bitterly. If he was not a truly talented person, how could he make those in high positions so sad?
"Cousin, do you like plum blossoms?" Ji Chengfeng said, "I saw you picking plum blossoms both times."
"It's not that I like you, I'm just in the mood for it." Xie Wan Ning said, and unconsciously took half a step back. Soon her arm tightened and was grabbed back by the person in front of her.
"Be careful," Ji Chengfeng let go of her hand, pointed behind her, and said, "There is a staircase under your feet."
Xie Wan Ning turned around and took a look. It was indeed a very deep staircase. If she missed a step, she would fall down...
She thanked him with some relief, and then reached out to him, "Give me the flowers."
Ji Chengfeng avoided her hand and said, "It's too cold, and there are water stains. You don't need to pass it twice."
“You…” Xie Wan Ning blinked and couldn’t help asking, “Is my cousin so considerate to everyone?”
"...Not really," Ji Chengfeng pointed at the corridor and said, "Let's go up first. The road here is not smooth."
When they both returned to the long corridor, in the bright light of the palace lanterns, Xie Wan Ning finally saw that his hands holding the flower branch were stained with dirty water.
Perhaps he noticed her gaze, he curled his fingers and asked, "Do you have a handkerchief?"
Xie Wan Ning paused, then took out a cotton handkerchief from her sleeve and gave it to him.
Ji Chengfeng took it and slowly wiped the stains on his palm.
Xie Wan Ning didn't know what to say, and the atmosphere fell silent for a moment.
Suddenly, he said, "My cousin is really good at palmistry."
"What?" Xie Wan Ning didn't quite hear clearly.
Ji Chengfeng glanced at her and whispered, "The emperor summoned me the day before yesterday and wanted to send me to inspect the southern Sichuan area. Calculating the date, I should set off in a while."
Xie Wan Ning: “…”
Is she a charlatan?
"Do you believe me this time?" She cleared her throat and said seriously, "I have read many rare books, so I am quite proficient in this field."
My dear, there is more to this chapter. Please click on the next page to continue reading. It’s even more exciting later!
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
