Chapter 19
There are dozens of gates of various sizes in the garden, each with its own style to suit different needs, from grand to elegant. In addition, the windows also vary in design and materials.
For example, Xuan paper, once pasted on, completely blocks the view, and is the most commonly used material, suitable for bedroom windows.
Take seashells, for example. After being polished, they gleam and connect to form various patterns. When viewed in the sunlight, they shimmer and sparkle, creating a breathtakingly beautiful sight.
Not to mention materials such as glass.
There's no rush right now, but just the land preparation, water diversion, foundation building, and construction itself is a huge undertaking.
Ning Qingxi sat there for half a day, his inspiration running out. By the time night fell and dusk settled, he was sitting so long that his back ached, but he still hadn't painted much.
Before the time travel, Ning Qingxi's school had a tradition of organizing student field trips for landscape architecture students. This involved several teachers leading students to select a few representative gardens in a concentrated area for on-site investigation and to experience the charm of their garden design.
However, Ning Qingxi was born without any talent. Every time she went to see it, she could only exclaim "Wow, it's so beautiful!" The result of her disliking the scenery and gardens was that when she had to rely on this skill to make a living, the slap in the face came quite quickly and without mercy.
Ning Qingxi felt that the knowledge that had previously gone in one ear and out the other had taken a detour and been slapped hard in her face after it came out.
"What a painful realization..."
A more useful saying than "You'll regret not having read enough when you need it" is, "Since things have come to this, let's eat first."
Ning Qingxi had no other choice. She pushed the things on the table aside, clutched her rumbling stomach, and went out to find food.
As soon as I entered, I saw Huo Yanci again.
Will she feel awkward?
No, she's grown up. Now she can sit down and eat without batting an eye.
Huo Yanci was quite surprised by this: "How strange."
Ning Qingxi sneered: "If you let a sow draw for an afternoon, she could climb a tree too. What's so strange about that?"
Huo Yanci smiled but remained silent, wisely avoiding any trouble.
Ning Qingxi felt a surge of inexplicable anger. Whenever Huo Yanci spoke to her, she would lash out with sharp and sarcastic remarks, but when he remained silent, she became even more irritated. So, she tried to make conversation by asking, "How's the stone?"
"Everything is fine. It has been placed according to the location in your drawing. Several craftsmen have figured it out and it will not affect the construction of the pavilions and towers later. There is no need to worry about the inconvenience of construction."
Ning Qingxi, who was about to cause trouble, fell silent and ate her meal in silence.
After finishing her meal, Huo Yanci said, "How about we go out and have some fun?"
Ning Qingxi looked up, her face full of confusion.
The nearest city is the capital, which is only seven kilometers away. To hitch up a horse-drawn carriage and go there in the middle of the night, would you be crazy?
Huo Yanci said, "Are you going or not? The horses are all harnessed, and I brought the one you rode last time."
"We'll ride into town ourselves?"
"Otherwise what?" Huo Yanci said, "The evening is just the right temperature, neither too hot nor too cold, perfect for running a horse."
"go!"
Ning Qingxi grew increasingly annoyed as she ate, then threw down her food and asked, "When are you leaving?"
Huo Yanci said, "Now."
Huo Yanci is a person who acts on impulse. If she says she wants to go out to play, she will definitely make preparations in advance. At least when Ning Qingxi arrived at the dormitory area, she could see someone leading two horses and waiting. One of them was the underage horse that she had ridden before, and the other was shiny, tall and long-legged, making people envious.
Ning Qingxi turned her head and asked, "Why is my horse so short?"
Huo Yanci: "Have you ridden any other horses before? Let's be reasonable. I'll take you to the horse farm tomorrow and let you ride some more. I'll get you a big horse."
Ning Qingxi nodded, reluctantly accepting the offer, took the reins from the pony, and leaped onto it using the stirrups.
Huo Yanci watched the hem of her clothes fluttering in the night and whistled a very roguish tune. When Ning Qingxi looked over, he was smiling back at her: "I should make you a set of clothes for riding horses. You would definitely look good in them."
"That's right, what doesn't look good on me?" Ning Qingxi retorted without fear, adding in a rather roguish tone, "But none of you look as good as me."
"What Miss Ning said makes me feel like I might have some unwarranted misconceptions."
That's your problem.
Ning Qingxi replied with what he had said before, leaving him speechless for a moment.
However, when riding horses freely in the night, there's no need to say much or think about anything else.
The night was cool and still, and when I ran, the wind whipped up and hit me in the face, making me feel like all my troubles had vanished with it.
After arriving in the capital, riding horses was not allowed on the streets, which Ning Qingxi found quite regrettable. She even considered not going into the city and just riding around outside for a few laps, but Huo Yanci pulled her away.
"It's so rare for you to have time to come. How can I just stay outside and not come in?" Huo Yanci said. "There are a few gardens in the capital that I think are quite nice. Would you like to go and take a look?"
Ning Qingxi had a vague idea in her mind, but she wasn't sure, so she asked, "Why are you looking at those things?"
"Aren't you drawing? Go find some inspiration."
To be honest, Ning Qingxi was very moved, and even considered relying solely on references instead of using her own brain.
But reason told her that if she didn't do a good job with the initial sharpening, her knife would be ruined.
She shook her head and said, "No, if I look at too much and bring it in when I'm spending money, my reputation will be ruined."
"How could it be so easily destroyed? All writings in the world are plagiarized. You can't just shut yourself away and try to create something new. Master landscape architect Ning."
Ning Qingxi pondered for a moment, then shook her head.
She was determined to leave, and Huo Yanci had no choice but to respect her decision and take her to a place to eat—Ning Qingxi hadn't eaten much that night, how could that be?
Ning Qingxi passed by a pastry shop, tugged at Huo Yanci, pointed there and said, "I want to eat here."
She wanted to eat something sweet and cloying, so she took a whole box full of things like mung bean cakes and lotus flower pastries, which made Huo Yanci frown. Ning Qingxi took a big bite of the mung bean cake and found the sweet taste particularly satisfying.
Seeing this, Huo Yanci couldn't help but have some doubts. He used to eat this stuff just for its pretty appearance, with its red and green colors, which was refreshing and elegant. One bite would make him feel sick and nauseous. However, Ning Qingxi's genuine satisfaction made him wonder if the stuff in her hand was particularly sweet. Otherwise, why would there be such a big difference?
Give me one.
Ning Qingxi looked down at the box in her arms upon hearing this: "What do you want?"
She took several of each kind. Because she bought a lot, the shopkeeper gave her an extra small box for packaging. It was very exquisite, and Ning Qingxi was delighted with it. She handled it very carefully.
Huo Yanci asked, "What kind?"
"Pear blossom pastry, chrysanthemum pastry, lotus blossom pastry..."
"...Just give me any one."
"..." Ning Qingxi carefully selected the least appealing-looking Longjing pastry and gave it to him, saying considerately, "I remember you don't like sweets? This one is just right."
Huo Yanci kept his head down, so his expression was not visible. Ning Qingxi didn't know whether he liked it or not. She only saw him take a bite, and as he chewed, Ning Qingxi nervously swallowed.
She didn't know why she was nervous, but she was inexplicably afraid that Huo Yanci would say a bad word.
After Huo Yanci took a bite, she hummed and said, "Not bad."
Ning Qingxi was relieved and said as if nothing had happened, "By the way, I have something to do at Boss Zhang's place."
Huo Yanci looked surprised: "Why are you going to see him so late?"
Ning Qingxi chuckled and said, "It's a secret."
"..." Huo Yanci: "No, what would people say if a young lady went to a man's private residence in the middle of the night? I'll go with you."
"...You actually don't trust Mr. Zhang's character?"
"Does he possess any qualities that I can trust?"
Ning Qingxi fell into deep thought: "I originally thought you and Boss Zhang had a good relationship."
"We have a good relationship, and he is very loyal to his friends, but I never said he was a flawless person."
Ning Qingxi: "..."
Wow, do you rich people keep your friendships so separate?
Ning Qingxi took a step back: "Then you stand outside the reception room door and are not allowed to eavesdrop!"
Huo Yanci sneered, without saying whether it was okay or not, and remained silent all the way to the Zhang family's door.
Ning Qingxi ignored his eccentricities and greeted everyone familiarly as she entered, "Where is your boss, Mr. Zhang?"
Huo Yanci followed her and stepped into the courtyard. The maid who opened the door felt for some reason that there was a storm brewing about him, so she stopped looking and replied to Ning Qingxi, "Master is in the backyard. Does Miss Ning need something?"
Ning Qingxi nodded: "Call him to the reception room and tell him I'm waiting for him."
After saying that, she walked towards the reception room, perfectly mimicking Huo Yanci's mannerisms in every gesture, and was extremely proud of herself.
"Huo Yanci, look at me, look at me!"
Huo Yanci looked over.
Ning Qingxi took a very long stride, walking as if carried by the wind, yet steadily and firmly.
Does it look like it?
Huo Yanci asked, puzzled, "What?"
"You," Ning Qingxi said, "I'm imitating your walk. How is it? Does it look like you?"
Why are you imitating my walk?
"What if I become rich in the future? I need to let people know when I go out that I'm incredibly wealthy," Ning Qingxi thought, her mind starting to worry. "If I really had a lot of money, how would I spend it?"
Huo Yanci tilted her head, her eyebrows curved, her shoulders swaying. Under the moonlight, she was infinitely beautiful, like a ray of ethereal moonlight. Ning Qingxi stared at her, somewhat mesmerized.
This was the scene that greeted Zhang Fuhu as soon as he came out.
With one head raised and the other slightly lowered, Ning Qingxi's petite figure was completely obscured. Zhang Fuhu's worldly-wise mind was filled with all sorts of wild imaginings, which truly frightened him.
"Aaaaaaahh ...
Ning Qingxi was brought back to her senses by his shout and turned to look at him.
Zhang Fuhu: "..."
That harmful mouth!
The worst part is that Huo Yanci is also looking over. It's hard to tell whether she's happy or sad, but anyone who gets disturbed like this probably wouldn't be happy either.
So he added, "There was a bug on the ground just now."
Ning Qingxi said in a friendly tone, "Let's talk in private... You should have told me you were afraid of bugs earlier. I'll find a way to get you something that will ensure you don't see a single thing with more than four legs in your house! Speaking of bugs, Mr. Zhang, do you still remember..."
Huo Yanci stood there, listening to Ning Qingxi's voice getting softer and softer until she could only see her talking to Zhang Fuhu. She felt that it was too quiet here.
A moment later, Ning Qingxi came out beaming with a bulging purse.
She came all this way specifically to ask for money!
Although she was determined to spend the five taels of silver, she found herself wanting to reward herself from time to time, and before long, the money wasn't enough.
Therefore, as someone with low self-discipline, she knows herself all too well.
Besides, the money will be hers sooner or later; she just took a little in advance. What's the problem?
She picked up a few pieces of silver and said to Huo Yanci, "Here, here's your money back for the pastries."
Huo Yanci looked at the small amount of silver, the words "Alright, this is for you" swirling in her mind, but she still didn't say them. She took the silver and put it in her purse, feeling a mix of emotions, including a sense of relief.
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