Chapter 21 She is really hiding
The crowing of a rooster from the side yard pierced the morning silence. Su Ying opened her hazy eyes and looked out the window. She saw a vast expanse of white, boundless, and for a moment, she couldn't distinguish the eaves from the sky. Su Ying couldn't help but sigh. It turned out that "white jade all over the sky" wasn't just a figment of literary imagination, but a real, tangible reality.
She naturally remembered her promise to her aunt yesterday. After tidying herself up neatly, she put on the red brocade cloak with cloud patterns that her aunt had given her.
This cloak was worn by my aunt when she was young. It had been carefully stored at the bottom of a camphorwood box for many years, and was only dug out from the bottom yesterday by Xiu Yu herself.
Her aunt asked her to try it on the spot. When the red dress fell on her, a smile appeared in her aunt's eyes and she said, "Look, she is more beautiful than flowers!"
Looking at her pretty and charming niece in front of her, Rong couldn't help but think of the day when Su Ying first arrived at the Du Mansion.
That day, Rong was still embroidering in her room, something she was not particularly good at but loved. When she heard Xiuyu say her cousin was coming, she pricked her finger in a fit of anxiety, drawing blood. In her haste to greet Su Ying, she didn't think twice and simply wiped the blood off her finger before leaving the room.
The side courtyard wasn't small, and as soon as Rong left the house, she saw her niece standing alone in the courtyard. Su Ying, a thin figure, was draped in a slightly worn-out, lake-blue plain brocade cloak, untrimmed and untrimmed. Her already fair face, perhaps accentuated by the grayish-blue hue or perhaps because of the freezing cold that day, had lost all its color, leaving her looking pale and feeble.
Without giving it any thought, Rong trotted over to Su Ying and embraced her long-lost niece. Looking over Su Ying's shoulder, she lowered her head slightly to see the edge of her cloak, which was dragging on the ground and was stained with lingering snow. Clearly, this cloak, which was longer than Su Ying's body, wasn't tailor-made for her.
For a moment, Rong Shi felt a mixture of pity and anger. Pity for her niece, a well-known member of the Rong family, renowned among Jiangnan scholars, who had only been with the Su family for two years, and yet had been brought up in such a miserable state, even going to the capital without a single maid or servant to look after her. She was furious that Su Jianrong, despite abandoning literature for business and having sufficient financial security, had not spent a single cent on his eldest daughter, and had even listened to his second wife's whispers, treating his daughter's life as a business, weighing her solely on material gain.
That day she had thought of letting Su Ying wear her red cloak, and now she saw that it was just as she had thought. Su Ying was like a red plum blossom on a snowy branch, bright and beautiful, making people unforgettable at first sight.
Su Ying had no idea what her aunt was thinking. She just felt that the red color of the cloak was very much to her liking. As a little girl, she always liked this kind of lively color.
There was also the furry and warm ermine fur collar, which was warm and soft. Su Ying touched it many times and was very happy.
After getting dressed, Su Ying took the scissors and small basket she had prepared last night and tiptoed out of the house.
She deliberately chose to go out at daybreak, not only so that her aunt would see the appropriate plum branches the first time she woke up, but also because she didn't want to run into Du Heng in the garden.
Yesterday she left the house at noon and met Du Heng who came with a sword.
Later, while copying sutras with Wanyi in the flower hall, she learned that he went to the garden to practice swordplay every day at noon. But if she waited until he finished practicing swordplay before picking plum blossoms, she would miss the auspicious time for copying sutras. So she simply got up early and went to the garden when no one was around.
Du Heng has always complained that the snow this winter is not falling smoothly. The first few times it fell, it was all fine snow particles, and only a thin layer fell to the ground. It soon melted and made a muddy ground, which was very unpleasant.
Today, the day is finally sunny. The snowflakes are as white as new, as if washing away all the dust in the world, making people feel refreshed.
He always loved to "get up and boil tea with snow water, and listen to the cold bamboo branches."
While there was no bamboo grove in the mansion where the rustling of snow could be heard, there was a plum grove to admire. The red plum blossoms reflected against the snow, possessing a natural elegance. Therefore, he rose very early, heading for the garden at first light.
Du Heng has his own way of cooking snow and making tea.
He first collected the new snow on the plum branches, put it all into a copper pot, and then slowly melted it with a small stove.
Snow water is softer than well water. When it boils, there is only a faint vapor accompanied by a slight sound, just like a girl walking in the snow, only hearing the sound of snow breaking.
He first poured hot water into the pot, then added the young buds. The first infusion was only used to rinse the tea, and the second infusion was then slowly poured into the white porcelain cup.
As the fragrance rose, he picked up the teacup and looked into the distance.
However, just as I was about to drink tea and appreciate the plum blossoms, I suddenly saw a woman in red rushing into the vast white snow scene.
The red plum blossoms came as light as clouds, even more charming and attractive than the red plum blossoms on the snowy branches. Du Heng was in a trance for a moment, wondering which fairy had mistakenly entered the mortal world.
As soon as she entered the garden, Su Ying's eyes were drawn to the plum grove. This was her first time in the Du Mansion's garden, and she had no idea that there was a small pavilion hidden on the other side of the plum grove. And at the other end of the pavilion, there was a person who had caught her eye from the moment she entered the garden.
She stopped and looked carefully at the white jade branches of the red plum blossoms in front of her. She hesitated for a moment. Should she cut the branches full of flowers, the red ones that were eye-catching? Or should she cut the branches with flowers scattered in a scattered manner?
She always felt that when things are full, they become less, and the same was true of plum blossoms. If the branches were covered in red, they would lose their charm. Thinking of this, she decided to cut only the few branches with sparse red shadows.
Once the mind is set, the movements become lighter.
Her eyes fell on the snow shadows among the flowers, and she didn't notice at all that the person in the pavilion was slowly coming over because of the eye-catching red dress.
After cutting three or two long branches, she gently put the scissors back into the small basket.
As I was about to turn around with the plum branch in my arms, I suddenly heard the sound of snow grinding against the ground.
Su Ying looked in the direction of the voice, her gaze passed over the white snow between the plum branches and met a tall figure. She was startled because the person was the young master Du whom she was trying to avoid.
He was wearing a dark-colored fur coat, which looked very strange among the white snow.
The moment their eyes met, Su Ying's heart skipped a beat.
I clearly got up early just to avoid him, but why did I meet him anyway?
She looked behind him and saw no one to serve him.
If someone were to see such a scene, there would be no way to explain it.
Just now in the pavilion, Du Heng guessed that it was Su Ying, but she always dressed simply and elegantly, and the red color was too eye-catching, so he became curious and wanted to find out.
When she picked up Meizhi and looked up, it was indeed her!
He was delighted and was about to bow and call her cousin.
Unexpectedly, her expression changed slightly, she bowed slightly, and passed him by.
He turned around in confusion, only to see the princess's red cloak gently fluttering behind her, like a red plum blossom disturbed by the wind, and the next moment it disappeared into the depths of the snow.
Du Heng stood there, his brows slightly furrowed, and did not move for a long time.
It wasn't until today that he realized that she was avoiding him, but it was not until this moment that he was sure that she was really avoiding him.
Just don't know why.
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