Chapter 28 is here again.
Once the "blueprint," which Li Minghua internally judged as "quite childlike doodles," was completed, Tang Xiaoning immediately dragged Li Minghua straight to the warehouse to select fabric.
The warehouse was piled high with silks and satins, their brilliance shimmering in the light streaming through the windowpanes.
Tang Xiaoning, like a little mouse that had fallen into a rice jar, excitedly darted through the mountain of fabrics, her slender fingers brushing over the smooth satin, soft silk, and crisp brocade.
"Minghua! Look at this sapphire blue brocade with gold trim!" She pulled out a heavy piece of fabric and held it up to Li Minghua without saying a word.
The cool satin fabric pressed against Li Minghua's slightly warm neck skin:
"Look at this color, it's so perfect!"
It makes your features look even more heroic, like a sword immortal straight out of a storybook!
Her fingertips accidentally brushed against Li Minghua's jawline.
"And this piece of soft, smoky silk, as blue as the sky after rain!" She then changed into a piece of light blue fabric, as thin as a cicada's wing.
Gently unfurling, the semi-transparent gauze formed a hazy halo in front of Li Minghua:
"Clear and refreshing, like the sky after the rain in Jiangnan, wearing this will surely make you feel elegant and otherworldly!"
She stood on tiptoe, trying to drape the fabric over Li Minghua's shoulders to adjust the effect.
The storeroom manager, who was organizing the ledgers, and two embroiderers who were helping out watched as their young mistress circled around Miss Li, gesturing at the priceless fabrics as if they were toys.
Even the usually aloof Miss Li was at his mercy, though her body appeared slightly stiff.
A young embroiderer couldn't help but nudge her companion with her elbow and chuckle in a low voice, "Look at how hard Miss is working! She's not even this dedicated when tailoring clothes for her future son-in-law."
His companion smirked, and the manager stroked his beard, a hint of pleasure in his eyes.
"Oh my, this piece of dark satin with silver patterns is also very nice!" Tang Xiaoning found a new target and picked up a piece of fabric as black as night, with silver patterns faintly visible in the light.
"Mysterious and elegant, you'd wear that out at night..."
Before she could finish speaking, Li Minghua finally couldn't help but interrupt, offering a reminder tinged with helplessness:
“These materials… are not absorbent of sweat, not durable, and make noise when moving, making them unsuitable for daily exercise and walking.”
“Can we make one set first?” Tang Xiaoning retorted confidently.
She put down the ink brocade and casually straightened Li Minghua's collar, which she had just disheveled, her fingertips inadvertently brushing against the skin of her collarbone:
"Wear this when you go out shopping, admire flowers, or accompany me to some minor banquets!"
You can't wear those same old, faded clothes forever, can you?
She slightly raised her chin, with a hint of domineering:
"You're now my... well, my chief martial arts advisor! You represent my reputation!"
"I feel more confident when I dress nicely!"
Li Minghua looked down at his faded but clean old clothes, then looked up at Tang Xiaoning's bright eyes that seemed to say, "If you don't agree, I'll keep making a scene." In the end, he gave in.
She sighed almost inaudibly, looked away, and conceded, "...You decide."
"That's a good girl!" Tang Xiaoning, like a triumphant general, happily picked out several pieces of fabric that she thought were "both beautiful and barely met the female knight's requirement of being low-key" and handed them to the embroiderer.
He also gave them detailed instructions on the "blueprints" (especially emphasizing the mysterious dark patterns), and asked them to make them as soon as possible.
When I came out of the warehouse, the sun was already setting.
The orange-red sunset painted the courtyard into a warm oil painting, and the two people's long shadows stretched out on the bluestone slabs, nestled together.
Tang Xiaoning was in high spirits, humming an off-key tune as she walked briskly ahead, occasionally kicking a small pebble away playfully with the tips of her embroidered shoes.
After taking a few steps, she suddenly stopped, turned around gracefully, put her hands behind her back, tilted her head slightly, and her smiling eyes were mischievous as she locked onto Li Minghua, who was half a step away behind her and walking steadily.
“Minghua,” her voice was sweet as honey, with a slight rise at the end, “I’ve noticed something interesting… You seem to be listening to me a lot lately.”
She deliberately lengthened the word "special".
Li Minghua paused, then looked up at her.
The golden glow of the setting sun bathed Tang Xiaoning in a soft, fuzzy halo, turning her hair a warm gold, and her smile was dazzlingly bright.
Li Minghua's throat tightened slightly, but his face remained calm and expressionless as he replied:
"You are the employer. Listening to reasonable suggestions from employers is your duty." His tone remained calm and steady.
"Oh? Just my duty?" Tang Xiaoning took a step forward, pushing her luck, until their shadows completely overlapped.
She tilted her head back, her eyes sparkling like shattered stars, gazing directly into Li Minghua's deep eyes:
"So, you're suggesting I have you change out of those precious old clothes and use my 'flashy but impractical' blueprints? That would be... a 'reasonable suggestion'?"
She deliberately returned Li Minghua's criticisms of her drawings verbatim.
Li Minghua was taken aback by her question.
Based on her deeply ingrained principle of pragmatism, these demands are clearly far from being "reasonable".
She subconsciously pursed her lips, averting her gaze from Tang Xiaoning's scorching eyes.
She turned her head slightly, a wisp of hair falling down, just enough to partially cover her earlobe, which looked exceptionally white in the sunset but now subtly revealed a pinkish hue.
The heat coming from behind her ears made her feel a little uncomfortable.
After a few breaths of silence, she uttered a few words in a low voice, with a hint of ambiguity: "...It's nothing serious, you can do as you please."
Tang Xiaoning's gaze precisely caught that alluring blush, and an indescribable sweet and tingling sensation spread through her heart.
She didn't ask any more questions, but the curve of her lips widened, filled with the warm light of the setting sun.
She turned gracefully, her skirt tracing a joyful arc, her steps light as if she were walking on clouds.
"Minghua! Let's go try out that new Suxinzhai restaurant that opened outside the city tomorrow!"
"Everyone says their vegetarian pastries are absolutely amazing!" The girl's clear voice drifted on the wind.
"Okay." A steady reply came from behind.
"After we eat, let's go fly kites! I specially had a huge butterfly kite made, the kind whose wings can flutter in the wind!"
"...This is not my forte." He said with a hint of hesitation.
"It's okay! I'll teach you! It's super easy, I guarantee you'll learn it in no time..."
Two figures, one in front of the other, moved along the long corridor.
One spoke with a lively tone, chattering away about all sorts of things for tomorrow; the other was sparing with words, yet every sentence resonated with a response.
The setting sun stretched and merged their shadows, eventually casting them indistinguishably onto the vermilion pillars, as if they were meant to be inseparable.
In the peaceful days, there were no sword fights or grudges in the martial arts world, no persistent female supporting character seeking "repayment of kindness," and no troublesome childhood friend Zhou Wenyuan who was always getting in the way.
All that exists are these mundane and ordinary activities: grinding ink, designing, selecting fabrics, daily bickering, and the tacit understanding that quietly grows and deepens between "whatever you want," "as you please," and "it doesn't matter."
Some feelings don't need earth-shattering vows.
It is hidden in these little compromises and indulgences, in every helpless yet sweet promise, quietly taking root and sprouting deep in the heart, with each other understanding each other without words, just waiting for the right time to bloom.
only………
**
Tang Xiaoning enjoyed her undisturbed "world of two," feeling that life was as sweet as honey.
Even the bamboo broom she used for practice looked much better to her now.
That day, she was holding a bamboo broom and practicing a move called "Su Qin Carrying the Sword" that Li Minghua had taught her in a very professional manner.
Of course, the posture was so awkward and crooked that it looked more like carrying a hoe than a sword.
"Minghua, look! How was my move? Doesn't it have a bit of a chivalrous air?" She tried to turn her head to see the "sword" behind her, but this only made her more unsteady, and she staggered.
Li Minghua stood behind her, watching her awkward yet hardworking appearance, a hint of a smile flashing in his eyes.
She resisted the urge to immediately step forward and straighten her, but instead took half a step forward, ready to act at any moment, and commented in her usual calm voice: "...The form is beginning to take shape."
Tang Xiaoning automatically ignored the words "initially formed," only hearing "form," and immediately became smug, like a kitten wagging its tail:
"I knew I had talent! Minghua, you taught me so well!"
Overjoyed, she turned around abruptly to show off to Li Minghua. Her movement was too exaggerated, and the bamboo broom swept towards Li Minghua's waist with a whistling sound.
"Watch out!" Li Minghua shouted in a low voice, his figure moving like lightning as he dodged the attack.
At the same time, her right hand moved with lightning speed, precisely pinching the back of the broom near Tang Xiaoning's wrist, stabilizing her momentum.
Warm fingertips brushed against Tang Xiaoning's wrist skin unintentionally. Tang Xiaoning felt her wrist being touched by those slightly cool fingertips, her heart skipped a beat for no reason, and her face became a little hot.
"Overconfident and carefree, she's left wide open." Li Minghua's voice remained calm as he pointed out her flaw.
But the fingers gripping the broom handle did not immediately loosen their grip. Instead, using the strength to stabilize their posture, they gently tapped Tang Xiaoning's slightly exposed waist with the bamboo handle.
Her movements carried a familiar intimacy and a faint sense of helpless indulgence: "This is the flaw."
Tang Xiaoning shrank back at the tap, stuck out her tongue, and her cheeks were still flushed. Just as she was about to retort that she was too strict, she heard a timid voice from the moon gate.
"Miss...Miss Li..."
The two looked in the direction of the sound and saw a young maidservant wearing a blue cloth dress and with her hair in two buns standing there.
She used to be the one who tended the fire in the kitchen. Her name was Xiaoju, and she was usually a very clever girl.
At this moment, she lowered her head, nervously twisting the hem of her clothes with both hands, her eyes darting back and forth between Tang Xiaoning and Li Minghua.
Especially when he saw the two of them standing very close together, with Li Minghua's hand still resting on the broom handle, he quickly lowered his head, looking hesitant and trembling, as if he had stumbled upon some secret he shouldn't have seen.
"What is it?" Tang Xiaoning's smile faded slightly as she put down the broom, and at the same time, she felt Li Minghua's hand loosen.
She subconsciously turned to the side and took half a step closer to Li Minghua, as if seeking some kind of support.
Xiaoju seemed startled, swallowed hard, and whispered, "It's...it's Miss Liu...she...she sent someone to deliver a message..."
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