Chapter 59 Chapter 59 “If you think it’s too fast, I…
The sky was dark, and the thick clouds were like upside-down mountains, pressing down very low. In the cold courtyard, occasional pieces of debris fell from the branches and hit the flowers with a dull sound.
Sheng Puzhu stood in the corridor, looked up at the gray sky, and frowned slightly.
"Qingke," she called softly, "The Princess likes lively colors. She asked someone to bring in a few more red camellia plants from the greenhouse and place them by the window."
"Remember to warm your tents and bedding over a fire and then fumigate them with incense."
The Qingke nodded: "I have already given the order."
"It's a shame it started snowing after noon. Time is tight, even though the bedding and tents had been washed and exposed to the sun earlier."
"My lady, it's cold. I have servants here to take care of you. You should go back and rest. Madam Du and Naidong will not be back for several hours."
Sheng Puzhu tightened the cloak on his shoulders, his fingertips tucked into his sleeves. There was a red mark on his palm from the reins, and when he pressed it, it stung slightly.
She and Xie Zhiyan returned to the Duke of Jingguo's Mansion an hour ago.
She thought the carriage was too slow and originally planned to take Naidong with her and ride on horseback first. However, just as she got on the horse, Xie Zhiyan stopped her with a cold face.
"Where are you going?"
Sheng Puzhu felt inexplicably uneasy. Her hands, which were holding the reins, seemed to be frozen by the wind. She thought of what he had said half an hour ago -
"Next time you encounter something like this, you should just let me come over instead of looking for Qingshu."
As her husband, even if the relationship between them is not very close, as a man, he should hope that she can rely on him.
Do you care?
I'm afraid not. It's just the responsibility of being a husband.
But when faced with a problem, she is actually better at solving it independently.
The sun is not shining, the sky is overcast, and it should be snowing soon.
"Go back home." Sheng Puzhu lowered his head, looking guilty.
"Then come on, I'll take you back."
Xie Zhiyan put his arm around her waist, carried her onto the horse without saying a word, and then he climbed on as well.
The wide cloak was untied and covered her soft body. It was so big that it could wrap her completely. Her breath was full of his scent.
The north wind was howling, blowing the broken snow down in my face.
Sheng Puzhu huddled her whole body in Xie Zhiyan's dark cloak, her back pressed against his broad chest. The horse was shaken violently as it galloped, and she had to bury her lower back even tighter in his arms.
"If you think it's too fast, I can slow it down."
Xie Zhiyan's voice was deep, mixed with his hot breath, and poured into her ears. His arms gripping the reins held her tighter.
The horse's hooves stepped on the thin layer of white snow on the ground. The cloud-like snow particles turned into mud in the blink of an eye. It was really cold, and he was riding really fast.
Sheng Puzhu opened her plump lips, and because of the air that kept pouring into her mouth and nose, her breathing became very rapid, and her body shivered uncontrollably.
Suddenly, the reins were pulled tight.
The speed of Baitiwu suddenly dropped.
"My dear." Sheng Puzhu turned her head to look at him, not knowing what was going on.
"Is it very cold?" Xie Zhiyan asked.
"I'm actually fine, um..." Before Sheng Puzhu could finish her words, her waist, which was so thin that it could be held in one hand, was pinched by the man's big hands. Her body turned around on the horse's back, and immediately turned into a position with her face facing his chest.
"Hold me tight if you're cold." Xie Zhiyan looked at her and said.
Their eyes met. In Sheng Puzhu's unclear vision, his words seemed to carry a burning heat. She didn't know whose heartbeat was like a drum, making her eardrums numb.
After returning home, the couple first went to Yishou Hall to pay their respects and explained in detail what had happened during the winter hunt.
The old lady, who was originally in a good mood, suddenly seemed much older.
Her skinny fingers stroked the edge of the table, where there was an old scratch that had not been repaired. It seemed as if it had been deliberately preserved, a mark worth remembering.
There was no sunlight, and the candles in the hall had not yet been lit. In the dim light, a few not-so-obvious age spots had already appeared on the back of her hands, a light brown-yellow color, like leaves in late autumn that were about to wither and fall.
"Why would he do this?"
"Lingyi was also a child he watched grow up." The old lady couldn't understand, and her voice was hoarse with confusion.
Her usually straight shoulders now looked a little hunched, and the crimson-purple winter coat with floral patterns that she was wearing, which was apparently still brand new, seemed to have suddenly lost its color and became gray.
I'm afraid only Xie Juyuan himself knows where the problem lies.
The old lady quickly calmed down and slowly stood up: "Where is that old woman surnamed Pan? Did you bring her back?"
"Grandson will send the person directly to Prince An's residence, and let Princess An make the decision." Xie Zhiyan said indifferently.
The old lady nodded and said, "You did a good job. Since she said at the beginning that she was Prince An's person, then send her to Prince An's Mansion for disposal to avoid dirtying your hands."
At this point, her eyes suddenly became sharp: "Now that my old bones are still alive, he shouldn't do such a thing."
"The century-old Xie family rules cannot be broken. How should I punish you? Wait until your father and mother come back. I will not take this matter lightly just because he is my eldest son."
"That's not what grandson meant." Xie Zhiyan said expressionlessly.
The old lady sighed deeply and looked at her eldest grandson's calm face. "Don't feel ashamed. You have done well all along."
“If a century-old tree has rotten roots, it is not far from death.”
“If you want to survive and flourish forever, you must either heal the rotten areas or completely remove them.”
Dou and his group returned before dark.
Although Xie Qingshu applied ice to her cheek, it was still badly swollen.
When Qin heard the noise and came out, she was shocked when she saw her daughter's appearance. She asked in a shrill voice, "What happened? Who beat you?"
Xie Qingshu hugged Qin and cried again, feeling wronged: "It was my father who beat me."
"Why did he hit you? Is he crazy?"
Xie Qingshu sobbed as she recounted what happened during the winter hunt, feeling even more wronged. "I... I just thought Aye was being ridiculous, so I contradicted him. I didn't expect him to get so angry that he beat his daughter."
"Mother, my daughter Aye may be crazy."
"Should we find a fortune teller to do some kind of fortune-telling for him? He looks like he has something dirty on him."
"Otherwise, why would you force Lingyi to be your concubine?"
As a loyal supporter of the legitimate wife, Qin rarely felt that her daughter's words made sense. She did not refute it, but frowned and looked out the door.
"Where's your father? Why didn't he come back with you?"
Xie Qingshu shook her head: "My daughter doesn't know. He hit me and then left. Later, my eldest brother found me and took me back."
Qin became even more furious after hearing this: "He is not infected with dirty things at all, he is clearly crazy and doesn't even care about your life or death."
That night, the Jingguo Mansion was not as peaceful as it seemed on the surface.
In the inky night, the carriage stopped silently. A bright gauze lantern hung on the gorgeous shaft, swaying gently in the wind.
"Mother." Xie Zhiyan and Sheng Puzhu stepped forward together.
A corner of the carriage curtain was lifted, and a nail-dyed hand stretched out from the darkness, its fingertips gleaming with pearls under the light, and the gold bracelet inlaid with various gems on the wrist made crisp sounds as it moved.
A soft hand gently fell on Xie Zhiyan's palm covered with thin calluses.
Then--
"Why."
"Sanlang, calling me 'Mother' is so nice."
"Isn't that right, Imperial Sister?"
A soft laugh came from behind the curtain. When it was completely opened, the first thing that was revealed was Princess Duanyang's beautiful and charming face.
She playfully winked at Sheng Puzhu beside her and said meaningfully, "Sanlang, hold on tight, don't let me fall."
Xie Zhiyan remained silent, with a hint of sneer on the corner of his mouth. That coldness made Princess Duanyang feel frightened.
He didn't need his help and jumped out of the carriage nimbly.
"Mother."
"aunt."
Sheng Puzhu bowed to the two elders.
The next moment, she was pulled into a soft embrace: "My darling, why are you waiting outside in such a cold weather?"
"It doesn't matter to Sanlang, who has a strong body. How could he torture you like this?"
Sheng Puzhu wanted to explain, but Princess Shoukang refused to listen.
In fact, at the beginning, Xie Zhiyan did not allow her to come with him, but he could not stand her nagging and did not wait for long. At most, he waited in front of the mansion gate for a quarter of an hour.
But Princess Shoukang's favor for her seemed to be endless and always fresh and enthusiastic.
"Mother, I came here on my own initiative."
Princess Shoukang didn't believe it: "Don't cover up for him. With his personality, he won't learn to be kind even if he spends a hundred years."
"There are countless women in the world, but only our Puzhu, with her good nature, can tolerate his icy temper."
Sheng Puzhu felt that if she continued talking, Xie Zhiyan would probably be ruined, so she quickly changed the subject.
"Mother, why is my aunt here too?"
Princess Duanyang kept laughing and said meaningfully, "I've been staying at Tianchang Temple with my sister for over a month. I heard there was something exciting going on in Chang'an, so of course I couldn't miss it."
"My dear Puzhu, how do you maintain such a good face? You look so much younger." Princess Duanyang couldn't help but scratched Sheng Puzhu's cheek. It felt smooth, like jade.
Xie Zhiyan's brows were gloomy, and in the dim light, he exuded a calm and domineering attitude.
He raised his chin slightly, reached out and pulled Sheng Puzhu behind him to hide him.
But he still felt it was not enough, so he rubbed her cheek hard with his broad palm, as if this could wipe away the scent left by Princess Duanyang.
Sheng Puzhu was confused and asked quietly, "Why are you rubbing my face, my dear?"
"There's something dirty, I'll wipe it off for you." Xie Zhiyan answered as a matter of course.
"Is it clean now?" Sheng Puzhu raised his head and asked cooperatively.
What she cares about most is her pretty and flawless face, and she cannot lose her manners in front of her elders.
"No, I'll wipe it again."
"Well, my dear, hurry up. Mother and the others have already gone in. We can't be too slow."
"Okay." Xie Zhiyan felt his mood become cheerful, and a faint smile appeared at the corner of his lips. He did not withdraw his hand until the fair cheeks turned slightly red.
When Sheng Puzhu saw Princess Duanyang entering the palace, she asked curiously, "What is Princess Duanyang here to see?"
"You're not here to see your uncle punished, are you?"
Xie Zhiyan lowered his head, raised his eyebrows slightly, and said nonchalantly, "After my father and mother got engaged, my uncle wanted to marry my aunt, but she sternly refused."
"Later, my aunt's husband passed away. My uncle, remembering the loss of face he had suffered when he proposed to her, personally visited her and gave her a gift."
"If I had married him, I wouldn't have to be a widow at such a young age."
"From then on, the two of them became enemies."
"Can it be like this?" Sheng Puzhu found it unbelievable.
Xie Zhiyan nodded and said calmly, "It's not a big secret. This matter once caused quite a stir in Chang'an City and even alarmed the Saint."
"Then why haven't I heard of it?" Sheng Puzhu didn't believe it.
"Because you are still young." Xie Zhiyan smiled.
"Isn't my husband small? He is quite small too."
Sheng Puzhu said this without any ambiguity, it was just a normal rebuttal.
But after she finished speaking, she suddenly felt that the atmosphere was a little off.
There was no one around. Xie Zhiyan looked at him with intriguing eyes and slowly bent down.
"Madam, I really feel..."
"No, no, no... not small."
"It's very big." Sheng Puzhu quickly covered his mouth and looked around like a thief.
But to say it was very big was actually even stranger. How could a girl use such bold words?
Especially when he looked at her, his already heavy gaze melted into the night, like a heavy, insurmountable mountain.
And she is favored by the mountain god.
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