Chapter 24 Turbulence
Gu Qingyan's ears felt slightly hot.
Just now, as he bent down to pull the boat, he unexpectedly saw the scene inside the boat through the gaps in the lotus leaves—Ling Wei, who was being searched for, was lying in the cabin without any precautions.
An open book was placed over her face; she was clearly fast asleep.
In the light summer clothes, the girl's exquisite curves were clearly revealed in her relaxed sleeping posture... He only caught a fleeting glimpse of a lotus-colored figure before abruptly averting his gaze as if struck by lightning.
After chatting for a while in the waterside pavilion, Gu Qingyan became a little distracted, and Guo Huai suggested going to his courtyard: "Since we have nothing to do anyway, why don't we go and take a look at your courtyard?"
Gu Qingyan stood up, her gaze sweeping over the lotus flowers once more.
She's still on the boat... the boat's moored haphazardly, and she's all alone... what if she capsizes and falls into the water...?
"Brother Chengzhi?" Guo Huai asked, puzzled by the slight change in Chengzhi's expression.
“…Brother Guo, please come and sit in my courtyard for a while.” Gu Qingyan’s voice carried a hint of tension that was barely perceptible. “I have some trivial matters to attend to, I’ll be right back.”
The small boat swayed gently on the water, like a giant lotus leaf.
Gu Qingyan tiptoed. He was determined to wake Ling Wei, but he didn't expect that he only needed to send someone to tell Gu Qingyu and the others, and he didn't need to go there himself.
He parted a few large lotus leaves and saw Ling Wei curled up on her side, sleeping soundly without any guard.
An open book slipped into her hands, and a light, lotus-colored summer shirt clung to her body, outlining the delicate curves of a young girl just beginning to grow.
A few pink and white lotus petals drifted down, one petal playfully landing on her slightly open collar, while another clung to her shoulder-length hair that fell beside her cheek.
Her shoulder-length short hair was uneven, and the sunlight gilded it with a light gold, making her rosy cheeks, which were still sleeping, look even more charming.
Her cherry lips were slightly parted, their color rosy, and a strand of hair clung to her sweaty neck, winding downwards and disappearing into her slightly open collar.
This caused Gu Qingyan to quickly look away as if she had been burned, her ears instantly turning a light red.
His gaze swept over the clean strip of cloth wrapped around her left arm, faintly exuding the scent of herbs. This aroma instantly pulled him back to the autumn hunting camp.
He rushed back upon hearing of the incident, only to find Imperial Physician Wang emerging from behind a curtain, solemnly instructing the assembled Lin Shi and Gu Qingyu: "...The wound is deep enough to expose bone, but fortunately, no tendons or bones were damaged. However, there has been excessive blood loss, requiring rest. Avoid moving or getting the wound wet, and be especially careful with the high fever..."
His heart tightened, and he wanted to lift the curtain and go in, but was stopped by Judge Wang.
"You need to rest quietly; it's not advisable for many people to go in."
He then realized that Xie Zhuo had been following him without his noticing, and that he had been stopped by someone, his face looking very unpleasant.
Who would have thought that the woman who was rumored to be able to fly and escape the heavens with incredible strength was actually the girl curled up in the boat, sleeping soundly?
I remember when she received the imperial edict, her back was straight, her voice was clear and melodious, and she was poised and graceful amidst countless scrutinizing gazes.
Even her usually stern father and grandfather nodded in approval, a rare occurrence.
She responded gracefully to the congratulations from the crowd, her eyes crinkling with a smile.
Only when he returned to Lin Shi and Gu Qingyu's side did he shed his composure, revealing a childlike smugness in his eyes, like a cat that had stolen a dried fish.
He stepped forward to congratulate her, and she turned back with a smile, her eyes crinkling, her radiance almost dazzling...
Lost in thought, the girl on the ship fluttered her eyelashes and slowly opened her eyes.
Those beautiful peach blossom eyes were initially veiled in a misty haze, staring blankly and unfocusedly into Gu Qingyan's eyes.
Gu Qingyan was also stunned.
Their eyes met, and the surroundings seemed to fall silent instantly.
The only sounds were the rustling of the wind through the lotus leaves, the gurgling of the water lapping against the bottom of the boat, and... the silent fragrance of summer lotus blossoms flowing between the two of them.
Time seemed to stand still for a moment.
Until those misty eyes gradually focused, clearly revealing his figure.
"Cousin...?" Ling Wei's voice was slightly hoarse and soft, as if she had just woken up.
Gu Qingyan's heart skipped a beat as if it had been gently squeezed by the soft, sweet ending of the voice, before she snapped back to her senses.
"You...I..." He was speechless for a moment. The Hanlin scholar, who was usually full of quotations, had even forgotten a complete opening.
Fortunately, Ling Wei didn't seem to notice his lapse in attention. She suddenly sat up, causing the small boat to rock violently. "I fell asleep?!" she exclaimed. She looked around blankly, then looked up at the sun and exclaimed incredulously, "It's already this late?!"
When the assassination attempt occurred during the autumn hunt, the second and third princes blamed each other, while the empress intervened to appease the fourth prince.
Just as Ling Wei had predicted, all three of them wanted to win over Princess Xiao Yue, who held real power and whose stance was delicate.
But how to maneuver and maintain a balance among these three forces, leveraging their strengths while avoiding being completely bound to any one of them, and without letting anyone discover the princess's scheme... the perilous game involved is far more complex than Ling Wei initially imagined.
These past few days, Xiao Yue had been battling it out on the invisible battlefield of the imperial court, leaving her utterly exhausted. However, her efforts seemed to have paid off.
The Empress has advised Emperor Yuanjing that the affairs of the inner palace are complex and that it is necessary to reinstate the system of female officials to assist in management.
Surprisingly, neither the Second Prince nor the Third Prince's faction voiced any opposition.
Although there were a few scattered murmurs in the court, judging from the current situation, barring any unforeseen circumstances, the matter is likely to succeed.
The proposed female officials will not be promoted from among the palace maids, but will be selected through a formal open selection process for daughters of officials and nobles, requiring them to pass an imperial examination.
The content of the examination also differed from that of the regular imperial examinations, focusing more on practical matters: inner court etiquette and regulations, document anecdotes, accounting, and policies on people's livelihood (with an emphasis on women and children, weaving, and disaster relief), and even legal provisions involving clan, marriage, and land ownership.
Her teacher has already met her; she is Lu Youyi, a woman from the Lu family in Wu County, Jiangnan.
From a young age, he was always surrounded by books, possessing profound knowledge and a gentle, graceful demeanor. He could speak the harshest words in a soft and gentle way.
"I've long heard of your extraordinary talent and photographic memory. That's why I 'tailor-made' a study plan for you on my way here." Lu Youyi, the "Scroll King," smiled gently and handed over a sheet of paper covered with writing. "I'll study along with you and make sure I don't hold my student back."
She was delighted that someone could finally keep up with her reading.
Ling Wei had already experienced this firsthand; the pre-reading assignments were delivered before the person even arrived, so she was now mentally prepared.
However, since her injuries hadn't healed yet, Xiaoyao firmly forbade her from staying up late to read.
She could only force herself to memorize the content during the day and silently digest and understand it at night with her eyes closed. If there was anything she didn't understand, she would save it up for a few days and then take it all to the teacher for help.
Seeing that she was fully awake, Gu Qingyan composed himself before finding his voice: "Qingyu was looking for you just now. I saw that you were all alone, and the boat wasn't moored very securely..."
He paused, his gaze falling on the book that Ling Wei had unconsciously gripped tightly—"Essentials of the Inner Court Regulations of Emperor Zhaoyin".
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