Chapter 122 Extra 3
March is a good time to travel to the south of the Yangtze River, with apricot blossoms and spring rain, pink peach blossoms and green willows. Their group had two carriages, one for Lin Qingyu and Jiang Xing, and the other for the servants to take turns to rest. The secret guards who were protecting the emperor and empress's safety followed them in secret.
It takes a lot of time just to travel from the capital to the south of the Yangtze River, so the carriage should not only be comfortable but also be able to entertain. The carriage that Lin Qingyu and Jiang Xing were riding in was extremely spacious, enough for two adult men to lie down. It was covered with soft cushions, and on the table were candied fruits to satisfy their appetite. There was also a small bookshelf with paper and pens, a chessboard, and some medical books and storybooks.
Lin Qingyu originally wanted to read a book to kill time, but Jiang Xing insisted on teaching him to speak the Jiaozhou dialect, and he had no choice but to learn it.
He has a photographic memory and an auditory memory. When he was in the palace, Jiang Xing taught him to recognize and write the local characters of his hometown. With the foundation of Dayu characters, he mastered simplified Chinese characters effortlessly. When the two chatted using Xiaosongzi, Jiang Xing used simplified Chinese because he found it troublesome, but he could still understand it. Now, he spent a little time learning Jiang Xing's native dialect. When the carriage was about to reach Yuzhang, he was already able to have a simple conversation with Jiang Xing in Jiaozhou dialect.
"Qingyu, say that again, what I just taught you."
Lin Qingyu said slowly: "I really like you?"
Jiang Xing exclaimed: "You are so talented." There was nothing awkward about his accent. If you didn't know, you would think Lin Qingyu was a native of Jiaozhou.
Lin Qingyu said casually: "Your Majesty is wrong. The world is so big, is there anything that I don't have the talent for?"
Jiang Xing gave a thumbs up: "Damn it, you're pretending again. If you went to my hometown to take the college entrance examination - the college entrance examination is basically the same as the imperial examination, you would definitely be the top scorer."
Lin Qingyu said modestly: "It's just a trivial skill, not worth mentioning."
"Then I have to play a song for you." Jiang Xing picked up the Xiqin beside him, "The name of this song is: How lonely it is to be invincible."
Jiang Xing had played enough and started to feel sleepy, so Lin Qingyu kindly lent him his legs as a pillow. When Jiang Xing woke up, it was already evening. Lin Qingyu was still sitting in the same position as when he fell asleep, holding a black piece between his fingertips, playing chess alone. The afterglow of the setting sun fell on Lin Qingyu's shoulders, making his face seem to glow, and even his hair was dyed the golden color of the sunset.
Perhaps to reflect this beautiful spring scenery, Lin Qingyu wore a sky-blue waisted long gown today. When she lowered her eyes and concentrated on the subject, she looked like a naturally carved jade porcelain.
Jiang Xing looked at it for a long time, and his heart seemed to be ignited by the sunset. Lin Qingyu felt his rapid breathing and looked at him: "Awake?"
"Um."
Lin Qingyu touched Jiang Xing's cheek with the back of his hand: "Are you thirsty?"
Jiang Xing grabbed his wrist, his eyes darkly and whispered: "Qingyu, I kind of want to..."
The two have been married for a long time and have a tacit understanding. Lin Qingyu knows what Jiang Xing is thinking just by looking at him.
Lin Qingyu vaguely heard the conversation between Xiao Songzi and Hua Lu outside, and said with a clear look in his eyes: "Stop thinking - we are in the carriage, don't think about it."
Jiang Xing laughed: "No way, can't I even think about it? I can't do anything."
Lin Qingyu sneered: "Are you trying to use your mind to get into bed again?"
"Oh, right. If you hadn't told me, I would have forgotten that I had this skill." Jiang Xing put his hands behind his head and imagined, "I heard a rustling sound. I lifted the hem of your clothes. Then, you felt a slight chill. It turned out that my palm reached in and pressed your soft spot. When our lips touched, my palm was also rubbing slowly..."
Lin Qingyu held his forehead with his hand: "It's a pity that Your Majesty is so talented in writing but doesn't write a romantic story."
Jiang Xing curved his lips and said, "Have you arrived yet?"
Lin Qingyu was very supportive: "It's been three times already."
Jiang Xing boasted: "Then I went there five times."
Lin Qingyu: “…” He will definitely say more next time.
When they first arrived in Yuzhang, the two of them took Xiao Songzi and Hua Lu to stroll around the city for a day. Although the markets in Jiangnan are not as prosperous as those in the capital, they are also interesting. Willows sway in the wind, the vendors' cries carry the soft tones unique to the south of the Yangtze River. The women on the street are dressed slightly differently from those in the capital, holding light silk fans with rhombus-shaped patterns in their hands, with a very light and graceful posture.
Lin Qingyu and Jiang Xing were both dressed like ordinary young masters from wealthy families. Lin Qingyu looked more like a young man from a scholarly family. His long green robe attracted many people's attention. Jiang Xing was holding a jade fan, looking like a handsome young man, elegant and graceful. He asked Lin Qingyu: "Qingyu, is there any place you want to go?"
Lin Qingyu said: "The largest medicine shop in Yuzhang is called 'Xuanhutang', which is known as the Imperial Medical Bureau of Jiangnan. I want to go and take a look."
"Okay. Xiao Songzi, go ask the local people how to get to Xuanhu Hall - Xiao Songzi?"
Not getting a response, Jiang Xing turned around to look for someone and found that Xiao Songzi was attracted by a shop called "Liuxiangzhai". "Why, you want to buy rouge?"
Xiao Songzi finally came to his senses and said hurriedly, "Master, I want to bring some Jiangnan folk ceremonies for my little sister."
Hualu asked curiously, "Is there any difference between the rouge in Yuzhang and that in the capital?"
Lin Qingyu said: "If you want to know, go in and take a look."
Xiao Songzi was flattered: "No, no, no, how can I delay the affairs of the young master and the young master because of my affairs."
Lin Qingyu said, "We are just taking a leisurely trip to Jiangnan. There is no need to make any mistakes. Let's go in."
The owner of Liuxiangzhai is used to speaking one thing to one person and another thing to another. As soon as she saw Lin Qingyu and Jiang Xing, she knew that they must be outstanding people, so she hurriedly greeted them with a smile: "You two guests, do you want to buy rouge and powder? You have come to the right place. In the whole Yuzhang, the rouge and powder of my Liuxiangzhai are the best. Even the dignitaries in the capital have praised them after using them."
Jiang Xing pointed at Xiao Songzi with his jade fan and said, "It's not us who want to buy it, it's this little brother who wants to buy it. You can just entertain him, don't worry about us."
The boss looked at Xiao Songzi with a measuring gaze, and the smile on his face faded a little: "What do you want to buy, little brother?"
Xiao Songzi knew nothing about women's things. He scratched his head and said, "I have ten taels of silver. What can I buy with it?"
As a eunuch who served the emperor closely, Xiao Songzi naturally had a lot of savings. But he was a child from a poor family after all, and had been used to being frugal since childhood. For him, spending ten taels of silver to buy rouge was already a huge expense.
When the boss heard him say this, he knew that he was not knowledgeable. "You can't buy any good rouge with ten taels of silver," the boss said, "why not add another three taels, which will barely be enough to buy Liuxiangzhai's signature powder."
Xiao Songzi looked embarrassed and said, "The rest of my silver is in the carriage."
Lin Qingyu was about to pay the extra few taels of silver for Xiao Songzi when Jiang Xing stopped him. Jiang Xing looked at the boss and raised his eyebrows and said, "What good rouge can't you buy with ten taels of silver?"
The boss was puzzled by the question. The aura of this young man in brocade clothes as a person of high status is too obvious. How could such a nobleman understand the price of rouge and powder? "Yes," the boss said stubbornly, "I can't fool you. You get what you pay for. The things in Liuxiangzhai are not comparable to the slutty things out there."
When Jiang Xing entered the door, he noticed that there was a rouge shop opposite Liuxiangzhai, called "Yufangzhai". He smiled and said, "Since we didn't bring enough silver, forget it this time, but we will definitely do it next time."
The boss tried to persuade them to stay, but the customers left without hesitation. She could only watch them go to the shop opposite. She and the man opposite her have been sworn enemies for more than ten years. Seeing him making money is more painful than losing money herself.
Xiao Songzi said, "Master, I won't buy it. Let's go to the medicine hall that Shaojun wants to go to first."
Jiang Xing said, "Now that we are here, it would be a shame not to buy something."
"But I don't have enough money."
"Don't listen to her nonsense. How can you not buy good rouge with ten taels of silver?" Jiang Xing closed the jade fan and waved, "Come here, I will teach you how to make it."
Jiang Xing whispered a few words beside Xiao Songzi: "Go ahead, we'll wait for you outside, and buy me a box of rouge - the most colorful kind."
Lin Qingyu asked suspiciously: "What do you want to do now?"
Jiang Xing said honestly: "Buy it and give it to Aunt Xiu Jiao."
Xiao Songzi went into Yufangzhai alone and said to the proprietress who came to greet her, "The owner of Liuxiangzhai opposite said that you can't buy good rouge and jewelry for less than ten taels of silver. If you don't agree, come and argue with me."
The proprietress was displeased when she heard this and sneered, "She has never seen the world. She has brought shame to Yuzhang. Sir, don't worry, let alone ten taels of silver, even three taels of silver can buy the best rouge and jewelry in Yuzhang."
After Xiao Songzi returned from Yufangzhai with a full load, the few of them continued walking and strolling in the direction of Xuanhu Hall. Yuzhang is a place with outstanding people and beautiful scenery. During the Dayu Dynasty alone, it produced many top scorers in the imperial examinations. There are some bookstores and literary houses on the street, which specialize in selling poetry and calligraphy by literati.
Jiang Xing had no interest in the calligraphy of literati. If he wanted, he could ask all the talented people in the world to write something different for him every day. He just picked out some novels to pass the time on the road and asked Xiaosongzi and Hualu to take them to the inn where they would stay that night.
Lin Qingyu stayed in Xuanhu Hall for a long time. He communicated with the doctor in charge, the medicine boy who collected herbs, and the medicine seller. He also prescribed medicine for a patient with cough. He claimed to be a student of the Imperial Medical Bureau and went to Yuzhang to study. Many doctors in Dayu yearn for the Imperial Medical Bureau. Especially since the doctor is so beautiful, who would dare to neglect her? Who would have the heart to neglect her?
They visited almost every part of the city that day, and when they returned to the inn at night, not only Jiang Xing, but even Lin Qingyu felt a little tired. After washing up, they went to bed with their clothes on. They didn't even have the energy to think about making love.
The next morning, Jiang Xing went to hug the beauty as usual, but unexpectedly he found nothing.
"Qingyu?" Jiang Xing opened one eye and saw Lin Qingyu sitting in front of the mirror with her hair tied up in neat clothes. He opened his other eye as well. "What are you doing?"
"I plan to go to Kuangsu Mountain today." Lin Qingyu said, "The herbalist in Xuanhu Hall said that there are many medicinal herbs unique to Yuzhang deep in Kuangsu Mountain. I want to try my luck, maybe there will be an unexpected surprise."
Jiang Xing couldn't believe it: "So, are we still going out today?"
Lin Qingyu asked curiously: "Otherwise?"
Jiang Xing said weakly: "I thought we could rest in the inn today."
Lin Qingyu was puzzled: "We are here to travel. If you want to rest in the inn, why do you come out? Isn't it nice to rest in the palace?"
Jiang Xing couldn't refute, so he just lay down and let him laugh at him: "We walked at least 20,000 steps yesterday, and my legs were about to break. Today you want me to go hiking, this is killing me. The honeymoon I imagined is staying at the beach with you, and at most walking along the shore every day, no more than a thousand steps."
Lin Qingyu ruthlessly shattered his beautiful fantasy: "There is no sea in Jiangnan."
Jiang Xing said pitifully: "The lakeside is fine too, I don't have high requirements."
Lin Qingyu sighed: "Then you stay in the inn and rest?"
Jiang Xing frowned: "But, I want to stick with you."
Seeing Jiang Xing so conflicted, Lin Qingyu also became conflicted. He also wanted to stick to Jiang Xing all the time. But Jiang Xing looked so exhausted that it seemed as if his legs would break if he walked a few more steps. It would be too cruel to let Jiang Xing continue to accompany him to the mountains to collect herbs.
Lin Qingyu thought for a moment and said tentatively: "I also want to stick to my husband."
Jiang Xing: “…”
Lin Qingyu pretended to be puzzled: "What's that expression on your face?"
Jiang Xing's Adam's apple rolled, and he said, "You broke the rules."
Lin Qingyu raised the corner of her mouth and asked, "Does my husband have the strength to walk now?"
Jiang Xing felt the strength of his body and said resignedly, "It seems to be."
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