Puzzling
Chunlai brought some seafood to Mingli. She had returned from Lingnan with a lot of dried seafood and specially sent some to Mingli.
Mingli was a stable boy in the stable. Like Chunlai, they were both servants of the Cui family. Their parents died early, and the two grew up together. Later, Chunlai went to live with Cui Dongchi, and they saw each other less often.
But the friendships formed in childhood are truly precious; whenever she received something good, she would always remember to share some with Mingli.
Mingli couldn't speak. He didn't cry once when he was born. The midwife said he was mute. When he grew up, he stayed in the stable to do some work of raising and training horses.
Mingli had always worked with horses, and over the years he had developed a strong horse smell, so no one in the manor wanted to get close to him. He smiled shyly and stood in the stable, too embarrassed to approach Chunlai.
Chunlai didn't mind, but she knew he lived cautiously, so she put the food aside and taught him how to cook it.
She also cooked a bowl of seafood porridge, and because she was afraid he would find it too fishy, she specially marinated the seafood in wine.
"I've put it here, remember to eat it!" She smiled and carefully placed the porridge on the small stool.
"Miss—Miss—Young Master is looking for you!" a maid's voice called out. Chunlai replied, "I'm coming right away!"
She glanced one last time at Mingli, who was standing there blankly in the stable, then lifted her skirt and hurried away.
After he left, Mingli came out. He carefully picked up the bowl of porridge. His rough, dark hands didn't match the delicate porcelain spoon. He almost never had the chance to hold a spoon and drink such a delicate thing. He could only clumsily lift the spoon and take a small sip.
The porridge contained foods he had never seen before, and he ate it slowly, taking small bites, afraid of finishing it all at once.
He couldn't bear to part with it.
When Chun arrived at Mufeng Courtyard, she saw Cui Dongchi sitting in the main hall. His folding fan was swaying gently, and there were no servants attending to him, so she knew he was in a bad mood.
When no one was around, she longed to be close to him. She would sit on his lap, wrap her arms around his neck affectionately, and lean her whole body against him.
Cui Dongchi's mood improved after that.
He held Chunlai in his arms, placed one hand on her lower abdomen, and asked her, "Does it still hurt?"
Chunlai was taken aback. The warm smile that had been on her face faded considerably. She shook her head and said, "It doesn't hurt anymore."
Although she said it didn't hurt anymore, the sadness in her eyes was impossible to hide.
My body doesn't hurt anymore, but my heart aches. The old wounds have been reopened, and I don't know when they will heal.
Cui Dongchi's hand was still on her lower abdomen. He felt guilty and thought for a moment before comforting her: "In a few days, Father will go to the Xu family to propose marriage. Once Madam Xu enters the mansion, I will take you in."
Although Yuan Qifeng holds military power in Jianchuan, Xu Haiting, the head of the Xu family, was the previous military governor of Jianchuan. Most of the soldiers under Yuan Qifeng's command were recruited by Xu Haiting.
Due to the defeat at the Battle of Haiya, Xu Haiting was dismissed from his position as military governor and was only appointed as the commander of Jianchuan, in charge of 30% of the troops.
After all, he is an old general with a high reputation among the Jianchuan soldiers. Forming an alliance with him would be entirely beneficial.
The Xu family also needs this marriage. Cui Lang is of royal blood, and the Cui family is a century-old family. Now Cui Lang is the governor of Jianchuan and has been granted the title of Duke of Dingguo, which is a great honor for the family. By marrying him, the Xu family will no longer be subordinate to the Yuan family.
The last vestiges of spring's joy have vanished.
She knew he would get married, knew he would have a wife, and she had often comforted herself with these thoughts. But those few months they spent together in Lingnan were so wonderful, so wonderful that she thought it would only be the two of them from now on.
I had mentally prepared myself for this so many times, but when the day finally came, I realized it was all a lie I had told myself.
Instead of receiving a joyful response from her, the person on his shoulder remained silent. Cui Dongchi looked down at her and asked, "What's wrong? Are you unhappy?"
Chunlai straightened up and got off his lap. She knew how a dutiful servant should express gratitude for her master's kindness, so she simply knelt on the ground and kowtowed to thank him.
He assumed she was crying tears of joy and wiped away her tears with his fingertips: "No matter who comes in, I will only love you."
Chunlai smiled, lowered her head, and said nothing more.
That night, as always, she lay beside Cui Dongchi late at night, listening to his soft breathing, her tears soaking her pillow.
When Choi Dong-chi's wedding invitations arrived in Kim Ning, Jing Wan was the most heartbroken.
The red decorations and gold lettering were festive and alluring, but she only felt cold for that girl.
Lu Changxian didn't notice her displeasure and just hugged her, demanding a formal title: "Even Cui Dongchi is married, how long are we supposed to wait?"
This time, Jingwan didn't even try to politely refuse him with a smile. When Lu Chang held her hand, he realized that her hands were ice cold.
"But what about Chunlai? What will happen to Chunlai?" There was confusion in her eyes. She remembered what Chunlai had said to her in Shiyu Bay.
She told herself that she had long thought about her future. After the mistress entered the mansion, she would become a concubine, have another child, and live with that child in the mansion for the rest of her life.
Jingwan suddenly became frightened. She turned around and broke free from Lu Chang's embrace, looking at him directly: "Cousin, if you marry me, you can only marry me. I will not be a concubine, and you are not allowed to have any other women."
After a moment's thought, I decided it was best to make things clear today: "If you're willing, I'll consider marrying you; if you're not, then we'll call it quits."
Lu Chang's smile froze on his lips: "Never mind, tell me how to calculate it." He approached step by step, making Jing Wan feel a little scared of her cousin for the first time.
He pinned her against the table, leaving her no way out, and then said, "Tell me, how do you calculate this?"
Jingwan gripped the table with both hands and whispered, "I'm going back to Yongye. I won't stay with you anymore."
The words had barely left his mouth when he felt the atmosphere grow even colder than before.
Lu Chang remained silent, staring intently at her, a smile still playing on his lips, a smile that could send chills down the spine of anyone who saw him.
Jingwan was scared, but she knew how to deal with him. She immediately bit her red lips, and two lines of tears flowed down her cheeks in the blink of an eye.
She looked so pitiful; how could her cousin not be heartbroken?
Lu Chang was most afraid of her crying. Whenever she shed tears, his heart ached terribly, and he wouldn't dare to show her any displeasure. He would immediately pull her into his arms and wipe her tears with his sleeve.
"You keep saying you're leaving. Your cousin didn't even cry when you abandoned him, but you're the one crying first."
Jingwan sobbed uncontrollably, first accusing him: "You scared me!"
Lu Chang replied to her, "You're the one who made me angry first."
She retorted defiantly, "You're going to marry another woman!"
He felt even more wronged: "You should at least tell me the name and surname of the woman you want to marry."
Jingwan stopped talking and started crying again.
Lu Chang glanced at the red invitation card on the table and finally understood why she had been tormenting him today. He could only sigh and pull her to sit down beside him, coaxing her, "Alright, alright, how about you marry me, Miss? Once I marry into your family, I will serve you both for the rest of my life and will never have any other thoughts!"
Jingwan was finally coaxed into laughter by him. As she stopped crying, she punched Lu Chang hard on the shoulder.
"Then you wait for me to marry you!"
Lu Chang readily agreed: "The betrothal gifts and dowry have been prepared long ago, just waiting for the young lady to arrive."
Jingwan glanced at the red invitation again and said firmly, "Cui Dongchi is not worthy of marrying Chunlai."
Lu Chang nodded in agreement: "Indeed, I am not worthy."
Jingwan added, "Cui Dongchi doesn't love Chunlai either; he only treats her as his private property."
Lu Chang nodded: "You're right."
She glanced at Lu Chang and said, "If Chunlai asks me for help to leave the Cui family, I will do my best."
Lu Chang laughed. How could Chunlai leave the Cui family? Once dependence has become a habit, how could she bear to leave?
Even if she leaves, where can she go? How can she survive?
Clearly, Jingwan didn't want that answer, so Lu Chang readily agreed: "Okay, I'll do my best too."
After calming her down, a few days later, Jingwan and Lu Chang went to Jianchuan to attend Cui Dongchi's wedding banquet.
The capital of Jianchuan is Dancheng, a famous ancient city. When the two arrived in Dancheng, they happened to arrive just in time for the Cui family's wedding banquet.
Lu Chang did not want to appear in front of everyone, nor did he go to the hall to watch the newlyweds perform the wedding ceremony. He waited in the Cui family study, and after Cui Dongchi finished the ceremony, Cui Lang had something to say to him.
Lu Chang had a pretty good idea of what was going on.
Pingdu sees him as a thorn in their side, so why would he travel thousands of miles to Jianchuan just to attend a wedding banquet?
All our actions now are for the sake of tomorrow.
Jingwan didn't want to join in the fun, so she stayed at the Cui family's house and talked with Chunlai.
Today, the Mufeng Courtyard was dazzlingly red. Spring had come, and I didn't want to stay. I took Jingwan to a side courtyard, where the Cui family used to dry their clothes. No one came today.
With their master getting married, the servants were busy asking for their rewards.
Chunlai took Jingwan's hand and led her to sit on the low stools where the servants sat while doing laundry. The two basked in the sun, and Chunlai smiled more when he saw Jingwan.
Jingwan held her cold hand and asked worriedly, "Why is it still so cold? Have you seen a doctor? And you've lost weight again!"
Chunlai let her hold his hand. He hadn't slept all night, and when he woke up this morning, his eyes were covered in dark circles. On such a fine day, not wanting to give off bad luck, he applied more rouge than usual.
But Jingwan immediately noticed something was wrong with her. Spring is not without warmth.
She looked at Jingwan, and her eyes and nose suddenly stung with tears. She hadn't wanted to cry, but as soon as someone said a word of concern or made a gesture of care, all the grievances she had been holding back came rushing out.
Chunlai wiped away her tears: "I lost my composure."
She had always been in good health and had never been sick since childhood, until the last two years.
She only learned that he had been there before her first child was born, but he left after only two months in her womb.
When the second child arrived, she learned that she was pregnant and happily told her master, but he showed no joy: "Since the legitimate son has not yet been born, I cannot have a child."
She immediately understood. It took her six months to recover after taking the abortion pill. From that time on, her hands and feet never felt warm again, and she would experience pain for several days every time she had her period.
While in Lingnan, the third child arrived.
She knew she couldn't stay, but she still pleaded with him with a sliver of hope: "Whether male or female, we are still just illegitimate children."
He still refused, saying only, "This time the medicinal soup is mild and won't harm your body."
Her heart turned cold.
Her body had already been injured.
When Chunlai recounted these past events to the person in front of her, she did not cry. Instead, she smiled, held Jingwan's hand, and said, "Now that the mistress has entered the mansion, and after the birth of the legitimate son, I can have children too."
Rather than saying it to Jingwan, it was more like trying to persuade himself.
Jingwan looked at Chunlai's kind face, but her expression was one of terror. What terrible story had she just heard?
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