Chapter 711 Gifts from the Women [Second update, 4k4 pages, requesting monthly votes at the beginning of the month!]
When I returned to Huaiye Lane, the moon had already set and the stars were low in the sky; dawn was approaching.
After bidding farewell to the yawning Ali, Ouyang Rong returned to Yinbingzhai on his own.
He didn't immediately go to chat with his aunt.
If they were to run into each other, he would inevitably get a lecture from her.
Although Ouyang Rong had the physique of a Qi cultivator, staying up all night, running around outside, and having his sleep schedule completely reversed was simply unreasonable. If he were to run into his healthy, early-rising aunt early in the morning, he would be in for an embarrassing situation.
Back at Yinbingzhai, Ouyang Rong pondered for a moment, then went to the table, first wrote a letter, wrote his name, stamped it with his personal seal, put it in an envelope, and dripped wax on it.
This letter was sent to the central command camp on the southwestern front and delivered to Old Qin.
Just now, in the early hours of the morning, someone said something that was right.
The fact that Wei Anhui left before the celebration and that the thin-faced man went to Hukou County made him feel a little uneasy.
Ouyang Rong was not a lazy man.
He needs to do something.
“My love.”
A weak voice came from inside the room.
Ouyang Rong put away the envelope, looked up, and saw a young girl in a pink and white dress standing in front of the door, rubbing her eyes and looking at him.
It is Ye Weilai.
I don't know when I woke up.
When Ouyang Rong returned, he saw her sleeping fully clothed on the bed, her embroidered shoes still on. She must have been waiting for him by the bed and had fallen asleep.
Ouyang Rong did not blame her for "notifying everyone to return home tonight" and for keeping watch for others.
He didn't say a word and walked straight away.
"Is my lord hungry? I'll bring you some breakfast. You should rest first, eat, and then take a nap. If Madam Zhen asks, I'll say you got up early to study and didn't eat breakfast in the living room... I'll wake you up at noon."
Ouyang Rong came to Ye Weilai's side, put his arm around her waist and lifted her up, one arm around her waist and the other around her legs, and strode into the inner room.
"ah……"
The girl with silver hair and a long pink and white dress let out a soft cry involuntarily.
Ouyang Rong reached out and found that her legs were bare. The pink and white dress was originally a thin nightgown, worn as a sleeping garment, so of course, comfort was the priority.
On his way to the bed, he groped around for a while, shook his head, withdrew his still-warm hand, and gently tapped her forehead.
"ah."
Ye Weilai, swaying gently in her husband's arms, subconsciously covered her smooth forehead.
"Remember to wear it next time, the little girl is getting wilder and wilder."
Ye Weilai muttered, "It's because the weather is hot."
Ouyang Rong pouted: "Then why are you wearing long socks?"
Ye Weilai remained silent for a while. Afterward, she came to the bedside, and as Ouyang Rong put her down, she whispered:
"Returning so late, I thought my beloved would be drunk."
"Drunk?"
Ouyang Rong was taken aback for a moment, then chuckled and said:
So you're not going to wear it?
Ye Wei looked away from his gaze with her emerald eyes, biting her lip with her pearly teeth: "I've worn it..."
"Socks count too, right?" Ouyang Rong shook his head helplessly, glancing out of the corner of his eye at a soup bowl placed beside the bed, which seemed to be for sobering up.
He took off his coat, leaned back on the bed, wrapped his arms around Ye Weilai's slender body, and said with his eyes closed:
"Okay, no more food, go to sleep, you should catch up on your sleep too."
Ye Weilai responded with a soft murmur, nestled against Ouyang Rong's chest, half her face pressed against his chest, listening to his heartbeat.
After a while, Ouyang Rong, who was resting with his eyes closed, could feel her feet moving around a bit, sometimes hitting his thigh, sometimes lifting her ankles covered by long socks.
I could tell she was daydreaming without even opening her eyes.
My junior sister was right when she said that a woman's heart is like a needle at the bottom of the sea. This little girl is almost the same. If not the bottom of the sea, then it's a deep pool. I wonder what she's thinking.
However, Ouyang Rong had excellent sleep quality. In the past, he was at the level where he could fall asleep in three seconds even if the upstairs neighbor was renovating.
Just as I was drifting off to sleep.
“My love…”
She called out weakly.
"Huh? What?" Ouyang Rong suddenly woke up.
"Are you asleep? Then go to sleep, I won't disturb you."
Ouyang Rong: ...
He opened his eyes, and lying on his back, he immediately lifted his leg and pressed down on her little toes that were sticking up and swaying, all in a serious tone:
"Alright, hurry up and tell me."
Ye Weilai buried her face in her hands and asked, "What patterns and colors do you think the embroiderer like?"
Ouyang Rong asked, puzzled, "Why are you asking this? What are you going to give me?"
Ye Weilai muttered:
"It's my aunt's birthday. Since you've brought her into the family, I should prepare a gift. Actually, I'm quite familiar with her now, but it's a joyous occasion for her to enter the family, so it can't just be Miss Xie and Madam Xie giving gifts. I should also prepare a small gift..."
Perhaps it's a racial trait inherent in all women, and the little girl is no exception. She starts rambling on about whatever it is, even things that most men would consider trivial and irrelevant.
Ouyang Rong glanced at the somewhat glaring sunlight outside, realizing he couldn't sleep anymore, and turned around to ask directly:
"Okay, what do you want to give as a gift?"
Ye Weilai shrank back slightly, only managing to utter two words: "Keep it a secret."
Ouyang Rong suppressed his expression:
"Since you're asking about patterns and colors, it must be clothing, fans, or jewelry... nothing more than that."
He said directly, "Don't bother sending the last two. Thirteen Sister and I send them often, so the embroiderer doesn't need them. As for the first one, the embroiderer is very good at needlework and doesn't need it either."
Ye Weilai nodded, then said shyly, "Alright, my lord, please don't ask anymore. It's some private stuff for a young lady, please don't ask."
"Okay, just don't go too far."
Ouyang Rong sighed, didn't press further, and closed his eyes to sleep.
I really want to complain that women are so troublesome, but then I think about it, and for a woman, being accepted into a family in public is a big deal in itself.
The embroiderer seems to be making preparations diligently as well.
In the fashionable parlance of my past life... this is called a sense of ritual.
Women are really the same in every era.
...
"Your Highness, may I ask what this is...?"
"This is called mung bean soup, a name given to it by Governor Ouyang. However, it's chilled, and I haven't really tasted it. Last time, a doctor advised me to eat less cold food, and this mung bean soup looks quite cold. But with summer approaching, you soldiers on guard duty in the heat can benefit from some to cool off. Take it and distribute it to everyone..."
"Yes, Your Highness."
The sun shines brightly, and the summer heat is gradually intensifying.
Outside the Xunyang Prince's Mansion, Li Congshan, as usual, wore a white robe and white armor and led a group of subordinates to patrol the mansion and check the sentry posts.
Wei Mei led a group of maids over. Apart from Wei Mei, each maid was carrying a food box and was taking out a soup bowl containing icy white mist.
After asking a few questions out of curiosity, Li Congshan became serious and clasped his hands in gratitude to Wei Mei.
He did know what this thing called mung bean was; it seemed to have come from the Western Regions. However, it used to be mainly used for medicine, though it was also eaten, but only as an extra ingredient when used to cook rice porridge.
The principle is the same as why many stir-fries like to add bean sprouts.
Whether it's there or not, the taste is the same, but adding it seems to make the dish seem a bit bigger and fill you up a bit more.
Hmm, another piece of useless but interesting knowledge.
Li Congshan previously thought that this thing called mung bean was similar to bean sprout, but he never expected that it could be boiled into mung bean soup.
Wouldn't that be even more redundant? What flavor could that possibly have?
And it's chilled.
Which household could afford ice? And to use it to store this soup is truly a brilliant combination.
Besides, does something that's already tasteless taste any better when it's chilled?
Li Congshan shook his head, feeling it was too extravagant and wasteful.
Princess Wei Mei said that this mung bean soup was taught to them by Governor Ouyang, who said it was a way of eating it in his hometown, and that it could cool them down and relieve the summer heat... Ha, how could it not be cool if ice was added?
Li Congshan was somewhat disinterested, but since it was a gift from the princess, it wouldn't be right to just throw it away.
He had to take the lead, so, as was customary, Li Congshan used a silver needle to test for poison and then took a sip himself.
Li Congshan stood frozen in place.
The soldiers around him, who had removed their visors in preparation for the taste, suddenly noticed that their general's eyes had widened. He quickly took a sip, then simply dropped his spoon, picked up the bowl, and drank it all in one gulp.
Upon seeing this, the soldiers immediately understood the reason and gathered around to eat. Even the soldiers who had been hesitant and cautious joined in, and after tasting the food, their eyes lit up.
Li Congshan licked his lips, his eyes filled with surprise and delight as he stared at the empty bowl of mung bean soup.
It's sugar; sugar was added to it!
In the Great Zhou Dynasty, sugar was very expensive. To use it in soup making was truly extravagant, and it was probably only the wealthy families of Xunyang who could afford to be so generous.
"Iced mung bean soup..."
Li Congshan muttered something to himself, glanced at the armored soldiers scrambling for the drinks, and then looked at the figure of Princess Wei Mei standing not far away in front of the mansion gate.
She and her maids were supervising some cargo wagons entering the inner quarters.
After Wei Mei brought these chilled mung bean soups to reward the White Tiger Guards, he casually mentioned that some ice blocks would be sent to the mansion's ice cellar for storage soon.
Li Congshan glanced at it but didn't stop him. He turned around and went to get another bowl of chilled mung bean soup to drink...
For the next few days, horse-drawn carriages carrying ice entered the inner courtyard daily to unload the goods.
Li Congshan and the other soldiers gradually got used to it. At first, they would still do spot checks, but later, the soldiers found that if the goods were opened, the ice would be exposed and easily melt. The sun was very strong outside, and ice was ridiculously expensive, which none of them could afford to pay for. Most importantly, the prince and princess were nearby and were likely to show their displeasure. So they turned a blind eye and only routinely checked the coachman before letting the carriage into the inner courtyard.
Furthermore, watching the endless stream of ice-carrying wagons coming and going, the soldiers were increasingly impressed by the wealth of the Prince's Palace, which had so much ice to transport.
However, everyone also benefited from the good fortune. Princess Wei Mei would occasionally send out chilled mung bean soup to reward the soldiers, so everyone was happy to see that the Prince's residence had more ice stored up...
However, one person objected.
The female historian Miaozhen.
She poured out a bowl of chilled mung bean soup and questioned Li Congshan and the others directly, asking how they could be so lazy and derelict in their duties.
They also said that they were there to guard the Prince's Palace, and that accepting food in private was against the rules.
He also said he would report the matter to the imperial court.
This left Li Congshan and his soldiers somewhat embarrassed, but the next day, Princess Wei Mei sent even more gifts…
It was dusk that day.
After unloading their cargo, the several horse-drawn carriages carrying ice drove away from the inner courtyard as usual.
Under the eaves of the pavilion, Li Congshan, who had once again enjoyed a hearty bowl of chilled mung bean soup, quietly watched the carriage depart.
As he passed the area where the carriage wheels had passed, he squatted down, picked up some mud left by the wheels, and sniffed it.
Li Congshan glanced in the direction of Mount Lu not far away, his expression thoughtful.
However, he quickly stood up, clapped his hands, and led his team to work the night shift.
...
From Longcheng County, Magistrate Diao sent a letter.
Ouyang Rong arrived at the main hall of Jiangzhou early in the morning and received this news.
He took the letter and began to read it, his eyebrows gradually furrowing.
The letter mentioned two things. First, Master Shandao had once again declined the invitation to the celebration.
He couldn't come to the celebration ceremony. The letter said he had recently gone out to do alms and accidentally caught a cold in the rain. He was feeling unwell and his old bones made it inconvenient for him to go out.
In addition, Master Shandao said that he would come to see the Buddha after he recovered from his illness, and that Ouyang Rong and Rongzhen should go and hold a grand celebration to make His Majesty happy.
Ouyang Rong's lips twitched slightly, and his gaze continued to move downwards.
The second thing is about Aqing.
Before Magistrate Diao returned from his last meeting in Xunyang City, Ouyang Rong specifically instructed him to visit Aqing's family on his behalf.
Most importantly, ask Ah Qing privately if that tall, blonde orchid and her people have contacted Ah Qing recently.
After reading the letter, Ouyang Rong's brows relaxed and he let out a long breath.
According to Aqing, Xuezhongzhu hadn't looked for her for a long time, and might have forgotten about her.
In addition to responding to this matter, Aqing also sent over something, saying it was a birthday gift for Madam Zhen, and asked him to pass it on.
When Ouyang Rong received the floral cloth bundle from the messenger, he weighed it in his palm, unsure of its contents, and put it away.
Ouyang Rong turned to his official duties and spent the whole morning focused on resolving all the important matters in a short time. He let out a sigh of relief and had someone summon Yan Liulang and the others, giving them instructions one by one.
Pei Shisan Niang was not there; she was shuttling between Mount Lu and the newly built ice-making shop, busy making ice and transporting it to the Xunyang Prince's Mansion.
Although he had improved the traditional method of making ice with saltpeter, it had a drawback: it consumed too much saltpeter and other raw materials. However, manpower and raw materials were not a problem; great effort would bring miracles. But Pei Shisan Niang needed to keep an eye on things and couldn't spare the time.
After finishing all his business, Ouyang Rong picked up A Qing's bundle, left the main hall, and walked away.
Inside the main hall, Yuan Huaimin and other officials, who were working diligently, looked at his back with a hint of envy.
For the next few days, apart from Yan Liulang's daily reports, Ouyang Rong no longer needed to come to the Jiangzhou main hall. He took a three-day leave on the grounds of his aunt's birthday. Well, he was the one who approved it.
Yuan Huaimin sighed, his eyes filled with sorrow.
Madam Zhen's birthday gift was quite heartless; she didn't send him an invitation, probably because she was afraid he would continue to freeload. But Yuan Huaimin would bring a gift, even though he hadn't started preparing it yet, because he felt that the sentiment was the most precious thing.
In short, since he couldn't attend Madam Zhen's birthday celebration, Yuan Huaimin needed to go to the Xunyang Grottoes to paint during the celebration ceremony in order to get a day off.
In addition, his cousin Yi Qianqiu has been coming to talk to him a lot these past few nights, and tonight is no exception. She said she had something important to tell him tonight about the victory celebration, and that he must come back tonight and was not allowed to go to Xunyang Tower to drink and listen to music.
Yuan Huaimin felt that the important thing about the celebration ceremony was nothing more than some flattering details when painting in public, because this scroll of the Buddha's completion and the celebration of officials and the people would eventually be presented to the high and mighty emperor, and would be unfurled in the court for the emperor and his officials to appreciate...
This was not a painting assignment, but a political one.
The thought of having to face Yi Qianqiu's fierce face again after finishing his shift today made Yuan Huaimin frown.
...
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