Chapter 33. Just take a look.
Bai Heliang was rubbing his hands together, ready to step forward, when he heard a low shout just before he could touch the Grand Tutor's robes: "Step back!"
He was so frightened that he almost jumped out of his skin. He quickly turned to look at the lady and then swiftly moved aside.
Shi Mi reluctantly raised his arm, saying, "It seems it has to be me again."
The hand inside the car finally emerged slowly. It was delicate and slender, with distinct knuckles. The red gold ring on the index finger gleamed faintly under the light, like someone who had fallen into the water seeking redemption. With a couple of swipes, it grabbed her wrist.
The Grand Tutor bent over as he stepped out of the carriage, his steps, though he tried his best to remain steady, were still somewhat unsteady. The moment he landed, he leaned forward, and Shimi, without thinking, tried to lift him up, almost being crushed by the weight.
Fortunately, she had some strength, and with a struggle, she supported him, guiding him step by step into the mansion. His elaborate robes opened and closed intricately with each step, the gold and silver threads shimmering. After only a few steps, he became drowsy again, swaying and leaning directly against her.
So what was he pretending for all this time? Now he still has to trouble her! Shi Mi grumbled, thinking how bad it was to be a hypocrite. He wasted the strength of the guards and made things difficult for her, a young lady.
"Brew some medicine to help the master sober up," she instructed the advisor who was at a loss for what to do. "Also, make the bedding in the study. The master says he wants to study by lamplight tonight."
He's already drunk to this extent, and he still says he wants to study late into the night. This woman really doesn't treat him like a human being.
He defiantly raised his head, but ultimately could not refute it and drooped it down.
The official naturally had no objections and instructed the inner attendant to make the arrangements. Seeing the tottering lord and queen, he was unsure whether to lend a helping hand or not. Finally, having no other option, he hurried ahead to lead the way and guide them into the study.
Lu Min's study was probably the largest and most magnificent that Shi Mi had ever seen. Because he often met with officials, it was incredibly deep, and its layout was just like the hall of an ordinary person's home.
The front was used for discussions, while the back served as a place to rest. Shi Mi struggled to escort him to the back chamber, only to find him lying motionless on the bed. Shi Mi then sadly straightened up.
"It almost killed me!" she gasped, then, after calming down, instructed the official, "Find someone to wipe his face and wash his feet."
He originally intended for the steward to undress him, but upon closer inspection, it seemed inappropriate. What if someone harbored wicked thoughts and wanted to rise in rank through cooking? Taking a concubine was a minor matter, but having someone see the red thread on his chest was a serious matter.
So it was up to her. She panted as she pulled off his belt, untied his collar, casually took off his sleeves, and then haphazardly covered him with the blanket. That was it.
With everything arranged, it was nearly midnight. She found herself exhausted and thirsty, so she quickly returned to her bedroom without saying a word.
I sat down on the bed, my vision blurred and the light was blurry. After a quick wash, I lay sprawled on the bed, feeling as if my soul had returned to its place and I had finally escaped death.
But she was too tired to fall asleep. She took a wooden box from under her pillow and held it to her ear. She could faintly hear sobbing coming from inside the box, and someone softly comforted her: "Lady Baolin, it's late. Why bother yourself with such a trivial matter? Go to sleep. Tomorrow morning, I'll ask if the eunuchs accidentally missed us when they were distributing the food."
Then came He Baolin's sobbing complaints, "I'm such a grown man, standing there, didn't they see me? You have no idea how embarrassed I was, everyone else was, but I wasn't..."
With clarity and precision, Shi Mi became increasingly satisfied with her craftsmanship. The small mirror box left with He Baolin was not only an eye, but also a sound chamber. Sometimes what you see is not necessarily true, and what you hear is not necessarily false. By combining the two, she could know when to activate the spring at the bottom of the mirror without being detected by anyone.
However, He Baolin was quite pitiful. She was neglected and could not go home. Her father, who had surrendered, could not help her at all. If she hadn't suddenly had a change of fortune, she probably would have lived like this for the rest of her life.
As for her, her sympathy was fleeting. Too much sentimentality prevented her from accomplishing great things, and she couldn't understand such trivial matters. What was there to hold a grudge about?
He closed the box again and put it back under his pillow. Now it was really time to sleep. He turned over happily and raised one leg to press down on the soft quilt.
She didn't know how much time had passed, but she was definitely asleep and even had a brief dream. In her hazy state, she felt as if someone was standing in front of her bed. She forced her eyelids open wider and asked helplessly, "Why aren't you sleeping? How did you sneak into my room in the middle of the night?"
He didn't speak, but twisted his body and lay down. After a long while, he said, "You did the same thing last time."
Too lazy to argue with him, Shimi rolled to the inside of the bed, giving him most of her space. At first, everything was peaceful, but then, noticing him leaning closer, she muttered to herself, "Tomorrow I have to meet officials all day and go to Guodong's residence; I won't have a moment's free..."
She mumbled a confused "Mmm," and said, "While you're not here, I'll have the chef make me lots of delicious food."
“You didn’t understand what I meant,” he said, his fingers gliding across the silk quilt until they touched her hand. He pulled it to her side and tucked it into his shirt.
Good heavens, is he having an addiction, asking her to keep him alive in the middle of the night?
Shi Mi was completely bewildered and said dejectedly, "I can only hold on for another two or three days."
But he wouldn't let her pull her hand away. "Emperor Yuan loves the sound of horses' hooves, especially those Ferghana horses. They are strong and fast, and they are running non-stop in the ten-zhang-wide racetrack, their eyes almost bleeding from exhaustion. Tomorrow... I will go and see. If we can't replace them with other horses, we will select a few more to expand the supply so that they can rest a little when they are exhausted."
Shi Mi almost thought he had misheard. "What? A horse?"
This person has no pity for his fellow human beings, yet he feels sorry for horses, which is truly baffling.
He said yes, "Horses aren't as clever as people, but they're more loyal. The longer you deal with people, the more you realize how kind horses are." Then he added, "I wasn't talking about you."
Shi Mi Da Ran said, "You don't need to explain, and I don't feel like you're talking about me."
"My schedule is so full, what if I forget?"
She felt really helpless; her hands had been pressed against his chest for quite some time. Since he had sincerely invited her, she reluctantly patted his chest a couple of times.
The line was still there, slightly raised to the touch. She moved her fingertips little by little, prying open his collar in the darkness, and dripping the blood from the iron box into it. As the blood seeped in, she heard him let out a long, satisfied moan. This sound made her realize something was wrong; she seemed to have forgotten to tie him up.
If she couldn't afford to offend him, she decided to avoid him for the time being and sleep on the daybed outside. But just as she was about to get out of bed, he caught her and pulled her back. "You were sleeping so soundly, where are you going?"
Of course, her answer wasn't important; what mattered was the result. Before she could speak, he pulled her back into his arms and whispered in her ear, "Ami, it's so good to have you by my side. I used to hate the puppeteer for forcing me to buy things, but now I'm grateful to him for giving you to me."
His breath brushed against her ear, heavy and rapid. Shimi grew increasingly distressed. Where had things gone wrong? The promised affection and dependence had somehow turned into something else entirely.
"You didn't give me away; you made me take care of you! You ungrateful bastard!"
He didn't argue with her, his lips almost touching the skin behind her ear. "They're all the same."
She pushed him away forcefully. "I'll say it again, our marriage is just a pretense. Don't get any improper thoughts about me just because we often sleep in the same bed."
After saying this, she herself felt very awkward. There was a question that had been bothering her: why did they have to sleep in the same bed? In the past, she had no taboos when interacting with the Yan people. Eating and sleeping together was a daily routine. So she looked at Lu Mincheng as if he were her son. But she forgot one fact: Xiao Wu had been completely devoured by him. He had a heart. He was no longer a Yan person.
An independent person, and skeptical of her warnings, thought, "Impossible."
Impossible? What's impossible? Does it mean it's impossible to have improper thoughts about her, or is it questioning the whole thing itself?
Shi Mi's mind wasn't quite working properly. He tried to break free, but then changed to a pleading tone, calling her name over and over again, "Ami...Ami, don't abandon me."
Shi Mi finally understood Gu Shixiong's dilemma back then. The puppeteer couldn't let go of the puppeteers either, not because of feelings, but more because of the effort he had put into them.
He kept taking advantage of her kindness, and she decided to give up struggling. "Fine, I won't leave... Tomorrow I'm going to put a big padlock on the door. The bolt couldn't stop you... How did you even get in?"
He gave an irrelevant answer, simply expressing his feelings, "Ami, I like you very much—I've never liked a girl like this before."
Shi Mi snorted, "Don't expect me to be flattered by your affection."
"Then will you like me?" He lowered his head, his lips moved down to her neck, his voice lower and more breathy, "Being with me for a long time, being my husband for a long time, will gradually make you unable to leave me."
Shi Mi rolled her eyes. "You really are good at following your own desires and making things difficult for others. Logically speaking, it's been almost three months since the body swap, so why haven't the symptoms improved? Is it a problem with the puppeteer's skills, or is it all on your own?"
“Just letting it be,” he said casually. “It’s comfortable this way. I don’t feel like a monster, and I’m not worried that you’ll expose me. I like the temperature of your body, it’s exactly the same as mine. It wasn’t like this before… I remember your body temperature used to be higher…”
Shi Mi's heart skipped a beat. She thought to herself, "This person even pays attention to such trivial details? He's using her blood, so naturally there will be many things that match hers." If she continued like this, he might become suspicious, so she quickly tried to cover it up: "From the perspective of puppeteers' creations, we are from the same lineage and use the same blood."
He listened, looked up at her, and asked, "Another version of myself?"
Shi Mi said sheepishly, "If you insist on thinking that way, it's not impossible."
But she still miscalculated. For someone who was overly self-loving, those words were the most direct encouragement. He was attached to her, both psychologically and physically. His previous rejection was gone, like a floodgate opening in the dark night, and he stepped in effortlessly.
Sure enough, he let out a long sigh of relief, but this sigh made Shi Mi uneasy. "Why do I feel like you've given up on everything?"
He didn't answer her, but said in a drawn-out voice, "I'm sleepy."
"Then let's sleep..." She tried to untie his arms, but the more she tried, the tighter they became. She gritted her teeth indignantly, "A whole incense stick's time has passed, why aren't you letting go of me?"
"Why did you let go?" he asked, half-asleep. "I like it, every night from now on."
"Wishful thinking!" She tried to overturn him, but he was incredibly strong, and in a hand-to-hand combat, she was no match for him.
After struggling for a while, she was panting heavily. He chuckled softly and said, "Save your energy. You should think about what to eat tomorrow."
That made sense, and she decided to give up halfway through. Her upper body was restrained by him, but her lower body was comfortably crossed with her legs, and she didn't forget to mock him, "You should show those guards and assassins what their obedient master looks like."
The lamplight from under the eaves shone through the slightly ajar window, casting a beam of light that fell precisely on half of his cheek. His lips slowly curved upward. "Take a look, then."
Shimi glanced at him in surprise. Was this person imitating her way of speaking? He even seemed to have her indifferent attitude towards life and death.
However, it was getting late; dawn was approaching. A new day always brings new hope. Lu Min's abnormal behavior was only temporary after his life was extended; he would return to normal by the next day.
However, fate seemed to be playing a cruel joke on her, and the situation did not improve the next day.
She got up in the morning to wash up, brush her teeth, and eat breakfast, and at that time she did not notice anything unusual. But when she had no choice but to send him off, the sky suddenly fell.
He turned to look at her, his eyes filled with affection, and said gently, "I'll take care of things and come back as soon as possible. Wait for me at home and don't go anywhere."
Shi Mi's dazed expression couldn't be hidden. "Why? I've already finished what I needed to do last night. Today I want to go out for a stroll and bring back some nice things to Zhongdu."
The advisor beside him lowered his head even further, wondering if this was something he should be listening to.
Even if Mount Tai collapses before him, the lord remains calm and composed, turning his head to instruct: "Serve the Queen well. Whatever she wants, do it. Do not slack off."
Shimi turned to look at the official, who was blindly following orders. She took a breath and said defiantly, "What I love is not only the good things themselves, but also the process of acquiring them."
But he raised his hand and touched her cheek tenderly, saying, "Be good." Then he turned and got into the carriage, ordering the curtains to be lowered.
Shimi watched helplessly as the carriage drove away, filled with the frustration of seeing a ghost. What was even more infuriating was the person who obeyed her orders. As soon as she took a step, the official stepped forward to lead her, respectfully saying, "Your Majesty, please return to your residence."
Shi Mi was furious and said as she walked back, "Eunuch, do you only have the lord in your eyes? Men are in charge of external affairs and women are in charge of internal affairs. You should know that I am the one who calls the shots in this mansion."
The official humbly glanced at her, "I know that unless the Lord gives the order, everything is up to the Lady. But once the Lord gives the order, not only us, but even the Lady must obey. Therefore, I dare not disobey the Lord's command. Um... what does the Lady wish to take back to Zhongdu? As long as the Lady gives the instructions, I will find it for her even if I have to kowtow until my head breaks."
Shimi looked at him silently, then finally sighed. Now was not the time to worry about food and drink; she needed to think about what to do if Lu Min one day completely restricted her movements. Perhaps it was time to create a substitute for herself, so she could escape at any time. Her world was vast, and she had many goals yet to be achieved. One must always have a backup plan; she couldn't afford to become Lu Min's personal food source without careful planning.
Having made up his mind, he felt confident and got down to business. He told the official all about the snacks he had been craving for over a decade, asking him to go to town to buy them. He sat on the back porch, brewing plum tea, and while he idly listened to the news coming back from the other end of the urn.
The more she listened, the more she felt the hardships of life in the palace. He Baolin's maid went to ask the eunuch if Baolin's birthday rewards had been overlooked, but the eunuch said that she was not on the list of rewards at all, which made He Baolin so angry that she almost fainted.
Looking back, she had planned to infiltrate Longcheng to capture the leader first, but in the early days of the dynasty, the internal review process was extremely strict. One had to be a native of Yan, and even the name cards of eighteen generations of ancestors had to be submitted for verification. Unaware of these regulations, she had spent half a day queuing for nothing, and in the end, she had to give up in disgrace. If she had taken a different path back then, she wouldn't have to deal with the treacherous and unpredictable Lu Min now. In the end, it all came down to timing and luck.
Just as she was lost in thought, someone came through the gate to announce that the eldest wife of the old mansion had come to visit the lady. Shi Mi didn't immediately recognize who the eldest wife was, and wondered if Lu Fengjun had come to offer Lu Min a concubine. She pressed for details and learned that the so-called eldest wife was actually Yue Mingzhen, Lu Yin's wife.
Sigh, these lingering thoughts are impossible to suppress. After all these years, why am I still thinking about it? That young man isn't exactly charming; he's a smiling tiger, two-faced and treacherous. She's looked up at him from under the city gate tower several times, so it's absolutely true.
With no other option, she had to get off the recliner and go to the front yard to greet the guest. From afar, she saw Yue Mingzhen sitting solemnly in the hall, her beautiful features undiminished even after having two children.
As she entered the room, she politely greeted her as "Sister-in-law." "It's fortunate that I didn't leave today. If I had, you would have made a wasted trip."
Yue Mingzhen smiled, stood up, and took her hand, saying, "I'm here on my mother's orders to bring you some newly made silk floss. It's getting warmer, so I'll make a light quilt for you to keep you cool and sweaty on summer nights." As she spoke, she glanced outside, "Is the young master busy with official business again?"
Shimi said, "He's in Shangdu, so he's never home. Sister-in-law, do you want to see him? Wait a bit, he'll definitely be back tonight."
Returning in the evening… Yue Mingzhen’s smile became somewhat awkward. “No need to see him, I was just asking casually. My elder brother also went out early this morning, I suppose we’ll meet up sometime.” As he spoke, he gestured for a maid to hand over the bundle, which he presented to Shimi. “Yue Lin hasn’t returned to the old house for a long time. I’ve accumulated clothes for him over the years, but I haven’t had a chance to give them to him. Since you’re in Shangdu this time, and we don’t know when you’ll be back, I’m sending them over in a hurry.”
Shi Mi opened the bundle and saw that there were six or seven sets of clothes for all four seasons. Each piece was meticulously stitched, indicating that a lot of effort had been put into making them.
Sigh, the young woman's affection was pure and untainted. She raised her eyes and asked, "Did you sew it by hand, sister-in-law?"
Yue Mingzhen nodded, “Since you have nothing to do at home, you can sew clothes for your family members one by one. Sister, you don’t need to say that I made them. Just say that you bought them from outside, so that he can appreciate your thoughtfulness.”
Shimi said that wouldn't do, "Wouldn't that steal my sister-in-law's credit?"
Yue Mingzhen shook her head, "We're family, why should we take credit? Let's not waste the needle and thread; just wear it and make the most of it."
So this sincere heart cannot be betrayed. "Don't worry, sister-in-law, I will definitely make sure he wears it." But then he started to feel annoyed and sighed, "Back then, I went to great lengths to get his size. If only I had asked you, sister-in-law, I could have saved a lot of money on bribes."
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