Chapter 68: It's too bloated, I don't want it anymore.
By the time the two of them tidied up and came out of the house, the food had already been reheated three times.
Li Yue'er even changed into a different dress.
Under Gambo's probing gaze, Li Yue'er blushed and forced an explanation, "There are too many people in the city, and I'm still in mourning, so it's not appropriate to dress too brightly."
Rambo reached out and tugged at her skirt, asking teasingly, "Isn't Qu Hong more vibrant than Su Mei?"
Koh Samui is at least a light pinkish-white, while Qu Hong is more of a watery red.
Li Yue'er gently slapped Teng Huang's hand away. To avoid being "punished" together, she didn't flirt with Teng Huang in front of the mistress.
Fortunately, the mistress only glanced at the two of them out of the corner of her eye, sipped her sweet porridge with her spoon, and said nothing.
Li Yue'er gracefully sat down, only to realize that her legs were a little sore when she sat down.
The mistress had somehow acquired a rolling ball, which would roll around in her stove whenever she moved.
Li Yue'er was already sensitive, and after "eating" the rolling ball, tears came out. She begged her mistress to end this "torture" before the meal.
As the two moved from the table to the bed, her clothes were scattered all over the floor. When she lay on her back on the edge of the bed, the shoes that the mistress had put on for Li Yue'er were kicked off again.
She placed her feet on the mistress's lap, her hands grabbing at the bedding behind her head, nearly tearing the delicate sheets and duvet cover to shreds.
But Li Yue'er couldn't care less about anything else. The tingling and itchy sensation spread everywhere. She bent her legs and hooked her arms around the mistress's shoulders, begging her to stop the itch and save her life.
...Perhaps she ate too intensely and too deeply, when the mistress pulled the rolling ball out with the rope at the end, Li Yue'er vaguely felt that she was still sucking it in.
As the two forces intertwined, her tears fell into her hair. The sticky, wet sound of the copper ball pulling against her soft flesh made her so ashamed that she covered her face with her hands.
Even someone as thick-skinned as her was too embarrassed to listen any longer.
When the mistress held her and calmed her heartbeat, Li Yue'er began to ramble on and on about how good the mistress's cooking was, which made the mistress glance at her sideways and ask her why she had pretended to be mute and not say a word earlier.
Li Yue'er wasn't stupid. When the two of them met, it was like dry grass meeting a spark. If she were to provoke the mistress with a few more words, it would be tantamount to "stirring up trouble." In that case, they might as well turn their lunch into dinner.
Because the two cushions she embroidered were in the wardrobe, she didn't have time to bring them over and put them down in her haste, so she had to make do with the damp dress behind Li Yue'er.
That's why she changed into a different dress.
The mistress only scrambled her breathing and tidied her clothes; she had already tidied herself up before coming out, so naturally no one could tell anything was amiss.
The heat on Li Yue'er's face was gradually dispelled by the wind, and her complexion slowly returned to normal.
Dansha and Teng Huang stood beside them, serving them food. Dansha placed a small white jade bowl filled with sweet soup next to her, and Li Yue'er realized that Dansha and Teng Huang had switched places.
She looked up, spoon in her mouth.
Teng Huang stared intently at the mistress, while Dan Sha lowered her eyes and looked away.
Li Yue'er squinted at Dan Sha. Whether it was the cool ointment in the carriage at the entrance of the courtyard last time or the copper ball rolling around everywhere today, the mistress could not have bought them herself, so the person who bought these things for her must have been Dan Sha.
What a wonderful cinnabar!
Li Yue'er stared at Dan Sha's calm and expressionless face, then looked at the mistress's indifferent and aloof face, and clicked her tongue in disbelief.
The master and servant appeared to be equally cold and serious on the surface, but in private they did all sorts of improper things and bought all sorts of improper items.
Especially cinnabar. Li Yue'er never expected that the taciturn and well-mannered cinnabar would buy these things for the mistress.
Clearly, even Gamboge had kept the matter from Cinnabar; otherwise, given Gamboge's personality, he would have told her about it as an amusing anecdote long ago.
cinnabar,"……"
Li Yue'er's gaze was too obvious, attracting the attention of the mistress. Under the gaze of the three, Dansha looked at Yue'er calmly and composedly, her tone and expression as usual, "What are you looking at, Yue'er? Is there something dirty on my face?"
“Let me see,” Teng Huang began to look at Dan Sha’s face, even walking up to him, cupping his hands in his hands, and examining him closely with wide eyes, before concluding, “Nothing.”
Dansha, her ears turning red, helplessly pulled her hand away, sighing as she looked at her, "..."
She knew perfectly well that there was no such thing; she was just reminding Miss Yue'er not to look anymore, otherwise the mistress would give her a cold glare again.
Li Yue'er glanced at Dan Sha and then at the mistress, smiling sheepishly, "It's nothing, it's nothing. I was just thinking how delicious this porridge is."
She buried her head in her food.
Qu Rong put down her spoon and gestured for Dan Sha to bring out Qu Ming's letter. She then sent out two maids to "connect with the old lady's steward about the accounts."
cinnabar,"……"
She knew it.
Gamboge, "..."
Teng Huang didn't want to work and looked at Li Yue'er with reluctance.
Li Yue'er returned her a sweet smile.
Fujiwara stomped his foot and glared at her in anger.
Once the two head maids were no longer around, Qu Rong opened the envelope, glanced at Li Yue'er, and slowly asked, "Can you concentrate on eating now?"
Li Yue'er was the one who held her and cried out that she wanted it now, and she was also the one who cried and begged that she was too full and didn't want it anymore. Afterwards, she was the one who was in a hurry to eat. Now that she has actually started to eat, she looks at the gamboge and the cinnabar, and she can eat a spoonful of porridge for half a day.
Li Yue'er: "Yes."
She was indeed hungry; her stomach was rumbling when it was over.
The mistress thought she had misheard and tried to lift her legs to look down.
Li Yue'er covered her eyes with her hands, "It's a gurgling sound, not a puffing sound."
The anxiety I felt while traveling this morning was already exhausting, and now all this has drained my energy. It's normal to be hungry.
As Li Yue'er ate her meal, her eyes drifted towards the direction of the mistress of the house.
The mistress clearly had other important matters to attend to in the afternoon, which is why she took the opportunity during lunch to read the letter again.
Seeing Li Yue'er's curiosity, Qu Rong spread the letter out on the table and pushed it towards her.
Li Yue'er lowered her head, "...I don't understand."
Qu Rong: "It's okay if you don't understand."
She told Li Yue'er about Qu Ming finding a witness. Since there were no maids or other people with them, Qu Rong also told Li Yue'er about what she had kept from the old lady at Shouhe Hall.
"Qu Ming said he doesn't plan to come back for the time being. His county is short of a magistrate, and someone saw that he was talented and helped him get the position."
The old lady was still eagerly waiting for her beloved grandson to return and inherit the family business, little did she know that Qu Ming had already begun to enjoy the official position he had always dreamed of in the south.
Li Yue'er understood who this "someone" was.
The south is in complete chaos. It is estimated that the rebellious new army has supported the "new emperor," and Qu Ming has now been appointed as a county magistrate by the "new emperor."
Li Yue'er's eyes widened, she swallowed the sweet porridge in her mouth, and asked in a low voice, "Then didn't he secretly change his place of origin?"
You must know that Qu Ming is a merchant. If this gets out, there will definitely be people in the county who will resent him as a merchant magistrate.
If Qu Ming wants to secure his position as county magistrate, he has no choice but to resort to means to relinquish his merchant status. This would mean Qu Ming relinquishing his inheritance rights to the Qu family!
If the old lady knew about this, she would probably be furious.
Qu Rong folded the letter again, "Keep it from her for now."
She'll tell the old lady about this once she has all the power in her hands.
Li Yue'er looked over with bright eyes, clearly intending to be on the same side as the mistress and wait to see the show, and whispered in agreement, "Okay."
Her voice was soft, and when she got closer, she exuded the scent of cold plum blossoms.
Qu Rong couldn't resist and gently pinched her cheek. "You stay and eat well. Su Rou will come over to give you a lesson this afternoon. Don't go to the old lady's place."
Li Yue'er subconsciously worried, "If I don't go, won't Shouhetang's monthly allowance be gone?"
This is what she cares about most.
Qu Rong said, "...I'll make it up to you privately."
Qu Rong had already stood up and was about to go to the study, but when she saw Li Yue'er breathe a sigh of relief, she sat back down with a blank face.
Li Yue'er looked up at her in confusion, "Aren't you full?"
The mistress of the house did not eat much.
Li Yue'er shifted her position, picked up the mistress's bowl, and fed her with a smile, "Eat some more. You've worked so hard today. I'll serve you tonight~"
Qu Rong, "..."
She's comforting the child.
Qu Rong reluctantly ate a few more mouthfuls with the spoon Li Yue'er handed her. The sweet porridge suppressed her displeasure. Once she was full and had no more temper, she got up and left again.
Li Yue'er kept saying she liked her and even begged for her true feelings, but whenever money was involved, her eyes shone brighter than stars, her heart and mind filled with nothing but gold and silver, and she couldn't see her anywhere.
She knew that Li Yue'er was used to sweet-talking her and saying all sorts of sweet words to coax her.
Li Yue'er had no idea what the mistress was thinking, especially since the mistress's expression was normal when she left, so Li Yue'er didn't notice anything amiss.
After finishing her meal, she went to the main hall of Songxin Courtyard to wait for Su Rou to come to class.
Shi Yi probably had to stay at the county office today, so he couldn't pick up Su Rou. Su Rou and Meng Xiaoxiao were escorted back by the remaining servants after the journey was completed.
Meng Xiaoxiao went straight back to the Qu residence, while Su Rou went back to the Shi family home. After putting away her luggage and having lunch, she came to teach.
Su Rou didn't ask any questions about what happened today, seemingly unconcerned. After seeing Li Yue'er, she calmly looked her up and down, and seeing that she was standing there unharmed, she immediately began the lesson.
If Li Yue'er is alright, it means Qu Rong is also fine.
Since there's nothing wrong, why bother with those empty and useless pleasantries? Even if there were something, given her current status and abilities, she wouldn't be of much help.
Su Rou's concern was very restrained, and her emotions were expressed very lightly. Anyone who did not know her usual behavior and personality would think that Su Rou was very distant and cold, and had no human touch.
Fortunately, Li Yue'er was meticulous and understood Su Rou well.
The chance encounter on that snowy night didn't distance them; on the contrary, it seemed they knew each other's secrets, making them appear even closer.
If it were before, Su Rou really wouldn't have given her a second glance.
While sitting next to Sister Su in a daze, Li Yue'er even thought that if the new army were reliable, it wouldn't be a bad thing, given the current incompetence and inaction of the imperial court.
Historically, after a change of dynasty, in order to win over the people and win over the former dynasty's officials, the new dynasty would exonerate those who had been wrongly convicted and exonerated, and even provide some compensation to the descendants of those who had been wrongly convicted.
Judging from the meaning behind the mistress's words, as well as the reactions of the steward and the doctor, it was clear that Su Rou's father, Lord Su, must be a good official. Once the new court is established, Su Rou might be able to return to the capital to be the daughter of the Minister's family, and her life would definitely be better than it is now.
Li Yue'er only thought about these things when she was pondering them on her own, and she didn't mention them to Su Rou.
While she was teaching, Qu Rong, Teng Huang Dan Sha, and the others were doing accounts in the study.
Garcinia and Cinnabar were so busy that their toes barely touched the ground, and Qu Rong's hand holding the pen didn't rest much either. The only time she could take a break was when she was flipping through the account book and rubbed her right wrist hard with her left hand. Even then, her eyes never left the account book.
Teng Huang felt sorry for her. She complained that she was too tired to do it, but when she saw her mistress rubbing her hands, she obediently helped with the accounting. "It's all the old lady's fault."
Dansha looked at her with a puzzled expression.
"If her steward hadn't been so incompetent, the mistress wouldn't have had such a sore wrist." Garcinia said.
cinnabar,"……"
The mistress had been idle for a while and hadn't picked up a pen. It was only after overusing her hands that she suddenly started working like this and felt discomfort in her wrists.
As for why they used their hands excessively, you can tell just by looking at how the lunch was reheated three times.
Unfortunately, Teng Huang always read stories without thinking, and he didn't even understand that the mistress's wrist was sore, so how could he know what she was thinking?
Dansha looked up at Gamboge quietly. Gamboge looked over in confusion and asked with concern, "What's wrong? Does your wrist hurt too?"
Cinnabar, "...No."
Her wrist not only didn't hurt, but it was also very flexible.
Dansha wanted to say something but didn't, only turning her eyes away with her ears turning red.
She has good wrist strength.
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Cinnabar: My wrist isn't tired (implying stare) [heart emoji]
Garcinia: Not tired at all? Then could you settle my accounts for me too? (Excitedly)
Cinnabar: ...[melted]
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