Chapter 78: The charcoal fire was burning brightly, and the heat was intense.
When Li Yue'er was repairing the lantern, she worked very carefully, thinking that the mistress would like it, so she repaired it meticulously.
But she also knew that the mistress was not a child at heart, and that she would probably just look at the lanterns for novelty, so Li Yue'er thought that she would just give them away casually after she finished looking at them.
To Li Yue'er's surprise, the next day the mistress had Dansha find a glass lampshade and specially covered the rabbit lamp with it, placing it in the antique shelf in her study.
Li Yue'er and Teng Huang stood in front of the antique shelf in the study, staring in disbelief at the lantern.
Yesterday's lanterns, worth only a few coins, are now covered by glass lampshades and stand alongside jade cabbages and amber gluttons.
If you didn't know better, you'd think they were all worth the same amount.
The sun is shining brightly today, and the light is coming in from outside, directly onto the display shelf.
The glass lampshade shimmered and sparkled in the sunlight, making the rabbit lantern inside seem even more lively and elegant.
Teng Huang turned his head and asked, "Mistress, when you found me and Dan Sha, why weren't we like this?"
Why weren't they given the same treatment as those glass lampshades?
You don't need to do anything here.
Qu Rong, "..."
Qu Rong glanced at Teng Huang, who then made a face and followed Dan Sha out.
Qu Rong braced herself against the edge of the table with her arms behind her back, bent one leg and touched the ground with her toes for support, and sat half-reclined on the desk as she looked at Li Yue'er. "You want to move in too?"
Although glass houses are expensive, building a smaller one is not difficult.
Li Yue'er shook her head, "Let it live there."
She couldn't squeeze into such a small space.
Li Yue'er was dragged here by Teng Huang today.
Teng Huang said that the mistress had gilded the rabbit lantern, and she was very curious, so she asked Su Rou for a quarter of an hour's leave to come and see for herself.
Now that I've seen something new, I have to go back to class.
Seeing that she was about to leave, Qu Rong followed her gaze, tapped the table lightly with her fingertips, and said slowly, "In a couple of days, you will come out with me."
Li Yue'er immediately stopped in her tracks. "Where are you going?"
Qu Rong said, "Go and meet the next head of the Zheng family."
The Zheng family is currently still in charge under Zheng Er, but he is embroiled in lawsuits and extremely busy.
The "bandits" outside the city last time, along with the two witnesses sent from the south by Qu Ming, all pointed to Zheng Er hiring someone to kill.
It was Zheng Er, the head of the Zheng family, who spent a lot of money to hire assassins to ambush Zheng Qianxi and her husband on the road their carriage was bound to take. After killing all of them, they staged the ambush.
At that time, Zheng Er had reconciled with Zheng Qianxi for more than half a year. Moreover, in the eyes of outsiders, they were siblings and there was no grudge that lasted overnight. Therefore, Zheng Er was able to easily find out Zheng Qianxi's whereabouts through the servants around her.
After learning her itinerary and route, they had someone lie in ambush there beforehand and kill everyone on Zheng Qianxi's trip, leaving no trace afterwards.
The robbers took the money and did the job; once the job was done, they disappeared, and no one could find them.
Unexpectedly, a rebellion broke out in the south, and Qu Ming, with the help of the new army, found two witnesses and escorted them back to Chenhe County.
In addition, Zheng Er used the same method to kill Qu Rong, who had returned to the city, at the beginning of this year.
Unfortunately, Qu Rong turned the tables on him.
The county magistrate has already compiled the testimonies, and even after the Lantern Festival, he ordered Zheng Er to be summoned to the yamen as a "guest." He has not been released yet, and now they are just waiting for the yamen to be opened for a public trial.
Zheng Er went in, and the Zheng family is now like headless flies, divided into two factions.
On one hand, they wanted to bring him back, so they paid the best lawyer in the area to defend him. On the other hand, they wanted to take the opportunity to remove Zheng Er from his position and replace him with one of their own.
After all, there were just too many people in the Zheng family, and they had different thoughts and were not united.
What Qu Rong needs to do is to stir up trouble and further divide the already divided members of the Zheng family, so that she can have an opportunity to slowly erode the Zheng family's business.
Li Yue'er loved watching a good show, and as soon as she heard what she said, she immediately turned back.
Qu Rong remained expressionless, only a faint smile appeared at the corner of her mouth. The way she looked at Li Yue'er as she returned, lifting her dress, was like a hunter watching his prey walk step by step into a trap, her eyes filled with greed and desire for certain victory.
Li Yue'er was very curious, oblivious and innocent, "When are you going out?"
As she drew closer, carrying the scent of the plum blossoms they both shared, Qu Rong raised her eyebrows slightly, looked up at Li Yue'er, and remained silent, pursing her lips.
Li Yue'er stared at the mistress's face.
The mistress always looked at her like that with ill intentions.
Li Yue'er slowly realized what was going on, lowered her eyes, and concealed the cunning glint in them.
She moved slowly forward, her fingers gently resting on the mistress's shoulders one by one. Her long, curled eyelashes fluttered incessantly, and her pink lips parted slightly, revealing the tip of her tongue, like a flower budding.
Beneath his palm, the mistress's body tensed.
Like a vixen, Li Yue'er brought her lips close to the mistress's lips. When the mistress approached without making a sound, she quietly pulled away. When the mistress realized her intentions and retreated warily, she chased after her closely.
Li Yue'er maintained this aloof demeanor and spoke softly to the mistress, "Does the mistress think I would beg you to take me with me?"
Qu Rong's breathing tightened as she inhaled the fresh tea fragrance emanating from Li Yue'er's breath. A shiver ran through her eyes, and her scalp tingled. Her fingers, which had been resting on the table behind her back, were already curled up and gripped the smooth surface tightly. However, she maintained a serious expression and slowly asked in a drawn-out tone, "Oh? Don't want to go?"
She lowered her eyes, her gaze falling on Li Yue'er's moist lips. Even though they were so close, she still had to wait for Li Yue'er to take the initiative to kiss her.
Qu Rong was willing to increase her stakes, saying, "If it ends early, you can have a meal at the academy before coming back."
She's already regressed so much, Li Yue'er is bound to be tempted.
If you're attracted to her, you have to "beg" her.
Li Yue'er was naturally tempted, but not only because she could go home and go out, but also because her mistress was "craving" her at this moment, which made her heart race.
Her fingers climbed up like snakes, and she pressed herself tightly against her mistress's chest.
From the outside, it would appear as if Li Yue'er were hugging and pressing herself against the mistress, trying to get closer to her.
Even Qu Rong thought so. She even glanced at the closed door out of the corner of her eye, her curled fingers loosened slightly, and she vaguely wanted to put her arm around Li Yue'er's waist, hug her back, and then press her down into the armchair behind her.
A charcoal brazier was burning in the study; the fire was at its strongest in the afternoon, and the heat was intense.
Li Yue'er blew into her mistress's hot, red earlobe, "Please~?"
She gently pushed away from her mistress's arms with her hands on her shoulders, raised her hand to tidy the stray hairs at her temples, and her eyes, like hooks, captivated her mistress's heart. Her pink lips parted slightly, but she said, "No way."
Li Yue'er concealed the light in her eyes, turned her toes, causing ripples to spread across her skirt, and turned to leave. "If the mistress doesn't take me, I won't go. I've already visited my mother and sister this month, so I can go again next time."
He then started walking towards the door.
Qu Rong, "..."
As the fragrance emanating from her body receded further and further away, Qu Rong finally couldn't resist. She reached out and grasped Li Yue'er's wrist. As Li Yue'er walked forward, Qu Rong's palm slid to Li Yue'er's fingers and gently pinched her fingertips.
She didn't use much force, and Li Yue'er didn't continue walking. Their fingers, which were just touching, remained pressed together without separating.
Li Yue'er turned to look at her mistress, her eyes sparkling, and pursed her lips as she waited for her.
Qu Rong, "..."
Qu Rong's ears turned red. In the end, she lowered her eyes and gave in first. She pulled Li Yue'er back with a little force, hugged her in her arms, turned her head and kissed the lips that she had been longing for for a while, biting them twice as if punishing her.
Li Yue'er smiled triumphantly.
If she had done this earlier, why would I have put on that whole show?
Li Yue'er warmly embraced her mistress and returned her kiss.
If she didn't have to go to class, Li Yue'er could have sat on the mistress's desk, lifted her skirt, and had a tryst with her.
As the kiss ended, their foreheads pressed together, eyes lowered, and breaths coming in short gasps, a glistening silver thread appeared at the corner of their lips.
Li Yue'er took out a handkerchief and wiped it off.
Luckily, she didn't buy any lip rouge, otherwise the mistress would have eaten it all, and it would have cost so much money to replenish it later.
Li Yue'er kissed the corner of her mistress's mouth, coaxing her, "Want more?"
The mistress, "..."
The mistress was clearly satisfied with her nightmare and turned her eyes away as if she hadn't heard her speak.
Li Yue'er's hands rubbed restlessly against her mistress's waist, her lips brushing against her mistress's mouth, her nose gently grazing her mistress's cheek, "Are you really not going to?"
The mistress finally hugged her tightly, resting her forehead on her shoulder and breathing softly, "Tonight then."
If it can only be done at night, then why is she still trying to get me to eat her food during the day?
Li Yue'er stopped teasing her and asked, "Then I'll go back?"
Qu Rong slowly released her, checked Li Yue'er over from head to toe, and only let her go after finding nothing amiss.
Li Yue'er opened the door and went out. Gamboge was stuck to the door panel like a gecko.
Dansha stood to the side, clearly wanting to offer advice, but refrained from doing so because Teng Huang was currently angry with her. Seeing her emerge, she hesitated, then lowered her eyes and curtsied.
Li Yue'er, "..."
Li Yue'er tore off the gamboge and took it with her.
Teng Huang followed Li Yue'er curiously, looking her up and down. "Why are you smiling so radiantly?"
Li Yue'er immediately stopped smiling and covered her face with her hands, "Where am I being flirtatious?"
She was just happy.
All told, she and the mistress had been together for three months. They had done it countless times in bed. The mistress knew exactly where she was most sensitive and what she was most afraid of being touched. She also knew all of the mistress's habits and quirks.
Even though they were so familiar with each other, in the past two weeks, the two seemed to have become less familiar again.
It was as if they were suddenly separated by a layer of hazy, ambiguous sandpaper. She and the mistress could both see each other's silhouettes on the opposite side, but neither of them made the first move. They simply let the other feel their breath through this layer of paper, competing to see who could resist making the first move to break through it.
Just now in the study, it was the mistress who "lost" a game to her.
Li Yue'er was somewhat smug. After the New Year, apart from pleading with her mistress in bed, who knows who would beg whom after she got out of bed.
Li Yue'er had told Teng Huang about this little sweet thing, but Teng Huang didn't understand. Now, when she asked Li Yue'er again, she was unwilling to tell her.
Li Yue'er, "Once you've laid your heart out, you'll know what I'm talking about."
Gambo covered his chest with both hands, unconvinced, "My crystal-clear heart has nothing to hide, so why should I argue?"
Li Yue'er narrowed her eyes, stopped walking, turned around and suddenly asked, "Oh? Then why are you sleeping in a separate room from Dansha?"
She stopped abruptly, and Teng Huang almost lost his footing and fell into her arms!
Fujiki's eyes widened. "She's the one who wants to sleep in a separate room from me!"
Teng Huang puffed out his cheeks in grievance, lowered his eyes, and kicked the pebbles on the stone path with his toes to vent his anger. "Who knows what's wrong with her lately? She's become more and more distant from me."
The more she tried to get closer to win Dansha back, the further away she became.
All those innocent, childhood gestures between them no longer work.
Fujiwara had been depressed about this for several days, and finally, in a fit of pique, he said he would move out of the cinnabar house.
She thought Dansha would try to keep her, and that the two of them could use this opportunity to reconcile and even sleep in the same bed that night. But Dansha didn't say anything; she just quietly helped her move her things and make the bed.
The heart of the gamboge feels empty.
She looked up at Li Yue'er, wanting to ask her what she should do, but before she could open her mouth, she instinctively felt that she and Dansha were the ones who had grown up together since childhood, and no one understood Dansha better than her. She was sure that she could figure out a way to reconcile with Dansha, so she pursed her lips and didn't speak.
Gambo lowered his head, puffed out his cheeks, and kicked a stone, saying, "You bad thing."
As he spoke, he stomped on the ground twice.
I don't know if I'm cursing the pebble that didn't bother her, or the cinnabar that didn't try to keep her.
Li Yue'er has always been clear about boundaries, and she won't ask more questions if Teng Huang is unwilling to talk about them.
"Alright, alright," Li Yue'er said with a smile, afraid that Teng Huang had hurt her toes. She reached out and touched Teng Huang's hair buns that stood up like rabbit ears, trying to distract her. "The mistress said she would take me out in two days. We'll go together then."
Li Yue'er linked arms with Teng Huang as they walked, saying, "My monthly allowance is still two taels. I'll take you to buy your favorite dried meat. It's on me; you can buy as much as you want."
Garcinia's attention was immediately diverted. He nodded happily and then asked, "Why do you still only have two ounces?"
Li Yue'er hadn't been to Shouhetang since the New Year. The old lady wasn't a saint, so how could she possibly let the accounting department continue to pay Li Yue'er her monthly allowance?
Li Yue'er bit her lower lip lightly, her cheeks flushed, "It was a gift from the mistress."
If she works harder tonight, she might even get a two-tael reward.
Li Yue'er turned to look at Teng Huang, "For you, I'm willing~"
Gambogi, "?"
Teng Huang thought Li Yue'er was talking about buying dried meat, so he immediately broke free from her arm. "If you're craving it, just say so. Don't use me as an excuse."
By sheer chance, he grasped the deeper meaning in Li Yue'er's words, "...Oh."
She was tempted, but she couldn't help it; the mistress who had just been waiting for her to kiss her was just too adorable.
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Moon: Casually grabbing her younger sister (double meaning) [yellow heart]
Madam: ?
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