This song is great, and the melody is great too—it has a strong local flavor.
"Fluffing cotton, fluffing cotton..."
Li Xiao's eyebrows twitched involuntarily upon hearing this.
"Half a pound of cotton has been turned into eight ounces and eight ounces, old cotton has been turned into new cotton, and the girl is getting married after the cotton quilt has been made..."
Li Xiao was a little surprised: Lian Nian came from the General's Mansion. Although the Lian family had been engaged in martial arts for generations, Lian Nian grew up in the capital and enjoyed the glory that her ancestors and fathers had earned for her. She should never have suffered any hardship.
How could she know about cotton fluffing?
It's no wonder Li Xiao was surprised; many noble ladies and gentlemen in the capital were ignorant of farming and physically inept, and had no idea what cotton carding was all about.
While he was still in shock, Chu Susu, inside the hall, was watching Chu Nian sitting there, playing the piano and singing, and her heart was filled with emotion. She recalled her past life as Chu Shu before she entered the palace.
He was only a few years old then, but he clearly remembered that his father was a cotton fluffer, going from street to street calling out his wares, somewhat like Consort Lian when she first started singing. Of course, his father's calls were nowhere near as melodious as Consort Lian's singing.
So, when Chu Nian finished singing a section and was about to put down the pipa, she rushed over and said, "Nian Nian, you sang so beautifully, could you sing it again?"
The emperor had no idea of the people's suffering. He just felt that the song seemed to be festive, but why did he feel a little sad after listening to it carefully?
Having grown up in the palace, where everything was done for him, how could he possibly understand the hardships of ordinary people as expressed in these lyrics?
He said, "Niannian has a wonderful voice, why don't you sing another song for us to hear?"
Unexpectedly, as soon as he said this, Chu Susu turned her head and looked at him with a sad and resentful expression.
The emperor was puzzled: What did he say that displeased the empress?
Then Chu Susu said, "Your Majesty, I think the song that Nian Nian sang just now was very good. I want to hear it again. Please grant my request!" After saying that, she knelt down solemnly.
Seeing this, the emperor quickly stepped forward to help her up, saying, "Your Majesty, you are too kind. Since you wish to hear it, then let Nian Nian sing it." Although he felt the song was strange, he didn't think anything of it after listening to it again. There was no need for the empress to kneel and perform such a grand ceremony! Thinking about it this way, he realized: Uh, why is the empress acting strangely too?
To be honest, Chu Nian had only heard Li Xiao and Su He's conversation outside because of her good hearing. When he mentioned fluffing cotton, she remembered this song. It's a movie song, very down-to-earth, with easy-to-remember lyrics and a catchy tune, so she just picked it up without thinking. She never expected Chu Susu to like it so much!
She was holding her pipa, intending to play "Cotton Fluffing" again, when Suhe walked in, bowed, and announced, "Your Majesty, the Regent requests an audience!"
The Emperor said, “If the Regent has matters of the court to discuss with me, he should come to the Qianqing Palace to find me. How could he…” He glared angrily at the Empress, “He actually came to my harem? He doesn’t consider himself an outsider at all.”
Suhe said, "The Regent said he came all the way here after hearing that Chief Steward Liu Quan had come to Kunning Palace. He originally intended to present those two jars of plum wine to the Emperor, so he asked Liu Quan to brew them."
The Emperor said, "But Liu Quan lost the wine he was going to present to me."
The atmosphere was unusually tense. The emperor seemed determined to make things worse, and Chu Susu secretly felt annoyed: This emperor is just so unforgiving; otherwise, why would he have forced the regent to rebel?!
Suddenly, a woman shouted, "Waiter, bring tea!"
The emperor's anger was choked up by the sudden shout.
Chu Susu's mind suddenly cleared as she listened, and she turned to look at Chu Nian, who had somehow sat down at the table and picked up a glass of wine to drink.
Chu Nian had just raised her glass and shouted a few words when she brought the glass to her lips.
Chu Susu rushed over and snatched the cup from her hand, helplessly advising, "Niannian, you can't drink anymore, you're already drunk."
"Tea... how can tea make you drunk?" Chu Nian said, feigning drunkenness, and pretended to try to snatch the wine cup.
"No, you really can't drink anymore." Chu Susu turned around and hid the wine glass behind her back.
Chu Nian immediately pointed at the emperor and shouted again, "Waiter, refill the tea!"
The emperor was taken aback, his eyes widening involuntarily: Should he be angry? But why did he feel like laughing when he saw the woman pointing at him and shouting?
Chu Nian's finger seemed to have been too forceful, causing her body to tilt forward and fall headfirst off the table.
Chu Susu cried out in fright, "Niannian, be careful!" and hurriedly reached out to help her.
Upon seeing this, the emperor rushed over and supported Chu Nian from the other side.
Chu Nian thus avoided the fate of having her head blown off—Su He, watching from the side, was quite disappointed: it was just a little bit short!
Chu Nian stood unsteadily on the ground, leaning against Chu Susu on one side and pulling on the emperor on the other, mumbling as she sang again: "...When I have achieved fame and success, I will ride a fat horse to the Western Hills, discuss the world over wine, call out to the waiter for more tea, invite the bright moon to my window, and feign nonchalance. I have drunk the wind and swallowed the sand, a prodigal son with no money to visit taverns..."
Suhe couldn't bear to watch any longer. The Regent was still waiting outside, so she mustered her courage and stepped forward, saying, "Your Majesty, what do you think? Should we invite the Prince in or send him back?"
"Huh? Wang Xiaoer?" Chu Nian tried hard to open her sleepy, drunken eyes wider, but they were still half-closed. "Is Xiaoer here to refill the tea? Tell him to come, I...I want to drink...I want to drink more..."
The emperor then coaxed, "Alright, alright, let him come, let him come!"
Suhe replied, "Yes," and quickly went to deliver the message.
When the emperor heard her voice behind him, he realized something was wrong: it seemed that he had spoken carelessly and caused a misunderstanding.
However, never mind, let's hear what the regent has to say.
At this moment, Chu Nian looked at Chu Susu and started crying, saying, "Sister, what are those men fighting over all day long? They don't have to worry about food or clothing..."
Chu Susu also felt sad, her eyes and nose red as she said, "Sister doesn't know either!"
The emperor was utterly bewildered: the conversations of the women in his harem were... so bizarre! He, as the emperor, couldn't understand them at all! Why were you women in your harem fighting and arguing all the time? As your man, I hadn't asked you anything!
He couldn't understand Chu Nian's question.
However, Chu Susu had experienced poverty and hardship in the past. In her previous life, she was just a poor commoner when she was young. Later, she was sent to the palace to become a eunuch, starting from the very bottom.
She can understand.
Li Xiao, who was walking in from outside, was forced to join the army when he was young, so it was understandable.
Therefore, it seems that the villains and heroes in this book have some differences in their values.
Chu Nian suddenly said again, "Sister, before I entered the palace... hiccup... I couldn't understand why those men fought and killed each other all day long, and even... even specially grabbed a servant from the mansion to ask."
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