After seeing Ms. Han off, Shi Lan sat quietly for a moment.
In the evening, when asked when Ming Yuezhan would return to the manor, Shi Lan locked herself in her room and practiced her physical exercises twice to make sure that every joint in her body was stretched out. Only then did she take another bath, comb her hair into a lazy and charming frilly bun, and change into a soft and flowing ruqun (a type of traditional Chinese dress).
When Yue Zhan returned from inspecting the military camp, he almost thought he was seeing things when he saw Shi Lan dressed like this.
Shi Lan smiled gently at him and ordered Zhu'er to serve dinner.
Yue Zhan sat on the table, staring blankly at her, seemingly lost in thought.
Shi Lan noticed that he was staring at her, and her face was a little stiff, but she still managed to smile and help him pour the wine, filling it to about eight-tenths full.
Yue Zhan's mouth was slightly open, and he didn't even look at the dishes on the table. His eyes were still fixed on Shi Lan.
Shi Lan's face began to feel hot, and eventually it even became burning hot.
She's not one to tolerate things, so this change in style was a last resort.
Yue Zhan is highly skilled in martial arts and possesses profound inner strength. She was not confident in using her bewitching technique on him, so she planned to first use her beauty to seduce him, and then use it when he was slightly tipsy, which would increase the success rate.
Unexpectedly, Yue Zhan was so easily provoked. He only changed into a slightly more revealing outfit, decorated himself a little more elaborately, and of course, put on a slightly prettier makeup. He immediately showed his lecherous side. Did he have a death wish?
When she looked up at Yue Zhan and saw him staring intently at her again, she finally couldn't hold back anymore. Her eyebrows furrowed, and she slammed her hand on the table, exclaiming, "Look, look, what's so interesting?"
Shi Lan thought he would get angry, but to her surprise, he was not angry at all after being scolded so rudely. Instead, he breathed a sigh of relief, patted his chest, and said with relief, "You scared me to death. I thought some wandering ghost had come and haunted you."
Shi Lan paused, then remained silent.
Isn't she just a lost soul that drifted in randomly?
After dinner, Shi Lan dismissed Zhu'er early, kicked off her shoes, and went to bed.
Yue Zhan seemed to have no sleepiness and picked up the bamboo slips on his desk to read.
Shi Lan glanced at the sky, somewhat impatiently, and said in a gruff voice, "It's getting late, I want to rest."
Yue Zhan turned his head to look at her and said softly, "If you're sleepy, go to sleep."
Shi Lan puffed out her cheeks and said, "It's too bright, I can't sleep."
Yue Zhan extinguished most of the candlesticks, leaving only one on the table. "Is this alright?"
"No, I can't sleep if there's light," Shi Lan said, peeking out half her head and staring at him with her dark eyes.
Seeing her like this, Yue Zhan couldn't stay angry no matter what, so he had no choice but to compromise, blow out the lamp, and go to bed.
A glimmer of golden light flashed in the darkness and disappeared in an instant. Yue Zhan lay limply on the couch, motionless.
Shi Lan quickly bent down and looked at Yue Zhan to make sure he was asleep. She then changed into light, dark clothes and jumped over the wall under the cover of night.
Running swiftly, Shi Lan arrived at Bu Mingbo's courtyard with practiced ease. She leaped onto the roof and carefully crouched down.
As night deepened, the surrounding houses gradually quieted down, and the lights went out one by one. In the darkness, Bu Mingbo quietly came to the courtyard gate, hung up a crimson silk ribbon, and left the gate slightly ajar before swaying back into the house.
Shi Lan watched his increasingly effeminate gait with a cold eye, her heart growing colder and colder.
The weather is not good tonight. Thin clouds cover the entire sky, and the stars that once seemed within reach have quietly hidden away tonight, leaving only a sliver of moonlight hazily veiled behind the clouds, revealing a faint glimmer of light.
Outside the alley, a tall, muscular figure swayed as he walked. When he got closer, Shi Lan could see the man's features clearly: a high nose, deep-set eyes, and a face covered with stubble that obscured most of his face. But Shi Lan could still tell at a glance that this man was very different from herself and the people in the manor.
Although this person was also wearing the wide robes and high heels that were popular at the time, he seemed very uncomfortable with them, and would often tug at the hem of his trailing skirt as if he was worried about stepping on it.
The Turks here are a people who live on horseback. They are accustomed to wearing long outer garments that reach their knees, with a coat made of sheepskin or cowhide over them. Although they also wear skirts, they do not reach the ground. This is to facilitate their horseback hunting. In contrast, the men in the Tang Dynasty mostly wear long skirts with wide sleeves, their clothes flowing, and they walk with a kind of unrestrained and elegant style reminiscent of the Wei and Jin Dynasties.
The burly man gently pulled open the courtyard gate, took a few long strides to the entrance, and the gate creaked open as Bu Mingbo strolled out to greet him.
"You've finally arrived! I thought you were going to stand me up tonight," Bu Mingbo said playfully, stamping her foot.
The big man chuckled and lightly lifted his chin. In the moonlight, his fair face obediently lifted slightly, and a fawning smile appeared on his lips that he himself did not notice.
"What's wrong, sweetie? Are you getting impatient?"
The big man lowered his face and sniffed gently. He seemed to like it very much, so he buried his head in his neck and said in a muffled voice, "It smells so good. You still know my heart. You've washed up and are waiting for me to come over."
When Bu Mingbo heard him say "fragrant," he was not happy at all; instead, his face twisted in a distorted way, clearly provoked.
Shi Lan leaned over the eaves and watched him. The road from the governor's mansion to here was quite long, and she wondered how he had managed to hold it in all the way back. She imagined him losing control and getting his pants all wet with yellow and white stains. Shi Lan stuck out her tongue and suppressed the urge to vomit.
The two people by the door cuddled for a while before going inside. Shi Lan slid down the eaves and slipped to the window to continue eavesdropping.
The sound of wooden planks rubbing together came from inside the room. The two people were breathing heavily. After a sound of silk being torn, Bu Mingbo exclaimed in a delicate voice, "Ashina, be gentle, you want to kill me!"
The one named Ashina chuckled twice, followed by another mournful 'sizzle' sound from the silk. Bu Mingbo exclaimed 'Ai!', then suddenly lowered his voice and let out a very soft and charming hum.
Shi Lan curled her lips. These two good-for-nothings only know how to have fun and don't know how to get down to business.
The sound of creaking wooden planks came from inside the house. Shi Lan looked up at the sky, searching for the best spot to eavesdrop later.
Half an hour later, the room finally quieted down. The two men on the bed were panting heavily. After a while, the big man said, "When you went to the governor's mansion today, was that little wench well-behaved?"
Bu Mingbo was much weaker than the big man and was still panting heavily. "Well, I gave her some of her usual ointments, which were specially made for her by Aunt Sun. She was very happy to see them and even confided in me, complaining about Aunt Sun's cold-heartedness. I looked at her closely, and her expression was very natural. I don't think she suspected anything. On the contrary, she was full of resentment towards Aunt Sun."
Bu Mingbo had just experienced a blissful moment in the mortal realm, and his soul was still somewhat adrift; his speech was even a little unsteady.
The burly man seemed to realize this as well. After a moment of silence, he climbed back onto the bed, and the wooden bed creaked once more.
Shi Lan pursed her lips, leaped onto the roof, and thought, "Let these two have their fun for now; they'll have their day to cry later."
As a sliver of white appeared on the horizon, the burly man quietly left the courtyard and ran off into the distance.
Shi Lan swooped down like a graceful swallow, stealthily following along until they arrived at an extremely magnificent mansion. (To be continued.)
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