Chapter 21 Soothing: Gently wipe away her tears with your thumb. ...
A warm drop was applied to his skin. When Gu Zhan looked down, the glistening drop had slowly slid into his palm, leaving it damp.
If he remembered correctly, this should be the first time Shen Mi had shed tears in front of him since their marriage two months ago.
Gu Zhan remembered being punished for a mistake when he was only eight years old. He felt wronged and cried in secret. When the Empress found out, she scolded him, saying that a man should not easily shed tears, and as the Crown Prince, he should remember this even more. Crying is the act of the weak, and tears cannot solve any problems. From then on, he never shed a tear for anyone or anything again. If someone cried in front of him, he would only feel extremely annoyed.
Shen Mi realized that she hadn't hidden her tears from Gu Zhan because of her grief, and she immediately panicked.
Before she married into the Eastern Palace, when Instructor Wu taught her etiquette, she mentioned that it was rumored His Highness the Crown Prince greatly disliked people putting on a pitiful act in front of him. Instructor Wu said that a palace maid, coveting wealth and status, had tried to climb into the Crown Prince's bedchamber. When the prince discovered this, according to palace rules, she should have been punished by being sent to the laundry department. The maid, confident in her beauty, put on a seductive, tearful act in front of the prince, and was immediately ordered to be beaten to death. This was to warn her that even if she suffered grievances in the Eastern Palace in the future, she should never use such methods.
She hurriedly turned away, trying to wipe her tears with her sleeve, but somehow, the more she tried to stop, the more distressed and aggrieved she felt. Yet, she still managed to explain to Gu Zhan, "I didn't mean to lose my composure, it's just... I just miss Mother so much..."
Then she felt Gu Zhan holding her shoulder with one hand and turning half of her body around.
Gu Zhan's voice came from above: "Look up."
Shen Mi was filled with anxiety, yet dared not disobey Gu Zhan's orders.
Gu Zhan gazed at her wet, glistening eyes, slowly raised his hand, and gently wiped away her tears with his thumb, saying, "I have already petitioned the Emperor to grant General Shen's memorial tablet to be placed in the Imperial Ancestral Temple. Your brother's and mother's memorial tablets will also be moved to the Xiangguo Temple soon, which will make it easier for you to pay your respects in the future."
Shen Mi's lips moved, and after a long while, she said incredulously, "However, the Imperial Ancestral Temple is the ancestral temple of the royal family. I am not Your Highness's principal wife, so I am afraid it is against etiquette."
Gu Zhan withdrew his hand, still speaking in his usual businesslike tone: "General Shen has guarded the border for the country for many years and has made outstanding contributions. He died on the battlefield and deserves this honor."
This matter had actually been decided many days ago. It was because the Emperor rewarded him and Shen Mi for their harmonious relationship at the Grand Court Assembly that he seized the opportunity to present this matter, in order to show his benevolence in comforting the soldiers guarding the border. The Emperor immediately agreed, not because of Shen Mi, so he did not think of telling Shen Mi about this matter. He just went with the flow tonight.
Shen Mi was unaware of his inner thoughts, only believing that Gu Zhan truly cared for her. She gently curved her lips and whispered, "On behalf of my parents and brothers, I thank Your Highness."
At that moment, she vaguely felt a layer of ice melt in her heart, perhaps because spring was just around the corner after the New Year.
Gu Zhan intended to place the paper with Qin's name on it on the table and instruct Shen Mi to help him undress so he could rest. However, after seeing the handwriting on the paper, he did not put it back in its original place.
He held the paper in his hand and asked, "Is this calligraphy in the 'flying white' style?"
Shen Mi was taken aback, then nodded in acknowledgment, "Your Highness has discerning eyes."
Gu Zhan placed the Xuan paper on the table, carefully examined the handwriting on it, and asked, "I remember asking you before if you were also good at this, and your answer was that you were not. So you were hiding your skills?"
Shen Mi was unsure of herself. "I only know a few words from when I was with my father and brothers. I can't be considered 'skilled' in them, and I wouldn't dare to show off my limited knowledge in front of Your Highness."
Gu Zhan didn't look at her; his gaze was fixed on the Xuan paper. "Looking at the style of your flying white brushstrokes—the beginning, the movement, and the ending—it's quite reminiscent of Lu Lin's style. What, you've also copied his calligraphy?"
Shen Mi took two steps forward and looked at the few words she had written. Even though she hadn't practiced for a long time, her years of practice since childhood had ingrained her habit of writing. She couldn't help but think of her childhood and said, "When Master Lu traveled to Yanzhou, my father treated him as an honored guest and asked him to teach my elder brother. I was fortunate enough to study calligraphy with Master Lu for a while, but I only learned some superficial things, which are not worth mentioning."
Having confirmed his guess, Gu Zhan turned to look at Shen Mi, a hint of regret in his eyes: "Back then, Father Emperor intended to invite Lord Lu to be my tutor, the Crown Prince, and to teach me. However, Lord Lu's mother was seriously ill, and he insisted on returning to his hometown to serve her medicine. He declined the offer, and Father Emperor could not bear to take away his kindness, so he had to let Lord Lu return home. Unexpectedly, after traveling around the Great Qi, Lord Lu ended up under General Shen's command in Yanzhou."
Shen Mi knew the inside story and that Lu Lin had resigned from her post because she didn't want to get involved in the factional struggle. However, after considering it for a moment, she felt that someone like Gu Zhan should not allow her to comment on the affairs of the previous dynasty. So she said, "I am ignorant and do not know about this matter."
Gu Zhan seemed completely unconcerned by her words. “It’s alright. My calligraphy is mostly based on copying Lu Gong’s calligraphy. Since you have also received guidance from Lu Gong, you don’t need to be confined to the Qingluan Hall in the future. I happen to be short of someone to copy official documents. I originally wanted to transfer Chen Jun from the Hanlin Academy, but he didn’t know the importance of things and didn’t have time to find a suitable candidate. If you are willing, come to the Qin Zheng Hall.”
Shen Mi was somewhat flattered.
She had put in so much effort before, cooking and embroidering, but she still couldn't "please" Gu Zhan. However, she never expected that in the past half month, she would be able to impress Gu Zhan with her skills in playing the zither and calligraphy.
Could this be considered the first step towards getting closer to Gu Zhan?
Gu Zhan also specially moved the ancestral tablets of her parents and brothers to Bianjing. Her father was enshrined in the Imperial Ancestral Temple, and her mother and brother were enshrined in the royal temple, Daxiangguo Temple, so that she could worship them in the future. Soon, during the Qingming Festival, she would no longer have to secretly burn paper money for them in the courtyard without anyone knowing, just like she did last winter solstice.
Gu Zhan didn't notice her subtle emotions. He put the paper with Shen Mi's name on it into his inner pocket, opened his arms to Shen Mi, and said, "It's getting late. Help me change my clothes and get some rest."
Shen Mi then came to her senses and did as instructed.
Perhaps Gu Zhan had given prior instructions, because when she went to the Hall of Diligent Governance, Sun Cheng did not stop her again, nor did she mention reporting to him. The palace servants in the Eastern Palace followed suit. Seeing Sun Cheng's behavior, and seeing that she accompanied Gu Zhan in the Hall of Diligent Governance for a whole day, they also flattered everyone in the Qingluan Palace.
However, Shen Mi didn't care too much about these things. What made her feel relieved was that Gu Zhan agreed to accompany her to worship when the memorial tablets for her mother and brother were placed at Daxiangguo Temple.
But the night before, Sun Cheng handed over a visiting card, saying that the next day was Prime Minister Su's birthday and inviting Gu Zhan to grace the Su residence with his presence.
Shen Mi paused in her grip on the pen, the ink spreading into a blot on the paper.
She tried to look up at Gu Zhan, pursing her lips and waiting for his answer.
Is he going to break his promise to go to the Su family again?
A note from the author:
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Thank you for reading.
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