Chapter 34 Chapter 34 Chapter Ziheng.
The next day, a ray of golden light shone through the gauze window onto Lin Zhen's face. She frowned slightly, held her forehead and slowly sat up.
Outside the screen window, you can vaguely see the shadows of emerald green bamboo.
She turned her gaze back into the room and saw a hollow purple bamboo screen not far from the bed. Through the screen, she could see a painting on the wall of the outer room, an ink painting of misty rain. Below it was a desk with a stack of books neatly stacked on it.
The Boshan incense burner on the incense table was emitting wisps of smoke, and the faint fragrance of agarwood filled the room.
Every piece of furnishings here was something she had never seen before, yet it gave her an unusually familiar and reassuring feeling.
It made her feel as if she was back to more than ten years ago, when her mother was still alive. She would often stay in her mother's bedroom like this, lying on the couch, quietly watching her father handling official business behind the screen.
At this time, there was also a man sitting in front of the desk. Even his expression and posture were similar to her father's. It was not until she caught a glimpse of the corner of the wheelchair armrest covered by the sleeve that she gradually came to her senses from her trance.
At this moment, Qi Yushi raised his head, put down his pen with his sleeves gathered, and looked at Lin Zhen. "How are you? Are you okay?"
Lin Zhen was stunned for a moment, then he lowered his hand from his forehead and said calmly, "It's okay."
How can a hangover be good? My head aches and my stomach feels like it's on fire.
But for Lin Zhen, she simply couldn't show weakness and complain in front of others.
"This is the lotus root hangover soup I asked the kitchen to cook. Maybe it will help." Qi Yushi didn't intend to expose her lie. He just poured a bowl of the soup that was warm in the stove outside and pushed the wheelchair over.
Lin Zhen subconsciously supported herself on the couch with her hands, wanting to walk forward to receive it, but in the end, she just sat still on the couch without moving.
She was afraid that her "good intentions" would hurt him.
After drinking a bowl of soup, Lin Zhen really felt much better.
She guessed that this should be Qi Yushi's bedroom. After all, they were now considered "husband and wife" and should live in the same room. Lin Zhen held the medicine bowl in both hands. In such a big room, she felt that she had nowhere to look and could only lower her eyelashes.
"Are you still able to get up? Why not go out for a walk?" Qi Yushi eased the atmosphere at the right time.
Lin Zhen quickly agreed, put the bowl aside, naturally got on the wheelchair handle, and pushed Qi Yu out of the courtyard.
The Chen Mansion was not large, and naturally, there were not many servants. Along the way, I only encountered two maids who served as servants. I went forward and saluted them, saying, "Greetings, my Lord, Madam."
As he walked around the wall, he heard the two maids' intentionally lowered but still clear and bright voices: "No wonder Xinyi has served you so closely for so long, yet she's not even half a concubine. It turns out you have such a beautiful wife hidden in your hometown!"
The wheelchair was pushed faster and faster, suddenly running over a small stone, causing it to jolt slightly. Lin Zhen finally stopped, his fingers clenched on the armrests, his ears slightly red, and he whispered, "I'm sorry."
Lin Zhen felt that she looked very unbearable at the moment. Fortunately, Qi Yushi did not look back at her. She only laughed softly: "I thought it was the Madam punishing me for not being strict with my subordinates."
Lin Zhen was silent for a moment. She knew that since they were pretending to be a couple, they had to let everyone see it. She was not calm enough.
Lin Zhen woke up late today. After a while of strolling, the sun was already high in the sky. Although it was winter, it was still a little dazzling. She said softly, "Let's go back."
"This place is close to the study in the front yard, so we can have lunch there." Qi Yushi nodded.
*
"If that old thief hadn't been so cunning and treacherous, I would have already succeeded!"
"What if it succeeds?! That old thief's life is nothing! Our efforts for the past five years are all for—"
The door of the study was suddenly opened, and a gray-haired old man walked out with a sullen look on his face. He ran into them head-on and hurriedly took a half step back, bowed his head, and respectfully saluted Qi Yushi: "Sir."
When bowing to Lin Zhen, the old man paused for a moment and stared at Lin Zhen in a daze. The two looked at each other, and Lin Zhen also frowned and stared at him.
"Madam." After a while, the old man came to his senses and bowed to her.
*
As New Year's Eve approached, Xinyi, who had been punished to kneel for more than half a month, was finally released.
In the evening, she stood in front of the main house, watching Lin Zhen busy walking around in the house, and couldn't help but sneer in her heart: He really thinks of himself as the mistress here.
Even if they were pretending to be a couple, she was only Chen Liangji's wife, not the young master's wife.
Thinking of this, Xinyi felt much happier. She lowered her head and raised the corners of her lips slightly.
At this moment, a piece of paper suddenly appeared in her eyes. Lin Zhen was standing in front of her without her knowing when. He said lightly: "Go to the pharmacy and get this prescription."
The faint smile disappeared from the corner of her mouth. Xinyi did not take the paper, but just glared at Lin Zhen angrily.
"Not going?" Lin Zhen's cold voice floated out of her mouth again. In a moment, she glanced away from Xinyi and looked behind her: "Uncle Chen."
Xinyi turned around and saw Uncle Chen coming from outside the yard. The scene of her being punished last time was still in her mind. She straightened her aching knees, rolled her eyes at Lin Zhen, took the prescription from her hand, and left angrily.
"Madam, this is the New Year's Eve menu sent from the kitchen. Please see if there is anything you need to add or subtract." Uncle Chen took out a folded piece of linen paper from his sleeve, and carefully smoothed it out with his wrinkled hands before handing it to Lin Zhen.
Lin Zhen took it and nodded slightly to him.
"It's very cold here at night, not like..." As Lin Zhen turned around, Uncle Chen added, "Not like your hometown. Remember to close the doors and windows at night."
Lin Zhen paused, raised his eyes and slowly looked at him, then nodded again: "Okay."
"It's New Year's Eve, and there are many things going on in the mansion. Madam is new here, so if you have any questions, you can ask this old servant. Don't overwork yourself." The old man looked at Lin Zhen kindly. His few ordinary polite words became real and sincere because of the light emanating from his deep eye sockets.
"Thank you, Uncle Chen."
After the old man said this, he seemed to feel that he had overstepped the bounds. He responded softly and turned away.
Lin Zhen held the piece of hemp paper in his hand, stood inside the door and looked out until the old man's figure disappeared around the corner, then he slowly withdrew his gaze.
At night, Xinyi was carrying medicine wrapped in straw paper, but was stopped by a servant in front of the yard.
"My Lord and Madam have gone to bed. Miss Xinyi, please come back tomorrow if you have anything to ask."
In the Chen Mansion, Xinyi was dressed in women's clothes, wearing a lilac-colored long skirt, and her hair was tied up high in the bun, which was the usual style of the maids.
She held the medicine bag in front of the servant with one hand, put her hands on her waist and said, "Your wife told me to buy this."
When she said this, she deliberately emphasized the word "Madam Chong".
The servant still lowered his eyes, "Madam said that this medicine is for the young lady."
It was like a punch hitting cotton. The ends of Xinyi's raised eyebrows drooped down. She lowered her arms, glanced into the yard from afar, turned around and walked out of the yard.
*
As the New Year was approaching, the family was collecting old things and found several books that had been severely damp and the writing was blurred.
It happened to be a sunny day, so Uncle Chen ordered people to dry all the books out to dry, and set up a desk in the courtyard. Qi Yushi copied the unclear parts separately and attached pages.
Although there were not many servants in the mansion, they were all gathered in this courtyard, and it became lively for a while.
Soon, Lin Zhen also walked out of the room, stood in front of Uncle Chen and asked, "Is there anything I can help with?"
Uncle Chen straightened up and pointed at Qi Yushi with the hand holding the book, smiling: "Madam, please help the master grind it."
Lin Zhen walked to the desk and saw that the inkstone was full of ink, but there was still a pen on the pen holder. She picked up the pen and handed her a piece of clean white paper. "Thank you, madam."
Qi Yushi, who was sitting next to her, looked up at her. The man bathed in sunlight was talking and laughing, and was extremely handsome.
He was wearing a pure white brocade robe today, with a silver crown in his hair. The ribbon on the crown with a white cloud pattern brushed against the back of her hand in the wind, as gentle as he was.
He was used to smiling so nonchalantly that Lin Zhen couldn't tell whether he was acting or teasing him intentionally.
However, she was much calmer than before. She took the paper, put a paperweight on it, and began to copy.
"Madam's handwriting is so beautiful!"
"Not only is it beautiful, but haven't you noticed that the lady's handwriting is somewhat similar to yours?"
Before they knew it, the maids and servants who had finished their work in the yard gathered around them, whispering to each other.
Lin Zhen was startled by the whispers of several people. She realized her oversight. She never knew whether Qin was literate or not.
The heart that had been calm just now was now in tension again. Lin Zhen paused and subconsciously glanced sideways at Qi Yu.
The man next to him didn't seem to be affected at all. He still kept his eyes lowered and wrote line by line calmly.
"What's so strange about this? I heard that your teacher back then was your father-in-law!"
Lin Zhen breathed a sigh of relief. Yes, she would make mistakes, but he wouldn't.
Her gaze lingered on Qi Yushi for a moment before she slowly withdrew.
The sky gradually darkened. When Lin Zhen looked up again, only Uncle Chen was left in the yard. He was standing quietly not far away with a pile of books in his arms, as if he was afraid of disturbing them.
The old man looked at them with burning eyes, and there was a light in his eyes. He seemed to be lost in thought about something, and he didn't even notice Lin Zhen's gaze.
Until Qi Yushi said, "You've been writing all day, why don't you go out for dinner tonight? You haven't had a good stroll around Qizhou City yet."
This was naturally said to Lin Zhen, but Uncle Chen suddenly came back to his senses. He glanced at Qi Yu hurriedly, blinked hard, and lowered his head and said, "This old servant will go and prepare a carriage for you, my Lord."
The weather turned cold at night. Before going out, Chen Bo specially laid layer upon layer of cotton quilts in the carriage and placed heaters in every corner. He also repeatedly instructed Xinyi and the servant who were going out with him before sending them out of the house.
After drinking a bowl of hot mutton soup on the roadside, the few of them started strolling on the street. Xinyi's knee injury had healed, and she was in a good mood as she pushed Qi Yu forward.
They happened to come across a stall selling lantern riddles. Xinyi guessed that the young master would like them, so she parked her wheelchair in front of the stall, picked out an exquisite lantern, and placed it on Qi Yushi's legs.
Seeing that he was really reading the puzzle patiently, he went to look for a better-looking lantern.
Lin Zhen was only a few steps away from them, but the streets were so busy today that even within these few steps, people were coming and going.
Lin Zhen looked at the handsome man illuminated by the colorful lanterns, and many images flashed through his mind, finally converging into a dim bean of light and falling into Qi Yushi's hands.
At a distance that was neither too far nor too close, her voice was neither too light nor too heavy: "Ziheng."
The son of the late Prince Chen, he was gifted and intelligent. Before he came of age, his mentor Lin Yunfeng gave him the name Ziheng.
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