Chapter 14 Birthday Celebration
Chu Wangshu's mental defenses were far stronger than Shen Qingmeng had imagined. He seemed to be extremely tired, and he slept soundly with his head on Shen Qingmeng's body. Even when Physician Li came to take his pulse, he only frowned slightly because he didn't want to take his hand off Shen Qingmeng, but he didn't wake up.
Chu Wangshu seemed to enjoy this position, lying on his side on Shen Qingmeng's waist, able to wrap his arms around her waist. Of course, being held directly in Shen Qingmeng's arms or him holding her was also fine. He wasn't picky, as long as he could always sense Shen Qingmeng's presence beside him.
Although he still couldn't see, Chu Wangshu blinked habitually when he woke up, and slowly realized that Shen Qingmeng seemed to have been gently patting his shoulder and back the whole time.
He took Shen Qingmeng's hand and held it in his palm. "The rain seems to have stopped."
"Yeah, it hadn't been raining for very long to begin with, it stopped a long time ago."
"Murong Lishu is really unlucky," Chu Wangshu said with a rather unethical smile. "She got herself all wet while acting in a play."
"That's true, it seemed to be raining the hardest when she left. But who told her to say such nasty things? Let her get soaked."
"Did I sleep for a long time?"
“It hasn’t been long, less than an hour,” Shen Qingmeng smoothed Chu Wangshu’s slightly disheveled hair and asked, “Is there anything else that’s bothering you?”
Chu Wangshu smiled, tilted her head back, and shook her head: "You're more effective than calming soup."
“I should have come to Lingtai Mountain earlier to stroll around. Maybe you would have taken less medicine,” Shen Qingmeng said, pinching Chu Wangshu’s shoulder blades, which were somewhat prominent due to his thinness. “You’re too thin.”
"I'm trying to eat. I drank a whole bowl of fish soup this morning. Besides, if I eat like..." Chu Wangshu seemed to have thought of something amusing, and revealed a smile without any attempt to hide it: "If I eat like the Emperor, wouldn't you despise me?"
"Who is really so audacious?" After spending a long time with Chu Wangshu, Shen Qingmeng discovered that he was not as gentle and indifferent as he appeared on the surface. In fact, he had a childish temper, would act spoiled, act cute, and throw tantrums. He would do anything, but it was also easy to coax him into being obedient.
"Hmm... I'm hungry," Chu Wangshu asked, "What do you want to eat tonight?"
"What are your thoughts, Young Master Chu?"
"It will be all right."
"Then let's stir-fry some greens and make some sweet and sour crispy pork, you said you wanted to eat it yesterday."
"Making crispy pork is such a hassle."
"It's alright, it'll be quick. You have to trust the efficiency of the Wang Family Restaurant's kitchen," Shen Qingmeng said, putting her arm around Chu Wangshu's shoulder and trying to help him up. "Three, two, one, lift!"
But Young Master Chu was reluctant to get out of bed and snuggled into Shen Qingmeng's arms again: "Just a little longer~"
Shen Qingmeng pinched Chu Wangshu's cheek: "Didn't you say you were hungry? Get up!"
"Can I stop being hungry?"
Shen Qingmeng said firmly, "No."
A moment later, Shen Qingmeng arranged for the Imperial Preceptor to be in the kitchen... marinating meat, mixing the seasonings and meat strips evenly with his hands.
She was really good at assigning tasks to Chu Wangshu, tasks that required no eye contact but still showcased her culinary skills.
Indeed, it wasn't just the meat strips that were being mixed; Chu Wangshu's hands were too. Even before going to sleep, Chu Wangshu's hands still smelled of seasoning. Shen Qingmeng found it hard to accept falling asleep while holding a piece of sweet and sour pork, so she held his hands and rubbed them for a long time.
Phew, it finally tastes like rose juice, so fragrant!
On the night of the sixth day of the seventh lunar month, the two, each harboring their own secrets, embraced and slept.
Although it wasn't explicitly stated, Shen Qingmeng noticed that Chu Wangshu always had a smile on his face, and she was quite curious about what this person had prepared.
The seventh day of the seventh lunar month.
Chu Wangshu carefully lifted Shen Qingmeng's arm, then left the bed barefoot like a thief.
Shen Qingmeng squinted her eyes and remained silent.
He was now used to walking blindfolded in the attic, and easily obtained the exquisitely crafted gift box. He then groped his way to place it on Shen Qingmeng's dressing table before tiptoeing back into bed.
Thump!
With a loud thud, Chu Wangshu misjudged the situation when she lay down and bumped her head on Shen Qingmeng's head.
He hurriedly raised his hand to rub Shen Qingmeng's forehead, but Shen Qingmeng pulled him into her arms: "Tell me, what bad things did you sneak off to do? And you even woke me up when you came back."
"I made you a... birthday gift."
Shen Qingmeng originally thought it was a Qixi Festival gift, but she never expected it to be a birthday celebration: "How did you know? I don't think I said that."
"You knew that the day you came to teach me how to cut paper snowflakes."
Shen Qingmeng was taken in from a mass grave by Shen Ning on the seventh day of the seventh lunar month, which became her birthday. This wasn't hard-to-find news, but Shen Qingmeng never imagined that Chu Wangshu had conceived the idea of making her a birthday gift so long ago.
At that time, he clearly thought he was going to die soon...
"Let me go see what this good thing is!"
Shen Qingmeng sat up and tried to climb out of bed by stepping over Chu Wangshu, but Chu Wangshu grabbed her sleeve: "Yes, some, simple."
"The Grand Preceptor can chop vegetables with his eyes closed, so how could the things he makes be simple?" A few days ago, Shen Qingmeng threw a white radish to Chu Wangshu and asked him to chop it into pieces. Unexpectedly, he actually chopped it quite well, not even into rolling pieces, but into neat long rectangles.
Although he often cheats, Chu Wangshu is still easily flattered, and Shen Qingmeng's words made him blush.
A beautiful yet simple sandalwood hairpin, with a feather-shaped head.
"So beautiful!" Shen Qingmeng momentarily forgot that Chu Wangshu was blind and waved to him, "Come here quickly and let me try it on!"
"Why is it a feather?" Shen Qingmeng looked at the bronze mirror, admiring the hairstyle Chu Wangshu had created with the hairpin. In recent days, Shen Qingmeng had helped Chu Wangshu develop many skills, including styling hair.
He usually wore his hair in a ponytail. Shen Qingmeng rarely let her hair down in the summer because she found it too hot. Fortunately, the temperature in the mountains was lower.
“When I first saw you, I felt that you were like an eagle soaring freely in the sky,” Chu Wangshu said, sitting next to Shen Qingmeng with a slightly embarrassed smile. “However, it’s because I’m too clumsy with my hands to make the other patterns well.”
“You’re not stupid! You look great,” Shen Qingmeng said, holding Chu Wangshu’s hand and stroking the scars on his fingers that hadn’t faded. “But you shouldn’t do this kind of thing again, it will hurt me.”
"I only got scratched because I wasn't familiar with the place at the beginning. It doesn't hurt."
"How about this, Miss Eagle will give you a return gift?"
"Hmm?" Although Chu Wangshu's eyes were lifeless, they revealed a strong sense of anticipation.
"Later, I'll take you down the mountain to play."
Chu Wangshu suddenly looked troubled: "I...can't go down the mountain."
“That’s because I’m not here,” Shen Qingmeng said cheerfully. “Who am I? I’m the only way out for creating little charlatans right now. I told my emperor father yesterday that I was going to take you down the mountain. I bet he’s so angry he can only go along with us.”
Although Chu Wangshu was incredibly excited about the upcoming trip, she still found it hard to shake off her worries: "But I...can't see."
"I'll lead you, hold on tight, I won't lose you."
“Okay,” Chu Wangshu said with a silly grin, more like a young boy his age. “What are we going to do now?”
"Go collect the dew!"
"Dew?" Although Chu Wangshu knew that she had gotten up early today, she probably couldn't collect dew at this hour.
"To match the season, I'll get a few drops and put them around your eyes," Shen Qingmeng said, pulling Chu Wangshu up and taking his outer robe to straighten him. "It's a custom in Jiangnan that the tears of the Cowherd and the Weaver Girl can improve eyesight."
Therefore, Shen Qingmeng never disbelieved these customs and legends; she only believed what was beneficial to her, or rather, only what she wanted to believe.
"Don't you think this custom is a bit immoral? The two people were crying and wailing, so reluctant to part, and we just took their tears and used them."
Chu Wangshu was lying on a recliner, letting Shen Qingmeng wipe the dew around his eyes. Shen Qingmeng said the dew didn't look very clean, and wiping it around his eyes would make it better.
He smiled and nodded. "Indeed, it's not very ethical."
"But if it works, I wouldn't mind if they cried a few more times."
After applying dew and having breakfast, Shen Qingmeng asked Chu Wangshu to help her make some Qiaoguo (a type of pastry), saying that it was the only one of all the Qixi Festival customs she knew how to do.
However, Chu Wangshu kneaded the dough and burned the firewood. All Shen Qingmeng did was arrange the food on a plate and string the three kinds of plump Qiaoguo (a type of fried pastry) together and hang them on the tree.
She stood under the tree, looking up at her masterpiece created over half a day: "I can't ask for skillful hands, but if more fruit hangs on the tree, the birds in your yard will have a good holiday."
Chu Wangshu took a bite of the pastry and turned her head toward Shen Qingmeng: "I can too."
Shen Qingmeng wiped the crumbs from the corner of his mouth: "Eat less, I'll take you down the mountain to eat something delicious later."
Chu Wangshu loved all kinds of fruit, whether steamed, fried, or roasted, he ate them with great relish. He wasn't picky about food either; he would eat whatever Shen Qingmeng put on his plate without ever refusing.
Shen Qingmeng couldn't help but wonder: Who said he was picky about food?
While eating a pastry, Physician Li felt an itch in his nose, as if someone was talking about him to his face.
After eating a lot of Qiaoguo (a type of pastry) in the afternoon, Chu Wangshu wasn't hungry at dinner time, so Shen Qingmeng decided to take him down the mountain for a stroll.
"Aren't you going to do your hair and makeup?" Chu Wangshu asked, pulling Shen Qingmeng's hand.
"It's just a trip down the mountain for fun. Besides, you can't see me anyway, so why would I bother with dressing up? It's too much trouble."
It's impossible for her not to like pretty dresses and jewelry, but Shen Qingmeng is a complete lazybones when it comes to these things. In addition, since she's always hanging out with the escort agency, no one tells her to do her hair or makeup. Gradually, she developed a lazy habit of washing her face and tying her hair up before going out every day.
"Today is your birthday and also the Girls' Festival. What does it have to do with whether I can see it or not?" Chu Wangshu asked. "That Granny Wang in the palace, who has served the concubines, can be asked to paint a portrait of you?"
"You're willing to let others into your little attic?"
"It's alright, I just don't want them to come in because I want some peace and quiet."
“Then we can’t let her come. She’s so noisy and always says things I don’t like to hear,” Shen Qingmeng said, taking off her hairpin and picking up a comb to hand to Chu Wangshu. “Come and comb my hair so I can see what Young Master Chu has prepared for me.”
Rouge, face powder, and lip rouge all appear to be of excellent quality and smell wonderful.
Why is there no makeup powder?
"That stuff isn't really suitable for applying to the face, and Qingmeng doesn't need it."
"You haven't seen me for...seven months. Do you still remember what I look like?" Shen Qingmeng looked at the hairstyle Chu Wangshu had styled and was very satisfied. He was really skillful. In just over ten days, he was able to skillfully and quickly style Shen Qingmeng's hair, even while blind.
“I remember,” Chu Wangshu sat back down next to Shen Qingmeng and reached out to trace her eyebrows and eyes: “Crescent moon eyebrows, willow leaf eyes, a very upturned nose, lips…”
Shen Qingmeng leaned forward slightly and lightly touched Chu Wangshu's lips: "It's very kissable."
Chu Wangshu froze instantly, pursed his lips, and his earlobes flushed an unusual red.
He truly enjoyed all of Shen Qingmeng's flirting.
"After only meeting a few times, you remember my face so clearly," Shen Qingmeng said, opening her arms and putting them on Chu Wangshu's shoulders. "Have you already fallen for me?"
Shen Qingmeng wrapped her arms around Chu Wangshu's neck, her red lips slightly parted, only inches away from him, their breaths brushing against each other's faces, light and slightly ticklish.
Chu Wangshu's Adam's apple bobbed slightly as he nervously gripped the comb in his hand.
“Long ago, when you were sitting at the window, scanning the entire attic, I thought, how wonderful it would be if such an interesting girl could stay a little longer.”
Author's Note:
I was overjoyed to see that my favorites had increased by two in the middle of the night! Forget about trying to climb the charts and suppressing word count, I'm not going to suppress them anymore! Extra chapter!
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