0073 Paper Kites (Part 1)
At dawn, Xu'er, accompanied by several maids, stood outside Shu Wei's room with a copper basin, handkerchiefs, and other washing utensils, waiting for her to get up and summon people to serve her.
But on this day, the water clock in the corridor ran for half a quarter of an hour longer than usual, and no summons was issued from inside.
The young maid carrying the copper basin was too young and weak; she could no longer bear the weight of the hot water in the basin, and her wrists trembled slightly.
Xu'er frowned, turned her head and told her to "hold it firmly," then asked into the room, "Is the young lady awake yet? This servant has led the people to help the young lady get up this morning."
After a long silence in the room, a hoarse female voice finally rang out: "Come in."
Xu'er breathed a sigh of relief and pushed open the door to enter the inner room.
It was not yet the spring equinox, and the days were still short and the nights long. So at this time, the sky was still covered with a thin layer of dark blue, and all was quiet. The room was even darker.
The maid in charge of adding lamps deftly found a tinderbox and added light to each lamp one by one.
By the flickering, warm candlelight, Xu'er saw Shu Wei sitting on the edge of the bed, wrapped in a blanket. Her black hair was disheveled and spread around her face, shoulders, and neck, making her once bright face appear even paler than paper.
Xu'er was startled and quickly went over to squat down on the footstool, holding Shu Wei's cold hand in her palm. She asked with concern, "What's wrong, Miss? Why is your face so pale? Did you have a nightmare last night?"
Upon hearing this, Shu Wei suddenly gripped Xu'er's fingers tightly.
She had indeed been troubled by nightmares of her past life for some time, but last night was a rare night of peaceful sleep for her.
What truly troubled her was a small piece of paper clutched in her other hand—
It was a small piece of paper cut from yellow hemp paper, which was nailed to her bed frame with a feather arrow.
The moment she opened her eyes this morning, she was startled to see the trembling feathers on the headboard.
She reached out to pull it out, only to find that the arrow had penetrated deep into the pear wood, so she had to tear the paper apart and remove it separately.
I really don't know what kind of skill it takes to accomplish all this so quietly.
What horrified her even more was that there was an arched bridge drawn on the paper, painted black with lead gray.
Li Qiao has a little-known nickname, which happens to be Ah Xuan, so she can't help but think about it.
On the back of the paper was a string of numbers, from one to ten thousand, but the character for "hundred million" was missing. "No hundred million" is the same as "no intention," which is similar to the anecdote about Wenjun in historical records.
But that was Sima Xiangru's letter of determination to Zhuo Wenjun!
Could this little piece of paper of dubious origin be implying that Li Qiao is not faithful to her?
How is that possible!
At this moment, Shu Wei no longer had the energy to investigate the source of the paper. After all, if something like her being able to return to her childhood could happen, then it was possible that heaven would grant her a divine revelation.
Her mind was a blur. In her hazy vision, the gentle and refined young man before her and the cold and indifferent Li Qiao from her past life blurred into two distinct figures, gradually merging into one. His eyebrows and eyes clearly showed a gentle smile, but his lips carried a faint indifference.
Shu Wei shuddered at the fleeting thought that crossed her mind, and a bead of sweat trickled down her forehead.
Absolutely impossible!
Twenty-year-old Li Qiao was deeply in love with her. The two fell in love at Qujiang Pool and made vows at Leyouyuan. Even when he went to Jiangnan East Road by imperial decree, he did not forget to find a local craftsman to carve a white magnolia for her and sent it to her by fast horse from Dayuan.
If it weren't for Shu Yin in her past life, she would never have had such a falling out with Li Qiao!
Xu'er glanced at Shu Wei with concern, then gave a wink to the maid standing beside her. The maid immediately understood and dipped a silk handkerchief in hot water from the copper basin, handing it to Xu'er.
Xu'er took a warm, soft towel and wiped Shu Wei's face, gently comforting her, "Don't be afraid, young lady. What you see in your dream is all an illusion. Xu'er will keep watch over your room at night, and no demons or monsters will be able to get close to you."
The warmth of the handkerchief on Shu Wei's face finally eased her tension a little, and she softly hummed in agreement.
After wiping her cheeks, Xu'er put down the handkerchief and was about to apply moisturizing soap to Shu Wei's hands when she looked up and saw the feather embedded in the headboard.
Xu'er exclaimed in surprise and asked, "Miss, what is this?"
Shu Wei glanced at it, not paying much attention, and casually replied, "I was playing with the crossbow last night when I was bored, and I accidentally got it stuck in there. I can't pull it out now. Go back and find a few servants to get a shovel and flatten it."
Xu'er had no doubts and nodded in agreement.
While eating breakfast, Shu Wei was still thinking about what had just happened, and it took her almost half an hour to finish a bowl of crystal shrimp dumplings.
Xu'er, who was standing by, couldn't help but remind her, "Miss, you might have to hurry. Someone from the main kitchen has come to ask for the dining utensils, saying they need to take them back to wash."
Shu Wei suddenly came to her senses and pushed the small jade bowl forward: "I can't eat anymore, you guys take it away and share it."
Xu'er nodded and handed the bowl to another maid with her hair in two buns, signaling her to take it away. She then found a plain white porcelain cup, poured some warm water infused with jasmine, and helped Shu Wei rinse her mouth.
Xu'er had been with Shuwei since childhood and knew her better than she knew herself. She knew that Shuwei's mood had been off since she woke up that morning, so when no one was around, she asked, "Miss, you look so worried. Is something on your mind?"
Shu Wei glanced at her, her heart filled with indescribable emotions. Finally, she took a deep breath and slowly said, "Go out and find someone."
Xu'er didn't ask who she had found or what she wanted this person to do; she simply lowered her eyes and replied.
Shu Wei continued, "Take some money from my private savings and go to the best镖师 (bodyguard/escort) in the镖局 (escort agency) to ask him to keep an eye on things for me..." She choked up for a while before slowly saying, "Keep an eye on where His Highness the Prince has been going these days."
Although Li Qiao was a prince, he was ultimately a member of a collateral branch of the imperial clan and was not considered highly favored by the emperor.
Otherwise, he wouldn't have gone to the Imperial Clan Court to fill vacancies.
Therefore, although he had some attendants, he did not have any top-notch experts around him, at least not one who could match the person who silently delivered the message to her.
Hiring bodyguards to keep watch would likely succeed.
A hint of surprise flashed across Xu'er's eyes, but she said nothing and respectfully withdrew.
Shu Wei felt a slight sting in her nose and rested her forehead in the crook of her arm, hoping that things wouldn't turn out the way she thought.
...
This letter was indeed written by Shu Fu before dawn, while she was still sleepy, and she asked Zhan Yaoguang to deliver it to Shu Wei.
Fearing that Shu Wei would notice, she chose the most common yellow hemp paper and wrote with her left hand. As for Li Qiao's nickname "Ah Xuan," she learned about it after asking Li Miao.
She saw Li Qiao in the Kuai Zai Pavilion, which is why she decided to remind Shu Wei.
But she didn't want to do her any favors, nor did she intend to save her out of thin air. Whether Shu Wei could understand or what she would do after understanding was none of her business.
All she asks for is a clear conscience.
But Shu Fu didn't know that her original intention was to suggest that Li Qiao was going to brothels behind Shu Wei's back, and that he might not be devoted to her. She never expected that Shu Wei would actually uncover another affair of Li Qiao's.
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