Chapter 52 Complaining Again: "Your Majesty is not here; before I can speak, tears flow." ...
When Lan Shexiang saw Su Jinxiu return to the courtyard, her eyes were filled with tears. She felt extremely guilty and quickly stepped forward to take Su Jinxiu's hand, asking with concern, "Qiaoniang, are you alright?"
Su Jinxiu forced a smile and said, "It's alright, I've already made things clear to him. If he dares to come again, I'll have my servants throw him out. You've seen for yourself, all my servants are skilled fighters."
Her half-joking words actually eased some of the guilt in Lan Shexiang's heart. The two exchanged a few words of laughter and returned to the main hall together.
At this moment, everyone in the hall was chatting happily. Su Jinxiu smiled and asked everyone how the dishes were. Everyone at the table nodded in approval and praised them endlessly.
Just then, a noise came from outside the door. Su Jinxiu glanced towards the door and saw another woman walk in. She wondered, since everyone she had invited had arrived today, who could be coming from the waterside pavilion?
The man walked closer, and Su Jinxiu stared intently at him, feeling a sense of familiarity in his features.
Upon closer inspection, her heart tightened. It was the female official who had ridden her horse on the Imperial Street that day. Before she could even react in surprise, the woman had already crossed the small bridge and walked straight to the table.
The guests were all taken aback, putting down their chopsticks and cups as they pondered the purpose of this woman in palace attire. Su Jinxiu, as the hostess, quickly rose and inquired, "What brings you here, young lady? What brings you here?"
The female official curtsied, her eyes like cold stars: "May I ask if you are the head of Huayun Pavilion, Miss Su?"
"It is indeed my daughter," Su Jinxiu replied with a nod.
"My name is Shi Yunyu, and I am in charge of rites and sacrifices in the palace." She introduced herself. "The Bathing Orchid Festival is approaching this year, and the palace needs an embroidery piece. I have long admired Miss Su's exquisite skills, so I have come to ask for your help. I wonder if you would be willing to take on this embroidery work for the palace?"
Upon hearing the words "court embroidery," Su Jinxiu was secretly delighted. She smiled and said, "I wonder what kind of embroidery it is? I am not very skilled, but I would like to try my hand at it."
Shi Yunyu turned away from everyone's gaze and said in a low voice, "This matter needs to be discussed in detail in private."
Su Jinxiu understood immediately and turned to the girls with a smile, saying, "Please continue your meal. I will be back in a moment."
A quarter of an hour later, Su Jinxiu and Shi Yunyu emerged from the main hall hand in hand, both beaming with laughter. Lan Shexiang was puzzled, wondering what Shi Yunyu had said that had made Su Jinxiu so happy.
"Sister Yunyu, you must be tired from your journey and haven't had a meal yet. Although my courtyard is not a magnificent palace, it has some simple wine and delicacies prepared. Please do me the honor of having some with us."
Shi Yunyu smiled slightly and curtsied, saying, "Since you are so kind, I would be impolite to refuse."
After taking their seats and drinking several rounds of wine, Shi Yunyu picked up a piece of food with her chopsticks and said seemingly casually, "It's quite a coincidence. I just came in from the front gate and saw a young man feeding horses. He was dressed very well, unlike an ordinary stable boy."
Su Jinxiu was taken aback when she heard this. The servants in her own household all wore short blue clothes, so how could they be considered respectable?
She hesitated for a moment, but before she could speak, Shi Yunyu sighed again, "It's getting hot these days. I saw him feeding the horses, washing them, and checking their hooves. He was sweating profusely, and the stables were very stuffy. Your servant is really dedicated, and... he looks quite handsome too."
As Su Jinxiu listened, her brows furrowed deeper and deeper, and she had already guessed most of what was going on. She suddenly stood up and said in a deep voice, "Excuse me."
Shi Yunyu watched her retreating figure, a slight smile playing on her lips.
Su Jinxiu stepped across the small bridge over the flowing water, passed through the hanging flower archway, and went straight to the small stable on the left side of the gate, where she finally saw that figure.
The man's sleeves were rolled up high, revealing his muscular forearms. His once exquisite clothes were now covered in straw and dust.
"Feng Chen".
He immediately turned around, his face still dripping with sweat, covered in dust, and even with a straw hanging from it.
Su Jinxiu frowned and said, "Didn't I tell you to leave?"
Feng Chen stood up awkwardly and patted his leg: "I..."
He hurriedly changed the subject, afraid of being chased away again: "Your horse seems to understand people very well. When I was leaving, it blocked my way."
As soon as the words left my mouth, I realized they were inappropriate.
Su Jinxiu was initially angry, but these words almost made her burst out laughing. She suppressed her laughter and said, "How come I didn't know? Our Zao Gao has the ability to stop people?"
"Is it called jujube cake? Jujube cake?" Fengchen asked tentatively.
As if understanding, Zao Gao immediately squeezed her head between the two of them.
Both of them wanted to reach out and touch Zao Gao's forehead, but their hands ended up touching each other without their consent. Su Jinxiu was startled and tried to pull her hand away, but Feng Chen gently pressed it against Zao Gao's warm forehead. Zao Gao didn't flinch, obediently becoming the medium for their intimacy.
He lowered his head, his body still warm from his work, his eyes shining like fallen stars.
"Why did you chase after me? Were you afraid I'd leave?"
"No, I came to see the jujube cake."
Feng Chen scoffed, "Zao Gao, Zao Gao, your hypocritical master treats you badly. Look at me, I washed and cleaned you as soon as I arrived. You might as well have come with me."
"Stop slandering me in front of jujube cake, I treat it very well!"
The two were arguing, but the previous hostility in their voices had disappeared.
At this moment, Shi Yunyu walked up to them. She first pretended to carefully examine Feng Chen, then clapped her hands as if suddenly realizing something, and laughed, "Oh my, isn't this my good-for-nothing cousin? What are you doing here?"
Before the two could react, she pulled Feng Chen aside and said to Su Jinxiu, "Miss Su, what a coincidence! My cousin somehow ended up here today. On this joyous occasion, could you do him a favor and let him in for a drink?"
Yes, Su Jinxiu had almost forgotten that on that day on the Imperial Street, Fengchen had affectionately called Shi Yunyu "elder sister".
His elder sister is no longer the commoner woman who could only embroider, but a more capable, prestigious, and promising court lady. She deserves his words, "My elder sister's favor is worth more than a thousand pieces of gold."
The slight relaxation she had just felt was instantly replaced by a strange, aching sadness. Unable to refuse, she could only whisper, "Let's go."
After taking their seats, Su Jinxiu drank one cup of wine after another in silence. Each time a guest was seen off, she would share a drink with them, repeatedly muttering, "Today is a joyous occasion for our housewarming, let's have a big toast! Everyone, drink up!"
Fengchen tried to stop her several times, but she stubbornly pushed him away. Deep down, she knew that without drowning her sorrows in alcohol, she wouldn't be able to handle the surging emotions. Only by getting drunk could she mask all her grievances and bitterness beneath the alcohol.
By the time most of the guests had left, she was already slumped over the table, panting heavily, completely drunk, with glistening tears silently sliding down her cheeks.
Shi Yunyu clearly hadn't expected Su Jinxiu to enjoy wine so much. She had intended to create some topics for conversation between the two, but now she could only look at Fengchen blankly.
A voice came from the doorway: "Qiao Niang, has everyone dispersed over here?"
Shi Yunyu asked, "Who is that?"
Feng Chen whispered something to her, and Shi Yunyu replied, "I'll go and hold him off for you."
After she left, she pulled Yi Ruxu aside to discuss matters. She was extremely eloquent and could talk about all things in the palace for two hours straight.
Feng Chen looked at Su Jinxiu, who was lying unconscious on the table, and sighed softly. He knelt down on one knee and carefully helped her up from the table.
As soon as I raised my hand, I touched her face covered in tears.
He was stunned, wondering why she was so sad.
"Qiaoqiao," he called softly.
Su Jinxiu was awakened by the two calls and slightly opened her tearful eyes, looking up at him with a hazy, drunken gaze.
"You're back?"
Fengchen thought she was talking about him and replied, "Yes, I didn't leave."
"You didn't leave? Where did you stay? You've been gone for ages..."
As she spoke, tears welled up again on her already tear-streaked face. She suddenly lunged forward and hugged Feng Chen, who was squatting on the ground. Feng Chen was startled; he had never seen her so proactive. She hugged him so tightly that his neck ached, but he immediately returned the hug, holding her close in his arms.
The next moment, she buried her face in his shoulder and burst into tears.
"...You still know to come back? When you weren't here...some bastards bullied me..."
"Who? Which bastard bullied you? Tell me!"
She cried even harder, choking out, "I... I'm telling you... is it even of any use?"
"It's useful! It's useful all the time! As long as I'm alive, it will always be useful!"
Su Jinxiu leaned on his shoulder, crying until she was almost exhausted, before slowly letting go. She sobbed, her face contorted with tears. Feng Chen tenderly raised his hand and gently wiped away her tears with his fingertips: "Who bullied you?"
She didn't answer, but simply stood up, took his hand, and walked towards the west wing.
Feng Chen followed closely behind, a sudden sense of disorientation washing over him.
It seems that on some distant afternoon, he was once led by her hand through some place.
What place are we passing through?
The blurry image gradually became clear.
We walked through the corridors adorned with vibrant hollyhocks, through the painted halls with hanging embroidered fabrics, and through the silence woven by time.
The entire journey was only a few feet long, yet it inexplicably evoked memories of a lifetime of good times.
But that's all there is to it.
When they stopped, they had arrived at the west wing next to the main hall. As soon as Feng Chen entered, he felt that the room was unusually familiar, as if he had lived somewhere before.
Su Jinxiu's initiative at this moment left him somewhat at a loss.
She wrapped her arms around his waist, pressed her face against his chest, and her tears quickly soaked his clothes. She said, slightly drunk, "The big courtyard isn't really nice. I don't really like it."
Feng Chen didn't understand, but he still hugged her tightly, gently brushed her cheek with his fingertips, and then lowered his head to kiss away her tears: "Life is better now, aren't you happy?"
"I'd rather not have these... I'd rather not have these..."
“Okay, no.” Feng Chen followed her words gently and asked, “Then what do you want? Do you want a bigger courtyard?”
Unexpectedly, these words made her cry so hard that her voice became shaky, and she almost spoke in a breathy voice.
I want you back.
Fengchen suddenly realized that the "you" she was referring to was not herself, but the person who had not returned or appeared—her Aqin.
His body stiffened little by little, but in the end, heartache outweighed anger and jealousy. He gently patted her back to comfort her, and in the tone she had imagined, he coaxed her softly, "I'm back, I'm back, I won't leave again."
Upon hearing this, Su Jinxiu slowly raised her head and carefully examined him, while he patiently returned her gaze.
The next moment, Su Jinxiu hooked her arms around his neck.
Feng Chen was stunned.
She tiptoed and gave him a kiss, stained with tears but utterly sincere.
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