Chapter 193: Boating in the Lotus Pond
Chen Shuyao thought of Princess Huayang, whom she had just met, and quickly lowered the curtain.
But just two breaths later, the curtain beside him was pulled open from the outside again.
She didn't want to look, but her mother-in-law was still across from her. "What...are you doing?"
The man had already dismounted from his horse. He looked at his wife for a long moment before saying to his mother, "I came to see if there was anything you needed."
Wang smiled teasingly, but waved her hand at her son, saying, "Alright, go and do your thing! I'll be watching over you!"
"Okay!" he said quickly, and waved his hand in front of the young woman's eyes as he left.
Then the curtain dropped.
Chen Shuyao heard the sound of horse hooves fading away, and when she looked up, she met her mother-in-law's gaze.
She seemed very happy and scolded, "This brat!" Then she shook her head helplessly.
It was only twenty or thirty miles from the palace to Yunxiu Villa, but there was an endless stream of carriages, and by the time the entire team arrived, it was already past noon.
The villa is surrounded by water on three sides, and many rare trees grow inside. It is said that the largest sycamore tree is six meters tall.
In addition, there are pines, cypresses, bamboos, and various seasonal flowers.
When Chen Shuyao walked into the villa, she felt the thick shade and the coolness.
She heard the rustling of lotus leaves and the breeze from the water blowing against her face.
Chen Shuyao stood there for a while, and it seemed that all the heat along the way had disappeared completely.
The palace servant who was in charge of leading the way was very polite when he met the Crown Prince's wife. He introduced the situation in the villa as they walked, and when he saw the other party stop, he waited there patiently.
In addition to the temples, there are also two-story wooden buildings scattered around in the forest, and there seem to be quite a few of them.
But the ministers and their families together numbered several hundred people. If they were divided like this, there would be only a few families who would not have to share their homes with others. The Xiao family was one of these families.
Chen Shuyao and Xiao Mo's residence was independent of the Xiao family and not far from the palace of the little emperor and Princess Huayang.
The palace servant led them to a two-story building and said attentively, "Madam, do you think it is suitable for you? If you need anything, please send someone to find me."
Chen Shuyao nodded in agreement, knowing that the young eunuch was just being polite and that these accommodations had been arranged by the Ministry of Internal Affairs before they arrived.
Now that it is under the emperor's nose, what can be done even if it is not suitable?
The palace servant called himself Eunuch Liu. When Shen Shuyao left, she asked the maid to hand over the silver ingot, but he waved his hands repeatedly and said, "Madam, please stay here! I see Prince Xiao every day in the palace, so he is an old acquaintance."
Chen Shuyao listened to the meaning of his words and gave up.
As they had just arrived, Huixiang stayed behind to sort out the daily necessities they brought with them, while Qiaowei went out with the lunch box.
The vegetables eaten in the villa were brought in this morning. Eunuch Liu had just told me the approximate location of the kitchen.
As soon as Shen Shuyao sat down, she heard Xiao Mo coming over.
He walked into the house, took a look, and asked, "What do you think?"
"It's a little inconvenient, but it's really cool in the villa." Chen Shuyao said seriously.
Xiao Mo also nodded. "You are tired this morning, so take a good rest in the afternoon. I will take you boating in the evening."
Hearing the sound of boating, Shen Shuyao felt a little excited.
When she arrived just now, she saw many small boats parked by the water. "Well, if the emperor can't spare the time, I can go with Zisu and the others."
Xiao Mo tapped her head and left with a smile.
After a while, Qiao Wei came back with a lunch box. The dishes were pretty good. After they finished eating, Chen Shuyao rinsed her mouth and went to bed.
After that, she slept until the man came back in the evening. Then they hurriedly had dinner and went out.
The sun was only slightly westward at this time, and the couple met many acquaintances along the way.
The Xiao family, the Qingyuan Marquisate, the Shen family...
Chen Shuyao inevitably stopped to exchange pleasantries with the female relatives, but Xiao Mo rarely spoke and only nodded when he met them.
When we got to the water's edge, we saw that quite a few people were already there.
Xiao Mo got on the boat by himself and stretched out his arm to her. Chen Shuyao thought that he was going to lead her over, so she only extended one hand.
But when the man looked at the distance between the bow of the boat and the shore, he hooked his arm around his wife's waist and carried her onto the boat.
It was as if the waters had suddenly become quiet. Chen Shuyao looked up and saw that those who were paddling had forgotten to paddle, and those who were chatting and laughing had forgotten to chat. Now they were all looking at them in surprise.
Chen Shuyao's cheeks flushed, and she glared at the man in front of her.
"Ah..." Suddenly, a startled cry came from the side.
Everyone looked in the direction of the voice and saw a woman in a light green dress. She had thin eyebrows and a delicate face, and her hair was combed in a girl's bun. Her face looked childish, but her figure was exquisite and well-proportioned.
But at this moment, the other person's clothes were already a little wet, as if she had been accidentally splashed with water.
Everyone's expression became a little subtle for a moment.
Before Shen Shuyao could take a closer look, she heard the man beside her say, "Let's go."
He quickly picked up the oars and soon overtook the men.
When you reach the middle of the water, the afterglow of the setting sun just happens to be spread on the water surface, making it look like a patch of golden light.
Chen Shuyao reached out to grab the lotus flower next to him, but he couldn't reach it. Seeing that the person in front of him had already lay down, he casually picked a lotus pod behind his head and handed it to him.
Chen Shuyao thought about it and stopped competing with the lotus flower. Instead, she started peeling the lotus pod and eating it.
The man's eyes were slightly closed, as if he had fallen asleep.
Chen Shuyao had nothing to do, so she began to appreciate the rare scenery of the lotus pond.
But after a while, the sound of water was heard coming from deep in the lotus leaves, and then a small boat appeared in front of him. The man on the boat was wearing a sky-blue robe.
His eyes were looking straight ahead, and his paddling movements were focused and attentive.
Seeing that they were about to miss each other, "Cousin Cui!" Chen Shuyao couldn't help but call out.
As if she felt that her voice was a little higher, she looked at the man next to her and saw that he was still lying with his eyes closed, sleeping leisurely.
Cui Shixuan seemed to come back to his senses suddenly. When he saw the woman sitting on the boat, the indifference on his face gradually turned into joy.
Seeing that she was holding a lotus awning in her hand, he rowed the boat closer and asked, "Cousin, do you want another lotus awning?"
Chen Shuyao looked at the big bunch in the other person's hand and quickly nodded with a smile.
Cui Shixuan placed the lotus pod on the side of the boat, and saw the woman in front of him smiling brightly. "I heard that Cousin Cui had come to the capital. Are you adjusting well here?"
Cui Shixuan also smiled: "Not bad."
But when he wanted to say something else, he heard his cousin Xu in front of him say, "Are you awake?"
Cui Shixuan had seen a piece of black brocade robe exposed behind the other person before, but he didn't pay much attention to it. Now when he suddenly saw Xiao Mo, he was stunned for a moment.
Xiao Mo sat up facing the gaze of the two people. He looked like he had just woken up and there was no expression on his face.
Then he called out to his cousin, then looked at the lotus pod in his wife's arms and said calmly, "You can't eat too much either."
Chen Shuyao blinked. She listened to the two men exchanging pleasantries but never had a chance to interrupt.
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