Chapter 606 Examining Yu Mingyue
The autumn rain that had been drizzling all night finally stopped in the early hours of the morning. But even though the rain had stopped, the rainwater that had gathered on the eaves continued to drip down like beads from a broken string, washing the bluestone slabs under the eaves clean and making a steady, pleasant pattering sound.
The wind didn't stop; after rustling and shaking the surrounding pines and cypresses, it suddenly intensified, blowing open a half-closed window.
Suddenly, the raindrops dripping from the eaves were blown away, turning into a fine mist that drifted into the room and covered Tushe'er's face, who was sleeping on the bed by the window.
"Wow!"
A chill immediately jolted her awake.
Her soft exclamation also woke up Changwan and Woxue on the other two beds in the room. The two of them barely opened their eyes and saw Tusheer sit up, wiping the rain off her face while grumbling angrily, "What the hell? You splashed my face with rain first thing in the morning, how annoying!"
Chang Wan rubbed her eyes and asked, "What's wrong?"
Tushe'er pouted and said, "The window wasn't closed properly, and the wind blew the rain in, soaking my face."
Chang Wan got out of bed and went over to take a look. Sure enough, the rain that had been seeping in through the cracks in the window had soaked Tu She'er's bedding quite a bit. She shook her head with a smile and said, "That's how it is when you sleep in a bed by the window. You have to remember to close the window tightly, otherwise when it rains, the whole bed will be soaked in water."
Tushe'er said, "But I just can't remember."
Changwan reached out to close the window tightly for her, then looked down at her and said, "How about we switch back? I'll sleep here, and you can sleep in your original bed?"
Tushe'er thought for a moment, then shook his head and said, "I don't want to."
"Why?"
"I'd better sleep on rainy days. I often miss my time and get scolded by my wife. I wouldn't dare do that after entering the palace. If I sleep by the window, the sound of rain will wake me up."
Hearing her say that, Chang Wan chuckled, and even Wo Xue, who was not usually joking, pursed her lips.
As they spoke, they heard the sounds of palace servants bustling about outside. The three of them dared not delay and immediately got up to wash and dress. After making the bed, they prepared a copper basin and towels, fetched hot water, and went to the main hall of Qianqiu Palace to help the King and Queen get up.
Originally, after entering the palace, the palace maids should have lived in Yongxiang. However, the maids brought by the Prince of Han and the Prince of Qin from the Duke's mansion were personal servants and different from the ordinary palace servants. Therefore, they were arranged to live in the row of rooms in the backyard of Chengqian Hall and Qianqiu Hall. Although it was more spacious than the servants' rooms in the Duke's mansion, the furnishings were simpler. As soon as Tushe'er entered, she couldn't help but complain a couple of times. She was persuaded by Changwan, who even gave her her bed by the window, which led to the laughter and commotion this morning.
The three of them walked from the backyard to the front hall, which was only a few steps away. Once inside the hall, they saw that the two of them had already gotten up.
Even Yuwen Ye, already dressed, went to the open space in front of the hall to practice his sword. Chang Wan immediately stood aside to serve him, while Tu She'er went into the inner hall and saw Shang Ruyi sitting on the edge of the bed, her cheeks slightly flushed, lost in thought.
She immediately stepped forward: "Your Highness, what's wrong?"
"……Um?"
Shang Ruyi slowly raised her head to look at her. For some reason, her face turned even redder, which startled Tu She'er. She immediately stepped forward and reached out to touch her forehead, and indeed felt that it was a little hot.
She immediately asked, "Your Highness, are you ill? Do you have a fever?"
Shang Ruyi waved her hand: "No."
"Then why is your face so red and hot?"
"I just woke up, and it's hot."
"Hot? It rained last night, it was quite cold."
Tushe'er was puzzled and glanced at the bed again. There was only a thin quilt, which had been thrown to the corner of the bed, as if it had not been covered all night. It did not seem like something that could make Shang Ruyi's cheeks turn so red from the heat.
At this point, Shang Ruyi became a little "impatient" and pushed her, saying, "Stop looking around and hurry up and help me wash up."
"Oh, okay."
Tushe'er didn't know what she was thinking, so she could only help her get off the bed immediately. The water in the basin wasn't too hot anymore, but it was just right for Shang Ruyi. The warm water splashed on her still burning face, and it immediately cooled her down, making her face less red. After she finished washing up and sat down at the dressing table, Tushe'er immediately came over to comb her long hair. By this time, she looked normal.
Tushe'er asked, "Miss, what are we going to do today?"
Shang Ruyi said, "His Majesty has ordered that a banquet be held today for the meritorious officials who have helped in controlling the plague, and it seems that they will also be going on a tour of the inner court. We will all be going with them."
Upon hearing this, Tushe'er's eyes lit up: "An excursion to the inner court? Can this servant go along?"
Shang Ruyi said, "If you become mute, I will take you there."
Tushe'er immediately pouted.
Looking at her aggrieved expression in the bronze mirror, Shang Ruyi couldn't help but laugh.
Just then, Yuwen Ye finished practicing his swordplay and walked in from outside, wiping away sweat. Although the weather was slightly cool, he was still drenched in sweat and his face was slightly flushed after practicing a set of sword techniques. Moreover, as soon as he entered the inner hall, his burly figure was immediately reflected in the bronze mirror in front of Shang Ruyi.
Two pairs of bright eyes were almost involuntarily drawn together.
In that instant, Shang Ruyi inevitably recalled the morning when she was gradually awakened from her deep sleep by the sounds of palace servants moving around outside. The moment she opened her eyes, she was so confused that she didn't even know where she was when she met a pair of eyes that were so close to hers. They should have been cold and indifferent, but they were inexplicably filled with burning emotions.
That intense heat, just one glance at her, seemed to travel from her eyes into her heart.
Shang Ruyi was immediately jolted awake by the scalding heat, but she remained motionless, staring blankly at him.
Then, amidst his increasingly hot breaths, she gradually regained her senses and suddenly realized that she had somehow ended up in his arms, her hands tightly wrapped around his lean waist as if afraid she would move around. Yuwen Ye also had one hand around her back, and the two of them were pressed tightly together without any gap.
No wonder, it's not cold at all.
Not only was she not cold, but in her sleep, she felt several times that her whole body was immersed in the warm spring river. The river water flowed slowly over her, brushing against her skin, bringing a smooth and gentle touch that made her feel so comfortable that her whole body was soft and weak. Even at this moment, there were still waves of tingling numbness in her body.
Immediately, Shang Ruyi's face flushed again.
"Huh?"
Tushe'er tilted her head, looked at Shang Ruyi in the bronze mirror, blinked, and said, "Miss, why is your face red again? Do you really have a fever? Should we call a doctor to take a look?"
"...!"
Shang Ruyi was both angry and resentful, and all she wanted to do was drag the girl away and give her a good beating.
What's even more infuriating is that Yuwen Ye's reflection in the bronze mirror seemed to pause for a moment, then turned his head away to wash up without looking at her again. Shang Ruyi then gritted her teeth and whispered, "Have you forgotten all the rules I taught you? Still talking so much after entering the palace, do you want a beating?!"
Tushe'er hadn't expected her to be so fierce. On her first day in the palace, she acted like the Princess Consort of Qin. She didn't dare to say much, shrank her neck, obediently lowered her head to comb her hair, and then slunk away.
Shang Ruyi took a deep breath to calm herself down.
Before long, Yuwen Ye finished washing up and changing his clothes. The palace servants had already set out breakfast on a low table on one side of the inner hall. Since the two of them were now the Prince of Qin and the Princess of Qin, their meals were arranged according to the rations for princes in the palace. It was more than twice as much as it had been in the Duke's mansion before. The table was full and as lavish as a regular feast.
The two walked over and took a look, and both couldn't help but take a deep breath.
Shang Ruyi glanced at Yuwen Ye, who also glanced at her, and then said, "There are too many here."
The palace servant who was setting out the meal hurriedly replied with a smile, "Your Highness, this is exactly the breakfast portion for the princes and princesses in the palace, no more and no less."
Yuwen Ye said, "I don't need that many here. Starting tomorrow, remove half of them."
"this--"
The palace servant hesitated for a moment, but then thought that asking for more would be overstepping the bounds, while asking for less wouldn't be a crime. At most, he would be the one who suffered a loss, and it wouldn't be worth the effort to persuade him. So he immediately smiled and said, "Yes."
Yuwen Ye then waved his hand, and the palace servant immediately withdrew.
The two then sat down at the table.
The two of them usually ate simply, so when there was a lot of food, they didn't know where to start. In the end, Yuwen Ye picked up the chopsticks in front of him, gripped them tightly, and said to Shang Ruyi, "Eat."
"……Um."
Shang Ruyi tried her best to appear calm. Although the color on her cheeks was beyond her control, the two of them remained silent and managed to finish breakfast in a relatively peaceful manner.
A short while later, Eunuch Yu arrived with his men to deliver a message.
It is said that the emperor had originally summoned several meritorious officials who had helped control the plague to the palace today to accompany him on a tour of the inner court, as a reward for these meritorious officials. However, he suddenly had important matters to attend to and asked the Prince of Han and the Prince of Qin to do it for him.
Before leaving, Eunuch Yu smiled and said, "The two who are acquainted with the King of Qin will be here soon."
Yuwen Ye and Shang Ruyi both nodded in agreement, then saw Eunuch Yu off. Watching his figure disappear outside the palace gates, Shang Ruyi turned to Yuwen Ye: "The two Eunuch Yu mentioned, are they—?"
Yuwen Ye said, "Who else could it be?"
Shang Ruyi smiled, pursing her lips.
A short while later, the two familiar figures appeared outside the main hall. It was Shen Wuzheng and Pei Xingyuan. Although they were walking side by side, it was clear that one of them was still and the other was moving. Shen Wuzheng walked straight ahead with his posture upright and his eyes straight ahead, while Pei Xingyuan walked while looking at the scenery around him and said with a smile, "The scenery here is really nice, much better than that little courtyard in the Duke's mansion."
Shen Wuzheng said, "What did you promise me? Shouldn't you speak less once you enter the palace?"
"Well--"
As they were talking, the two looked up and saw Yuwen Ye and Shang Ruyi coming out of the main hall to greet them.
Upon seeing them, Pei Xingyuan's eyes lit up, but Shen Wuzheng coughed lightly beside him, stopping him from making any outrageous moves. He could only obediently follow him, and the two of them stepped forward at the same time, bowing and paying their respects: "Greetings, Your Highness Prince Qin, Greetings, Princess Qin."
Yuwen Ye quickly stepped forward to help them up, saying, "No need for formalities."
Pei Xingyuan immediately beamed with joy: "See, Feng Chen is still the most humane one. I knew he wasn't the kind of person who would become distant from us after becoming the King of Qin. He's still the same as before."
Shen Wuzheng shook his head helplessly.
Even Yuwen Ye shook his head, then said, "When we're alone, we'll naturally act the same as before, but in front of outsiders, you need to know what you should do. If you're punished for being impolite, I won't save you."
Pei Xingyuan smiled and said, "Of course."
As she spoke, she looked up at Shang Ruyi, who was smiling at them with bright eyes that were curved into crescents, and asked, "Your Highness, is everything alright?"
Shang Ruyi smiled and said, "Alright. Brother, Young Master Pei, please come into the hall."
The two nodded, and were led into the Thousand Autumns Palace by the two men.
Pei Xingyuan and Shen Wuzheng both spent part of their childhood in Chang'an, but neither of them ever entered the palace. At most, they had only stood in front of the palace gates and knew that the Daxing Palace was much taller and more magnificent than the Ziwei Palace in Luoyang, which they were more familiar with later. But once they actually entered and saw the scenery inside, they realized the grand vision that the people who built the Daxing Palace had.
Pei Xingyuan exclaimed, "This Qianqiu Palace truly lives up to its name of 'thousand autumns'!"
As they were talking, Changwan and Tushe'er came forward to serve tea and snacks. Pei Xingyuan picked up his teacup, took a sip, and then said, "I heard that Qianqiu Palace is one of the few palaces in the palace that has not been renamed."
Yuwen Ye nodded.
Pei Xingyuan continued, "I've heard that His Majesty has changed the names of quite a few palaces, especially—"
He fell silent at this point, and the eyes of the three people sitting around the table suddenly flickered.
Yuwen Ye said, "You found out too?"
Pei Xingyuan said, "Of course."
"The news spread so fast?"
"It's not that the news travels fast,"
Shen Wuzheng said calmly, "When we entered the palace, we also encountered other people entering the palace. We came to Qianqiu Hall, but the others were led to Jixian Hall."
Upon hearing this, Shang Ruyi immediately replied, "The others are—"
Shen Wuzheng looked up at her and said softly, "Yu Mingyue, the corrector of the Jixian Hall."
"The Hall of Gathering Sages?"
Upon hearing this unfamiliar name, Shang Ruyi's eyes widened in surprise. Shen Wuzheng patiently smiled and said, "His Majesty has renamed the National Academy as the Hall of Gathering Sages, and Yu Mingyue has been appointed as the head of the Hall of Gathering Sages."
"..."
"She is currently the only female official in the Jixian Hall."
Shang Ruyi was somewhat surprised and subconsciously exchanged a glance with Yuwen Ye, but there wasn't much surprise in their eyes.
Yu Mingyue's investiture was indeed not unexpected.
Even they could see Yu Mingyue's extraordinary qualities and perplexing nature, let alone Yuwen Yuan. For an emperor, a woman with such outstanding abilities and a special relationship with his eldest son would naturally not escape his discerning eye.
However, as the eldest daughter of the Yu family, Yu Mingyue had no reason to appear by his side all the time. The best solution was to bestow upon her a minor official position that required her to serve in front of the emperor from time to time.
Therefore, he was examining Yu Mingyue for Yuwen Qian's sake.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com