Chapter 288 Ice Banquet
The first time Su Zhizhi got drunk in her life happened to be the first time she had her period.
Xue Che also experienced the first time in his life when he ran for help while holding someone.
The way he ran with the person in his arms made passers-by think a murder was about to happen.
If Su Zhizhi was awake, she would be very calm when she saw the blood.
Because her mother, Aunt Qiu and Sister Hua had all taught her so that she wouldn't panic when her period came.
Or, even if there is a male elder around, he or she will know what is happening at a glance.
However, Zhizhi was very drunk and there were no elders around.
Xue Che had read extensively books on sages and military strategy since he was young, but he unexpectedly ran into a blind spot in his knowledge and became the most panicked person that day.
He ran into the Black Mountain Mansion nervously, his clothes soaked with sweat. As soon as he entered the door, he shouted:
"Zhizhi's wound is broken!"
The villagers in the mansion have been particularly busy recently. There are not many people in the mansion during the day, but the few who are there rush over immediately.
Doctor Yu and Hua Erniang happened to be there.
While Xue Che explained the situation, he carried Su Zhizhi towards Doctor Yu and Hua Erniang's courtyard.
By the time Xue Che put Su Zhizhi on the couch, everyone understood the situation.
Hua Erniang: "You all go out first, I'll check Zhizhi."
After a while, Hua Er Niang came out with a smile.
Xue Che asked anxiously, "Sister Hua, how is Zhizhi?"
Hua Erniang: "Don't worry, Zhizhi is fine and not injured."
When everyone heard what Hua Erniang said, they more or less understood and went their separate ways.
Xue Che didn't understand: "But I clearly saw..."
Doctor Yu slapped a booklet on Xue Che and said, "Go back to your room, take a shower and change your clothes. Don't wait here. Go back and read this book and you'll know."
Xue Che went back in a daze.
He sat in the room, flipping through the pages of a book and reading carefully. After reading for half an hour, his cheeks were as red as tomatoes.
Thinking of himself running down the street with Zhizhi in his arms and even yelling when he entered the house, Xue Che covered his face with the book in embarrassment. While no one was in the yard, he wailed:
"ah--!"
Help! He's so embarrassed!
The martial arts academy only has one day off, but Heishanfu gave Zhizhi a few days off to rest at home.
Doctor Yu took Zhizhi's pulse again and again and said that it was Zhizhi's first menstruation and she had drunk too much, which caused her blood to be hot and she needed to rest well.
Don’t go to the martial arts school to practice swordplay and gunplay these days.
Hao Ren and Wu Yingniang also learned about this when they returned in the evening.
The next morning before leaving home, Wu Yingniang instructed her daughter:
"Our Zhizhi has grown up, but he is still my mother's little treasure. It's not that you can't drink alcohol in the future, but you must remember to avoid eating during this time of the month. Don't drink alcohol, don't eat cold food, and don't indulge in coldness."
Su Zhizhi ate her brown sugar eggs and nodded, "Mom, Sister Hua and Doctor Yu also told me yesterday. I'll remember it from now on."
She needs to be good to her body.
Only when you are in good health can you practice better and have fun everywhere.
After Wu Yingniang finished speaking, she suddenly laughed out loud:
"When you feel better, go thank A-Che. You scared A-Che yesterday. I heard he ran all the way back with you in his arms, thinking you were seriously injured."
Su Zhizhi recalled her childhood:
"I was scared by him before. He fainted and had a fever, and I thought he was going to die. I carried him up the mountain and picked a big Ganoderma lucidum for him."
After Su Zhizhi finished her brown sugar eggs, she went to Old Xu's yard to look for Xue Che.
"Ache!"
Xue Che was practicing sword in the yard. When he suddenly heard Su Zhizhi's voice, he almost stumbled.
"Zhizhi?" He turned around and saw Zhizhi standing by the wall under the pomegranate flowers, smiling.
"Zhizhi, why are you here? Aren't you supposed to stay in bed and rest?" Xue Che put down his sword, stuttered for a moment, and then asked, "Do you feel better? If it hurts, then rest."
He remembered reading in a pamphlet yesterday that women may experience abdominal cramps during their menstrual period.
Su Zhizhi: "I'm sober now. My head doesn't hurt at all. My stomach doesn't hurt either."
It was her first menstrual period, and she didn't seem to feel anything. She drank sweet brown sugar water in the morning and was in a good mood.
Xue Che breathed a sigh of relief when he saw that Su Zhizhi looked fine.
Su Zhizhi was about to sit down on the small stone bench in the yard. Xue Che bent down, took the towel beside him, and quickly wiped the stone bench to remove the dust before letting Su Zhizhi sit down.
Ever since Xue Che realized yesterday that Zhizhi was a girl, he felt that he could no longer treat Zhizhi as carelessly as before.
Be gentle, be careful...
Su Zhizhi's eyes showed satisfaction:
"Ah Che, very good, very good. If you lose, you should be prepared to be a younger brother."
She sat down confidently and asked Xue Che to pour her a glass of water.
Xue Che: ...
He saw Su Zhizhi smiling with a proud and complacent look on her face, completely different from the innocent and naive look she had when she was drunk yesterday. He suddenly felt that he had been dazzled yesterday.
Su Zhizhi: "It's hot now. You can eat ice cream in Chang'an in the summer. I can't eat it, but I can treat you to some."
When I was in Lingnan, we couldn’t eat ice in the summer, so we just drank cool well water and mountain spring water.
After arriving in the capital, Zhizhi learned that the wealthy families here stored ice in the winter and took it out and placed it indoors to cool down in the summer.
There are also shops selling iced drinks in the East Market and the West Market. They put crushed ice at the bottom of the bowl and pour yogurt and peach syrup on it.
Xue Che shook his head: "No need, I don't want to eat ice either."
Su Zhizhi asked Xue Che: "Yesterday you accompanied me to do what I wanted to do. Is there anything you want to do in Chang'an?"
Xue Che shook his head at first.
But Su Zhizhi didn't believe it and kept asking.
After a while, Xue Che lowered his eyes and said, "I want to go back to the mansion and burn some incense for my mother."
…
The weather is getting hotter day by day.
Although Su Zhizhi couldn't eat ice these days, there were many people in Chang'an City who wanted to eat ice.
There were many banquets in the palace, and an ice banquet would be held in early summer. Important ministers and nobles would be invited to the palace to eat ice to cool off, and they would also be given ice as a gift.
Hao Ren was neither an important official nor a nobleman, but because he was a favorite of the emperor and a close confidant of the emperor, he also got the opportunity to enter the palace and attend the banquet.
It was getting dark and the sun was setting behind the city wall.
Although it is not as hot as during the day, it is still very hot. The hot wind blowing on my body cannot dispel the heat.
Tonight's ice feast was held in the Hanliang Palace. A palace attendant carried a giant ice sculpture shaped like a dragon and a phoenix into the palace and placed it on a large ice jar. The jar had a groove around its outside for fine wine.
There were also several cubes of ice placed in the four corners of the hall.
Next to each ice cube stood a palace maid, holding a large fan and fanning the ice cube to blow the cold air towards the seats.
There were several translucent and crystal glass lamps in the hall, shining brightly, as if the lamps were covered with a layer of ice.
As soon as Hao Ren stepped into Hanliang Palace, he felt surrounded by cold air and his whole body turned cold.
Some older ministers even put on another coat to keep out the cold after sitting down.
Murong Yu sat high up, holding up the chilled wine glass:
"My dear ministers, I am hosting this ice banquet today to relieve the summer heat and fatigue, and to share the joy of peace with you all."
Murong Yu had a happy smile on his face, but there was no smile in his eyes.
The sign of Mars guarding his heart reported by the Imperial Astronomical Observatory a few months ago was like a thorn in his heart, preventing him from truly relaxing for a single moment.
He sent people to monitor each government office, and so far, there is nothing unusual.
But the more nothing seemed unusual, the more worried Murong Yu became, and the more he felt that something was going to happen.
When holding the Ice Banquet this time, he deliberately let the guards create the illusion of lax security and ambushed many people in secret to see if he could catch a big fish.
The ministers below naturally praised and thanked the emperor for his gift.
Some people were inspired to write poems on the theme of the Ice Banquet. On the surface, they praised the Ice Banquet, but they also implied a layer of praise for the emperor.
Murong Yu looked at Murong Xun with a forced smile:
"I heard that Seventh Brother has been very busy recently?"
He heard that the spies came back to report that Murong Xun had not been staying overnight in the mansion recently, but had been living in a villa in the suburbs, saying that he wanted to get some peace and quiet for a while.
Murong Yu's spies followed him to the farm in the suburbs. Although they hadn't found anything unusual, he was still worried. He wondered if Old Seven was truly seeking some peace and quiet, or if he had other plans.
When Murong Xun heard the emperor calling him, he quickly picked up his wine glass and said:
"My dear brother, I am just passing the time outside. I am sorry to have made you laugh."
There was unrest at home and he couldn't even smile in his house. He didn't want to go back for a while, so he went to live in the farm.
He stayed there for a while, but no one from the palace came to persuade him to go back.
No one brought their families to the Ice Banquet today, so Murong Xun felt more comfortable.
Murong Yu looked at He Tingfang again.
He Tingfang had already raised his glass to toast the emperor and said a lot of good things before sitting down.
At this time, He Ting was talking to the people on his left and right.
Murong Yu's eyes darkened.
Oh, he really looks like he is good at getting along with everyone.
Halfway through the banquet, dancers from the palace came in.
The dancers swayed their waists, their gauze clothes were tinged with a layer of coldness, like fairies from the Moon Palace descending to earth.
Just as everyone was watching fascinated, several streams of air like sharp arrows rushed in.
With a few whooshing sounds, the candles inside and outside the Hanliang Palace were extinguished, and the palace was plunged into darkness for a moment!
The scene instantly became chaotic.
"What's going on—"
"There's an assassin!"
"There's an assassin! Protect the king!"
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