Chapter 33 My sister cannot marry my brother…
Fortunately, the strange atmosphere didn't last long; the sound of the door opening broke the silence of the room.
Yu Tan tilted her head and looked over, her brows still a little dazed. "Ming Lang, you're here. Is your injury better?"
Her tone was soft and gentle, yet filled with concern, like a spring breeze that soothed his heart, and a smile returned to his face.
"It's just a minor injury, it's much better now, Yao Yao, don't worry."
"My lord has a bruise the size of a bowl on his back, the center of which is almost black. He's been in so much pain these past few days when we apply medicine to it," said Chu Minglang's personal servant.
"Shut up." Chu Minglang said in a low voice, stopping the servant's presumptuous act.
She looked at Chu Minglang carefully; his steps were steady, so he should be recovering soon.
Chu Minglang took a few steps closer, stopping just a step away from her, at a spot where she would soon grow tired of him.
Chu Minglang handled this matter extremely well, showing great tact and discretion. He didn't get too intimate with her and upset her, nor did he use the act of blocking the oxcart for her as a bargaining chip to hasten their engagement.
Chu Minglang whispered, "Yaoyao, would you like to come to the outer room with me? I've had it in my pocket for a few days now, but I haven't been able to give it to you yet despite coming back several times."
Perhaps it was a novel gift that Chu Minglang brought from Lingnan. She put down the account book in her hand, got up, and prepared to go out with Chu Minglang.
Yu He'an raised his hand to stop her movement, and said calmly, "Let's talk here. I also have something to say to Minglang. It concerns the imperial examination, so you won't have to go back and forth again."
Chu Minglang was flattered. He had mentioned the imperial examination to Yu He'an several times before, hoping to get some guidance from him. If he could achieve a good ranking in the next imperial examination and become an official, his future would be limitless.
"Brother He'an, you're too kind."
“The Chu and Yu families have been friends for generations. It is only right that you saved Yaoyao.” Yu He’an nodded.
Chu Minglang no longer cared about his previous plans. When giving gifts, he chatted with Yu Tan to get closer to her.
He handed the brocade box to Yu Tan with both hands, saying, "Yao Yao, knowing that you are interested in the Miao region, I went to look for it again. This is the complete copy of the ancient Miao book I found last time. I hope you like it."
Yu Tan smiled and thanked him, then opened the brocade box in front of Chu Minglang, revealing a withered ancient book inside.
She had an identical book on her desk, and she had read its contents several times.
"Thank you, Minglang."
Yu He'an's gaze fell on the ancient book, lingered for a few moments, then moved away, as if he had never seen the book before.
"I was originally thinking that with the arrival of spring and the warm weather, I could take a walk around the Marquis's mansion with Yao Yao. But then I remembered that the mansion still has the underfloor heating on, so it's not appropriate. In another half month, at the Spring Festival banquet, we'll go on a spring outing and fly kites together."
"Okay," she replied with a smile.
Those who know her well know that she always finds a quiet place to relax during the Spring Banquet.
She doesn't know how to ride horses or play football, and she finds outgoing walks and strolls too troublesome.
Chu Minglang smiled and said, "It's settled then."
Xuan paper was laid out on the desk, and slender fingers held a wolf-hair brush, the ink flowing across the white paper, and another landscape painting floated up.
His handwriting was strong and powerful, and his insights were unique and profound. He completely disregarded the answers given by Chu Minglang and Yu Tan.
“Minglang, you can take a look first. If you have any objections, we can discuss them. After all, there are still three years before your imperial examination. It shouldn’t be too difficult to prepare with your heart.”
Looking at Yu He'an's insights, he anticipated that Yu He'an's ranking would not be too low, and that entering the top three might be the top spot in this scientific expedition.
Chu Minglang was overjoyed. If he could get Yu He'an's help, his chances of passing the imperial examination would definitely be much better.
Judging from their expressions, they were probably going to discuss it for a while. With Chu Minglang around, she could no longer take a nap, and there was no point in staying.
She gathered the account books from the desk, stepped back, and said, "Brother, I've finished looking at my account books, so I'll head back to Lanfang Courtyard now."
"Hmm." Yu He'an looked up and responded softly, handing her the ledger he had marked. His fingertips brushed against the back of her hand, and she almost dropped the ledger.
In that instant of contact, her heart suddenly raced. She tidied up the account books, clutched the brocade box, turned and left the study. She hurried to the corridor, where the spring breeze brushed against her cheeks, and her heartbeat returned to normal.
A tall, slender figure was behind her, too close. She had assumed Chu Minglang had followed her out and instinctively wanted to move away. But as soon as she turned her head, she stopped in her tracks.
"Brother, why are you out here?"
"Come out for some fresh air." Yu He'an fiddled with the wind chimes, his gaze lingering on her for a moment, as if he wanted to say something but hesitated.
She frowned and tilted her head: "Brother, what's wrong?"
Yuhe placed the wind chimes: "Why do you want to go to the Spring Banquet this year? In previous years, you could always postpone it, right?"
She was taken aback. Could it be that Yu He'an had noticed her intention to be perfunctory? She quickly straightened her expression, cleared her throat, and pretended to be the most dutiful sister.
She turned her face away and lowered her voice, "I am very grateful to Minglang for saving me, so I should naturally go when he invites me."
Yu He'an's gaze lingered on her face for a moment, as if trying to find a flaw in her expression. After a long silence, he finally forced out a sentence.
"That's fine too."
After saying that, she turned and went back to her study. Her gaze passed through the doors and windows, where Yu He'an was already explaining the key points to Chu Minglang, just like an elder brother would treat his brother-in-law.
*
For the next two weeks, she would run into Chu Minglang eight out of ten times when she went to visit Madam Song in the morning.
As expected, we ran into each other again today.
"Yaoyao." Chu Minglang strode into the main hall of Hexiang Courtyard, looked around, and saw that the underfloor heating and braziers had all stopped working. "It's almost the end of March, almost April. The underfloor heating in the Marquis's mansion has finally stopped, and that stuffy feeling is finally gone."
She was afraid of the cold, so the underground heating in the Marquis's mansion was kept running early and stopped late; in colder years, it would only be turned off in April.
She was used to this kind of life, but she never expected that this kind of thing would be so stifling for Chu Minglang.
An awkward silence fell over the room. Old Madam Song chuckled kindly and waved to Chu Minglang.
"Minglang, come and sit down. We've been letting you stay at the Marquis's residence, and you still don't find it troublesome to travel back and forth every day. I was just talking to Yaoyao about the spring banquet."
She clenched her fingers, somewhat confused. She had thought that Old Madam Song hadn't mentioned Chu Minglang's stay at the Marquis's residence, but it turned out that he had refused.
Running back and forth every day is always a hassle; why can't one just stay at the Marquis's residence?
"I have long heard of the Spring Banquet in Bianjing. The spring breeze is gentle, swallows fly and grass grows, the emperor goes on an outing, and there are horse and archery competitions among the sons of noble families. It is extremely lively. I have never experienced such a scene while I am far away in Lingnan."
A maid brought a stool and sat next to Yu Tan. Chu Minglang sat beside Yu Tan, and Old Madam Song's gaze swept between the two of them.
Yu Tan wore a bright peach-red ruqun (a type of traditional Chinese dress), with several gold and kingfisher feather hairpins adorning her hair, reflecting a touch of blue. Chu Minglang wore a royal blue round-necked robe, the brocade trimmed with some water-red silk.
The two are a perfect match, both handsome and beautiful, and their clothes today are also very well-matched.
Madam Song smiled and winked at Yu Tan, hoping that Yu Tan and Chu Minglang would spend more time together, have more contact at the Spring Banquet, and ideally settle their marriage soon.
She had no choice but to lower her head further.
Chu Minglang turned to her, a smile playing on his lips, his peach blossom eyes filled with tenderness. "Yaoyao, we agreed to go together."
She responded softly with an "Mmm".
"I was just talking about Yaoyao, who stays cooped up in the Marquis's mansion all day. It turns out she agreed a long time ago without telling me."
The conversation and laughter between Madam Song and Chu Minglang created a peaceful atmosphere.
At least under her pretense, everyone felt satisfied.
She wanted to pull Chu Minglang away to escape, but she didn't want to get too involved with him. She wanted to invest less of her true feelings so that she wouldn't be too upset when she was kicked out.
"Grandmother, I still have some accounts to settle, so I'll be going now."
Madam Song's face tightened: "You have to look at the account books every time."
"grandmother."
Chu Minglang tried to smooth things over: "Madam Song, I'm just here to keep you company. If Yaoyao has something to do, please let her go."
"The flowers in the yard are all in bloom. Why are you young men and women staying in the house with this old lady instead of going out to play?" After saying this, Madam Song kicked the two out of the house.
Yu Tan walked ahead with her head down, and Chu Minglang followed behind her. The spring sunshine filled the path, and the forsythia bloomed all over the roadside, with small yellow flowers falling in the grass.
"Yaoyao, let's go that way." Chu Minglang pointed to the artificial hill by the small lake.
After passing the artificial hill, there was an octagonal pavilion, and she understood Chu Minglang's thoughts.
When the Chu family first arrived in Bianjing, the two families became friends, and the Chu family settled down in Yu's residence.
That day, Yu He'an had a lot of schoolwork. After her afternoon nap, she called him three times, but he didn't hear her twice. The third time, she ran out of the yard in a huff.
She would hide behind the artificial hill and play by picking grass. She would then chop up the grass and feed it to the fish in the lake. As a result, the fish she raised as a child died exceptionally quickly.
She had just finished pulling up a large bunch of grass when she heard footsteps and thought that Yu He'an had finally come to find her.
She didn't turn around, but then she heard a jingling sound.
When I turned around, a timid head peeked out from behind the artificial hill. It was thin and small, dressed in plain yellow brocade, with a large silver necklace around its chest and silver ornaments on its wrists and ankles.
Behind the little boy followed an even smaller radish-shaped girl, several inches thinner than him, with a pale face. She was dressed the same as him, her silver ornaments almost weighing her down. The only difference was that she carried a small bamboo basket at her waist.
When she saw that it wasn't Yu He'an who came to find her, her little face immediately turned sour.
"Who are you? What are you doing in my house?"
The boy replied obediently, "I am Chu Minglang from the Chu family of Lingnan. I am staying here with my parents."
I had heard my grandmother mention the Chu family of Lingnan. They were going to stay at the mansion for two months, but my grandmother stopped her from going. She only took Yu He'an to greet the guests, and she didn't know Chu Minglang.
Yu Tan considered the rockery her territory, and acting quite like a little master, she generously agreed to give them a piece of land to play on.
Yu Tan instructed, "Don't feed them to my fish; they die easily."
Although Chu Minglang didn't understand, he still nodded in agreement. As soon as he nodded, the little radish behind him also nodded, his face gloomy. "We won't feed him."
Yu Tan looked at the two people curiously, then pointed at the little radish, "Are you Chu Minglang's sister? You've been following him around."
Little Radish didn't speak, staring blankly at people, the silver necklace clinking together. "I'm not his sister, I'm going to marry Minglang in the future."
She realized that Little Radish Ding was Chu Minglang's younger sister.
Little Radish looked to be two years younger than her, maybe six or seven years old. At her age, she always talked about marrying Yu He'an.
After being tapped on the forehead several times by Old Madam Song, he finally corrected his mistake.
Yu Tan put her hands on her hips, pretending to be an adult, and said, "My sister cannot marry my brother."
Little Radish followed behind Chu Minglang, doing whatever Chu Minglang did. When Chu Minglang was still, she would quietly play with her little bamboo basket.
Yu Tan looked at it curiously for a few moments, then lifted the small bamboo basket, revealing it filled with countless tiny, dark insects crawling inside.
Yu Tan screamed and ran away. Little Radish looked up, his small, black pupils staring unblinkingly at her.
"Why are you playing with bugs? It's disgusting!" She shrank back in fear.
Chu Minglang interrupted, "Lily of the Valley, don't scare others."
Lily of the Valley covered the small bamboo basket with the lid, returned to Chu Minglang's side, and stopped looking at Jade Lotus.
After a while, Yu Tan realized that she was older than Ling Lan and that it was embarrassing for her to be frightened by Ling Lan in her own home.
"So your name is Lily of the Valley."
Linglan ignored her and hid behind Chu Minglang, while Yu Tan went to feed the fish by herself.
Two new people finally arrived at the Marquis's residence, and Yu Tan found them novel and often came to visit them for the next two months.
"Yaoyao, be careful."
Yu Tan was lost in reminiscing about the past and didn't pay attention to her footing. She slipped and fell towards Chu Minglang.
As long as this storyline exists, whether she pays attention or not, whenever she spends time with Chu Minglang, she will be twisted into wanting to get close to him.
Chu Minglang supported her arm, and she used the support to steady herself. She curtsied to Chu Minglang and said, "Thank you, Minglang."
The path leads to the artificial hill by the lake, and the trees on both sides of the path have sprouted new buds.
"Yaoyao, there's no need to be so polite with me. When I first came to the Marquis's residence, I only thought the trees were tall and imposing. Now, looking at them again, I realize they are just small trees that can barely be embraced. Times have changed." Chu Minglang helped her up but didn't let go, sighing at the passage of time.
She politely raised the corners of her lips and withdrew her arm. "I remember when we first met at the rockery, you were accompanied by a little girl."
Chu Minglang's hands were empty. He smiled awkwardly, frowned, and thought for a moment, "Was there a little girl with me at the time?"
“She claims to be your sister.” Yu Tan nodded, then thought for a moment and felt something was off. “It seems she wants to marry you.”
Chu Minglang approached for a while, broke off a willow twig, twirled it with his fingers, thought for a moment, and then, as if suddenly remembering something, laughed and said, "Yaoyao, you haven't been jealous for this long, have you?"
"You've misunderstood." How could she possibly be jealous? At this moment, she only felt that Chu Minglang was frivolous, and she turned away coldly to the side.
“Back then, my parents believed the words of a wandering Taoist priest who said that I would be difficult to raise, so they took a little girl home and she stayed with me until she was ten years old.”
This was somewhat similar to her own experience, and she was a little curious about how the Chu family treated Linglan later.
Chu Minglang pulled her to a good spot on the artificial hill and sat her down. "You can see most of the scenery of the Marquis's mansion from here. It's really beautiful. I wanted to climb up here to see it when I was a child."
She sat down next to Chu Minglang and pressed, "What happened to Linglan later?"
“Of course, they were sent away.”
Yu Tan was extremely disappointed: "Didn't she stay in the Chu family? She's lived in the Chu family for so long, she must be used to it and reluctant to leave."
Chu Minglang froze for a moment, as if his secret had been touched, but he quickly regained his gentle demeanor and reached out to ruffle Yu Tan's hair. "She's gone."
"We grew up together, are we going to be sent away too?"
Chu Minglang moved closer, his smile becoming even more pronounced.
"Of course, Yao Yao, I've explained everything honestly and clearly. Do you still have any doubts?"
Yu Tan shook her head, feeling sorry for Linglan's fate. Judging from her expression, she must be just like her, loving her family and reluctant to leave.
If one of them has a shallow lifeline, they are prone to great calamities in this life. They can use a "life-and-death" gu to ward off disasters. The two need to grow up together and cannot be separated.
But Chu Minglang said they had already separated, which was different from what she had seen.
"Was Linglan reluctant to leave back then? Did you go to see her afterwards?"
"Why keep bringing her up when we're enjoying the beautiful spring scenery?" Chu Minglang avoided the topic.
Yu Tan pursed her lips, remembering her favorite book, "The Princess Returns to Court," and she wanted to go back and finish reading it.
A gentle breeze caressed her face as she gazed into the distance, and she happened to see Yu He'an standing tall and elegant in the pavilion across the lake, conversing with a young man in a purple robe.
Even though Yu He'an hadn't seen them at all, she had the strange feeling that she'd been caught doing something wrong.
Her heart skipped a beat, and she hurriedly looked away, wishing she could grab Chu Minglang and hide in a rockery.
Author's Note: Thank you MiMao for the nutrient solution [lop-eared rabbit head].
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