Chapter 40 Chapter 40 Must
In the wing room of the courtyard, Lu Shenru looked at the box full of hairpins, and his eyes couldn't help but fall on the lilac hairpin in his hand.
The long string of flowers looked just like the flowers blossoming on branches in April. It matched her lilac dress that day and was most suitable to be worn in her hair.
But she wouldn't want to.
Lu Shenru lowered his eyes and put the lilac hairpin back into the box.
Just as he put the flowers back, he heard her soft footsteps outside.
She came back from outside, walked to the outside of his closed room, and stopped.
Lu Shenru remained silent, looking out quietly from the corner of her eyes, and her lavender figure vaguely appeared outside the window.
"Has the Lord eaten yet?"
Du Lingjing asked from outside the window.
The room was as quiet as before, except that Chongping, who was guarding the door, glanced at the Marquis when he heard the voice.
The man sat at the table, his hand on the hairpin box, his lips pursed, and he didn't respond.
He didn't say anything, but his wife was still waiting outside the yard for an answer.
The two of them couldn't see each other through the window, but there was an uneasy atmosphere flowing inside and outside the room.
Chongping had to speak for someone.
"Madam, the Marquis has finished his meal."
After the reply was passed on, Du Lingjing nodded in the yard, but she did not leave yet. She looked into the window of the wing room covered by window paper and asked softly again.
"My Lord, you must be tired after riding all the way back. Would you like some tea?"
The lady asked again. She was not angry because the marquis did not respond just now. Instead, her voice became even gentler.
Chongping couldn't help but look at the gentleman, and Lu Shenru also paused slightly at the gentle voice.
But then he spoke in a low voice.
"She is not allowed to come into the wing."
Chongping: “…”
This means that the Madam is not allowed to make tea or grind ink, and she is not allowed to get close at all?
Chongping looked at the sullen marquis with a complicated expression, and could only reply on his behalf.
"Madam, there is no need to bother. I have already made tea for you, my Lord."
He could only say this, he couldn't say it exactly as the Marquis said. But if the lady still insisted on coming in, could he still drive her out?
Chongping was uncertain and looked quietly into the courtyard through the crack in the door.
Lu Shenru also looked at the light purple outside the window.
He missed her, did she have anything else to ask him? If she asked him one more question, he might consider replying to her.
But she just said "Oh" softly and walked away slowly.
The man snapped shut the box containing the box full of hairpins he had bought for her.
Chongping: “…”
If he doesn't reply to others' questions and doesn't let anyone get close to him, it would be strange if he didn't leave.
Du Lingjing saw that he was indeed angry, and this time he didn't even let her see him.
Qiulin made ginger tea for her to warm her body. Du Lingjing held the teacup and drank for a long time, thinking about what Tingjun had said outside just now, and was absent-minded for a while.
At this time Chong'an suddenly came.
Chong'an bowed to her and asked her.
"Madam, are we ready to set off?"
Du Lingjing was stunned for a moment, "Today?"
The marquis had just dismounted from his horse less than half an hour ago. Even if he was physically strong, he would still need to rest for half a day, right?
She thought he was always busy, so she said tomorrow, "Let's go early tomorrow morning?"
She replied to Chong'an in this way, and Chong'an took her words.
Although Du Lingjing's illness had improved a lot, he was still a little tired. Seeing that this person was just in the side room and had been waiting for him for a long time but he didn't come out, he closed his eyes and took a nap.
She didn't want Chong'an to come again just as she woke up.
She noticed that the young guard had a strange look on his face, so she walked up to him and repeated what had just happened.
Walk up to her, greet her, and then ask her.
"Madam, are we ready to set off?"
Du Lingjing thought she was half asleep and didn't say anything for a while. But Qiulin was blinking and looking at Chong'an.
"Is Guard An also sleepy? Didn't I come to ask about this an hour ago?"
I have asked and the lady has answered, saying that she will leave tomorrow.
Not only Qiulin remembered it, Ai Ye also remembered it, but Du Lingjing saw that Chongan's expression became even weirder, and he was just waiting for her answer.
In the side room, a certain marquis still hadn't come out. Only a few fallen leaves were quietly swirling in the wind-swept courtyard.
Du Lingjing couldn't help but wonder, does he want her to set off with him today?
Why not just say it directly and let Chong'an ask her if she wants to leave?
She couldn't help but ask Chong'an, "What if I still say I'll leave tomorrow?"
When she asked, Chong'an's expression became even more bitter, and he frowned and spoke in a low voice.
"Then I will come back to ask Madam next hour."
"Next hour?" Du Lingjing blinked. "My Lord has ordered you to come and ask me every hour if I don't leave today?"
Chong'an's face was almost wrinkled into a bitter gourd. He nodded to her repeatedly, but he was still afraid that the Marquis would know that he had told the lady, so he couldn't help but look behind him.
Fortunately, there was no one in the yard.
But the wind outside the yard blew even harder, as if it was pouring out from his closed room, and was rampant in the yard with a dull sound.
Du Lingjing didn't know what to say.
He wanted her to go with him today, but he didn't tell her. She suggested tomorrow, but he refused.
He insisted on taking her away, but he didn't say it directly, and only asked someone to ask once every hour.
She has to say it herself that she wants to go with him today.
Du Lingjing: "..."
If she said she wouldn't leave again this time, would he be even angrier?
At this moment Qiu Lin suddenly couldn't help but mutter something.
"What if Madam insists on leaving tomorrow no matter how many times she asks?"
Chongan almost knelt down in front of her and looked at her pleadingly, "Sister Qiulin, don't do this..."
Qiu Lin covered her mouth and tried to hold back her laughter.
Du Lingjing couldn't help but think that every time he came to ask her and she didn't respond, he would get more angry. By tomorrow, one layer upon another, wouldn't he be furious?
Inexplicably, she thought of the puffed-up frogs in the small pond behind the Mian Building...
How could there be such a weird person in the world?
She couldn't help wanting to laugh, but looking at Chong'an's miserable expression, she was too embarrassed to laugh and could only cover her lips with her hands.
"Madam?" Chong'an was still waiting for her answer.
"You go and talk to him." Du Lingjing said.
Chong'an looked over nervously, afraid that his wife still didn't want to leave, his palms were sweating, but he heard his wife speak softly.
"I am packing my bags and will set off with you, my Lord."
After he finished speaking, Chong'an breathed a sigh of relief and wanted to bow to Du Lingjing. Then he ran out of the door and went to the side room to report.
Du Lingjing couldn't help but look at the doors and windows of the wing room.
The doors and windows were still closed, but inexplicably, the wind that was howling in the yard slowed down.
They packed up quickly in half an hour and were ready to set off.
Du Lingjing then saw her man coming out of the side room. He had changed into the dark-patterned brocade robe that he usually wore, with a leather belt around his waist and long boots on his feet.
At this moment, his footsteps paused slightly in the middle of the yard, and his eyes looked at her, but it seemed that his eyes only fell on her collar and then retracted.
He didn't look at her, but turned around and gave orders to his attendants.
"Please get in the car, ma'am."
Then he strode out.
Du Lingjing really felt that there was no one in the world with a weirder temper than him.
He wanted to laugh but shook his head, just at this moment Tingjun came over after hearing the news.
The man with a strange temper was very polite to Tingjun. He first said a few words to Tingjun in front of the door. When he saw her coming out, he said goodbye to Tingjun and went forward to lead the horse.
Hu Tingjun naturally didn't expect that they would set off so soon.
Du Lingjing explained helplessly.
"He insisted on leaving..."
Tingjun had no idea how he could "insist" on making Jingniang follow him helplessly, but he just thought that the newly married Marquis Lu and his wife were very interesting.
She raised her eyebrows and took her friend's hand, saying that in three days, everyone would set off for Beijing and they would see each other again then.
"Just go with the Marquis without worry. Maybe when we get to the capital, the Marquis will calm down."
Du Lingjing didn't think so.
This time he felt even angrier than before.
But why was she angry? She felt that she still didn't understand.
She sighed, and Tingjun curved his lips, "Don't sigh, as long as you think about it carefully, you will know what others mean."
Du Lingjing was about to say something else when someone unexpectedly came from behind.
"Rokuro, Uncle Hui."
She turned her head and didn't notice that not far behind her, Lu Shenru was also staring at the sixth son of the Jiang family.
"Why are you leaving so soon? You've only recovered from your illness for one day." Jiang Fengchuan asked.
Du Lingjing said, "My Lord has something to do, so he can't stay for long."
His eyes moved from Du Lingjing to the brows of the man not far behind her.
He was not afraid, but smiled.
"Then let the Marquis go first. It will be faster without the carriage."
Before he finished speaking, Uncle Hui pulled his sleeve and said, "Sixth Master..."
Jiang Fengchuan ignored Uncle Hui's obstruction and just asked Du Lingjing.
"What do you think, sister-in-law?"
When he asked, everyone, whether it was Lu Shenru, Hu Tingjun, or Uncle Hui, looked at Du Lingjing.
The wind in front of the door was getting stronger. The open fields were endless and there was no bamboo forest.
But the person behind her came back this time, and Du Lingjing knew that he came just to pick her up.
She whispered softly in the wind, "I also have some things to do back in Beijing, so I'll go ahead."
Her words were lost in the wind, but she gave her answer.
The man beside the horse looked at her twice more, and Jiang Fengchuan lowered his head and smiled lightly.
"It turns out that my sister-in-law is really leaving."
This statement has a different meaning.
Hu Tingjun secretly tensed his expression and saw that his friend's expression turned a little sad.
Uncle Hui suddenly said, "Sixth Master, you have spoken out of turn. Madam has never been married before. If you address her like Sixth Master, others will gossip about her."
He was just a servant and shouldn't say such things to his master, but at this moment he said it directly to Jiang Fengchuan in front of everyone.
His words interrupted what he was saying. Jiang Fengchuan paused for a moment, and someone else came from behind.
Mr. Liao and Mr. Hong were both sick. The ones who came were Feng Xiang, the younger brother of the Feng family, and Du Zhanming, who was sent by Baoding Academy to help.
Everyone came to see Du Lingjing off, but when Du Zhanming saw Lu Shenru, he hurriedly trotted forward and saluted his brother-in-law.
The man looked at his younger brother-in-law and immediately became amiable. He asked him a few questions, and then when he heard that he was also going back to the academy, he called him again, "Go and say goodbye to your sister."
Zhan Ming immediately ran to Du Lingjing's face again.
Du Lingjing was inviting Feng Xiang, "I don't have time to go back to Qingzhou for the moment, you can come to Guilin Tower outside the capital, and we can discuss the matter of book collection."
Feng Xiang blushed and said yes. Zhan Ming ran over and said, "The Marquis asked me to come and say goodbye to my sister."
These words made Du Lingjing look towards the marquis. This time, he finally saw that he was no longer avoiding him.
But he still looked unhappy and depressed, but he turned to look at Zhan Ming and smiled gently again.
"... ..."
He was really good at hiding his strange temper in front of others. He would only force her to do this and that.
It was getting late, and everyone didn't want to delay the two of them any longer, so they finally sent them off.
The man rode the horse in front, and his wife sat steadily in the carriage behind.
The people who came to see him off gradually dispersed, but Jiang Fengchuan remained standing there. He did not leave until even the shadow of the carriage disappeared.
Uncle Hui walked up to him with a worried look on his face, and before he could open his mouth to persuade him to go back, he heard him say.
"Uncle Hui is really good at comforting her. Now he doesn't even allow me to call her sister-in-law."
He was used to speaking in sarcastic tones, but at this moment his tone seemed to be blown into ice by the cold wind and fell downwards.
It was as if everyone had left. His injuries had not yet healed fully, and he refused to leave even though his wounds were freezing and hurting. Uncle Hui anxiously stood as a shield for him against the raging wind in the field while holding his hand.
"Sixth Master, please stop being obsessed. The girl is married. She is Marquis Lu's wife. As long as she lives a good life, Third Master is willing to see it."
"But what about my brother? The doctor clearly said that he could hold on for another year or so, so I could still carry him to the capital to take the imperial examination in time. How come he passed away just before I came back?"
He said that his third brother was gone, "She has a new husband now, does she still remember her brother?"
Uncle Hui still stood there, refusing to move an inch, sighing continuously.
"It's all my fault. I shouldn't have told Sixth Master about what happened when Third Master left. I was the one who said too much..."
Jiang Fengchuan smiled lightly, "Even if you don't tell me, I will know it sooner or later."
As he spoke, his voice became even lower as he thought of the deceased.
"It's just that she doesn't know, and I won't let her know."
*
The carriage headed north.
In places where there were no mountain roads, the carriage moved fast and steadily, but when it took a section of mountain road to travel quickly, it became a little unstable.
Du Lingjing had just recovered from an illness, and the increasingly bumpy mountain road made her a little overwhelmed.
But just as she was beginning to feel a little uncomfortable, the man stopped the carriage.
Du Lingjing lifted the curtain and looked at him. He didn't speak to her, but looked at her face carefully.
Then he asked Ruan Gong, who was driving in front, to get off the car, and turned around and called to the side, "Chongping, come and drive for the Madam."
Du Lingjing was surprised.
Chongping is the chief guard of the Marquis' Mansion. Not only do all the guards in the mansion have to obey his orders, but even the generals from other places who come to Beijing are polite to Chongping, even more courteous than when they meet their superiors.
Du Lingjing hasn't reached the point where she can't bear it anymore, so how can she let Chongping be her driver?
She couldn't help but say, "Ruan Gong can do it too, don't bother Guard Ping."
Unexpectedly, as soon as she said this, the man immediately frowned and looked over.
It was just one sentence, and the air around him, which had been normal just a moment ago, suddenly became stagnant.
Chong'an quickly hid. This time it was his brother's turn to be caught between the Marquis and the Lady, and it had nothing to do with him.
Chongping still reacts much faster than his stupid brother.
Without waiting for the lady to say anything else, he took a step forward.
"The mountain road ahead is steep, I'm afraid Manager Ruan can't handle it. It's an honor for me to drive for the Madam."
He immediately replaced Ruan Gong.
Du Lingjing knew that Chongping was just trying to smooth things over. She had walked along this road on her way here, and it wasn't as steep as this.
It was obvious that someone had a strange temper and insisted that Chongping drive her.
At this time, Chongping had already sat in front of the carriage, but his expression still refused to soften.
Du Lingjing was actually a little depressed, but also wanted to laugh, and for a moment she forgot the unbearable bumpy ride.
However, Chongping really knew how to ride a horse better than Ruan Gong, and they went along this mountain road smoothly. When they got down the hill, there was a teahouse in front of them, so they went there to rest for a while.
After entering the teahouse, Qiulin heard that the teahouse used spring water from a nearby spring to make tea, so he came over to tell Du Lingjing.
Du Lingjing liked this very much. When the waiter brought the tea, she personally poured a cup of tea for Chongping and asked Ai Ye to bring it over.
Unexpectedly, Chongping did not dare to accept it. "Madam, you are too polite. Driving for you is our duty."
Even if it's "duty", just a cup of tea, it's nothing, right?
But Chongping kept refusing and didn't dare to accept it.
Chong'an quickly hid again, and no one spoke in the teahouse. Du Lingjing looked at the marquis and saw that he was drinking tea steadily.
She sighed secretly.
The entire mansion was at his disposal.
But she suddenly remembered Chongping's words. Chongping said she was "too polite". In the morning in Baoding, he said one last thing to Tingjun, saying that she was "really polite" to him. After that, he ignored her.
The tea brewed with spring water in the teahouse is full of fragrance, slowly lingering under everyone's noses and fingertips.
Du Lingjing held the tea bowl in his hand, thinking silently.
Not long after, after a cup of tea, it was time to continue on the road.
But Du Ling quietly glanced at the marquis and suddenly called Ruan Gong.
"Go and settle the tea bill. I want to drink the spring water. I don't want to let the Marquis spend money all the time."
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