When Yinzhen arrived at Wanyue Pavilion, the pavilion was almost flooded with tears. The servants' eyes were all red, and Qingyun and her lover Qingfeng stood outside wiping away tears.
Upon seeing him, they all bowed slowly, each one venting their dissatisfaction towards him.
Too lazy to deal with these audacious servants, he walked straight into the house, immediately startling the weeping Tong Shi who was sitting upright in the hall.
"What's wrong? Is it worth being so heartbroken over a mere servant?" He quickly approached and took out a handkerchief to wipe away her tears.
Tears cannot be wiped away.
Nan Yi acted as if she didn't see him, and kept sobbing, her eyelids swollen, almost convulsing.
Yinzhen frowned, tossed aside the handkerchief, pressed her head into his arms, and patted her back to comfort her, "I know you're upset. In a few days, I'll invite a kitchen maid from the palace, no less capable than Granny Qiu, to serve you personally. Alright, wipe your tears."
"Waaah~" Who wants a palace maid? Is she crying for the person she serves? She's crying only because she's heartbroken.
She wanted to go home, to support her parents, to her fellow students, and to enjoy the freedom of modern society.
What is Nala Shi? Go ahead and rob her. Even if you rob all the servants of Wanyue Pavilion, so what? Even her husband himself doesn't care, let alone a few servants.
"Waaah... What are you doing here...? Who has she taken a fancy to in Wanyue Pavilion this time...? All of them...? Can't she just give them all to her? Waaah..."
She was really angry and said some hurtful things. Yinzhen sighed, pulled her into his arms, and carried her into the inner room. "This time, I owe you a favor. It's rare for the princess to ask me for someone. It only happens once every ten years or so. Why not let her have her way?"
He dared to tell his concubine to give way to his wife; Nan Yi howled even louder.
"Sigh, what should we do? Things have come to this point, and the matter of Granny Qiu cannot be changed. You don't want your mother to actually speak for you."
Nan Yi sniffed, raised her tearful eyes, and Fourth Uncle's lips twitched slightly, his little face on his chest looking just like a tabby cat.
Her face was covered in snot and tears, and her red eyes looked like two rabbits. Tong Shi usually didn't like makeup, and her face was plain, but she was very pleasing to the eye. She had fair skin, eyebrows like distant mountains, long and curled eyelashes, and a pair of eyes as bright as the stars.
Yinzhen lowered his head, took the handkerchief pinned to her collar, and gently wiped away the traces of blood from her face. His eyes held deep affection. "Yi'er, these tears shouldn't be shed for others. I can't bear to see you cry like this."
Nan Yi rolled her eyes, snatched the handkerchief, wiped her face haphazardly, and jumped off the table.
He couldn't bear to see her shed tears, yet he was willing to help the Fujin steal his man. This accomplice was hypocritical, using sweet words to shut her up. Did he think she was a fool?
I'm not willing to accept this. He can't be taken away for nothing. He has to be made to bleed.
Nan Yi crossed her arms and stared coldly at him. "I can't afford the palace maids. Even the Fujin (principal wife) doesn't have that kind of luck. For a mere concubine like me to have to ask for help from you, what am I? Spoiled and pampered? What will Consort De think of me? I bet she'll send someone to the mansion to reprimand me, make me copy books, reflect on my actions, put me in solitary confinement, and demote me. Is Your Highness trying to compensate me, or is it because you think my life has been too smooth lately and you're deliberately giving me things to do?"
Yinzhen frowned upon hearing this, realizing it was his oversight. He had only thought about making it up to her and had forgotten to bypass the Fujin (primary wife) and ask the palace matron to grant her the title of concubine. It seemed that his mother's dissatisfaction with Tong Shi had now increased.
The princess's suggestion was truly inappropriate.
Nan Yi looked at him for a while, then reached out and pulled the purse at his waist, took out all the money inside, counted it, and said with a dissatisfied look, "That's all."
Yinzhen seemed to understand her meaning, pinched her cheek, his eyes full of affection, and said with a smile, "I'll have Su Peisheng bring it to you tomorrow."
Nan Yi nodded in satisfaction, tossed the empty purse at him, and stuffed the few meager silver notes into her sleeve without complaint.
After doing this, she casually took off the hairpins and ornaments from her head, combed her hair again, braided two braids in front of her chest, and tidied her hair. Nan Yi ran to the wardrobe and rummaged through the drawers looking for clothes.
She changed into the simplest clothes she could find, and as she turned around, she saw Uncle Si standing leisurely in the room watching her tinker.
He spent many nights at Wanyue Pavilion, and Nan Yi's bedroom had prepared his daily necessities and clothing. She then went to take off Yinzhen's clothes and give them to him.
Yinzhen grasped her hand. "Yi'er, what are you doing?"
Nan Yi slapped his hand away, "You'll find out soon enough."
******
Nan Yi darted around in the crowd, carrying a lot of snacks. She looked at them with curiosity, bought a lot, tasted a bite or two, and then threw them to Uncle Si.
Helpless, Yinzhen swallowed the sweet cake in his mouth and frowned slightly. "Yi'er, don't buy any more. I'm too full."
He ate all sorts of strange flavors—sour, sweet, spicy—but Yi'er still loved to give them to him; he couldn't refuse.
Because of that incident today, he let her run wild, and as a result, the girl became even more unrestrained.
Nan Yi held a bowl of savory tofu pudding. It tasted good. She took a few bites and then fed it to Yinzhen. "Try it. It tastes good, just the right amount of saltiness. There's just a bit too much scallion."
Yinzhen shook his head; he did not eat scallions.
When Nan Yi saw that he refused, she thought for a moment and suddenly felt playful. She picked out the scallions from the tofu and ate them, then handed the rest to Yinzhen, waiting for him to eat it reluctantly.
Nan Yi chuckled to herself and pulled Yinzhen toward a nearby alley.
When the two came out, it was already dark.
At this moment, the alley was pitch black, and Yinzhen, not understanding why, was afraid that she would bump into something.
"Be careful, Yi'er, you, um..." Yinzhen's back bumped against the wall, and a soft body snuggled into his arms. Then, his lips pressed against hers, warm and heavy.
Nan Yi did it on purpose. Yi Ren had mentioned to her many times that someone didn't like scallions. Humph, she couldn't do anything to Nara. She was just an accomplice in teasing, and she had too many tricks up her sleeve.
After a while, "Yi'er, come back to the manor with me."
"I haven't had enough fun yet, let's not talk about this now." Nan Yi grabbed the hand of the person who had climbed onto her waist and pressed it firmly against the wall, becoming even more passionate.
Yinzhen turned to the side and pinned her against the wall. In the darkness, all that could be heard was his deep voice saying, "Stop making a fuss. Come back with me. We'll be back right away."
"Hmm~ I'm not going back." Nan Yi had finished playing around and pushed away the face that was pressed against hers, complaining unhappily, "I didn't shave, my face hurts so much from the prickles, remember to shave next time."
Yinzhen was aroused by her teasing, but he couldn't find any relief. Hearing her words, he laughed angrily, "So it's still my fault after all."
This sudden turn of events, while he was quite happy to enjoy the occasional offer of favor from a beautiful woman—it was novel, exciting, and somewhat agitated him.
He grasped the woman's delicate hand beside him, their fingers intertwined, and asked softly, "Are you feeling better?"
Nan Yi snorted coldly, "No, three times."
"What three times?" Yinzhen asked, puzzled.
"You've accompanied me out of the manor three times already, but this time doesn't count, so I..." She paused before feigning magnanimity and saying, "Well, I won't hold it against you."
Yinzhen chuckled. Judging from her tone, it seemed as if he had gotten a great deal. He neither agreed nor disagreed, and pulled her toward the street. "What else do you want to eat? I'll gladly accompany you, even if it means risking my life."
"It's good that you're aware of this."
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