23. Chapter 23 Reluctance
Xiaoxiao didn't want to disturb his rest, so she tiptoed to the gate of the courtyard. When the guard was about to speak, she quickly shushed him.
The guard knew her position in Pei Xiuhan's heart, so he did as he was told and did not say anything. The rain was pouring down, and water from the eaves kept falling.
Xiaoxiao stood at the gate of the courtyard and looked in the direction of his dormitory. There was only one lamp on in the room, and the dim light flickered slightly.
Guessing that he had gone to bed, Xiaoxiao tiptoed to his door. Under the guards' astonished gaze, she curled up at his door. She was thin and had snow-white skin. When she leaned against the door, she looked particularly weak and pitiful.
Although there was only a door between them, Xiaoxiao was no longer so panicked after getting closer to him, and her abnormal heartbeat also recovered a little.
The rain was pouring down, and she had thought that as long as she didn't speak or make any noise, the sound of the rain would cover up her barely perceptible voice. However, she didn't know that when she approached Wuya Hall, Pei Xiu Han opened his eyes.
Pei Xiuhan got out of bed, put on his robe, tied his belt, and then opened the door. What he saw was her leaning against the door, curled up in a ball.
When Xiaoxiao heard the door open, her eyes widened and she stood up hurriedly like a frightened rabbit. A hint of uneasiness gradually spread in her dark eyes.
The rain outside was getting heavier and heavier. As soon as she opened the door, the cold wind blew in. She was not wearing thick clothes, but she was still exposed to the wind. Pei Xiuhan frowned slightly.
After seeing the little girl's uneasy expression, he suppressed his anger and said, "Come in."
Xiaoxiao lowered her head and stood there motionless. She stammered an apology and then whispered, "I, I didn't mean to disturb my brother's rest. I'll leave now."
She was about to rush into the rain, not even wanting her umbrella. Pei Xiuhan grabbed her arm and said, "You're already here, why are you leaving?"
His tone was a little unpleasant. Xiaoxiao shrank her shoulders, and the next moment, she was dragged into the room by the man. When he noticed that her little hands were cold, Pei Xiuhan frowned again.
He was already majestic, and his sullen expression made him particularly frightening.
Xiaoxiao was already blaming herself, and after secretly glancing at his expression, her eyes couldn't help but turn red. She lowered her head and didn't dare to look up again, looking nervous and scared as if she had done something wrong.
Pei Xiuhan pushed her down onto the couch, pulled a stool over, and sat down in front of her. "Why aren't you sleeping yet?"
"I-I can't sleep."
There was a cry in the little girl's voice. Pei Xiu Han was stunned for a moment and pinched the little girl's chin. Only then did he realize that her eyes were red and filled with tears. The crystal tears were about to fall, and she looked so pitiful.
Pei Xiuhan was both angry and amused. He hadn't even gotten angry with her yet, but she started crying instead. He rubbed his head in pain, feeling that children were really difficult to deal with.
He flicked her forehead and tried to soften his voice. "Even if you can't sleep, you can't squat at the door. What if you catch a cold? Can't you just knock on the door?"
Xiaoxiao's tears fell, and she sobbed and reluctantly replied, "I, I don't want to disturb my brother's rest."
Pei Xiuhan wiped her tears carelessly and said with a headache: "If you don't want to disturb me, don't cry."
Xiaoxiao tried hard to hold back her tears, but when they fell uncontrollably, she hurriedly covered her eyes.
Seeing her being so obedient even when she was crying, Pei Xiuhan couldn't help but sigh, his heart softening. He pushed her into the inner room and pressed the little girl onto the couch. "Okay, go to sleep first. We'll talk about it tomorrow if there's anything."
He went to the warm couch. Xiaoxiao didn't dare to say anything. After seeing him lying on the couch, her heart miraculously calmed down.
She quietly turned sideways, stared at his back for a while, and soon fell asleep.
By daybreak, the rain had completely stopped.
Perhaps because it had just rained, the air was very humid and the wind was quite strong. When Xiaoxiao was sending him out of the city, she was very silent, and Pei Xiuhan didn't say anything either. After leaving the city gate, he jumped on his horse.
The man was tall and slender, and he looked particularly tall sitting on his warhorse. He then looked at the little girl and said, "Go back."
Xiaoxiao's eyes were red, and she tried hard to hold back her tears. She nodded obediently and reminded him again: "Brother, you must pay attention to safety."
There was a cry in the voice.
Pei Xiuhan reached out and rubbed her head. "Don't cry. Brother promised you that he would return safely."
After he finished speaking, he didn't stay any longer and rode his horse away from the city gate. The moment the horse galloped out, he clearly heard the little girl's uncontrollable sobbing.
His hand holding the reins paused, but he did not stop. The warhorse was like an arrow, disappearing in front of Xiaoxiao little by little.
Xiaoxiao stood at the city gate for a long time, her hands and feet were numb from the cold, but she still did not leave. The people who saw her off gradually returned home, and under the blue sky, only she and Luzhu were left.
Luzhu stood with her for a long time, and only persuaded her to go back because she was afraid that she would catch a cold.
*
On the sixth day of the Lunar New Year, classes at the clan school resumed. After the class, Xiaoxiao managed to cheer herself up. Mu Wen and Mu Xi were already fourteen years old this year. The girls in the mansion all went to school until they were fourteen. Next, they would learn needlework and accounting to prepare for getting married.
Mu Wen was reluctant to part with Xiaoxiao, so after school started, she continued to attend classes at the clan school. Zhong Miao also came, but Mu Xi and the other three girls no longer came. Without them, the clan school became much quieter, and Xiaoxiao studied harder.
She grew very fast. It only took her more than two months to go from being at a loss when touching the guzheng to being able to play a piece of music skillfully.
Before they knew it, it was the Lantern Festival. Pei Jing loved lively occasions. Because Pei Xiuhan had banned him from leaving the palace before he left, he held a lantern viewing banquet in the palace and invited Xiaoxiao.
When Xiaoxiao received the imperial edict, she was very surprised, but also a little frightened. She didn't understand why the little emperor would invite her.
Xiaoxiao felt relieved after learning that Mrs. Zhong would also take Mu Wen and Mu Xi with her. The maids in the mansion also learned that she was going to enter the palace. Lian Qiao even invited her godsister to come over and asked her to match a dress for Xiaoxiao.
When dusk fell, Xiaoxiao got on the carriage to the palace.
When she entered the palace for the first time and saw the majestic and solemn palace, her palms were sweating. Seeing that she was so nervous that she didn't know where to put her hands, Lu Zhu raised an eyebrow. Obviously, she didn't expect the little girl to be so timid. She was always quiet and said after a while, "Don't be afraid, little girl, everything will be fine."
Every time Xiaoxiao goes out, she follows her, but on other days she comes and goes without a trace. Xiaoxiao finds her very mysterious, and when she hears her words, her heart inexplicably calms down.
When they arrived at the Yuehua Palace, all kinds of lanterns had already been lit up. There were many types of lanterns, including monkeys catching the moon, phoenixes spreading their wings, double dragons playing with a pearl, etc. Each one was magnificent. Hundreds of lanterns illuminated the Yuehua Palace brightly.
Xiaoxiao was momentarily distracted, even feeling like she was in a fairyland. She wasn't the first to arrive. Ahead, a few young men were guessing lantern riddles, while to her left, a few distinguished ladies gathered, all dressed in luxurious attire and elegant in manners.
Xiaoxiao spotted Zhong Yan and Zhong Miao with her sharp eyes.
Zhong Miao pulled his sister towards Xiaoxiao. Xiaoxiao curled her lips and greeted them proactively. After seeing familiar faces, she relaxed a little and followed Zhong Miao and Zhong Yan to guess riddles.
Zhong Miao has a lively personality and looks very cute and innocent. Her sister is a cold beauty. She is tall with bright features. Although she is born beautiful, her temperament is as calm as a chrysanthemum.
Soon, many people came. After several ministers came, they all looked in Xiaoxiao's direction, wanting to see who saved the Regent. Seeing that the little girl looked small, well-behaved and quiet, they did not pay too much attention to her.
Zheng Danyun also arrived. She was also very beautiful and had an outstanding aura. Unlike Zhong Yan's coldness, she was more proud. She often wore a red dress and walked slowly, like a rose with thorns, making people dare not look at her for too long.
Seeing Xiaoxiao, she walked straight towards her with an impeccable smile on her face, as if the embarrassing incident at the ice rink had never happened.
Xiaoxiao had seen her several times before, and now she felt more familiar with her. When Zheng Danyun came over, she took Xiaoxiao's hand and said with a smile, "Today is such a rare day, you're here. I thought you would continue to stay at home."
Xiaoxiao smiled shyly and did not mention the imperial edict. At this moment, accompanied by a cry of "The Emperor has arrived", a group of people came over. Xiaoxiao subconsciously took a look and was stunned when she saw Pei Jing's handsome face.
She was obviously shocked. She had never expected that he was the emperor, and she didn't realize that the people around her were already kneeling on the ground.
Seeing the silly look on the little girl's face, Pei Jing curled his lips and walked towards Xiaoxiao.
Eunuch Zhang followed Pei Jing, guiding him. Seeing someone dare to look directly at Long Wei, he angrily scolded, "How dare you! Which little girl from this mansion refuses to kneel before the emperor? How can you look directly at the emperor's true face? Come on, drag them out of here!"
Xiaoxiao was startled by him and her face turned pale. Only then did she realize that everyone around her had knelt down.
Zhong Miao raised her head quietly, and then she found that it was Xiaoxiao who did not kneel. She was worried about Xiaoxiao and was about to beg for mercy when she saw the emperor kicking Eunuch Zhang in the leg, "I haven't said anything yet, and you old man has such a big idea!"
Eunuch Zhang was so frightened that he immediately knelt down.
Xiaoxiao was a little nervous. Just as she was about to kneel down, Pei Jing grabbed her arm first and said, "Why are you kneeling? Just do it like before. I called you here because I was worried you'd get bored in the mansion, not because I wanted you to kneel down. Come on, let me take you to see the lanterns."
After he finished speaking, he dragged Xiaoxiao away. Halfway through, he remembered the people kneeling on the ground and said, "Excuse me, everyone."
Seeing that he treated Xiaoxiao so differently, everyone was a little surprised and didn't understand when this little girl became so familiar with the emperor?
Seeing Xiaoxiao's youthful appearance, her delicate figure and face like a lotus, the ministers began to overthink things. Could it be that the life-saving favor was just a pretext? Did the Regent actually intend to make her his empress?
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