087. Midnight Snack

Rong Se did not go back to the bedroom directly, but turned a corner and went into the kitchen. Even though it was late at night, there were servants on duty in the kitchen. Seeing the Regent King and Marquis Dingbei coming together, he hurried forward to salute.

"My Lord, my Lord."

"Hmm." Rong Se raised his chin towards the stove and gave a short order, "Light a fire."

There was milk in the kitchen that was delivered in the afternoon to make snacks. Rongse poured the milk into a large celadon bowl, and then added eggs, a small amount of powdered sugar, honey and sweet potato flour in turn, and then picked up chopsticks to stir carefully.

"Let me do it."

A warm, muffled hand covered Rong Se's hand holding the chopsticks.

Liang Shenyu was behind him, took the chopsticks from him, and said softly, "You've been busy all day, take a break."

Rong Se then realized that his wrist was indeed a little sore, and even the stirring movement just now was slow. Liang Shenyu probably saw that he had no strength, so he took the initiative to take over.

"Can you?"

Rong Se looked at Liang Shenyu's slightly awkward movements with a smile in his tone.

Liang Shenyu lowered his eyes, his long hair was untied, just half tied behind his head, with the strands of hair hanging casually on his forehead. Compared to the coldness when he was wearing a martial robe or riding a silver armor from Jinbei, he was more easy-going and gentle under the moonlight.

"If I see you doing it every day, I'll learn something."

Liang Shenyu spoke softly, and the movements of his hands became more and more familiar. Whether it was martial arts or books, he had an extremely high talent and was able to grasp the tricks quickly.

Rong Se looked at it for a while, and suddenly said, "If the world is peaceful, what do you want to do if you don't want to be a general?"

Liang Shenyu paused, then continued to stir, chuckling: "I never thought about it. I was born a son of a marquisate. In the past, my brother supported the marquisate. I always thought that even if my father and brother protected me, sooner or later, I would go to the border battlefield. I would drive the Huns out of the territory of the Great Jin, so that my father and brother would not have to guard the border every day, and my mother would not have to miss me every night. I would fight for them. In the end... I am not as ambitious as my father and brother."

At the end, he said this with a self-deprecating smile.

Rong Se fell silent.

He understood that Liang Shenyu just wanted to protect the people he wanted to protect.

But in the end, there was only one person left in the entire Dingbei Marquis Mansion.

"You did it." Rong Se said softly, "You beat the Huns back. Sooner or later, they will never dare to invade again. If only I had known you earlier."

Rong Se sighed.

Liang Shenyu shook his head, turned his head and looked at him tenderly.

"It is a blessing to have met you once, and I don't ask for more."

Rong Se looked at him and smiled too.

"yes."

Liang Shenyu had no idea what a miracle their meeting was. It was an impossible meeting separated by time and space.

Lucky enough.

"Look, is this okay?" Liang Shenyu pushed the already delicate and sticky milk and egg liquid forward, looking like a good student with a humble attitude.

Rong Se took the chopsticks and stirred it a few times, picking up the thick liquid that was already able to be pulled into threads, and nodded lightly, "It's done."

Liang Shenyu was stronger than him and knew how to use his skills, so he quickly finished stirring the mixture. Rong Se poured the viscous liquid into three glass cups respectively, and then placed the glass cups into the steamer which was already on fire.

While he was busy, Liang Shenyu came over from behind him and asked softly, "What do you want to do?"

“Egg custard.”

The conditions are limited, so I can't make a sweeter pudding. There is too little time to make snacks. Moreover, Rong Zhixu's appearance means he can't eat any overly sweet cakes, so it's better to make some less sweet egg custard.

Rong Se murmured in a low voice: "Little girls like to eat it, but it can't be too sweet."

"For His Highness Xuanhe?" Liang Shenyu frowned slightly.

"There are also Lanying's." Rong Se nodded, and caught a glimpse of Liang Shenyu's frowning brows, and smiled softly, "And yours, why are you angry with the little girl?"

Liang Shenyu was silent for a while, then he thought of something and sighed, "You are always like this."

Rong Se tilted his head and rubbed his forehead against his chin gently, "What?"

Liang Shenyu was silent for a long while before he said softly, "You always... treat people with bad intentions like you with kindness. You treat me like this, Yu Qingzhou... and His Highness Xuanhe like this."

Rong Se laughed out loud, turned around to face Liang Shenyu, and put his arms around his neck. "Others may not know, but the word 'ill-intentioned' is only used by you, right?"

Liang Shenyu tilted his head and thought for a moment, then he lowered his eyes and said, "If... holding you like this counts, then it's indeed only me."

There was no one in the stove room, only the crackling sound of burning wood.

Rong Se buried her head in his shoulder and smiled softly. After a while, she said, "I'm not as kind and nice as you think. I treated you well at first and approached you for other purposes. I was afraid that you would stand on Rong Jing's side to deal with me." Then, he raised his head and said in a joking tone, "I can't beat you."

Liang Shenyu recalled that they were supposed to be enemies at first, but he also laughed, "I wanted to use you at that time... I'm sorry."

"That's nothing." Rong Se said mildly, glancing at Liang Shenyu with a hint of reproach, "You suddenly came to my room that night, stared at me for an unknown period of time, and even insisted on eating dumplings. I was scared to death... I thought you couldn't help it and wanted to kill me in the middle of the night."

Liang Shenyu showed a look of astonishment and guilt, pursed his lips, and whispered: "Sorry, sometimes I can't control myself."

He wanted to eat more than just dumplings that night.

Liang Shenyu himself didn't know how to suppress himself so that he could do nothing when Rong Se was swaying in front of him.

"But it doesn't matter." Rong Se gently stroked Liang Shenyu's cheek and said nothing more.

He knew that the late night would always make people sink into memories and decadence, and his Saburo had been trapped in the wind and snow for too long.

"As for Yu Qingzhou..." Rong Se said softly, "Except for betraying me, he did nothing wrong. If you really want to count, I am the one who was the first to let him and his sister down."

Since I'm using the original owner's body, I should naturally take responsibility for what he did.

"And Xuanhe."

Rongser continued.

"She is just a little girl. She shouldn't have been involved in the game between Rong Jing and me. Even though she was raised in Empress Dowager Cao's palace, Wei died in her hands. Xuanhe knew nothing about it. She shouldn't have... experienced all this, and I am just trying to make things right."

Rongse can distinguish right from wrong, and since Xuanhe asked him for help, it means that the little princess has begun to understand something.

"But Rong Jing and the Cao family." Rong Se's tone suddenly faded, "That's another matter. Sanlang - I'm not the kind of person who would repay evil with kindness. Yu Qingzhou and Xuan He have never really hurt me, nor have they committed any unforgivable sins, so I won't bother with them, that's all."

"And you."

Rong Se held Liang Shenyu's cheek, touched his lips and gave him a light kiss, murmuring: "To me, you are also different. No matter who you fight for, you are a hero. I admire you and love you."

Be it appreciation or heartache, now all that's left is love.

After he finished speaking, Liang Shenyu hugged him even tighter. The word "I love you" seemed to make him confused for a moment.

After the egg custard was ready, Rong Se left two bowls in the pot and took out only one, which he prepared for himself and Liang Shenyu.

When he ordered someone to deliver the cups to the bedroom, Rong Se did not forget to instruct, "Don't turn off the fire, just keep it warm. If His Highness Xuan and wake up, send the remaining two cups to Lan Ying and the Princess."

The servant quickly responded: "I understand."

.

In the guest room in the side courtyard, just after midnight, Rong Zhixu woke up after not having slept for long. She felt that she didn't even have the strength to lift a finger. After struggling for a while, she finally moved with difficulty.

This movement woke up Bluebird, who was drowsy in her chair.

"Huh? Are you awake?"

Lan Ying stood up and ran to the bed. She looked down at Rong Zhixu and smiled brightly, "Don't worry. This is the Regent's Palace. I brought you back. You have applied medicine to your wounds and knees. The doctor said that you will be fine if you take good care of yourself. But you have only slept for a short while. Your maid Qinghe has fallen asleep. Are you hungry? The master has prepared food for us. Wait a minute, I will ask them to bring it up. There is also medicine. It has been boiled a long time ago. The doctor said that you must drink it when you wake up."

As Lan Ying spoke, she opened the door and gave a few instructions to the outside, not giving Rong Zhixu a chance to speak. Then she walked briskly back to the bed, smiling.

"My master told me to tell you that we will take care of everything else, so all you have to do is take good care of it!"

It took Rong Zhixu a while to digest these words. He was a little at a loss for a moment. His black jade eyes blinked, full of confusion.

She had never been treated like this before. Even her gentlest brother only spoke a few words to her, not to mention the strict empress and the palace maids.

After a long while, Rong Zhixu suddenly remembered that there was a little girl living in the Regent's Mansion and she was living a good life.

She looked at the cheerful Bluebird in front of her and thought, if she was really treated like a pearl, this would probably be what it would be like.

"Thank you." Rong Zhixu's voice was a little hoarse, and he showed a gentle and dignified smile.

"You're welcome." Bluebird waved her hands and said, "I'm Bluebird, the nightingale's warbler. If you're awake, I have something else to tell you."

Rong Zhixu was not used to talking to people while lying down, so she struggled to sit up. Lan Ying hurried forward and helped her up, and even gave her a soft cushion.

"Just listen, why do you have to do anything?"

Rong Zhixu was somewhat helpless and said softly, "It's impolite."

"That's nothing." Lan Ying dragged a chair over and sat in front of her, saying, "Regarding your mother, Concubine Wei was born in Yanzhou and was a concubine's daughter. You should know all this. The year you were born, the late emperor ascended the throne. But you have never thought about it. The late emperor had many concubines, so why is there only one prince in the harem, your Majesty?"

Rong Zhixu's heart suddenly lifted, as if he was a little bit unbelievable, and he said harshly: "You mean..."

Lan Ying nodded as a matter of course, "This is not a secret. With Cao's family around, there would be no princes. When your mother was pregnant, she had just been crowned as the empress. She wanted to secretly get rid of you and your daughter, so she tampered with the pregnancy-preserving medicine, but Concubine Wei did not have a miscarriage. Even so, she was injured, and she died before she was a full month old. The princess was raised in the harem."

Seeing Rong Zhixu's expression frozen, Lan Ying thought for a moment and comforted him, "No one in the palace dares to tell you these things, but if you really want evidence, the two doctors from the Imperial Hospital are still sitting outside. There are also records of Concubine Wei's use of medicine. The prescriptions written by the doctors at that time were not the same as the ones Concubine Wei took in the palace. But the past is the past. I tell you because I want you to know that you don't owe His Majesty and Queen Mother Cao anything. There is no need to wrong yourself for them."

Lan Ying kept chattering, and Rong Zhixu was forced to stop the grief that had just risen up in his heart.

Seeing that Rong Zhixu didn't say anything, Lan Ying twisted her braid and felt a little guilty, wondering what she had said wrong.

There was a knock on the door.

"Miss Lan, the custard and medicine are here."

Lan Ying was like she had seen a savior. She stood up and said hurriedly, "Hey, here I come!"

Soon, she came back with the tray, placed it on the dressing table in front of the bed, put her hand against the bowl to test the temperature, and then walked back with the medicine in one hand and the egg custard in the other.

"Here, it's warm." Lan Ying handed the medicine bowl over first, "You should drink the medicine first, then eat."

He watched with his own eyes as Rong Zhixu finished drinking the medicine and then handed the glass cup forward.

Rong Zhixu was already hungry, so he took it as well, took a sip, and his eyes changed.

It is smooth and tender in the mouth, with a mellow milk flavor, but not too sweet, just right for the taste.

Lan Ying took another bowl and ate happily, saying as she ate, "I can tell from the smell that it was made by the master. Uncle Liu doesn't have such good cooking skills. Come on and eat."

Rong Zhixu was stunned.

"This was...photographed, not taken by the Emperor's uncle?"

Lan Ying nodded, "Don't look like that. The prince often cooks and makes cakes."

Rong Zhixu was even more confused.

He asked Qing He to ask for help because he couldn't bear to see her being implicated by himself. He was brought here inexplicably and even had to eat the meal prepared by the Regent himself.

All of this was beyond anything she could have imagined.

Seeing Rong Zhixu staring blankly, Lan Ying urged him, "It will get cold in a while, eat quickly."

Seeing that she kept calling him "master" and her skills were so good, Rong Zhixu originally guessed that this girl was the Regent's concubine. But now he was not sure anymore, so he ate the delicious egg custard in silence.

After pondering for a long time, Rong Zhixu realized that he had eaten all the egg custard.

Lan Ying sent the empty bowls away naturally, then turned back and sat down, saying, "After you have eaten and drunk enough, you can go back to sleep. I will stay here tonight."

Rong Zhixu felt confused and couldn't help but say, "My mother's matter..."

"If you have any doubts, I will give you evidence tomorrow." Lan Ying did not mention the Xi family at all.

Rong Zhizhi was silent for a moment, then said, "Thank you so much for today."

"I just can't stand that bastard Xi Chaoyi." Lan Ying waved her hands, "The one who really saved you is the master. He will solve everything."

Rong Zhixu couldn't help but ask, "You trust him very much."

Lan Ying looked back at him strangely. "Of course. There's no point telling you. You'll know after living in the palace for a few days. You know about the Jizhou case, right?"

Rong Zhixu was trapped in the Xi family and didn't know what major events had happened in Jinjing during this period, so he shook his head.

Lan Ying choked and slapped her thigh, "Then listen to me!"

The night is long, but dawn is near.