Chapter 369 Are You Familiar with the Princess?
It's dark.
After finishing his official duties, Cui Yan returned home.
After a busy day, I changed into my court clothes and just entered the house to eat something hot.
Then he saw his niece coming over happily and calling out, "Uncle, you're back?"
Cui Yan was a little confused when he received a letter from his elder sister saying that she was preparing to return to Beijing.
Calculating the time, it would take at least half a month to reach the capital, and yet my niece was right in front of me.
Could it be that his elder sister was teasing him?
I looked behind my niece, but instead of seeing her elder sister, I saw that troublesome little girl.
Miaomiao poked her head out from behind Princess Rong'an and called out softly, "Uncle Cui, we meet again."
Cui Yan: ...
His brows twitched.
Why is the little girl here? It's almost dark, isn't she going home?
Princess Rong'an saw her uncle's strange expression and quickly explained, "Uncle, this is Miaomiao, Aunt Lu's youngest daughter. Aunt Lu entrusted her to me to take care of for a few days. We'll be in the courtyard on weekdays and won't disturb you."
She knew that her uncle liked Jing, but Miaomiao was also very well-behaved.
Besides, my uncle is rarely at home on weekdays. He is very busy and rarely at home even on his days off.
Even at home, he is either in the study or in the study.
It was far away from their yard, so they couldn't disturb their uncle at all.
The courtyard they live in now is the courtyard where their mother lived before she got married. Her uncles have kept it and assigned people to clean it.
Before my father fell ill, whenever he returned to Beijing, he would allow my mother to come back and stay for a few days.
He called it his pity for his mother who missed home.
But every time she returned to the Cui family, she and her mother were not allowed to come back at the same time, making them a burden to each other.
And control their words and actions.
Finally, she and her mother were free.
She can come back whenever she wants, and she also wants to stay in the Cui family for some time.
The one who lost his freedom was the father.
He brought it upon himself.
Cui Yan looked at his niece with a half-smile.
The letter from my eldest sister told me about my niece's marriage.
According to the royal family's seniority, Prince Yuan should respectfully call Yuan'er his cousin.
But this little bastard actually dared to ask Yuan'er to marry him!
He was the first to object.
Yuan'er marrying an incompetent playboy from the Yuan family is like a flower stuck in cow dung.
However, the eldest sister also said in the letter that she intended to marry Yuan'er to Feng'er from Madam Lu's family. Although she had never seen the child, she had heard her father mention it.
He is a child with good character.
Although they don't seem to be a good match and have a not-so-good father.
But all in all, it's a good match.
Cui Yan's eyes fell on Miaomiao. "Yuan'er, look at you. You haven't even married into Lu Garden yet, but you've already started helping your husband's family take care of the children. It's really true that a girl can't be kept at home when she grows up."
"uncle……"
Princess Rong'an's face turned red again, but it was rare to see her uncle joking with others.
She said shyly, "The marriage hasn't been decided yet. Uncle, please don't say anything nonsense. I just like this child."
Cui Yan raised the corners of his lips slightly and asked them to sit down. "Don't just stand there. Come and have dinner with your uncle."
Miaomiao sat next to Cui Yan obediently.
He doesn't talk, isn't picky about food, and seems very well behaved.
Just eat quietly.
Even though the food was still bland and not to her taste, she still ate obediently.
Because she felt that Uncle Cui didn't seem to welcome her to stay at his home.
This guy holds a grudge.
But it doesn’t matter, she has plenty of patience and will give Uncle Cui some time to transition.
Maybe I'll get used to her presence after a while.
Then the three of them finished their meal quietly, without talking or speaking.
She didn’t feel it before, but after living in Lu Garden for some time, Princess Rong’an felt a little uncomfortable.
Originally, the second and third uncles wanted to invite them to have dinner with them, but when they thought of their eldest uncle who was alone and pitiful, they wanted to come and keep him company.
I didn't expect that Miaomiao would become shy.
The little girl seemed like a different person, even eating like a lady.
It's really rare.
Princess Rong'an looked at her, "Miaomiao, are you afraid of my uncle?"
"No, I'm not afraid." Miaomiao shook her head.
"Although my uncle looks a little cold and serious, he is a very good person. You will understand once you get to know him well."
Princess Rong'an put a piece of boiled chicken into Miaomiao's bowl and said, "Eat more. Late-night snacks are not popular at my uncle's house."
Cui Yan: ...
The little girl is afraid of him?
It's simply unheard of.
Although Miaomiao is young, she is very good at observing people's words and expressions. Her eyes are always rolling around.
I don’t know what’s going on in that little head.
Perhaps he realized that he was on someone else's territory, so he restrained himself a lot.
He ignored the little girl because he was afraid that she would say something she shouldn't say at the dinner table and choke him to death.
After-meal refreshments.
Cui Yan asked people to prepare fruits and walnuts.
Last time at King Jing's, he noticed that the little guy liked to eat these things.
As soon as I close my eyes when I get home, I will think of the scene of one big and one small eating nuts, and the sound of the crunching is always lingering in my ears.
There are also two similar faces that appear in front of me from time to time.
He suspected that he was possessed by a demon. Whenever he saw the little girl, he would think of Princess Yuqing.
It's also strange.
This child actually looks like Yuqing, not her parents.
Seeing Uncle Cui staring at her in a daze, Miaomiao handed him a walnut and said, "Uncle Cui, I can't open it."
After saying that, she blinked her big watery eyes and looked at him.
Cui Yan felt his frozen heart steaming.
He subconsciously took the walnut, picked up the small hammer and started hammering it unconsciously.
He is responsible for cracking the walnuts, and the little guy is responsible for eating them.
The supply is insufficient to meet the demand.
Miaomiao stared at the small hammer hitting the walnut again and again. The walnut exploded and the milky white walnut kernel inside was revealed.
She took it and ate it in a few bites, then rested her chin on her hand and sighed, "Uncle Cui is pounding too slowly, and the walnut flesh is broken when he peels it. You have to control the strength well. If you pound too hard, the flesh will break easily, and if you pound too lightly, the flesh won't be peeled at all."
Cui Yan: ...
He felt like he was feeding a little mouse, and the little girl ate faster than the mouse.
He must be crazy. He left his servants alone and cracked walnuts himself. He must be possessed by a demon!
Now I'm being despised by a little girl, listening to her teach me how to crack walnuts...
The little girl couldn't even crack a walnut by herself, but she sounded very reasonable.
Cui Yan turned around and handed the hammer to the servant, "You come and knock it. Find a few more people to knock it together, and knock it more."
It was the first time that Princess Rong'an saw her aloof uncle being bullied by others, and she felt like laughing.
I can't imagine him having a daughter.
Perhaps, if he were to spend more time with Miaomiao, he would have the urge to get married.
She remembered that tomorrow was her uncle's day off.
The next morning.
Princess Rong'an said she was unwell.
Someone was sent to invite Cui Yan, who was about to go out, early in the morning.
Leaning on the couch, he said weakly, "Uncle, I'm not feeling well today. I'll leave Miaomiao to you."
Cui Yan was a little nervous. "What's wrong? I'll ask someone to call a doctor."
"Don't..." Princess Rong'an said a little embarrassedly, "Uncle, please ask someone to make me a cup of ginger tea. I'll just drink it and take a rest."
"Then... you should take a good rest."
Cui Yan understood. His mother and elder sister also drank ginger honey water in the past.
There are always a few days every month when I feel lazy and don’t want to move, so I just lie down.
Princess Rong'an then instructed, "Uncle, Aunt Lu has instructed that Miaomiao must study and write every day."
"Okay, I'll teach you."
"She's still a little young to play the piano, so you can teach her to paint or play chess."
"Yuan'er, don't worry, I'll teach you."
After Cui Yan finished speaking, he took Miaomiao out of the room with an embarrassed look on his face, and told the little maid to take good care of the princess.
Miaomiao understood that Sister Yuan was having her period.
This future sister-in-law is so competent that she still doesn't forget to assign her homework even in this situation.
But think about it.
That’s not right. Sister Yuan’s period came this month.
What does she want to do?
Could it be that she wants the Prime Minister to urge her child to practice calligraphy?
…
This whole day.
The Prime Minister didn't go out.
He brought Miaomiao to the study, and tirelessly taught her to recite poems and idioms, and watched her write.
I also experienced the feeling of being an old father.
It's a big headache.
My heart, which had just warmed up, was now filled with anger.
I feel like smoke is coming out of my head.
I watched the little guy write crooked words on the paper, with ink scattered here and there.
Cui Yan, who suffers from obsessive-compulsive disorder, frowned.
Crumpled up the rice paper with messy writing on it and threw it away.
Suppressing the anger in his heart, he said patiently: "Miaomiao, rewrite it."
Jiang Miaomiao raised her little face with an innocent look.
"...Uncle Cui, your requirements are too high, even higher than my second brother's. I'm just a child. Why don't you teach me how to write? I guarantee you'll be satisfied with what I write."
No, you're not a child.
You were sent by God to torture me.
You can't be lenient or harsh, you can't hit or scold, there's no way to deal with this little guy.
Cui Yan pinched his brows and said, "Write it yourself and I'll help you step by step. What's the difference between this and what I wrote?"
What do you mean, I guarantee you'll be satisfied?
This kid deserves a beating.
Jiang Miaomiao pursed her lips and brought a cup of tea to Cui Yan. "Uncle Cui, don't be angry. Liver qi stagnation will lead to many problems. You will get headaches, lose your hair, and age quickly..."
Uncle Cui is like this, just like my second brother.
horrible!
Miaomiao then wrote down her masterpiece on the white paper...
Words are not written, they are drawn.
Cui Yan gritted his teeth, he already had a headache.
Helplessly sighing, he shook his head, "Miaomiao, who taught you to write? It's so ugly, like chicken feet."
"The princess taught me." Miaomiao blurted out without thinking.
Uncle Cui has a really sharp tongue. How could he say her handwriting looked like chicken claws? Isn’t that what all children’s handwriting looks like?
It is normal for a beginner to have trouble writing calligraphy, and she is not a gifted person.
Cui Yan didn't believe it. "How is that possible? Princess Yuqing's handwriting is so beautiful. You must have written this..."
He was always sharp-tongued, so he couldn't say anything sharp to a child.
So shut up.
The little guy is good at reciting poems and he remembers them quickly and has a good memory.
It's this handwriting that I can't bear to look at.
I give up. Just write whatever you want. It’s not your own child. There’s no need to be so serious about it.
"Stop writing, eat something and take a break."
Miaomiao put down the brush in her hand and looked at him curiously, "Uncle Cui, are you familiar with the princess?"
"Not familiar, not at all." Cui Yan denied immediately.
"Then how do you know the princess has good handwriting? You must have seen it before."
"I haven't seen him. I'm not familiar with him."
"It doesn't matter if we're not familiar with each other. I'll give Uncle Cui a gift." Miaomiao said as she called Xier in. But Xier disappeared somewhere and it took a long time for her to come in.
"Where's my folding fan?"
Xier took the fan out of the box and handed it to her.
"Uncle Cui, my mother said that people should be grateful and reciprocate. You gave me calligraphy and taught me to read, so I also prepared a gift for you." Miaomiao handed him the folding fan.
Cui Yan took it with interest and opened the folding fan.
Between the mountains and rivers, two lines of words come into view...
Once you have seen the sea, all other waters are but puddles; all other clouds are but mounds except those of Mount Wu. I am too lazy to look back at the flowers now, partly because of my cultivation and partly because of you.
Cui Yan's old face instantly turned red, all the way to his ears.
Holding the folding fan, he didn't come back to his senses for a long time.
Jiang Miaomiao pretended not to see it, put the walnut kernel into her mouth and continued eating walnuts.
But I was secretly happy in my heart.
This is the right reaction. How could there be no reaction?
The poem on the folding fan is from Yuan Zhen's "Li Si".
It is a love poem full of affection. There is not a single word about love, but every word is full of deep affection.
She also secretly took it from under the princess's pillow.
This isn't addressed to Uncle Cui. She took her head off and kicked it like a ball.
Can……
As he watched, Cui Yan's expression changed.
He looked a little lost.
He put the folding fan away, put it back in the box, and said to Miaomiao solemnly, "I appreciate Miaomiao's kindness. You stole this fan from Princess Yuqing, right? Please return it to her. I think it is very important to her."
Jiang Miaomiao: ...Uh! What's going on?
When Uncle Cui saw the princess's belongings and the words she wrote, shouldn't he be reminded of the princess? Why did he have this reaction?
What went wrong?
Could it be that this poem is not for Uncle Cui, but for the princess' mother and someone else?
"Uncle Cui, what does the poem on the fan mean? Why is it important?" Jiang Miaomiao opened the folding fan and looked at Cui Yan with a confused face.
He looked like he wouldn't give up until everything was explained clearly.
Cui Yan picked up the teacup, took a sip, and concealed the emotions in his eyes and brows.
After a long pause, he slowly spoke, "This poem... is a mourning poem, a remembrance of the poet Yuan Zhen for his deceased wife... You take it back, and don't give it away casually."
In memory of my deceased wife... my deceased husband...
Jiang Miaomiao instantly became emo.
She had forgotten that the princess' mother had a deceased husband.
This is indeed an elegy, but it is also a love poem. It seems that Uncle Cui's concern is with his mother's deceased husband.
This is a huge misunderstanding.
It seems that the princess must have been very pretentious in the past, and her father was such a devoted man that he never married.
Prejudice is indeed a mountain in people's hearts that cannot be moved away.
Jiang Miaomiao's eyes rolled, and she said very confidently, "Uncle Cui, you are wrong. You and the princess' mother said different things. The mother said that this was written by the poet for his beloved, not a mourning poem."
If she says it is a love poem, then it is a love poem.
Cui Yan was stunned, with mixed feelings in his heart. He opened his mouth but didn't know how to explain.
Miaomiao was so anxious seeing her father's stubbornness that she turned to Xier and said, "I want a bronze mirror. Give me a bronze mirror."
"I'll go right away." Xier left in a flash.
She was anxious just watching.
Neither the princess nor Prime Minister Cui has a mouth, fortunately there is the young master.
…
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