Chapter 170 Thrush

Ming Huashang came out of the shower and found that the wedding ceremony items in the green room had been removed, and the space immediately looked much fresher. A mahogany table was placed in the middle of the flat ground, on which were placed crystal dragon phoenix cake, five-color wontons, pickled mustard, stir-fried rice, sweet dew soup, millet porridge, and milk porridge. Ming Huashang sat down and wiped her hair. Seeing this, Li Huazhang naturally took the cotton cloth and wiped her hair for her.

Li Huazhang said: "You have been hungry all day, so you shouldn't eat anything too greasy. The food prepared by the kitchen is light. Eat slowly, don't rush."

Ming Huashang tried to pick up a wonton. This bowl of wontons has five different shapes, with different fillings inside, colorful, so it is called five-color wontons. Ming Huashang bit into a shrimp one, the shrimp meat was fresh and tender, and the soup was rich but not greasy, just the taste she likes. Ming Huashang immediately tasted it and said: "Is it the wonton from Xiao's family in Longzhengfang?"

"Yes." Li Huazhang sat next to Ming Huashang and lifted the wet hair behind her neck so that she could eat cleanly. "I know you've wanted to eat it for a long time. How is it? Do you like it?"

Ming Huashang was so hungry that she nodded and lowered her head to take a bite of the second one. The wontons in Chang'an's Longzhengfang are very famous. It is a famous wonton street, and the Xiao family is the most famous among them. After the hot food went into her stomach, her body seemed to be ironed out. Ming Huashang finally eased the hunger that was grabbing her heart and liver. Seeing that Li Huazhang didn't move, she asked, "Second brother, why don't you eat?"

Li Huazhang looked at her quietly and shook his head slightly: "Not really hungry."

Ming Huachang suffered a lot during the wedding, and Li Huazhang also had a lot to do. Ming Huachang could at least sit down while she was dressing up, but Li Huazhang had to go to the palace early in the morning to complete the first half of the wedding ceremony alone. He had hardly eaten rice or water all day, but he had a regular schedule, eating and sleeping at fixed times, and he no longer felt hungry after a long time.

Ming Huachang scooped out a wonton with a spoon and unceremoniously passed it to Li Huazhang, saying, "I don't like this kind of stuffing. You do it."

Li Huazhang glanced at the spoon she had just used, hesitated, and for the first time ever, he went against his own principles and slowly opened his mouth to swallow the wonton. Ming Huashang saw him eat it and immediately served another one. Li Huazhang said helplessly, "I'm really not hungry."

"But I don't like the taste. I can't just throw it away, can I? You help me finish it. I still need to save some space for other food."

Ming Huachang's tone was full of pride, as if it was normal for her brother to help her solve the problem of unfinished food. Li Huazhang couldn't resist this temptation after all, and he ate whatever Ming Huachang brought him. The two of them shared a bowl, and before they knew it, most of the plates on the table were empty.

Ming Huashang touched her belly and said sincerely, "It feels so good."

Li Huazhang had simply packed up the dishes. He had been used to packing up his own things since he was a child, and he didn't like servants to get close to him. Even now that he had been crowned king, he still kept this habit. Li Huazhang heard Ming Huashang's mumbling, wiped his hands, and gently pressed Ming Huashang's waist. Ming Huashang instinctively wanted to hide, but Li Huazhang held her back: "Don't move, be careful of getting a stitch in the side."

Ming Huashang was very stiff at first. She lost her mother when she was young, and she rarely had such close contact with women, let alone men. She thought that she would have to get through this stage sooner or later, so she tried to relax her body and rest her head on Li Huazhang's shoulder.

They had been siblings for seventeen years, living in the same mansion and sharing the same room. But they had always managed the boundaries between brother and sister, close but not intimate, and physical contact was basically a one-touch separation, rarely like now, Li Huazhang's hand directly covered Ming Huashang's waist, through the thin fabric, Ming Huashang could feel his slender and powerful fingers, the thin ropes that he had used to hold a pen and a knife for many years.

Both of them were testing each other. Ming Huashang used her own spoon to feed Li Huazhang, and Li Huazhang rubbed Ming Huashang's waist. This was definitely not the behavior of normal siblings. In the past, the two knew each other but deliberately pretended to be siblings. Now, they have to slowly return from the framework of siblings to men and women.

Li Huazhang saw that she couldn't open her eyes, so he asked, "Are you really tired?"

Ming Huashang hummed and said, "It's okay. Those rules and regulations are annoying. I can't do this or that, but when I think about seeing you soon, I can tolerate it."

Li Huazhang apologized and said, "I have said many times that everything should be kept simple, but the palace has its own rules. I said many ceremonies should be cancelled, but they were still added in the end. I'm sorry for causing you trouble."

At this time, the "involvement" Li Huazhang mentioned refers not only to the wedding, but also to the situation. Now that the storm is coming, Prince Yong's Mansion has become the focus of the emperor's surveillance. He can't even control his own wedding, but selfishly drags Ming Huashang into his life.

Ming Huashang still closed her eyes, but she reached out and gently placed her hand on the back of Li Huazhang's hand. In this situation, no more words were needed, and the body leaning against each other was enough to explain everything. Li Huazhang felt her silent support and slowly tightened his hand.

Speaking of weddings, Li Huazhang remembered another urgent matter. He sighed inwardly and said jokingly, "When we return to the mansion the day after tomorrow, you must help me speak well of my father and my aunt. If it were normal times, I would accompany you to practice as long as my aunt wants, but today is a special situation, so I'm sorry I can't comply."

Ming Huashang chuckled when she heard this, then opened her eyes and said, "You are really brave. I was shocked when I saw you suddenly rushing in."

Li Huazhang nodded and said sincerely, "Indeed, I shouldn't have done that, but I don't regret it. Even if it happens again, I will still have to take the initiative and at least get you out first."

"I'm right there. I won't get lost. Why would I need to steal it?"

"That's not necessarily true. I've been worried for the past six months, afraid that you'd suddenly change your mind, afraid that something unexpected would happen and we'd have to postpone the wedding, afraid that the weather would be bad that day and the wedding car wouldn't be able to pass... I'm afraid of so many things, I wish we could grow old together in the blink of an eye, so that the whole world would know that you and I are husband and wife, and nothing can separate us anymore."

Ming Huashang leaned on his shoulder, suddenly raised her hand, and stretched out her little finger in front of him. Li Huazhang looked down in surprise, Ming Huashang's eyes were dark and bright, looking at him and said: "Let's pull the hook, no matter what we do in the future, we will do it together, whoever doesn't do it is a puppy."

Li Huazhang laughed. Such a promise was undoubtedly extremely childish, something that only a child would say when playing house. However, he reached out his hand, hooked her little finger, and whispered, "Okay, we'll be together forever."

At this point, the next thing seemed to be a natural progression. Li Huazhang's hand lingered on her belt, and he seemed to be hesitant, but Ming Huashang took the initiative to put her arms around Li Huazhang's neck and leaned forward to kiss his lips.

Their lips touched, soft and warm, without the exaggerated feeling of thunder and lightning, trembling all over the body as in the drama, Ming Huashang was quite disappointed. Li Huazhang seemed to be stunned, not knowing whether to be surprised or angry that she took the initiative.

But thanks to the kiss between their lips, Li Huazhang could clearly see the disappointment in Ming Huashang's eyes. He was no longer polite, and turned from defense to offense, unfastening her belt with his other hand and pressing her against the couch.

·

Ming Huashang was exhausted after a long day. She thought she would fall asleep as soon as she got on the bed, but in fact, she slept very lightly. Half awake and half asleep, she couldn't move her body, but she could feel someone lying next to her.

She seldom slept with anyone, let alone a man. She instinctively felt uneasy, but her body seemed to have opened its third eye. She could feel his light breathing, slender figure, and extremely peaceful sleeping posture. He was like a mountain, standing quietly beside her, blocking the wind, thunder and lightning outside.

She was torn between this feeling of uneasiness and security. At dawn, she felt the person next to her wake up. He got up very carefully, moving very gently for fear of waking her up.

Ming Huashang knew that Li Huazhang would definitely not let anyone disturb her, so she could sleep peacefully this time. However, the bedding beside her was getting colder and colder, and she felt uneasy instead, so she struggled to sit up.

Li Huazhang came back from washing up and found Ming Huachang had already woken up. She sat on the bed blankly, her eyes blank, her hair disheveled, as if she hadn't come back to her senses yet. Li Huazhang sat on the couch, reached out and brushed her hair away, and asked, "What's wrong? Didn't you sleep well?"

Ming Huashang fell on him, buried her face and shook her head, not saying a word. Li Huazhang held her quietly, letting her relax for a while, and asked softly: "Would you like to go back to sleep for a while?"

Ming Huashang still shook her head. Li Huazhang sighed, put his hands that had just been soaked in cool water around her face, and said, "Okay, then get up and don't stay in bed anymore."

After Ming Huashang put on her clothes, the maids came in one after another and served her well-trainedly by washing her hands and combing her hair. When the maid was about to put on makeup for Ming Huashang, she was stopped by Li Huazhang.

Li Huazhang took the eyebrow pencil and motioned for the maids to leave. He sat down in front of the dressing table, looked at Ming Huashang seriously, and said, "I wanted to say this yesterday. Your makeup is already very good. There is no need to touch up. Why don't you leave your eyebrows to me?"

Ming Huashang raised her eyebrows slightly and couldn't help asking, "You actually know how to draw eyebrows for women? When did you learn it?"

"Just now." Li Huazhang looked at the jingling things on the table, picked up the stone accurately, and asked, "Am I learning it correctly?"

Ming Huashang raised her eyebrows and said, "That's right. Then I want to see if you are good at learning anything. I can't possibly remind you."

After saying that, Ming Huashang closed her eyes, acting like a strict examiner, and did not give Li Huazhang any hints. Li Huazhang smiled softly. He was used to holding a pen and had written many articles, but this exam was different from his usual ones. He felt the delicate and soft skin on his fingertips, the long and deep fragrance on her neck, and carefully put pen to paper.

Ming Huashang closed her eyes, but her other senses became extra sensitive. She was immersed in the darkness, and could clearly hear the breathing of the person in front of her. Even though she couldn't see him, she could feel that he was serious.

Ming Huashang suddenly realized that he was looking at her. She didn't sleep well yesterday and there were dark circles under her eyes. Moreover, she put on so much makeup yesterday, her skin must be in a bad state. If she had known, she wouldn't have eaten so much last night...

Ming Huashang gradually became nervous, and she couldn't help but want to stop. The person next to her gently put down the pen and said, "Shangshang, open your eyes."

Ming Huashang tentatively opened a crack and was caught off guard by a pair of eyes as clear as a lake. His gaze was calm and focused, like the pine forests on the snow-capped mountains and the bright moon on the river. When he looked at her, it was as if she was the only one in the world.

"Do you like it?"

Ming Huashang was startled for a moment before she realized he was asking about her eyebrows. Ming Huashang turned back to look at the bronze mirror and was surprised to find that her eyebrow shape had hardly changed, but she had only made a few strokes along her natural eyebrows. Instead, she had painted a plum blossom on her forehead with cinnabar. Her skin was fair and her eyes were lively, but because of this plum blossom, her whole face became lively.

Ming Huashang held the mirror in her hands, looking from side to side, and she liked it more and more. She couldn't help but ask, "You seem to know a lot about women's makeup. Is this really your first time drawing?"

She was unhappy because his paintings were ugly, but she was even more worried because his paintings were too good.

Li Huazhang put down the mirror, pecked her lips, and said, "Of course, you don't know what I have done these years? Fortunately, I have learned painting in vain, and I can do my best. I hope I can draw eyebrows for you every day in the future. I will draw what flowers are blooming outside the window between your eyebrows. The breakfast is ready in the kitchen. Do you want to put on lip makeup first, or after eating?"

When it comes to food, Ming Huashang immediately becomes excited: "Of course, let's eat first!"

Li Huazhang responded gently, sighing inwardly. As expected, the beauty of the concubine was far less attractive to her than food.

After all, Qinglu was not convenient, so Li Huazhang asked someone to place breakfast in the main hall of the palace. He took Ming Huashang's hand, and the two of them walked and chatted in the morning light, and then went to the main hall to eat leisurely.

There were no elders in Prince Yong's Mansion. Given the current relationship between the palace and Li Huazhang, Ming Huashang did not need to enter the palace to attend to the ceremony. Therefore, she did not need to greet anyone today. The two of them had breakfast leisurely. Ming Huashang overeats again by mistake. Li Huazhang accompanied her for a walk in the palace, helping her digest her food while getting familiar with Prince Yong's Mansion.

This used to be the palace of Crown Prince Zhang Huai, who later moved to the East Palace. This mansion has experienced the rise and fall of Crown Prince Zhang Huai's rebellion, Empress Wu's dethronement of the emperor, the relocation of the capital to Luoyang, the Shenlong coup, and other events. It changed hands several times and was sometimes crowded with people and sometimes deserted. Now all those people have turned to dust, but this house remains the same as it was back then.

The layout of the house has hardly changed, and it basically maintains the structure when Prince Zhang Huai built the house. There are even books in the study that Prince Zhang Huai didn't have time to move away. Every time Ming Huashang walked through a room, Li Huazhang would tell her the purpose and origin of this place, even if he himself had never been there. Gradually, Li Huazhang had an illusion, as if he and Ming Huashang grew up here and witnessed how the people here lived, ate, and lived eighteen years ago.

He has lived here for a long time, but he has no sense of reality. Living in his father's old house seems to be no different from living in any other inn. But today she came, and those happy, fragmented memories filled in, and Li Huazhang finally had a real sense of life.

It turns out that home is not a house, but a person. He can only feel at home when she is there.