Chapter 79 Gift of Spring

After Ming Huazhang came out of Danfeng Gate, he rode a horse and paraded through the streets according to the route arranged by the court. This was just another show performed by the authorities for the old nobles and elders. It had nothing to do with the people who were rejoicing below, nor with the people who were paraded through the streets. Ming Huazhang was not interested in this. He was more concerned about what was written on the piece of paper that the empress used to "call a deer a horse".

It was really careless that he burned the note that night. He was still too naive and impulsive. He was fooled by his own stupidity before he even entered the officialdom.

Before he entered the officialdom, he was praised as the "Jade Tree of Luodu". Even though Ming Huazhang did not care about fame, he was indeed arrogant for a while. Now he understands that the so-called young talent and the so-called Jade Man of Shendu are just children playing house.

Every person he met in the officialdom was either a Jinshi or a member of a noble family. Who was stupider than the others? The mediocre and corrupt officials he looked down upon might be far worse than him.

Ming Huazhang once again warned himself not to be conceited, to always remember that there are always higher mountains than others, and to never look down on anyone. With this thought in mind, he looked at the parade teams around him, which were decorated with ribbons and flowers and full of vigor, and he felt unexcited.

At this moment, the newly-appointed scholars are in high spirits, appreciated by the monarch and praised by the people. Nothing could be more satisfying than this. However, the cheers of the people never stop for one person, and the monarch's mind is even more unpredictable. Today, after seeing all the scenery of Chang'an, they all want to show their talents, be an honest, good, and wise official, and realize their ambitions to benefit the people. But after a year, how many of these people will stay? Among those who stay, how many of them will keep their original intentions?

It was like a story whose ending was predicted right after it began. The joyous sounds around him suddenly became distorted. Ming Huazhang walked on Zhuque Street, as if he was watching a farce without sound. At this moment, a cute and gentle voice, like a nightingale in the valley, suddenly pierced the silence and reached his ears.

"The top scholar looks great today!"

These words seemed to pierce an invisible membrane, and the sounds from the outside world flooded into Ming Huazhang's ears like a tide. He struggled out of the indescribable sadness, raised his head, and looked in the direction of the sound.

He saw a young lady standing on a tall building on the street. She was wearing a pink top and a goose-yellow long skirt. The blue shawl between her arms fluttered in the wind, and she was as beautiful as a cloud under the blue sky.

However, this cloud was not too reserved. It was dancing and waving at the young man downstairs. In its hand, it was holding a red sachet, which it was about to throw away.

Half a horse's length later, Xie Jichuan's unique cool and gentle voice sounded: "My sister is here too. Who is she giving the sachet to?"

Su Xingzhi looked up in surprise when he heard their voices, and also noticed Ming Huashang standing on the second floor, waving in the wind. Ming Huashang was looking at the three young and handsome Jinshi Xingui, her mouth corners slightly stiff, and her fingertips twitching.

Ah this... She only bought two sachets, and she couldn't give one to everyone equally. Is she stupid? When she bought the sachets just now, why didn't she think that there were three people she knew on the list?

In ancient times, two peaches killed three men, and now two sachets killed Ming Huashang. What should I do in front of everyone?

Ming Huazhang and Su Xingzhi were her fake and real brothers respectively, and it would be bad to miss either of them. However, she and Xie Jichuan had known each other for a long time, and she had copied a lot of Xie Jichuan's homework when they were in Zhongnan Mountain. If she threw the sachets to her two brothers and left Xie Jichuan out, it would be too embarrassing.

Maybe she should try to throw the sachet to Su Xingzhi and Xie Jichuan, and then explain it to Ming Huazhang after returning? After all, they are family members, so she must first consider the outsiders' face, and then celebrate for her second brother alone after returning home and closing the door?

This does seem to be a solution, but Ming Huashang saw Ming Huazhang's clear eyes and did not dare to throw her purse to another man in front of him.

Jiang Ling saw her raising her hand to toss the ball, but she didn't let go for a long time. He couldn't help but ask, "Who do you want to give it to? How about I help you throw it?"

Ming Huashang cursed Jiang Ling for being a fool, then suddenly had an idea and turned around to stuff the sachet into Ren Yao's hand. Ren Yao was leaning on the railing to look at the Chang'an street scene, when he was caught off guard by something being stuffed into his hand. He asked in surprise, "What is this?"

Ming Huashang held her hand, preventing her from taking out the sachet. She looked into Ren Yao's eyes solemnly and affectionately, and deliberately said loudly: "Sister Ren, congratulations on passing the martial arts exam. You are so amazing!"

Ming Huashang spoke these words with a rhythmic rhythm and passion, almost shouting them to the people downstairs. Ming Huashang silently gave herself a witty suggestion. She only said to throw it to the number one scholar, but did not say which number one scholar it was thrown to. Ren Yao was also the number one scholar in martial arts, so there was nothing wrong with that.

The street was crowded and noisy. Ming Huashang's voice was like a small splash in the environment. It was not eye-catching at all, but to the ears of those who paid close attention, it was very clear and loud.

And it's exaggerated and contrived.

Xie Jichuan chuckled and said to Ming Huazhang, "As soon as you looked at her, she gave the sachet to someone else. It turned out that it was not for you. I thought you two were very close siblings."

It was very obvious that Xie Jichuan was looking for trouble, but Ming Huazhang ignored him, retracted his gaze, slightly tightened his horse's belly, and rode past the downstairs.

Although it was ungentlemanly to think so, she did not give the embroidery bag to Su Xingzhi, and he was relieved. Not giving any to him was better than giving it to someone else in front of him. He had fallen to such a state of self-deception.

Ming Huazhang suddenly increased his speed and almost surpassed Su Xingzhi. Su Xingzhi withdrew his gaze from the upstairs, glanced at Ming Huazhang thoughtfully, and also increased his speed.

The tall horses passed by the building quickly. Ming Huashang finally breathed a sigh of relief when she saw the parade team leave safely. Jiang Ling leaned on the railing and looked Ming Huashang up and down in confusion: "What are you doing? Why did you give her a purse?"

Ming Huashang glared at Jiang Ling unhappily and said, "Sister Ren stood out from the crowd of men and became the top martial arts champion. I admire her and sent her flowers to express my feelings. What's it to you?"

Ming Huashang bought the sachet just for fun, without giving it much thought. Now she realized that she had neglected Ren Yao. It was not easy for Su Xingzhi, a poor student, to pass the examination to become a nobleman. So, wasn't it even more difficult for Ren Yao, a woman, to pass a bunch of men?

Ren Yao had secretly participated in the military competition at the Pingnan Marquis's residence. Old Madam Ren did not agree to her showing up in public. Her uncle and cousin were eager for her to get married and then seize her property. They had no real interest in Ren Yao. In the huge city of Chang'an, they were the only ones who could celebrate for Ren Yao.

Jiang Ling felt uncomfortable after hearing what Ming Huashang said. He refused to give in and said, "It's just a sachet, a few coins worth of things, and you are willing to give it away. Waiter, call all the flower vendors on the street over. No matter how many flowers they have, I will buy them all and send them to the box."

The waiter was delighted when he heard this, and he kept praising him for being "generous". Ren Yao was overwhelmed when he heard this, and said hurriedly: "Why buy flowers? They can't be eaten or used, and they will wither in a day. I have always looked down on them. Don't waste your money, it will make people laugh at you."

"Who dares to laugh at what I do?" Jiang Ling didn't care and continued, "It's just something that's suitable for the occasion. If it wilts, just throw it away. The most important thing is to give you a show today. Pass it on. Anyone who comes to the restaurant to send flowers will be rewarded with ten cents, and anyone who says auspicious words will be rewarded with ten cents more. There is no limit to the number of times, and there is no upper limit."

Ren Yao hurriedly pulled Jiang Ling with a sullen face and said, "What are you doing? Today is the auspicious day for the announcement of the civil service examination results. You are being so bragging. Aren't you deliberately going against others?"

"I'm not willing to endure it. I'm the most extravagant person in the capital, but I'm just so out of tune." Jiang Ling still had that carefree look on his face, and raised his chin and said, "Their top scholar in the civil arts is highly valued by the court, and they specially arranged a parade through the streets, but no one cares about the top scholar in the martial arts. I just don't believe it, I want everyone on this street to know that this year's top scholar in the martial arts is a young lady named Ren Yao, from the Pingnan Marquis's mansion."

The word Ren Yao heard the most since she was a child was "endurance". There was no male heir in her family, so she had to endure it; the mansion would be handed over to her uncle in the future, so her uncle's daughter was bossing her around, so she had to endure it; her grandmother would not live long, so she would have to rely on her uncle's family to support her in the future, so she had to endure it. But now someone said that he wanted to get the whole street to come and congratulate her.

Ren Yao still instinctively felt uneasy. She thought that she deserved to suffer, but she didn't deserve or deserve so much attention: "It's too ostentatious. Forget it. It's enough for us to know it ourselves..."

"Sister Ren." Ming Huashang held Ren Yao's hand and said, "If he wants to spend the money, let him spend it. You are the top scholar, and you are the boss today. Let's eat first, then go shopping, listen to music, and then go to Qujiang Lake for a swim. We can do whatever makes us happy."

Jiang Ling agreed with this. He and Ming Huashang were both ignorant of poetry, but they were very knowledgeable when it came to eating, drinking and having fun. The two of them discussed how to have fun and had a great time. Ren Yao felt at a loss in this enthusiasm and his eyes were hot.

She used to be indignant about the harshness of the world towards women. Wasn't she hardworking enough? Why did she still run into obstacles everywhere? As she experienced more and more disappointments, she gradually became calm. It seemed that she was not happy or sad because of things, but in fact, she was just numb.

She was used to not getting any response for her efforts, just like this time when she passed the military examination but was not appointed as an official by the Ministry of War. Ren Yao was angry, but in her heart she felt it was normal.

It turned out that she had lost the strength to resist without realizing it. But now Ren Yao suddenly felt a kind of excitement. Even if the world is a mountain, as long as there is a crack in the ground, the vines can break through the ground and pierce the boulder. The old conservatives in the Ministry of War did not recognize women and refused to grant her an official position, so she would find someone who could accept women as military commanders. She believed that those who have the will can achieve their goals and there is always a way out.

Ming Huashang and Jiang Ling accompanied Ren Yao to have fun in Chang'an for a day, and they went home when curfew was approaching. Ming Huashang now lived in a small courtyard with its own entrance and exit, which was very convenient. She slipped back home through the side door with ease, but when she pushed the door, she found that the lights in the house were on.

Zhaocai and the others saw Ming Huashang coming back and hurried forward to say, "Madam, you are finally back. Erlangjun has been waiting for a long time."

Ming Huashang quickly glanced at the window and asked Zhaocai in a low voice, "When did he come?"

Zhaocai also whispered, "It's early. I came here directly after dinner. Today, Erlangjun passed the imperial examination. The Duke and the old lady were very happy and ordered a grand dinner. But my lady was not at home. The old lady was very angry and immediately asked the servants to "invite" my lady back. Thanks to Erlangjun for persuading the old lady not to let the servants disturb my lady's fun. He also said that he would wait for my lady here. If anything happened to my lady, he would take full responsibility. Erlangjun waited for more than an hour. He didn't say anything or order snacks. He just held a scroll in the room and read. My lady, if you don't come back, we will be scared to death."

Because Ming Huazhang was there, Zhaocai Jinbao and the others did not dare to stay in the house, and they all crowded into the courtyard, eagerly waiting for Ming Huachang to come back. Who would have thought that they would have to wait until curfew, not to mention Madam Ming, even Zhaocai Jinbao's four maids felt that Ming Huachang was too much.

My brother is in high school. It's really inappropriate for Ming Huashang, as his younger sister, not to be by his side on such an important day. Ming Huashang smiled dryly and winked at the four girls: "I know, you all leave, I'll go and talk to my second brother."

In the eyes of Zhaocai and the others, Ming Huashang and Ming Huazhang were siblings, and being alone was not a big deal. After they exchanged greetings, they went back to their rooms to rest. Ming Huashang held up the hem of her skirt, tiptoed closer to the light, and then suddenly pushed open the window: "Second brother!"

She originally wanted to scare him, but to Ming Huazhang, she made such a big noise when she entered the room, and then whispered with the little maid for so long. At this level, she still wanted to ambush him, which really regarded him as deaf.

Minghua Zhangsi was unmoved, and calmly stretched out his hand to protect the candle wick. The weak candle flame flickered twice, trembling and standing up, the book became bright again, and the light of the fire shone through his hand, like a delicate warm jade.

Seeing that he didn't move at all, Ming Huashang put down her hand in disappointment and leaned on the window sill: "Why don't you react? It's boring."

Ming Huazhang pretended not to hear the mumbling at the end and asked, "Are you back? Where did you and Ren Yao go today?"

Ming Huashang was surprised: "How did you know I was with them?"

Ming Huazhang chuckled softly, "Everyone in Chang'an knows that the son of Marquis Jiang'an spent a fortune to buy all the flowers in the city to celebrate the victory of the young lady of Marquis Pingnan in the martial arts competition. Now many people praise Ren Yao as the daughter of a general, and she lives up to the reputation of the Ren family spear."

Ming Huashang knew that Jiang Ling's money offensive would be effective, but she didn't expect it to be so effective that even Ming Huazhang, the protagonist of today's officialdom, heard about it. Ming Huashang was very happy and approached Ming Huazhang, saying, "Jiang Ling spent the money, and I made up the rhyme. What do you think? I made it up well, right?"

Ming Huazhang sighed slightly, put down the book, turned around, and tapped her on the forehead: "You don't study hard, so you are the fastest to these crooked ways. If you have this little time to help Ren Yaomou get an official position, you'd better think about how you are going to explain to your grandmother and father when you pay your respects tomorrow."

Ming Huashang didn't care. She climbed up from the window, put her hands behind her back and hopped into the house, saying, "What's so difficult? I've been a rotten piece of wood for more than ten years. Grandma and father are used to it. At worst, I can be confined to my house and punished. Anyway, my father won't be willing to hit me."

Ming Huachang was quite carefree, like a dead pig that is not afraid of boiling water. Although he said it unintentionally, the listener took it seriously. Ming Huazhang was helpless and amused at first, but slowly, a feeling of sadness welled up in his heart.

Duke Zhenguo was very indulgent towards Ming Huashang, while Madam Ming favored boys over girls and was reluctant to even scold her granddaughter who was not ambitious and not pleasing to the eye.

But it shouldn't be like this.

Ming Huazhang could no longer hold back his smile, and Ming Huashang had already sat down opposite the Luohan bed. Seeing Ming Huazhang's surprise, she gently waved in front of him, "Second brother, what are you thinking about?"

Ming Huazhang came back to his senses and stared at Ming Huashang, wanting to say something but stopping himself. Finally, he sighed and said, "I'll go with you to pay my respects tomorrow. If Grandmother insists on punishing you, I'll take the responsibility for you."

"Don't worry." Ming Huashang said hurriedly, "I came home late without informing my elders. It was my fault and I deserved to be punished. Second brother, you just passed the imperial examination and have many banquets and poetry gatherings to attend. How can I let you be implicated because of such a small matter as mine?"

"You are my sister. You are punished by your elders. How can you call it a small matter?" Ming Huazhang said, "Don't worry. I don't want to participate in those poetry gatherings anyway. I might as well stay grounded with you."

He said it so naturally and uprightly that Ming Huashang was stunned for a moment, and an indescribable feeling welled up in his heart.

Such a good person can only be her brother. Such a good person can only be her brother.

Ming Huashang pinched her palm, quickly came back to her senses, and said with a smile: "Okay, but grandma doesn't want to delay your future. If you say that, grandma will definitely be angry, and the punishment will be dropped in the end. Thank you for saving me, second brother!"

The two chatted under the lamp, laughing and joking intimately without breaking the rules, just like a brother and sister from an ordinary family. Ming Huashang almost suspected that the conversation under the grape tree a few days ago was just an illusion, but a cool breeze blew in from the window, and the grape leaves rustled in the night sky, and Ming Huashang knew that it was not an illusion.

They were walking on the edge of brother-sister affection and crossing the line, testing each other back and forth. Sometimes Ming Huachang accidentally crossed the line, she hurriedly stepped back, and Ming Huazhang would take a step forward, vaguely, seemingly real and fake, and Ming Huachang couldn't tell whether it was a coincidence or intentional.

Just like now, Ming Huazhang looked at her with a smile, his eyes sparkling under the light, tender as spring waves, and asked jokingly: "Where is the thank you gift?"

Ming Huashang was slightly startled, she couldn't tell whether he was teasing his sister as a brother, or flirting with a woman as a man. At any time, when a man asked for a gift in a joking tone after helping a woman, it was definitely not a polite conversation.

Ming Huashang paused for a moment, then smiled and said, "Of course I have. I haven't congratulated you on your high school entrance exam yet. When you were parading today, I wanted to throw flowers at you, but I only bought two sachets, and I was afraid that Brother Su and Brother Xie would misunderstand, so I didn't. It's a good opportunity to give it to you now!"

Ming Huazhang's eyes were as clear as autumn water, and he was calm and leisurely. He said, "The gift you gave me couldn't be the same as the one you gave to Ren Yao during the day."

Ming Huashang paused as she stretched her hand towards her sleeve. Don't say it, it's true.

If she didn't understand Ming Huazhang's implication, she would have lived for so many years in vain. Ming Huashang took advantage of the situation and casually took out a new purse from her sleeve. She said to Ming Huazhang without blushing or beating her heart, "Of course not. Second brother is the most important person to me. How can I use the same things as others! Of course, everything for Second Brother is unique."

Ming Huashang finished her words in a daze before she saw the purse she had taken out. She stared at the embroidery on it, of which she could not tell what kind it was, and then she put it back without changing her expression: "I took the wrong one. Actually, the one I gave to my second brother was another one. Please wait a moment, I'll go to the inner room to get it."

"No need." Ming Huazhang leaned forward, grabbed the purse from her hand with his long arm, and looked carefully at the crooked purse with messy stitches under the light. Ming Huachang's eyelids twitched violently, and she felt that she had lost all her face in this life. She hurriedly tried to take it back: "Second brother, this one is too ugly, I'll change it for you..."

Looking at the embroidery on the purse, it is really difficult for anyone except Ming Huachang to achieve it. It can be seen that she is really not good at sewing, but it is precisely because of this that it looks precious. Ming Huachang reached out, gently clasped her two wrists, and tied the ugly and unique purse to her belt: "I want this. Only uniqueness is meaningful. If it is something that everyone has, no matter how exquisite and expensive it is, I don't want it."

Ming Huachang's eyelids twitched again. Was it her illusion? Why did she feel that Ming Huazhang's words had a hidden meaning?