Chapter 30: "Goddess of Spring."
Wen Yu felt a surge of embarrassment for some unknown reason. She stared at Ming Kun, her heart drooling, yet her hands and feet felt heavy as a thousand pounds, unable to move. She hid her hands in her sleeves, her fingers intertwined and twirling, her heart pounding like a drum, her face flushed with shame.
Seeing that she hadn't moved for a while, Mu Tong suddenly changed his mind and took a step forward, trying to persuade her, "Madam Wen, why don't you accept it? Could it be that you don't like my Mingkun hairpin?"
"No!" Wen Yu denied it repeatedly without even looking up, "I like it very much..."
"Then accept it! Today is March 3rd, it can be considered as a good start!" Mu Tong laughed loudly.
"Are you really giving it to me?" Wen Yu's almond-shaped eyes were filled with disbelief. "This hairpin... this hairpin..."
Song Linsheng, who was standing by, guessed Wen Yu's thoughts and continued, "This hairpin is so valuable..."
"Eh..." Mu Tong interrupted the conversation between Wen Yu and Song Linsheng. His voice was gentle, and the long tail tone kept spinning in the wind.
"I finally know what you two are thinking--" Mu Tong smiled even more, holding the Mingkun hairpin in one hand and holding the pearls and jade on his head that were shaking with laughter with the other hand.
"Sir Song, everything I'm wearing has been registered with the government, except for this Ming Kun, which I paid for myself."
"You can't accuse me of corruption, Lord Song!" Mu Tong explained the origin of "Ming Kun" from beginning to end.
It turns out that although Lord Mu and Song Linsheng both served as officials in the government office, unlike Song Linsheng who loved books, Lord Mu loved colorful objects the most. From large ornaments and landscapes to small hairpins and rings, Lord Mu was quite knowledgeable.
"And this 'Ming Kun' was created by me personally!" Mu Tong explained to Wen Yu and the others, his eyes shining with pride.
"Since I am its owner, of course I can give it to Madam Wen!" Mu Tong said in a relaxed tone, and then handed the hairpin to Wen Yu.
Before he could finish his words, Wen Yu stretched out her hands to take the Mingkun hairpin, held it in her hands, and carefully admired its beauty.
The appearance of a winter jasmine flower is not difficult to imitate; the challenge lies in capturing its essence with pearls and jade. This Mingkun hairpin not only achieves a similar appearance, but also achieves a similar spirit through the interplay of blue and green gemstones.
It is so colorful and exquisite!
"Thank you, Lord Mu!" Wen Yu was no longer polite and thanked him happily.
"Madam Wen, you don't have to be polite! Today is the Shangsi Festival, so just consider it a gift to you!" Mu Tong spoke very casually, not caring at all that he had just given her a valuable hairpin.
The two of them chatted back and forth, lively and cheerful. Song Linsheng, who had been silent for a long time, suddenly interrupted and said, "Thank you very much for your kindness, Mu Jingli. I'll send someone to give you some money and send it to Mu Jingli's house later."
Wen Yu nodded when she heard this. This was a good idea. Next time she went to Houchun Mountain to get fortune branches, she would bring back more for Song Linsheng.
Mu Tong pretended to be surprised and said, "I gave this hairpin to Madam Wen, not to Lord Song."
"Why are you paying me money, Lord Song?" He had a startled look on his face, which was extremely exaggerated.
Song Linsheng was at a loss for words. Mu Jingli's words—right and wrong. Right, why should he pay for Madam Wenyu? Wrong, he'd been doing this all along, buying whatever he saw, anything good, suitable, or needed, for Madam Wenyu.
He hadn't really thought about Mu Tong's question. Song Linsheng was just thinking about how to respond when he heard Mu Tong continue:
"Madam Wen likes it. This is the fate between Mingkun and Madam Wen. No matter how good Baochai is, it needs someone who can appreciate it!"
"Mrs. Wen, just accept it! No one is allowed to mention money again!" He shut Song Linsheng up in one breath, leaving him no room to speak.
Wen Yu fumbled with her bun, gestured for a while, then raised her hand and tucked the Mingkun hairpin into her hair. The green and blue forsythia bloomed freely in Wen Yu's hair, matching her dress very well.
She was so absorbed in the newly acquired Mingkun hairpin that she didn't notice the subtle conversation between Song Linsheng and Mu Tong.
Wen Yu made sure the hairpin was securely fastened to her head before she let it go. She asked Song Linsheng and Mu Tong, "Does it look good?"
Song Linsheng's eyelashes flickered, and his thoughts returned. He looked at Wen Yu's appearance. Her face was beautiful and her expression was lively. The flowing light of her hairpin did not obscure her gracefulness in the slightest.
It was as beautiful as the country, with the fragrance of orchids. Song Linsheng thought to himself, it was really...
"It's really beautiful!" Mu Tong said it before Song Linsheng, and his praises poured out all at once.
"I told you Mingkun and Madam Wen were meant to be together. You look so stunning in it!"
Song Linsheng was furious for a moment, not knowing why, but strange thoughts suddenly occurred to him, stirring his heart and causing turmoil. He had always been gentle and elegant, rarely experiencing such great emotional fluctuations. Today, seeing Mu Jingli praising Madam Wen Yu, he felt strange.
"Compared to what I'm wearing today, it's not inferior at all!" Mu Tong's generous praise made Wen Yu happy, and her eyes followed his words and focused on him again.
Wen Yu then remembered her earlier doubts and asked, "Oh, right! Why is Master Mu dressed like this today?"
Mu Tong lowered his head and looked around. He then raised his hands to smooth the tassels of the silver earrings hanging from his ears, pulling them down to his chest. He then explained, "Should Lord Song know about this? I wrote a memorial and submitted it."
Song Linsheng paused when he heard this. He had been so busy flipping through files yesterday that he hadn't had time to process the pile of official documents. Naturally, he didn't know what Mu Jingli was talking about.
Song Linsheng tried his best to calm himself down and replied with a faint smile, "The affairs are complicated, and I may have missed something. I would like to ask Mr. Mu to help me solve this problem."
Mu Tong nodded when he heard this, and then continued, "In the past few years, the Spring God sacrifice was always handled by Chen Mian. This year, Chen Mian... I will take over this matter temporarily."
At this point, his brows furrowed, and he sighed softly, "In the past, the selection of the person to be worshipped as the God of Spring was held through an open election in Jiangyang Prefecture, and all women of appropriate age were eligible to participate."
When Wen Yu heard this, she became even more confused and couldn't help asking, "Who will be chosen this year?"
Mu Tong choked when he heard this and did not answer immediately.
Song Linsheng's thoughts turned, and he had already guessed roughly. He turned sideways and smiled at Wen Yu, and said, "It's far away in the horizon, but it's right in front of us."
After listening to Song Linsheng's words, Wen Yu looked around. Apart from her and Song Linsheng, there was only—
"Master Mu?" Wen Yu's thoughts became more active, and he asked, "Is Master Mu the chosen one this year?"
Wen Yu raised her eyebrows, feeling surprised. Didn't they ask women of appropriate age to participate in the election? But Master Mu is a man!
Mu Tong coughed lightly, a somewhat unnatural look on his face, and then he explained: "To be honest, I was so focused on arranging the purification ceremony, the water feast, and even the sacrificial procedures that I completely forgot about choosing the person to be sacrificed to the god!"
"In the end, I had no choice but to bite the bullet!" Mu Tong paused and added, "Sir Song, this is my fault. Once this matter is resolved, I will apologize to you tomorrow."
Song Linsheng heard this and shook his head gently, trying to comfort Mu Tong: "How could it be so serious? You're actually asking for apology."
"I think Mu Jingli has a beautiful face, very similar to the Spring God statue in the Wutong Ancestral Temple. It is most appropriate for Lord Mu to offer sacrifices to the god."
Mu Tong breathed a sigh of relief upon hearing this, but upon hearing Song Linsheng's words, he quickly denied it, "How can a mere mortal like me be compared to the Goddess of Spring? Sir Song, are you kidding?"
"If you don't believe it, then ask Madam Wenyu, is it true or not?"
After hearing what Song Linsheng said, Wen Yu tilted her head and looked carefully at Lord Mu's face. She supported her chin with one hand and supported her elbow with the other, nodding repeatedly.
"Hmm..." Wen Yu compared Lord Mu's appearance with the statue of the Goddess of Spring, thinking about Song Linsheng's words, "They do look quite similar!"
The statue of the God of Spring in the Wutong Ancestral Temple was merely a mortal creation, relying entirely on people's fantasies of the God of Spring. Therefore, it didn't bear a close resemblance to her master's true form. However, it was rare for Lord Mu to bear some resemblance to the statue.
"My lord and my lady, please stop teasing me!" Mu Tong then talked about the important reason why he came here.
"Originally, the Jiangyang Restaurant was under the care of Lord Jia, but after much deliberation, I decided to come here myself. After all, I invited Lord Jia and his wife to a water feast this morning, didn't I?"
"Water feast?" Wen Yu was very good at grasping the key points. The water feast she had been thinking about for a long time was finally going to be served!
Wen Yu lifted her skirt with both hands and was about to take a step, but she stopped and stroked the Mingkun hairpin in her hair before moving forward. After taking two steps, she saw Song Linsheng and Master Mu still there, so she shouted, "Come on!"
Song Linsheng chuckled when he heard this, and was about to raise his leg to follow, but he only heard Mu Jingli beside him respond, "Madam Wen, wait a moment, I will lead the way for you!"
"Then I'll have to trouble the 'Goddess of Spring'!" Wen Yu's playful voice reached Song Linsheng's ears. He didn't know what to feel for a moment, and his legs stopped spontaneously. In a blink of an eye, he was a few steps behind them.
Song Linsheng lowered his eyes to hide his expression. What was going on with him...
He breathed a sigh of relief and was about to follow, but he heard Wen Yu's voice.
"Song Linsheng! Come quickly!" It turned out that Wen Yu saw that he was late, so she stopped where she was and turned around to ask him to follow.
She smiled like a flower, raised her hand and waved her sleeves, revealing half of her arms that were as slender and white as spring bamboo shoots.
Song Linsheng's mind moved, and the dimples on his face began to appear. He raised his voice and said, "Here I come!"
Wen Yu seemed to think he was walking too slowly. She walked back a few steps, walked around behind Song Linsheng, and supported him as he walked forward.
"Master Xiao Song! Please go first!"
Seeing her like this, Song Linsheng couldn't help laughing and joked, "Madam Wenyu, be careful not to fall even on flat ground!"
Wen Yu quickly untied her hands upon hearing this, and stood beside Song Linsheng, walking side by side with him. Hearing Song Linsheng's words, she remembered the terrible fall she had suffered at the government office a few days ago. She didn't want to lose face in public today.
She was calm and collected, but she was unwilling to be outdone. She said angrily, "Master Xiao Song is right!"
In a moment, the two of them caught up with Lord Mu and went back to the main hall together.
As the time approached, the visitors in the back garden also went to the front hall in groups of three or four and took their seats together.
Wen Yu sat at the table, with Song Linsheng and Mu Tong on either side. In front of them was a wooden table, about eight feet long, with a hollow in the center filled with running water and a landscape of flowers and trees.
In the late spring, the mountains were filled with countless exotic flowers and plants, and even more deep streams. Wen Yu was no stranger to them, but this was the first time she had seen such a landscape brought to life on a dining table. She felt so fresh for a moment that she only lowered her head to observe the table's layout.
Wen Yu was so engrossed in watching that she only heard Song Linsheng whisper beside her, "Madam Wen Yu, look—"
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