Chapter 24 Bouquet of Flowers Cheng Xianzhi visited Zhichunli?
"Don't you want a divorce?" Luo Yunchu asked.
"Then after I get divorced, will you still be willing to wait for me?" She asked with expectation, but she didn't expect him to answer truthfully.
Luo Yunchu reached out his hand, gently brushed her hair, and said softly, "Yes."
Lu Tingwan smiled suddenly, "But after my divorce, I'll be leaving Kyoto."
"Will you leave Kyoto for me?"
"I can."
The answer was unexpected. She never believed that anyone would give up everything they already had for one person. Even she herself could not do that.
Since she was a child, she learned from her mother that her father loved her mother deeply but would betray her mother for the sake of his future career. Although her mother still missed her father in her heart until her death, she chose to leave decisively.
Perhaps at this moment, Luo Yunchu's answer gave her previously restless heart a moment of comfort. Lu Tingwan's smile returned to her face, a brilliant smile that was three times brighter than the rising sun.
Cheng Xianzhi stayed outside the city for a few days, and Han Jinzhang found out that the new houses that were originally rented and sold in the city were not used for residential purposes.
Those who come in and out every day are all strong and muscular, with stable legs. They look like battle-hardened soldiers rather than ordinary people.
After further investigation, it was discovered that these people entered the city at dusk every day, stayed until the city gates were locked, and then left the city. After leaving the city, they walked along the small roads outside the capital to several houses in the suburbs.
Cheng Xianzhi and his men lay in ambush around the houses for several days before entering the city and going to the Ministry of Revenue. Han Jinzhang was ordered to wait there and mobilize the imperial guards to capture him if there was any movement. After leaving the Ministry of Revenue, Cheng Xianzhi went straight back to the Cheng Mansion.
The moonlight was bright, and someone from Yingyue Pavilion brought a bowl of white fungus and lotus seed soup to relieve the summer heat.
Cheng Xianzhi didn't touch it. He didn't like sweets. After finishing his official duties, he instructed Cang Shu, "I passed by a shop while conducting a case recently. The flowers there looked quite good. It seemed to be called Zhichunli. Send someone to order some tomorrow and send them to Yingyue Pavilion."
Cang Shu bowed and replied, "Yes, my lord, then order more Cang Shu, the eldest lady will surely be happy."
"Hmm," Cheng Xianzhi pondered for a moment, remembering what Lu Tingwan had said in the dilapidated temple, "I guess I've bought them all."
"Guarantee, guarantee everything?" Cang Shu was surprised. Last time, just because their master gave the eldest lady a shop full of cosmetics, the counselor came to Hanzhang Palace a few days later to report him.
"We'll take as many as we can. If Yingyue Pavilion can't hold them, we'll send them to other courtyards." Cheng Xianzhi's eyes were firm. His shirt was loose, hanging entirely on his broad shoulders. His collar was half open, and the dark lines inside could be vaguely seen. There seemed to be red marks, which were the injuries he suffered when he was avoiding the assassin's pursuit a few days ago.
It was a hot and stuffy summer day, but from time to time I could smell the fresh scent of flowers from outside the study window; the jasmine in the yard was in bloom.
In the front yard of Yansheng Hall, Lu Tingwan was leaning in a rocking chair with stacked fruits in his hands, enjoying the cool breeze. Feng Xin was busy with the account book, counting beads quickly. In the past half month, Feng Xin has been able to take full charge of the accounts. Lu Tingwan has put a lot of thought into it. Feng Xin is a meticulous person, but he is a slow learner. Once he gets the hang of it, he will naturally catch up in speed.
Now that she is in charge of the accounts, Lu Tingwan has to worry less and can also think about the future management strategy of Zhichunli.
The crisp "tick-tick" of the abacus seemed to disturb Lu Tingwan from her deep thought. She took a piece of fruit, which was just the right amount of sweetness. She looked up at the stars and said to the person beside her who was concentrating, "Feng Xin, you've made a lot of progress recently. I've been sitting here for half an hour, and you haven't stopped counting."
Lu Tingwan never hesitated to praise her. Even when she first started learning, she often made mistakes. Lu Tingwan patiently pointed out her mistakes and taught her to correct them, without being overly harsh on her. In her view, mistakes were inevitable, and as long as she was willing to correct them, she would succeed.
Feng Xin smiled brightly at the praise and said, "Second Madam values me so much, I will naturally pay more attention to you and won't let you down."
"But you're moving the beads too fast and making too much noise. If you disturb the people outside the yard, will we still be able to do business?" She reached out and handed over a piece of watermelon.
Feng Xin took it and thanked him, saying, "Second Madam is right. Then I'll keep my voice down."
"Feng Xin, you are going to be the shopkeeper in the future, so don't keep mentioning this servant." She looked back at the night sky, which was filled with vast and boundless stars.
"Shopkeeper?" Feng Xin just smiled. "Second Madam is teasing Feng Xin. Feng Xin is your maid wherever she goes."
Lu Tingwan stopped talking after hearing this. She really wanted to train Feng Xin.
The next day, Lu Ting got up late and had breakfast in Yansheng Hall. After the meal, he went to the yard to digest the food. The grape trellis in Yansheng Hall was full of green and had produced several bunches of fruits. He cut off the extra branches so that the remaining ones could grow better.
Just as she was concentrating on the work in her hands, there was a rustling sound outside the yard, disturbing the people in the yard. Not many people from the mansion came to Yansheng Hall. Except for the monthly delivery of silver and necessary items, housekeeper Zhu would bring people over. Lu Tingwan rarely showed up. When he was seen in the yard once or twice, he had his back to people. No one in the mansion had ever seen Lu Tingwan's face.
The people in the mansion were used to it, but they talked a lot about it in private. The second wife was locked up in Yansheng Hall, and the master had ordered that she was not allowed to pay her respects at Yingyue Pavilion, nor was she summoned to sleep with the emperor.
If it were a concubine from another family, after not seeing her master for several months, she would definitely find various reasons to show up in front of her master.
This master is different from others.
Butler Zhu called out to the Second Madam outside the courtyard, and the maids followed behind him.
Lu Tingwan turned around, and Feng Xin took the scissors from her hand. She was wearing a skirt with ancient pattern of clouds and thousands of waters, and her outer shirt was embroidered with a strand of green bamboo. Her eyebrows were painted with distant mountains, and her thin lips had a natural curve that could be vaguely seen when she was not smiling. Her skin was as white as jade and translucent, and her facial features were delicate and three-dimensional. Under the green grape branches, it seemed as if adding fragrance to her.
Even more so than the eldest lady of Yingyue Pavilion, Lu Tingwan slowly raised her hand, quite kindly, and spoke softly, "Butler Zhu, it's not even the beginning of the month yet. Why would you bother to come to Yansheng Hall? What trouble have you caused us?"
Housekeeper Zhu was terrified when he heard this and hurriedly explained, "Second Madam is really embarrassing me. I came here on the orders of the First Madam to bring some flowers to Second Madam."
Lu Tingwan walked slowly around Housekeeper Zhu, picked up a handful of peonies and put them to his nose, the fragrance filled the air. "Thank you, Madam, for the reward. I'd like to trouble Housekeeper Zhu to run a trip, Feng Xin."
Feng Xinyi took out some small change from his sleeve pocket and handed it to Butler Zhu and the two maids.
"This is a small token of my appreciation. I've been staying in the mansion for a few months. I've troubled you all. Please tell the Madam that Mrs. Lu thanks her for her kindness."
"Second Madam, your words are too serious."
"It's just that," Lu Tingwan twirled the flower branch, her expression casual, "Why did the Madam give me flowers?"
Housekeeper Zhu said sincerely, "Madam, the master ordered a few loads of flowers from an outside shop to be sent to Yingyue Pavilion. Yingyue Pavilion couldn't hold them, so they sent some to various courtyards in the mansion."
Lu Tingwan suppressed her laughter. Cheng Xianzhi had used flowers to win the beauty's smile, so these flowers...
Could it be that Han Jinzhang really spoke well of her to Cheng Xianzhi and patronized the business in Zhichunli?
etc?
Lu Tingwan confirmed again, "Butler Zhu, do you know which shop sent these flowers?"
"I only know that it was sent from Maple Forest Lane in the west of the city..."
Lu Tingwan smiled broadly, feeling satisfied and unable to suppress her joy. "Feng Xin, send Butler Zhu off."
After they left, she told Feng Xin to close the gate. After locking it, she couldn't hide the smile she had been suppressing for a long time. Feng Xin asked, "Why are you so happy, Madam? Is it because Yingyue Pavilion sent us these flowers?"
Lu Tingwan picked a few of the best flowers, carefully trimmed them, and placed them in a porcelain vase. "Don't you think this flower looks familiar?"
Feng Xin looked puzzled. "Can you even describe this flower as familiar? How can it look any different to me?"
Lu Tingwan didn't keep it a secret any longer: "This is the flower from our Zhichun, Silly Fengxin."
"What?" Feng Xin immediately covered his mouth and looked around to make sure no one else was talking. "The master went to Zhichunli to buy our flowers for the Madam, and now these flowers are back in our hands?"
"That's probably what he meant." Lu Tingwan vaguely nodded, "Just now the housekeeper said Cheng Xianzhi bought a few loads of food for Gongsun Xue. I guess someone has taken over all the business in Zhichunli today."
The store hasn't stocked the rejuvenating cream for several days, but now it is truly in high demand and priceless.
She has to wait, she is waiting.
Once people have accumulated enough desire, we will release a new batch of rejuvenating cream, which will be in limited quantity, and also give them a big gift.
For several days in a row, the five loads of flowers in Zhichunli were ordered by one person every day, and the person who came to negotiate was Cangshu.
Lu Tingwan had not left Yansheng Hall for several days, but Feng Xin had been there several times. She took the account book for the day back to Yansheng Hall, calculated it, and reported it to Lu Tingwan.
Lu Tingwan was writing something at the desk, and Feng Xin saw that she was busy so he didn't ask any questions.
But there were other doubts in her heart, "Second Madam, why haven't you been to Zhichunli these days?"
Lu Tingwan dipped the brush in ink, tapped twice, and continued writing. "These past few days, Zhichunli's business doesn't need my presence, and you've been in charge of the accounts. From the opening until now, I've rarely had a moment of leisure."
"Master Luo," Feng Xin said, "Master Luo has come to Zhichunli several times to look for you."
Lu Tingwan paused for a moment as he began to write, then dipped his wrist back into the grinding wheel. "Did you say anything?"
After he confessed to him that day, Luo Yunchu said he didn't mind and even made many promises to him. Later, Lu Tingwan thought about it and felt that maybe he was impulsive.
Faced with Luo Yunchu's passionate sincerity, she was originally weighing all the pros and cons, trying to get the information from him that Cheng Xianzhi wanted.
Therefore, she felt guilty and had no face to see him.
"He didn't say anything. He was just concerned about your health. You've always been at Zhichunli, and he was afraid you'd disappear without a trace, like last time you were in danger outside the capital, so he asked a few more questions." Feng Xin said, "Second Madam, when do you plan to return to Zhichunli?"
The reason for not going back is not only this, but also to avoid Cheng Xianzhi.
"Let's wait a little longer." Lu Tingwan had something to hide and didn't know how to talk to Feng Xin.
The courtyard of Yingyue Pavilion was filled with flowers, making it difficult to walk. Gongsun Xue felt like she was in a sea of flowers. Cheng Xianzhi only gave such love to her.
She had initially harbored doubts, but seeing him ostentatiously send her flowers to please her, having previously given her a jar of rejuvenating cream as an apology, Gongsun Xue felt delighted and ordered her servants to distribute the remaining flowers to the various courtyards for decoration. Naturally, this was also to let Lu Tingwan of Yansheng Hall know who was the apple of Cheng Xianzhi's eye.
Lu Tingwan couldn't help but sneeze, and Feng Xin hurried to close the window.
"Don't close it, let the room ventilate."
A few days later, Lu Tingwan appeared in Zhichunli again. It was already night. After Zhichunli closed the door to visitors, only the lamp in the study was left on. A dark shadow was squatting on the maple tree, but it never showed up.
Not long after, a dark blue figure appeared in the study, twirling a folding fan in his hand, and said in a lazy tone: "Yanli, it's been a few days since we last met. Are you willing to see me now?"
His sight in the darkness suddenly became sharp, staring straight inside.
The shadow blocked out the candlelight and also obscured the petite figure on the chair.
After a long while, Lu Tingwan's voice finally rang out: "Luo Yunchu, when did I hide from you?"
"Isn't it? Then why didn't you come to Zhichunli for a few days? You didn't even ask Fengxin to bring me a message. I almost went to your house to look for you." He handed him food from somewhere.
The crispy chicken was wrapped in oil paper, and the fragrance was overflowing before it was even opened. Lu Tingwan was tempted and swallowed it frequently.
When Luo Yun first saw her, he found her very beautiful, and the dim candlelight filled him with irrepressible emotions.
Perhaps it was because they hadn't seen each other for many days, but when he leaned over to look at her, Lu Tingwan raised her head to meet his fiery gaze, her almond-shaped eyes wide open, her innocence and intelligence showing.
The throbbing in his heart was hard to dissipate, the breeze stirred up the candlelight, and that inexplicable feeling seemed to be pulling him forward infinitely, closer.
Just as he was about to lean over and touch her, Lu Tingwan moved, stood up and unwrapped the crispy chicken in the oil paper. She heartlessly tore off a leg and handed it to Luo Yunchu first.
Luo Yunchu stared at the chicken leg in a daze for a long time. How could this person quietly seduce people's souls and then quench the aroused desire as if nothing had happened?
The desire to be close to her, touch her, and love her.
"Is it the crispy chicken from Old Li's shop on Changqing Street?" At this moment, all she had in mind was food.
Luo Yunchu said in a deflated tone, "Yes, it's what you like to eat."
He pushed the chicken leg away in front of him, grabbed her wrist with his backhand, and stuffed the chicken leg into her mouth.
Lu Tingwan chewed it and smiled innocently, "Delicious!"
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