Chapter 427: Cleansing (2) (1/2)
It was the first time that Chu Lian was celebrating the New Year in the Great Wu Dynasty. Although it was only going to be the two of them together for the festivities, Chu Lian didn’t feel lonely at all. On the contrary, she was looking forward to it.
Once the Kitchen God Festival had ended, time seemed to pass in a flash.
In a blink of an eye, it was already the twenty-seventh, and there were only three more days to New Year’s Eve.
On this day, everyone had to bathe and cleanse themselves. The commoners living in the harsh environment of Liangzhou were no exception, even for the poverty-stricken. They would heat up pots of water and wash themselves with the scraps of soap they had collected in the summer to wash away the filth they accumulated in the year. This was all to ensure that they greeted the New Year with a clean body.
Early in the morning, Chu Lian was woken up by Wenqing. After washing up in a daze, she listened to Wenqing as she chattered on.
“Third Young Madam, today’s the twenty-seventh, the day of cleansing. This servant has prepared a flower bath for you. After lunch, you should take a bath and wash away your fatigue.”
Even out here in the freezing north, Chu Lian still kept clean and she would take a bath every three days, so she didn’t take much notice of Wenqing’s words.
However, after putting on her face cream, she suddenly remembered about the bedridden He Changdi. She asked, “Wenqing, is it an absolute must to go through the cleansing today?”
Wenqing thought that she was interested in the tradition, so she explained with a smile, “Yes, we do. Even the guards watching the doors have to prepare their own baths to wash off the dirt of this year in preparation for the new one!”
A corner of Chu Lian’s mouth twitched. Didn’t that mean that the patient He Sanlang had to bathe too?
How was he going to bathe with his body covered in scabs!
Chu Lian felt a headache coming on.
Chu Lian went to visit the recuperating He Changdi after breakfast. After convalescing for eight days, he was finally able to move his gravely wounded right leg. He no longer needed help from others to sit up or turn over.
The moment she entered the outer room, a servant welcomed her.
“Greetings to Third Young Madam.”
Chu Lian nodded at her, “Is my husband awake?”
The servant respectfully answered, “Third Young Master woke up two hours ago, Laiyue has already served Third Young Master his breakfast.”
Chu Lian glanced into the room. She found it strange as Laiyue was always the first to welcome her whenever she came looking for He Sanlang, yet he was nowhere to be found.
“What about Laiyue?”
“Replying to Third Young Madam, Laiyue was sent out on business on Third Young Master’s orders early in the morning. Before he left, he said that he would only be back tomorrow morning.” The servant took out a small wooden box from a cupboard and held it up with both hands respectfully for Chu Lian to inspect.
“Laiyue told this servant to pass on this message to Third Young Madam. Third Young Madam will have to help with changing Third Young Master’s bandages for today.”