Chapter 46 (1/2)
The other was a royal prince of Nan Ling and was also the blood-related son of the current emperor, he naturally has a lofty and arrogant disposition! Ruan Zhu thought this but did not speak.
Nuan Qing took out a bag of charcoal and poured some into the brazier before taking out flint and igniting a fire. One hand held a fan as he fanned the fire with tightly controlled movements and after a short moment, a very red fire burned brightly. He then searched for some red beans and wolfberries and simmered them in a pot, creating a very fragrant and thick soup. Ladling a bowl and carrying it over, he used a spoon to feed Ruan Zhu one mouthful at a time, while Nuan Chun, who had been mutually supporting Ruan Zhu and himself, used a handkerchief to carefully wipe at the corners of her soup-stained mouth.
Aunt Sun looked on with envy: “Your family’s two bedwarmers are really considerate, much better than my own. How about I use Blockhead to exchange for one of yours?”
Blockhead? Ruan Zhu looked at her in astonishment as she followed the others’ gaze. It turns out Blockhead was Xuanyuan Min Zhi. She felt it was a rather fitting description as that person truly resembled a block of stubborn wood that did not know how to associate with others and did not know how to return kindness for kindness. He had a temper of a spoiled young master.
Using my bedwarmer to exchange for your Blockhead, you could actually come up with this? If I didn’t suspect Xuanyuan Min Zhi of being such a hot potato, I wouldn’t have given him to you earlier. Wanting to send him back after fooling with him, that disgusts me. I’ve already made a mistake once, wouldn’t I be crazy to make the same mistake again?
Nuan Chun heard the the other wanting to exchange for him and sent a resentful glare towards Aunt Sun.
Nuan Qing was in the middle of feeding soup to Ruan Zhu. His hand holding the bowl trembled and a bit of the red bean and wolfberry soup spilled onto Aunt Sun’s skirt. The scalding soup caused her to open her mouth in pain, but fortunately, it had been ladled for a while now and did not cause any injuries.
Ruan Zhu berated him: “What is wrong with you, why haven’t you apologized to Aunt Shen yet?”
“Aiyo, Madam Sun, pardon me, please see it as this one not holding the bowl properly. Please do not take offense. How about I wash it for you later?”
“No……no need.” Aunt Sun knew she had provoked these two bedwarmers and awkwardly said: “In any case, this material is not very good, how could I trouble you? I can just have Blockhead wash it later.”
Again with ‘Blockhead.’ Ruan Zhu looked at Xuanyuan Min Zhi, full of sympathy. With a turn of her head, she saw Lu Piao Xiang also looking at the other in ridicule. That’s right, ah, they had previously been acquainted.
She remembered the armed confrontation that had occurred several months ago.
Lu Piao Xiang was in a very good mood and leisurely sat cross-legged on a cushion with his guqin horizontally across his lap. His fingers lightly strummed the strings. Xuanyuan Min Zhi was just a little over five meters in front of him, lighting a fire. The two men glanced at each other and moved their eyes away, as if they strangers.
Lu Piao Xiang felt Ruan Zhu’s gaze and returned a faint smile. His hands slowly moved and a soothing piece flew out from his fingers, adding a poetic touch to the rainy day.
Ruan Zhu looked at him, stunned. This was actually “Across the Water.”
She had only sung it once, yet he remembered and could also play it on the guqin. A great master was indeed a great master, able to let others respect them greatly.
The sound of the guqin floated in the air, like moving raindrops so limpid and pure. Listening to the sound caused most of their exhaustion to vanish.
Xuanyuan Min Zhi was still trying to start a fire. Every time he had just barely ignited the pot of charcoal, it would extinguish in the next instant and this sequence was repeated several times. Aunt Sun
A pot of charcoal had just barely ignited but then extinguished in the next instant. This was repeated several times. Aunt Sun criticized him with disgust: “Useless thing, go spread the bedding for Young Master. You are not needed here.”
“Scram, you thing that only knows how to eat. You’re as stupid as a pig.”
One of Aunt Shen’s secondary husbands took over the job of lighting the fire and drove Xuanyuan Min Zhi away. The latter had an indifferent expression, perhaps because he had become used to hearing these kinds of words during this period and had long become numb.
Ruan Zhu ate a bowl of porridge and let Nuan Qing give the rest to Aunt Sun to divide among her children,
The Sun household had over ten mouths with seven to eight children. The eldest was in their teens and the youngest was only a few years old, causing the inside of the temple to be chaotic and noisy.
The rainy weather made it somewhat cool. Nuan Qing found a fox fur cape and draped it over her. She stood up and indicated for him to support her in going outside. There were too many children here and the noise gave her a headache.
Standing at the doorway, what entered her eyes was an endless range of mountains and hills that only appeared as faint silhouettes in the drizzling rain and fog. The distant areas appeared indistinct and fuzzy, making one unable to make out where sky and mountains met.
Yun Shi Wei had already gone out hunting for a while. Nothing has happened to him, right?
Ruan Zhu’s head slightly ached and her mind was gloomy. The cool rain moistened her face while her thoughts wandered. What was her hubby Yun Shi Yi doing right now? The rebellion had blocked all the northern routes and he would have to take a detour if he wanted to return. Liu Zhou was classified as part of Nan Ling. He could either travel eastwards by a ship to take the water route or travel westwards through the country of Tu Bo and enter Han Zhong. No matter which path he chose, they were all very difficult. By the time they met again, their child would already have been born, right?
She really wanted to let him see the child being born and experience that happy moment, but could she wait? Her sorrow spread and her eyes were slightly moist.
An umbrella was placed over her head and the one holding it was Lu Piao Xiang. He was taller than her by a head and she had to tilt her head in order to see him. The man was simple and elegant as ever and his two clear eyes expressed his concern: “Be at ease, nothing will happen to him. I can guarantee you this.”
What did this mean?
She abruptly raised her head to look at him. Was he comforting her or did he have a card up his sleeve to be able to say these words? She thought about the dispute between him and Xuanyuan Min Zhi several months ago and the situation where a group of black-clothed men appeared.
Although Lu Piao Xiang was from a brothel, he secretly had some strength, right?
“I will not let anything happen to him. As long as you desire it, I will definitely accomplish it for you.”
“You……”
She opened her mouth, wanting to ask him, but footsteps sounded from behind them along with the sound of iron chains sliding against the floor. The person had yet to arrive but one could feel an invisible pressure in the air.
“You even believe a courtesan’s words?”
Xuanyuan Min Zhi’s hands and feet were shackled and he walked with difficulty, yet his face was still as cold as ice and frost. His pale complexion was not normal with its bluish-green tinge, and she remembered that Yun Shi Wei had mentioned before that there was a highly toxic poison in this man’s body.
Pitiful child! She expressed her sympathy in her heart.
“At least I am free, able to go where I wish to go. Can you do that?” Lu Piao Xiang held the umbrella over Ruan Zhu and faced the front. Although he was speaking to Xuanyuan Min Zhi, not even the corner of his eyes swept towards his direction.
Xuanyuan Min Zhi choked as Lu Piao Xiang had hit his sore spot. It wasn’t that he did not have the opportunity to run away, but he had injuries all over his body and was afraid that he would starve to death not long after running away. By chance, a severe drought had also hit Tian Chu for the first time in several decades causing the average person to be unable to find food, let alone him, whose situation was currently not normal.
He had previously thought to ask the local authorities for help but he unfortunately didn’t have anything on him that could prove his identity.
Even if there was proof, what of it? He forced a bitter laugh. His brothers wanted him dead and he was afraid that requesting help from the authorities would be walking into a trap.
Ruan Zhu shot glances at the two men next to her.
Both men were rather conceited.