Anti-Bone Scarlet Song

Chapitre 5

"Young Master left the manor after finishing his sword practice. Before he left, he told you to air out the books. You'd better hurry."

Early summer was silent. Looking up at the rare good weather in winter, she sighed heavily in her heart: Young master, after a day of pleasure, you still remember to enslave me to do this and that. You really are... making the most of everything.

Drying books is really hard work.

In early summer, he and a few servants bustled between the study and the open space in front of it, from morning till night, but they only managed to move a bookcase of medical books.

As evening approached, the servants packed up the scrolls one by one and walked to the door. Suddenly, one of them, with a mournful face, exclaimed in alarm, "Chuxia, it's all over now!"

"Huh?" Chu Xia's cheeks were slightly flushed, whether from the wind or from running up and down and getting hot.

"The young master's books... they were all arranged according to his needs... The young master usually hates it when servants mess up his books..."

“Who said it would get mixed up?” Chu Xia clapped her hands, stood up and said, “Alright, this copy of ‘The Bronze Man’ will be the first one on the left on the top floor, then ‘Miscellaneous Treatise on Typhoid Fever’, and then this copy of ‘The Classic of Warm Diseases’…”

The servants all looked at them with suspicion: "How did you know?"

"Yes, yes!" Chu Xia said impatiently. "If I make a mistake and the young master blames me, I'll just say that I messed it up. Is that alright?"

Before Gongzi Ye'an pushed open the door, he heard Chu Xia's voice shouting: "Hey, hey, where's 'Gezhi Yulun'? Find it quickly, it's the fourth book on the right on the third floor... 'Piwei Lun' isn't here, it's on the next floor down..."

He waited a little longer until the noise inside subsided. Then someone opened the door, and several servants stood outside and bowed to him.

The young master casually waved his hand, signaling them to leave. He then saw Chu Xia standing on a wooden chair, tiptoeing, her fingers brushing over the volumes of books, muttering to herself.

“Early Summer,” he called to her.

"Don't make a sound." Chu Xia didn't turn around and muttered to herself, "I'm checking."

"What are you checking?"

"Don't bother me!" Chu Xia's fingertip stopped on a book. She turned around angrily, only to see the young master standing behind her, arms crossed, watching her with great interest.

The slight anger on her face vanished instantly, but the change in her smile was too quick... Chu Xia felt her expression stiffen slightly, and carefully replied, "Young Master is back."

"Hmm, have all these books been aired out?" The young master watched as she nimbly jumped off the wooden chair and casually picked up a book.

"I only aired out this one cabinet," Chu Xia answered honestly. "I'll air out the others tomorrow."

The young master raised an eyebrow, seemingly somewhat disbelieving: "In the past, when I aired out books, I had to first sort the books by order, and then put them back in their original order. It would take a whole day to air out only half a cabinet. How can you be so fast?"

"Young Master, you don't suspect that Chu Xia is slacking off, do you?" Chu Xia frowned, feeling displeased.

The young master smiled faintly: "It's not suspicion, just curiosity."

“I remember these locations,” Chu Xia said irritably. “If you think I’m slacking off, the servants can all testify to that…”

"You remember?" A glint of light flashed in Gongzi Ye'an's eyes as he casually pointed to another bookshelf behind him. "And here?"

Chu Xia glanced at him sideways and said, "If you let me see it once, I'll remember it."

Young Master Ye An smiled and said, "Alright, I'll let you see it once."

Chu Xia stood silently in front of the bookshelf, scanned it from top to bottom, and turned to the young master, saying, "It's ready."

What are on both sides of the "Fan Shengzhi Book"?

Chu Xia said without hesitation: "The Essential Techniques for the Common People are on the left, and the Book of Chen Fu Nong is on the right."

After being asked several questions, Chu Xia answered each one incorrectly, which surprised even Gongzi Ye An.

"What, young master, you still don't believe me?" Chu Xia frowned, feeling her mouth dry from answering.

"Girl, one last question." Young Master Ye An's eyes brightened slightly. "Yesterday I asked you to read aloud. If you truly have a photographic memory, then recite it to me."

Chu Xia rolled her eyes slightly and continued, "If you go against the spring energy, the lesser yang energy will not grow, and the liver energy will change internally. If you go against the summer energy, the greater yang energy will not grow, and the heart energy will be deficient internally..."

"Enough." The young master interrupted her with a smile, handing her a jade teacup from the table. "This cup of tea is a reward for you. You've had a hard day."

Chu Xia didn't stand on ceremony and finished the cup of Junshan Silver Needle in one go, only to hear Cang Qianlang at the door report: "Young Master, the people from the Wuren Escort Agency have arrived."

Young Master Ye An smiled gently: "I suppose the second 'big gift' has arrived."

His smile shone brightly, and Chu Xia stared in surprise, asking, "Is the young master very pleased?"

"How do you know I'm happy?" The young master stood up with his hands behind his back, without turning around.

Chu Xia smiled and blurted out, "Young Master was quite pleased last night."

Young Master Ye An paused, but gave her a half-smile and said, "Let's go see what this old friend has brought today."

Chapter Five

At the entrance of the Jun residence, a dense crowd of people, even larger than yesterday, had gathered. The noise was incessant.

Only when the gate slowly opened, the attendants stood quietly on both sides, and Young Master Ye An walked out slowly did the noise from the crowd gradually subside.

Wu Renqing nodded to the young master and stepped aside to make way.

A young girl, carrying a red lacquered wooden tray in both hands, crawled forward on her knees until she reached the young master, then raised her hands above her head.

The lacquered wooden tray was covered with the most famous silk fabric from Jiangnan, and inside there seemed to be a package, which, judging from its shape and texture, looked like a quilt or something similar.

Everyone craned their necks, standing on tiptoe, their hearts itching with anticipation, hoping the young master would unveil it so they could get a glimpse.

Young Master Ye An stood with his hands behind his back, not reaching out to take it.

A sudden evening breeze stirred, lifting the silk satin and revealing a corner of the tray.

It wasn't a lacquered wooden plate after all!

As dusk settled, a few rays of light shone upon it, creating a dazzling effect—it was an exquisitely crafted gilded gold plate inlaid with emeralds!

A gasp rippled through the crowd, followed by a series of soft sighs: "The tray itself is priceless, but who knows what's on it..."

With a gentle breeze, the contents of the tray, so smooth and glossy, slipped off effortlessly.

Everyone who met her gaze fell silent involuntarily.

There was only one fur coat on the tray.

As the sun set, it gilded this fluffy thing with a pale gold, soft and warm.

—That must be the softest thing in the world, even freshly picked cotton, clouds in the sky, or a young girl's breasts cannot compare.

Extremely soft and dense, pure white and flawless.

The girl holding the tray said in a clear and crisp voice, "My master spent three years luring and capturing a total of five hundred snow foxes, and made a fur coat from the fur under the foxes' armpits. I am giving it to an old friend, please accept it, young master."

The young master smiled enigmatically, reached out and touched the fox fur coat, and said softly, "To gather strength from small things to make a coat, such thoughtfulness is truly admirable."

"Please accept this, young master," the girl said again.

The young master waved his hand casually and said, "Chuxia, go and take it."

Chu Xia hurriedly stepped forward to take the tray, holding it in her hands, afraid of accidentally knocking it over, and barely daring to breathe.

Seeing that the young master had accepted the goods, Wu Renqing breathed a sigh of relief and cupped his hands, saying, "At this time tomorrow, Wuren Escort Agency will deliver the last shipment."

The young master glanced at his old friend indifferently and nodded, saying, "I'll be waiting quietly this night."

The caravan left, and the gates of the Jun residence were closed.

The crowd lingered for a long time.

Someone murmured, "This... fox fur looks nice... but is it really that expensive?"

"Hmph, you're obviously ignorant..." another person chimed in, "Do you know how much a spirit fox costs on the market these days? It's priceless! Five hundred spirit foxes... made into a garment... sigh..."

"There's more tomorrow! Yesterday it was twelve stunning beauties, today it's fox fur, I wonder what the grand finale will be tomorrow?"

Speculation arose, and everyone wondered how much turmoil this trip back to Cangzhou had stirred up.

The Emperor's Residence.

Shuyuan Garden.

Young Master Ye strolled leisurely, his steps slow and deliberate. Behind him, however, Chu Xia walked with trepidation.

"Early Summer, how come you can't even walk anymore?" He glanced back at her, his tone slightly sarcastic.

Chu Xia wore a bitter expression, holding such a precious item in her hands... She wanted to leave gracefully, since she was worthless if she tripped and fell, but this fox fur... if even a single hair fell out, she would be beaten to death by Steward Cang, right?

"This servant is holding this dress in my hands..." Chu Xia carefully stepped over a step and said truthfully, "I feel uneasy if I don't put it down for a moment."

The young man in front of her suddenly stopped, and she stumbled, almost bumping into him. Looking down, she was relieved to find that her clothes were perfectly fine.

"Young master, don't scare me—" she was about to complain when she suddenly felt a warmth on her body.

Without the young master making any move, the fox fur coat was draped over his shoulders.

Chu Xia's eyes widened in surprise, and her back was instantly soaked with sweat, whether from fright, walking, or the warmth of the fox fur coat, she didn't know.

"Holding it is uncomfortable, but wearing it is certainly comfortable, isn't it?" The young master turned around, his steps unwavering. "Can you walk now?"

Chu Xia stood still, her voice trembling uncontrollably: "Young master, please stop teasing me... I really can't walk anymore."

Upon hearing this, the young master actually stopped and beckoned to her: "Come here."

I jogged a few steps to catch up with him in early summer, the soft, fluffy fur of the fox fur brushing against my chin.

He stood before her, looked her up and down, and nodded, saying, "If a woman wore this fur coat, her skin would truly be as white as snow."

Chu Xia hurriedly replied, "Yes, yes. This servant also thinks... it would look beautiful on Lady Bai Xue."

The young master's eyes darkened, and he frowned slightly: "Madam Bai Xue?"

"Ah? It's Snow White." Chu Xia guessed at his expression and quickly corrected herself, "Snow White from last night."

The faint smile that had been playing on his lips vanished with a single purse of his lips, replaced by a blank expression as he said, "Yes. A light fur coat suits a beautiful woman. In that case, you shall make a trip to Yingyuan and give her this fur coat."

As if granted a pardon, she hurriedly lowered her head to unbutton the clasp around her neck.

In the heat of the moment, and with the clasp being a delicate, intricate design, I couldn't open it no matter what I did.

The young master sighed, reached out, and gently touched her chin, undone the garment with a single touch.

Chu Xia raised her head slightly and smiled sweetly at him: "Young master, thank you very much."

Her eyes were like water, gentle and silent.

Young Master Ye An slowly withdrew his hand, then casually looked away and said in a calm voice, "Go."

When Chu Xia returned to the study to take her duty, she happened to see Cang Qianlang coming out with a gloomy expression, as if something serious had happened.