"Don't drink it, it'll have a strong aftereffect."
Seeing He Zhuo reach out, Qiu Su quickly downed her drink in one gulp. He Zhuo paused for a moment, but didn't stop her. He simply crossed his arms, leaned back, and looked at Qiu Su, saying, "You're already drunk. This wine is really something. Drink up. If you're upset, just say it. You'll feel better once you sober up."
Qiu Su didn't realize she was drunk. While pouring herself more wine, she glanced at the dishes on the table and locked onto a plate of mushrooms. She poured herself a full glass of wine and then picked up a mushroom and popped it into her mouth.
He Zhuo didn't say anything more. He just leaned back and watched Qiu Su eat and drink. When he saw that she couldn't find her mouth when picking up food, he chuckled, took the chopsticks from her hand, and said gently, "Alright, Su Su, what's bothering you? If you're not happy, we can go back."
"Sigh." Qiu Su sat up straight and sighed heavily. "There's no going back."
“Even if we can’t go back, I won’t let you suffer.” He Zhuo put away the wine pot and cup in front of her. “In my eyes, Su Su has always been free and easy. She wouldn’t let a prime minister’s mansion hold her back.”
Qiu Su smiled, her cheeks flushed with the aroma of alcohol, making them appear even more rosy. He Zhuo's eyes flickered, and he pursed his lips before continuing, "In short, don't wrong yourself."
Qiu Su rested her chin on her hand and stared blankly for a long time before muttering, "It seems that the maid who tricked me into wearing servant's clothes last time has been sent out of the manor. It's a pity that such a clever girl was also fooled."
"You said that the mountain lord has forgotten about me since he got a little mountain lord, and he doesn't play with me anymore. Your little dog is getting fatter and fatter, it's almost as big as the mountain lord when he was a puppy."
"Susu was also chubby when she was a child."
Qiu Sufei glanced over and said, "Don't bully the little chieftain."
He Zhuo's eyes softened, as if he were recalling the chubby little girl with two braids who used to run around with her hands behind her back all day.
Back then, he was half a head shorter than Qiu Su, and he would follow her around every day, catching ants and raiding bird nests. Qiu Su always had a habit of hoarding everything; no matter how many bird eggs she collected, she would make He Zhuo collect them, and then take them all back to the house. Every time He Zhuo pouted in displeasure, she would put her hands behind her back, pout, and say, "Don't bully the little chieftain!" But every time she said that, she would have a change of heart and give him two eggs, instructing him to help warm the baby birds. He didn't know how many bird eggs he crushed in bed back then, or how many times he endured Qiu Su's little punches.
The days of sleeping in the same bed and bathing in the same tub are long gone. It seems that ever since Qiu Su's two braids became neatly tied up, they haven't been able to playfully wrestle in the same bed anymore. But no matter what, He Zhuo knows that nothing can erase the feelings between them, even if she gets married. Just as he can never let go of her, Qiu Su will never abandon him.
He Zhuo grabbed Qiu Su's hand across the table and said with a smile, "Su Su, do you remember He Zhuo?"
"Hmm? What do you want with him?" Qiu Su pulled her hand back and straightened her back, exuding the air of a chieftain.
He Zhuotao narrowed her beautiful eyes and said gently, "I want to know if Susu likes him or not."
"I like it."
He Zhuo's smile widened, and he leaned over and said softly, "Su Su, he likes you too, he's always liked you."
Qiu Su sighed again, pushed his head away, and frowned, saying, "You don't know, you don't know. Sigh, what can I say? He Zhuo, tell me, what should I do?"
"Just follow your heart," He Zhuo coaxed gently.
Qiu Su took a deep breath, like a wronged child, then exhaled heavily. She slumped onto the table, her eyes half-closed. He Zhuo instinctively reached out and supported half her face, helping her slowly lie down on the table. After watching her head for a while, he couldn't help but walk over, turn her into his arms, stroke her cheek, and sigh.
“Susu, you never treat me like a man. You treat me like a younger brother, like He Zhuo, like Little Zhuozi, like the child who grew up with you, but you never know that I've grown up too.” He Zhuo gently stroked her eyebrows and eyes, smiled, and continued, “Have you been wronged? Things were so strange in the village, and suddenly you're in this mansion. Not to mention you, Qi Xiu and I aren't used to it either. Sigh, I long for the day when I can take you away from the Prime Minister's mansion, away from this capital, and find a paradise to live happily ever after. I don't ask for anything, just to be by your side. Do you understand this feeling?”
He Zhuo stared at the red lips before him, lips he had coveted for years, and had attempted to seduce them ten times. Five times she slapped him away with a single palm strike, three times she pretended not to notice and turned her head to dodge, once he was too excited and twisted his neck halfway through and gave up, and the last time he succeeded, but it was after she had fallen asleep and he had just touched her lips when Huang Tao grabbed him by the collar and lifted him up.
He Zhuo lightly rubbed his thumb against her lips, realizing he no longer had the right to touch them, and a pang of sadness welled up inside him. He stumbled away from Qiu Su, feeling dizzy. If it was her choice, he had nothing to say. But if Pei Yuan didn't cherish her, he wouldn't allow her to stay by his side and suffer any longer. No matter their relationship, he wouldn't allow it.
"Stop fooling around." Qiu Su frowned and pushed his hand away. "Ziqing, stop fooling around."
He Zhuo's fingers stiffened slightly. He sighed, picked up Qiu Su, and placed her on the small couch beside him. He then sat back down at the table, watching the passersby downstairs throw peanuts at anything they didn't like. When a passerby looked up, they quickly turned their heads away. After playing like this for half a day, finishing a whole plate of peanuts, his melancholy lessened considerably.
He Zhuo put his hands behind his head, leaned against the wall, looked at Qiu Su with her charmingly innocent face, and glanced at the pedestrians on the street who were still looking up at the building from time to time. He laughed twice and was in a great mood.
***********************************
Qingfeng Theater:
He Zhuo: Feng Ma, do I have a chance to rise from serfdom and become the master?
Qingfeng: (Glancing over) I'm eating noodles, don't mind me.
30
30. The Kite's Thoughts...
My head is throbbing and my mouth tastes bitter.
Qiu Su rubbed her temples and followed He Zhuo step by step toward the Pei residence. When she got close to the Pei residence, she once again experienced the truth that impulsiveness can kill.
She's gone out, but how can she get back? The young mistress of the Pei family got drunk at the restaurant and even took a nap on a small couch there. She slept comfortably, but I'm afraid she won't be comfortable back at the manor. I wonder how a young mistress is punished for making a mistake in a manor like this? Kneeling in the ancestral hall? Copying the precepts for women? Slapping her hands? Qiu Su's legs felt weak.
He Zhuo didn't seem to care much, walking a short distance ahead and saying with a smile, "What's there to be afraid of? We'll go back the way we came out. Pei Yuan is probably busy with something else. Huang Tao isn't just sitting around doing nothing; she'll help you cover up the lie, won't she?"
Qiu Su felt a bitter taste in her mouth, and her heart ached as well. Looking at this high wall, she could easily climb over it by stepping on stones and trees, but climb back up? Qiu Su looked down at her hands; perhaps they had suction cups or barbs on them. Could the walls of the Pei Prime Minister's residence really be so easy to climb?
He Zhuo spat out an apricot pit, pressed himself against the long, high wall to listen, chose a seemingly good spot, and said with a smile, "I'll go up first, and then I'll pull you up in a bit."
Qiu Su sighed, rubbing her forehead. He Zhuo, like a gecko, clung to the cracks in the wall and squeezed through the gaps he could find, darting up the wall in a few leaps and bounds. He then bent down on top, stretched out his hand, and said, "Give me your hand."
Sigh, so be it. Climbing twice is probably the same as climbing once, anyway, I'll get a scolding if either my mother-in-law or Ziqing finds out.
"Hurry up."
Qiu Su sighed, reached out, and shook her dizzy head. Just as she was about to push off the wall, she heard the sound of horses' hooves coming from the alley. He Zhuo frowned, bent down, and added another hand, struggling to pull Qiu Su up with both hands. Qiu Su turned her head to look and saw the person in light brown brocade on the fast horse. She was so frightened that she slipped and fell down again.
He Zhuo was almost pulled down, and only managed to steady himself by letting go and pressing against the wall. In just a moment, Qiu Su on the ground had disappeared, replaced by four horse hooves.
He Zhuo hurriedly sat up straight, saw the person on horseback holding Qiu Su roll their eyes, and then jumped over the wall.
Pei Yuan's arms were very tight, forcing Qiu Su to press herself against him to ease the pain in her waist. Pei Yuan pushed her away slightly, looked her up and down, then pulled her into his arms again, sighing, "Why are you running around like that? Do you know how dangerous the capital is...?"
Qiu Su could clearly feel his arms trembling slightly, and the cheek pressed against hers was also sweaty. A sudden tenderness welled up in her heart, and she wrapped her arms around his waist, saying, "I just went to a restaurant for a meal, I'm sorry to have worried you. What happened?"
"No."
Qiu Su looked suspicious, wiped the sweat from his forehead with her sleeve, narrowed her eyes, and asked, "Nothing?"
Pei Yuan's eyes widened. "You still drink? And you're still hanging out with that bastard?"
Okay, she's guilty, she admits her mistake. Qiu Su lowered her head and muttered softly, "I only had one cup, just a small cup."