The little girl paused for a moment before carefully sitting down beside her under her friendly gaze, placing the wine jar she was holding on the table. "My name is Song, Song Qiuqi."
Perhaps because he had drunk quite a bit earlier, his tongue was a little tied when he spoke.
"Surname Song?" Luo Cuiwei thought for a moment. "Then you must be Song Jiuyuan's sister. I heard that you were the one who took care of His Highness when he was injured last time?"
Song Qiuqi nodded, then quickly shook her head: "Your Highness, please don't misunderstand. I just... my brother fed me the medicine and porridge! It was Elder Qi and my brother who applied the medicine together. I didn't, I didn't see it!"
This young girl looked quite young, but she was quick-witted and knew how to handle things. She immediately laid out the sensitive aspects of the matter, leaving no room for misunderstanding.
This kind of personality suited Luo Cuiwei's taste perfectly. "Your Highness and I are very grateful for your care. If you're not busy tomorrow, come and visit me. I'll cook something delicious to thank you."
"No, no need to thank me, it's nothing." Song Qiuqi smiled and rubbed the back of her neck, nodding in agreement.
“I heard that the little courtyard we’re staying in was previously yours,” Luo Cuiwei added. “I’m so sorry for taking up your courtyard without your consent…”
Song Qiuqi shook her head vigorously, "Originally, that courtyard was only possible because His Highness and Brother Xiong helped us..."
Perhaps the alcohol was starting to take effect, the girl's mind was in a mess, and she didn't know what to say for a moment.
Luo Cuiwei stopped being polite, nodded her thanks, and then asked with concern, "So where are you staying now?"
"It's right across from you, past that little ditch, that's where Old Qi's house is."
Perhaps fearing she would feel guilty, Song Qiuqi quickly added, "Old Master Qi also has a small courtyard, where he and Babao usually live... Oh, Babao is Old Master Qi's grandson, he's five years old."
Seemingly annoyed at her incoherent speech, she awkwardly stopped talking and reached for the wine jar again.
Luo Cuiwei didn't stop her, and smiled faintly, "You came here specifically earlier, is there something you want to tell me?"
"Oh, right."
After being reminded, Song Qiuqi seemed to suddenly remember something, picked up the wine jar and took a big gulp, as if to bolster her courage.
"I...I just wanted to ask," she said, her delicate face flushing even deeper, whether from the alcohol or from being too nervous, "What do you think of this place?"
Luo Cuiwei smiled, looking at the little girl's serious gaze, and instead of answering, asked, "And you?"
“I think this place is good, very good,” she said, clutching the wine jar tightly to her chest and looking down. “When I first came here, I saw that there was nothing here and thought it was not good; but His Highness said that we should take it slow and work hard together, and everything would come together.”
His Highness Prince Zhao did not lie. Later, courtyards gradually sprang up here, and it slowly turned into a small village.
“Your Highness is right,” Luo Cui nodded with a smile, “and things will only get better in the future.”
"Will you always be here?" Song Qiuqi looked up at her with hazy, drunken eyes, a little worried. "Will you always be here until things get better?"
He was probably quite drunk at this point, as he no longer addressed people with the formal "you" (formal).
Luo Cuiwei didn't argue with her, but simply reached out and took the wine jar from her arms, ruffled her hair, and asked, "What do you want to say?"
“Big Bear said that His Highness likes you very much,” Song Qiuqi emphasized, as if afraid she wouldn’t believe her, before lowering her head and stammering, “But my brother said… if you knew… about His Highness… you would definitely leave.”
Luo Cuiwei stared blankly at the little girl who had fallen asleep instantly, her forehead pressed against the wine jar, after only finishing her sentence. She felt an urge to shake her awake.
“Young lady, if you speak so vaguely, you would be beaten into mincemeat in my Luo family.”
****
That night, when Yun Lie returned to his room after washing away the smell of alcohol, he saw Luo Cuiwei wrapped in a quilt, lying on the bed with her eyes closed, and he couldn't help but feel a little puzzled.
In the days leading up to this, she would wait for him to come to bed with a beaming smile, chat with him, and sometimes do this or that...
Why are you going to bed so early tonight?
He tiptoed over, blew out the lamp that Luo Cuiwei had specially left for him, and lay down beside her.
In the darkness, the person beside him shifted, revealing half of the blanket.
"She was just pretending to be asleep?" Yun Lie chuckled casually, slipped into the covers, and happily pulled his wife into his arms.
The large hand that had intended to cause trouble was suddenly held down.
"Yun Lie, is there something you forgot to tell me?"
Yun Lie was stunned for a moment, then thought hard for a while, "No, right?"
"Oh," Luo Cuiwei said sullenly, turning away from him in his arms, "Then I'm going to sleep."
Yun Lie finally realized something was wrong and quickly hugged her tighter. "What do you want to ask? I promise I'll tell you everything I know."
Luo Cuiwei stiffened in his arms, hesitated for a long time, then turned around and stared at his uneasy eyes in the darkness.
"While you were drinking just now, Song Jiuyuan's sister came to talk to me."
"Don't believe a single word of what she's spouting. I have absolutely nothing to do with her!" Yun Lie was terrified and immediately used his hands and feet to wrap himself tightly around her.
He had heard from many of his comrades who had been married for many years that their wives all seemed to have a common problem: they couldn't stand their husbands having any connection with any other woman. If they didn't explain things properly, they would either quarrel or, in severe cases, lose their wives!
That little rascal Song Qiuqi has been spouting nonsense for who knows what. Tomorrow, I'll have Song Jiuyuan sew her mouth shut.
“She didn’t say it had anything to do with you,” Luo Cuiwei rolled her eyes at him, turned around to face him, “She was drunk, she fell asleep halfway through her sentence.”
"What...what did he say?" Yun Lie swallowed nervously.
Luo Cuiwei gave a cold snort and stopped beating around the bush. "She said her brother mentioned that if I found out anything about you, I would leave. What is it that you've done to offend me? Tell me."
"She's talking nonsense. I didn't, I absolutely didn't do anything to betray you," Yun Lie said angrily, pinching her waist. "You actually listened to her drunken ramblings?"
"Really not?" Luo Cuiwei murmured suspiciously.