As evening approached and it was time to leave, not only was the young emperor reluctant to part, but Meng Chifeng was also reluctant. Duan Tingzhen had to coax and persuade one of them, feeling quite exhausted, as if one child had turned into two.
In front of the palace gate, under the dim light, Duan Tingzhen quietly tugged at his hand when no one was looking.
"See you later."
Meng Chifeng chuckled for a long time, reluctant to let go, and finally replied, "See you later."
In this scene, even the golden crescent moon in the sky seems to radiate sweetness, like a sugar jar about to pour out honey.
When Duan Tingzhen returned home, he saw a servant standing by the side door. The servant looked unfamiliar and he didn't know whose family he was from. So he asked the coachman to go up and ask. After a while, the coachman replied, "He is from the Xu family."
Duan Tingzhen's right eyelid twitched, and he asked, "Did you say you came here for something?"
"They said they picked up the girl's things that day and forgot to return them. There was also a return gift for the girl."
"I understand." Duan Tingzhen returned to his room with a dark face, wanting to advise his sister but not daring to speak. After all, he was her cousin from a different household, and there were some things he didn't have the right to say.
But thinking of that wretched family, Duan Tingzhen still couldn't help but feel a headache coming on.
This young master Xu has a pitiful background. His mother was the first wife of the Marquis of Jing'an. Later, his first wife's family was implicated and fell from grace. The Marquis Xu then used some means to divorce his wife and remarry. He went from being the legitimate son to an illegitimate son overnight. Everyone who knew about it couldn't help but sigh.
His mother was only concerned with self-pity and neglected to discipline him. He was quite a troublemaker in his youth, and people said that no son was better than Xu Jialang, cursing his father and brothers.
There was once a story about a family named Zhao who were skilled at making rabbit hair brushes and made their fortune from it. One of their sons accidentally fell into a trap while out and about, but was rescued by a hunter. The hunter had a beautiful daughter who often went hunting with her father. When the young master Zhao saw her, he said, "To repay your life-saving grace, why don't you become my concubine? I promise you endless wealth and luxury."
The hunter girl had a fiery temper. Upon hearing his words, she kicked him back into the trap. Young Master Zhao was unharmed, but after enduring several hours of hardship, he was found and rescued by his servants.
Afterwards, Young Master Zhao wanted to take revenge, but Young Master Xu found out. How did he solve this problem? Believe it or not, an ordinary person really couldn't figure it out. The Zhao family made their fortune by making rabbit hair brushes, so they naturally had a rabbit farm. Young Master Xu took a few plague-stricken rabbits and threw them into the Zhao family's rabbit farm, causing most of the Zhao family's rabbits to die.
Actually, he was in the right, but after this commotion, everyone was at a loss for words; who else would they criticize but him? From then on, Young Master Xu became synonymous with someone with a screw loose, earning him the nickname "Living Plague God," someone who specializes in causing rabbit plagues and ruining people's livelihoods. Who knows, this might last for hundreds of years, and he might even become a deity in unofficial histories.
However, after he joined the army and his maternal grandfather's family was reinstated, his reputation gradually improved. But some people still remembered those days, such as Duan Tingzhen.
Unable to resist, he called Shi Mo in: "Call the young lady over here, I have something to say to her."
"It's too late, how about tomorrow?" Shi Mo said with a bitter face.
Duan Tingzhen glanced at the sky and realized it wasn't a good time to go, so he didn't insist. His expression softened, and he went into his study to find the jade pendant he had worn since childhood. He put it in a box, handed it to Shi Mo, and said, "Send it to the Prince of Jin's residence tomorrow."
"What?" Shi Mo asked, a little curious.
"Why are you talking so much!" Duan Tingzhen suddenly felt a little embarrassed.
Shi Mo glanced at him, not asking any further questions. Suddenly remembering something, she said, "By the way, that young man from the Prince of Jin's residence came by before and delivered an invitation, inviting you to visit when you have time."
Duan Tingzhen accepted the invitation and looked at the stiff handwriting on it. A strange feeling welled up in his heart for a moment.
Chapter 9
The next day, Duan Tingzhen was busy with official duties all day and had no time to talk to his sister or see Meng Chifeng. It wasn't until the young emperor's birthday banquet in the evening that he had a brief meeting with Meng Chifeng. When he saw that Meng Chifeng was already wearing the jade pendant, his gaze seemed to be burned for a moment, and he quickly looked away, but a smile couldn't help but appear on his lips.
He didn't say much to Meng Chifeng, and the two went their separate ways. They didn't see each other again until a few days later when Duan Tingzhen was on leave.
They went to one of Meng Chifeng's estates outside the city.
Zhuangzi was similar to him in that he had a cheerful and open-minded outlook. The room didn't have many rare and precious flowers, but rather lush and verdant trees, which felt quite pleasant.
Duan Tingzhen was naturally curious as it was his first time visiting, and Meng Chifeng, being the host, was also very excited, asking him, "What does Prime Minister Duan think of my house?"
“Excellent,” Duan Tingzhen nodded.
"I thought you would prefer plants with more colors. There are only trees here, which can be dizzying. How about I have the craftsmen move some precious flowers and plants over? I wonder what you would like?"
Duan Tingzhen glanced at him and said, "Your Highness is very kind, but I don't stay here often, so why bother?"
Meng Chifeng smiled ingratiatingly and said, "Whatever you like is fine."
Duan Tingzhen slightly curled the corners of her lips, but did not reply.
Since they were in the suburbs, they naturally wanted to do things that were inconvenient in the city, such as horseback riding and hunting. Meng Chifeng had his own reasons for making this arrangement. He invited Duan Tingzhen over, wanting his new partner to know how capable he was. Of course, he wouldn't use literary tricks. So, after thinking it over, he figured his partner came from a prestigious family and should know a little about martial arts, though not very well, which would suit him perfectly.
But what he didn't know was that Duan Tingzhen's martial arts skills, honed over those years, were far from ordinary. Even if he hadn't practiced much in his life, some things were ingrained in his very bones.
The two changed into lighter clothes and went to fetch their horses. They found that the white horse that Duan Tingzhen had brought and Meng Chifeng's favorite mount seemed to dislike each other, so the servants had to separate them.
Meng Chifeng's mount had been with him on the battlefield. He couldn't bear to keep it in his manor in the capital, fearing that the space was too small and the horse wouldn't be able to run freely and be uncomfortable. Therefore, he had always kept it on his estate in the suburbs of the capital. The horse rarely saw its master, and forgetting about arguing with that annoying kinsman, it affectionately rubbed against Meng Chifeng.
Duan Tingzhen smiled and said, "This horse does resemble you somewhat."
“That’s right.” Meng Chifeng said, and after calming it down for a while, he finally managed to make it behave a bit.
Duan Tingzhen gave the white horse a piece of candy, and seeing it looking at him gently with its big, wet eyes, he stroked its head and said, "Good boy."
The two mounted their horses and rode for a while when a rabbit appeared ahead. Meng Chifeng shot an arrow, which flew like a shooting star, hitting the rabbit squarely in the eye. He sent his attendant to retrieve the rabbit and said to Duan Tingzhen, "Why don't we have a contest?"
"Never mind." Duan Tingzhen glanced at him and slowly adjusted his state of mind, saying, "I'm getting old and haven't moved around in a long time. I can't compare to Your Highness."
He tried shooting an arrow at a tree not far away, but the result was mediocre, far from the intended target. Undeterred, he practiced a few more times, then spotted a snake in a tree closer by. Concentrating his energy, he steadily shot an arrow and hit the target.
“How can this be compared? I thought that a man of such integrity and upright character as Prime Minister Duan would be skilled with a sword, but I didn’t expect you to be even better at archery,” Meng Chifeng said.
Duan Tingzhen turned his head to look at him, and suddenly smiled: "Actually, my swordsmanship is not bad either."
"Hmm?" He spurred his mount over to stand beside Duan Tingzhen, and said with a wicked grin, "Then why don't you let me see what Prime Minister Duan's swordsmanship is like?"
The unspoken meaning was self-evident. Duan Tingzhen glanced at the rogue, about to say something, when he saw the rogue's horse seem startled, nearly throwing him off. It turned out that Duan Tingzhen's white horse had finally given up the harassment and retaliated.
Seeing his disheveled state, Duan Tingzhen couldn't help but laugh out loud.
It was rare for Meng Chifeng to act like a rogue, and he had really mustered up the courage. He felt a little embarrassed by the result, but seeing his partner laughing made it all worthwhile. So he shamelessly forgot about it and said, "There aren't many prey around here. Shall we go further in?"
"Never mind," Duan Tingzhen said. "I've heard that the scenery around here is quite beautiful. Why don't we go and sit for a while? We just finished that game of chess in the palace last time."
Meng Chifeng naturally had no other opinions. He instructed his attendant to fetch the chess pieces. The two walked for almost a quarter of an hour before sitting down at a stone table. They chatted idly while waiting for the attendant to return. Neither of them was in a hurry, and they felt a sense of timelessness in the mountains.
"A few years ago, we were at each other's throats, who would have thought we'd be like this today?" After his attendant returned, Meng Chifeng picked up a white piece and slowly placed it down, secretly chuckling to himself. Perhaps he was too relaxed at the moment, because he laughed out loud. Seeing the questioning look in Duan Tingzhen's eyes, he replied, "I was just thinking that a few years ago, I never imagined that you and I would have such a day."
Duan Tingzhen said, "I didn't expect that either."
It was at the late emperor's memorial altar, when Consort Duan was still pregnant, that Meng Chifeng was about to execute her younger brother for speaking disrespectfully. That was his first encounter with this man, and he thought he was either extremely stupid or extremely wicked. Yet, a few years later, the two of them looked at each other with new respect and developed this kind of relationship.
After saying this, the two fell silent for a moment. Just as Duan Tingzhen picked up his teacup to drink, his opponent stopped him.
"The tea is cold. Your stomach isn't good, so you should drink less."
He was slightly taken aback when he saw the man call over his attendant, who was a little further away, to bring him hot tea. He felt a warmth in his heart.
"Thank you, Your Highness."
Hearing him say that, Meng Chifeng replied, "I can only manage you for a while. Do you expect me to follow you around every step of the way? You don't take care of yourself at all. Who knows, you might starve yourself to death one day."
Duan Tingzhen was speechless for a moment. He usually only heard Duan Tingzhen nagging about the little emperor, but now it was his turn. However, the feeling wasn't bad, so he said in a low voice, "He didn't faint from hunger."
“Anyway, you’re dizzy,” he said. “I need to keep an eye on you, so why don’t you move into my residence?”
He said this with an air of smug satisfaction, which Duan Tingzhen found rather offensive.
"Are you serious?"
“Of course I’m serious,” Meng Chifeng said. “You don’t think I’m joking, do you?”
In the Great Chu, homosexuality was considered a romantic affair, and since neither of them had wives, no one could criticize them even if they moved in together. Of course, whether people would approve of it was another matter entirely. Since Duan Tingzhen was unlikely to have any children, he was naturally ineligible for the position of family head. The Duan family was open-minded and probably wouldn't object, which benefited him.
Duan Tingzhen: "You've probably forgotten, my sister is still staying at my place." Then he teased, "Why don't you move in with me?"
Meng Chifeng, shameless and without any embarrassment, said, "I will have people pack my things as soon as I get back."
Duan Tingzhen ignored him and concealed his smile by pretending to be making a move.
Meng Chifeng, on the other hand, found the idea increasingly feasible. He had finally found someone he loved, and to be separated from her again would be the death of him. However, his beloved's sister was indeed an obstacle. After a moment's thought, he suddenly remembered something and said, "Does my sister have someone she loves? How about I act as a matchmaker?"
Duan Tingzhen sneered and looked at him: "What kind of wicked idea are you plotting?"
“How can this be called a crooked idea?” He seemed aggrieved: “I was just helping someone sound out the situation, and yet someone is slandering my innocence out of thin air.”
"Xu Zhaoqi".
When Duan Tingzhen uttered the name, Meng Chifeng immediately shut up.
Meng Chifeng looked up at the sky. He knew that his subordinates had a bad reputation, so he didn't dare to say it directly. But he had only asked a question, and it made his sweetheart unhappy. How unfair!
Duan Tingzhen said, "As my cousin, I certainly have no right to speak on my sister's marriage. If you want to talk about it, you should go to the Duan family's old house and talk to my uncle and aunt."
Meng Chifeng quickly said he had shut up and didn't say anything more, and the two started playing chess. But he always felt that Duan Tingzhen's men were carrying a murderous intent, and he immediately shivered.
The two had just fallen in love and were enjoying a blissful time together. Duan Tingzhen wasn't really angry with him. After finishing their game of chess, Meng Chifeng suddenly said, "I've made up my mind. How about I really move into your house?"
"What's gotten into you again?" Duan Tingzhen said, but a sweet feeling welled up inside him. As he boarded the carriage to return to the city, a jade pendant fell from his sleeve. Meng Chifeng picked it up and saw that it was the one he had given to Duan Tingzhen.
He smiled and handed the jade pendant to him. Duan Tingzhen took it and his eyes fell on the jade pendant at Meng Chifeng's waist. The two smiled at each other.
When Duan Tingzhen returned home, he saw Uncle Zhong rushing over and saying that a letter had arrived from their hometown.
He received the letter and went into his study. He opened it and glanced at it; it was from his uncle and aunt. He pondered for a moment, then said to Shi Mo, "Tell Rou Rou to come over."
Chapter 10
"Second Uncle is coming over." Seeing his sister approaching, Duan Tingzhen said this without saying anything else.
Duan Zhirou already knew, after all, he was her father, and he would have informed her before coming. So she didn't have any special reaction, and even said, "My mother wrote to me and told me that he has taken a fancy to some young talent again, but he couldn't be his son, so he's itching to use his daughter as a stepping stone."
To be fair, given that marriage, it's understandable that Duan Zhirou harbored resentment towards her father. If her own mother had been to carefully choose a husband for her, with a mother-in-law like Feng's, Duan Zhirou certainly wouldn't have married him. Everyone in her family knew what kind of person she was—spoiled, headstrong, and utterly clueless.
Duan Tingzhen was speechless at her blunt words, but he couldn't really join her in mocking the elders, so he could only say, "How old are you? Do you really think you can stay unmarried? Fourth Uncle must have thought this through carefully..."
"I'm not getting married!" she sneered. "I have a dowry, enough for me to live on for the rest of my life. What good is marriage if I end up with a fool like Feng Yong? I'd rather cut my hair and become a nun and live a carefree life!"
Truly, a woman's heart is unfathomable. When she first arrived a few months ago, she was dressed plainly, as if she were destined to stay by his side forever. Now, reminded of the unhappiness in his marriage, she suddenly seemed like a fool. However, seeing her anger and knowing she was dissatisfied, Duan Tingzhen felt comforted and advised:
"You're a mother now, so you must have some experience in how to treat Axi. You should know how hard it is for parents to love their children. So even if you don't want to, you should calmly talk to your uncle. Everyone in the family is on your side, and no one can force you to do what you don't want to do."
He had at least lived a few more years than Duan Zhirou, so he had some experience in speaking. In fact, according to him, what did it matter if they didn't get married? Could the Duan family not afford to support them? But given the ways of the world and human relationships, changing other people's opinions was by no means easy.
Duan Zhirou softened her voice and said, "I have listened to what you said, brother."
Duan Tingzhen comforted her a few more times, then, thinking of Xu Zhaoqi, hesitated for a moment before asking, "Are you still in contact with that young master Xu?"