"Just pack a few things you'll need for the day, and have the maids and servants pack the rest. We'll send them over a day later," Chu Yao said.
Such a hasty action must indicate a conspiracy.
Wushuang rolled her eyes and pondered for a while, then suddenly realized: "You...you don't want Wanwan and Brother Bo to be so intimate!"
“No older brother would agree to this,” Chu Yao scoffed.
Wushuang understood the logic, but she couldn't remain completely unmoved when her own family member was being treated this way: "What's wrong with Brother Bo? If the two of you are truly interested in each other, it wouldn't be bad for Wanwan to marry him. At least you wouldn't have to worry about him bullying Wanwan, because you can bully me as revenge."
Chu Yao was amused by her: "Could it be that I married you just to use you as a hostage to blackmail others?"
Wushuang scratched the back of his head and laughed sheepishly.
This garden, located in the western suburbs, was bestowed by Emperor Deqing as a congratulatory gift when Chu Yao got married. Because it was originally built primarily for summer retreat, the buildings in the main courtyards of the garden are all equipped with dedicated cooling systems.
This device uses a cold water circulation method, with a fan wheel rotating to generate wind and transmit cool air into the hall. At the same time, it also uses machinery to send cold water to the roof, allowing it to flow down the eaves to form a water curtain and generate cool air.
Wushuang and Chuwan both lived very comfortably.
Especially Musou.
Chu Wan was not yet fully recovered from her injuries and should not be exposed to cold, but she had no such concerns whatsoever.
In the sweltering summer, living in a cool and breezy new house every day, I would hold a bowl of ice cream made with sweet melon, lotus root, almond tofu, raisins, walnuts, Chinese yam, and jujube paste and eat it all. Life couldn't be more pleasant.
Chu Yao would sometimes ride into the city to handle some matters, and at most spend one night in the Prince's mansion before returning to accompany Wushuang.
When he returned that day, he brought with him something unusual.
They were two square boxes of identical size and shape. Wushuang reached out and tapped them; they were made of wood. The surfaces of the boxes were decorated with cloisonné enamel scrolling ruyi patterns.
Chu Wan curiously opened the box door and saw that the inside of the box was lined with tin.
"What is this for?" Both of them were completely confused and asked in unison.
Chu Yao smiled but did not answer, and clapped his hands to summon four eunuchs.
They went in pairs, opened the box, one person placed ice at the bottom of the box, and the other placed fruits on top of it, before closing the box again.
"For chilling fruits and vegetables?" Wushuang asked.
Chu Yao nodded: "Exactly. This is called a refrigerator. The tin lining inside provides excellent insulation, allowing the ice to last longer and preventing melted ice water from corroding the wooden box. You can each put one of these in your room, and you can put all your fruits and drinks in there. I guarantee you'll have plenty to eat."
"Brother, brother, you're so wonderful!" Chu Wan was overjoyed, circling around Chu Yao and praising him sweetly.
Since she hit her head, she had never been so affectionate towards Chu Yao, so he was naturally delighted, his face beaming with joy.
However, Chu Wan added, "When Brother Bo comes over on his day off, we can treat him to chilled plum juice."
Chu Yao's face darkened on the spot, and if Wu Shuang hadn't held him back, he probably would have lost his temper again.
Chu Wan was completely unaware and happily carried her little refrigerator back to her room, leaving Chu Yao jumping up and down in front of Wu Shuang.
"He can't stop talking about that brat..."
Wushuang interrupted with a long face, "Who are you calling a brat?"
Chu Yao immediately fell silent, trying to change the subject: "Do you see anything you want to eat and freeze..."
However, Wushuang was not so easily appeased. She looked displeased, turned around and went into the inner room, refusing to pay any attention to him.
Seeing that the goodwill he had gained from giving her the refrigerator had instantly vanished, Chu Yao was filled with helplessness and could only chase after her to coax and comfort his little wife.
“How about we spend the night on a pleasure boat?” he thought of an interesting idea. “Didn’t you say the other day that it was breezy and cool on the lake? I had the boat specially modified. Let’s go up and try it out, just the two of us.”
Since arriving at the garden, Chu Wan has always clung to Wu Shuang, preventing the young couple from having a proper time alone together. Chu Yao, mindful of his sister's ongoing illness, tries his best to accommodate her wishes, but that doesn't mean he has no objections.
There is a large lake in the center of this garden, which is as big as the entire Marquis of Runan's mansion. On the first day when they entered the garden, Chu Yao took Wushuang on a tour and saw that she liked it very much. So he had an idea and modified the painted boat. Using the same method as cooling a house, he placed water tanks on the top of the boat to store cold water, so that the water would flow down from the eaves of the painted boat to form a rain curtain.
A gentle night breeze blew through the glistening rain curtain, and looking into the second-floor interior of the painted boat with its windows open, Chu Yao was comfortably leaning back on the chaise lounge, while Wu Shuang was fast asleep, lying on top of him.
Suddenly, a bolt of lightning streaked across the night sky. Before Chu Yao could cover Wushuang's ears, thunder roared, its booming sound echoing through the heavens and earth, and entered the room through the open window with a force that seemed to cleave the heavens and the earth.
Wushuang suddenly woke up, feeling as if her heart had been split open, an indescribable discomfort.
"Chu Yao, I'm scared..." she said softly.
"What are you afraid of? Thunderstorms on summer nights are all too common," Chu Yao reassured softly. "Go back to sleep. I'll go close the window."
However, Wushuang refused to let go of his little hands clinging to his shoulders no matter what. Helpless, Chu Yao had no choice but to lift her up by her little bottom and carry her around the room, closing the windows tightly.
To everyone's surprise, Wushuang refused to return to the bed: "It's so comfortable here, like sleeping in a cradle."
She sleeps, he is her cradle.
Chu Yao curled his lip; his princess really knew how to enjoy herself and how to enslave people.
Despite his complaints, he still did as Wushuang suggested, carrying her and slowly walking around the room to coax her to fall asleep quickly.
Chapter List 133|10
Chapter 133:
By the time the General's Mansion received a reply from General Qiao and his wife in the Northwest, and they finally agreed to the marriage between Qiao Sheng and Jun Heng, it was already close to the Mid-Autumn Festival.
As the weather grew cooler, Wushuang and her entourage moved back from the summer retreat to the Prince of Ying's residence.
The day after they returned home, they received a message from the Marquis of Pingyang that Wuyou had been diagnosed with pregnancy.