Zhenshu was breathless from his kisses, and feeling his cold fingers tugging at her clothes, she quickly grabbed his hand and said, "What are you doing in broad daylight?"
Chapter 72: The Lover
"Eat you..." Yu Yichen buried his head in her chest.
He really is eating.
Zhenshu hurriedly pushed it away, saying, "It's dirty. I didn't take a bath last night and rolled around on the kang all night."
Yu Yichen got up, climbed up, removed the wooden hairpin from her hair, and messed up her hair before hooking her nose and saying, "I got up at dawn to prepare hot water for you, but you haven't come yet."
Zhenshu said, "What a madman! I'm still fast asleep on the kang at dawn."
Yu Yichen took a step back and said, "They are still far away, but I can't wait any longer."
"He really is eating," Zhenshu sighed, looking up at the bed curtains.
He reached into a round bowl on the bedside table—a pure gold bowl inlaid with a ring of white jade and a ring of green jade—and took out a small ring, about the size of an eye socket. The brown fuzz around the ring was dripping with water. Seeing him put the object on his hand, Zhen Shu became wary and grabbed Yu Yichen's hand, asking, "What is that?"
"Good stuff!" Yu Yichen bowed to her chest.
When Zhenshu saw him take the thing off and throw it into the bowl, she got up, picked up the bowl, took the sheep's eye ring, put it on her finger, and gently stroked Yu Yichen's face.
If it really was a sheep's eye ring, it was too bizarre. Even now, her legs were still trembling slightly, whether from his technique or from the teasing of this thing.
Yu Yichen grabbed Zhen Shu's hand and asked, "Isn't that enough?"
"No." Zhenshu rolled away as he lunged at her, tossing the thing into the bowl. "This is too perverse. Can we please stop using this thing in the future?"
"And then?" Yu Yichen couldn't help but purse her lips and smile again.
Zhenshu then realized that what she had just said was utterly shameless. She lay on the pillow, blushing, and dared not look up for a long time before she finally said sincerely, "I still love you, only you."
She found it hard to say those words; she only wanted his hands and lips, not these perverse desires. Though they brought ultimate pleasure, it was precisely because they were ultimate that they always felt unreal.
Yu Yichen put his arm around Zhenshu's shoulder and whispered in her ear, "This is nothing. I have many more good things. Let's try them one by one, okay?"
Zhen Shu's lower abdomen, which had just begun to feel tingly, tightened again at his words. She knew he had misunderstood, but dared not say anything more, for fear that saying more would only make him think more.
The two slept soundly in each other's arms until they heard Sun Yuan knocking on the door. Yu Yichen got up, brought in lunch, and ate a little haphazardly. Zhenshu, covered in sticky grease from his kisses, complained of needing a bath. Yu Yichen, of course, had already asked Sun Yuan to prepare hot soup in the next room. Under Sun Yuan's watchful gaze, she walked unsteadily, her legs trembling, to the next room to wash. Seeing a clean set of clothes on the bed, she changed. She had only put on her undergarments when she heard a series of knocks on the door.
Zhenshu thought it was Sun Yuan and replied loudly, "I'll be out in a moment."
"Open the door." It was Yu Yichen's voice.
Zhenshu hastily wrapped a coat around her waist, opened the door, and asked, "What brings you here?"
Yu Yichen held the bowl in his arms, turned around and removed the sheath, saying, "Do what I haven't finished yet."
He picked Zhenshu up and threw her onto the bed, then followed her. Zhenshu glanced out the window and said, "Damn it, it's already noon. When will we get to the capital? Uncle Zhao is still waiting for me outside the city."
Yu Yichen continued to peel off her clothes, saying, "Although it's today, I didn't say when."
This time, he carefully lay down and began to work on it, just as he had the night before.
A sudden pang of sadness welled up in her heart. She stepped back and kissed his lips for a long while before saying, "Yu Yichen, I love you."
Yu Yichen slid close to her ear and whispered, "Song Zhenshu, I love you. Will you marry me?"
Zhenshu watched as he tossed her long hair back, strands falling onto her face. Though his eyes weren't on her, she knew he was extremely nervous. She nodded deeply and said, "Okay!"
After answering Zhenshu's question, she smiled bitterly to herself. Last time, her attempt to marry a farmhand failed, and this time she was going to marry a eunuch.
After getting up and getting ready, Zhenshu left the inn and saw that the market was deserted today. She wondered, "Why is it so quiet today?"
Yu Yichen said, "It just so happens that it's not market day."
Rural markets are indeed very quiet when there's no market day. Zhenshu turned around, reined in her horse, and gently patted the whip, and the horse started to move.
On the way back to the capital, the two men rode on horseback, both laughing like fools. On the deserted official road in the clear early spring weather, Yu Yichen held Zhenshu in his arms and rode the same horse with her. Although it was getting late and the sun was setting, he refused to urge the horse on. Zhenshu said angrily, "I'm afraid my Uncle Zhao has been waiting for a long time. Can't you hurry up?"
Yu Yichen rested his chin on her shoulder, nuzzled one of her ears, and shook his head: "No, I want to walk slowly, the slower the better."
Zhenshu turned her head to avoid his lips, and pointed behind her, saying, "They are even slower; the carriage is still nowhere to be seen."
Yu Yichen laughed and said, "If we go any slower, why don't we stay outside the city tonight?"
He was a little too excited today; his eyes were brimming with energy, and his cheeks were flushed, making his lips appear even more vibrant and his expression even more tender. His eyes followed Zhenshu's every smile and frown.
Zhen Shu patted him twice in exasperation and said, "Bringing your family to Liu Family Village was already a big decoy. I don't know how to explain it when we get back to the capital. If we stay out tonight, I'm afraid I won't be able to see anyone tomorrow."
Yu Yichen said, "Then you will marry me tomorrow."
When Zhenshu heard him bring up marriage again, she straightened her face and said, "Although I am willing to marry you, this matter still needs to be discussed with my parents first, do you understand? They..."
Yu Yichen was overflowing with joy and whispered, "Okay!"
Zhenshu smiled at him, and then he asked again, "What wish did you make in front of the Buddha at Wanshou Temple that day? Tell me quickly."
Yu Yichen clearly remembered that when she made her wish, she had given him a deep look, and it was that look that gave him the confidence to take it a step further. Seeing Zhenshu blush, he became even more eager to know, and gently bit her ear, pressing her, "Tell me quickly."
Seeing that they were close to the city, Zhen Shu pried Yu Yichen's hand off and said, "Quickly put me down and wait for the carriage. I'm afraid we'll run into my Uncle Zhao if we go any further."
It was too late. Zhao He, sword in his arms, stood coldly watching the approaching road from a short distance ahead. Seeing this, Zhen Shu quickly jumped off her horse and began pulling at her skirt from under the saddle. Yu Yichen also dismounted and pulled the skirt out for her, handing it to her. Zhen Shu took it, not wanting to tie it in front of them, and held it close, taking a few steps forward and stammering, "Uncle Zhao!"
Zhao He nodded, let out a long breath, and asked, "Where is the carriage?"
Yu Yichen walked over, cupped his hands in greeting, and said, "I'll be there soon."
Zhao He didn't look at him, still standing there with his sword in his hand. Seeing that both of them were silent, Zhen Shu also stood quietly waiting for the carriage. This was probably the most agonizing time of her day; every minute seemed to drag on endlessly. Finally, after what felt like an eternity, Mei Xun drove up and stopped the carriage in front of Zhao He. Zhao He glanced at Zhen Shu and said, "Second Miss, please get in."
Zhenshu glanced back at Yu Yichen and saw that he was also secretly watching her, like a half-grown child who had made a mistake. For some reason, she found this sight quite amusing, so she smiled and got into the carriage. Yu Yichen also smiled and watched her. After Zhenshu got into the carriage and Zhao He drove away, he still stared at the departing carriage, unwilling to turn around.
The guards who gradually arrived dismounted, took their horses, and stood quietly behind him, waiting until the night completely obscured the road. Only then did he turn around, brush off the dust, and say, "Withdraw all the people under martial law around here."
Inside the carriage, Zhenshu knelt on the carriage, unbuttoned her long robe and fastened her skirt. Just as she was about to peek behind her by lifting the curtain, she heard Zhao He ask from outside, "Do you know who he is?"
Zhenshu lifted the curtain, sat on the edge of the carriage, nodded, and whispered, "I know."
Zhao He added, "He's a bad person, extremely bad, do you know that?"
Zhenshu bit her lip and snorted, then heard Zhao He say again, "So the reason why our mounting shop is so successful is all thanks to him."
Yes, if he simply said that Song Gongzheng's calligraphy was excellent, officials and wealthy people in the capital eager to curry favor with him would spend lavishly to collect his works. If he simply said that Song's mounting shop had superb mounting skills, all the powerful and influential people in the capital would bring their calligraphy and paintings here for mounting. No one in this world is a fool; the reason why customers rarely haggle is because they can exchange their calligraphy and paintings for even better things.
Zhenshu sighed and acquiesced. Then Zhao He continued, "I watched all of you sisters grow up, especially you, who ran away the most from a young age. Although I am not your father, I love you as much as he does and don't want you to experience too many hardships and setbacks. Losing you in the Wuling Mountains was also my fault, and I will regret it for the rest of my life. But you shouldn't have given up on yourself and given yourself to someone..."
“It’s not that I’m giving up on myself,” Zhenshu explained. “I really want to marry him.”
Zhao Hele stopped the carriage, turned around, and said incredulously, "He's a eunuch, how could you marry him?"
Zhenshu didn't know how to explain, so she bit her lip and remained silent. Then she saw Zhao Hefu whip his horse and drive forward. After a while, he said, "Do you know how high your father's expectations are for you? You are his most beloved daughter and the pride of his life. If you were to marry a eunuch, I'm afraid he would go crazy."
Seeing that Zhenshu remained silent, Zhao He continued, "Your father and I do not hope that you will marry into a wealthy family or become a high-ranking official, enjoying riches and honors. We simply hope that you can still be happy and find a real man who loves and appreciates you. Besides, if you marry a eunuch, how will your two younger sisters get married in the future? Moreover, Yu Yichen's reputation is now ruined; he is a well-known favorite of the emperor."
Upon hearing the words "male concubine," Zhen Shu was suddenly startled and shook her head, saying, "That's impossible. How could he be a male concubine?"
Zhao He said, "These rumors are spreading in the capital every day, and they're probably not unfounded. A man like him won't have a good end, so how can you expect to have a good life if you stay with him?"
Zhenshu saw a large crowd of people crammed onto the road by the city gate, all ordering the guards to use straw to block the way and prevent them from traveling. The crowd craned their necks to look at the official road. When they saw Zhao He driving his carriage over, someone shouted, "If the official road is blocked, why is there still a carriage coming?"
Two horses galloped up behind Zhenshu's carriage, reined in, and circled on the official road. One of the men held up a token and shouted, "Let them pass!"
Only then did the guards collect the straw and let the people walk onto the official road.
Zhenshu had a vague idea in her mind, but still asked Zhao He, "Why are these people being guarded by soldiers at the city gate?"
Zhao He said, "Yu Yichen ordered people to block the official roads starting at noon. Regardless of whether it was for public or private reasons, or whether it was urgent or not, no one was allowed to pass through the canal and the official roads."
Zhenshu slumped back into the car, pondering those words. Suddenly, she remembered that before the Dragon Boat Festival, there were no boats on the canal, and today there was no one at the market. It turned out that these were not natural coincidences, but the work of him alone.
She hugged her knees and sighed inwardly: Yu Yichen, what kind of person are you?
When they arrived at the East Market, it was nearly dusk, and the sky was completely dark; there were no pedestrians on the street. Zhenshu got out of the carriage and called out to Zhao He, "Uncle Zhao, please keep what happened these past few days a secret from my father and mother. Don't tell them."
Zhao He didn't turn around upon hearing this, but asked, "So you still want to discuss marriage with him?"
Zhenshu bit her lip and said, "I will tell them myself once I have thought it through."
Seeing that she still wouldn't give up, Zhao He said nothing more and drove off to return the carriage. Zhen Shu was exhausted and dejected. She opened the door, went to the stove to heat up some leftovers, and sat down on a small stool in the kitchen to eat. Suddenly, Zhen Xiu pushed open the kitchen door, carrying a food box in her arms. Seeing that Zhen Shu was eating in the kitchen, she threw the food box next to her and said, "Since you're here, wash it too."
Chapter 73 Apology
Zhenshu lifted the lid of the food box and saw two dirty plates and bowls inside. She asked, "You still use a food box at home?"
Zhenxiu said, "It's for Tong Qisheng. With the imperial examinations approaching, he's staying nearby to study, so I'm sending him some food."
Zhenshu nodded in agreement and gathered her bowl and the plates and bowls from the food container together to wash. After washing for a while, she suddenly felt something was wrong. She turned around and saw Zhenxiu still looking at her through the kitchen door, so she asked, "Why aren't you upstairs yet?"
Zhenxiu lowered her head and sighed, saying, "Second sister, I was so ignorant and I have let you down in some ways."
Zhenshu waved her hand and said, "We're sisters, why are you saying all this? Your legs are too small to stand properly, go upstairs quickly."
Zhenxiu turned and left. Zhenshu washed the dishes clean, and also wiped away the grease that had accumulated in the kitchen during her absence. Then she took out a handkerchief, draped it over her shoulders, boiled water to wash her hands and face, and carried a basin of hot water upstairs to soak her feet. After doing all this, she lay down on the bed and let out a long, bitter sigh.
She had intended to reject him and make him give up when she mounted the horse that day, but when she got home, she inexplicably agreed to marry him.
"The emperor's favorite, a notorious eunuch," Zhenshu murmured.
Zhenshu recalled his appearance, speech, and figure, as well as the moments they had shared, and shook her head, thinking to herself: He wasn't such a bad person. Just like the rumors about Wang Canzhi in the Drunken World, perhaps it was just a misunderstanding by others. But he absolutely couldn't be allowed to do things like closing the river and roads like this again.
Zhenxiu is about to get married, and Zhenyi will only have to wait two or three years at most. Perhaps in another three years, after her two younger sisters' marriages are settled, things won't be so difficult anymore?
By then, she was already an old maid. As long as someone came to propose marriage, Madam Su didn't care whether he was a eunuch or not; she would probably agree to marry anyone. The feelings of a young woman are so changeable. Although she was very distressed just now, when she fell asleep, a faint smile was already on her lips.
The next morning, for the first time ever, Madam Su, Zhenxiu, and Zhenyi got up even earlier than Zhenshu. When she rubbed her eyes and came out of the bedroom, she saw Zhenxiu and Zhenyi already sitting outside binding their feet. She had never liked looking at these tiny, bound feet, and shook her head and sighed as she was about to go downstairs. Madam Su came over and blocked her way, holding out her hand and saying, "Manager, give me some money."
Zhen remembered that she had given Su twenty taels of silver for household expenses before going to Liujiazhuang, thinking it would last for a month. But it had only been four or five days. So she asked, "You gave your mother some money for household expenses just a few days ago. Why did it run out so quickly?"
Madam Su glared and said, "Isn't that a place where money is spent? Every day when a family opens their eyes, it's about firewood, rice, oil, and salt—everything costs money!"
Zhenyi interjected, "It's to prepare things for my two brothers-in-law's imperial examinations."
So that's what it was for. Zhenshu waved her hand and said, "I will have my apprentices take care of it for them. Why should you, with your bound feet, make another trip?"
Su's greatest hobby in life was buying and acquiring things. Hearing this, he frowned and said, "How could those little kids possibly acquire good things? What if they buy those rotten cotton and chaff-filled quilts and the two of them freeze to death in the examination hall in the middle of the night? What if the ink isn't good enough and won't dissolve properly in the examination hall? And Xuan paper, even for drafting, must be of the highest quality."
Zhenshu took the key from the room, opened the cabinet, and then took out a twenty-tael silver note and gave it to Madam Su. Madam Su saw it and threw it at her, saying, "What can this little bit do? If you're so stingy, I might as well go and become a prostitute."
She had previously purchased a set of jewelry worth over a thousand taels at a jewelry store, and now she constantly mentions wanting to use it as her headpiece. Zhenshu was used to it and didn't care. However, since the previous set cost twenty taels, and this one still wasn't enough, she couldn't help but ask again, "How much silver would it cost to buy those things?"