But whether they are chivalrous heroes or noble young masters, they all suffer from the same troubles when it comes to matters of the heart.
For example, he might think, "He ran off without saying goodbye for so many days. Will she worry? Will she get angry? Will she cry? Will she come up with all sorts of tricks to torment him, refusing to give him an answer?"
It's both tedious and mundane, but it's so captivating that you'll want to linger there.
The willows along the moat had already drooped their soft, green branches, swaying in the wind like the graceful figure of a young woman. He glanced over casually, about to urge his horse to go faster, when a figure on the opposite bank of the river suddenly caught his eye.
The person was also riding a horse, but her clothes were much better. She wore a thin, soft spring robe that was both loose and brightly colored, embroidered with countless large peonies. Her wide-sleeved long skirt swayed slightly in the wind, sometimes billowing and sometimes fluttering. She looked like a peony herself.
She was talking to a man walking beside her, her long eyelashes trembling slightly, and the smile on her cheeks was more beautiful than a spring breeze. Suddenly, a gust of wind blew her thick hair up, covering half of her face, and the man considerately reached out to brush it aside for her.
Zexiu narrowed his eyes slightly, stopped by the riverbank, and watched them cross the bridge before walking over.
She walked very close before she seemed to suddenly realize something, turned around abruptly, and immediately saw him. Her eyes lit up instantly, she looked him up and down, and then smiled slightly.
"You're so dirty and smelly," she said with a smile.
Ze Xiu looked down at himself; his clothes were stained with blood and mud, indeed dirty and smelly, but that wasn't the point! He glanced at the young man beside him and coldly asked, "Who is he?"
She smiled, revealing a row of pearly white teeth: "Silly girl, Duanhui, Duanhui, can't you even tell?"
Duan Hui quickly stepped forward and bowed, saying, "Greetings, Young Master Zexiu."
Oh, it was him. He usually dresses as a woman. He had long forgotten that he was actually a man. I couldn't tell at all when he put on men's clothes.
Zexiu hummed in agreement and said calmly, "What are you all doing running around like this?"
Xiao Man rode her horse forward, turned back and smiled sweetly: "Why should I tell you?"
Her dark hair swirled and danced on her slender back, the setting sun casting a long shadow that pierced his eyes like a needle, creating a breathtaking sensation. He felt something taking root and sprouting within him, something he couldn't suppress.
Duan Hui whispered, "Miss Xiaoman wants to buy a piece of land to do business, so I'm accompanying her to take a look."
"Business?" Zexiu asked blankly.
"She plans to open a knitting workshop or something, and do some business in embroidery handicrafts."
Zexiu smiled, and after a while, said softly, "That's fine. As long as she's happy."
After returning home, Xiaoman continued to embroider the peacock with needle and thread, vowing to finish embroidering the upper body today.
She had only stitched a few stitches when she heard a knock at the door. It was Duan Hui's voice: "Xiao Man, Mr. Xue asked me to bring you food."
She agreed. Since she couldn't put her hands down immediately, she said, "Please bring it in directly, thank you."
The door creaked open, and Xiao Man, without looking up, whispered, "Wait a minute. Let me finish this injection."
No one spoke. She embroidered for a while, then suddenly felt something was wrong. She quickly turned her head and saw Zexiu, dressed in a clean, soft spring shirt, sitting beside her watching her embroider. Xiaoman said softly, "Why is it you?"
He didn't even look at her, and said indifferently, "Why can't it be me?"
His voice was still as annoying as ever. Xiaoman ignored him and continued embroidering, but with him standing there beside her, she always felt like he was watching her. However, every time she looked up, she found him intently studying the embroidery. Finally, she couldn't continue embroidering, stopped, and turned to look at him.
"Why did you stop embroidering? I'm watching." He turned to look at her.
Xiao Man smiled slightly: "Are you looking at the person or the painting?"
Zexiu didn't even raise an eyebrow, and said indifferently, "Look at the painting. What's so interesting about people? They're just like monkeys."
Xiao Man immediately became angry. She packed up her embroidery and said, "I'm not embroidering anymore. I'm going to eat."
Zexiu readily complied and placed the food box on the table. He brought out the dishes and two pairs of chopsticks. Xiaoman pouted and said, "What, are you going to eat here too?"
Why can't I eat here?
She was so angry she was speechless. She grabbed her chopsticks and shoveled rice into her bowl. Suddenly, a small meatball landed in her bowl. Zexiu said indifferently, "Eat more meat. You're as skinny as a monkey."
She immediately picked up a clove of garlic and threw it in front of him: "You're the one who ate too much garlic. Your mouth is so bad. Disinfect it."
She was funny and sweet when she was angry. Zexiu really wanted to laugh, and then he actually laughed.
"Don't laugh." Xiaoman glared at him fiercely.
Zexiu stopped laughing, looked her up and down, and suddenly said, "This dress doesn't suit you at all, it looks awful."
"Did he come back just to nitpick?" Xiao Man got angry and threw down her chopsticks: "I'm not eating."
She jumped up, intending to give this damn man a good beating, but Zexiu, resting his chin on his hand, looked at her leisurely and said, "Your clothes are too ugly, so you'd better take them off quickly."
Xiao Man froze, seemingly not quite understanding what he was saying. Ze Xiu nodded earnestly: "You understood correctly, that's exactly what I meant. Your clothes look awful, take them off quickly. Or, shall I help you take them off?"
He kindly reached out to untie her sash, but Xiaoman suddenly jumped up and ran away. Before she even reached the door, a figure flashed before her eyes, and he opened his arms and caught her in his arms. Xiaoman let out a soft cry, broke free, and the golden hairpin in her hair flashed and fell to the ground, her long black hair cascading down.
She turned and ran into the house, her face flushed red, but she was laughing: "Is this all the sincerity you have? You lecherous bastard, go to hell!"
The candle was blown out, plunging the room into darkness. Xiaoman was busy dodging, but before she knew it, he had grabbed her and pulled her into his arms. She jumped in surprise, only to hear him whisper, "That's right, this is my sincerity. Whether you take it or not is up to you."
"You yourself said I'm a skinny monkey!"
"I just like skinny monkeys, what's wrong with that?"
She had no objection whatsoever.
He reached to untie the sash of her clothes, but she suddenly broke free, floated away lightly, and turned back with a charming smile: "You lecherous devil! Dream on!"
She pushed open the door to leave, but the next moment she was thrown into a warm embrace.
He embraced her, she dodged; he lowered his head to kiss her, she deliberately let him. The blouse embroidered with peonies fell to the ground as lightly as a feather. She retreated, retreated, but there was nowhere to retreat. She plunged headlong into a land of tenderness, everything of which was new and unfamiliar to her.
Fortunately, there was darkness, so dark you couldn't see your hand in front of your face, otherwise how would you see him tomorrow? Tears streamed down her cheeks, her eyes brimming with anxiety, unable to meet his gaze. Her gentle, pitiful beauty, her face flushed with a deep, passionate intensity. Deep within the courtyard, a commotion raged beneath the curtains.
Amidst the clamor, the brocade curtains were pulled back, tears falling like raindrops, concealing all the ups and downs in the depths. A wisp of black hair swayed out, like a brush dipped in ink, a sudden stroke that was "the east wind dancing, slender waist weary," and a final stroke that was "scattered like rouge across the path."
Slender fingers extend out, twisting like this is called "delicate duck-green and mandarin duck-red", twisting like that is called "trembling rain and cloud traces".
This stroke of cursive script, with its beautiful imagery, is far beyond what a single word like "wonderful" can describe.
A night of ecstasy.
The boat scene everyone's been waiting for is here! Isn't it big and luxurious?
So, this trip didn't bring much fun; instead, I caught a terrible cold and had a fever so high my head was practically boiling. Perhaps because I was so feverish, please forgive any logical errors or verbose writing in these chapters. ^
My camera broke as soon as I got to Kashgar. I was so frustrated I wanted to kill someone. Then I realized my phone was dead and I hadn't even brought a charger in my haste (am I any other tourist as unlucky as me...?).
I ate braised chicken once, and it was so spicy that my stomach hurt, my eyes watered, and I started having a fever that night. Yogurt, hand-pulled rice, and mutton all became irrelevant.
A very frustrating trip to Xinjiang. Classmates, your health is the foundation of any trip; make sure you're fit before you go on vacation, unlike me...
I ran away in tears...
I ran back—I kept my word, the boat is here, and it's very luxurious. Anyone who said it wasn't luxurious? The wind was too strong, I didn't hear them…
The Scroll of Splendor, Chapter Five: The Fragrance Never Grows Cold (Part Two)
Updated: 2008-10-28 13:47:16 Word Count: 4228
Two updates today.
First update.
Xiao Man let out a long sigh of relief after cutting off the last thread.
Her neck was sore, her back ached, and she could barely open her eyes. She was exhausted, but she felt very relaxed.
She held up the fan in her hand, on which was embroidered a peacock in meticulous detail, vibrant and charming, lifelike. As the light and shadow shifted, the colors seemed to change as well, sometimes green, sometimes blue, sometimes gold, dazzling and mesmerizing.
Xiao Man was very satisfied with the embroidery. She examined it several times, looking it over from all angles, making sure there were no mistakes or overlooked details, before finally pushing open the door and going out to find Jia Tan. Tuan Shanzi and the others lived in the back courtyard, separated by an artificial stream; after crossing the bridge, they could see the lush green bamboo there.
Xiaoman originally planned to deliver the fan directly, exchanging money for goods, but then she suddenly remembered that Jiatan had asked her to embroider a peacock without Tuan Shanzi's knowledge. If she went to see her openly like this, although Tuan Shanzi wouldn't say anything, Jiatan would inevitably feel embarrassed.
She immediately stopped and hesitated on the bridge. Just then, Rongyue came to the river to fetch water with a bucket. Seeing her hesitating, she smiled and said, "Little Man, are you here to see Master Tuan Shanzi and the others? You've come at a bad time. Master Tuan Shanzi and Madam Tuan Shanzi are both out on business and probably won't be back for ten days or half a month."
"Sigh, you're out already?" Xiaoman nodded, thanked her, and turned to leave. She should have known better than to embroider so quickly, rushing around like she was in a frenzy, which only exhausted her.
Rong Yue added, "By the way, Mr. Xue asked Duan Hui to tell you that things are very chaotic outside lately, so Xiao Man shouldn't go out unless necessary. Everyone in the manor is busy. Once things calm down, Young Master Ze Xiu will play with you."
Upon hearing the name Zexiu, she couldn't help but feel a little guilty. After exchanging a few casual pleasantries, she returned to her own courtyard.
It seemed something was indeed going on at the manor; even Duanhui rarely came anymore. Mr. Xue and the others were nowhere to be seen. As for Zexiu… Xiaoman felt her face burning and instinctively covered it with her hands. Actually, she hadn't seen Zexiu for many days either. Since that night, he had vanished as if he had disappeared, and she didn't know what he was busy with.
When she woke up that morning, her pillow and bedside were empty. Not a soul was there. The feeling was truly unbearable; it was the first time Xiaoman had experienced such a unique sense of loss and loneliness. For the first few days, not seeing him, she thought about many, many things, until she was utterly exhausted.
She really disliked this feeling, that someone had become her entire world, and that every move they made had a huge impact on her.
So Xiaoman started to busy herself with her own things, because she didn't like the feeling of losing herself for anyone else.
If you were to ask what Xiaoman's talents are, those who know her well would say: lying, deceiving, and being incredibly shrewd.
But her greatest skill is that no matter the circumstances, the situation, the people, or the events, she always strives to be happy. It seems the word "despair" is forever foreign to her.
Perhaps because he was busy, Mr. Xue's residence was noticeably emptier. ...The maids who used to be everywhere, dressed in bright red and green, were nowhere to be seen. Occasionally, one or two would pass by, but they were always in a hurry, without even looking up.
Mr. Xue has disappeared without a trace, as have the couple with the round fan. Zexiu has vanished without a trace, and even Duanhui is rarely seen.
Has something happened?
Xiao Man, filled with doubt, returned to her courtyard. Just as she was about to push open the door, she noticed it was already ajar. Lately, many unusual things had happened, so she instinctively became alert. Hesitating for a moment outside the door, she suddenly asked, "Who's in there?"
The only response she received was the sound of footsteps. The door was suddenly yanked open, revealing a dirty black cloak. The newcomer had a thick, long braid, and her almond-shaped eyes shone brightly as she stared intently at her.
Xiao Man stood there for a moment, not knowing how much time had passed, when suddenly she made an unconscious sound from her throat, followed by abruptly lowering her head, her ears turning red.
"It's...it's you." She was slightly flustered, walked past him quickly into the house, and placed the fan in her hand on the table.
He followed, picked up the fan, squinted at it for a while, and said, "The embroidery is really good."
Xiao Man poured two cups of tea and smiled slightly: "Of course, it doesn't matter who embroidered it."
Zexiu chuckled and hugged her from behind. Xiaoman felt a warmth on her ear as he kissed her gently, whispering, "Did you miss me?"
She immediately softened and hurriedly grabbed his hand: "Why would I want to think about you!"
He removed the hairpin from her hair, his burning lips pressed against her neck, and murmured, "Just because I am your husband."