"call-"
The cold wind blew the snowflakes, making them dance around the courtyard.
The wind and snow got even stronger at night.
The girl gently pushed open the window, and her frail body couldn't help but tremble in the cold air.
The winter plum blossoms leaning against the eaves have all withered.
The room was covered with thick velvet carpets and there was a warm stove on the floor. The girl was dressed in plain white clothes and wrapped in a snow-velvet fox fur, but she still felt cold.
The body is cold and the heart is cold too.
"Miss, the wind is strong. Please close the window."
Qiu'er stood outside the window, frowning.
The girl stood in front of the window for a while, then nodded. When she was about to speak, her eyes suddenly looked towards the door outside the courtyard.
A familiar figure appeared there.
The girl was startled for a moment, as if she suddenly remembered something. She immediately raised her hand and closed the window.
Outside.
Luo Qingzhou walked on the bluestone slabs soaked by snow water and entered the courtyard. Seeing Qiu'er standing in the corridor, he asked softly, "Did the second young lady rest?"
Qiu Er smiled slightly, walked to the door and said, "Not yet, the young lady is reading in the study, come in quickly, uncle."
Luo Qingzhou glanced at the window and said, "No need, I'll just stand outside the window and talk for a few words."
Qiu'er stopped at the door and said, "Sir, the young lady is reading on the couch. She is not feeling well today and cannot come down. The window cannot be opened because the cold wind will blow in."
Luo Qingzhou hesitated for a moment and said, "Okay, then I'll talk to the Second Miss at the door of the study."
Having said that, he walked in.
Qiu Er laughed and covered her mouth, saying, "Son-in-law, Zhu Er is not here tonight, you don't have to be afraid."
Luo Qingzhou said: "It's not fear, it's supposed to be like this."
When a brother-in-law comes to visit his sister-in-law in the middle of the night, it is already suspicious; if he doesn't know the rules and enters the room, how to explain the situation of a single man and a single woman
Qiu'er's smile faded slightly, she glanced at him again, went into the house, opened the door, and whispered, "Sir, I'll go heat up the porridge. The young lady hasn't eaten yet."
Luo Qingzhou nodded.
Qiu'er walked out of the house and went to the kitchen.
Luo Qingzhou walked to the door of the study and looked inside.
In the room, the lights were bright. A delicate girl in snow-white clothes was sitting quietly on the couch, holding a book in her hands and looking at him with a smile.
"Brother-in-law, if you don't come in, I won't talk to you."
After the girl finished speaking, she withdrew her gaze from him, lowered her head and flipped through the book with a playful smile on her lips.
Luo Qingzhou stood at the door and said, "Second Miss, I have something to ask you. I will leave after you finish asking."
The girl continued to flip through the book with her head down and ignored him.
Luo Qingzhou was silent for a moment, then he bowed and said, "Well, Miss, please have some rest. I'll take my leave now."
The girl suddenly looked up at him and said in a trembling voice: "Brother-in-law..."
Luo Qingzhou stopped and his eyes met hers.
The girl's eyes trembled, her eyebrows slightly frowned, and she looked pitiful: "Brother-in-law, if it's because of what happened that day... Wei Mo apologizes to you, Wei Mo will never mention... that kind of excessive request again, okay?"
Luo Qingzhou bowed his head and saluted: "Second Miss, don't think too much. I didn't take that matter to heart. It's just that it's getting late tonight, and I still have to go to the Madam to pay my respects, so I wanted to say a few words to the Second Miss at the door and leave. In fact, it's not an important matter, it doesn't matter whether I say it or not."
Just as he finished speaking, Zhu'er's cold voice suddenly came from the door: "Son-in-law, you don't have to go to Madam's tonight, and you don't have to go for the time being. Madam is busy recently."
Luo Qingzhou looked at her.
Zhu Er added: "Madam also asked me to tell my son-in-law to accompany my young lady and be a qualified brother-in-law."
Luo Qingzhou: “…”
What kind of qualification is this
Should I keep my distance and observe the rules between my brother-in-law and my sister-in-law; or... obey my sister-in-law in everything and fulfill her every request
At least, should we give a standard
"Sir, please go in. I will not complain to Madam. Madam has been very busy recently. We will attend the celebration banquet for the eldest princess in a few days. Madam is worrying about the gift for the eldest princess and will ignore you for the time being, so you don't have to be afraid."
Zhu'er said expressionlessly.
Luo Qingzhou asked curiously: "Are we going to attend the Princess's celebration banquet as well?"
Zhu Er said: "Of course the master and the mistress will go, as for the son-in-law, I guess..."
"Pearl."
In the study, Qin Weimo called out softly.
Zhu Er immediately said, "Miss, I will go to the kitchen to help Qiu Er heat up the porridge. You can talk to the son-in-law. I will not stay here and annoy others."
After saying that, he turned and left and went to the kitchen.
At first, when her son-in-law knew that she was the lady's little "spy", she was still a little nervous and ashamed, but she gradually got used to it.
Anyway, she didn't do anything bad and didn't say anything nonsense.
She always spoke the truth to the lady and was loyal to her own daughter, so she was not afraid that her son-in-law would hate her.
When she entered the kitchen, Qiu'er looked at her and whispered, "Don't talk to your son-in-law like that in the future, and don't even mention that your son-in-law is a daughter-in-law. Your son-in-law will be sad, and your lady will be unhappy too."
Zhu'er pouted and said, "Qiu'er, are you helping your son-in-law too? He didn't say anything nonsense, he just told the truth."
Qiu'er said softly, "Don't tell the truth about everything, especially words that can easily hurt others. Didn't the young lady always tell us that before you speak or do anything, you should first put yourself in other people's shoes. If the words or actions are going to hurt others, it's best not to say or do them. You have to learn to tell white lies, understand?"
Zhu'er suddenly looked at her strangely and said, "Qiu'er, tell me honestly, are you in love with my uncle? Do you want to be my uncle's maid?"
"ah?"
Qiu Er was stunned when she heard this, and quickly said, "What nonsense are you talking about? I didn't do that."
Zhu Er snorted coldly, "No? You have been protecting the uncle all the time, and have been trying to bring our young lady and the uncle together. Do you want to wait for the uncle to marry our young lady... Then, you can become the uncle's maid, right?"
"no!!"
"That's right! Humph, I'll go tell my uncle right now that Qiu'er wants to keep him in her boudoir tonight."
Zhu'er said this and deliberately wanted to go out.
Qiu Er immediately became anxious and quickly hugged her from behind, blushing as she said, "Zhu Er! Stop talking nonsense. Be careful that the son-in-law hears you. It will be so embarrassing."
Zhu Er laughed: "The little girl is anxious, the little girl is guilty!"
"Say that again, I'll tear your mouth apart!"
"Uncle! Uncle! Qiu'er said she wants you to tear her belly apart tonight... Ugh..."
Qiu'er hurriedly covered her mouth and desperately dragged her to the innermost part of the kitchen.
"Brother-in-law, come in..."
In the study, on the soft couch.
The girl in snow-white clothes invited him softly again, her brows slightly furrowed, her pink lips lightly bitten, her face bitter, looking pitiful and sympathetic.
With this look, how many people in the world can refuse it
Luo Qingzhou withdrew his gaze, said nothing more, lowered his head, took off his shoes, and walked in.
A faint fragrance of a young girl floated in the room, mixed with the warm air, and instantly enveloped his entire body.
When my feet step on the soft carpet, my heart seems to fall into the softness.
This room, this girl, this smell, this atmosphere, will soften even the most hard-hearted person if they come in.
Luo Qingzhou walked to the couch and was about to lower his head to speak when the girl said softly, "Brother-in-law, come up..."
"Come up on the bed..."
She whispered again.
Luo Qingzhou hesitated for a moment, and thought to himself: Since I'm already in, I might as well go up.
Anyway, the mother-in-law also said that he should be a qualified brother-in-law.
Should it count as satisfying my sister-in-law's request
He got on the couch and sat opposite.
The girl stretched out her delicate jade hand, and her white jade-like fingertips gently touched a chess piece on the chessboard. She said softly, "Brother-in-law, do you know how to play chess?"
Luo Qingzhou said: "No."
Even if he knew, he would say no, otherwise the girl would invite him to play chess again, which would be even more troublesome.
"Then Wei Mo will teach my brother-in-law, okay?"
"… Second Miss, I came here tonight to ask you something. Is there a distinguished guest from Kyoto in our house? Do you know her name?"
Luo Qingzhou didn't dare to hesitate any longer and asked directly.
The girl was slightly startled when she heard this, and looked at him for a few seconds before asking, "Did my brother-in-law meet her?"
Luo Qingzhou had no choice but to lie: "I seem to have met her once in the mansion. I heard from the maids that she seemed to be from Kyoto. I wonder if it was her? Second Miss, what does the distinguished guest from Kyoto look like?"
The girl looked at him tenderly, and the corners of her mouth suddenly curved: "When my brother-in-law lies, he dares not look at me."
Luo Qingzhou looked at the chess pieces on the board, his cheeks feeling a little hot.
For some reason, every time he faced this girl, he would feel guilty whenever he told a lie.
"Her name is Nangong Meijiao, the daughter of my mother's cousin, and her family is from Kyoto. She came to Mo City to escape marriage. As for her appearance..."
The girl looked at him with a smile in her eyes: "As a man, my brother-in-law will definitely like the appearance and figure of Sister Meijiao. If he sees her, he will definitely never forget her."
Luo Qingzhou's heart moved, and he said secretly: It is indeed unforgettable. It turns out that the conceited and cold girl is really her.
Fortunately, I didn't have a conflict with her yesterday.
"Oh, by the way, Second Miss."
Luo Qingzhou reached into his clothes, took out a bag of gold coins from his storage bag, placed them on the chessboard, and said, "Here are two hundred gold coins, to return to the Second Miss."
The last time he went to Jubao Pavilion to buy a dagger, plus the gold coins from selling the demon pill, he only spent eighty gold coins from Miss Qin.
I happened to pick up more than eighty of them in the black woods yesterday, making my total of two hundred.
He didn't want to owe this Second Miss Qin too much.
As for Miss Qin's proposal to withdraw 200 gold coins from him every month, he would absolutely not accept it.
If he accepts it, wouldn't it be like being kept
And it's the sister-in-law who supports the brother-in-law.
What's more, he roughly knew something about the situation of the Qin Mansion. The economic situation seemed not very good, and Qin Chuan was practicing again.
At this time, of course he couldn't spend other people's money anymore.
"Second Miss, it's getting late. You should rest. I'll take my leave now."
Luo Qingzhou put down the money and prepared to leave.
The girl panicked, and subconsciously reached out and held his hand on the chessboard, begging softly: "Brother-in-law, can you sit with Wei Mo for a while?"
Luo Qingzhou frowned, lowered his eyes, and fell on her snow-white jade hand.
The girl's fair cheeks were stained with two blushes. She bit her lips lightly, then slowly took her hand away and lowered her head and said, "Brother-in-law, Wei Mo still wants to talk to you, okay?"
"Uncle, Miss, the porridge is here."
Qiu'er brought in two bowls of porridge at the right time and placed them on the small table between the two of them. Then she took away the chessboard and chess pieces and said with a smile, "Son-in-law, you must finish the porridge. Stay with my young lady for a while. She can't sleep at this time."
After saying that, he took the tray and left, closing the door.
The room fell into silence.
Luo Qingzhou had no choice but to pick up the spoon, lowered his head and looked at the porridge in the bowl and said, "Second Miss, eat the porridge, otherwise it will get cold soon."
The girl also picked up the spoon and gently stirred the porridge in the bowl. She looked up at him and said, "Brother-in-law, if you finish it in one bite this time, I will give you the porridge in my bowl as well."
Luo Qingzhou had picked up the bowl and was about to eat a few bites, but when he heard the words, he paused, put the bowl down again, lowered his head, and ate slowly, spoonful by spoonful.
A smile appeared on the girl's lips.
The two of them lowered their heads and ate the porridge slowly, mouthful by mouthful, without saying anything.
The girl occasionally raised her head and looked at him, her eyes full of happiness and the smile on the corner of her mouth was always there.
Outside the window, the cold wind is howling and the snow is falling.
The room is quiet and warm.
Zhu'er and Qiu'er stood outside the door, holding their breath and concentrating, neither of them spoke a word.
The two found it very strange.
Before, even when the lady stayed in the room, she would cough from time to time and often cough up blood.
But as soon as the son-in-law came, the young lady stopped coughing.
What is going on
Zhu'er tried to hold back, but couldn't help it, so she lowered her voice and whispered, "Qiu'er, the young lady often coughs when she sleeps at night. Do you think... if the son-in-law is here, will... "
Qiu'er didn't answer.
Zhuer whispered again: "Qiu'er, how about giving it a try tonight? Go and seduce your uncle later and invite him to sleep in your boudoir. When you have tired him out, then... well..."
Before she could finish, Qiu'er covered her mouth with her hand and dragged her out into the next room, closed the door, tickled her hard, and punished her severely.
"By the way, brother-in-law, Sister Meijiao was here just now."
In the study, the girl suddenly spoke.
She thought that if she talked about this, perhaps her brother-in-law would be interested, and perhaps he would not be in such a hurry to leave.
Luo Qingzhou's expression really changed. He looked up at her and asked, "Why is she here?"
The girl looked at his expression and said softly, "Sister Meijiao, come to see me and listen to the stories my brother-in-law told me. Sister Meijiao also likes to listen to my brother-in-law's poems and stories."
After hearing this, Luo Qingzhou just said "Oh" calmly, lowered his head and finished the last mouthful of porridge, stood up and said: "Second Miss, I'm done, then I..."
"Brother-in-law, I haven't finished eating yet..."
"It's getting late, I..."
"Brother-in-law, let's talk about Bai Ling, shall we?"
Luo Qingzhou, who was about to check in, paused when he heard this, then slowly sat back down.
The girl looked at him with complicated eyes.