Huayang slept until dusk.
My body felt soft and numb and I was very hungry.
While hanging the curtain, Chao Yun reported: "Princess, the prince consort went out to help the people drain the water and has not returned yet."
Huayang: "When did you go?"
"In the morning, not long after you fell asleep, the prince consort left. He was still wearing the same dirty clothes and ate outside at noon. I asked Zhen'er to inquire about it. Except for the master who was trying a case in the East Courtyard, almost all the men in the family were taken out by the master to work."
Huayang nodded. Things have their priorities. The old lady is gone, but there are still so many people outside who cannot return home.
"What did the kitchen do?"
"The meat is gone. Chaoyue cooked red dates and longan porridge to replenish your blood and qi. She also stewed bamboo shoot soup. She is going to stir-fry two vegetarian dishes when you wake up. Princess, is there anything you want to eat? The big kitchen has been steaming vegetable-stuffed buns all afternoon. Each one is bigger than a fist. Eat some at home and send the rest to the master to be distributed to the people affected by the disaster."
With the Chen family taking the lead, some wealthy families in the town also donated some grain.
Huayang was satisfied with what was in the small kitchen, but Chen Jingzong had done hard work all day and it was difficult to fill his stomach with just porridge and soup.
She said casually, "Go to the kitchen and get two plates of buns. One plate for tonight, and one plate for frying and heating for the prince consort tomorrow morning."
Chao Yun blinked and smiled: "The princess is beginning to feel sorry for her husband."
Huayang: …
After getting up, Huayang went straight to the bathroom. Not only had the previous two nights been tough, she hadn’t even had a chance to take a shower!
He sat outside first and let Chaoyun rub him. After rinsing him clean, Huayang stepped into the bathtub and took a comfortable bath.
While she was soaking, Chaoyun picked up the pile of clothes and went outside to give them to Zhuer.
Just as the two men finished the handover, Chen Jingzong came back, covered in mud, with even some mud streaks on his face.
Chaoyun secretly worried for her husband's wife. Fortunately, the princess didn't see him like that!
"The water room has boiled hot water. Prince Consort, please wash first?"
Chen Jingzong glanced upstairs.
Zhao Yun pointed to the bathroom and said, "The princess just woke up and is taking a bath."
Chen Jingzong paused and ordered, "Send a set of towels and clothes to the ear room."
After saying that, he turned and walked towards the water room to fetch some water himself.
Chaoyun quickly went to the inner room closet to get the prince consort's spare clothes and asked Zhu'er to take them to the ear room. When Zhu'er put the clothes away, she saw the prince consort coming in with a bucket of water in one hand.
The tall and big prince consort blocked all the light from the doorway. His cold face was covered with mud, making him look very fierce.
Zhu'er was a little scared.
Chen Jingzong made way for the door: "Go out, come back later to collect the dirty clothes."
Zhu'er breathed a sigh of relief, lowered her head and retreated.
Chen Jingzong closed the door, walked into the inner room and took off his clothes, revealing his thin body. However, there were marks from ropes on his shoulders and arms, and his legs and feet were white from being soaked in water for a long time.
Chen Jingzong wiped with an expressionless face. He used half a bucket of water to wipe his body, half a bucket to wash his hair, and then repeated the process with the other bucket.
After washing, Chen Jingzong put on his clothes and lay down on the bed.
After taking a nap for two quarters of an hour, Chen Jingzong pinched his brows and went to the upper room. When he arrived at the door of the main hall, he saw Huayang sitting in the main seat. She was wearing a plain white brocade dress, her black hair was fluffy like clouds, and she only had a white jade hairpin inserted in it.
Having just taken a shower, her fair face had a rouge-like blush on it, and after a day's rest, her lips had regained their alluring moist luster.
Such a delicate beauty will make anyone feel better after seeing her.
Chen Jingzong smiled and said, "I haven't bathed for two days, but you're moving pretty fast."
Huayang glared at him. She actually wanted to soak in the bath for a while longer, but she heard his voice and left the bathtub in a hurry because she was afraid that he would come in.
"Let's set the table."
Chao Yun smiled and went to the kitchen.
Chen Jingzong sat on the east side of the dining table and poured himself some tea.
When he wasn't smiling, his eyes and brows looked sharp and cold, which further highlighted his handsomeness and elegance, like a sharp sword.
At this moment, Huayang saw fatigue on his face.
No matter how strong or sturdy you are, you are still just a human being with flesh and blood.
Huayang walked over to sit next to him and asked, "Do you need to go out tomorrow?"
Chen Jingzong looked over and asked, "What's up?"
Huayang: …
Chaoyun and Chaoyue came over with dinner. The staple food was red date porridge and steamed buns, and there were two vegetarian dishes and a soup.
Chen Jingzong looked at the vegetarian food on the table and remembered something. After the maids left, he said, "I have to go out tomorrow. I'll probably be free the day after tomorrow. I'll go to the mountains again."
Huayang: "Who's craving for meat? If you want to eat, go ahead. I'm not thinking about it, and I'm not forcing you to go."
Chen Jingzong: "Then why are you asking me if I'm going out tomorrow?"
Huayang scooped up a longan and chewed it slowly.
Chen Jingzong was tired and hungry. Seeing that she stopped talking, he grabbed a bun.
Chen Jingzong ate all the four buns on the plate. He didn't touch the sweet red date porridge and only drank two bowls of bamboo shoot soup.
After eating and drinking, Chen Jingzong simply rinsed his mouth and went to the inner room.
Huayang had slept enough during the day and was not sleepy yet. He sat in the side room and asked Chaoyun to prepare writing brush, ink, paper and inkstone.
Chao Yun yawned.
Huayang smiled and said, "You don't have to keep watch tonight. You can go and sleep with Chaoyue. You've been busy for two days, so it doesn't matter if you get up late tomorrow morning."
Huayang grinds his own ink.
In two days, her father-in-law would be sending a memorial to the capital. As for her, since she had to write a letter to her father, she might as well write one to her mother and brother as well.
My father-in-law hasn't finished trying Qi's case yet, so I'll write my brother's letter tonight.
In the letter to his younger brother, Huayang did not want to discuss political affairs. His younger brother was only ten years old and should not be interested in how his father-in-law led the people to fight floods and provide disaster relief. What's more, the queen mother would definitely tell his younger brother about these things alone.
Huayang wanted to tell his brother something new and interesting.
After thinking about it, Huayang smiled and started writing.
She wrote about how Chen Jingzong built the small garden at the back with his own hands, including how he squatted on the ground and pressed the pebbles one by one, and how he felt sorry for the money he spent on buying peonies and even built rain shelters over several clusters of peonies.
She also wrote about her fear when she first heard that a flood was coming, her relief when the rain ended, and how easy it was for Chen Jingzong to carry her up the mountain. She used this opportunity to remind her brother to eat well and practice martial arts diligently so that he could grow tall and strong in the future.
After writing the letter, Huayang felt sleepy.
After pressing the letter with a paperweight and waiting for it to dry, Huayang turned off the light in the side room, and after his eyes got used to the darkness, he walked lightly towards the inner room.
There was a regular breathing sound from the bed; the prince consort, who had been tired for three days, was sleeping soundly.
Huayang climbed onto the bed carefully. Although she moved very gently, when she just lay down, Chen Jingzong next to her suddenly turned over, put his arms around her waist and pulled her into his arms.
His warm breath fanned against her neck, but he just held her like this and soon fell asleep again.
The next morning, Chen Jingzong was obviously the hardest working person in Siyi Hall, but he was also the first one to wake up.
Huayang was still sleeping on the bed. His fair cheeks looked as smooth as mutton-fat jade in the dim light, and his plump lips were slightly parted.
She is slender but has some flesh on her body, and it is a pleasure to hold her in my arms or press her under me.
When she was awake during the day, she still had the dignity of a princess, but now she was sleeping so soundly that Chen Jingzong wanted to knock her into tears.
He gave her a few fierce looks before getting out of bed.
It was early morning outside the window. Chen Jingzong came out of the bathroom, put on his clothes, and went to the second room. He immediately caught a glimpse of the low table on the couch and a piece of unfolded letter paper.
Chen Jingzong walked over, without touching the paperweight at the corner, and began to read the letter silently.
The entire page of letter was almost entirely written about him, with special praise for his strength.
Chen Jingzong frowned. When had she ever liked his strength? Every time he changed his clothes, she would look disgusted when she saw his arms, and every time he was about to come in, she would be terrified as if she had seen a ghost.
As a younger brother with three older brothers, Chen Jingzong quickly understood the deeper meaning of what the princess wrote: praising him was false, and the real purpose was to coax the little prince to eat obediently.
.
When Huayang woke up and found that Chen Jingzong had already left the room and the letter papers were still scattered in the second room, she guessed that Chen Jingzong had probably seen her letter.
She felt a little annoyed. Chen Jingzong was used to taking advantage of others. Seeing her praise, his tail was probably lifted up to the sky.
Today, Chen Tingjian and others are still helping out outside. The Chen residence is quiet. Although the servants are busy coming and going, they are orderly and do not make loud noises.
Sun came to Siyi Hall and sat for a while, and told Huayang alone about the progress of the interrogation in the East Court.
Qi had only one helper, her cousin, Manager Yang.
When he was young, Manager Yang worked as a shopkeeper in a merchant's house in Lingzhou City. He was very good at treating people and had a lot of knowledge. Not long after Qi married into the Chen family, she persuaded the old lady and her husband to introduce Manager Yang to the Chen family.
Chen Tingjian had instructed Chen Tingshi not to accept any benefits. When those bribers outside hit a snag with Chen Tingshi and the old lady, they tried to get in touch with Qi. Unexpectedly, it worked. However, Qi was cautious and seldom showed up in person. It was always Manager Yang who took over on her behalf.
After saying this, Sun told Huayang a lot about the difficulties Chen Tingjian faced as a son and brother.
Huayang understood that his father-in-law would punish Qi, but he was unwilling to pursue the matter against his own brother.
What else can be investigated? Chen Tingshi did not embezzle a penny, nor did he exchange the old lady's ginseng. His only mistake was that he was too cowardly and could not be the head of the family.
Publicly, Chen Tingshi did not violate any laws. Privately, it was his father-in-law's freedom to decide whether to blame him or not, and Huayang would not interfere.
After seeing off her mother-in-law, Huayang continued to write letters to her father, the emperor, and her mother, the queen.
The day passed like this, and in the evening Chen Jingzong returned home, covered in mud again. Fortunately, he had a good sleep last night and he regained his usual energy.
After dark, this guy got on the bed and pressed on her just as Huayang had expected.
Huayang thought he was too heavy and struggled to lift him off.
"Aren't you praising me for being strong and powerful, as strong as an ox?" Chen Jingzong held her wrist and pressed against her back.
Huayang: "How dare you say that you read my letter?"
Chen Jingzong: "How could I know it was a letter before I read it?"
When it comes to shamelessness, Huayang admits defeat.
Chen Jingzong turned her over.
Huayang closed his eyes tightly.
Chen Jingzong smiled and picked up her hand, pressing it against his chest: "Touch it if you like it. I'm not as stingy as you."
Huayang slapped him with his palm.
A light and crisp sound spread across the bed, adding a bit of ambiguity.
Huayang felt hot all over.
Chen Jingzong picked up her hand again, but she couldn't touch it or hit it.
Chen Jingzong leaned over and coaxed her in her ear: "Be good and don't move. I'll give you meat tomorrow."
Huayang: …
She didn't even covet his meat!
(End of this chapter)