Mingyu's heart also began to beat nervously. She seemed to have a premonition that when this idiot saw her, he would give her the Jade Ruyi with a silly smile like presenting a treasure in public!
In a flash, just as Lord Anxi's eyes were searching for her, Mingyu immediately hid behind Fu Lemei, terrified, and ran behind the crowd with her head down. Fortunately, she was petite, so she couldn't be seen hiding behind.
Sima Hong looked left and right, but could not find the beautiful shadow that was in his heart. In disappointment, he put the jade ruyi back into his arms and decided to find a way to meet Mingyu in two days and give it to her as a gift.
The shy and timid young ladies on the parade ground who had been waiting for a long time were more disappointed than Sima Hong when they saw his actions.
Fu Lemei sighed with emotion, and without turning her head, she said to the person beside her: "Hey, Mingyu, this Anxi Marquis is a good guy. Why did you want to be with him..." She has been curious about this matter, but the Xu family is very secretive about it. She doesn't want to offend Mingyu from the bottom of her heart, and she doesn't want to say the wrong thing to make Xu Mingye dissatisfied with her. She has been holding back and not asking, but now she can't hold it back anymore. Seeing that Sima Marquis looks decent, has good martial arts, and is a responsible young hero, why did the Xu family want to divorce him? Or is it the Marquis's family that wants to divorce
When Fu Lemei turned around, she found that Mingyu was nowhere to be found. After she squeezed out of the crowd, she saw Mingyu in a quiet place behind the crowd. "Why did you come here?" Fu Lemei asked with a smile, "It was so hard for me to find you!"
Mingyu looked at the girl's heartless smile and secretly sighed. It is a good thing that straightforward people think whatever they want and don't have so many worries.
"It's too stuffy in there, I'm coming out to get some fresh air." Mingyu said with a smile.
Anyway, the captive offering ceremony was over, and the wonderful archery competition was also enjoyable. Fu Lemei felt that this trip was worthwhile, so he pulled Mingyu out of the training ground. He smiled and said, "If you feel uncomfortable, we can go back. Tomorrow is the 29th day of the twelfth lunar month. My eldest brother has gathered a group of people to the Lanxun Pavilion in the west of the city to write couplets for the people. Do you want to come?"
Before Mingyu could answer, Fu Lemei smiled flatteringly, "You must come. I've already told my eldest brother to bring someone who can write really, really well!"
"Write couplets?" Mingyu was a little surprised.
Fu Lemei was relieved to see Mingyu didn't object immediately, and explained, "You know, my eldest brother is the junior supervisor of the capital province, and he has to come here once a year... The people benefit, so they also think of the good things of the officials, right?"
Mingyu understood. This was similar to the modern Chinese New Year, when leaders would bring New Year gifts to visit people in need... Whether they were truly concerned about the people or were just trying to save face, they had to do this.
"Who's going?" Mingyu asked. If it was a group of grown men writing, she wouldn't join in the fun.
Fu Lemei counted on her fingers, "I won't talk about the men. As for the women, my eldest sister-in-law and her younger sister will go, and the wives of several of my eldest brother's classmates will also go. Of course, I'll go too!"
Mingyu nodded and agreed, "Okay, I'll go!" Writing Spring Festival couplets is just a matter of moving a pen, which is not a difficult task for her. It can help others and Fu Lemei at the same time, so why not do it? Besides, there is nothing to do at home, except sitting in front of the charcoal brazier.
Fu Lemei didn't expect Mingyu to agree without hesitation. She happily hugged Mingyu's arm and said with a smile: "Mingyu, you are the best! I like you the most! You are different from those young ladies who only know how to be pretentious!"
Mingyu sneered at Miss Fu's sweet words. Without hesitation, she imitated Xu Mingye. She stretched out her hand and flicked her finger on Fu Lemei's forehead. "You! Leave this to your future husband!"
The next morning, the Fu family's carriage stopped at Mingyu's door. Xu Changqian didn't like his wife and daughter to be too public, but when he knew that Mingyu was writing Spring Festival couplets for the people under Fu Lexin's organization, he didn't object at all.
When they arrived at the Lanxun Pavilion in the west of the city, Fu Lemei's elder brother, sister-in-law and a group of people had already arrived. The pavilion was filled with people who came to ask for Spring Festival couplets. Among them were some people who were well-dressed and did not look like their families were too poor to afford Spring Festival couplets.
Seeing Mingyu staring at those people, Fu Lemei thought Mingyu was upset, so she whispered in Mingyu's ear: "Those people are also here to ask for calligraphy. Most of them are doing business. They ask for calligraphy from big brother and others to save face and bring good luck! Don't worry, they won't want the Spring Festival couplets we write."
Mingyu smiled and nodded. She was not a well-known person, so she did not need to worry about someone maliciously snatching the Spring Festival couplets she wrote. Fu Lemei led Mingyu into the pavilion and met Fu Lemei's elder brother and sister-in-law. The two were dressed simply and were kind and easy to get along with. They first thanked Mingyu for volunteering to write Spring Festival couplets, and then allocated a table and writing brushes and ink for Mingyu.
At this meeting, Sima Hong took Baihao around the capital. He had nothing to do with the family's preparations for the New Year, but once he was idle, he felt uncomfortable and couldn't sit down, so he took Baihao out for a walk. Seeing that the pavilion in front was surrounded by people in three layers, so crowded that no one could get through, he became curious.
Baihao asked the person next to him, "Brother, what are you doing in front of here? There are so many people gathered here."
The man looked him up and down and said, "You have just arrived in the capital, right? There are many officials and their wives in the pavilion writing Spring Festival couplets for us. If you wait here, you can get one and save the money to buy Spring Festival couplets!"
Sima Hong stood by and listened carefully. On the day when he escorted the prisoners into the capital, he wore a helmet and silver armor. Now he changed into an ordinary brocade robe and jade belt. None of the people who had watched him recognized him, and he was happy to walk around the street with a swagger.
At this moment, Sima Hong saw with his sharp eyes that the person he had been thinking about day and night followed a girl into the pavilion. In a hurry, Sima Hong also squeezed into the crowd. Bai Hao turned around after chatting with him and found that his master was already desperately squeezing into the crowd. He was so anxious that he shouted: "Second Master, our family has already posted Spring Festival couplets!"
Sima Hong pretended not to hear Bai Hao's hoarse shouting. He was anxious and kept pushing forward. He was born tall and strong, and relying on his broad shoulders and back, he pushed left and right, pushing away the people in front of him and ran to the front. The people next to him rolled their eyes at him and cursed this young man in brocade clothes in their hearts.
Soon, Sima Hong squeezed to the front. Mingyu was only three or four meters in front of him. The little girl lowered her head and splashed ink seriously. She looked very cute. He couldn't help but think of two years ago, when he was lying in front of the window of the ancestral hall of the Anxi Marquis's mansion and saw the little girl writing seriously for the first time. Her face was white and delicate, so beautiful! He only took a glance and was deeply attracted.
I haven't seen her for several months now. The little girl seems to have grown up a little bit since the last time I saw her. Her fair and rosy cheeks were lightly flushed with pink, and her rosy lips looked like the gorgeous peach blossoms in March. Sima Hong swallowed his saliva and looked at her greedily. Mingyu wore a lake blue jacket and a dark blue pleated high-waisted embroidered skirt. Her black and shiny hair was tied into a bun, and she had a hairpin with an unidentifiable flower in it. As she moved slightly, the bright yellow stamens on the hairpin also trembled slightly, making his heart tremble with it.
There were women around him who were prettier than Mingyu, but at first glance, he could only see her, beautiful and charming, like a beautiful butterfly dancing on the tip of his heart.
The sun shone obliquely on Mingyu's fair face. She lowered her head, and her long eyelashes cast a shadow on her face. Sima Hong described Mingyu's eyebrows and eyes in his mind. Mingyu was writing seriously, with a focused and serious expression. The beautiful girl wrote beautiful calligraphy quietly and peacefully, which was a beautiful painting in itself.
He suddenly felt uncomfortable. Every time he saw her in a hurry, he had to leave again. He didn't know when he would see her again, and he didn't know if he would have the chance to see her again. And she might get married at any time, whether she was someone's concubine or someone's wife, she would no longer belong to him.
Mingyu's handwriting was elegant and neat, yet elegant. She had just finished writing a couplet, but before the ink had dried, it was snatched away by the person in the front. Sima Hong was only focused on appreciating the beauty, and was a step slower than before he could grab it. He was furious. That was his wife's handwriting, so why should others take it
"Oh, the handwriting is so beautiful!" The person who got the Spring Festival couplets written by Mingyu praised to the people around him. Although he could not read, it did not prevent him from thinking that the handwriting was beautiful.
The people around who had not received the Spring Festival couplets yet also followed suit in admiration. This little girl was not very old, but her handwriting was very good and quite presentable. After all, she was the daughter of an official family and had been properly educated since childhood. These poor people could not compare to her.
Sima Hong also squeezed to the front and looked at the Spring Festival couplets in the man's hand from a distance of several people. Sure enough, the handwriting was still as beautiful as ever. Listening to those people's praises, Sima Hong seemed to be proud of it. He wanted to stand on a high place and shout loudly, Hey, that was written by my wife!
Thinking of this, he couldn't help but get excited. In a hurry, he grabbed the sleeve of the person next to him and said excitedly: "See? The one who looks the best and writes the best is my wife!"
A cold voice rang in Sima Hong's ears, "I haven't seen you for a year. I didn't expect that your memory has become so bad. Do you need me to remind you that you have divorced?"
Sima Hong felt that the voice sounded very familiar, and when he turned around, he saw that the person he had grabbed in a hurry was actually an old acquaintance, his former brother-in-law Xu Mingye! Feeling guilty, Sima Hong's expression immediately became embarrassed, and he let go of the hand holding Xu Mingye's sleeve, "Hey, you can't say that, the ex-wife... is also a wife!"