"Sister, please go to bed early. Qingmei will take her leave." After the meal, everyone went their separate ways. Ao Qingmei sent Ao Ningshuang back to her room first. She carefully poured a cup of hot tea for Ao Ningshuang and placed it on the table. Then she looked up at Ao Ningshuang who was standing in front of the window, spoke softly, and was about to leave.
"Qingmei, don't you have anything to say to me?" Ao Ningshuang turned her head and looked at Ao Qingmei deeply, then slowly turned her head and looked at the green bamboos in the garden swaying in the wind and rain. She gently reached out her hand and pushed open the window. A cool night breeze suddenly blew into the room, bringing with it cold raindrops, brushing across her face, feeling cool.
Ao Qingmei was startled, stopped, looked at Ao Ningshuang hesitantly, lowered her eyes and pondered for a moment, then walked to the window with a smile. She looked out the window and complained, "Why is the rain getting heavier? It's really bullying those of us who have just arrived in Suzhou. They say that the scenery of Suzhou and Hangzhou is very beautiful. It's hard to come out. If we miss the scenery of Suzhou and Hangzhou because of the continuous rain, it will be a pity." She secretly glanced at Ao Ningshuang, but saw that Ao Ningshuang's expression was indifferent, and his eyes were just looking out the window quietly. It seemed that he didn't listen to her words at all. Ao Qingmei's mouth moved, and suddenly he sighed, no longer looking around, and compromised, "Okay, what do you want to know, sister?"
Ao Ningshuang listened to the sound of the rain outside the house for a while, then turned to look at Ao Qingmei: "Did you go to Baihua Valley with Xueyan during the day?"
Ao Qingmei raised her eyebrows and asked in surprise: "How did sister guess that?"
Ao Ningshuang said calmly: "You are stained with the fragrance of the flowers in Baihua Valley."
Ao Qingmei subconsciously sniffed her clothes and indeed there was a faint floral scent. She couldn't help but laugh and said, "I forgot that the scent of flowers in the Hundred Flower Valley is different from that of other places. Sister is really as meticulous as dust." Nodding, she generously admitted, "Yes, my third sister and I did go to the Hundred Flower Valley."
"Go see Mu Yanran?" Ao Ningshuang slowly turned around, returned to the table, and whispered, "Qingmei, close the window. It's a bit cold."
Ao Qingmei closed the window, walked over to Ao Ningshuang, and sat down at the table. She looked at Ao Ningshuang and nodded, "Yes, I went to see Mu Yanran."
"What for?"
"This..." Ao Qingmei hesitated, thought for a while, and finally decided to tell the truth: "Persuade her to give up marrying Yufeng!"
"Oh?" Ao Ningshuang's usually indifferent expression finally showed a hint of surprise. She stared at Ao Qingmei and asked calmly, "Is there something I don't know?"
"Mu Yanran likes Feng Qinghuan. She agreed to marry Yufeng just out of anger. We can't watch Yufeng marry a woman who doesn't love him. So—" Ao Qingmei looked at Ao Ningshuang steadily, with a bright light flashing in her eyes. She said: "—Sister, we have to stop the wedding next month."
Ao Ningshuang suddenly lost her mind, not knowing what she was thinking about. Her eyes were erratic. After a long while, she sighed quietly and did not ask any more questions. She just said calmly, "Qingmei, it's getting late. You should go back to your room and rest."
Ao Qingmei looked at Ao Ningshuang strangely, wanting to say something, but finally just nodded, stood up, and said to Ao Ningshuang: "Then sister, I will go back to the house first."
"Yeah." Ao Ningshuang responded softly, as if she was worried about something and looked a little absent-minded.
Ao Qingmei stood up and walked out of the house. When she closed the door, she accidentally saw Ao Ningshuang in the house with her eyes downcast, staring blankly at a jade pendant in her hand, a little absent-minded. Ao Qingmei subconsciously looked at the jade pendant in Ao Ningshuang's hand for a while, and felt that it seemed familiar, but she couldn't remember where she had seen it before. Finally, she shook her head, gently closed the door, and left alone.
Ao Ningshuang looked at the jade pendant in her hand with a gentle look. She murmured, and there seemed to be a sigh in her voice: Even if you become an immortal, you can't escape the seven emotions and six desires. Gently closing her eyes, slowly holding the jade pendant in her palm, she silently said in her heart: "Mei Niang, it turns out that it is not just you and me who are willing to break the taboo. There are more than one or two people in this world who give up everything for love!
The past cannot be retrieved, and the present cannot be abandoned. No matter what you are about to face, I will bear it for you and repay what I owe you!
It was midnight when Xiaoqing returned to Baoan Hall. Everyone had probably fallen asleep and there was silence all around. She dragged her tired feet back to her room, opened the door, and was stunned. In the flickering candlelight, a woman in white was sitting quietly at the table, staring at a golden hairpin in her hand in a daze. Xiaoqing's eyes fell on the golden hairpin, and her face suddenly lit up, and she blurted out, "Sister."
The person in the room was none other than Bai Suzhen. When Bai Suzhen heard Xiaoqing's voice, she looked up suddenly, her eyes brightened, and she murmured, "Qing'er, you are finally back."
Xiaoqing walked into the room with a smile on her face. She stared at the golden hairpin in Bai Suzhen's hand, feeling happy: "Sister has been waiting for me?"
Bai Suzhen blushed slightly, and quickly put away the golden hairpin, seeming a little at a loss as she stammered, "Oh, no, I just passed by here, so I came in to take a look, and then I saw that you were still not back, so I sat in this room for a while."
Xiao Qing smiled secretly, knowing that Bai Suzhen's words were just a cover-up, and pretended to be disappointed and said, "Oh, so that's the case. Now that I'm back, sister doesn't have to worry about you. Go back to your room and rest early."
Bai Suzhen was stunned for a moment, raised her eyes to look at Xiaoqing, gently bit her red lips, and her eyes seemed to be in a trance for a moment. Xiaoqing saw that her expression was strange and was about to say something, but Bai Suzhen had already left her without saying a word.
Xiaoqing was stunned for a moment, then came to her senses and hurriedly turned around to the door of the room, but Bai Suzhen was no longer outside the house.