Liu Feng was about to go upstairs with his tea, but was stopped by Ting Yun. Liu Feng looked at Ting Yun in confusion and asked, "What's wrong?"
Tingyun shook his head and whispered, "From now on, when the Madam comes, don't go up without permission."
Liu Feng blinked, stood on the stairs pondering for a while, suddenly smiled, and went downstairs happily with the tea.
In the bedroom upstairs, You Yuji sat by the bed. She tried to drive away the bad memories, raised her head and looked at Si Que in front of her, and said softly: "Are you okay?"
"Don't worry, sister. I have stopped taking the medicine. It won't affect the child." He still had that same cold tone, with a hint of smile in it. It couldn't be said that his attitude was bad, but You Yuji still vaguely sensed something different.
You Yuji carefully observed Si Que's expression and tentatively said, "If it's not convenient today, another day is fine."
Si Que answered her by pulling down the hanging bed curtains. He was quite strong, and the hooks on both sides of the bed curtains shook. The two green bed curtains slowly fell down, softly piled on You Yuji's legs, and gradually blocked the two people's view of each other. The bed curtains gradually closed the bed. The two people sat and stood, and the falling bed curtains cut off the view of the two people who were very close to each other, and they could only vaguely see each other's figures.
Si Que reached out and was about to lift the bed curtain. His hand hung there, and his movement suddenly stopped.
—Anyway, my sister just wants a child. Anyway, my sister doesn’t allow him to take off her clothes or touch her anywhere else.
Si Que slowly clenched his hand in the air into a fist, then slowly lowered it, and then lifted You Yuzhi's leg.
Inside the bed curtain, You Yuji looked up in surprise, looking at Si Que's shadow reflected on the bed curtain. Her rosy lips opened slightly, and she wanted to say something, but she pursed her lips because of Si Que's action of taking off her skirt and pants outside the bed curtain. She had to lie down, turn her face to one side, and bury it in the soft mattress. The hands on her side slightly exerted force and clenched the mattress. Her legs were floating without support. The two people who were doing the most intimate thing were separated by a green bed curtain, so close yet invisible.
When Si Que let go of You Yuji, a tear slid down from the corner of You Yuji's eye and fell on the mattress beside her head.
With a "whoosh", Si Que pulled open the bed curtain.
You Yuji was slightly startled, she pursed her lips and hurriedly wiped away the tears from the corners of her eyes. She supported herself on the bed with her wrists and sat up, then pulled the hem of her short shirt, trying her best to cover the mess.
Si Que stared at You Yuji's expression, feeling even more depressed. He asked in a muffled voice, "Sister, are you crying?"
You Yuji smiled and said, "It just hurts a little."
She quickly added, "It's okay."
Si Que hesitated to speak. He couldn't tell what he felt for a moment. He stared at You Yuji for a long while and asked, "Do you need Liu Feng to come in and help you? Or call your maid."
—He wanted to help her clean up, but she might not want him to touch her.
You Yuji shook her head gently and said with a smile: "Can I lie down here for a while?"
Si Que smiled and said, "Sister, you are so polite."
He turned around and didn't look at You Yuzhi.
You Yuji felt really uncomfortable, so she lay down on the bed and put her legs on it. She didn't pick up the skirt and pants that fell on the floor, but just pulled the quilt on the bed and wrapped herself in it.
She just wanted to lie down for a while, but Si Que added a sleeping aid to the incense, which made her fall into a deep sleep. The medicine would allow her to sleep until the next morning.
Si Que stood beside the bed, looked at You Yuji with a dark face for a long time before he stood up and walked out, brought some warm water, and gently washed You Yuji.
He walked downstairs and saw Baohe talking to Liufeng.
Seeing him coming down, Bao He smiled and said, "Madam brought chicken soup for the princess, and it's still hot. I just asked Liu Feng if he should take it to the kitchen to warm it up first. Princess, do you want to use it now? If you want to use it now, there's no need to warm it up first."
"Give it to me." Si Que stretched out his hand.
Baohe hurriedly handed the food box to Sique.
Si Que added: "It's cold, your wife won't go home tonight, so she will stay here."
Baohe nodded, not doubting anything. After all, it wasn't the first time You Yuji stayed here.
Si Que went upstairs with the food box. He sat down at the table, facing the bed. He opened the food box and took out the things inside. There was not only a bowl of chicken soup that had been simmered for a long time, but also two kinds of cakes that he liked, and a bottle of red plum wine.
While watching You Yuji sleeping soundly, Si Que drank the chicken soup, ate the cakes, and finished the red plum wine.
He leaned back in his chair, still unable to relieve the annoyance in his heart.
When You Yuji woke up the next day, it was still early. She opened her eyes dazedly and looked at the unfamiliar bed. It took her a while to realize that she was in Yunxiao Pavilion.
She was surprised that she had fallen asleep here last night. She looked around, but could not see Si Que, but she saw her skirt and pants folded and placed at the end of the bed. She stared at it for a moment, distracted, before she took the skirt and pants, put them on, and quietly got out of bed. She carefully pushed open the door to the inner room and saw Si Que sleeping on the wooden couch in the outer room. She stopped at the door of the inner room for a moment, turned back, went in, and brought out the quilt.
She tiptoed to the wooden couch, carefully covered Si Que with the quilt in her hand, and then left quietly. She walked out with her back bent, trying not to touch the beaded curtain and make any noise.
Si Que opened his eyes.
He turned over, pulled up the quilt that still held her scent, and buried his face in it.
Si Que didn't just wake up, but had not slept all night.
He always couldn't help but think of You Yuzhi's tear.
Uncomfortable.
It's so uncomfortable.
Therefore, after having breakfast, Si Que, like several other concubines, went to Tan Xiang Ying Yue to pay her respects to You Yu Ji for the first time.
Seeing Si Que coming, the other three concubines were very surprised.
"Hey, who is this? He actually comes to pay his respects to his sister." Cui Yu instinctively used her ability to be sarcastic.
Si Que ignored her and looked at You Yuzhi who was sitting in the armchair.
She was wearing a light purple dress and sitting in a large armchair, with a snow-white blanket covering her legs. A small hand warmer with a double-sparrow pattern and auspicious clouds was placed on her legs, not in her palm. Instead, she was holding a picture album.
You Yuji was also a little surprised to see Si Que coming. She put down the embroidery pattern in her hand for the time being, looked at Si Que and smiled gently: "Come and sit down."
Si Que walked towards You Yuzhi and sat down in the chair next to her.
Pillow Quilt immediately brought hot tea.
You Yuji lowered her eyes and looked at the album in her hand. She thought Si Que was too lonely in Yunxiao Pavilion, so she said softly, "If you have nothing to do in the morning, come over and sit down. It would be nice for us to chat together."
Si Que followed You Yuji's gaze and looked at the album in her hand. At first glance, it was full of festive patterns, exactly the needlework items used in wedding ceremonies.
Seeing him looking over, You Yuji explained to him in a gentle voice: "Yingying's sister is getting married soon, and they are helping with some needlework. But you probably don't know how to do these."
Si Que said nothing. He drank half a cup of hot tea to drive away the coldness in his body. Si Que couldn't tell whether it was the half cup of tea that drove away the coldness in his body, or whether he felt warmer because he was closer to his sister.
Si Que picked up the picture album and flipped through it to kill time. Even if he didn't say anything to You Yuji, as long as he was closer to her, the boredom in his heart would be relieved.
Lin Yingying looked at Si Que curiously for a second longer, then looked away and continued to help her sister.
After a while, Cui Yu finally said awkwardly what she had been holding back for half the morning: "Sister, the Lower Yuan Festival is coming in a few days, shall we go out for a walk together?"
"Okay." You Yuji responded softly. You Yuji always tried her best to satisfy the concubines' wishes.
Cuiyu smiled happily. Although she had guessed that You Yuji would agree, she was still worried for half the morning. When she heard that she agreed so readily, she was really happy.
Lin Yingying smiled with her eyes bent: "We can all go too, right?"
"Of course." You Yuji nodded with a smile.
Lin Yingying couldn't help but show off her sweet talk and called her "good sister" several times, which made Si Que look up and glance at her.
Si Que withdrew his gaze and continued to flip through the pattern out of boredom. He flipped through it again and saw a pair of open-crotch pants drawn on it. Si Que's face darkened instantly and he said coldly, "Why is there such a thing?"
You Yuzhi looked towards the album following the voice, then glanced at Si Que, pursed her lips and said nothing.
Lin Yingying stretched her neck to look at it, and said with a smile: "Princess, don't you know this? Girls need to prepare this as a dowry when they get married."
Si Que found it unbelievable and put the drawing aside with disgust.
Cuiyu thought that there were things she knew that the princess didn't, and she suddenly felt relieved. She acted like a learned person and even straightened her back a little: "Princess, you don't understand. This is because the girl is sympathetic to the groom, worried that he would not be able to handle the beauty for the first time, and would be embarrassed and unfamiliar with her, which would make him useless."
Si Que glanced at You Yuji and said slowly, "What a speechless thing."
Cuiyu smiled and continued, "This is for young men who are inexperienced, and for those who don't look very fit. If you are fit, just take it and eat as much as you want."
Cuiyu couldn't help laughing after she finished speaking. She was born in a brothel, and she was always outspoken when it came to sex. Lin Yingying was used to hearing this, but Chunxing on the side was not used to it, and she was almost unable to sit still.
Si Que was still looking at You Yuji. He asked, "So, sister didn't stop me."
You Yuji raised her eyes and looked over, obviously not knowing what he meant by this half sentence.
Si Que turned his back to everyone else and looked into her eyes.
The four looked at each other for a long while, and You Yuji seemed to suddenly understand what he meant. You Yuji was startled and almost dropped the sleeve stove in her hand.
Madam Jing came out from the inner room and said, "Madam, the account book has been delivered and is in the inner room. Please go in and take a look later. I'll bring it to you now."
You Yuji wanted to escape from Si Que's gaze and said, "I'll go to the inner room now."
She asked a few concubines to sit down first, then she stood up and hurried into the inner room.
Si Que's gaze followed You Yuzhi's back.
He remembered You Yuji asking him several times whether stopping the medication would be harmful to his body, remembered her hesitant attempts to urge him to hurry up, remembered her gentle questions about his health, and remembered the brocade quilt draped over him this morning.
Turns out, that wasn't what she meant.
It turned out that she was just thinking about him and worrying about his health, but she couldn't say it directly. She didn't mean that she didn't allow him to touch her.
Si Que suddenly remembered the corners of You Yuzhi's eyes where she had cried last night.
For the first time in nineteen years, Si Que felt stupid and bad.
He stood up and walked into the inner room.
The inner room of the flower hall was a small room that was not very spacious, where they would occasionally rest. A narrow bed was placed under the window, and You Yuji was leaning on the bed with her ankles crossed, flipping through the account books that had been sent to her. These were the account books of the You family, and only the more important accounts were sent to her for review.
Seeing Si Que coming in, You Yuji turned her head and asked softly, "What's wrong?"
Si Que walked towards You Yuzhi, stopped beside her, looked at her with his eyes lowered, and did not speak.
You Yuji saw Si Que's skirt folded, she put down the account book in her hand, slightly turned sideways, and raised her hand to tidy it up for him. She looked up at Si Que and asked, "Is there something you want to tell me?"
"elder sister."
"Yeah." You Yuzhi nodded slightly.
Si Que sat down beside the bed and looked into You Yuji's eyes. He smiled slowly and said, "Sister, hug me."
The author has something to say: Little Princess: I don’t know [grievance]
Sister: It’s okay, the readers don’t know about it either.