There is a sacred mountain in the southeast, named Enyang. In the mountain there live auspicious beasts, including a white tiger, a red phoenix, a colorful snake and a magical deer. Legend has it that seeing these auspicious beasts will bring good luck to one.
Enyang Mountain is regarded as a sacred mountain by the locals. There are many living creatures and food sources there. People go up the mountain to pick fruits in spring and go into the forest to hunt in autumn. The mountain has given birth to dozens of villages around it.
Sixty years ago, Emperor Xuan of Dayu went on a tour to the south. When he passed by Enyang, he happened to meet a white tiger across the water. The tiger had a smooth skin and eyes like black beads. It lay lazily under the warm spring sun, like a mythical beast from the upper realm that had descended to the mortal world to bring good fortune.
Emperor Xuan was overjoyed and chased after the tiger on horseback. He chased after the tiger all the way into the forest. The trees were dense and the animals and birds were fighting for beauty. Emperor Xuan lost the tiger and got lost in the dense forest. Just as he was confused, a tiger roared behind him. The giant beast pounced forward, and the horse was startled and ran away. Emperor Xuan fell off the horse. The tiger attacked with its huge mouth wide open, and the emperor's life was hanging by a thread.
At the critical moment, the servants were unable to rescue the emperor. The orphan girl who was hunting in the mountains saw the tiger hurting people. Without thinking too much, she took out a dagger and rushed forward. She blocked the tiger's huge mouth with her small and thin body, and stabbed the dagger into the white tiger's eyes, saving the emperor's life.
After that, the orphan girl was adopted by the emperor and enjoyed the honor of a princess. After Emperor Xuan died, Emperor Mingzong ascended the throne. As a woman, she went in and out of the court to negotiate for him. Her courage, wisdom and strategy were considered to be a generation of female prime ministers. Emperor Mingzong specially named her Princess Duanyi, becoming the most respected elder in the entire Dayu royal family.
Then another forty years passed, with turmoil in the imperial court of Dayu rising and falling. Duan Yi lived alone in the magnificent Princess's Mansion, chanting scriptures and worshiping Buddha every day, letting the bitter scent of sandalwood smoke away all her energy, decisiveness and ruthlessness.
As soon as Su Huaijing finished speaking, the Buddhist hall fell silent.
After a long while, Duan Yi opened his mouth and asked him in a deep voice: "Did I help you?"
Su Huaijing said: "Benefited a lot."
Duan Yi seemed to laugh lightly, but the laugh quickly disappeared under the towering Buddha statue. She stood up gracefully, turned around and stared.
The seventeen-year-old Su Huaijing was delicate and beautiful, with a skin as gentle as spring water on earth and a temperament as elegant as the autumn moon in the sky, noble and beautiful. He stood at the head of the class in a proper manner, and after a salute, he stood up straight, with a character as unbreakable as pine and cypress.
Where he stood was full of stories. Behind his seventeen-year-old body were mountains that blocked out the sky.
Duan Yi stared at him quietly for a long time. Then, outside the window, a very clear oriole chirped in the courtyard. The summer birds had finally entered the capital.
Duan Yi asked casually, "Is my grandson good to you?"
Su Huaijing raised his lips slightly, showing a hint of smile, but a trace of teasing and mockery flashed across his eyes, and he said in a cold voice: "Tangtang is very good, so good that I am willing to wait until he dies before dealing with your son."
Duan Yi remained silent and looked at him.
After a moment, the princess curved her eyes, lightly brushed off the incense ash on her clothes, and said slowly: "The mansion has prepared a five-colored rope. Wear it when you leave, and throw it away after the first rain falls."
Su Huaijing thanked him again: "Thank you, Your Highness the Princess."
Duan Yi frowned when she heard his address, but did not correct it. She walked towards the door, and Su Huaijing followed behind her.
It was a sunny May day outside the courtyard, and the fragrance of vanilla and calamus in the courtyard was getting stronger.
-
Inside the hall, Rong Tang was chatting with Wang Xiuyu when he subconsciously looked back at the corner. It was nothing when he didn't see Su Huaijing. He casually looked around the entire hall and slowly frowned.
Princess Duanyi worshipped Buddha and did not eat after noon; Rongmingyu and Rongmingli were in charge of the court. Every year on the Dragon Boat Festival, Emperor Renshou would invite ministers to race in dragon boats to show his love, and they would only return home after attending a banquet in the palace in the evening.
Therefore, the family dinner at the Princess's Mansion was lunch. Rong Mingyu and Rong Mingli entered the mansion but did not go to the main hall. Instead, they asked the servant to inform everyone and went to the Buddhist temple together to pay their respects to the Princess. Then they both helped their mother over.
Rong Tang stood up with everyone else and waited, standing behind the princess, at the front of the younger generation.
His brows were slightly furrowed because of the sudden disappearance of Su Huaijing.
Reason told him that with the intelligence of a villain, he would not put himself in danger no matter where he went, even if it was his first time there, but Rong Tang couldn't help but worry.
It was not until he heard a small commotion behind him and his hand hanging by his side was naturally held by someone that Rong Tang's heart gradually calmed down.
He didn't even need to look back, he shook her hand back instinctively and asked softly, "Where are you going?"
Su Huaijing replied in a low voice: "My grandmother called me over to talk to her."
So Young Master Rong's heart, which had just been put at ease, was lifted up again. He immediately turned around and looked Su Huaijing up and down. He didn't see anything unusual, but his expression was still not very happy. After thinking for two seconds, he said, "Next time, call me for something like this."
Su Huaijing's heart warmed up, his eyes were full of smiles, and he couldn't help but get closer to Rong Tang again, asking knowingly: "Why?"
Rong Tang glared at him unhappily and said, "Aren't you afraid of being bullied?"
Rong Tang had not had much dealings with the eldest princess in his past lives, but from his perspective, Princess Duanyi was definitely an unfathomable person.
He was unsure of Duan Yi's attitude towards Su Huaijing, nor did he know whether she would notice any clues and start to doubt Su Huaijing's identity.
Every step of the way that Su Huaijing takes is difficult and dangerous. Since Rong Tang wants to protect him, he naturally doesn't want anyone related to him to become an obstacle to him.
Everyone in Ningxuan Palace helped Emperor Renshou in his rebellion. Even though he couldn't speculate on Duan Yi's position, it was not to the extent that he could provide support to Su Huaijing.
Rong Tang made this speculation based on established facts.
Su Huaijing was in a good mood when he saw his worried expression. He actually hated acting and pretending, but every time he pretended to be very good around Rong Tang and happened to be indulged by him, Su Huaijing would occasionally mistakenly think that he was actually such a good kid.
He came close to Tangtang and whispered in a caring manner, "But mother is talking to you. You haven't seen each other for a long time."
When Rong Tang heard what he said, he became even more unhappy and glared at him fiercely: "When can't I talk to my mother? Mother loves you so much, why would she be so anxious for such a short time?"
He instinctively rejected Su Huaijing's explanation, but the latter's eyes trembled when he heard these words, and for the first time when he talked to Rong Tang, he turned his gaze to others.
Wang Xiuyu stood straight with her back straight, her eyes fixed on the door, waiting for her husband and mother-in-law.
She didn't even look back, but Su Huaijing remembered the betrothal gifts covered with red silk when he married Rong Tang. They were accompanied by music and drums all along the street, passed through most of the capital, and stopped at the door of Tang Jing's house. It was completely beyond the standards for a man's wife.
But Wang Xiu Yu didn't even blink and ordered everyone to carry them all into his home.
Su Huaijing retracted his gaze and lowered his eyes. He couldn't tell what was in his heart and said, "Mother loves me so much that I love my dog too."
Rong Tang pinched him angrily: "Love me and my dog, so would I support you in locking me up? Mother just loves you. She just told me that I am not allowed to bully you if you live outside the mansion."
In fact, what Wang Xiuyu originally said was that she heard that Rong Tang became good friends with Master Ke at the flower-folding party, and had contacts with Lu Jiaxi, and even went to the gate of the opera troupe in the middle of the night. She was very worried that Rong Tang would forget his duties after getting married, and that he would want to flirt with other women outside even though he had a wife at home.
Rong Tang felt very innocent, and he thought to himself that he was not such a person.
After much thought, he decided to put the blame on King Ning Xuan.
It was all because Rong Mingyu said sweet words to Wang Xiuyu when they got married. As a result, after they got married, they took concubines one after another and gave birth to illegitimate sons and daughters one after another. This made Wang Xiuyu feel insecure and she was also worried that Su Huaijing would let her down.
Rong Tang felt particularly aggrieved.
After chatting with her for a long time, Su Huaijing came back and said that Wang Xiuyu loved the whole family because of her love for the whole family. He really wanted to bring these two people together for a talk to prove his innocence.
Rong Tang sighed quietly, decided not to dwell on this question, and asked, "What did grandma say to you?"
Su Huaijing suppressed his emotion and said nonsense: "He asked about my family situation, how I was doing in the palace these days, and asked me if I was willing to marry you."
Rong Tang's heart tightened, and he was frightened by him. He asked nervously, "What's your reply?"
"Of course it's voluntary." Su Huaijing said without blinking, "I was lucky enough to be noticed by Tangtang, how could it not be voluntary?"
He spoke very naturally. Rong Tang was stunned for a moment. He met his gaze unexpectedly and then turned away. His eyes were vague for a moment and he said in a muffled voice, "Oh."
Su Huaijing laughed and squeezed his hand happily.
Everyone waited for a while before several elders from the big family finally appeared at the door of the hall. Rong Tang had been waiting for a long time and was getting a little impatient.
But in such occasions throughout the history, in order to express the eldest princess's deep love and family happiness, the younger generations are required to present gifts and say a few auspicious words to wish the eldest princess good fortune and a long life.
Rong Tang had been stupid for many years, so he didn't need to participate. But now that he has improved, for the sake of seniority and the hierarchy of legitimate and illegitimate children, he must be the first to come.
Rong Tang had been living in Yong'an Lane for the past month and had no time to go back to the palace storehouse to choose gifts, so this time he discussed with Su Huaijing and prepared a gift for the princess. It was a jade statue of Guanyin, and he specially asked Master Ke to send it as soon as possible from his family's antique shop in Jiangnan.
It is in line with the eldest princess's desire to worship Buddha, and it is neither too shabby nor too luxurious.
The eldest princess's face was as simple and calm as ever. She said "thank you for your thoughtfulness" and asked the nanny to take the Guanyin statue. Rong Tang was finally able to pull Su Huaijing to sit down.
He had eaten before going out in the morning, and Su Huaijing fed him a lot of lotus seeds in the carriage. In fact, he was not hungry, but perhaps because he had waited too long and talked for a long time, as soon as he sat down, he smelled the bowl of vegetarian lotus root soup on the table and felt a little greedy.
He couldn't help but look in that direction a few more times. Su Huaijing understood and was about to stand up to serve him, but Rong Tang quickly grabbed his arm.
Su Huaijing was slightly puzzled and gave him a confused look.
Rong Tang shook his head and whispered while Rong Zheng was delivering the gift: "We have to wait until they are all done."
Su Huaijing immediately frowned unhappily and cast his gaze on Rong Zheng.
Rong Zheng was still reading the manuscripts he had prepared in order to please his grandmother, but when he caught a glimpse of his eldest sister-in-law's eyes, he was stunned for a second, and a shell stuck in his mouth. He simply cut off the rest of the sentence and only said, "I wish grandma good health and all the best," and then left.
Even Rong Mingyu couldn't help but look at him in surprise when he heard that he spoke so little this time. However, Su Huaijing's expression became much gentler. He sat quietly in his seat, reached under the table and squeezed Rong Tang's hand, which not only killed time but also relieved some of his inner irritability.
Rong Tang was waiting according to the time, calculating how many cups of tea he still had to wait for the bowl of lotus root soup. However, before he could get the soup, he heard Rong Yuan say, "My grandson knows that my grandmother is sincere in worshipping Buddha, and I am afraid that the gift I give to the craftsmen may not be sincere enough. Therefore, I copied a copy of the Sutra of the Original Vow of the Tibetan Bodhisattva early on and sent it to the Tuolan Temple for worship for two months. I went out of the city the day before yesterday to get it back, and I specially gave it to my grandmother. I hope my grandmother will not despise my grandson's simplicity. I wish that my grandmother will have good deeds and turn all difficulties into good ones."
Rong Tang: “…”
He subconsciously glanced at the servants serving in the hall, but couldn't see any clues, so he glanced at Rong Yuan again.
Su Huaijing's face turned cold when he heard him say 'not sincere enough'. Seeing Rong Tang's expression, he felt that there was something else unknown. He paused for a moment, turned Rong Tang's hand over, and asked him, "What's wrong?"
Rong Tang couldn't explain what was going on, he just thought it was a coincidence.
He frowned slightly, turned his head and said, "I also gave my grandmother a hand-copied scripture."
But his book was truly simple. It was originally intended for atonement of his sins, and it had never been sent to a temple for consecration. Compared to the one that Rong Yuan specially prepared, it seemed that the intention behind it was far less there.
Rong Tang felt that Rong Yuan was pulling him down, but these were all verbal judgments. Without any evidence, he couldn't say for sure whether Rong Yuan really thought so.
But he was not so stupid. Even Sheng Chengxing knew that Rong Tang was not to be provoked, and he specially sent gifts to Ning Xuan Palace after the flower-picking party. As Sheng Chengxing's little follower, there was no reason for Rong Yuan to take the initiative to provoke Rong Tang.
Rong Tang didn't quite understand.
Su Huaijing was more concerned about another thing. He thought carefully for a moment and asked, "Why did Tangtang send the Buddhist scriptures to Her Royal Highness the Princess?"
Rong Tang was lost in thought, and subconsciously said, "To get your grandmother's consent to let you in."
Su Huaijing: “?”
He was stunned for two seconds, not quite understanding, and asked, "What?"
Rong Tang realized that he had let something slip, but he was not the kind of philanthropist who did good things without leaving a name behind, so he naturally explained to Su Huaijing: "After all, I am the prince of Ning Xuan. If I were not in poor health, I would definitely inherit the palace in the future. From me on, if there are no criminals or traitors in the Rong family, the throne will be inherited and will definitely be passed on to my children. I brought a male wife back to the mansion to stop this idea. I was afraid that my grandmother would not agree, so I gave her a Buddhist scripture to please her."
What Rong Tang said was completely true, without any embellishment or concealment. Su Huaijing was stunned for a long time after listening to it, and finally realized what Rong Tang had given up in order to marry him.
That night in the clinic, Rong Tang talked casually, and Su Huaijing listened to it, but he didn't take it to heart, nor did he really believe it. Even though he was drugged, when he heard Rong Tang's identity and proposal, he still thought about how this suggestion would benefit him.
He really did completely ignore Rong Tang at that time.
But a chess piece became his eyeball. He was afraid of dropping it if he held it in his hands, and afraid of breaking it if he held it in his mouth. When Su Huaijing heard these words again, he suddenly realized that Rong Tang was a million times better than he could have imagined.
He is the little Bodhisattva in heaven, the golden statue in the temple, who has come specifically to save me.
Su Huaijing felt a rare sense of bitterness in his heart and began to regret what he had just said based on his best judgment in order to dispel Duan Yi's vigilance.
He didn't want Rong Tang to die at all, but what if there really was a god or Buddha passing by, listening to his words and taking it out on Rong Tang
Su Huaijing regretted it so much that he pursed his lips tightly and held Rong Tang's hand even tighter, as if he was afraid that he would run away.
It was unknown whether the eldest princess saw something or felt that these rules were too complicated and annoying. After accepting Rong Yuan's gift, she asked them to sit down together and no longer waited for the auspicious words that they could hear every year.
Su Huaijing stood up without thinking and scooped a bowl of soup for Rong Tang.
Rong Tang raised his hand in the air to refuse, but then put it down awkwardly. He glanced at Wang Xiu Yu with a vague look before looking at King Ning Xuan.
Rong Mingyu frowned and looked at Su Huaijing unhappily, with a look full of reproach, as if blaming him for not knowing the limits.
Rong Tang coughed lightly and was about to take the blame for Su Huaijing, but he heard the princess say, "It's hard for you to eat vegetarian food with me during the festival. Are you used to it? If you don't like it, tell the kitchen to prepare another meat feast."
When these words were spoken, not only Rong Tang, but everyone in the mansion was stunned.
Princess Duanyi was a vegetarian all year round. In her mansion, no one would step on an ant to death even if they saw it in the garden, let alone have meat on the table.
Because of this, Duanyi did not participate in the usual banquets, for fear of spoiling the fun of the younger generations. Only on the Dragon Boat Festival and the Double Ninth Festival would everyone from Prince Ningxuan's Mansion gather at the Princess' Mansion.
As for reunion days such as the Mid-Autumn Festival and the Spring Festival, the eldest princess would be invited to the palace early by Emperor Renshou.
After the rebellion, she was the elder with the highest status in the entire royal family. Her habit was always to let others follow her. How could she change it just for the sake of a junior's discomfort
No one at the table dared to respond for a moment, and even Rong Mingyu didn't know what his mother meant for a moment.
Only Su Huaijing served the soup and frowned when he saw Rongtang still didn't eat. Seeing that no one else said anything, he said, "Thank you for your mercy, Grandma. You are kind-hearted and will be rewarded. Huaijing can't give up his desire for food and drink. I feel guilty for not being able to worship Buddha as sincerely as you do. How dare I trouble you to break the precepts for a young man and waste your merits? I hope you won't say that again."
He replied neither servilely nor arrogantly, but Duan Yi was very satisfied. His smile became more sincere. He shed his usual dignified ancient Buddha look and said with a smile, "I like to hear you talk. When I leave after the banquet, I'll go to the storeroom and pick out a few things I like to take away."
Su Huaijing hurriedly stood up and thanked her: "Huaijing thanks grandma!"
Rong Tang was watching in astonishment. He couldn't help but look around and was not surprised to see that everyone present had an interesting expression on their face.
Rong Mingyu frowned as if thinking about something, Wang Xiuyu had a look of surprise and delight in her eyes, Rong Yuan didn't show it but his fingers were tightly gripping the chopsticks as if he wanted to break them. Jealousy was rising from his head and Rong Tang's eyes were irritated when he looked at him for one more second.
Then he turned to Rong Zheng.
Then he saw that the two idiots' eyes were full of admiration.
“…” I want you to admire my baby, but my approach seems a little wrong!
He was speechless for a while, the system was also speechless, and it went into hibernation cleanly and neatly.
After Su Huaijing sat down again, Rong Tang waited for Su Huaijing to sit down, and the banquet began. Rong Tang couldn't help but be curious, so he leaned over and asked, "You must have said more than just those few words to your grandmother. What else was there? Why is she so nice to you?"
"Okay?" Su Huaijing sniffed the sandalwood scent on Rong Tang's neck and asked softly.
Rong Tang nodded immediately, telling him with his own actions that Duan Yi was extremely good to him. Not only did she block Rong Mingyu's criticism for him, she even planned to break her rules for him.
You have to know that Rong Tang occasionally came to the Princess's Mansion in his previous two lives. If the time was over, he could only wait with an empty stomach. If it was not over, he could only have a simple vegetarian meal. He never thought that there would be meat dishes on the table of the Princess's Mansion.
He was very surprised and even a little jealous.
Although he is not the original body, the eldest princess is the original body's biological grandmother after all. Su Huaijing is connected with the eldest princess because of him. Why is he better to Su Huaijing than to him
If he had not read the original novel, he would have almost suspected that Su Huaijing had the aura of the male protagonist.
Rong Tang's eyes sparkled. Su Huaijing couldn't help but smile as he looked at him. He pushed the bowl of soup closer to him and said naturally, "My grandmother may have felt that I was too miserable because my parents died when I was young and I had to live under someone else's roof. So she unconsciously showed kindness to me."
Rong Tang was stunned when he heard this, and felt that his jealousy just now was unreasonable.
He avoided his gaze for a moment, glanced at Su Huaijing's empty bowl, then stood up and scooped a bowl of lotus root soup for him and placed it in front of him.
Rong Mingyu's face turned a little pale. He seemed to be completely unable to understand why his eldest son and daughter-in-law were so unruly when the eldest princess was attending the banquet. He looked to the side anxiously, and saw that when the eldest princess saw Rong Tang serving soup to Su Huaijing, and the latter smiled and lowered his head to drink slowly, her eyes were filled with tenderness.
Rong Mingyu was stunned for a long while, and his eyes could not stop looking at the two of them frequently.
Rong Tang pretended not to see it. Anyway, his attitude towards Rong Mingyu was exactly the same as Rong Mingyu's attitude towards him.
With him, it's like having multiple fathers/sons; without him, it's no different.
What's more, he just wanted to scold Su Huaijing, and Rong Tang was getting more and more annoyed with him.
He and Su Huaijing finished their meal under the gazes of everyone at the table. Afterwards, Su Huaijing went to the princess's storehouse to pick something up. Rong Tang walked slowly along the road to the gate of the mansion and stood at the door, staring in a daze at the still dilapidated and old house opposite the princess's mansion.
Rong Tang was slightly stunned, and before he could react, Wang Xiuyu took his hand and tied a five-colored rope for him while saying, "This is for praying for peace. When it rains later, you have to take it off and throw it away. Tie another one for Huai Jing. I have to go back home. I have to go to the palace with your father tonight. I don't have time to wait for him."
The maid Huaqin said at the right time: "Master, this is made by the princess herself, only you and my husband have it."
"You talk too much." Wang Xiuyu scolded her, then turned to Rong Tang and warned, "Come back home after you have recovered from your illness outside. Mother knows that you dislike the noise at home, so she won't rush you. But don't make yourself suffer outside, and don't bully Huai Jing. If there is anything missing, ask Shuangfu and Shuangshou to come back and get it, understand?"
Rong Tang blinked, his nose inexplicably sour. He nodded, his fingers subconsciously touched the five-colored rope on his wrist, and said in a muffled voice: "I can't bully him, only he bullies me."
Wang Xiuyu laughed, "Are you still being reasonable? Mother is not blind. Huai Jing has taken good care of you since he came to the mansion. If it weren't for this accident, think about how long it would have been since you were sick."
Rong Tang was speechless, but Wang Xiuyu patted his hands and said seriously and quietly: "But if he really bullies you, you must not bear it. Even if your father doesn't care, mother has plenty of ways to make him complain to his whole family."
There was a hint of ruthlessness in her voice, and Rong Tang was stunned for a long time, almost thinking that this was not the princess who had always been super gentle to her son.
He didn't know whether to laugh or cry, fearing that Wang Xiuyu had really misunderstood Su Huaijing and would cause trouble for him, so he quickly explained: "I was joking, he treats me very well."
Wang Xiuyu immediately smiled at him, and the fierceness in her eyes disappeared in an instant: "I knew you were talking nonsense, and I was also lying to you. I just couldn't bear to let him suffer."
Rong Tang: “…?”
The driver had the horses ready, and Rong Mingyu had already boarded the carriage. Wang Xiuyu didn't have time to say anything else, so she let go of his hand and said, "Go home early."
Rong Tang nodded, looked at her back, and couldn't help but chase after her and told her, "Mother, you must take good care of yourself. If there are too many things to do in the mansion, just give some to Second Aunt."
Wang Xiuyu glanced at the position of Rong Mingli and his wife and said perfunctorily, "Mother knows."
Rong Tang frowned and wanted to say a few more words, but the carriage was knocked several times from inside to outside. The servant immediately understood and trotted over to urge him.
Rong Tang frowned and unhappily sent Wang Xiuyu to the carriage, once again feeling that King Ning Xuan was really annoying.
He stood in front of the Princess's Mansion and waited for a while. After seeing Rong Zheng off, Su Huaijing finally appeared behind the door. When he saw him, he quickly trotted over and stretched out his hand to block the sun from above his head: "Why don't you wait in the car?"
Rong Tang looked up and saw that it was a precious calligraphy and painting collected by the Princess's Mansion: "..." OK, ah.
He said, "I'm afraid you won't be happy if you don't see someone waiting."
Su Huaijing subconsciously wanted to refute, but then he found that what Rong Tang said seemed to be correct.
He thought about it, and while leading Rong Tang to the carriage, he corrected his wording: "Tang Tang is wrong."
Rong Tang: “?”
"I would probably be happier if I saw you waiting for me," said Su Huaijing.
It is not a causal relationship, but a progressive one. When he came out of the Princess's Mansion, he stepped out of the vortex of calculations and conspiracies. When he saw his little Bodhisattva standing in the sunlight waiting for him boredly, the joy in his heart would run out uncontrollably, and he could not help but want to run towards him.
Rong Tang paused and stopped arguing with him.
Whether you are unhappy or happier, your mood will never be too bad.
The two of them got on the carriage. They were originally worried that they would be asked to go back to the palace today, but Wang Xiuyu's words meant that they would not be forced to go back. Rong Tang naturally wanted to go back to Yong'an Lane to laze around for a few more days.
As soon as he got in the car, Su Huaijing said, "Tangtang, stretch out your hand."
Rong Tang had just finished his lunch and it was time for a nap. He was feeling sleepy. Upon hearing this, he extended his left hand without thinking.
Su Huaijing pushed up his sleeves, then took out a piece of five-colored rope and lowered his head to tie it around his wrist.
Rong Tang was stunned and subconsciously pulled his hand back. Su Huaijing was caught off guard and really pulled his hand back. He looked up at him in surprise.
Rong Tang asked in surprise: "Where are you from?"
Su Huaijing said, "The nanny who took me to the storeroom just now gave it to me. She said she made an extra piece for her own child and gave it to me."
Rong Tang opened his mouth: "Ah—"
Then he took out the one given by the princess from his sleeve, and lifted up his right sleeve, saying, "Mother also braided one for you, and asked me to put it on you."
Su Huaijing was stunned for a moment.
Rong Tang didn't wait for him to react, stretched out his hand and pulled him over, tied the rope for him without saying anything, and said earnestly: "This is given by the elders to the younger generation to ensure safety and ward off evil spirits. Since it is given to you, you can wear it yourself, why give it to me."
The warm touch of his fingertips and the smooth and soft touch of the braided rope intertwined. Su Huaijing lowered his head and looked at his wrist in a daze. It took him a long time to react: "Is this given to me by my mother?"
"Yes!" Rong Tang nodded heavily and repeated, "Sister Huaqin said that it was woven by mother herself. There is one for each of us, specially for us to keep safe. No one else gets it."
He himself did not realize that there was a hint of boasting and unconscious coaxing in his words. Su Huaijing did not know what to say for a long time. He had never thought that Wang Xiuyu would braid one for herself after she braided a five-colored rope for Rong Tang.
It was just the first time in many years that he received the five-colored rope from his elders on Dragon Boat Festival, and he instinctively wanted to give it to Rong Tang, but he ended up receiving such a surprise.
Su Huaijing put his hand down and touched the badge on his waist unconsciously. He couldn't tell what emotion he was trying to relieve.
Then he looked up, pulled Rong Tang's hand back, and stubbornly tied the rope that the eldest princess gave him to Rong Tang's wrist: "Then I already have the one given by my mother, this one is for Tang Tang, I hope you are safe and healthy."
Before Rong Tang could refuse, two colorful ropes were tied around his wrists, one on the left and one on the right.
“…” That’s fine, he thought.
Rong Tang casually pulled out a bag of candied fruit from the secret compartment, stuffed a fruit into his mouth, leaned against the carriage and looked out the window at the gradually noisy long street. He passed by a team of patrolling Jinwu Guards, frowned, and suddenly seemed to remember something, and asked casually: "Huai Jing, do you know where there is a white tiger in Dayu?"
Su Huaijing's eyes narrowed, and he twirled his fingers lightly, saying, "I don't know, what's wrong?"
"Nothing." Rong Tang shook his head, as if he had just asked this question out of the blue. "I just happened to remember that my grandmother had hunted a white tiger when she was a child, and some time ago, there was a rumor in the capital that a knight had offered tigers to Mount Meng from Yuan. I was just curious about where there were so many white tigers."
After he finished speaking, he yawned, lazily lowered the car curtain and leaned back, and said naturally: "Huai Jing, I'm sleepy, I'll take a nap first, call me when we get there."
Su Huaijing naturally agreed, but stared at him for a long time after he closed his eyes.
He's not sure.
He didn't know whether Rong Tang was asking casually or testing him.
Many times, Rong Tang gave him a feeling that he had insight into the world, but no matter which possibility he speculated from, there were things that Rong Tang should not know.
Even the eldest princess only knew that he needed a good omen, so she gave him a white tiger.
As for what he was going to do and how he was going to do it, no one knew the exact plan except Su Huaijing himself.
But Rongtang made him think that he was seen through.
Su Huaijing couldn't guess right, and his hand unconsciously touched the waist badge, but he paused for a moment, staring at the brand new five-colored rope for a long time.
Whatever.
If Rong Tang really suspected him and really wanted to question him, he might as well tell him everything, as long as it wouldn't scare him away.
Su Huaijing silently moved his hand and held Rong Tang's palm. The two five-colored ropes stacked together, as if they were both children loved by their elders in this world.
-
On the first rainy day after the Dragon Boat Festival, Rong Tang was reading in the study, lying on the beauty couch, feeling sleepy, and heard the sound of rain outside. He was stunned for a second, put on his shoes without thinking, and ran out, standing under the eaves to watch the rain.
Su Huaijing came from the corner of the corridor holding a tray, looked at him with a smile and looked excited, and handed him the medicine.
Rong Tang smelled it and found that it didn't taste bitter or strange. Although it was still not tasty, it was much better than what he had drunk in Songyuan.
Rong Tang drank the medicine, put the bowl back, sat on the small stool in front of the corridor, and pulled Su Huaijing to sit next to him: "Listen to the rain."
The summer in Beijing was sultry, and even he had to change into a single layer of clothing. A rain brought much cooler air, and Rong Tang inexplicably wanted Su Huaijing to rest for a while.
For as many days as they rested here, Su Huaijing was busy behind the scenes.
The situation in the capital was changing every day. Rong Tang would occasionally hear Shuangfu gossiping about the Third Prince who had come to court to attend government affairs before the Dragon Boat Festival, and the fierce struggle between the two factions.
In the original novel, now is the time for the hero to bide his time. The more fiercely Sheng Chengming and Sheng Chengxing fought in the previous dynasty, the more advantages he would pick up later. It was not until Wu Kangbo of the second prince's party was accused of rebellion and Sheng Chengming was exiled that Sheng Chengli officially stepped onto the stage to compete for the throne.
But now the hero of Tiandao has lost one leg, Sheng Chengming consciously distances himself from the Wukangbo Mansion, Rong Tang cannot read the original novel, his memories have become distant and unfamiliar, and he really has nothing to do.
He pulled Su Huaijing to sit under the eaves, listening to the sound of rain falling on the eaves. The ants that had just moved out of the yard fled in panic, and the gardenias were knocked into the soil.
They didn't speak for a long time. Rong Tang enjoyed the breeze and even crossed his legs.
Su Huaijing took his hand, untied the two five-colored ropes, and then very obediently put her wrist in front of him.
Rong Tang immediately understood and lowered his head to help him untie it.
Su Huaijing put away the three ropes. Rong Tang watched him for a long time but didn't see him find a place to throw them. After dinner and before going to bed, he was still curious and asked, "Where are you going to throw them?"
Su Huaijing shook his head and said with a smile: "It's a secret."
Rong Tang: “?”
Rong Tang has been acting more and more childish lately. Hearing what he said, he felt that he was provoked by him. He blinked in disbelief, snorted, turned around and went back to the house, not caring where he wanted to throw it.
Su Huaijing stood there looking at his back and laughed silently for a long time. Then he went back to the house and took out a purse, in which was the amulet that Rong Tang had brought back for him from Tuolan Temple.
Su Huaijing then put the three faded five-colored ropes in together.
The old saying goes that you should throw it away, but he couldn't bear to do it.
His Royal Highness the Seventh Prince, the most honorable prince in the Dayu Palace, was reluctant to part with the three light braided ropes. If he told others about it, he might be laughed at, but he just couldn't bear to do so.
Just like being reluctant to carry amulets with you, this is a gift he received, a gift prepared purely for him, something that I hope will keep him healthy and safe.
Su Huaijing couldn't help but feel scared these days. If Rong Tang hadn't shown up at Fengyue Tower that day and taken him away, where would he be now and what kind of life would he be living
But every time he thought of this, the young master would miraculously appear in front of him. Sometimes he would act coquettishly and say that he wanted to eat spicy food, and sometimes he would say that the house was too boring and he wanted to go out shopping.
Su Huaijing spent so much time thinking of ways to make him happy that he had no time to think about things that had not yet happened.
If we really have to make a comparison, one side is probably hell and the other side is the human world.
He began to be greedy.
-
The next day, Rong Tang woke up and asked casually, "Huai Jing, do you want to go out to escape the summer heat?"
Su Huaijing was slightly stunned and didn't understand what he meant.
Rong Tang pouted and complained, "It's getting hotter in the capital. I've been unable to sleep these past few nights. I'm afraid staying here any longer will be bad for my condition."
He was talking nonsense, but Su Huaijing immediately became nervous, grabbed Rong Tang's wrist and said nothing.
Rong Tang was still muttering to himself, listing various examples of why the temperature in the capital was too hot and not suitable for recuperation, and he did not notice that Su Huaijing quickly relaxed and had a strange expression after pressing his wrist.
lie.
Tangtang is lying.
The pulse is stable, still weak, but much better than before.
Sleep at least five hours a day.
fraud.
Little lazy bum.
Su Huaijing took his hand back and did not expose him, but asked: "Where do you want to go?"
Rong Tang's eyes lit up, he looked at the sky in the distance, and said without thinking: "Jiangnan!"
He said, "Didn't Lord Mu accompany Ke Hongxue back to Jiangnan to worship their ancestors some time ago? He brought back a lot of gifts. Ke Hongxue said it was fun there. I've never been there since I was a child. Huaijing, can you accompany me?"
Rong Tang was particularly frank in his request and acted coquettishly with Su Huaijing, but the latter narrowed his eyes and blurted out the destination for him.
The secret letter he sent to Sheng Chengming the day before yesterday had just asked him to take some time to go to Jiangnan and bring along a few officials who were proficient in water conservancy. Today, Rong Tang told him that he was going to Jiangnan.
Strictly speaking, this is actually convenient for him.
But Su Huaijing hesitated for a moment and shook his head: "It's too far, you should get well first."
"I've recovered!" Rong Tang immediately retorted, "I can eat two bowls of rice in one meal now!"
He seemed to want to express his strength, but Su Huaijing looked at him solemnly and exposed him mercilessly: "Before we got married, you could eat two bowls of rice in one meal, and sometimes you could eat three bowls when you were too hungry."
As a doctor, Su Huaijing sometimes couldn't understand how Rong Tang could eat so much food when he was so sick and so thin.
Rong Tang blushed suspiciously, stiffening his neck: "I'm really fine, let's go slowly, if I stay in the capital any longer I'll die of chest tightness, shortness of breath and depression—"
Someone covered his mouth and Su Huaijing glared at him fiercely without saying a word, his expression showing extreme anger.
Rong Tang blinked, pulled his hand away, and said coquettishly: "Go ahead, go ahead, I want to go out and play."
Su Huaijing was silent for a moment and asked, "Just for fun?"
Rong Tang nodded immediately: "Just playing!"
The young master's eyes were sparkling and full of expectation, and he stared at Su Huaijing eagerly.
After a long stalemate, Su Huaijing finally gave in and stood up.
Rong Tang grabbed him and asked nervously, "Where are you going?"
Su Huaijing: "Let Shuangfu pack his luggage and choose a date to travel."
Rong Tang blinked and immediately smiled: "Great!"
Su Huaijing couldn't help it, so he rubbed his hair before leaving.
He stepped out of the study, and the person on the couch who was still smiling suddenly looked gloomy.
There was a mechanical voice in my mind, I couldn't tell whether it was a sarcastic remark or a bitter admonition: [Don't you want to be a parasite? ]
Rong Tang stepped back, his face covered with words: "You can also be a parasite if you go to Jiangnan."
System: […] You are just being stubborn.
[In the summer of the ninth year of Qingzheng, there were torrential rains in Dayu for months, and the river estuary burst its banks. The governor of Jiangnan was a figurehead, and many villages were flooded. People were displaced, but the incident was concealed and not reported. Millions of people were affected, and tens of millions of taels of silver were lost. For a time, the rich land was filled with grief and bones.]
Many things have gone off the track they should have.
Sheng Chengli was released from the cold palace ahead of schedule, Yuerong died when she was not supposed to, and Zhang Baoshan was not investigated for embezzling military pay...
Rong Tang didn't know where this novel with Sheng Chengli as the protagonist would go in this life, but natural disasters would not change and man-made disasters would always be there.
The people of the world are innocent.
(End of this chapter)