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**Note 1: Picking up one hair from among thousands of hairs. —— "New Yuefu Purple Hairbrush Ridicules Dereliction of Duty" by Bai Juyi
Note 2: Fragrance is the result of incense, beauty is unworthy, heaven does not take away people's wishes, so let me see you. - Midnight Songs 42, No. 2**
Zhan Rong had just woken up from a sweet dream when he ran into a nightmare. He hugged the quilt and was dazed**: "Master? ...Flowers? What flowers?"**
Seeing his bewildered expression, Xiao Nong's face became even uglier: "Where are my pomegranate flowers?"
Zhan Rong remembered immediately.
A few days ago, at the flower-drinking banquet in Jinghua Garden, the prince acted like a hooligan to Young Master Zhong of the Huai'an Marquis' Mansion. He picked the flower off his hat and threw it back to him.
Zhan Rong was ordered to leave the capital for a few days. It was only when he came back this morning that he learned that the prince seemed to have found out that the young Master Zhong was most likely the young Master Yuan Yuan who had gone to the other courtyard before.
If that's the case, Young Master Yuan Yuan's flowers... they're not flowers at all! They're death warrants, whoever takes them will die!
Zhan Rong realized the seriousness of the matter, and with a shudder, he pointed to the door and said, "I stuck the bunch of pomegranate flowers into the soil... I don't know if it's still alive."
The latter sentence was played very quietly.
Xiao Nong had no time to find trouble with Zhan Rong, so he immediately left the room. He glanced around the yard and saw the pomegranate flowers that Zhan Rong had casually inserted under the tree.
Several days passed, and the bunch of pomegranate flowers looked like they had just been cut from the branches. Their colors were still bright and gorgeous, rustling in the wind, exactly the same as in the painting of flowers.
Xiao Nong bent down, picked up the pomegranate flower carefully, and a smile appeared on the corner of his mouth.
Pomegranate flowers have symbolized happy love and good luck since ancient times.
Without knowing it, he accidentally picked up the pomegranate flower from Yuan Yuan's hat. Now, after going around in circles, the flower has fallen back into his hands. Isn't this God's will, representing the fate between him and Yuan Yuan?
The pomegranate flowers have been cut for such a long time, but they are still blooming so vigorously and have not withered. Doesn't this represent that his bond with Yuan Yuan is unbreakable and can never be extinguished?
This is much better than the terrible marriage that old Prince Ding forced on him.
Taxue was not interested in flowers, but only in Zhong Yansheng. He followed Xiao Nong over, but when he saw that he was not there to catch the fragrant young master, he lay behind him and wagged his tail in boredom.
Zhan Rong put on his outer robe and followed out. When he saw the beautiful big cat under the shade of the tree, he was delighted. He approached carefully and reached out to touch the soft fur of the cat.
Before his hand touched it, Taxue turned his head and glared at him fiercely, his gray-blue eyes were cold.
Still won't let me touch it.
Zhan Rong retracted his hand dejectedly, squatted on the edge of the snow, and secretly glanced at Xiao Nong. He found that Xiao Nong was looking at the bunch of pomegranate flowers, unable to suppress a smile on his face. He was suddenly even more frightened than when he was pushed open the door to ask for flowers.
...Is the master's face cramping?
Zhong Yansheng almost escaped from Prince Ding's Mansion.
He was extremely nervous, not knowing whether it was because of fear or something else, but he walked very quickly and was even out of breath when he stepped out of the palace gate.
After supporting himself on his knees for a while, Zhong Yansheng pulled down the veil that was about to fall off, looked around but didn't see Xiao Wenlan, so he had to accept his fate and walked back.
The next time he sees that bastard Xiao Wenlan, he will definitely beat him up.
The seal dangling on Xiao Nong's waist flashed before his eyes again, and Zhong Yansheng was extremely conflicted.
That seal was supposed to be given to Marquis Huai'an, and the seal without any words on it was supposed to be given to His Royal Highness Prince Ding... No, it was not originally intended for Xiao Nong, but for Zhong Sidu.
But he recognized the wrong person and naturally sent the wrong person.
And that painting was not intended to be given to His Royal Highness Prince Ding.
Zhong Yansheng bit his lip, thinking about Xiao Nong's expression of love for seals and paintings in the study. His scalp tingles and he dare not think too much about it.
Being slept with by him was already very humiliating, and the gift he gave me was still the wrong one.
If this were to be uncovered, His Royal Highness Prince Ding would probably eat him alive.
The wrong gift...
Zhong Yansheng was panic-stricken for a while, then he squeezed out some rationality and thought seriously, should he give Zhong Sidu a gift?
Although he was unhappy about being woken up early to study every day these days, Zhong Sidu stopped saying harsh words and gave him a lot of lessons.
Apart from his somewhat odd attitude, he would occasionally find Zhong Sidu staring at him in a daze.
Just think of it as a thank you to Zhong Sidu for giving lectures.
Zhong Yansheng thought about it and changed direction, heading towards the East Market where he had been before.
It was still early and the East Market was bustling. On the long street that Zhong Yansheng had been to before, all kinds of signs were floating in the air, and the jade shop could be seen from afar.
But after hesitating for a while, Zhong Yansheng did not step in.
He was a little reluctant to give Zhong Sidu the same Tian Huang stone seal, so he decided to give him something else.
After wandering around for a while, Zhong Yansheng entered a shop selling pens, ink, paper and ink stone.
Although he was wearing a veil and his appearance could not be seen clearly, the material of his clothes was obviously not ordinary. There were many nobles in the capital who did not want to show their faces when they went out, so many of them wore masks and veils. The waiter was not surprised and came up to him and said with a smile: "Sir, what do you want to see?"
Zhong Yansheng had a clear purpose. His eyes fell on the shelf where the brushes were placed. He walked over and took a closer look. He picked up one of them, looked at the brush tip carefully, and stroked the pen shaft for a while. His eyes lit up, and he liked it very much.
The waiter immediately introduced it with great tact: "Sir, you have good taste! This is a brush that was just sent from Huzhou. It is made of the finest mink hair, which is picked out from millions of hairs. It is very suitable for you at first glance!"
Zhong Yansheng nodded with satisfaction: "Pack this one."
The guy grinned and said, "Okay!"
Zhong Yansheng watched the waiter go to get the sandalwood box to pack his pens, and reached out to touch his purse... but he didn't bring his purse.
Zhong Yansheng was stunned.
Because he was so anxious to escape from the sea of suffering of "The Doctrine of the Mean", he put on a veil, applied two layers of perfume and powder, and ran to see Xiao Wenlan without bringing his purse.
Seeing that the waiter had already packed the things, and it was time to pay, Zhong Yansheng felt a slight choking sensation and hesitated for a moment, wondering whether he should tell the name of the Marquis' Mansion and have the waiter go to the Mansion to collect the money, and he would then pay the difference back from his own small treasury.
He didn't want to use the money from the Marquis' Mansion to give the gift to Zhong Sidu.
Before he could even utter the words, his hand that was groping around his waist was suddenly pressed by someone.
Zhong Yansheng was immediately frightened and kicked back subconsciously. He heard a hissing sound from behind: "Xiao Sheng, my knees are about to be broken by your kick."
Hearing the familiar voice and name, Zhong Yansheng turned around and saw that it was Pei Hong.
Pei Hong's tone was resentful, but his eyes were smiling. His gaze fell on his slender waist, which he had been groping for a long time. "Don't you have a wallet? Do you want me to lend you one?"
Your Highness Prince Jing, you have arrived just in time!
Zhong Yansheng nodded happily: "Please, Your Highness, I will return it to you later."
Pei Hong waved his hand casually, and the people following him came forward and gave him silver.
The waiter hurriedly and respectfully handed over the sandalwood box. Zhong Yansheng took it, held it in his arms, and whispered his thanks: "Thank you, Your Highness."
"Why are you being so polite to me?"
Pei Hong habitually raised his hand and wanted to hug Zhong Yansheng and walk out, but Zhong Yansheng subconsciously avoided it. His hand paused, and he sighed, saying faintly: "Alas, you are still alienated from me."
Zhong Yansheng didn't know why he suddenly felt so reluctant to be approached by others, so he made an awkward excuse: "I don't feel well."
Pei Hong wasn't furious. He walked out of the shop with him and glanced at the things in his arms, which he held like a treasure: "Why did you suddenly think of buying a pen by yourself? You don't have any in your room? The Marquis of Huai'an wouldn't treat you so harshly, would he?"
Seeing that he had misunderstood, Zhong Yansheng hurriedly explained: "No, this is a gift for someone else."
Pei Hong's eyes, which were always full of affection and smile, narrowed: "It can't be a gift for me. Don't tell me it's a gift for 'that' Young Master Zhong."
Zhong Yansheng remained silent.
"You." Pei Hong wanted to pat his head, but after observing his veil, he couldn't find a place to start, so he could only sigh again, "I was already very annoyed, and seeing you act like you can be bullied by anyone, makes me even angrier."
Zhong Yansheng didn't think anyone could bully him. But seeing his depressed look, he chose not to refute: "Your Highness Prince Jing, what's wrong with you?"
Pei Hong glanced at him and asked, "Will you drink with me?"
Zhong Yansheng shook his head: "I don't drink, but I can watch you drink."
Pei Hong couldn't help but laugh: "Okay, you can just watch from the side."
Pei Hong seemed to have a lot on his mind and couldn't help but talk it out. Zhong Yansheng kicked him and borrowed money from him. He was in no hurry to go back home - he had to read the "Doctrine of the Mean" which gave him a headache - so he held the box and went to the restaurant with him.
His Royal Highness Prince Jing is a frequent visitor to major restaurants in the capital, and there are private rooms reserved for him everywhere.
After entering the private room, Pei Hong finally couldn't help but pull the veil on Zhong Yansheng's head**: "I say, you are so beautiful, but you don't want to be seen? How can this be absurd."**
There was no one around, and Zhong Yansheng didn't want to wear the veil either, so he lowered his head and took it off himself. The hazy white veil fell off, revealing his handsome face under the veil.
Pei Hong's eyes swept over his face and praised: "Not bad, a beauty to behold. I will just drink the wine and not eat the food."
Zhong Yansheng has become accustomed to the King's unserious tone of speech.
He was always at a loss and blushed when facing Xiao Nong's approach and teasing, but he didn't feel anything when facing Pei Hong. He put down his veil and raised his eyes. His eyes were moist, bright, clean, and his tone was serious: "Your Highness Prince Jing, if you don't tell me what happened, I will go downstairs to listen to the book."
When he went upstairs just now, the storytelling downstairs was very lively. Zhong Yansheng liked listening to people telling stories and could listen for an entire afternoon with a pot of tea in hand.
Pei Hong immediately put away his frivolous tone, sat opposite Zhong Yansheng, poured himself a glass of wine and drank it all, then said sadly: "Do you know why His Majesty released me from confinement this time?"
Zhong Yansheng held his cheeks with his hands and looked at him. He had smooth black hair and dark eyes. He looked beautiful and quiet.
"He wants to arrange a marriage for me." Pei Hong poured another glass of wine, "The daughter of the Minister of the Ministry of Rites."
Zhong Yansheng had just returned to the capital and relied on gossip heard by Yun Cheng for all the news about the families in the capital. After thinking for a while, he remembered that Yun Cheng had told him that the daughter of the Minister of Taichang Temple was extremely beautiful, but she seemed to have a bad temper.
He hesitated and said, "Congratulations."
Pei Hong was helpless: "Do you think I look happy?"
Zhong Yansheng tilted his head: "Your Highness, do you dislike the marriage granted by His Majesty, or do you dislike that girl?"
"I don't like any of them."
Pei Hong lowered his head and turned the wine cup, then raised his head and drank it all in one gulp. When he lowered his head again, the usual smile on his face gradually faded: "Before I was eighteen years old, I was raised outside the palace. Before I could return, I was banished to my fiefdom. Less than a year after I returned to the capital, I was granted a marriage - am I something that can be tossed around at will?"
If these words were to be spoken out, it would be considered as a heinous act. It would be bad enough to blame the heavens and the earth, but one would never dare to blame the emperor, his father.
But Zhong Yansheng had seen how pitiful Pei Hong was when he was a child, so he poured him a glass of wine to comfort him: "What should we do? It's not easy to disobey the order of His Majesty to marry you, right?"
Pei Hong also drank the wine he poured and exclaimed: "This wine tastes very bitter when I drank it before, but after Xiao Sheng poured it, it tasted sweet."
Zhong Yansheng put down the wine jug with a serious face.
Pei Hong finished laughing and shook his head, saying, "How can I resist the order? Let's wait and see. I can only hope that there will be a way out. I don't want to marry someone I don't like."
Seeing that he looked depressed and no longer as carefree as usual, Zhong Yansheng felt a little soft-hearted. After thinking for a while, he picked up the wine pot and poured him another glass, and reminded him: "Your Highness Prince Jing, this is the last glass. Don't drink after you finish it."
Alcohol is something that only makes you more depressed the more you drink it.
Pei Hong sighed: "Xiao Sheng, you still love me."
Zhong Yansheng put down the teapot again with a serious face.
Pei Hong had a very good alcohol tolerance. He swallowed several glasses of wine in a row without changing his expression. He said a few words to Zhong Yansheng and seemed to be in a better mood: "I plan to go hunting in a few days to relax. Would you like to go with me?"
Hunting?
Zhong Yansheng thought about it seriously.
He didn't like to move very much, but he hated being woken up early every day to read "The Doctrine of the Mean" even more.
His Royal Highness Prince Jing is definitely not as unreliable as Xiao Wenlan, and the place he went to is definitely not where His Royal Highness Prince Ding is.
Anyway, when they go out hunting, others would go hunting, and he would just sit by and watch.
Zhong Yansheng thought about it and nodded: "Okay."
Escape every day you can.
Seeing that Zhong Yansheng agreed obediently, Pei Hong was in a good mood. He came over and wanted to pinch his face, with a smile in his eyes: "Why are you so obedient."
Zhong Yansheng quickly slapped his hand away and said seriously, "I'm going to go downstairs to listen to the book."
"Hey," Pei Hong hurriedly stopped him, "I won't bother you anymore, let's talk about business. I've finished talking about my business, let's talk about yours."
Zhong Yansheng tilted his head: "Mine?"
"Your family has already brought him back. I'm afraid they will put him on the family tree soon and ask His Majesty to grant him the title of Young Master of Huai'an Marquis." Pei Hong obediently stopped drinking and turned the wine cup. "Your position in the mansion will probably be awkward by then. You know that, right?"
It is a big deal for an ordinary family to take the wrong child. The Huai'an Marquis Mansion is not an ordinary family, so the impact is even greater. Other families have been watching the fun for a long time. If Zhong Yansheng continues to stay in the Huai'an Marquis Mansion in the future, it will also affect Zhong Sidu.
Marquis Huai'an and his wife might not think anything of it, but Zhong Yansheng would feel uneasy and guilty.
Moreover, he remembered the ending of Huai'an Marquis Mansion in that dream, and always felt that it might be related to him. No matter what, he had to leave.
Zhong Yansheng had already thought about these things: "Yes."
"If you have nowhere to go, you can come to my mansion." Pei Hong smiled and said, "You are welcome anytime."
Zhong Yansheng saw that although he was smiling, he was speaking sincerely, so he also said sincerely: "When you get married, I will give you a big gift."
Pei Hong's smile collapsed instantly: "Why are you talking about something else? Let's go downstairs and listen to a book with you."
Zhong Yansheng's eyes lit up, and he immediately put on his veil hat, picked up the small sandalwood box containing the brush, and walked downstairs quickly with light steps.
After listening to books in the restaurant for an entire afternoon, when it was getting dark, Pei Hong probably made an appointment with other friends to continue having fun, so he sent someone to send Zhong Yansheng back to the Huai'an Marquis Mansion.
When he stepped into Chunwu Courtyard, Zhong Yansheng had no idea that Zhong Sidu was still waiting in the courtyard.
When Xiao Wenlan came, Zhong Yansheng said, "I'll go meet Young Master Xiao and be back soon."
As a result, he ran for the whole afternoon and came back when it was almost dark.
When his eyes met Zhong Sidu's, Zhong Yansheng froze at the gate of the courtyard, suddenly feeling guilty and helpless as if he had been caught skipping school to play.
Zhong Sidu sat in the yard and stared at Zhong Yansheng for a while.
After returning home, he treated Zhong Yansheng very badly. Zhong Yansheng didn't seem to care. But today, Zhong Yansheng left the study without looking back. Then he realized that maybe Zhong Yansheng... didn't like him.
Who would like someone who speaks ill of them?
Zhong Yansheng's attitude towards him has always been very gentle and submissive, but when he realized that Zhong Yansheng probably hated him, Zhong Sidu didn't know what to do.
He sat in the yard for the entire afternoon and could no longer concentrate on reading the books of sages.
The two of them looked at each other for a moment from a distance. Zhong Yansheng looked a little timid. He didn't dare to look at him and quickly looked away.
Zhong Sidu felt heavy and complicated in his heart. He let out a light breath, stood up and left without saying a word.
When they passed each other, Zhong Sidu's sleeve was suddenly pulled.
Zhong Yansheng raised his eyes, his affectionate eyes sparkling in the evening light, very beautiful, he smiled at him, handed him the thing from his arms, and said softly: "Zhong Sidu, this is for you."
It was as if a soft little bird suddenly hit my heart unexpectedly.
Zhong Sidu was stunned for a long while before he took the long box that was slightly warmed by his body temperature.
Seeing that Zhong Sidu didn't move, didn't open the box, and didn't know what he was in a daze, Zhong Yansheng asked curiously: "Don't you want to open it and take a look?"
Zhong Sidu suddenly came back to his senses, his palm slightly hurt by the wooden box. He opened the sandalwood box as he was told and saw the exquisite brush inside.
It was not a very valuable thing, but Zhong Sidu had to write a lot every day, so it was very suitable for him.
Seeing that he had been looking at the pen and seemed to like it very much, Zhong Yansheng blinked his eyes and suddenly a thought popped up in his mind: "Zhong Sidu, do you like it?"
Unlike calling him "brother" at the dinner table, Zhong Sidu paused and nodded after listening to his unfamiliar name.
The person next to me whispered again, "Are we still going to study tomorrow?"
Zhong Sidu didn't hear what he was saying at all and just nodded subconsciously.
Zhong Yansheng spoke out his true feelings quietly: "Can you come later next time? We can do this secretly without telling Dad."
Zhong Sidu's Adam's apple rolled: "Yeah."
Zhong Yansheng felt relieved.
As expected, giving gifts can bring people closer together. Zhong Sidu suddenly spoke nicely.
He said goodbye to Zhong Sidu happily and went back to his room to change his clothes. The jar of perfume powder that Yun Cheng bought had a much stronger fragrance than ordinary sachets. It was still strong and choking, but it was fortunate that His Royal Highness Prince Jing didn't care.
Zhong Yansheng's steps are always brisk, as if he is a little bird that cannot hold on to anything and can flap its wings and fly away at any time.
The words in Zhong Sidu's throat were choked, and his heart became more and more blocked. He just wanted Zhong Yansheng to stop calling him by his name, but he couldn't say it.
After all, it was he who refused Zhong Yansheng's request to call him brother in the beginning.
When Zhong Yansheng returned to his room and took off his outer robe, he discovered the letter in his sleeve pocket.
It was a letter that Xiao Nong asked him to pass on to "Mr. Chunsong".
The happy mood after listening to the book for an afternoon suddenly became a little heavy.
The uncontrollable blushing and heart beating feeling he had when he was in Prince Ding's mansion came back to him. Zhong Yansheng stared at the letter as if he was facing a formidable enemy, not knowing whether he should open it or not.
On it are the words written by Xiao Nong, with sharp and unrestrained strokes, vigorous and powerful, with a few big and elegant words - For Mr. Chunsong himself.
After taking the letter, Zhong Yansheng hurriedly fled from Prince Ding's Mansion without even daring to look at it.
I don't know what Prince Ding will write.
Zhong Yansheng felt itchy inside when he thought of Xiao Nong's words that revealed his love for his paintings.
Although he felt shy when being praised in person, he also wanted to see what those who admired him would write.
He had never been admired so much before.
Zhong Yansheng was sitting on the blanket. When he was about to open the envelope, he found that there was something inside. He opened it and took the thing in his hand. It turned out to be a jade pendant.
The warm jade ring is carved with exquisite cloud patterns and feels warm to the touch. It is not an ordinary object.
Jade Jue is different from normal jade and has always been a precious item of the royal family.
[Jade Jue = A cylinder shaped jade rings, has a smooth and straight circular hole in the center, and indentations on the side of the implement that are wide outside and narrow inside]
Why did Xiao Nong put such a valuable thing in the envelope?
Zhong Yansheng felt his palms suddenly getting hot, and was worried about how to put this thing.
He couldn't figure out what to do a moment, and he was anxious to read the letter. He carefully put the jade pendant away, took out the letter, looked at it expectantly, and read it softly.
"Seeing your calligraphy and painting is like being in the presence of a fairy. Seeing your writing is like seeing my heart. The fragrance is caused by the incense, and I am not worthy of your beauty. Heaven will not take away people's wishes, so it makes you see your lover..."
[T/N = I don’t understand this much, so if anyone understood this then do comment]
God saw my wish and let me finally meet my lover.
Zhong Yansheng was stunned. His face became redder and redder as he read more, and his ears became hotter and hotter. After reading a few sentences, he could not read any further.
What is this!
Does His Royal Highness Prince Ding know what he is writing?
If the handwriting on the letter was not exactly the same as on the envelope, and it was not from Xiao Nong, Zhong Yansheng would have thought that he had accidentally picked up someone's love letter.
There are also some stories in those leisure books. Although the protagonists have never met each other, they fall in love with each other after seeing each other's paintings.
But he clearly told Xiao Nong that Mr. Chunsong was an old man.
It would have been fine if he had just picked the flower on his hat in Jinghua Garden, but now he didn't even let an old man go!
He stuffed the letter back abruptly, touched his burning cheek, and cursed in a low voice: "Rogue...pervert."
Zhong Yansheng felt like he had been fooled.
He was a little embarrassed and a little angry, and wanted to tear up the letter, but when he reached out his hand halfway, he hesitated. A bright idea suddenly occurred to his mind, and he thought of a good idea. He stuffed this extremely shameful letter and the precious jade ring into the gauze curtain.
The gauze tent was very lively. In addition to white gauze, letters, and jade beads, there were also several bottles of medicine, which were stuffed so full that they almost fell out. Zhong Yansheng hurriedly stuffed more medicine in.
Seeing that it was barely stuffed together, he checked it before withdrawing his hand.
Zhong Yansheng thought deeply that he didn't want to keep the letter for himself, but to keep something to hold against His Royal Highness Prince Ding.
If Xiao Nong finds him later, he will use this letter to threaten Xiao Nong. If Xiao Nong doesn't let him go, he will make it public so that everyone in the world will know that His Royal Highness Prince Ding likes the old man.
This jade pendant is the evidence!
Today, I not only bribed Zhong Sidu with a pen, but also made him no longer have to get up early to study.
He also got some leverage over Prince Ding, giving him a life-saving amulet.
The more Zhong Yansheng thought about it, the more he felt that he was extremely clever. If an ordinary person saw such a letter, they would probably be so ashamed and frightened that they would destroy the body and the evidence. But he was not an ordinary person.
So smart Yuan Yuan!