TL: Hua
The next morning, Xu Yanqing woke up when he heard the commotion of the servants outside. Perhaps because he hadn’t eaten much dinner the previous night, then had been motion sick on the carriage ride, and gone to bed early, his stomach was now rumbling with hunger.
Although he had changed environments, Yunshui Courtyard held a deep impression in the original owner’s mind, but Xu Yanqing was not unfamiliar with the place. Dressed in a slightly thicker brocade robe, he pushed open the door and slowly ambled around the courtyard.
Peach blossoms drifted down with the morning breeze, falling onto the ground. Some clung to the young master’s dark hair, making the already beautiful and delicate young master appear even more radiant. Coupled with his languid demeanor, he resembled a cute, pampered cat.
“Young Master, you’re up early today.” Mu Yu walked over, carrying washing supplies. Behind him followed two maids, each holding a food box containing Xu Yanqing’s breakfast.
Xu Yanqing, whose stomach was already empty, quickly washed up under Mu Yu’s service. By this time, the young maids had already laid out all of breakfast on the stone table in the courtyard.
“Young Master, here’s the peach blossom cakes you’ve been craving. They just came out of the oven; be careful not to burn yourself.” The small dish held only three pastries. The soft, sweet cakes were cut into triangles, adorned with a single peach blossom petal, making them very pleasing to the eye.
“Brewing tea with spring water, making wine from peach blossoms, soft worry-free cakes…” Xu Yanqing couldn’t help but salivate: “The ancients truly didn’t deceive me.”
He thought about his previous life, where at this time he was probably still holed up in the school library, never caring about food or drink. While such days were fulfilling, they were never what he wanted. Now, even if someone told him this was just a dream, he would willingly remain drunk in this dream.
Seeing his young master’s good appetite, Mu Yu finally relaxed. When Xu Yanqing finished one pastry and reached for another, he quickly stepped forward to stop him: “Young Master, you haven’t been feeling well these past few days. Eating too many cold peach blossom cakes will cause diarrhea. Young Master, please don’t overindulge your appetite.”
Xu Yanqing stared pitifully at the sweet, soft peach blossom cake, blinking his eyes. He had just tasted it and now couldn’t have more. “Good Mu Yu, just let this young master have one more piece!”
Yin Yanjun, who had already finished his breakfast, sat upright at his writing desk, diligently writing scriptures. In his ear, he heard the young man next door delicately and sulkily pleading for a bite to eat. He found it rather amusing; how could this young man be the “playboy” that Yin Yuancheng described?
Not long after, Yin Yuancheng entered, as usual, greeted Yin Yanjun, and then sat down to grind ink for him.
The two courtyards were very close, and the sounds from next door had now ceased.
A while ago, Mu Yu had called another doctor for a follow-up visit for his young master. Xu Yanqing’s body was no longer in serious condition, but he was a bit weak and needed regular exercise. So, by this time, Xu Yanqing had already been dragged by Mu Yu to wander elsewhere.
When he grew tired of wandering, Xu Yanqing had a servant bring a chair and place it by the river. He sat comfortably in the chair, “supervising” Mu Yu as he fished: “Today, this young master’s lunch is entirely up to you!”
Mu Yu wore a bitter face and dared not say a word, for fear of scaring away the fish in the river.
Su Hanfeng happened to walk over at this moment. Today he wore a water-colored long gown, looking as warm and refined as a true gentleman. The faint smile on his face was even more captivating.
In the past, the original owner had been immersed in Su Hanfeng’s unique aura and had never seen through Su Hanfeng’s schemes and exploitation of him. Instead, he had been led by Su Hanfeng to do many despicable and troublesome things.
“Yanqing, why have you moved to Yunshui Courtyard? I almost couldn’t find you today.” Su Hanfeng’s jade crown tied his hair in a gentle and elegant manner, as if he had forgotten the unbearable situation that Xu Yanqing had given him the other day. His face had a smiling, amiable facade.
Xu Yanqing didn’t even bother to get up. At this moment, he only found Su Hanfeng’s hypocritical smile somewhat irritating, but he had no intention of tearing off the facade with Su Hanfeng right now. Instead, he curved his lips into a smile: “Cousin seems to care a lot about Yanqing recently, which truly flatters Yanqing.”
Su Hanfeng wore a doting smile: “Yanqing, what are you saying? You’re my cousin. If I don’t care about you, then who will I care about?”
“You’re right,” Xu Yanqing chuckled softly, not continuing the conversation. He simply propped his chin and idly stared at the sparkling river surface.
Instead, Su Hanfeng took out a brocade box from his sleeve: “Last time, I saw you liked wooden hairpins, so I specially had someone find a piece of excellent sandalwood and made this ‘Flowing Cloud Hairpin’.”
Mu Yu, seeing Su Hanfeng’s pretentious face, was utterly infuriated. Now, seeing the other party giving a gift to his young master again, he immediately became nervous, fearing his young master would fall for the trick again.
Xu Yanqing reached out and took the brocade box. Without even looking, he casually handed it to the somewhat sulky Mu Yu beside him: “Thank you, Cousin, but Yanqing is quite fond of this wooden hairpin lately and can’t bear to change it.”
Su Hanfeng’s expression became somewhat unpleasant. His gaze fell on the brocade box Xu Yanqing had casually tossed to Mu Yu, then moved to the wooden hairpin on Xu Yanqing’s head, his eyes gradually deepening.
He had investigated for a long time but couldn’t find out who had helped Xu Yanqing with the aphrodisiac that day. Now, seeing Xu Yanqing eagerly running back to Yunshui Courtyard, he speculated that the wild man was most likely hidden by Xu Yanqing in Yunshui Courtyard.
Su Hanfeng’s eyes filled with malice. Since he couldn’t use Xu Yanqing for his own gain, he might as well just ruin Xu Yanqing.
The two exchanged a few more pleasantries, back and forth. Su Hanfeng truly couldn’t stand it anymore. After a few more feigned concerns for Xu Yanqing, he finally turned and left.
“Young Master.” Seeing Su Hanfeng leave, Mu Yu finally spoke: “What should we do with this Flowing Cloud Hairpin?”
Xu Yanqing reached out and took the wooden hairpin from the brocade box. Good quality sandalwood was not cheap, and he had also hired a skilled craftsman. Su Hanfeng had likely spent a lot of money on this Flowing Cloud Hairpin.
He recalled that when Su Hanfeng first sought help from them, bringing only his deceased mother’s belongings, he didn’t even have a decent set of clothes. Now, to have reached this point, it was entirely due to Marquis Wu’an’s assistance. Yet, this person was ungrateful and unappreciative, now even daring to scheme against him.
With a ‘smack,’ Xu Yanqing directly threw the Flowing Cloud Hairpin into the river in front of him. Sandalwood was naturally afraid of water; if the Flowing Cloud Hairpin soaked in the water for a while, it would be unusable even if retrieved.
Su Hanfeng, who hadn’t walked far, saw this scene, and the embarrassment and ruthlessness on his face intensified. Xu Yanqing’s action was deliberately done to provoke him.
“Young Master, you’ve scared all my fish away!” Mu Yu sighed. Seeing that his young master had finally gotten rid of the bothersome Su Hanfeng, he went back to concentrate on fishing, and just as a fish was about to bite, the hairpin his young master threw in scared it off.
“I don’t care about that.” Xu Yanqing lazily closed his eyes, enjoying the spring breeze. “For today’s lunch, this young master will only eat the fish you catch.”
The master and servant chatted and laughed, finally catching five small fish just before lunchtime. Mu Yu sighed, both frustrated and disdainful: “These five tiny fish probably aren’t even enough to get stuck in Young Master’s teeth.”
Xu Yanqing couldn’t help but chuckle: “The gap between your young master’s teeth isn’t that big. Hurry up and clean up this mess; let’s go back!”
At lunchtime, the five tiny fish Mu Yu had painstakingly caught were deep-fried into crispy dried fish by the cook.
The savory, crispy dried fish looked appetizing just by its appearance. Xu Yanqing generously ate all five of them.
Mu Yu was so flattered by his young master that he felt like he was floating on air.
Xu Yanqing’s days at Yunshui Courtyard were truly leisurely and joyful. He would wake up naturally in the morning, then be pulled up by Mu Yu for breakfast. After breakfast, he would stroll around the courtyard a few times.
Strolling around, it would soon be lunchtime. The cook at Yunshui Courtyard was exceptionally skilled; at the very least, Xu Yanqing ate very happily.
In the afternoon, Xu Yanqing would stay cooped up in the study, reading the storybooks Mu Yu had collected for him. However, no matter how open-minded the Great Liang dynasty was, the storybooks ultimately couldn’t compare to the boundless creativity of authors from his previous life; they were merely tolerable.
Recently, Su Hanfeng hadn’t come to cause trouble, probably still trying to find a way to scheme against him. Xu Yanqing was just waiting for the other party to deliver himself to his doom.
—
The Great Liang dynasty had an open social atmosphere, so young ladies naturally didn’t have to stay cooped up in their boudoirs. This was a good time in spring, and young ladies were often seen going out with their veiled hats to enjoy spring outings and fly kites.
“The weather is truly lovely today. Staying here for a ‘flowing cup’ party isn’t exciting enough,” Princess Jing’an, Yin Yuanshuang, had an outgoing personality. Today, she had gathered a group of noble ladies and gentlemen for a banquet at her manor.
Chu Yulin chuckled: “The princess’s manor isn’t enough for you to stir up trouble in; what else do you want to do?”
“Do you still remember how my brother and Xu Yanqing fought over a manor in Qingling Mountain a few years ago?” Yin Yuanshuang downed the wine in her hand. “My brother has gone to Qingling Mountain these past few days. The peach blossoms are in full bloom there, and the scenery is pleasant. Why don’t we go for a ride there?”
Yin Yuanshuang eagerly suggested, and the other ladies and gentlemen cheered in agreement. So, the group of young people immediately mounted their horses and rode out of the city.
The ladies and gentlemen just rode away, with their own servants to prepare everything else.
Qingling Mountain was extensively planted with peach blossoms. A gust of wind made them bloom like a beautiful, ethereal mist. Such a large mountain only had two courtyards; no wonder the young marquis and the legitimate second son of Marquis Wu’an competed for them.
After an enjoyable ride, everyone was a bit tired, so Yin Yuanshuang led them into the courtyard.
Yin Yuancheng, who heard a commotion in the front courtyard, along with his sister’s familiar voice, couldn’t help but rub his forehead and give a wry smile: “My lord, it must be Yuanshuang bringing a group of friends over.”
“Mm,” Yin Yanjun nodded calmly. He held a scroll of scriptures and quietly turned its pages.
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