Chapter 15

Suppressing some untimely thoughts, Tangsou held her robe with a very serious expression, gathering the hem of her robe on the handkerchief and sitting down properly.

The wooden stake was not big, Chenyue couldn’t sit next to her, so he could only sit behind her.

The night wind kept blowing, making the lantern sway, and the shadows of the two of them, overlapping behind each other, also swayed. Tangsou stared at the shadows for a while, put the lantern at her feet, and turned her head to Chenyue, saying, “Tell me, what do you think?”

Chenyue was also looking at the shadows.

Hearing Tangsou’s words, he didn’t speak immediately, but lowered his head and thought about how to say it, what to say.

Like most men in the world, even though he was sharp and insightful enough to discern the thoughts of criminals, political enemies, and even the emperor, Chenyue didn’t understand women very well.

He didn’t understand why women were always so easily angered, he didn’t know whether what women said was consistent with what they thought, and he didn’t know when women needed company and when they needed to be alone. But this didn’t prevent him from guessing almost instinctively that after what happened last night, Tangsou would definitely not be able to sleep.

Before, the consequence of her not being able to sleep was to divorce him.

Chenyue, of course, would not allow anything more serious than a divorce to happen.

So he simply didn’t leave, he stayed outside the manor, so that he could promptly curb any bad signs, and then act accordingly to dispel any new thoughts that Tangsou might have about wanting to separate from him.

He couldn’t bear any more setbacks.

Hearing this, Tangsou asked, “Are you so sure you’ll see me?”

Chenyue shook his head.

How could he guess her thoughts?

But…

It was just one night of waiting.

Since joining the Jin Yi Wei a powerful secret police force during the Ming dynasty, how many nights had he stayed up? This night was particularly important to him, especially since he really did wait for her.

This was the most worthwhile night he had ever spent waiting.

“I know I’m not doing this well,” Chenyue confessed, “but I can’t control myself.”

Chenyue used to think they were very loving, and he and Tangsou would definitely grow old together. Even if Tangsou asked him to write a divorce letter, he believed that as long as he gave her more and more adequate security, and made her believe that he could protect her in both her dreams and reality, then the divorce letter would be a piece of waste paper, not worth anything.

But she didn’t tell him the contents of her dream.

She kept it a secret.

This gave Chenyue a sense of déjà vu, as if they had completely reversed their roles.

Before, it was he who refused to tell her, because he thought that he could handle all the squabbles and schemes in the court himself, and there was no need to make her worry for him; now it was she who kept her mouth shut, and he had a heart that wanted to share her burden, but he didn’t even know the most fundamental reason, no matter how well he could guess people’s minds, it was all in vain.

And the prerequisite to changing this situation was that he had to find out what the dream was all about.

“You don’t want to tell me, it’s okay,” Chenyue said, “I’ll go and find out myself.”

Once he found out, the problems between them would be solved.

Tangsou listened, silent for a moment.

It was rare for Chenyue to be so open with her, and Tangsou should have been comforted, he finally knew that marriage, after all, required two people to work together, only then could the marriage be maintained, if she was the only one working hard, it would be like a barber carrying a pole on one shoulder, it wouldn’t be effective.

But the fact was that Tangsou didn’t feel comforted.

She didn’t feel happy either.

She even started staring at the shadows again, her eyes unblinking, as if she was lost in thought.

After a long time, she murmured, “What if you can’t find out?”

There was too much involved between them –

Just the emperor at the top was enough to make her never reveal her dream until her death.

So, how would he investigate?

Chenyue said calmly, “Then I’ll keep investigating.” He said, “As long as I’m still alive, there will always be a day when I can find out.”

Similarly, as long as he want

Similarly, as long as he was still alive, there would be a day when he could bring Tangsou back to his side.

Tangsou didn’t speak.

The light of dawn appeared, and the night was finally coming to an end. Soon, the golden sun peeked out from behind the clouds, its golden light shining brightly, Tangsou looked at the shadow on the ground, which seemed to have changed and yet hadn’t changed, and said in a muffled voice, “Chenyue.”

“Hmm.”

He responded.

“You’re really annoying,” Tangsou said.

Chenyue smiled.

Then he replied, “I know.”

He raised his hand and removed a leaf that had somehow gotten caught on her wooden hairpin.

The wind was still blowing, blowing the leaves back and forth, finally settling on the heart lake that had once again been stirred by the waves.

“Okay, let’s go back,” Chenyue coaxed.

If they didn’t go back, Liucai presumably a servant would be anxious and look for her everywhere.

After taking two steps, she turned back and said cautiously, “Don’t bring you.”

Chenyue sat on the wooden stake without moving, and replied, “Hmm, don’t bring me.”

His voice was light, almost gentle.

The breeze brushed past his eyebrows, and his eyes were also gentle, looking at her as if she was the only treasure in the world.

Tangsou glanced at him, then muttered “annoying” again, before turning and leaving without looking back.

As soon as she reached the foot of the mountain, she saw Liucai and several servants waiting.

Seeing that Tangsou had indeed come down from the mountain, Liucai breathed a sigh of relief.

If it hadn’t been for the doorman vaguely remembering that there had been a sound of the door opening in the early morning, and a voice saying that the lady had gone up the mountain, she wouldn’t have known where to look for the lady.

She looked behind Tangsou, but there was no one there, she knew that the lady and the Marquis hadn’t reached an agreement this time either, Liucai took the extinguished lantern from Tangsou’s hand and asked, “Lady, are you going back?”

“Go back.”

Tangsou didn’t even glance at the mountain.

Back at the manor, Tangsou changed into a robe, washed her face and hands, and prepared to eat.

When she sat down, she realized that the amount of breakfast today was much more than usual, it was definitely not something she could finish by herself. Tangsou even noticed that when the little maid was setting the table, she almost placed a second set of tableware opposite her empty seat.

Tangsou: “…”

So they all knew Chenyue was here?

Tangsou picked up her chopsticks and squeezed them hard, wanting to strangle Chenyue again, how could she get rid of him?

It was so annoying.

Tangsou frowned and ate.

Halfway through, she still spoke.

“Go to the halfway up the mountain and see if there’s anyone there,” Tangsou instructed, her brow furrowed even tighter, a look of insincere jiéju on her face, “If there is, call him over to eat.”

Liucai responded, and immediately sent the quick-footed servant to take a look.

The servant ran all the way to the halfway up the mountain, stretched his neck as hard as he could, and shouted a few times, but the mountain was quiet, without a sound.

The servant could only return alone to report.

“Lady, there’s no one on the mountain.”

There was no one on the road either.

Tangsou didn’t react particularly, she waved the servant away.

Liucai, who was standing by, secretly felt sorry.

The Marquis could wait for a whole night, why couldn’t he wait for another morning? Then they could have eaten together.

What a great opportunity, it’s a pity, the next time the lady is so kind-hearted again, I don’t know when it will be.

Then suddenly there was a bang, Liucai looked, Tangsou’s chopsticks had poked hard at the bottom of the bowl.

Liucai quickly asked, “Lady, is the breakfast today not to your liking?”

Tangsou looked at the breakfast in front of her.

Although the amount was large, there was nothing she didn’t like.

This wasn’t a matter of not liking it, it was clearly very much to her liking, she couldn’t have liked it more.

It was someone else who didn’t like it.

“…No.”

Tangsou held her chopsticks firmly and continued to eat expressionlessly.

Only in her heart she secretly resented him, he wouldn’t leave when she told him to, and he wouldn’t come when she called him.

He was crazy!

Her bad mood led to a lack of appetite, Tangsou didn’t eat much before she had it taken away, the various small dishes looked completely untouched.

Liucai didn’t persuade her, she quietly presented the freshly brewed tea. Tangsou took it, leaned against the window and sipped it idly.

The plan to go back to sleep after breakfast was completely gone, Tangsou’s mind was very clear, she even started to examine the conversation she had with Chenyue.

Halfway through the examination, she heard Liucai say in surprise, “Marquis?”

Tangsou lifted her eyelids.

At the courtyard gate, Chenyue walked in carrying something.

Liucai walked a few steps towards Chenyue.

Seeing what it was, Liucai stopped and turned back to call Tangsou: “Miss, this…”

Before she could finish, Tangsou had already put down her teacup and come out of the house.

“Where did you get this,” she asked Chenyue, not getting close, but keeping a distance, “Why bring it here, I don’t have any experience raising birds of prey.”

Chenyue said, “I heard it calling when I was going down the mountain, so I went into the woods to look for it.”

He handed it forward, Tangsou didn’t take it, and quickly took a few steps back, afraid that she would be pecked if she was a moment late.

Indeed, Chenyue was carrying a Gyrfalcon.

White feathers with brown spots, it looked like it had just reached adulthood, its claws and wings were bloody, and its injuries were serious. Because of the injury, its pupils looked particularly fierce no matter who it stared at, but its body was quietly staying in Chenyue’s hands without struggling, very quiet, it must have been tamed, but it was unknown whether it was abandoned or escaped on its own.

Gyrfalcons are birds of prey, fierce and carnivorous, but the previous dynasties of the Ming Dynasty were quite fond of and admired them, for example, the Li Tang royal family directly established a falconry, specifically for the breeding of Gyrfalcons. By the time of the Ming Dynasty, the Jurchen people of the Northeast had presented two Gyrfalcons to the Emperor Chenghua, but the Emperor Chenghua refused, and later he no longer allowed tribute of flowers, trees, birds or beasts, so Gyrfalcons became uncommon in the Ming Dynasty.

Like Tangsou, even though she had a wealthy merchant grandfather who owned businesses all over the country, she hadn’t had much contact with Gyrfalcons.

Now she stood at a safe distance, looking at the Gyrfalcon with a mixture of curiosity and disgust as it opened its lead-grey beak towards her, its call weak to the point of being almost nonexistent.

She didn’t know how Chenyue had heard such a weak call, with this injury, if it was delayed for another half a day, it probably wouldn’t survive.

Tangsou said to Chenyue, “Why don’t you take it to the Jin Yi Wei.”

There were many talented people in the Jin Yi Wei a powerful secret police force during the Ming dynasty, they would surely take better care of it than she could.

Chenyue shook his head.

“The Jin Yi Wei are all rough men, they don’t have your delicate heart.”

Tangsou snorted, “You’re just making things up.”

As far as she knew, there were people in the Jin Yi Wei who could embroider more delicately than famous embroiderers, there weren’t many rough men.

As they spoke, the Gyrfalcon flapped its wings.

The white feathers, stained with dirt, were covered in blood, Tangsou became even more disgusted.

However, when Chenyue handed the Gyrfalcon to her again, Tangsou couldn’t help but carefully avoid the wound and hold it, asking Liucai to fetch gauze and medicine.

Liucai went as instructed.

As she passed Chenyue, she paused slightly and whispered, “Earlier, Miss asked someone to invite the Marquis over for dinner.”

Chenyue listened, didn’t speak, but just nodded slightly.

Liucai quickened her pace to get the medicine, hiding her merit and fame.