"Hey, Crown Prince Xu …"
Song Yufu held the rouge box and was stunned for a moment before she reacted. She hurriedly trotted to Xu Buling and stretched out her hand anxiously.
"What are you doing … I …"
Xu Buling frowned slightly, "You don't like it?"
"I … I like it …"
Song Yufu blushed. She hesitated for a moment and put her hands on her waist again. She looked down at the small rouge box, "But … I don't deserve it … I'm a girl. How can I accept rouge from a man? If I'm misunderstood …"
Xu Buling walked slowly along the street. His expression was as cold as ever, "Misunderstand what? Misunderstand that I want you to be a princess? "
"…"
Song Yufu pursed her lips and hesitated for a long time. She muttered, "The Crown Prince is a vassal king. The selection of a princess is of utmost importance. I was born in a poor family. Even if the Crown Prince wants me to be a princess, Su Of Gojoseon will not agree … Of course, I'm just saying. I don't really want to be a princess. Well … I'm a good friend of the Crown Prince. I'll accept the rouge. Thank you."
Xu Buling nodded, "You're sensible. I'll let bygones be bygones. Tell me, why did you come to me? "
Song Yufu held the rouge box and followed slowly. She wanted to say that she would leave in a few days, but for some reason, she couldn't say it. After thinking for a moment, she smiled softly,
"Crown Prince Xu, my Uncle Master Xu Danqing is back. He is the Art Saint who painted the Eight Chiefs of Xuanhe. Do you want to meet him? I can introduce you."
The Painting Saint, Xu Danqing, had a great reputation whether it was in Jianghu or among the literati and poets. Moreover, he was elusive all year round. Whether it was the literati or the martial arts, it was naturally a great honor to be able to meet such a famous senior expert.
Song Yufu thought that Xu Buling would be surprised and let her bring him over. Unexpectedly, Xu Buling didn't even raise his eyebrows,
"He's just a painter. I don't have that much time."
"Ah …"
Song Yufu suddenly had a headache. If Xu Buling was not interested in Xu Danqing, she couldn't ask Xu Danqing to come to the Prince's Mansion. Xu Danqing was her Uncle Master and the Art Saint. She had to give him some face …
Song Yu Fu pondered for a moment. "Heir Xu, Su Wangfei is also one of the Eight Chiefs of Xuan He. Back then, she met Martial Uncle Xu once. Martial Uncle Xu is technically an elder, so he has long heard of Heir Xu. Hmm … I'm friends with the Crown Prince, so it's only natural for us to pay respects to the elders … "
Xu Buring looked a little helpless. He looked at the spring scenery in the city and said, "Miss Song, the weather is so good. Why didn't you ask me to go for a walk in spring? Instead, you took me to visit your relatives.
"Interesting." Song Yufu nodded quickly, "My Uncle Master is very powerful and nice. Let's have a cup of tea and then go shopping. I will accompany the Prince for a day."
Xu Buling sighed, "It's up to you." He changed his direction and went to Bamboo Street.
Song Yufu's eyes lit up. She followed him excitedly and secretly looked at him, "Do you want to go back and change your clothes?"
Xu Buling frowned slightly and looked down at the white robe he was wearing, "What? Don't I look good?"
"No, it's quite nice …" Song Yu Fu pondered for a moment, "En, the white robe with the golden edges looks better, the one with the clouds on it …"
Xu Buling's robes were made by Lady Lu. He couldn't throw them away after wearing them. However, the most beautiful one had a lot of ink stains in the palace. It couldn't be washed clean in a short time. He shook his head, "It's fine. I'm not going on a blind date."
"Oh … okay …"
…
In the majestic palace, the spring breeze swept through the pavilions. The paper flowers in the peach forest of the Political Hall had long withered and were replaced by green buds full of vitality. In the garden of Changle Palace, hundreds of chrysanthemum pots were blooming. Several maids walked among them, watering and fertilizing them, waiting for the day when the flowers bloomed in autumn.
Not long after the morning bell rang, the Empress Dowager opened the copper locked door of the side hall. The morning light shone on the bright and clean floor of the hall, casting an exquisite and graceful shadow. At the end of the shadow was a huge painting of a peony. The ink had already dried, and it was more three-dimensional than it had been a few days ago.
The Empress Dowager closed the door and walked alone to the huge peonies. A table was placed in the middle of the hall with rice paper and brushes on it. There was also a wooden figurine. It was the appearance of Xu Buling when he first entered the palace. It was so lifelike that even the patterns on his clothes were exactly the same.
The Empress Dowager stood in front of the painting and looked at the peonies. Then she picked up the wooden figurine and looked at it carefully.
There were some bumps on the wooden figurine. On the day it was carved, before she had time to look at it carefully, Xu Buling had rushed into her bedroom in the middle of the night. He had even crawled into her bed, touched her, and snatched her undergarment. He had basically done all kinds of bad things.
The Empress Dowager originally admired and liked Xu Buling, but from then on, her impression of him collapsed with a loud bang. Other than 'audacious pervert', she couldn't find a second adjective to describe him. She only felt that carving this sculpture was crazy, so she threw the wooden figurine into the garden.
In the end …
In fact, she later found that Xu Buling was not that bad. He was just forced by the knife on his head.
He had become famous at a young age and had the martial arts of the Divine Realm. But he was locked in a cage waiting to die. No matter how good his temperament was, he would probably go crazy. Xu Buling's performance was actually very good, but he had no choice. It was not entirely his fault.
Later, Xu Buling came to apologize several times. Although he did not return the undergarment, the Empress Dowager saw his sincerity. She gave her snacks and rouge and praised her eloquently. She even gave her the painting that she had prepared for Lu Hongluan. The two of them had no relationship. Other than apologizing to her, what else could it be for?
The Empress Dowager slightly raised the corner of her mouth. She raised her finger and flicked the forehead of the figurine with a smile.
In fact, after seeing the peony, she was no longer angry. She just thought that she had been touched by a child. She could not get even with him. Other than letting bygones be bygones, what else could she do?
The Empress Dowager put down the wooden figurine. She added water and ground the ink. Then she picked up the brush and began to copy the painting on the wall. The painting technique was different. Obviously, it could not be copied. She was just finding something to do during the boring days in the palace.
Thud, thud, thud —
After a while, footsteps came from outside the side hall. Qiao E said softly through the door,
"Empress Dowager, in the court just now, the envoy from Northern Qi said that he wanted to compete with the younger generation of Dai Yue in martial arts. His Majesty agreed. In a few days, a fighting ring will be set up outside Taiji Palace. As the mother of the country, I'm afraid you will have to go and support."
Without the Empress, the Empress Dowager had to go through the motions at such a large gathering. The Empress Dowager drew absent-mindedly. She said casually, "I see."
"Also, Lady Lu is here. The carriage is waiting outside the palace. She asked you to go out. She did not say what she was going to do."
"What is Lu Hongluan doing here …"
The Empress Dowager paused. She frowned in confusion. She looked up at the peony on the wall and guessed that she might be here to make trouble.
However, the Empress Dowager had been living in the palace for a long time. She could not even find someone to quarrel with. It was a good thing that someone came to her. Whether it was good or bad, it was better than staying in the palace and getting moldy.
The Empress Dowager thought for a while and put down her brush. She went back to her bedroom and dressed up beautifully. Then she put on a look that said she would fight to the end. Together with Qiao E, they rushed out of the palace gate …
