soy sauce lady

Chapter 9

By mid-May, the weather in the north is gradually getting hotter.

Wen Su performed well at the Qionglin Banquet last time, and received many rewards from His Majesty the Emperor, so she picked a roll of thin silk and a few feet of light gauze and handed them to the embroiderer in the palace to make two summer dresses, one for Fu Qingyu, One piece for yourself.

Hearing that the regent had a bad appetite recently, she sent over the fine wine and delicacies rewarded by the emperor.In addition, King Pingyang, Zhao Quan, some officials who communicated with the court, and even the two maids around him and the old housekeeper in the mansion, etc., almost all benefited more or less.

The bounty was about to be divided, Wen Su was naturally distressed, but this also brought her good popularity.

One day Xiao Zheng returned home late, and was surprised to see the butler waiting for the door with a lantern. He asked only to find out that he was waiting for Wen Su.At that time, he smiled and said to Zhao Quan: "This girl is born with all sides and exquisite skills, and she has both sides..."

In this regard, Zhao Quan, who has benefited, expressed his deep agreement.

The official transaction between Qinghai State and Liang State has not yet been completed, and the three envoys have not yet left.In the past few days, Wen Su has gone out early and returned late to the household department, just like a high-ranking official.

Acting is very tiring, not to mention that she is still a newcomer to the officialdom, and she is also a woman, so it is a bit difficult to deal with it.

But she is not the only newcomer, so is Liu Ke.

Liu Ke is now serving as a lecturer in the Imperial Academy. His status is neither high nor low, but he is highly relied on by the emperor, and he has some status in the court.

The two also had a chance to meet when they were in court, and they nodded and passed.Counting it all together, the sum of what they said in the past few days was not as much as what they said that night at the Qionglin Banquet.But after all, they are old acquaintances, although they don't talk much, they don't feel unfamiliar. In addition, the two of them are of similar age, and when they come and go, they will ignore their official titles and directly match each other by their first names.

But even so, Wen Su still recognizes the boundary between the two very clearly.

The regent's words were still in my ears that night. As long as the New Deal is not over, she will still be under the regent's subordinates, and it is necessary to keep a certain distance from Liu Ke, a royalist party.

But the distance is for both sides, and she keeps it, which doesn't mean they won't take the initiative to shorten it.

So she wanted to sigh right now.

Coincidentally, she was just about to go to the post station to accompany the envoy of Qinghai Kingdom, when she went out, she bumped into Liu Ke who came to visit.

"Where did Chaoqing come from?" Wen Su smiled and greeted him kindly, but slightly turned his body to keep a distance to avoid people's eyes and ears.

Liu Ke smiled shyly, "Your Majesty gave me the gift of choosing a place to build a house. I wandered around the city and found nothing. I happened to pass by the Prince Regent's Mansion, so I came to pay a visit to the prince."

Wen Su immediately became jealous, what a blessing, she would be able to get into a house someday!

Just as he was talking, the housekeeper who went in to report had already come out, bowed to Liu Ke, and signaled him to go in with him.

Wen Su wanted to go out at this point, but the housekeeper suddenly said: "Lord Wen, please stop, the prince ordered, please go too, Lord Wen."

"……"what's the situation?
The meeting place is not in the regent's study, but in the Huxin Pavilion.This made Wen Su feel that there was no gap between the Prince Regent and Liu Ke, just like meeting personal friends, they were cordial and friendly.But anyone with a little ear in the court knew that it was the regent who pulled Liu Ke from the position of number one scholar.

So this situation made her feel a little uneasy again.

There are two people sitting around the stone table in the pavilion, they are Xiao Zheng and Xiao Duan's uncle and nephew.There was still a chessboard on the table, apparently the chess was interrupted in the middle of the game.Someone stood serving tea, and it was Fu Qingyu.

Wen Su was a little bit tongue-tied, for someone as noble as Fu Qingyu was willing to serve others, it seemed that he was really interested in the regent.

However, the regent seems to feel very normal about this, and there is no difference in his expression, as if the one standing aside is just the maid of the mansion.

"My subject, Liu Ke, sees the Regent. The prince is a thousand years old." Before entering the pavilion, Liu Ke stopped and gave a big salute just outside the pavilion.

Xiao Duan seemed a little disdainful about this, he raised the teacup and took a sip, a smile appeared on his lips, but his eyes were contemptuous.

"Chao Qing, please forgive me." Xiao Zheng stood up to greet him in person, his eyes glanced at Wen Su behind him.

Liu Ke bowed to Xiao Duan again, before he stepped into the pavilion, he said in shame: "The rashness of the humble minister has disturbed the elegance of the two lords, I hope you will forgive me."

"It's okay," Xiao Zheng waved his hand, with a pleasant expression, "Chao Qing is too formal, please sit down." As he said that, Chao Wensu also waved his hand, "Wen Qing, please come and sit together."

Wen Su froze for a moment, then glanced at Fu Qingyu, who lowered his eyes and could not see clearly.

The four of them sat around and there was no topic for a while, so Xiao Zheng smiled and asked Liu Ke why he was free to come here.Liu Ke immediately explained the reason, which was no different from what he said to Wen Su.

"Your Majesty has good intentions, but this king feels something is wrong."

When Xiao Zheng said this, Wen Su felt that something was wrong, and there will be an unhappy breakup, right?
Xiao Duan on the side also raised his eyebrows, with an expression of watching the show.

Liu Ke was not that sensitive, but asked curiously: "What's wrong with your lord?"

"Chaoqing doesn't have a residence in Beijing. The imperial government should allocate funds to build a house, but now it's time for Daliang to recharge his batteries. Whether it's buying land or breaking ground, it's a lot of money..." Xiao Zheng Pretending to sigh, he picked up the teacup in front of him, but his eyes were fixed on the person in front of him.

Liu Ke was stunned for a moment, then blushed, "What the prince said is true, it's because I didn't think deeply about it, I'm ashamed."

Xiao Zheng smiled faintly, very satisfied with his neither arrogant nor impatient reaction.

Wen Su's eyes flicked back and forth on the two of them a few times, secretly laughing that she was thinking too much.

With Liu Ke's gentle temperament, he will not turn his face easily.And with the regent's deepness, he will not show his emotions towards others on his face.

After a pause, Xiao Zheng said again: "However, it is necessary to find a house to settle down. According to this king, it is better to choose an old house in the city and renovate it. All expenses will be paid by this king."

Liu Ke got up hurriedly, bowed and said: "What the prince said is very true, but this humble minister must not let the prince spend money."

Xiao Zheng smiled, "It doesn't matter, I will keep an eye out for you, and I will make an offer for you if there is any house that is vacant."

Liu Ke wanted to decline, but he waved his hand to stop him, so he had no choice but to stop declining.

Just giving benefits so invisible, the regent really has the means.Wen Su thought about it for a while, and suddenly remembered that there was an idle house diagonally opposite the Prince Regent's Mansion, which was so close that it could be reached on foot.

She raised her eyes to look at Liu Ke, and was about to speak clearly when she suddenly met the regent's gaze.

It was cold, deep, and cold.

Wen Su gasped suddenly, calm down, my lord, why don't you just say something?
Who knows that she didn't say anything here, but someone said on the other side: "My lord, isn't there a house diagonally opposite the palace? It's still half-new, and it's just right for Mr. Liu."

Wen Su looked at Fu Qingyu with a numb scalp, her eyes were full of worry.Carefully looking into Xiao Zheng's eyes, there was a burst of lightning, thunder, and wind and rain, but his face was still as calm as ever.

"Fu Xiuzhuan's words are a reminder to the king, but the place where the king lives is remote, and it is inconvenient to go up and down. It is better to choose a place closer to the palace."

Liu Ke is an honest person, so he couldn't hear Xiao Zheng's subtext.I just felt that being closer to this place would allow me to get closer to Wen Su, and I was very happy in my heart, so I immediately replied: "My lord cares about me, I am so grateful, how dare I be picky anymore? I just hope that my lord will not dislike this little minister Good neighbors."

Xiao Zheng was choked by this sentence, and said in a muffled voice, "How could it be? It is my honor to be a neighbor with such a virtuous and talented scholar like Chao Qing."

Wen Su quietly looked at the Prince Regent's expression, suppressed a smile, her shoulders trembled, her face flushed.

My lord, you have nothing to do with such a single-minded person...

Liu Ke sat for a while and then got up to say goodbye. Wen Su was worried until now, and finally waited for a peaceful ending, feeling at ease.

Xiao Zheng ordered Zhao Quan to send Liu Ke out of the house, but the latter was polite and hurriedly said no.He didn't insist, pointed to Wen Su and said, "Then please ask Wen Qing to send you off on my behalf." This time Liu Ke didn't refuse anymore, his eyes flickered a few times, and he agreed with a blushing face.

In this way, even Xiao Duan noticed something strange.

Wen Su sent Liu Ke all the way to the door, the two were silent all the way, until they were about to leave, Liu Ke finally said: "Susu, actually, I have something to tell you when I came here today."

"Huh? What?"

Liu Ke lowered his head, his face turned even redder, "Wu Yuan will be released as an official soon, Brother Guan Yuan and I will have a farewell party for him tomorrow, I wonder if you are free to come?"

Wen Su was stunned for a moment, Wuyuan was Tanhua Lang Qijian.She didn't understand, when the top three got together, what did she, a half-baked outsider, go to do?
"This... tomorrow I have to entertain the envoys of the Qinghai Kingdom, I'm afraid I won't be free."

Liu Ke lowered his eyes in disappointment, nodded, and left.

Wen Su looked at his lonely back and couldn't bear it, but there was nothing he could do. Who told you that your master is the emperor?
Turning around to go back, just stepping on the corridor, he bumped into Fu Qingyu who was about to go back to his residence.She waved to Wen Su, and said mysteriously: "Susu, come here, I have something to tell you."

Wen Su just wanted to remind her of what happened just now, so she walked over, and was so startled by her words that she almost fell down before she could speak.

"Susu, can you see how the second place thinks of you?"

"...ah... huh?"

"That day Tanhua Lang came to the Imperial Academy to talk to him about something, and accidentally mentioned you. I paid attention and heard something." Fu Qingyu said, and whispered in Wen Su's ear for a while.

Wen Su was in a mess in a gust of wind.

She also noticed that Liu Ke would sometimes blush when looking at her, sometimes hesitate to speak, and sometimes feel at a loss when calling her name...

But isn't that because of his shy character?Look at King Pingyang's shamelessness!

However, Fu Qingyu gave her such a shocking reason, and what he said was well-founded.

After Wen Su listened in a daze, she silently turned and faced south, looking up at the sky.

Dad, someone actually took a fancy to your daughter...

Qinghai country is a Buddhist country, from the royal family to the common people, all are devout and Buddhist people.The three envoys came to Liangdu for a long time, felt that the important event of worshiping Buddha was neglected, and felt uneasy, so they wanted to go to the Xiangguo Temple on the outskirts of the city to worship Buddha and offer incense.Knowing that they were not familiar with their places of life, the regent would not neglect them, so he ordered Wen Su to be a good companion.

It's a pity that Wen Su didn't know much about the capital, and was worrying about how to arrange it. The king of Pingyang, who came to visit, recommended himself, which solved her urgent need.

Unexpectedly, His Majesty the Emperor in the deep palace also intends to go on a trip recently, after hearing the news, he decided to go together.

Xiao Zheng felt that it was not a problem to have been at loggerheads with the little emperor during this period of time, and maybe going out was a good time to ease the conflict, so he nodded in agreement.

The emperor intends to go on a trip in micro-service this time, and only announced the top three in the new department to accompany him, but the regent will definitely accompany him.Wen Su saw that the Prince Regent's Palace was almost fully mobilized, so he even brought Fu Qingyu along.So much so that on the day of the trip, the emperor lifted the curtain from the carriage and saw the people standing outside, and immediately rolled his eyes to the sky.

Is there such a huge team of micro-service outings?
The group of people took three carriages before finally setting off. Zhao Quan was closely guarded by disguised palace guards. Naturally, the speed was very slow, and it was already noon when they arrived at Xiangguo Temple all the way.

Although it was a private visit in microservices, since the regent agreed to bring the emperor out, how could he not make some preparations?Someone in the temple had already prepared a fast meal, and several people ate directly after entering the temple. A little fatigue on the road was swept away after resting.

A young novice monk came over to act as a guide, and led a few people to stroll around the monastery.Dongde Zhuoyi was not interested, so he took two entourages to pay homage to the Buddha, and chanted sutras devoutly, so he probably couldn't leave for a while.

Everyone felt bored, so they went looking for fun.

In the Daxiong Palace, there was a master sitting in town to release the lottery, and the emperor went down to ask for a lottery.When Wen Su saw it, she felt it was very fresh, so she also took Fu Qingyu to ask for one, and then happily ran to ask the master to release the lottery.

The master was about seven or eighty years old, with a gray beard and an old-fashioned appearance. He untied the emperor, said a lot of good things, and then sat behind the case and fell asleep. Wen Su felt that he was very unreliable.

Fu Qingyu handed over the lottery first, the master opened his eyes and glanced at it leisurely, and said without pain: "It's up to people to understand the state of mind." Then he continued to close his eyes and fall asleep, completely different from his previous attitude towards the emperor. And language.

Fu Qingyu muttered in a low voice: "You didn't even ask me what I'm asking for?"

The master ignored her, and directly greeted Wen Sujiang to sign it to him.

Wen Su handed over the sign with some anxiety, but the old man put it down without even looking at it, then raised his eyelids and glanced at her, saying: "You have a noble face, and you will live a peaceful life."

So Wen Su laughed.

In fact, she didn't mind at all whether the old man looked at the face or the signature. She only wanted a word from an authoritative person, which was like a guarantee, which was reassuring.

Unexpectedly, just as she was about to leave, the master suddenly asked her again: "How old is the benefactor?"

Wen Su stopped in her tracks, slightly puzzled, "It's almost eighteen, why does the master ask this?"

The master half-closed his eyes with an inscrutable expression, but looked as if he hadn't woken up at all, "Miss, you want to move the red luan star this year, and it is very likely that that person is by your side..."

Wen Su opened his mouth, as if he heard his jaw drop.

Did I say that I am looking for marriage?Master, are you asleep?

The few people standing beside heard this, and immediately cast their gazes in unison.

The regent is dressed in white uniforms, with black hair hanging down, and looks magnificent.He glanced at this side lightly, his face was expressionless, but his eyes flickered slightly, and he didn't know what he was thinking.

Xiao Duan next to him was dressed in the same white robe as him, but looked thinner. He just smiled when he heard this, his bright black eyes were full of jokes.

Zhou Xianda and Qi Jian found it interesting, and Qi Qi looked at Liu Ke, whose cheeks were already flushed and his eyes were twinkling, those who didn't know it thought he was the one who wanted Hong Luan to move.

Everyone was silent, His Majesty looked left and right for a while, and asked very sincerely: "What is Red Luan Star Movement?"

Wen Su woke up in a jerk, and said haha: "Ah, young master, let's go out for a stroll, the scenery outside must be very nice..."

The emperor was dissatisfied with not getting an answer, walked up to Xiao Zheng and said, "Speak, uncle."

Maybe because he was dissatisfied with the "Uncle", Xiao Duan gave the little emperor a faint look, with a cold light in his eyes.

Xiao Zheng glanced at Wen Su's embarrassing face, and smiled slightly, "It's nothing, it's just a description of people wanting to be lucky."

"Oh? Then Zhen... when will Hongluan star move?"

"Pfft..." Wen Su covered her mouth, shaking with laughter.

Your Majesty, you are so cute, so cute.

Backed by the imperial court, Xiangguo Temple is naturally magnificent and magnificent. It is backed by Xiongshan Mountain, covers a very large area, and most of the flowers, plants and trees are famous products.

Wen Su wandered around after leaving the Daxiong Palace, so as to avoid the embarrassment caused by the release of the lottery just now.But thinking of what Fu Qingyu said that day, and thinking of Liu Ke being by his side, I always felt a little strange in my heart.

The red luan star moving that the master said... Could it be him?

Wen Su didn't know that at this moment someone was feeling overwhelmed, anxious, and emotionally stronger than her, and it was Liu Ke.

Normally, he could still talk and get along well, but after the incident just now, he became shy towards Wen Su, and he didn't even have the courage to call her by her name.

"Brother Chaoqing, there are flowers that can be broken." Qi Jian walked out from behind him, and glanced at Wen Su who was not far away, with a smile on his face.

"Wuyuan, don't talk nonsense." Liu Ke lowered his head, his eyes dodged.

"Brother Yu thinks it's better not to break the flowers." Zhou Xianda held a folding fan in his hand, and walked to the two of them in a neat Confucian shirt.

Liu Ke raised his head nastyly, "Why did Brother Guanyuan say that?"

Zhou Xianda put away the folding fan in his hand, pointed forward, "Look for yourself."

Liu Ke looked in the direction he pointed. Although Wen Su was walking slowly alone, she always followed the regent, almost inseparable.

The group had their own thoughts, so naturally they couldn't escape Xiao Zheng's eyes.While Fugui was waiting for the emperor to sit down and rest, he beckoned Wensu to talk.

Wen Su has been paying attention to the movements of the regent, and hastily followed after seeing the situation.

Fu Qingyu could see clearly from the side, feeling sad.

The two walked through the corridor, avoiding the others, and stopped under a banyan tree in the backyard.Xiao Zheng looked around, saw no one around and said: "Then Wen Qing must not believe the master's words, everyone he sees is saying this, and this king has also been told, it is very unreliable."

Wen Su was taken aback, "Unreliable?"

"Unreliable!"

"Um... yes."

After Xiao Zheng finished speaking, he glanced at her and turned to leave.

Wen Su walked back with him depressed, but ran into Liu Ke as soon as he left the backyard.She was already embarrassed by the master's words, and the regent was in front, so she turned around and left immediately.

Liu Ke had already seen her, and when he was about to speak, he saw the light green skirt disappearing from a distance. He was very shocked and followed her without thinking.

Seeing this, the regent stopped in his tracks and did nothing.

Wen Su turned around and saw Liu Ke who was following behind, choking speechlessly. She knew that she might as well have walked over openly, but now she really wanted to cover up.

Perhaps because he was afraid of startling other people, Liu Ke didn't dare to call her, but only hoped to catch up with her quickly and ask what happened just now.

Wen Su felt that if he had the opportunity, he must introduce a doctor to him. A muscle is a disease, and it needs to be cured!
There is a rockery behind the banyan tree in the backyard, which is built against the wall. Wen Su rushed there holding the corner of her skirt. Seeing that Liu Ke was about to arrive, she simply lost her ladylike image and climbed up with both hands and feet.

Liu Ke was a Confucian scholar, whose footsteps were not much faster than Wen Su's. When he got there, Wen Su was nowhere to be seen, and he was immediately confused.

Wen Su was worried that he would make another mistake, so he wanted to climb out of the wall next to the rockery and go around to the front.Unexpectedly, I was dumbfounded as soon as I climbed the top of the wall.

No wonder the rockery is built by the wall and is not afraid of attracting thieves. The bottom is actually a cliff!
"Susu, what are you going to do?!"

Wen Suzheng wanted to go back to the rockery with a numb scalp, when Liu Ke's exclamation suddenly came from below, she trembled and turned over, thanks to her hands on the wall, she didn't fall down, but she was also frightened Not lightly, and immediately howled like ghosts and wolves.

Liu Ke didn't expect it to be like this, and was stunned for a while, not knowing what to do, and finally Wen Su asked him to call someone to call his soul back.He hurriedly turned around, only to see a white shadow rushing towards him in the distance, jumping up the rockery not long after.

"Hand over your hand."

Wen Su was so frightened that cold sweat broke out on his forehead, and he said tremblingly: "My lord, I dare not let go..."

Xiao Zheng showed displeasure, this girl is usually very clever, why is she so unsteady today?He turned his head and glanced at the anxious Liu Ke below, and thought to himself, could it be because of this nerd?

He stepped on the wall and squatted down, stretched out one hand to grab Wen Su's wrist, but the other hand didn't move for a long time, he just watched her look back at him pitifully, sweating profusely.

"Chaoqing, go and call other people to help."

"Oh, yes yes yes!" Liu Ke came back to his senses and turned around quickly.

Xiao Zheng sent him away, then looked at Wen Su leisurely and said, "What is Wen Qing doing?"

"...Wang, lord, can we go up and talk?"

Xiao Zheng pursed his lips, and slightly lowered his hand, Wen Su was so frightened that he called out "Oh my god": "My lord, my lord, don't let go, don't..."

"Then what are you doing over the wall with nothing to do?"

"Wuuu, my lord, I'm forced to help you. In order to show my utter loyalty to my lord, I would rather fall off the cliff than have a private meeting with Mr. Liu..."

Xiao Zheng smiled slightly when he heard the words, and lifted her up. Wen Su hurriedly grabbed his arm with the other hand, kicked up with both feet, but suddenly heard him say: "This king thought you were I am ashamed because of the master's words."

Uh, my lord, let's go up and talk, please!

Seeing that Wen Su didn't answer, Xiao Zheng wanted to send his hand down again, Wen Su panicked, the hand that was holding onto his arm suddenly exerted force, and the whole body fell on him.Xiao Zheng was stunned for a moment, and as soon as she let go of her hand, she wrapped her other arm around his neck, wailing continuously: "My lord, I don't dare to be an official anymore, please don't leave me behind..."

"You..." Xiao Zheng was very embarrassed, and was about to speak when Wen Su, who had reacted, turned his head away from his neck, and something touched his lips softly and warmly, as if something whizzed and crushed from his heart However, it gave him a shock.

Wen Su was also stunned, the two were close at hand, their eyes were facing each other, their eyes were wide open, and they were very shocked.

"you……"

Suddenly Fu Qingyu's voice came from the side, Wen Su hurriedly turned her head, and saw a row of people standing in a row below, full of strong onlookers...

(End of this chapter)