Eunuch's Declaration of Loyalty

Chapter 34

It was dusk, and the clouds in the sky had not yet dissipated. The red clouds and the clouds that had crossed over to Phnom Penh by the afterglow of the setting sun blended together. It looked extraordinarily magnificent. From a distance, half of the sky seemed to be burned by fire. .

The street was already crowded with people, most of them were fathers and mothers with their children, and the whole family was walking on the street talking and laughing.The child who was held tightly by his mother rushed forward happily like a calf, but was pulled back and told not to run too fast.There are younger children who sit on their father's shoulders, look around, and then point to something and cheer, making their parents shake their heads and laugh.

There are also many men and women walking together with lanterns in their hands, or they are close to each other and whispering, or they are a step away from each other without saying a word.There are silly smiles on their faces, and the atmosphere of getting along makes the passers-by around them cast understanding and kind eyes.

The restrictions on women in the Southern Dynasties were far less than those in the surrounding countries. In addition to this annual festival, many unmarried boudoir women went out of their homes to enjoy lanterns on the street, so there were also groups of cardamoms. girl.Although he was a little cautious, his bright eyes were full of curiosity and youthful.She wears a sachet purse accessory on her body, and a bead flower headband on her head, which can bring a burst of fragrance when walking by.

Many lights were lit on both sides of the street early on, some used for lighting on weekdays, and some red lanterns specially added every festival.There are also shops that are used to attract business on this day, and specially ordered lanterns to be placed in front of the shops. Of course, stalls selling lanterns of various colors are indispensable in the open space.

Numerous lights brighten the night market, and the orange light dispels the remaining chill of winter.

"Miss, if you walk too fast, the people behind will not be able to keep up." Qin Shu, who was wearing a modified robe and looked like an ordinary man, chased after the empress dowager who was walking briskly in front. Zuiyi and the guards were a little behind, so they couldn't help but speak.While talking, he tried his best to keep a distance between the empress dowager and the people around her, lest she be knocked down by the crowd.

"Taoye and Zhuiyi will find a place to play by themselves later, don't worry about them. As for the guards, they have followed me many times since they were young, and they are familiar with them, so why can't they keep up. Qin Shu, you are still worried Be yourself, don't be crowded out."

Liu Qingtang was dressed as she was in the boudoir, wearing the most common goose-yellow dress, with a silver hairpin on her head, her long hair was also tied with a red ribbon and hung behind her, her face was not powdered.She didn't pretend to be mature with a straight face and airs, and she smiled like a fifteen or sixteen-year-old girl, sly and innocent.

"Come on, pull me..." After Liu Qingtang finished speaking, she stretched out her hand to grab Qin Shu, and involuntarily led him to squeeze into the gap between the crowd.

Seeing the empress dowager excited like a half-grown child, she went straight into the crowd, regardless of whether the people around would bump into her, Qin Shu could only follow closely in a hurry, trying to protect her with his free hand. looking at her.

At this moment, someone shouted: "Dragon Dance is coming!" The already crowded crowd started to commotion and pushed forward one after another.Qin Shu was still some distance away from Liu Qingtang, but when he was squeezed by the surrounding crowd, his whole body stuck to her, and coupled with his previous posture of protecting her, he almost hugged Liu Qingtang in his arms.

At this time, they couldn't go against the crowd, and they couldn't squeeze out of the encirclement. The two of them were almost led by the crowd and didn't know where to go.

Seeing that Qin Shu was still trying to make room for her in this situation, Liu Qingtang worked hard to bear the pressure of the surroundings, so she let go of his hand, put her arms around his waist and slipped into his arms.Qin Shu was stunned for a moment, then without thinking about it, he put one arm around her waist and the other around her shoulders, completely protecting her in his arms.

The surrounding crowd was crowded and noisy, but Liu Qingtang rested her head on Qin Shu's shoulder and was completely embraced by him, feeling separated from the outside world for an instant.She could feel the ups and downs of his heart beating, beating a little fast.Unknowingly, her normal heartbeat also started beating equally fast.

Qin Shu hugged the person in his arms, taking advantage of the surrounding crowd, for the first time hugged her hard without any scruples, tightly, as if he would never let go.Liu Qingtang was a little out of breath being hugged by him, but she didn't say a word to remind her, and was quietly hugged by Qin Shu, with a gentle smile on her lips.

Gradually, the crowd quieted down and became less crowded.Qin Shu relaxed the strength in his hand, and then removed the hand that was hugging the empress dowager.Liu Qingtang also took a step back and left his arms. Before Qin Shu could feel lost, she grabbed Qin Shu again. "You have to keep pulling me tonight, or you will get lost."

"Yes, miss." Qin Shu looked at the empress dowager's hazy and warm smile under the lamp, feeling a sudden sense of satisfaction in his heart.Just like the bright lights illuminated the whole Yujing tonight, his heart was also illuminated by the Empress Dowager.It would be great if... I could always hug the Empress Dowager like tonight, just like I did just now.

"Ah Qin Shu, look quickly! The dragon dance is coming!"

Two dragons dotted with countless glittering pieces, are being danced by dozens of men wearing sweat scarves and festive red clothes. The huge and mighty dragon heads are chasing a red ball covered with ribbons and silk in front of them. You come and go, it really has a bit of the aura of a dragon playing with a pearl, and the children around are cheering and amazed.

Qin Shu didn't think there was anything wrong, but her mother, like those children, exclaimed and cheered.

"Miss, haven't you seen this dragon dance before?" He remembered that every year during the Lantern Festival, the palace specially invited people to perform the dragon and lion dance. What's your favorite expression.He always thought that the empress dowager didn't like to watch these things.

Liu Qingtang tiptoed to look forward, and replied without turning her head: "The dragon dance outside is still interesting, and everyone watched it together and it was lively. It's not like sitting high and far away inside the wall in the past few years. I can’t see clearly, and I can’t cheer loudly when I see interesting actions occasionally, I’m just suffocating.”

"Lion dance and lion dance..." Liu Qingtang said as he saw that six lion dancers came after Wulong passed by, he couldn't help forgetting his dissatisfaction, and shook Qin Shu's hand excitedly to show him.

Where did Qin Shu come to watch the dragon and lion dance? He stared at the empress dowager's lively expression from the sidelines from the beginning to the end, and never moved his eyes away.Being shaken by the Empress Dowager, he was so shaken that he barely looked away, and glanced at the lion dancers walking by on the street.

Lion dances are smaller than dragon dances, and there are six groups of two.It also looks more flexible, jumping and turning all of a sudden, rolling and shaking his head all of a sudden, his eyes can still blink, and flowers can be spit out of his wide-open mouth, making people laugh.There are also a few lions dancing and fighting together, one on top of the other, and they are circling around a red ball that they can't catch. People around laugh when they see it.

Liu Qingtang was watching with gusto, when she turned her head and found that Qin Shu was just staring at herself without blinking, she couldn't help but amusedly curled up her fingers and tapped his forehead and said, "Look at me, watching the dragon dance at this time It’s right for lions to watch lanterns.”

Qin Shu quickly looked away, but only after a while, he quietly looked at the empress dowager next to him.Feeling his gaze, Liu Qingtang ignored him and looked at the lantern car after the lion dance.The lantern car was covered with a red carpet, the railings on both sides were tied with red silk, and a huge ornate lantern was placed in the middle, as tall as two people.Each of the eight sides of the lamp is painted with a beauty, and these eight beauties are the eight beauties that have been famous since ancient times in the Southern Dynasty.

Liu Qingtang himself is known as a master of calligraphy and painting, so it is natural to see that this painting was painted by a famous artist, which is not bad.The lantern car passed by, followed by people playing suona horns and performing acrobatic dances.Although every dance and acrobatics Liu Qingtang had seen in the palace was better than this one, but the atmosphere was different and the mood was different, she still liked the current one better.

A long team passed by, and those who hadn’t seen enough continued to parade with the convoy, and those who had seen enough dispersed by themselves and continued to watch the roadside lanterns and go shopping in the market.Liu Qingtang touched her growling stomach, and excitedly dragged Qin Shu to eat Yuanxiao.

After walking through several stalls, the tables were already full of people. Liu Qingtang randomly found the stall with the most families, and shouted to the busy shopkeepers: "Two bowls of Lantern Festival."

The storekeeper responded with a smile, and looked down at the white and round Yuanxiao in the pot again. After it floated up, he took the bowl next to it and filled it with two spoonfuls, and asked the waiter to carry it to the waiting guests.

Liu Qingtang stood by and waited, and found that the shopkeeper was skilled at scooping up eight scoops with one scoop, and two scoops made a bowl. She never counted but never missed it. She couldn't help but find it funny, staring at the bowl he scooped up every time.

The shopkeeper was smiling, and his movements became faster and faster, but he never missed the count, so Liu Qingtang couldn't help but praise him.

"The little old man has been doing it for decades, and he can feel how many scoops are scooped up in his hands with his eyes closed." He said, and added one more to Liu Qingtang's two bowls.

When their two bowls were ready, Liu Qingtang directly gave some more money and asked Qin Shu to leave with his bowl.She didn't go far, and sat down on a quiet grassland facing the river next to the stall.

The guards who followed would not disturb her without her order, and followed them not far or near.Sitting here, she just made it possible for them to eat a bowl of Yuanxiao at the stall to fill their stomachs.

The long river flows eastward, and has been flowing to an invisible place.The two sat on the bank of the river. Although there were no lanterns here, there was a gentle moonlight.In Shangyuan, it was the first full moon of the year. At this moment, a round of bright moon in the sky sprinkled silver-white brilliance, reflecting a sparkling light on the river.

After admiring the moon for a while, the Lantern Festival in the bowl cooled slightly, Liu Qingtang picked up one from the bowl.But after taking a bite, she pursed her mouth and said, "The first thing I eat is the stuffed sesame and white sugar."

This kind of stall cooks Yuanxiao with many fillings mixed together. The store owner does not know what fillings are in a bowl, and the customers do not know what fillings they will eat next.Liu Qingtang hadn't eaten it for a few years, and she didn't expect that the first thing she ate was the stuffing with sesame seeds and white sugar, which she didn't like the most, so she couldn't help but feel a little unhappy.

Looking at Qin Shu next to him, he also took a bite, there was still half of the spoon left, and the stuffing that flowed out smelled like peanuts.Liu Qingtang suddenly turned sideways, lowered her head, and ate half of the stuffed peanut butter, and then stuffed a small bite of the sesame and white sugar stuffed Yuanxiao on her spoon into Qin Shu's slightly opened mouth because of surprise.

"I'll exchange this with you. I don't like sesame and white sugar stuffing." Liu Qingtang didn't think there was anything wrong with eating the Yuanxiao that Qin Shu had eaten. Seeing that Qin Shu had already eaten the sesame and white sugar Yuanxiao, she took back the soup and put it in Scooped another one into the bowl.

"Why is it sesame white sugar again!" Liu Qingtang stared at the Yuanxiao that had been bitten out with black sugar paste, and held it to Qin Shu's lips.

Qin Shu ate obediently, lowered his head and poked a small hole with a spoon in the white and fat Yuanxiao in his bowl, and then picked out the ones filled with peanut butter into Liu Qingtang's bowl.

"I also want jujube stuffing..." Liu Qingtang said indistinctly as she glanced at Qin Shu's bowl with Yuanxiao in her mouth.

Without further ado, Qin Shu picked out the stuffed jujube paste into her bowl.After this selection, there are only a few left in his own bowl.Liu Qingtang looked at the almost full Lantern Festival in her bowl, and picked some back for him. "Eat more, too. You see, you are only half a head taller than me at the same age as me."

When the question of size was brought up again, Qin Shu scooped up Yuanxiao, and said hesitantly, "I am two years younger than miss."

(End of this chapter)