mtl008 Chapter 735 What happened?
Chapter 735 What happened?
On the twenty-seventh day of the lunar year, the day before Jing Chunxi went into the city, dinner was already New Year's dishes, with the table full of food and snacks.
The Eight Immortals table was piled high with dishes, displaying New Year's dishes like Jade Shrimp Dumplings and Honey-Glazed Fireballs. A steaming Fushouquan stew pot rose in the center, and even two bowls of the rare cherry yogurt were prepared. But Jing Chunxi had no appetite, and neither did the others.
Chunxi's chopsticks were fiddling with the rice in the bowl, Pu Ge'er had poked his favorite crab meat lion's head into pieces, and even Jing Qiurong only drank half a bowl of ham and bamboo shoot soup.
"Dad has already sent a secret letter to Xi'er, saying he's leaving after the Lunar New Year. Be careful this time you enter the city," Jing Yi said softly. As he spoke, his fingers unconsciously twirled the wine glass, the "Fu" character on the bottom of the glass appearing and disappearing in the candlelight.
In the past few days, there has been no news from the butler and Uncle Liu, and no one has returned to Qingshan Villa. I don’t know what is happening in the capital and the palace.
"I'll send you four more secret guards. If you encounter any danger, save your life first and come back immediately." Jing Yi tried his best to be foolproof and even sent extra people to protect you along the way, but he didn't say this.
……
The family who were having dinner with Princess Jing in Mulan Courtyard were startled by Jing Chunxi's sudden intrusion.
The bead curtain was suddenly lifted up, and the jade beads collided with each other, making a crisp sound, which startled the maid who was serving the food and almost knocked over the celadon soup bowl in her hand.
As soon as Prince Jing saw Jing Chunxi, he ate a pound of food.
He put down the ivory and silver chopsticks in his hand with a "pa" sound, and the tip of the chopsticks made a crisp sound when it hit the edge of the bowl. He asked repeatedly: "Is something wrong?" His thick eyebrows were tightly knitted together, and several deep wrinkles appeared on his forehead.
"Sister Xi," Ling'er called out with mixed feelings. She was happy to see her cousin, but also worried about this unnatural and sudden visit. She was also frightened by Grandfather Wang's words.
Prince Jing's sudden words scared everyone to stand up, and the mahogany chairs made a harsh sound as they dragged across the floor tiles.
Even Princess Jing, whose eyesight was not very good, was no exception. She stood up tremblingly, holding the edge of the table, and asked repeatedly: "Is there an accident? Is it your father or your mother?" Her skinny fingers tightly grasped the sleeves of Princess Jun, and her knuckles turned blue and white.
Her voice trembled as she spoke, and the Princess hurried to support her. She could feel her mother-in-law's arm trembling slightly. "Don't worry, mother," the Princess whispered soothingly, her other hand quietly pressing against her swollen belly.
"It's okay. Dad and Mom asked Xier to represent the whole family and celebrate the New Year with grandparents."
Jing Chunxi didn't expect that his sudden visit would cause so much speculation, so he quickly slowed down his words and bowed to the elders.
Seeing that everyone was still in a daze and knew that they didn't quite believe her, Jing Chunxi bent over, touched her stomach, and said with a smile, "Grandma, I came out so early in the morning and I'm so hungry. Do you have any food for Xier?" She deliberately made her voice light, but secretly observed everyone's reaction from the corner of her eyes.
Princess Jing: "Yes, yes, we have the lion's head that Xier likes to eat," she was about to raise her hand, but was gently held down by Princess Jun, "Please sit down, mother. Let the servants prepare the rest." The old princess came back to her senses and nodded repeatedly, but she still looked at Jing Chunxi with a little suspicion, but the fear on her face had disappeared.
"That's great." Jing Chunxi pretended to be hungry for several days and stuck out his tongue.
The Princess raised her hand and was about to ask someone to move a chair, but a maid who was sensible had already taken the initiative to place the chair next to Ling'er. The maid was quick and skillful and did not forget to put a brocade cushion embroidered with lotus flowers on the chair.
Granny Yin also prepared bowls and chopsticks, a set of blue and white porcelain that was the same as the one used by everyone present, and she kept greeting them, "Miss, please sit down." Deep wrinkles appeared at the corners of the old nanny's eyes, and after she finished speaking, she retreated behind Princess Jing.
Hungry! It's not fake.
As soon as Jing Chunxi sat down, he picked up the bowl without hesitation. Someone had already put a lion's head meatball in the white jade bowl. The red meatball was still steaming and was dotted with green chopped green onions.
A large piece of spareribs was also transferred from Ling'er's bowl, with the bones still attached to the crystal meat shreds, and the sauce shimmered with an alluring luster in the candlelight. Ling'er was still blinking beside her and smiling at her.
Prince Jing called out loudly with full energy, "Eat!" But he did not pick up the chopsticks. Instead, he poured half a glass of wine into the empty glass in front of him. The amber liquid swayed slightly in the luminous glass.
He picked up the wine and clinked it against the empty glass next to him, making a crisp sound, and said to his son, "Drink!" The old prince's eyes were as sharp as an eagle, staring closely at his son's reaction.
Prince Hong looked at Jing Chunxi, then at his father, before picking up the wine jar and pouring wine into his own cup. However, he only took a sip, his Adam's apple rolling slightly, and the wine was almost not reduced.
He and Prince Jing had the same idea and had long ago warned his family not to go into the city, but this niece had come on her own so close to New Year's Eve. At this juncture, he really didn't believe that she was here to spend the New Year with his father and mother.
The only thing that came to mind was that something had happened.
Prince Hong's eyes swept back and forth over Jing Chunxi, trying to find clues from her clothes and appearance - her hair bun was a little loose, and there was a little dust on the hem of her skirt. She looked like she came on horseback, but her expression was unusually calm.
Looking at the look and expression of this cheap niece, it didn't seem like anything serious had happened. I wonder what her purpose in coming here is? Prince Hong's fingers unconsciously stroked the rim of the wine glass, where the fine winding branches were engraved.
So, you can't drink too much alcohol.
He quietly pushed the wine glass away, leaving a circle of wet marks on the table with the bottom of the glass.
After drinking two glasses of wine, Prince Jing said, "Xi'er, come with us to the front yard later. Grandfather and uncle want to discuss something with you."
......
Ling'er felt it was very strange. Sister Mingxi was only three years older than her, but why did she always have so many things to discuss with Grandfather Wang and her father every time she came?
She bit the tip of her chopsticks, her eyes moving back and forth between the two adults, and noticed that the vertical wrinkle between her father's eyebrows, which only appeared when he was worried, had reappeared.
After dinner, the three of them walked towards the front yard tacitly. Prince Jing walked in front, his steps were much faster than usual, and the jade pendant on his waist made a messy sound when it collided with each other.
"I wonder when Sister Xi will come back after chatting again." The most depressed one was Ling'er. She kicked the tip of her embroidered shoes that was exposed under her skirt, and the pearls on the toes swayed gently with her movements.
Sister Xi said last time that she slept with her for one night, but she also said that something happened in the front yard and she didn’t know when she would be back. She was afraid that she would stand her up again tonight.
Ling'er pouted and twisted her fingers around the silk ribbon around her waist, wrinkling the apricot-yellow ribbon.
"Your sister Xi is a person who does great things. How can she play with you all the time? Don't tease her." The princess gently scolded her daughter and patted Ling'er on the shoulder lightly.