Chapter 20.2 â Strangers on First Meeting, Kin on the Second (2)
Lu Qipei didnât mention the matter about Qi Yang recommending her to be an official, because it was something that both sides already understood well. At the same time Qi Yang also knew that she was a woman and had no intention of becoming an official, so she couldnât even say thank you in the face of such an arrangement.
In fact, this was just because Lu Qipei had a big heart. If it was someone else who faced this situation, they might have thought that Qi Yang was deliberately trying to harm them â the crime of deceiving the Emperor was not a joke.
Qi Yang didnât mention the latter; it was just her opinion. Seeing that Lu Qipeiâs anger had dissipated, she smoothly handed her a cup of warm tea. âI havenât seen you for a long time. I missed you, so I came to see you.â
Lu Qipeiâs hand shook when she heard those words, and half of the cupâs contents immediately spilled on her blue officialâs robe. She was in a panic for a while afterwards â fortunately, what Qi Yang handed her was warm tea, otherwise she wouldâve been scalded by the heat.
Qi Yang frowned and took out a handkerchief to wipe her, âHow can you be so clumsy?â
Lu Qipeiâs heart was still shaking from her words, and she felt even more uncomfortable when she saw Qi Yang personally tidying up for her. She snatched the handkerchief in Qi Yangâs hand in a bit of a faux pas and said, âI, Iâll do it myself.â
Qi Yang didnât argue with her either, and let her snatch the handkerchief. She said, âGive me back the handkerchief after you wash it.â
Lu Qipei subconsciously glanced at the handkerchief in her hand. It had simple bamboo leaves embroidered in the corner, and there was nothing particular about it. But since Her Highness The Royal Princess had said so, she obediently agreed. She planned on washing it herself when she returned home.
After regaining her composure, Lu Qipei returned to her usual calm appearance and said, âYour Highness, donât make fun of me. To leave the palace and stay out until this hour, you must have other important things to do today.â
Qi Yang sighed in her heart, thinking that Lu Qipei was a bit dumb. But on second thought, she did like her smart but foolish appearance. She stopped bothering about it and handed Lu Qipei another cup of tea, replaying the previous scene. âFather Emperor allowed me to go out of the palace and build a mansion. Iâm going to go and survey the location.â
The Emperor always acted swiftly and resolutely, plus he always doted on Qi Yang. After she mentioned the princessâs mansion last time, he had people from the Ministry of Works start preparing. But although it was called building a princessâs mansion, it was really more of renovating an existing one. After all, building a new one would take a long time. The Emperor was not stingy, but Qi Yang didnât want to wait too long.
Lu Qipei was slightly surprised when she heard this. When he thought of her previous life, Her Highness clearly only left the palace and move to the princessâs mansion after her marriage. Why did it happen earlier this time? But if you count the time, it didnât really more forward that much. After all, back then the Emperor granted the marriage just after the Qionglin banquet, which was only a month away from now. Maybe this was around the time the preparations would have started?
The doubt in her heart was fleeting, and Lu Qipei didnât delve much into it. She just frowned and said, âWhy did Your Highness come to me for your princessâs mansion?â
Hearing this, Qi Yang said in her heart, âOf course itâs because I want to live there with you in the future. How can I not ask your opinion?â
However, she chose not to say it, worrying it would scare Lu Qipei again. So she swallowed the truth and said, âThe Ministry of Works has chosen three mansions to renovate, and Royal Father asked me to choose one of them to be my princessâs mansion. But I usually stay in the palace and rarely go out; I donât know which location would be better, so I wanted to find someone to go see them with me.â After a pause, she said, âI happened to think of you when I passed Hanlin Academy.â
That was also a false statement. After all, Qi Yang had the Emperorâs favor. How would the people from the Ministry of Works dare to give anything other than their all when selecting the locations for her princessâs mansion? All three mansions were the best of the best; they were located near the Royal Palace, and the neighbors were impeccable. The selection was all just about Qi Yangâs preference.
Although Lu Qipei was a bit dumb when it came to emotions, it didnât mean she was stupid. She immediately looked at Qi Yang suspiciously.
However, Qi Yang remained calm and didnât say anything else. Instead, she took out a package of snacks from a hidden compartment and smiled at Lu Qipei as she said, âIâve brought some milk cakes with me. Since your dinner will be delayed, you should eat this first to fill your stomach.â
Right, as soon as the milk cake was taken out, everything seemed even more premeditated.
Lu Qipei looked at Qi Yang helplessly, but what else could she do? She had never been able to say no to her.
At the moment, she didnât want to think about the Lu familyâs carriage that was left outside Hanlin Academy, and the trouble that might appear from her disappearing again. She took a piece of milk cake and put it in her mouth. The thick milk fragrance melted in her mouth, and her hungry stomach was comforted a little bit. Even her heavy fatigue seemed to have faded a lot under the feeling of satisfaction.
Author notes:
Qi Yang (feeling pleased with herself): Strangers on first meeting, kin on the second. After that, the third and fourth meeting â sooner or later, I will be able to tie my Prince Consort up and bring her home!
Lu Qipei (â¦â¦): The pitiful little thing that kept getting kidnapped is trembling.
Translator notes:
Chapter 20! We have officially caught up with the previous translation, and this chapter marks the first ânewâ chapter in this novelâs translation. From here on, weâre going full speed to uncharted territory!
To celebrate this occasion, Iâve also permanently added 50% more advance chapters available for all supporters in ko-fi, yay Ù©(ã»Ïã»)Û¶
If you enjoyed the novel and would like to read more chapters in advance, please consider supporting me in ko-fi :3