Two handsome and sturdy horses pulled the carriage, slowly driving through the bustling street, the horse’s hooves beat the ground, splashing a burst of sand and fog, the green stone plate under the wheels issued a “squeak” micro sound.
Glorious sunshine sprinkled in the long street on both sides of the green tiles between the red wall, that is like flying wings of the eaves, that the wind fluttering shop signboards and flags, that sparkling car and horse, that endless pedestrians, that a relaxed and cosy smile, all do not represent the people of the capital for the prosperity of the Ming Dynasty of the satisfaction.
“Hey, Zhu Pingan, where is your toadstool nest?”
Inside the carriage, Li Shu glanced at Zhu Ping An, her slender jade hand holding a handkerchief over her nose, pulling her tail to ask angrily.
Toad’s nest? Toad your sister ah, this stinky girl is really as poisonous, fart, arrogant and unselfish as ever! It’s really a waste of this good face!
“Inside Chongren Gate, Dongsheng Inn.” Zhu Pingan closed his eyes and faintly replied back.
Li Shu sniffed and glanced towards the little bun maid, then the little bun maid poked her little head out of the door of the car and whispered instructions to the driver of the horse outside. The horseman answered with a promise and drove the carriage in the direction of Chongren Gate.
“Dongsheng Inn, what a vulgar name, it must be a small inn, but it’s enough to be your toad’s nest.” Li Shu disdainfully glanced at her small mouth, then rolled her eyes.
“Si is a humble room, but we are virtuous and warm.” Zhu Pingan tugged the corners of his mouth faintly.
“Snort~”
Li Shu’s agitated nose moved, her dark ink-like eyes glanced at Zhu Pingan and sneered.
Listening to Li Shu’s sneer, Zhu Pingan slightly opened his eyes and glanced at Li Shu, seemingly smiling as he closed his eyes again.
A short while later, the carriage drove down the long street past Chongren Gate to the eastern end of the long street. A lofty building stood out in front of him, making people look at it twice. In front of the building, a long flag was erected with the words Dongsheng Inn written on it. It stood tall and erect, magnificent and superb. It was the most eye-catching building on this street. Inn is a three-storey building, but covers an extremely wide area, perched majestically on the east side of the street, as if the long street raised a thick arm. Warmly welcome guests from afar.
When the carriage stopped outside the Dongsheng Inn, Li Shu got off the carriage and looked at the obviously high-grade scale of the inn in front of her, and couldn’t help but open her small mouth wide in surprise.
“This is here?” Li Shu looked the inn up and down, full of disbelief.
“The Toad’s Nest in someone’s mouth.”
Zhu Pingan slightly hooked his lips. He said faintly, then took the lead and walked in.
“Zhu Pingan, wait for me.”
Li Shu looked up at Zhu Pingan’s figure as he stepped into the inn, and couldn’t help but flatten her small mouth, muttering a sentence of tugging what tugging, calling out to Zhu Pingan, then followed closely into the inn.
“Zhu Gongzi you finished the exam, I just guessed that Gongzi will be back soon, the hot water has already been boiled for Gongzi. Oh, right. I heard the magpies calling in front of Gongzi’s window for a long time, and the magpies reported the good news that Gongzi will surely be high school this time, so I thanked Gongzi in advance.”
Li Shu had just entered the inn when she saw a shop assistant unusually attentive arching his back and saying pleasing words in front of Zhu Pingan.
“This is the young lady right, the young lady is good, the young lady seems like a fairy descending to the earth, Gongzi is really lucky.”
When the shop assistant saw Li Shu, he followed up with another pleasing greeting to Li Shu. Compliments again.
“I’ve thanked you for taking care of me these past few days, Painting, look at the reward.”
Hearing the shop assistant call herself Young Lady, Li Shu’s pretty face blushed slightly. In her heart, she was secretly delighted, and the tips of her eyebrows rose a little, but on her face, she was unperturbed and cloudy, glancing at Painting, she ordered.
“Alright, you go and busy yourself.”
The bun little maid took one of the n number of red envelopes that she had prepared earlier. Casually rewarding the shop assistant, she then stood the shop assistant aside.
“Thank you young lady for the reward.”
The shop assistant weighed the weight of the red packet, a face smiling like a flower.
Li Shu followed Zhu Pingan up the stairs with only her little bun maid, Painter, leaving the others to wait downstairs. When she arrived at Zhu Pingan’s room, Li Shu’s little mouth opened wide again, amazed at the extravagant decorations in Zhu Pingan’s room.
“How can you afford to live here?” Li Shu asked after entering the room.
“A few days ago, the inn had an event to meet friends with literature, and if you matched all the couplets, you would get free room and board for a month. Well, that’s it, there’s still more than half a month to stay.” Zhu Pingan said indifferently before casually placing his travelling bag on the floor.
“Why are you still holding it, throw it away soon, it’s such a big smell,” Li Shu looked at the travelling bag that Zhu Pingan had put down and pinched her agitated nose, full of disgust.
“Excuse me, I’m going to change my clothes.” Zhu Pingan swept a glance at Li Shu and said indifferently.
“Denizen, which one cares to look at you!”
Li Shu rolled a big blank stare and pouted at Zhu Pingan.
Zhu Pingan did not care about Li Shu, and walked to the cabinet to open it and took out a set of clothes by himself.
“Ya, you’re going to wear this.”
Li Shu looked at the clothes that Zhu Ping An took out, her pretty face was full of dislike, her dark as ink eyes were also all dislike, sending Painter downstairs to get the clothes. “Painter, go downstairs and bring up the clothes I prepared.”
Painter answered and went downstairs upside down.
After Painter went downstairs, Li Shu came to Zhu Pingan and said in a serious manner, “Zhu Pingan, as you know, this birthday banquet is very important, as long as my father is coaxed well, I can go back and ask my father to withdraw from the marriage. And, well, the mansion knows that we are engaged, we also have to pretend to be nice, so don’t act badly and don’t think too much about it.”
“As for that?” Zhu Pingan looked at the serious Li Shu, always felt that there was something strange, why do you still need to act like this when you are going to withdraw from the marriage.
“Why not, the birthday banquet performance is good, father is happy; father is happy, I can go back to return the marriage. You don’t like this marriage either, right, so let’s make a deal.” Li Shu looked at Zhu Pingan, in a serious manner, that little look made people look very convincing.
Zhu Pingan looked at Li Shu for two seconds, then nodded, Li Shu saw this, a touch of joy was added to her pretty face, the corners of her eyebrows were glowing.
“The clothes I just casually let someone buy, don’t think too much.”
When the footsteps of the bun’s little maid approached, Li Shu spoke again, as if she was afraid that Zhu Pingan would misunderstand.
Soon, the little bun maid came up the stairs carrying a bundle, holding it in front of Li Shu as if offering a treasure, followed closely by two healthy servants carrying up a bucket of steaming bath water, the two carried the hot water upstairs and placed it in the bedroom before going downstairs.
“Dirty to death, you should brush yourself properly.”
Li Shu glanced at Zhu Pingan with contempt and led the little bun maid to the outer room to pack up her clothes, leaving Zhu Pingan to bathe in the bedroom.
