Chapter 714: Chapter 714: Who Is It?
Zi Yue hurried forward. "Your Highness, it was sent by the Ministry of Internal Affairs. They said soone from outside the palace wishes to present it to you!"
"Outside the palace?" Xia Ruqing felt sowhat suspicious. "That set of fine Yellow Jade Hairpins also seed to co from outside the palace! Brother’s salary isn’t much; he certainly can’t afford such fine things!"
Zi Yue added, "What if... it was given to the Marquis by soone else?"
Xia Ruqing smiled faintly. "Why would Brother give
sothing given to him by soone else? If he were to give sothing, it must be sothing he acquired himself! Only then is it worth giving! Besides, Brother is a smart man, wholly loyal to the Emperor. How could he accept such a valuable gift from soone else? It’s not very likely!"
Zi Yue thought about it and agreed. "Then... who could it be?"
Xia Ruqing carefully scrutinized the painting once more. It felt familiar, but she just couldn’t rember where she had seen it before.
Zi Yue also felt that the scene in the painting seed familiar, as if she had seen it sowhere. However, because the clothes were altered and the face wasn’t visible, relying only on a silhouette made it hard to say who it was. Therefore, guessing was difficult!
Xia Ruqing looked at it for a while and then tossed it aside. "Keep it for now, and don’t take it out unless necessary!"
The painting was exquisite; it’s just that she didn’t know who had sent it. Xia Ruqing felt sowhat uneasy inside. So... it could only be stowed away at the bottom of the chest.
After washing up, she lay down in bed. Through the window, Xia Ruqing gazed outside.
Counting on her fingers, she realized the Emperor had been gone for more than half a month. I wonder what he’s doing right now. Has he arrived? Was the journey taxing? Is he resting now? It’s so hot, and he went to the south. Will he co back tanned?
She lay there for a while, unable to sleep. She wanted to turn over, but her belly was too big. When she moved, the children kicked her.
"Ouch!" she exclaid. "These two little rascals, they only know how to kick !"
Xia Ruqing thought indignantly while rubbing her belly. Wait until these two are born. I’ll give each of them a good spanking to vent my frustration! Humph!
Lost in these thoughts, she soon fell asleep. After all, as a pregnant woman, she slept well.
「The next day, she slept until broad daylight.」
It was late May, the height of sumr had officially begun, and the weather suddenly grew intensely hot. She woke up drenched in sweat. After washing up and finishing breakfast, she was sweating again.
After bathing and changing her clothes, Xia Ruqing lay in her room, not wanting to go anywhere. There was an ice basin in the room, so she didn’t need to worry about the sumr heat.
Zi Yue brought over a few plates of sliced seasonal fruits and vegetables. Xia Ruqing saw that the lon looked good and ate two slices with a small silver fork.
She laughed and said, "This is delicious! It would be nice if the Emperor were here! I wonder if the Emperor can get to eat this where he is!"
Zi Yue chuckled. "Your Highness must be joking. The south surely has them, but the Emperor is away at war! He probably... isn’t focused on eating, right?"
Having served by their master’s side for so long, these servants all knew that the Emperor never indulged his palate. Whether such delicacies were available or not, the Emperor didn’t fuss over food.
Xia Ruqing thought that made sense too. "He is at war, after all! We’ll just have to make it up to him when he returns!" she said, nodding thoughtfully.
She could already picture Zhao Junyao returning, tanner and thinner. Alas! I’d better prepare to nourish him well. As The King, he still has to consider his image sowhat!
A good while passed as she was lost in these thoughts. Lying on the soft couch, Xia Ruqing leisurely began to ponder what to have for lunch.
I want to eat rice noodles! she decided. The rice is ground into a very fine powder, then stead into thin sheets, cut into slender strips, and finally drizzled with sauce and sesa oil. Delicious! It wasn’t her first ti eating this. The Imperial Kitchen had even assigned a very clever Little Eunuch solely to cater to her preferences, serving these rather unheard-of delicacies. That Little Eunuch was quite clever indeed. Every ti she ntioned sothing, he could grasp the gist of it. That’s why Xia Ruqing could always enjoy such a feast!
「When lunchti arrived,」 the Imperial Kitchen had indeed prepared the rice noodles. The rest of the al still followed the Imperial Physician’s advice. There were at and vegetable dishes, along with eggs, ensuring a nutritionally balanced al.
After all, being pregnant, Xia Ruqing wasn’t willful and ate a little of everything.
When lunch was over and the dishes were being cleared, Zi Yue was very happy. "Her Highness ate an extra egg today! This is good news!"
Xia Ruqing, stroking her rounded belly, nodded with satisfaction. "I also think it’s a good thing!"
Being pregnant and having a good appetite was surely a good thing!
After lunch, it was ti for her midday nap. Xia Ruqing yawned and went to lie down on her bed. She was very sleepy; as soon as she lay down and closed her eyes, she fell asleep and slept until evening.
When she opened her eyes again, Xia Ruqing looked outside. "The sunset colors are about to appear!"
Zi Su ca in with new clothes and chuckled. "Your Highness, you’re mistaken. There are no sunset colors outside. It’s a rainbow!"
Xia Ruqing was a bit startled. "A rainbow? Did it rain?"
"Her Highness was asleep and didn’t know. About half a Shi Chen ago, it suddenly started to pour with rain! But it didn’t last long, only about the ti it takes for half an incense stick to burn before it stopped. And look, after the rain stopped, a rainbow appeared!"
It had also cooled down outside, and having spent the entire day indoors, Xia Ruqing felt like taking a walk.
"The ground is slippery outside. If Your Highness really wants to go out, you must wear wooden clogs!" Zi Su advised.
Xia Ruqing did not hesitate. "Then I’ll wear them. It’s not like I haven’t worn them before!"
Wooden clogs might be cumberso, but they were perfect for rainy weather, being both slip-resistant and waterproof. After wearing them a few tis, Xia Ruqing had grown fond of them. Especially the sound they made on the stone paths after the rain—a DING DING DING that was very pleasing to the ear!
Zi Yue stopped worrying then and quickly instructed people to prepare the necessary items. Her Highness is going out!
The Palace Attendants swiftly gathered everything needed. After putting a finely woven cotton cloak on Xia Ruqing, they accompanied their mistress outside.
Actually, I have no intention of wandering far, Xia Ruqing thought. Turning right from my residence leads straight to the Imperial Garden. I’ll just sit in the garden for a bit. Surely no one will notice. Mainly, I really don’t want to bump into anyone accidentally.
The rainbow was beautiful. The flagstone paths of the Imperial Garden were already slip-resistant, and Xia Ruqing walked slowly and steadily.
Soon, she reached a small pavilion. This place is very close to Qingya Residence, Xia Ruqing noted, looking around with satisfaction.
"Let’s sit here for a while!"
"Alright!" Zi Yue replied, pleased. It’s good that Her Highness isn’t going far; otherwise, we would have been really worried!
Zi Yue, Zi Su, and the others then began laying a tablecloth on the table. They also placed thick cotton cushions on the chairs. After bustling about for quite so ti, they finally got everything settled.
Xia Ruqing sat on a stool, gazing at a small, nearby pond where lotus buds were on the verge of blooming.
On a whim, she declared, "I want to paint!"
Zi Yue glanced at Zi Su and said to Xia Ruqing, "Your servant will go fetch your supplies. Zi Su will stay here with you, Your Highness."
"Okay," Xia Ruqing nodded, and Zi Yue left.
Feeling bored as she waited, Xia Ruqing picked up her teacup. Just as she was about to take a sip, a figure suddenly entered her line of sight.
"Who’s there?!"
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