After Marrying The Paranoid God of War (Rebirth) - Chapter 17.1
Chapter 17: Outer Room
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Although Chang’an was experiencing a prosperous spring, the children were frail. Ruan An always made Ruan Xi wear more clothes. Therefore, despite the young boy wearing a light-colored small pleated garment on the outside, he was also covered with a thin padded jacket inside.
If adults dressed like this, their figures would undoubtedly appear bulky. However, for a child like Ruan Xi, who had just turned three or four years old, as long as he was properly nourished, his cheeks would carry the unique baby fat of a young child. Dressing him like this only made him look more adorable.
Ruan Xi stood obediently, with bright and clear black pupils, resembling a soft and round glutinous rice ball.
Huo Changjue looked at the child’s appearance and found him very pleasant. He couldn’t help but be curious about the relationship between him and Li Yifang.
As Li Yifang’s colleague, Huo Changjue often sent street agents to inquire about Li Yifang’s recent activities. Recently, he heard that Li Yifang seemed to have tidied up his long-unused private residence. When the street guards patrolled the lane at night, they saw lights faintly visible inside.
It indicated that someone was living in that house.
Doubts gradually arose in Huo Changjue’s mind. Could it be that Li Yifang had a concubine?
He felt that this was quite possible, especially considering Li Yifang’s reputation. Li Yifang’s mother did not look favorably upon girls from ordinary families. If Li Yifang wanted to spend some romantic and intimate moments with a woman he liked, he would undoubtedly keep her as a concubine.
Well, unexpectedly, someone who always claimed to be noble had such an undisciplined private life.
On the other hand, Ruan Xi still remembered Ruan An’s instructions. Following the words his mother had taught him early in the morning, he spoke softly to Huo Lang, “My name is Ruan Xi, and I live with my grandmother. I don’t have parents.”
When Huo Lang hears that the child is an orphan, he remains silent for a while. He looks at Ruan Xi with deep eyes and notices a small red bump on the boy’s fair right cheek, likely from a spring mosquito bite.
Huo Lang glanced at Steward Su , who immediately understood. He hurriedly took out a shining gold ingot from his pouch and tried to hand it to Ruan Xi.
Ruan Xi did not extend his small hand, still remembering Ruan An’s instructions. He shook his little head repeatedly and replied, “Sir, I cannot accept it…”
Steward Su says, “It’s a reward from the Lord Prime Minister. You should accept it, and your grandmother can use it to make new clothes for you soon.”
Ruan Xi looks at the silent and reserved Huo Lang and feels a strange sense of familiarity with the old man.
At this moment, Huo Lang nods slightly to Ruan Xi, and Ruan Xi no longer refuses. He thanked loudly, “Thank you, sir!”
After Li Yi Fang led the child away, Huo Lang said in a deep tone, “This child looks a lot like Zhong Xun when he was young.”
Steward Su immediately agrees, “Indeed, it’s quite a coincidence. This old slave thinks he also looks a lot like the Lord Prime Minister when he was young.”
Huo Lang gave Steward Su a deep look but said nothing more.
Li Shuying’s birthday is approaching, and her wedding with the Crown Prince is scheduled before the Longevity Festival, just two months away. She will soon become the Crown Prince’s consort in the Eastern Palace.
Grand Tutor Li valued his granddaughter Li Shuying greatly and spent nearly a thousand taels of silver on her birthday banquet. He ordered people to buy Li Shuying’s favorite multi-petaled roses from Jiangnan, as well as the luxurious peony varieties, Yao Huang and Wei Zi 1, from Luoyang City
The private garden where Li Shuying lived was renovated last year, and recently, Grand Tutor Li ordered craftsmen to build pavilions, plant bamboo near the flower beds, and arrange rare stones from Jianzhou around the pavilions.
The two sisters of the He family received invitations from Li Shuying. This morning, as He Xinruo stood behind the screen, being attended to by maids while getting dressed, she asked, “Did He Xinyan accept the invitation?”
The maid nodded.
He Xinruo’s tone turned serious: “How many times has it been? Why does she still attend banquets? Hasn’t she had enough of being ridiculed repeatedly?”
He Xinruo was not quite sure about Li Shuying’s reasons for inviting that concubine-born girl every time. Her mood these days could be said to be floating in the clouds every moment.
With the triumphant return of Marquis Dingbei, the Huo family had regained its former position. He Xinruo understood that many people believed it was because Huo Pingxiao died in battle that she got such a good opportunity to marry into the Huo family.
Who would have thought that her marriage would be even more splendid now?
Isn’t this a direct slap in the face to those people?
Huo Pingxiao is not yet married, and Huo Leshi, born to Concubine Jiang of the Huo family, is still studying at the Imperial Academy. She is the only daughter-in-law in the entire prime minister’s mansion.
Moreover, Madam Gao was her direct mother-in-law, and her biological son was Huo Changjue. If Madam Gao did not support her, who else could she support?
Although Huo Changjue was not as outstanding as Huo Pingxiao, he was still Huo Lang’s legitimate son. Since Huo Pingxiao had a title, Huo Changjue would naturally inherit Huo Lang’s title, and she would become the future Madam Hou.
The more He Xinruo thought about it, the more excited she became. However, she didn’t forget to instruct her maids, “We will go to the banquet early. I don’t want to ride in the same carriage as those ugly people.”
Upon arriving at Grand Tutor’s Mansion, after exchanging pleasantries with several well-connected noble girls, He Xinruo marveled at the delicacies served at the Li mansion.
The sliced dreamy pork hock meat 2 was translucent, with a perfect balance of fat and lean, melting in the mouth. Gold and silver flower-patterned dumplings 3 were stuffed with plentiful crab meat and crab roe…
He Xinruo indulged in many delicacies she rarely had throughout the year, such as preserved pearl cherries and Horse milk grapes. She couldn’t help but envy Li Shuying even more. She hadn’t even entered the Eastern Palace yet, and the food was already so exquisite. One could only imagine the wealth and luxury she would enjoy in the future.
Suddenly, He Xinruo realized that she hadn’t seen the figure of her half-sister He Xinyan all along, but she noticed several noble ladies in the distance who were occasionally praising someone.
Following the sound, her expression changed immediately.
She saw He Xinyan with an ornate palace-style bun, a bird-shaped hairpin, and a chest-length apricot-colored ruqun 4, looking bright and charming.
Although He Xinyan’s appearance was not extraordinarily outstanding, from a distance, she was quite eye-catching.
He Xinruo almost failed to recognize her half-sister. When she saw He Xinyan’s skin again, her eyes widened significantly.
While her face wasn’t flawless, it had improved significantly compared to the previously pockmarked and heavily made-up ugly face.
He Xinruo, in the midst of jealousy and resentment, gradually felt a sense of panic in her heart.
She had always instructed someone to tamper with He Xinyan’s medicine before. Until now, no one in Concubine Fang’s courtyard had noticed anything unusual. But now that He Xinyan’s face had improved, wouldn’t they discover something?
The more He Xinruo thought about it, the more anxious she became. After all, Concubine Fang had the backing of the Duke of Pei’s mansion. Although she was a concubine, her status in the He family was enough to contend with her mother.
“I can see that your skin will be completely healed soon.”
“Yes, yes, Miss He, who is the physician that prescribed the medicine for you? His medical skills are really remarkable. I also want him to prescribe some medicine to nurture and care for my skin.”
He Xinyan blushed and smiled. Since her facial blemishes had improved, she finally dared to admire her appearance in the mirror. Her mood had improved, and every day she woke up feeling more hopeful.
No wonder Doctor Ruan was famous in the southern region; her medical skills were not just a reputation.
On the other hand, when Li Shuying heard the praise from the other noble ladies for He Xinyan, her eyes twitched involuntarily, but she maintained a dignified and graceful smile on her face.
He Xinyan’s face had actually improved!
It seemed that Ruan Gu’s prescription had worked. Furthermore, the fact that even He Xinyan’s skin had improved while her own complexion remained the same, appearing sallow without cosmetics, made Li Shuying extremely frustrated.
She secretly made up her mind. This physician couldn’t have vanished into thin air; she must find out where Ruan An had gone.
Yao Huang and Wei Zi
pork hock meat and flower-patterned dumplings
Ruqun
