Xichun nodded. “Don’t worry, Lady Ru. The young lady gave instructions before entering the palace.”
“Oh, right. Big Sister is always more thorough than me.”
Xue Ru showed no trace of displeasure, instead smiling with pride and affection. “Then let’s follow Big Sister’s orders and make sure everything is handled properly without any oversights.”
After setting the soup aside, Xue Ru led Xichun back, her mind drifting to the scene she’d just witnessed. As she walked, her head tilted in thought.
Supervisor Xiao’s identity was now tentatively clear, and he and Big Sister shared a mutual affection, openly displaying their closeness in front of the courtiers. Given how much Supervisor Xiao cared for Big Sister, their marriage was likely imminent.
If Big Sister were to marry, she should prepare a congratulatory gift…
Xue Ru mentally tallied her savings.
After Big Sister put her in charge of the household, she’d received generous monthly allowances. When they severed ties with the Song family, Big Sister had also secured a substantial settlement from her so-called father. She’d been carefully saving it all.
Oh, and the subsidies from the academy’s minor exams…
Xue Ru calculated her little treasury, a big smile spreading across her face, her steps light with joy.
“What’s Lady Ru thinking about, smiling so happily?” Yue Jian, perched on the wall, asked with curiosity.
Hang Li glanced over. “Don’t know.”
“Don’t know, and you’re smiling?”
Yue Jian shot him an exasperated look. “The Dragon Court Guards will head back to the northwest soon. I heard you’re planning to go with Fu Yue and the others?”
Hang Li nodded. “I spoke to the Supervisor, and he agreed.”
Yue Jian raised an eyebrow. “Figured it out? Ready to fight for yourself?”
Hang Li said, “Yes.”
Though Fu Yue and the others seemed close to the Supervisor, they were far off in the northwest, and the Dragon Jade Seal’s hold over them might not last. The Supervisor needed trusted allies within the Dragon Court Guards to monitor the northwest’s situation and Beiling’s movements while ensuring no second Shang Qin emerged.
He liked Xue Ru and didn’t want her to face ridicule or disdain because of him. He had to carve out a future worthy of standing before her and confessing his feelings.
“Have you told Lady Ru how you feel?”
“No.”
“No?!”
Yue Jian was shocked. “You’re leaving without saying anything?”
“Di Tao’s staying in the capital, you know. With his relentless, shameless pursuit, aren’t you afraid you’ll return from the northwest without any achievements, only to find Lady Ru has accepted him? By then, they’ll be happily married, and you’ll be left crying.”
Hang Li said, “That won’t happen. A-Ru knows my feelings.”
Seeing Yue Jian’s stunned expression, a faint smile touched his eyes.
“I’ve never hidden my feelings for A-Ru. She’s smarter than most and far more attuned to others’ emotions. Though I haven’t explicitly told her, I’m certain she knows.”
Yue Jian was speechless. “So what? You haven’t said it outright, and Di Tao’s practically shouting his intentions to the world.”
“She doesn’t like Di Tao.”
Yue Jian raised an eyebrow.
Hang Li explained softly, “A-Ru hasn’t awakened to romantic feelings. Her tolerance and closeness to Di Tao are mostly because of the young lady and the Supervisor. Compared to marrying and having children, she prefers staying at the academy, living freely like Lady Qin, unbound by reliance on a man.”
Hang Li recalled a time long ago when Xue Ru went to deliver a message for Tang Ning.
She was clearly terrified, crying with a pale face, yet she hitched up her skirt and crawled through a dog hole, defying the father and family she’d feared since childhood, doing things most women wouldn’t dare.
“Don’t let her timid, gentle appearance fool you. She’s bold at heart. Not to mention Di Tao, even the capital’s nobles and aristocrats might not catch her eye.”
“But…”
“No buts.”
Hang Li’s expression softened when speaking of Xue Ru. “She knows my feelings. Since she hasn’t brought it up, she doesn’t feel the same for now. I’m heading to the northwest to risk my life for a future. If Beiling invades, the battlefield is unpredictable.”
“If I confess now and she rejects me, it’ll distract me and weigh on my mind. But if she accepts and something happens to me in the northwest, what then?”
“A young woman’s best years are fleeting. I can’t let her waste them on me. She should stay in the capital, pursuing the life she wants, while I fight for the future I envision. If I return and she’s still unattached, I’ll confess and hope for her favor.”
Yue Jian frowned. “What if she finds someone she likes?”
Hang Li paused. “If she has someone she loves, and he’s a good match, I’ll prepare a wedding gift and wish her a lifetime of happiness.”
Yue Jian’s frown deepened. “You’re awfully generous!”
“It’s not generosity. A-Ru shouldn’t bear the burden of my future.”
While part of his reason for going to the northwest was Xue Ru, more than that, he refused to remain subordinate, yearning for success and a bright future.
He couldn’t expect Xue Ru to agree to be with him and shoulder his ambitions just because of his own desires.
He wasn’t that shameless.
Seeing Yue Jian’s brows twist into knots and her odd look, Hang Li laughed. “What’s that expression?”
Yue Jian replied, “The look you give a fool.”
She couldn’t fathom Hang Li’s thinking, talk of yielding and letting go, even sending her off to marry. If she liked someone, she’d snatch them back first, no matter what.
She wouldn’t leave her favorite meat in a wolf’s den for cubs to covet daily. At the very least, she’d mark it as hers first.
“Forget it, I’m done with you!”
Yue Jian slapped her skirt and jumped off the wall. “With the Supervisor’s identity clear, suitors for Lady Ru will probably trample the doorstep. Be so generous if you want, but don’t come crying when you lose your wife.”
She stomped off, pushing the door open, and glanced at the pigeon soup simmering on the brazier. Muttering, she said, “Such a considerate young lady, plenty of people want her. If it were me, I’d snatch her back to my nest first, not play the noble pauper…”
“Snatch back to whose nest?”
Canglang poked his head in from the window.
Yue Jian jumped. “Where’d you come from?!”
“Just finished handling things outside. Got some matters from Xi Weifang and messages from Fu Yue. I’m here to report to the Supervisor.”
Canglang’s nose twitched, his stomach growling. “Who sent this? Smells amazing…”
He climbed through the window, reaching for the food by the brazier, only to have his hand swatted away by Yue Jian. “Don’t touch! That’s for the young lady and the Supervisor.”
Canglang retracted his hand, muttering, “There’s so much. One piece wouldn’t kill anyone.”
Seeing Yue Jian’s glare, he swallowed hard and looked away. “Fine, I won’t eat. Why so fierce…”
This shrew.
She’ll never get married!=============
You can read ahead to chapterr 770 (100+ extra chapters) here
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