“Mo Chou, since you don't wish to sleep, shall we sit outside for a while?”
Mu Qing Yao, rarely shedding her cold exterior, displayed a gentle expression on her beautiful, delicate face. Her eyes, like a pool of spring water, sparkled with allure, and her voice was pleasant and melodious as she spoke slowly.
Mo Chou nodded, “Very well, this servant will accompany Young Miss.”
The two of them left the bedchamber and sat on the railing outside the corridor, gazing at the moon in the sky, which was as curved as willow leaves in February. The evening clouds gradually dispersed, and the light blue sky resembled a piece of beautiful glazed glass. The moonlight illuminated the courtyard, making it pure and clean.
A sense of infinite melancholy arose, tinged with a faint pain.
In her previous life, she had loved someone so deeply, only to meet such an end. She hadn’t even given her pure body away before her soul had departed for the netherworld. In this life, she would never again dare to trust any man so easily.
She had intended to live a quiet life, but in the end, she was still drawn into darkness without cause…
“Mo Chou, never fall in love with a man too easily from now on, because to love is to feel pain, and if you don't love, you won't feel pain?”
In the night, her words were chilling, like the voice of a soulless specter, yet they didn't inspire fear. Instead, they evoked a pang of heartache. Mo Chou turned to look at her, wondering what was wrong with her Young Miss.
Under the moonlight, her Young Miss’s profile was cast in a hazy sadness. Her clear, bright eyes were tinged with something like mist. Mo Chou was startled. Had her Young Miss been violated, that the usually aloof Young Miss would be so melancholic?
“Young Miss, have you been… assaulted?”
Mo Chou suddenly leaped down from the railing, her fingers gripping the carved balustrade. If this were that person’s neck, she would have strangled him the first moment she saw him. How dare he provoke her pure and immaculate Young Miss.
Mu Qing Yao blinked, turning to look at Mo Chou. Seeing that the girl had misunderstood, she quickly shook her head, “It’s nothing. Don’t make such a fuss. Come, shall I sing you a song?”
When she was in a bad mood, she would sing. Had this been a habit of hers since long ago?
“Okay.”
“The one I loved, I no longer possess, many stories have reasons to be sad. This time my love cannot wait for eternity, can the one I missed be looked back upon? The heart that has loved asks for nothing, many stories have reasons to be sad. This time my love cannot wait for eternity…”
In the watery night, the melodious singing, tinged with a faint melancholy, drifted far away.
Mo Chou listened intently, fully sensing her Young Miss’s emotions. Her heart seemed to hold a little pain, a little longing, a little helplessness.
The young maids in Qing Yuan who had not yet slept all put on their clothes and stood in the courtyard to listen to their Young Miss sing. Although they didn’t understand the meaning of the lyrics, they could feel the faint sorrow in the singer’s heart, making one want to cry and sob.
With one song, Mu Qing Yao let out a breath, finally feeling much better. She raised her head to look at the moon in the sky.
“My loved ones, how are you? You must be happy. Chen Chen will live very well here. No one can bully me.” Her gaze suddenly turned cold. She regained her usual aloofness and turned to look at Mo Chou by the corridor. She saw that the young girl’s face was full of tears, as if she had been moved to tears by her song.
“Mo Chou, let’s go inside and rest. Young Miss is tired.”
“Yes, Young Miss,” Mo Chou wiped away her tears with her sleeve and helped her Young Miss back into the bedchamber.
The young maids in the courtyard sighed for a moment before returning to their rooms to rest.
The tenth day of the seventh month, with only five days left until the wedding day, the Prime Minister’s mansion became busy. Early in the morning, the entire mansion was bustling with activity.
Only Qing Yuan remained quiet, as the Young Miss was sleeping. No one dared to disturb her when she slept, yet faint sounds could still be heard.
Mu Qing Yao was sleeping soundly when suddenly her whole body fell into a warm, soft embrace. This embrace was so comfortable, fragrant, and filled with a rich maternal aura, making her unwilling to move at all. She just snuggled contentedly.
Who was this? Holding her with such affection, so much like grandmother’s embrace, so soft and fragrant. Mu Qing Yao truly wished to be lost in this sweet embrace, not thinking or asking about anything.
But a soft hand gently pinched her cheek, accompanied by a tender voice.
“Baby, wake up. Auntie has come to see you.”
The voice was soft like a nursery rhyme sung by a woman from the Jiangnan water towns, with a languid quality that made one feel sleepy. Mu Qing Yao’s eyes suddenly opened. She saw a beautiful face presented before her.
This woman’s eyes were not large, but slender, with fine crow's feet at the corners. However, this did not detract from her beauty; instead, it added a touch of mature charm.
“Aunt Su,”
Mu Qing Yao instinctively called out, feeling an inexplicable sense of closeness to this woman.
Even with her reincarnation, she liked the woman before her. She was petite and wore a green long dress, with a white Yanxia silk sash tied at her waist. The colors were distinct, making her petite figure appear well-proportioned.
At a glance, she seemed tall and slender.
“Baby, you’re awake?”
Su Ge blinked her eyes, looking at Mu Qing Yao. Yao’er seemed a little different. Her eyes were clear and translucent, and a faint detachment emanated from her. This expression made her resemble her sister even more.
Su Ge had been raised by her elder sister, Su Yi, since childhood. Therefore, after her sister’s death, she had raised Yao’er as her own child.
Before she got married, she had always brought Yao’er along. It was only a few years ago, when she married and moved to Huaicheng in Jiangnan, that she had been separated from Yao’er.
In her memory, Yao’er was very fond of clinging to her. The little girl had grown into a beautiful young lady.
Later, news gradually reached Huaicheng that Yao’er was infatuated and always liked handsome men. This made her, as her aunt, extremely anxious. She had wanted to return to Lin’an City several times, but her husband would not allow her to leave.
Unexpectedly, it was only now, with Yao’er’s wedding, that she could return.
“Aunt Su,” Mu Qing Yao called out again. She hadn’t expected to see someone who made her feel so intimate. This woman’s eyes were filled with adoration, a genuine liking for her.
“Come, let’s see what Auntie has brought you?”
Su Ge had a somewhat childlike personality. She pulled Mu Qing Yao up to go and look at the gifts she had brought her.
Several large boxes of goods, all of them treasures: the most luxurious silks from Jiangnan, ceramics from official kilns, and poems and paintings by scholars from Jiangnan.
The most special among them was a snow-white little fox. This little fox had a pointed snout, large eyes, and smooth, soft fur. As soon as it saw Mu Qing Yao, it leaped straight into her arms.
“Yao’er, this is Mao Xue Qiu. Isn’t it cute? Auntie’s wedding gift for you. What do you think? Do you like it?”