Holding the qin, I sat cross-legged on the fur carpet and plucked the strings. Liu Qi brought a tea tray, presenting it to the Eastern Palace and then offering me a cup.
Feiwu stood among the white cranes on the shallow shore, attempting to dance, but her movements were stiff. After drinking a cup of hot tea, she gradually began to dance more smoothly.
I hurried to paint, completing the painting in just one hour, breaking my fastest painting record.
Xia Zhiyuan held Feiwu in his arms, looking with interest at the painting I presented. “Very delicate.”
Xiao Wu looks beautiful in this painting, doesn’t she?” Feiwu nodded reluctantly. I explained that the painting still needed coloring and post-processing, and the Eastern Palace casually waved his hand, indicating he was willing to wait. It was near dusk. The white cranes were returning to their nests, while the late-returning gray cranes were preparing to depart. I breathed a sigh of relief, thinking the day was finally just a false alarm and the task completed. Who knew that at this moment, Xia Zhiyuan would stand up and order the guards and concubines to retreat. I knew something was wrong and tried to sneak away with the guards, but was caught by two guards and thrown back. Xia Zhiyuan looked at me with a half-smile. I quickly smiled ingratiatingly at him, then belatedly realized I was wearing a veil hat, so he couldn’t see my expression. So I returned to looking indignant, with only my eyes maintaining an innocent look, quite twisted. He walked a few steps, standing with his hands behind his back by the shallow shore, not looking like he was about to do anything improper. I stood vigilantly beside him, ready to run at any moment, but he just chatted casually about trivial matters. I subtly asked him to stop pressuring the poor Book Clerk’s family, and he agreed readily.
Sunset on the shallow shore, gray cranes spreading their wings – it was quite poetic, only a pity that standing beside me was not An Jin. I yawned boredly, continuing to chat with the Eastern Palace.
“Madam, only you and I are here. You might as well remove it,” he reached out to pull my hat brim, suddenly. I didn’t expect such a move and stared at him in surprise.
