Those on the roof widened their eyes and hurriedly leaned over to peek. Their heads were bunched together, their butts sticking out cautiously as they huddled into a mass, looking extremely comical.
Wei Dongling wasn't willing to be outdone either. She poked through two spots of the window paper and pressed her eyes against the holes to peer inside.
Luo Xunlong and Cui Huan lifted the bright red wedding quilt, and there was a red package inside. Cui Huan reached out and untied the package, revealing a large bag full of shiny, golden ingots.
Wei Dongling's eyes almost popped out. Holy cow! Who was this generous? More lavish than she, the Fifth Princess!
Jealousy welled up in her heart, making her feel sour all over.
The newlyweds exchanged a look. Cui Huan asked in confusion, "Who stuffed this into the quilt? Was it here last night?" She had been sitting in the bridal chamber for most of the day and hadn't gone out at all. How could she be completely unaware of this?
The crucial thing was that someone had quietly stuffed a large bag of gold ingots into the quilt, and there was no sign of it from the outside.
"It shouldn't be," Luo Xunlong said, very puzzled. If it was a gift from relatives or friends, shouldn't they have come through the front door and had their names recorded in the gift register? How could someone send it into the bridal chamber silently without leaving a name? Luo Xunlong murmured, "Huanhuan, I have no relatives or friends in the capital except for you all."
Hearing this, Cui Huan trembled. She did have someone! None of the senior brothers and sisters from Yan Gu Mountain had come today. Since she couldn't get in touch with them, she hadn't sent them invitations.
Could it be that her senior sisters found out about the news secretly and specially sent this silently? After all, apart from them, Cui Huan really couldn't think of anyone else around her who would be so generous.
But if her senior sister had come, why didn't she meet her privately? She had so many things she wanted to ask her.
Suddenly, Wei Dongling remembered that when she was making pearl dumplings in the Listening Wind Tower, Yu Zixi would often climb in through the window to check on her. When he saw her sleeping, he wouldn't have the heart to wake her up. He would just quietly slip some gold ingots into her quilt and leave.
The way this person stuffed gold ingots into the newlyweds' bed was so similar to Yu Zixi's method! Could it be Yu Zixi?
Wei Dongling's face changed drastically. She suddenly remembered that on the way to fetch the bride today, she had clearly seen what seemed to be Concubine Shu's profile in the carriage across the street! Could it be that Concubine Shu and the others took advantage of the fact that all the experts from the Su Mansion had gone out to fetch the bride and quietly sneaked into the mansion to give a generous gift to Junior Sister Cui Huan? The more Wei Dongling thought about it, the more likely it seemed!
Ruan Niang saw Wei Dongling's solemn expression and the changing of her face. She quickly asked, "What's wrong? What's inside?" As she spoke, she also craned her neck and peeked through the hole in the window paper.
Wei Dongling said dejectedly, "Ruan Niang, there's a high chance that Yu Zixi is still alive..." But why was he avoiding her? If he hadn't deliberately hidden, how could so many people have searched the capital upside down and still found no trace of him?
Ruan Niang looked at the inside of the room and then at Wei Dongling's face. She asked doubtfully, "You mean the gold ingots inside might be a wedding gift from Zixi to Cui Huan? But why didn't he come through the front door? Why did he come secretly?"
Wei Dongling's nose twitched, and she slumped to the ground, sobbing softly. During the days without any news of Yu Zixi, she had been constantly worried, fearing that something bad had happened to him.
Now, she finally had a faint feeling that he was still alive, but he was avoiding her! This made Wei Dongling feel as if her heart was being stabbed with a knife.
Ruan Niang quickly squatted down and asked anxiously, "Girl! Don't cry. We'll go find him tonight!"
Wei Dongling had brought Lady He back to be by her side, thinking that if Yu Zixi ever came back, seeing that Lady He was well, he would at least have no worries. But he had come for Cui Huan's wedding. How could he not even take a look at her?
The more Wei Dongling thought about it, the more stuffy she felt in her heart. Choking with sobs, she said, "No need. Ruan Niang, there are still things to do in the palace. I have to go back first." If Yu Zixi was determined to avoid her, what was the use of catching him back?
Ruan Niang saw Wei Dongling dodge and leave. Worried about her safety, she quickly tried to follow. But before she took a few steps, she saw from afar that Wei Dongling had quickly climbed over the wall and disappeared into the night. Ruan Niang stamped her feet in frustration. In the end, she had to go to the backyard to get her horse and gallop towards the palace.
Wei Dongling's tears were like broken pearls, scattering all the way with the wind.
She knew that Concubine Shu had always been in love with Yu Zixi. Maybe it was Concubine Shu who had been taking care of him when he was injured. So, he was too ashamed to face her?
So, he had chosen another woman again.
Wei Dongling had silently begged all the gods and Buddhas in her heart that as long as Yu Zixi was safe, she would do anything. But now, he didn't even want to see her. This made her feel so suffocated that she couldn't let it go for a long time.
Jing Zhe accidentally looked back and saw a figure climbing over the wall. He asked Cheng Hao doubtfully, "Was that Miss Wei climbing over the wall?"
Cheng Hao lowered his voice and said, "Hey! It's good for her to go out for a walk! A woman should learn some decent things instead of peeping on the newlyweds like a man!"
Jing Zhe agreed deeply.
Just as they were talking, Cheng Hao looked up and saw Uncle Li lightly stepping onto the eaves and walking towards them. Cheng Hao greeted with a big smile, "Brother Lang, come quickly! We've saved a spot for you!"
Jing Zhe: …
Uncle Li coughed softly and walked over slowly. He lowered his voice and asked, "Brother Long is still inexperienced. Can he do it? Does he know how? Do we need to give him some pointers?"
Jing Zhe: …
Cheng Hao waved his hand and said, "Hey, it hasn't even started yet!"
Uncle Li said worriedly, "Why hasn't it started? Could it be that he was injured before and can't do it?"
The few of them leaned their heads over again, only to see Luo Xunlong suddenly take off his shoes and throw them at the roof. He roared angrily, "What are you looking at! Get out of here!"
Everyone scattered in a hurry, hiding their auras and moving to other places to eavesdrop.
Ruan Niang rode her horse straight to the palace gate. She asked the general guarding the gate if the Fifth Princess had returned to the palace. When she was told that the princess had already come back, she finally felt relieved and turned her horse around to return to the Su Mansion.
The Yaoguang Pavilion was brightly lit. Wei Dongling was sitting in front of the desk, writing furiously. After a while, a palace maid came in and knocked on the door to report that Nanny La Mei, the imperial attendant in front of the palace, had come.
Wei Dongling nodded and invited her in. She handed the written paper to her to read.
La Mei looked at it carefully and said with a soft smile, "Fifth Princess, aren't these the ingredients you needed to make milk tea last year? Do you plan to make milk tea again this year? But isn't this amount a bit too much?" What was the princess up to? Was she going to treat everyone in the palace to milk tea?
Wei Dongling nodded and said, "Nanny La Mei, I've always regarded you as my own and never treated you as an outsider. I'll be honest with you today. I've opened two milk tea shops outside the palace. The business was okay at first. But because I was ordered to go to Xiliang for a political marriage last year, the shops have been closed ever since. I thought that since I'm back in the capital, it's not a good idea to keep them closed. So, I've decided to officially reopen the shops for business tomorrow." Even if the sky were to fall, she had to make money to support her family!