She had someone keep an eye on the Lu Mansion. So when she heard that Lu Tianxun had returned from the academy, she rushed over immediately.
Xiao Tian asked her where she was going. She simply said she was going out to buy some medicinal herbs. When Xiao Tian wanted to go with her, she refused.
Hearing that Yi Qing was looking for him, Lu Tianxun immediately came out to greet her.
Dressed in a long robe with wide sleeves, he looked even more noble and upright. Standing at the door, his figure was as straight as a pine.
"Madam, it's been a long time," he said, smiling and bowing his hands to Yi Qing.
Yi Qing returned the salute and said with a beaming smile, "Mr. Lu, I hope you've been well."
"I heard from the servant that Madam was visiting. I hardly dared to believe it. But here you are indeed," Lu Tianxun said.
Yi Qing laughed and said, "It's presumptuous of me to visit without sending a calling card first. I never visit without a purpose. I'm here today to ask a favor of Mr. Lu."
Lu Tianxun invited her in and said as they walked, "I owe Madam a great debt. I'm eager to serve you."
When they got inside, he asked someone to bring in the tea set and brewed the tea himself.
It had to be said that Lu Tianxun was a master of the tea ceremony. His movements were as smooth as flowing clouds and running water, making it hard for people to take their eyes off him.
The curling white steam, the long - lingering faint fragrance of tea, and the elegant young gentleman in a long robe with wide sleeves, looking like a refined scholar of the Wei and Jin Dynasties... The tea was not intoxicating, but the man was.
Lu Tianxun handed a cup of tea to Yi Qing. "Madam, please taste it."
Yi Qing took the tea with both hands and said frankly with a smile, "To be honest, Mr. Lu, I don't know much about tea. Good tea is wasted on me."
Lu Tianxun was slightly stunned, then burst out laughing. "Madam is so interesting."
"I'm just being honest," Yi Qing said. She took a sip of the tea. The tea soup was clear, and the fragrance lingered in her nose. It was indeed good tea, but if asked how good it was, she really couldn't say.
"I know you're very busy, Mr. Lu, so I won't beat around the bush," Yi Qing said. "I have an old servant in my family. He and his wife watched Baozi grow up. Hearing that Baozi has entered the academy, they're so worried that they insist on going to the academy to do odd jobs."
After a pause, seeing that Lu Tianxun didn't immediately object, she knew there might be a chance for this to happen. Then she continued, "Mr. Lu has taught Baozi for so long. You should know he's a self - sufficient child. I don't mean to make things difficult for you. It's just the old people's wish..."
Lu Tianxun smiled and said, "It's no trouble at all. Baozi is really a well - behaved child. Just send someone to the academy to find me tomorrow."
Yi Qing let out a sigh of relief, stood up, and bowed to thank him.
Lu Tianxun returned the salute and then couldn't help laughing. "Madam, let's not waste our time on saluting back and forth. Why don't we sit down and enjoy the tea and have a good chat?"
After sitting down again, Yi Qing said honestly, "Actually, I was quite nervous. I always thought Mr. Lu would reject me."
"It seems I'm an old - fashioned conservative in Madam's eyes," Lu Tianxun said self - deprecatingly.
"I didn't mean that," Yi Qing said. "Anyway, thank you, Mr. Lu. Baozi will continue to trouble you in the future."
Lu Tianxun said, "I'm also grateful to Madam for giving me such a promising disciple. One day, Baozi will surely surpass me."
No mother doesn't like to hear her son being praised, and Yi Qing was no exception.
Seeing the smile on her face, Lu Tianxun clenched his hand under the table, and his palm was sweating.
After a long while, he finally mustered up the courage and said, "How is Madam doing these days?"
Yi Qing thought it was just an ordinary greeting and replied, "Thank you for your concern, Mr. Lu. Everything is fine."
But Lu Tianxun said rather boldly, "Forgive my rudeness. I'm not good at beating around the bush, so I'll just say it straight..."
Yi Qing thought he was going to talk about Baozi's shortcomings and quickly said, "Please speak your mind, Mr. Lu."
After all, this was her son's teacher, and she had to show full respect.
Unexpectedly, Lu Tianxun didn't mention Baozi at all. He said, "I wonder what Madam's plans are for the future?"
"I don't understand what you mean, Mr. Lu. What kind of plans are you talking about?" Yi Qing began to feel strange.
"Career and marriage," Lu Tianxun said straightforwardly.
"Marriage?" Yi Qing was completely stunned. "I haven't thought about it."
To be exact, she didn't want to get married again at all. She just wanted to be with Xiao Tian.
A smile appeared on Lu Tianxun's face. "What do you think of me, Madam?"
Yi Qing was so shocked that she almost fell off her chair.
"Hehe," she forced a laugh. "Mr. Lu, this joke of yours is not funny at all."
"I'm not joking," Lu Tianxun said seriously, bowing his hands. "I've admired Madam for a long time. I just didn't know how to tell you and didn't dare to ask a matchmaker to come to your door rashly. So today, I finally have the chance to ask for Madam's opinion first."
Yi Qing shook her head like a rattle. "No, no, no. Mr. Lu, you've misunderstood something. Although I saw you, it was all for the sake of saving a life. You don't need to take responsibility."
If she had to be responsible for every such situation, she would have to split into hundreds of pieces!
"I'm not doing this out of responsibility, but out of love," Lu Tianxun said.
Yi Qing didn't know how to respond to this!
Lu Tianxun's love came like a tornado. How could it be so sudden?
While she was complaining in her heart, Lu Tianxun began to explain. "Because of my leg problem, I've always lived in the inner courtyard to study and rarely go out. In the inner courtyard, I've met many women, from young ladies of various families to maids. But no one has ever made me feel as happy as Madam."
Oh my god, this was almost love at first sight.
Yi Qing thought about their interactions. It seemed that apart from embarrassment, there was nothing else. His love seemed so inexplicable.
If it were someone else, she might have said it straight. But after all, the other person was Baozi's teacher, and they would still have to interact in the future. So she had to save some face.
So after forcing a few laughs, she said, "Thank you for your love, Mr. Lu. However..."
"Please let me finish first," Lu Tianxun interrupted her and continued. "I've long wanted to express my feelings to Madam. But I thought Madam might not be able to let go of General Xiao, so I didn't dare to mention it. But now, it's already been a year since General Xiao passed away. So... Even if Madam didn't come today, I was going to visit you."
Yi Qing took a deep breath, thought for a moment, and then said, "Mr. Lu is such a talented person. Why would you want to marry a widow?"
"Madam, please don't belittle yourself."
"First of all, I have no intention of getting married," Yi Qing said calmly. "Secondly, even if I wanted to get married, the person I would marry is Xiao Tian."
She couldn't be too absolute, but it was wrong to ignore Xiao Tian.
"So Madam really has someone in her heart," Lu Tianxun said rather dejectedly. "Tian Zuo told me, but I didn't believe it."
Yi Qing thought, now that I've told you, can we just stop talking about this topic?
It was so embarrassing. She was too embarrassed to be too straightforward. Could they just skip this topic tacitly?
This was just like in modern times, when a teacher confesses his love to a student's parent. How strange it was!
"But I still won't give up," Lu Tianxun said a bit childishly. "I'll wait for Madam until she gets married."