"Lost your memory?"
Cui Jintang wore a smile on her face, but her fingers in her sleeves tightened involuntarily. She enunciated each word slowly and deliberately, "You remember everyone and everything, but me?"
Then what about the three years she had painstakingly strived for, hiding from her suspicious master and using the pretext of protecting her senior sister in the deep palace?
A joke?
Pei Su, standing under the long corridor, tried to console her, "I heard from the attendant beside Brother that he was still calling your name when he was on the verge of death. I guess it doesn't matter much..."
Cui Jintang was suddenly filled with indignation. She looked at the handsome figure in the hall.
He was as elegant as jade, like a celestial being. Just like the first time they met, one glance was enough to make her unable to look away.
That year in the south of the Yangtze River, the rainy season was humid and sweltering, making people feel irritable.
She was drenched by the sudden rain. When she came to the Pei Mansion for help with the token of Mrs. Pei, who had suddenly suffered a heart attack, she ran into Pei Zhaolin teasing a cat under the corridor.
The corners of his mouth were slightly upturned, with a faint smile. Hearing the sound, he raised his eyes.
There seemed to be a gentle glimmer of water in his eyes, and his smiling voice, as clear and moist as jade, flowed into her heart.
"Miss, is there anything I can do for you?"
Cui Jintang was stunned by his breathtaking beauty and could only stare blankly as he draped his cloak over her.
From then on, it took her three years to finally get him to say, "I'm fond of you."
Cui Jintang was lost in thought for a moment. Unconsciously, she stepped into the hall, wanting to get closer to Pei Zhaolin.
But the next second, a single sentence from Pei Zhaolin made her limbs tremble!
"Grandson wishes to marry Luo Xiang, the daughter of Minister Luo."
Pei Zhaolin's voice was calm. When he mentioned Luo Xiang, there was an inexplicable tenderness in his tone.
Even when he bowed, this celestial-like man looked extremely handsome. "Grandson owes his narrow escape from death to Miss Luo."
"The kindness of saving one's life is as heavy as a mountain. Grandson doesn't want to treat Miss Luo lightly."
In the hall, Mrs. Pei, sitting in the main seat, was so shocked that she stopped crying. "But the Luo family was raided by the Emperor just half a month ago!"
The several girls behind Mrs. Pei also turned from grief to anger.
"Brother was only injured in the shoulder by the rebels. Why does it seem like he's also hurt his head today?"
"If Brother wants to marry that Luo girl, doesn't he think about how Sister Jin will feel?"
Mrs. Pei didn't say a word, but she nodded slightly in agreement.
Pei Zhaolin couldn't help but frown.
Since he returned to the military camp, why did everyone mention that Miss Cui after hearing about his memory loss?
What on earth was so special about this Miss Cui?
The third girl, who had been scolding the most fiercely just now, glanced outside over Pei Zhaolin's shoulder. Her eyes lit up. "Sister Jin, you're here!"
Pei Zhaolin turned his head slightly and glanced over here.
Cold and calm, he looked just like a stranger.
Cui Jintang gritted her back teeth tightly. She forced a smile and glanced at Pei Su. Then she lowered her voice, "Is this what you meant by calling my name?"
He was about to marry someone else right in front of her!
Pei Su: "..."
The third girl, who had found her backbone at the sight of Cui Jintang, rushed over and glared at Pei Zhaolin.
"Brother, think it through before you speak. Otherwise, when Sister Jin gets angry, I won't plead for you!"
Cui Jintang curtsied respectfully. "Madam, the young master was seriously injured on this trip. I'm sure Miss Luo must have spent a great deal of effort."
"They say it's difficult to offer help in times of need. If we can give a hand to the Luo family, I'm sure Miss Luo will be happier..."
"Thank you for your concern, Miss Cui, but it's unnecessary."
Pei Zhaolin was in a daze for a moment. Then he came to his senses and unconsciously averted his gaze from Cui Jintang.
His calm voice remained unchanged. "Grandson has eradicated the remnants of the previous dynasty lingering in the Central Plains on this trip. The Emperor was overjoyed and specially bestowed a mansion. Grandson has already arranged for Luo Xiang to live there."
The hall fell silent.
Almost everyone was staring at Pei Zhaolin with looks of impending doom.
The third girl was even more exaggerated. She gasped and stared at him, her voice full of sorrow. "Brother, may you rest in peace!"
Pei Zhaolin looked up blankly. Seeing the scene in front of him, a trace of confusion flashed in his otherwise calm eyes.
Suddenly, he felt as if a cold gaze was falling on his back.
The next moment, before he felt the burning pain on his face, he first smelled a faint fragrance.
Faint and soul-stirring...
Cui Jintang had been holding back her anger since just now. She used all her strength when she slapped Pei Zhaolin.
When her hand dropped, it was still trembling slightly.
A bright red handprint immediately appeared on Pei Zhaolin's face. After realizing that he had been slapped in public by a woman, the anger in his chest rose rapidly.
There was finally a hint of anger in his voice. "Miss Cui, you've overstepped your bounds."
The Pei family was the leader of the century-old noble families. As the eldest son of the eldest branch of the Pei family, Pei Zhaolin was highly anticipated.
And Pei Zhaolin lived up to their expectations. He was gifted since childhood and was a rare talent. He passed the imperial examination at the age of twenty.
Such a man always kept his emotions in check.
But now his face darkened completely. His expression was tense, and his eyes were as cold as ice.
Cui Jintang frowned and raised her hand again, but was firmly grasped by Pei Zhaolin.
She could hear the gasps of the people around her.
Pei Zhaolin's palms were large and his knuckles were distinct. He tightly held Cui Jintang's slender wrist.
The more she struggled, the tighter he held.
"I've overstepped my bounds far more than this in the past. Let go!"
Pei Zhaolin slowly raised his head. There was a strange light flickering in his slightly trembling eyes.
At this moment, holding her hand and feeling the warmth of her palm, the place where he had been slapped just now seemed to burn like fire.
— He was so strange!
Not only did his anger dissipate immediately, but he even wanted another slap...
Or, more precisely, he wanted more physical contact.
The kind that brought pain and made one tremble.
Looking down, he saw the redness on her palm.
"Does it hurt?"
Pei Zhaolin instinctively blew on her palm and gently kneaded it.
After realizing what he was doing, he froze completely!
Pei Su, who had been silently watching the whole scene, exclaimed excitedly, "Could it be that Sister Jin's slap cured Brother's amnesia?!"
Cui Jintang hesitated for a moment, then pulled out her hand. She slowly lifted his chin. "Who am I?"
Unexpectedly, Pei Zhaolin suddenly reached out and knocked her hand away. He returned to his previous cold and calm self.
"Grandmother, grandson would like to go back and change clothes first."
Mrs. Pei looked displeased.
But Pei Zhaolin bowed, then turned around and strode away. He fled so quickly that only a flurry of panicked robes could be seen.
"Tang'er, don't take what Zhaolin said to heart."
Mrs. Pei sighed. "He may not remember you, but his habits haven't changed."
After all, there weren't many people who would use their face to invite a slap.
Cui Jintang was preoccupied. She first comforted Mrs. Pei's fluctuating emotions, then dispersed the noisy morning greetings.
When Cui Jintang walked out of Shou'an Hall and was about to rush back to her courtyard.
"Miss."
A familiar voice sounded. Cui Jintang instinctively looked over. After seeing who was hanging on the tree, her delicate eyebrows furrowed slightly. "Zhu Er, why are you in the Pei Mansion?"
The next second, her face darkened. "Is something wrong with Sister Rou?"
Her senior sister, Xie Rou, was the eldest daughter of the Xie family in Chenjun. But for the current Emperor, who was just a general at that time, she had come down from the mountain to be a military advisor.
As the saying goes, each dynasty has its own officials. After the Emperor ascended the throne, he didn't value the military as much as the previous dynasty, but instead emphasized culture.
Only then did the people from the seven prominent families of the five surnames reappear in the court.
Cui Jintang didn't want her Sister Rou to enter the palace as a concubine according to the family's arrangement and struggle in the gloomy palace.
On the night she wanted to help Sister Rou escape, Sister Rou just stroked her head and sighed, "We can't always do as we please, Tangtang."
Zhu Er jumped down from the tree, bringing her back to reality. "The Empress fell down today, but she's fine. However, there was some unknown yellow powder in the vase that was accidentally knocked over."
Cui Jintang's face sank. She immediately turned around and walked out of the mansion. "Go to the palace."
—
As soon as Cui Jintang got into the carriage, Zhu Er's embarrassed wail came from outside. "Miss, Lord Pei is chasing after us again! How about we say we're going to Tianwaitian Building for snacks this time? How many times has this been? Why is Lord Pei still so jealous..."
In a hurry, she lifted the curtain of the carriage and saw Pei Zhaolin take the reins from a servant and mount his horse.
Pei Zhaolin whipped the reins, and the horse let out a long neigh. Man and horse rushed forward like an arrow from a bow, kicking up a cloud of dust.
In the blink of an eye, they disappeared.
The attendant who was following them hurriedly said, "Miss Cui," then spurred his horse and chased after them.
Amid Zhu Er's skeptical cries of "Huh? Huh! Huh?! Did Lord Pei just leave like that?" Cui Jintang quickly put down the curtain as if fleeing.
For a moment just now, she really thought Pei Zhaolin was jealous and had come out to stop her.
Cui Jintang urged, "Stop looking. Hurry up and drive!"