Reborn as Powerful Minister's Beloved
Chapter 247: One More

Chapter 247: Chapter 247: One More

Qishun Building had the hot water ready, Fu Dong was carrying a maligned bamboo basket filled with clean flower petals, Xue Liu was tidying up the dry gauze towels, and she sneakily glanced outside.

Why did the Princess come back at this time? Wasn’t she invited by Her Majesty the Empress Dowager to enjoy the flower viewing with the ladies from prominent families? It was a rare invitation for Her Royal Highness, a proactive gesture of goodwill.

Xing Yu was cleaning the steps outside, shaking her head. She didn’t understand, but she felt that nothing good could come from the Empress Dowager. Since the Princess was back, that was that—nothing worth fussing over.

Zheng Nianru removed her hairpins, and that youthful face in the mirror still made her feel somewhat uncomfortable. But it was much better than in the beginning, she no longer felt like the reflection was unreal.

Zheng Nianru turned her head, looking at Fu Dong, who was testing the water temperature. The flower petals floated across half of the bath, the fragrance pervading the air.

"Bring that wine."

Fu Dong was startled for a moment. There was no absence of wine in Qishun Building; the chefs in the small kitchen even made a fruit wine that was sweet and very much to Xing Yu’s liking, but the Princess seldom drank it.

Fu Dong acknowledged with a word and went to fetch it. When she returned, Zheng Nianru had already entered the pool with the assistance of Nian Xia, and Fu Dong poured a cup of wine, handing it over to Zheng Nianru.

...

"The Princess is bathing; you can’t go inside," Xing Yu said as she stopped Yin He who was trying to enter. Nanny Yun was right, now that the Princess was engaged, how could they let others know that there was such a person inside Qishun Building?

"Yin He, do you really not know your place?" Xing Yu asked again. The boy was quite peculiar. The Princess had said to let him be, as there was no one in Qishun Building who could match him, and it was clear that the Princess did not want the Crown Prince’s people to provoke Yin He, so they could only let him roam freely in Qishun Building.

Yin He did not say a word. The first day Xing Yu said the Princess was asleep, he believed it, but after several days without seeing the Princess, he became increasingly restless. He just wanted to see him.

Elder Can smiled obsequiously, not daring to make any rash moves. When he first came to Qishun Building, Elder Can was nearly shocked out of his wits by the treatment his Young Master received. How dare Princess Chao Ren treat the Young Master this way?

But on the second day, Elder Can realized that, aside from the Princess, every female servant around her dared to bully their Young Master.

Following that, Elder Can found that even the chefs dared to boss their Young Master around, giving orders and gestures with their hands.

If it were the younger Elder Can, even being a year less old, he would have flipped Qishun Building upside down if he hadn’t considered himself a person from Ghoul Ravine. But as he grew older, Elder Can had mellowed a lot, especially in seeking the Young Master, which had worn down all his impulsive tendencies.

Therefore, Elder Can felt that if he were to act out, it would not only fail to please the Young Master, but also, he might be driven away by the Young Master himself.

"Doesn’t the Princess want a massage?" Yin He asked, his voice somewhat muffled. Although he didn’t understand, why after he disappeared for a while, everything had changed, and the Princess started ignoring him.

Seeing Yin He like this, Xing Yu sighed like an adult beyond her tender years.

"Yin He, let me tell you, when the Princess saved you, it was because she is kind and thought that a life should be saved. She did not expect you to repay her," Xing Yu said.

Yin He looked at Xing Yu, bewildered by what she meant.

Xing Yu rolled her eyes; she too felt that what Nanny Yun said was unreliable. Yin He was merely simple in nature, wanting nothing but to be nice to the Princess.

"I just want to go in and see..." Yin He said, his voice tinged with grievance. He knew that ever since the Princess became aware of his changes, even the people in Qishun Building treated him differently.

"Yin He, you don’t want Her Royal Highness the Princess to get angry, do you?" Xing Yu immediately spoke up, knowing full well that a servant couldn’t aspire to anything related to their master.

Elder Can was about to explode with rage. What were they implying, treating their Young Master like that? Their Young Master would absolutely not tolerate this insult; why not just charge in?

Seeing this, Yin He dared not speak again and could only watch helplessly as Xing Yu left, silently turning to hole up in a tiny room in the outer courtyard.

Elder Can was taken aback. Did their Young Master have a tendency towards masochism?

While silently scrutinizing his own Young Master, Elder Can followed him back into the cabin; the bed was plain and the desk stark. Besides idling away his days, it was an unbearable situation.

No, he must do something; first and foremost, he mustn’t let the Young Master catch on.

Elder Can snuck a glance at Yin He, who had already lain down to sleep and realized that the latter hadn’t even looked him straight in the eye. He quietly slipped out into the gradually darkening night.

...

Fu Dong glanced at Nian Xia, the wine pot in hand now emptied twice over, yet the Commandery Princess showed no sign of stopping.

Nian Xia returned the glance. Should she go inform Nanny Yun? But today, Nanny Yun had clearly angered the Princess and hadn’t dared to show her face.

Fu Dong subtly pushed the wine pot toward Nian Xia’s direction. Two pots already, and though it was only fruit wine, they couldn’t let her drink any more.

Nian Xia understood and had no choice but to go out and look for Nanny Yun.

Nanny Yun was startled upon hearing the news. Why would Her Royal Highness drink? In her memory, the Princess seldom drank, but she had to hastily make her way over now.

Zheng Nianru was no stranger to drinking and as time passed, she found herself increasingly lost in the numbness it brought, drifting amidst the clouds where she could ignore everything else.

In her previous life, before her engagement, she had once gotten this drunk. Back then, Zheng Nianru felt resentment and indignation. Why couldn’t Zheng Congyuan, after so many years, cast everything aside just once for her? She never coveted that position; all she needed was Zheng Congyuan himself.

But now, Zheng Nianru felt a trace of serenity. Knowing herself better than she had in her previous life, she realized Zheng Congyuan was somewhat right. Maybe she didn’t truly understand her own desires. So the simplistic thinking of the past, when viewed now, indeed seemed more fueled by anger than by reason.

So, what did she want now?

Zheng Nianru smiled. Yes, what did she want? Besides Zheng Congyuan, what was there for her to want? It seemed that nothing else mattered, but life had to go on day by day. And there was Zheng Boding. In this life, her sole hope was that her father could have some peace of mind, without the constant fear and burden of suffering with her.

Nanny Yun hurried over and found that Fu Dong had already put away the wine pot. Before Nanny Yun could even speak, Fu Dong gestured towards the back.

"She’s already passed out, probably from the drink."

"This won’t do, she has to leave the palace tomorrow." Nanny Yun became anxious, slapped her thigh, and hastened over, only to see Zheng Nianru lying on a wooden cot next to her, with Xue Liu carefully wiping her hair, her face flush with a drunken bloom.

"Commandery Princess, let’s go back to your room to sleep," Nanny Yun whispered, gesturing to Fu Dong and Xue Liu to help. Zheng Nianru, half-conscious, nodded and let the three of them coax and escort her back into the sleeping quarters of the building.

In her haziness, Zheng Nianru hadn’t had dreams for a long time, but at this moment, in a bizarre dream of clinking cups and laughter, the faces from her past life began to appear one after another—those stunning, elegant, and innocent visages continually emerging, as if Zheng Nianru were reliving those absurd years.

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