Da Li Temple - Chapter 60

Chapter 60
Family Banquet (2)

The moon was in the middle of the sky, and the palace lights were fading out. A family feast, in the end, was happily finished.
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The night was cold, and Lin Wanqing’s handstove wasn’t helpful. Su Moyi opened his cloak on the carriage and gathered Lin Wanqing inside, only revealing her head.
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Lin Wanqing’s heart was preoccupied with worry. When he embraced her, she subconsciously vainly wanted to hide but was held down by Su Moyi.
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“Still cold?” He asked, his breath hot against her ear.
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Lin Wanqing shook her head, her mood still low.
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“What did Imperial Grandmother say to you today?” He continued to press; his tone was serious and uneasy.
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Lin Wanqing froze and half-jokingly answered, “She said that you’re cold-faced but warm-hearted and now devoted to me and asked me to be nicer to you.”
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When he heard this, Su Moyi tended to blow up and said in displeasure: “She’s old, and her brain isn’t sober; don’t believe her!”
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“Which part?” Lin Wanqing asked, trying to maintain the smoothness of her voice, “Don’t believe your devotion to me, or treat you better?”
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Su Moyi was asked this question and gulped, thinking for a long time before saying, “Treat me better is acceptable.”
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His duck’s mouth amused Lin Wanqing, and she asked, “Then what is it considered to treat you better?”
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The arm holding her trembled; Lin Wanqing felt the chest she was leaning against heat up a bit, and the rise and fall accelerated.
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Su Moyi slowed down for a moment, seemingly organizing his words. Then he leaned to her ear and whispered.
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“You!!!” Lin Wanqing couldn’t believe it; a glistening white face burned instantly. She twisted her head to look at Su Moyi, her beautiful eyes glaring round, and snarled, “How could a third rank Chief of the Da Li Temple say that …… that ……” The more she said, the redder her face became, and in the end, she turned her head and stopped looking at this ‘lustful person’ who was wearing the skin of an official of the imperial court. She wondered where the previous serious Lord Su was. Could it be that something dirty possessed him?
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Su Moyi looked at her and smiled, “Qingqing doesn’t like to hear this, so I’ll say something else.”

The words then came back again.
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“Yikes!!! You go away!” Lin Wanqing was helpless, but he tackled her hands so she couldn’t even cover her ears if she wanted to.
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“You’re shameless! Su Moyi! What are you talking about? Shut up! Shut! Ya!!!”
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Su Moyi saw that she finally showed a smile, so he put away his desire to tease her, attached himself to her ear, and whispered, “The Emperor is ready to take action against Song Zhengxing.”
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Lin Wanqing was stunned to hear this and looked up at Su Moyi with some disbelief.
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“Is it true that once Song Zhengxing is brought to justice, all those things that bothered you will be gone?” He asked cautiously.
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Lin Wanqing’s heartbeat lagged for a moment. It turned out that he had long guessed what the Empress Dowager had talked to her about, and his question just now was to make her happy. She did not know what to say for a moment, looking at Su Moyi for a long time without saying anything.
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He didn’t care and asked, “Is it true that you’ll be able to marry me at that time?”
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Lin Wanqing held back her smile and ignored him.
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“Then, I will be able to ……” he went to her ear again.
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“Ya!!! Su Moyi, you horny bastard! Nasty!”
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“I don’t want to listen! You shut up!”
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“Su -Mo – Yi!”
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The carriage swayed in the silence through deserted streets, leaving someone’s face red and heartbeats all the way. The depression finally dissipated. Lin Wanqing unintentionally glanced at the quiet and pale moon tonight. The Emperor was going to take action against Song Zhengxing. As long as Song Zhengxing falls, although she can’t overturn the Xiao family’s case, she still has hope. At that time, as long as she waited, she would confess everything to Su Moyi. She would deliver her body and soul, as he had done to her, and no longer hold back an ounce.
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After the family banquet dispersed, the Empress returned to the Cheng Huan Hall. The hour was already late, and she was ready to go to bed, so she arranged for palace maids to undress and wash her.
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The nurse guided her to the bronze mirror, removing the bead hairpin on her bun.
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“Hiss–” The Empress covered her torn scalp and grunted, but in the end, she couldn’t hold back her words. “What’s wrong with you today?” She looked at the nurse in the mirror, frowned, and complained: “Absent-minded, did you see a ghost?”
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The nurse did not hold back once she heard this and handed her a look with a desire to speak. Empress Chen understood and waved away her left and right. Seeing everyone had left, the nurse carefully closed the doors and windows and said with a grave expression, “This old slave feels that there’s something about the girl Heir Su brought with him today.”
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Empress’s face slightly austere, she turned around and asked, “What?”
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The nurse hesitated; her hands tugged the corner of her sleeves, looking very uneasy. “Your Highness still remembers the Royal Concubine Xiao from twelve years ago?”
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When the Empress heard this, she changed her face and scolded, “There’s nothing to mention about her!”
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But the nurse pulled her back and said, “When she died in childbirth, this old slave was there and watched her die. After that, her face would appear in my dreams as long as it rained. Therefore, once I saw that girl today, I felt she and Royal Concubine Xiao have many similarities ……”
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The Empress was stunned at her words. More than ten years have passed toward a rarely mentioned person; she has no impression. However, after being mentioned by the nurse, she carefully thought about it, seemed to perceive something, and abruptly changed her face.

“Do you …… you remember ……” she trembled and held the hand of the nurse, her jaw shaking so much, “Before the Xiao Family got slaughtered, Royal Concubine Xiao had a four-year-old niece whose whereabouts were unknown.”
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The nanny sucked in a breath of cold air.
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At that time, the late Emperor and Empress Dowager were furious. But they thought that, even if a four-year-old child escaped, she could not become a threat since they had dealt with the Xiao family. Therefore, after searching for a while, they stopped.
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“The Empress means ……” the nurse asked halfway before saying: “Yes, if I remember correctly, that girl just turned seventeen this year; the time is also right. She and Heir Su met in Da Li Temple. Could it be ……”
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Crunch- crunch, the Empress’s jade hairpin fell to the ground, broken into three pieces.
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“No ……” she muttered as if she had lost her soul, “Does Father have a few disciples in the Ministry of Households and the Ministry of Officials?”
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The nurse nodded.
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“Then, send someone to pass a message so that he can entrust someone to check it out.”
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“The faster, the better!”
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