After convincing himself to stay, Xia Mang quickly said sorry to his mother in his heart.
But she knew that she didn't have much time to stay here. The Madam's medicine cost a lot of money, but sooner or later she would save enough here.
During the time that he stayed for who knows how long, Xia Mang actually felt a little bit sad about separation.
She is now somewhat accustomed to the leisurely life in the Duke's Mansion, and she doesn't know if she will be able to adapt to the fast-paced life when she returns.
Soon, Xia Mang realized that she was being pretentious again. She wondered if the original person had an endocrine disorder recently. Otherwise, why would she always have such a worrying mood?
Xia Mang soon adjusted his mood. The most important thing was to live every day well now!
Qiao Yuandong had no idea that his little maid had just experienced a brainstorm. In the past few days after she left, there were a lot of things waiting for her to deal with in the house.
After two days of really busy work, Qiao Yuandong was free. When Rongzhu asked Qiao Yuandong who she planned to invite to the banquet with a list in her hands, she remembered that her birthday was coming.
Qiao Yuandong's birthday banquet was considered a big deal in Beijing. The eldest princess went to the house to celebrate Qiao Yuandong's birthday, and the palace naturally expressed her gratitude.
With these giant Buddhas supporting the scene, the noble ladies in the capital followed suit and came to congratulate him, taking the birthday banquet of the Duke's wife to a higher level.
Qiao Yuandong didn't expect it to be so lively that day. Because there were too many guests, she had no choice but to invite her mother to entertain the guests. With the eldest princess calming down the scene, the scene was stabilized.
As for the male guests, there were very few. Apart from Xiang Xiu'an, the Zhenguo Palace had no male guests. Everyone knew it, so the male guests basically gave them gifts and left.
We are all big men, who would have the guts to sit in a widow’s house and enjoy a banquet?
On this day, the guests had a great time. After the banquet, Qiao Yuandong arranged for the ladies to visit the garden and enjoy the scenery. Finally, they sat in the open pavilion to listen to music and watch the opera.
Occasionally, people came up to congratulate him. No matter who they were, Qiao Yuandong thanked them all for their kindness and smiled politely.
The eldest princess sat beside her, watching Qiao Yuandong send away a noble lady with a smile again. She leaned forward and whispered to Yu Qing next to her: "Do you think her smile is fake?"
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Yu Qing's ears were swept away by the hot breath of the eldest princess, and her cheeks felt a little warm. She pushed the eldest princess uncomfortably: "Your Highness, please pay attention to your manners in front of others."
Feeling rejected, the eldest princess reluctantly sat up straight, but the hand in her sleeve still grasped Yu Qing's hand restlessly.
She played with the knuckles in her hand with a smile on her face, and even scratched it quietly, causing Yu Qing to withdraw his hand.
Yu Qing glared at her angrily, but received a shameless smile from the eldest princess.
After Qiao Yuandong finished dealing with the guests, he looked at the two of them funny. The eldest princess turned to look at her as if she was feeling something.
"I just saw that the roses in your house are in bloom. Can I pick some and take them back later?" The eldest princess suddenly made a strange request.
Qiao Yuandong laughed at her: "None of the flowers in your princess palace are famous brands. Are you tired of seeing them? They actually made my roses look interesting."
The eldest princess held her head and smiled mysteriously, "All the flowers in the princess's house have been used, and Qingqing is not satisfied. I thought the rose might be suitable for her."
Qiao Yuandong imagined Yu Qing wearing a rose on her head, and was about to recommend a few suitable colors and varieties when he saw Yu Qing suddenly blushing and standing up.
"I, I'll go over there to enjoy the breeze." After saying that, she ran away as if running away, leaving Princess Tuliu smiling happily.
Qiao Yuandong didn't understand why the eldest princess was laughing, and couldn't help but said: "It seems that His Highness and Miss Yu have reconciled?"
The eldest princess nodded when she heard this. When she mentioned Yu Qing, her sharp eyes were full of smiles, "It took a little effort."
The word "Kung Fu" lingered on the eldest princess' lips and teeth. Qiao Yuandong vaguely felt something was wrong, but he didn't know what was strange.
She ignored this strangeness and turned her attention to other things: "I wonder who expressed his feelings first between His Highness and Miss Yu?"
The eldest princess pointed to herself calmly: "Of course it is me. If Qingqing takes the initiative in such a matter, wouldn't it bring disgrace to me?"
Qiao Yuandong: ".It makes sense."
She was silent for a moment and then asked: "What did His Highness do in the first place?"
The eldest princess raised her eyebrows when she heard this. She squinted at Qiao Yuandong and smiled inexplicably: "Ask me for advice?"
Qiao Yuandong sat and watched the excitement on the stage without even turning his head, "I'm just curious."
"You're so serious." The eldest princess gave her a joking look, filled up the golden bottle at hand, and pushed it in front of Qiao Yuandong: "Drink it all, and I'll tell you."
Qiao Yuandong's eyelashes trembled slightly, he looked at the full golden bottle, then reached out and picked it up steadily.
Because of her status as the eldest princess, her seat was arranged in the first row with the best view.
Except for Qiao Yuandong and Yu Qing who were sitting with them, the rest of the female family members were some distance away, and the serving maids were standing far away in the corridor.
Therefore, no one knows what the eldest princess said to Qiao Yuandong
At the end of Youshi, the sky has darkened, and the lanterns in the yard have been lit early.
Rongzhu came to Xia Mang and said that Qiao Yuandong was back and wanted to see her now.
Xia Mang was not on duty today, so she had a rare day off.
But it's not like she didn't do anything, she was preparing a birthday gift for Qiao Yuandong behind closed doors.
After all, it's the boss's birthday, so they, the subordinates, should show some consideration no matter what they do, right?
Helan and the others always sent handkerchiefs to make clothes, which was completely outside the scope of Xia Mang's skills.
In view of the failed painting experience last time, Xia Mang decided to do something new this time.
When Rongzhu said that Qiao Yuandong was looking for her, Xia Mang agreed and ran directly to the verandah behind the house.
There are a row of birds of various colors there, and Xia Mang often comes to feed the birds. The birds have long been familiar with her, and when they see her, they all flutter up and down.
Xia Mang directly picked a little myna. She lifted the cage containing the myna bird and said to it: "Xiaoba, Xiaoba, sister, I don't eat and drink less for you on weekdays. You have to give me a face today!"
Xiao Ba was the bird she had trained the longest. In order to get Xiao Ba to say a beautiful congratulatory message, Xia Mang worked hard secretly.
The mynah bird named Xiaoba didn't know whether he understood it or not. He only jumped up and down in the cage twice, then turned around to eat.
Xia Mang ran to find Qiao Yuandong carrying the cage. He Huan came out with a basin of hot water. When he saw Xia Mang coming in carrying the bird, his eyes widened.
"What are you doing?"
Xia Mang smiled at He Huan: "Madam is celebrating her birthday today, I'll show her something fun!"
He Huan looked at the bird and then at Xia Mang, wondering whether to laugh or cry: "Madam is lying down right now after being drunk. Please be careful. If she is asleep, you are not allowed to mess around!"
"I know, I know!" Xia Mang nodded and walked in.
Xiaoba suddenly learned the phrase "I know, I know!"
He Huan was so amused by Xiao Ba that he couldn't help but say, "It's just you, a ghost like you, who came up with such an idea." No wonder Mrs. Dao looked at her so highly!
"That's right!" Xia Mang was quite satisfied with Xiaoba's intelligence. She patted the cage gently to reassure Xiaoba not to make any noise.
At that time, Qiao Yuandong had already taken off his hairpin and was leaning on the imperial concubine's couch with his eyes closed.
Xia Mang placed the birdcage on the small table in the entrance hall and walked over to see if she was asleep.
Qiao Yuandong changed into a homely crow-blue silk cardigan and paired it with a white silk skirt. A piece of tulle fell on her body, showing off her voluptuous and graceful figure.
At this time, she was neither wearing a crown nor combing her hair in a bun. She only wore a silk bun on her arm. Her black hair hung like clouds on the back of her head, and her face, which was not painted with makeup, became even more dusty.
Xia Mang got very close to look at Qiao Yuandong. Because she had her eyes closed, he boldly stretched out his hand and waved it in front of her eyes.
As a result, Qiao Yuandong suddenly opened his eyes. Perhaps because he was drunk, his pair of dark eyes were glowing with water.
Xia Mang was stunned for a moment before taking his hand back, but Qiao Yuandong reached out and grabbed his wrist.
"You're here."
Qiao Yuandong grabbed Xia Mang's hand and used his strength to sit up. Xia Mang staggered and sat on the couch due to the force.
"Ma'am, do you want some sobering soup?" Xia Mang couldn't help but ask, looking at Qiao Yuandong's dazed look.
Now that she was so close, she could clearly smell the faint aroma of wine mixed with the incense on Qiao Yuandong's body.
Coupled with that fleeting gaze, Xia Mang felt a hint of intoxicating subtlety.
"Used."
The three words were said in a clear tone. Xia Mang thought after hearing this tune that Qiao Yuandong would probably drink too much today.
After all, last time Qiao Yuandong was drunk, he looked so serious. He looked calm on the surface, but in fact he no longer knew what he was doing.
Xia Mang suddenly remembered that time Qiao Yuandong bit her finger, and her fingertips couldn't help but itch.
She subconsciously curled her fingers, and Qiao Yuandong tightened the strength on her hand because of this small movement.
Xia Mang saw Qiao Yuandong staring at his wrist, as if it was an interesting thing.
The bracelet given to Xia Mang was right on her wrist. Her fingertips rubbed the bracelet for a long time, and her eyes were so soft that they seemed to be dripping with water.
Xia Mang felt emotional for the hundredth time when he saw her graceful eyebrows and the faint smile on her lips.
She is really beautiful!
"Well, madam, I have prepared a birthday gift for you, do you want to see it?" Xia Mang concealed his momentary panic and thought of the forgotten Xiao Ba.
Qiao Yuandong stopped what he was doing, tilted his head and glanced at Xia Mang, and took a breath before realizing what Xia Mang said.
"Take it and take a look." Qiao Yuandong suddenly smiled, and his formerly clear and smooth eyes actually showed some charm at this moment.
To die!
Xia Mang swallowed, stood up, rubbed his face, and walked to the entrance in a few steps.
Xiaoba was standing quietly in the cage at the moment, tilting his head and looking at the two people in the room with bulging mung bean eyes.
Xia Mang raised the cage in front of Qiao Yuandong and squatted down to show her the results of his training.
"Xiao Ba, come on!" Xia Mang whistled and winked at Xiao Ba, but Xiao Ba ignored her with a straight face.
Oh haha! The acting was terrible!
"Perhaps the environment has changed, and the birds are afraid of strangers." Qiao Yuandong spoke up and asked Xia Mang to step down.
Xia Mang put the birdcage on the ground and smiled apologetically at Qiao Yuandong: "This gift was not delivered well."
After all, she was well taken care of by Qiao Yuandong when she was in the Duke's Mansion. Now she doesn't know how long she will stay here, and both publicly and privately, she hopes to give her something to make Qiao Yuandong happy.
It just seems to be the opposite.
Thinking of this, Xia Mang glared at the uncooperative Xiaoba with some dejection, thinking that he would starve this stupid bird for two days if he turned around!
"It's true that it was not delivered well." Qiao Yuandong's voice was still smiling when he said this.
Xia Mang just thought she was laughing at him, Yuexing buried his head and was embarrassed to look at her.
Suddenly, Qiao Yuandong's cloud-white skirt appeared in his sight. Xia Mang looked up and saw Qiao Yuandong squatting down like himself.
It was just her drunkenness that made her center of gravity unstable. After squatting for a while, she leaned forward and knelt down on the ground. If Xia Mang hadn't reached out to help her, she would have thrown herself to the ground.
Qiao Yuandong put his hands in front of him and looked at Xia Mang, his eyes unblinking, showing pure seduction.
Xia Mang was stared at by Qiao Yuandong so hard that he couldn't turn his head. His eyes were wide open, and it took him a long while before two words came out of his mouth.
"Madam?"
Does she know how foul her current appearance is?
"Hmm." Qiao Yuandong snorted from his nasal voice, which was regarded as an agreement.
Xia Mang was so disturbed by this soft response that her heartstrings relaxed a little. She forced herself to calm down and said: "It's cold at night. Madam, please sleep on the couch and keep it cold carefully."
"No." Qiao Yuandong said: "I'm waiting for you to give me a birthday gift."
Xia Mang: "Xiaoba is not cooperating today. Can you wait for me to train it and make up for it later?"
"No, I want it now." Qiao Yuandong acted in a rare way.
Xia Mang choked and felt a little embarrassed. He could only say honestly: "But what should I do if I can't take it out now?"
There was a glimmer in Qiao Yuandong's eyes. When he heard Xia Mang ask, he suddenly smiled slyly: "Use other supplements."
"That's possible!" Xia Mang thought, "What do you want, madam?"
Before she finished speaking, she knew what Qiao Yuandong wanted.
As the woody incense stained with alcohol entered his nose, Qiao Yuandong's lips suddenly touched her.
(End of chapter)