"The master of the house needs to welcome distinguished guests today, so he may not be able to return to the building until the afternoon," said the housekeeper.
It was still morning when we arrived at Huamanlou.
"Then prepare a room first. I will stay in the capital for a few days." She said, "I will use the Huaxu Room on the third floor as a resting place. As for the maid... Is Chunxian still here?"
"I will arrange it...Have you ever been to my building?" the housekeeper asked after being stunned for a moment.
"Just take it as such." Xi Heng waved his hand casually.
The people in the pavilion were quite efficient in treating this distinguished guest. She had only sat downstairs for a few minutes before the petite maid Chunxian came over nervously and led Xiheng into the room.
It seemed that this was the first time that Chunxian was appointed, and she was very cautious and serious in her work, fearing that she would make the distinguished guest uncomfortable.
Seeing her like this, Xi Heng found it amusing.
On the way to asking the other party to take her downstairs to take a shower and wash up, she also teased a few words.
So much so that when she got to the bathroom, the hot steam made her face turn a little red.
Chunxian mustered up her strength to lift the general's light armor inlaid with armor plates to wash it, and then massaged Xiheng's arms and shoulders next to the wooden bathtub.
"Sir, how about this strength..." she said weakly.
Xi Heng just said casually:
"Yes, I want to take you back to be my personal maid."
"Eh...ah? Really?" Chun Xian said in panic.
The word 'not bad' is fake.
With Chunxian's soft strength, pressing on ordinary places like shoulders and arms would only make her feel a little itchy.
However, the following passage is true.
The girl chuckled: "Guess."
"If you have this wish, I am willing to follow you..." The maid pursed her lips and her voice became smaller and smaller.
"It's a pity that the current situation is not good." Xi Heng said: "I need to return to the battlefield in the northern border in a few days. I will make a decision next time I come to the capital."
Chun Xian hummed dejectedly, massaging her shoulders carefully without saying anything more.
After adding three degrees of hot water, the floral scent in the bathtub gradually dissipated.
I don’t know how long it took, but the fatigue from the long journey finally subsided.
Xi Heng put on a bathrobe, simply tied the belt around his waist, and returned to the room.
The maid had just finished washing her light armor, and then ran over to serve today's lunch to the distinguished guest who had just taken a bath. After running around for a while, she finally had some free time.
"Okay, let's have dinner together?" Xi Heng poured himself a cup of scented tea, pinched a piece of cake and put it between his lips, then lightly picked up another piece with two fingers and put it into the lips of the petite maid beside him.
Chunxian blinked and opened her mouth slightly hesitantly.
The glutinous and tender piece of pastry touched the pink lips that were bouncy like jelly and was knocked into them.
After feeding the little maid, Xi Heng slowly sipped the scented tea and handed over a set of tableware.
Seeing him pick up the chopsticks hesitantly and savor the food in small bites, she relaxed as well.
……
Time passes slowly without our awareness.
After dinner, Xiheng took a nap on the bed for a while. When he opened his eyes again, it was already afternoon.
She rubbed her eyes and let out a breath slowly.
After staying on the battlefield for so long, I haven't had such a peaceful sleep for a long time.
What I saw today when I opened my eyes was no longer a rough big tent, but a restaurant interior decorated with all kinds of exquisite decorations, and I could smell a faint mellow fragrance.
It is indeed much more relaxing than waking up from the battlefield and having to think about how to fight the next battle as soon as you open your eyes.
Xi Heng lay on his side and whispered the word Chun Xian, but after a while he heard no response. He couldn't help but stick his head out of the quilt in confusion.
I looked around the room, but couldn't find Chunxian.
"Have you already gone out..."
She originally wanted the other party to help her dress up.
After all, he had been on the battlefield for so long that his ability to put on appearance and grooming might have declined.
Xi Heng pressed his temple, got up, took off a pink dress from the hanger that looked like something a lady from a noble family would wear, and let the layers of fabric fall on her slim figure.
After getting dressed, she stood in front of the big mirror and looked at herself. She no longer had the murderous intent of a military commander, but had the temperament of a rich lady.
"It feels quite different from when I was wearing armor." She muttered to herself, then went to the mirror to carefully examine her makeup.
After a long while, there was a slight knock on the door.
Xi Heng thought it was Chun Xian who came, so he casually said, "Come in."
The door opened with a slight creak, and a ray of bright light from the outside world filtered into the room, followed by a steady step.
When he glanced over, he saw that the person coming was not Chun Xian, but another person he was thinking of.
The other person was wearing a silk skirt that was mainly purple and blue, with numerous flowers and birds sewn on the surface. The hem of the skirt was swaying, and the long sleeves were slightly drooping. She had an extraordinary posture, a face like a lotus, and bright, affectionate eyes.
"Hongji." Seeing an acquaintance, her eyes softened a little.
After such a long time, Yan Hongji's evasive look, as if she had lived in the boudoir all year round and was going out for the first time, had disappeared, replaced by the dignity and composure of a lady from a noble family.
As soon as you enter the door, you will feel a casual and friendly atmosphere.
"Senior sister, you are finally here. I have been waiting for a year and a half."
It seems that the self-proclaimed name has also changed.
Although she said the word "finally", there was no resentment in her tone, she just chuckled.
It seemed as if she could be told anything.
"Really?" Xi Heng asked back.
"How could Senior Sister doubt Junior Sister? I have often dreamed of you in recent nights." She said, "Now Senior Sister's name is known in the streets and alleys of the capital. She has become a well-known person."
"Every time I hear this, I always think of the days when you and I were in the Sword Academy, and I miss you even more."
If Hong Ji, who had such a weak temperament in the Red Line Sword Academy, had really thought so in his heart, he would not have said it out loud.
Hongji approached lightly with natural steps, and there was a natural elegance in her every move.
"What is the name?" Xi Heng was a little interested in this and naturally responded.
The other person had already walked behind the chair where she was sitting, and his soft fingers fell on her soft shoulders.
The soft touch and slight warmth are quite comfortable.
"For example, a heroine." Hong Ji leaned forward slightly and sent a soft voice into Xi Heng's ears: "The most outstanding contemporary genius, the general who protects the country, and the peerless beauty."
"The first few are fine." Xi Heng looked at Hong Ji's face through the mirror and said, "The last title is a bit exaggerated, isn't it?"
"But I don't think it's an exaggeration." Hongji pinched a strand of Xiheng's hair with two fingers, gently combed it behind his ear, and said:
"In this world, only Senior Sister is worthy of this four-character title."
This person's voice always has a way of attracting people's attention.
Coupled with this absolutely beautiful face without any flaws, it is even more attractive.
Xi Heng turned his head slightly, no longer looking in the bronze mirror whose tone had changed slightly, but looking at the other person's fair skin.
Sure enough, it looks more vivid at such a close distance.
Yan Hongji raised the corners of her mouth and moved her eyes slightly, her pupils as clear as gray gemstones fell on Xi Heng's face.
When their eyes met, there seemed to be tenderness in their eyes.
Xi Heng also smiled as softly as a bell, raised his right hand slightly, and touched the other person's five fingers pressing on his shoulders.
The touch of Hongji's hands is quite good, smooth and soft, yet a little bony.
Use your fingers to gently push open the other person's slightly closed fingers.
Let your fingers be trapped between the other person's fingers.
"Senior Sister..." Hongji breathed softly, "I am so happy that you can come here to see me today."
Xi Heng looked into the other person's eyes and saw that it was not a lie.
"After returning to Beijing, is the family business you are running going smoothly?" she asked casually.
If there are still some troubles, she doesn't mind helping the other party solve them along the way.
"Don't worry, Senior Sister. I have a good friend who helped me to resolve some of the troubles." Hongji also clasped their fingers together.
"Friends..." Xi Heng recalled the scene in his previous life when Hong Ji and Chu Xiao walked side by side, and then asked, "Is it Zhao Chu Xiao?"
"..."
The other party blinked and seemed to be frozen in place.
However, as a lady from a wealthy family, she coughed lightly to hide her surprise and asked, "How did Senior Sister know about this?"
"Guessed." Xi Heng answered simply.
With Chu Xiao, a good friend who ascended the throne early, Yan Hongji's business in the capital will surely be more successful than in his previous life.
From this perspective, Zhao Chuxiao's ascension to the throne is still of some use to her.
"I really can't hide it from senior sister." Yan Hongji naturally didn't believe that she was guessing. She just thought that Xi Heng had very strong intelligence capabilities.
"The distinguished guest I am welcoming today is His Majesty Chu Xiao. After visiting Senior Sister, I still need to return... I will go back to the building to reminisce with Senior Sister when night falls, okay?"
When she spoke the last part, her tone became more tender and charming.
It seems that the word "reminiscing about the past" does not just have a literal meaning, there is something else hidden in it.
Xi Heng smiled slightly but did not reveal his thoughts.
But when their eyes met, it seemed as if there was no need to say anything more.
When Yan Hongji untied their interlocked fingers, stepped back and bowed, and was about to leave, she suddenly asked:
"Is Chu Xiao in this building?"
The other person paused and blinked his long eyelashes.
After hesitating for a few seconds, she said, "Your Majesty is currently having afternoon tea in the living room on the third floor."
"The third floor...that is, opposite?" Xi Heng thought for a moment.
Hong Ji nodded slightly, and her tone suddenly became a little nervous: "Could it be... Senior Sister wants to see His Majesty?"
Xi Heng said yes.
"It's better not to go..." She swallowed her saliva and spoke more hesitantly: "I always feel that if you sisters meet, there may be bloodshed."
"How could that be? I'm not a person who kills indiscriminately."
"..." But as a martial artist at the advanced level, Yan Hongji always felt that there was a murderous aura around Xi Heng.
"Besides, she is my junior sister's friend after all. Even if I want to kill her, I will think twice."
Hongji was speechless.
"Don't worry, even if she and I become enemies in the future, I won't do anything today."
She did not come back to Beijing to seize the throne this time, but instead needed the other party to maintain his position for a while.
At least, wait until she has repelled all of Yan Meng's enemy forces.
"But if His Majesty meets Senior Sister, he might react..." Yan Hongji said, pursing her lips.
"There are only two Hua Jin masters in the palace now, what can they do to me?" Xi Heng chuckled, stood up and said, "Take me to see Chu Xiao."
"Ah, me?" The other party inexplicably wanted to escape.
"Ah."
But after a while, Hongji barely overcame the urge to retreat.
With her in the middle, perhaps, these two royal princes could soften their attitudes for a brief moment.
"Please follow me, Senior Sister." She exhaled and retreated with trembling steps.
