Chapter 133
After these two sentences were spoken, the atmosphere became even quieter than before.
Lu Dieqing heard her own heartbeat. She almost turned her head in a panic, worried that Ningning’s words had been heard by others.
Fortunately, the broker had walked far away, and he was just an ordinary commoner who had not learned any martial arts. His hearing was very ordinary, and he had not heard what she and Ningning had said.
Lest Ningning say something shocking again, Lu Dieqing, her little face flushed red, stood on her tiptoes and reached out to cover the other’s lips.
“…Why won’t you let me speak?”
Zheng Xuening’s lips pouted slightly, gently pecking at the girl’s palm.
She almost never missed any opportunity to be close to the girl, and was full of intimacy for her little rabbit.
Looking at her like this, where was the air of the cool and clear Crown Princess from before? She was clearly a person who was hopelessly in love.
Lu Dieqing pressed her lips together, her voice trembling a little.
“I don’t not want you… It’s just that I’ve already troubled you enough. If you even have to pay for the house, how can I face myself?”
Zheng Xuening’s index finger gently rested on the side of Lu Dieqing’s lips.
“Shh.”
She narrowed her long, slender phoenix eyes, a faint smile on her face.
“I won’t listen to any unpleasant words.”
This person was actually starting to be playful and cute!
But Zheng Xuening was never like this on a daily basis. It was rare, and it was hard for people to resist.
Lu Dieqing was a little charmed and also reached out to stroke the other’s cheek, comforting her.
“Don’t be angry.”
She explained, “I’m not being distant with you. It’s just that if you do everything for me, you’ll spoil me. I… I will also feel that there’s nothing special about me, and I won’t be able to find a place to match you.”
Having accidentally said what was hidden in the depths of her heart, Lu Dieqing was so embarrassed she wanted to hide.
However, her delicate and fair chin was held by Zheng Xuening. Her face couldn’t move, and she could only continue to look at the other.
Zheng Xuening’s eyes often looked overly deep. She was precocious and had many thoughts. Compared to her, Lu Dieqing was truly too clear. Her eyes looked like a person with no cunning.
As the two of them looked at each other, Lu Dieqing simply couldn’t withstand such a gaze. Her ears had quietly turned red, and her voice had also started to stammer.
“…We have something… to talk about back home… not outside…”
Zheng Xuening chuckled softly and stroked the girl’s earlobe. The softness between her fingertips made her heart also soften to an unbelievable extent.
“Then listen to me. Let’s decide on the house first.”
At certain times, the domineering nature in Zheng Xuening’s bones simply couldn’t be hidden.
Lu Dieqing opened her lips and could only be silent for the time being.
After following the broker to look at a few houses, they finally decided on one of them.
Zheng Xuening directly took out a few gold leaves, and the broker immediately smiled so much that his eyes disappeared.
“You are truly generous, miss.”
The broker was certain in his heart that these two ladies must be the noble daughters of some great family.
Otherwise, how could their aura, looks, and even the silver in their hands be so much better than others?
Before, when someone had come to look at a house, especially that third-rank official who had come to the capital to report on his duties, he had been hesitant and picky when looking at the house, and in the end, had only chosen a mediocre one. It was clear that the other’s purse was light.
After getting the deed, Lu Dieqing looked around the house, her eyes curving, very happy.
Although in the past, she had also imagined what it would be like if one day, she and her parents could leave the imperial palace and no longer live in that remote palace, but as ordinary commoners, to have their own home and freedom.
But that imagination had actually come true and become a reality. It was so incredible.
And the one who had helped her to achieve this was still Ningning.
“You can look around first. See what’s missing here, and we’ll slowly fill it up in the next few days.”
Zheng Xuening stroked the girl’s head and instructed her softly.
Lu Dieqing was radiant at this moment, like a smiling little rose. Her face was a little red, and her eyes were full of happiness and sweetness.
“Okay,” she replied softly and immediately bounced to every corner of the courtyard to look around.
Zheng Xuening walked out of the main door and said to the broker who was still waiting by the roadside, “Are the houses next door also empty?”
She glanced at the side of the courtyard.
The broker was stunned for a moment and then bowed and scraped. “They’re empty. It’s a coincidence. These three adjacent houses haven’t found a buyer yet.”
Zheng Xuening handed over two more gold leaves.
“I’ll buy them all.”
The gold leaves she had given were made of solid material, very solid, and could even be compared to ordinary gold ingots.
The broker looked at the newly acquired gold leaves, in disbelief.
He had thought that he would be lucky to have closed the deal for this one house today. He had not expected that this cold and beautiful lady, who was as beautiful as a celestial fairy, would, if she did not act, but when she did, would want to buy two more adjacent houses.
This was a once-in-a-lifetime big buyer!
Afraid that Zheng Xuening would regret it, the broker had wanted to close the deal immediately, but he was also worried that the sale was too hasty and that in the future, it would displease this noble. He couldn’t help but say a few more words.
“To be honest, miss, the furniture in the two houses next door is gone. Even the doorframes have been taken away. There’s only the land left. It’s not as complete as the house I showed you two just now.”
“If you really buy it, you’ll have to spend a lot of effort to renovate the house. With that kind of effort, it’s better to look at other better, ready-made houses.”
The broker was also an honest businessman. This was the long-term way, so he had explained the pros and cons clearly.
After all, they were all people trying to make a living under the imperial city. Although there were greedy people, there were also those who were honest and righteous. Even merchants had their own standards.
“It doesn’t matter. I’ll buy all the houses.”
Zheng Xuening said calmly.
Seeing that she was a person with a plan, and that even after he had explained the pros and cons, the other was still willing to buy the houses, the broker was so happy he couldn’t close his mouth.
“Alright, alright, to let you know, miss, this humble one has been in the brokerage business for more than ten years. There are many ways in this capital, and this humble one also knows a little about everything.”
“In the future, if you want to find maids, matrons, or servants, this humble one can find those with a clean and reliable background.”
Having made a few big deals like this today, the broker did not forget to leave a little business for himself in advance.
He saw that Zheng Xuening and Lu Dieqing were generous with their money and had bought three adjacent houses. He guessed that in the future, they would probably need maids and matrons.
When the broker had left, Zheng Xuening re-entered the courtyard gate.
Lu Dieqing came out from behind a courtyard tree and chattered around her like a cheerful and beautiful little lark.
“Although my father is a scholar, he has also learned how to use wood to make tables and chairs himself these years. He can be considered half a carpenter. I think that the missing tables, chairs, and beds in this house can all be made by my father himself.”
“In this way, on the one hand, we can save on expenses, and on the other hand, things we make ourselves are more meaningful.”
The saying “a gentleman stays far from the kitchen” had long since become a mere decoration on Lu Dieqing’s parents.
Now, in the remote palace where they lived, many of the tables, chairs, and utensils inside were all made by Bai Ming bit by bit. His skills had also gone from being rough at the beginning to being quite good, self-taught.
Hearing Lu Dieqing talk about how to add furniture, with that elated little look on her face, Zheng Xuening curved her lips slightly.
“Then let’s go back today.”
The two returned to the palace. Lu Dieqing was eager to go and find her parents.
Today had been a really fulfilling day. She had met so many people and done so many things.
Zheng Xuening, however, held her back. “Wait. Don’t be in such a hurry to leave.”
She led the girl towards Changning Palace. The sky was already getting dark. Lu Dieqing thought that the other was reluctant to part with her, so she spoke softly to comfort her.
“I’ll go back first. You can come over for dinner later. Since you’ve already met my parents, you can also come over when I’m resting there at night.”
It had to be said that since Ningning had slept in her room last time, and her mother had run into her the next morning, and the family had even had breakfast together, it felt as if her and Ningning’s affair had been made public. Lu Dieqing was not so apprehensive in her heart and spoke with a certain righteousness when she asked Zheng Xuening to come over for dinner.
The girl’s face was fair and rosy, her almond eyes sparkling. When she smiled, not only were her lips red, but her dimples were also sweet. No matter how you looked at it, she was making flowers bloom in a person’s heart.
Zheng Xuening took her hand. “I’ll take you to see something.”
Lu Dieqing’s curiosity was immediately piqued. Her round almond eyes kept looking at Zheng Xuening, and she couldn’t help but ask in advance, “What are we going to see?”
However, the person who had always answered Lu Dieqing’s questions in the past was playing a guessing game today and did not immediately reveal the answer.
She even took out a handkerchief and blindfolded the girl.
“Why don’t you guess what I’m taking you to see?”
Her eyes were blindfolded. Lu Dieqing could only give both her hands to Zheng Xuening and follow her steps.
If it had been before, she would definitely have been a little apprehensive.
But now, the trust between the two was no longer the same as before. And after she had guided qi into her body, her hearing and vision had improved a lot.
Although her eyes were blindfolded and her vision was useless, her hearing, on the contrary, had become a little sharper.
Her earlobes moved slightly, and her beautiful and delicate little nose also wrinkled slightly.
She heard the sound of an animal snorting, and also the sound of chewing hay?
And… a faint smell of feed wafting in the air.
Lu Dieqing was inspired and blurted out, “The stables!”
“Am I right?”
Lu Dieqing looked up at Zheng Xuening.
When her face was raised, her eyes were covered by the white handkerchief. Clearly, she couldn’t see anything, but she subconsciously showed a dependent smile to Zheng Xuening.
Zheng Xuening smiled, the color in her phoenix eyes deepening a little.
She suddenly found that her little rabbit, with her eyes blindfolded, was so beautiful it made one want to bully her.
How had she not thought of this before?
The Crown Princess, who had always been so serious as if she had no seven emotions and six desires, when looking at Lu Dieqing, was clearly a great fatuous ruler who had been so bewitched that she was in a daze.
The great fatuous ruler led her peerless beauty, step by step, into the stables and personally untied the handkerchief that was blindfolded on her.
Lu Dieqing slowly opened her eyes and looked opposite her.
The stables! It was indeed the stables!
Lu Dieqing saw several exceptionally fine horses.
These horses had originally been lowering their heads to eat grass and feed. Seeing someone come, they all raised their horse necks and looked at them with their gentle eyes.
Lu Dieqing, at a glance, took a fancy to a small, date-red horse.
That small horse did not look big, but it was so cute. When it saw Lu Dieqing, it even took the initiative to come closer, wanting her to stroke its head.
Zheng Xuening said to her, “When we went to the forbidden land, you once said that you wanted to learn horsemanship. These horses have all been tamed and have a gentle nature. Have you taken a fancy to any?”
Although she was talking about horses, her mind was filled with the image of Lu Dieqing with her eyes blindfolded just now, so innocent and naive.
So beautiful and yet she doesn’t know it. I want to kiss her.
