Cry of the Midnight Jackdaw

Chapter One Hundred,
Marriage

“I hear Empress Liu sent someone to bring paintings all to your residence, how do you plan on delaying it?” Xu Yu Hang watched the calm and collected Highness the Crown Prince with joy over his misery, and could not help but tease him, “That someone of yours at home doesn’t look to be the type that would allow you to partake in the fortune of fulfillment[1].”

“Beat it.” He Xuan hung his eyes down, peeled open a lychee, and put it in the mouth, “I(g) long already spoke with the Fang family, and will marry their eldest daughter.”

“The Fang family’s eldest daughter?” Xu Yu Hang turned so shocked even the watermelon in his hands fell to the ground, he reached out with a tremble and picked it up and tossed it into the dustpan, then said with a tremble, “Isn’t she a si…… isn’t she weak and bear many illnesses, she probably won’t live long then!”

“En.” He Xuan lifted his eyelids and looked at him, and sneered, “Isn’t that the best?”

“What are you suffering for?” Xu Yu Hang had a face like he was disappointed, and persuaded him, “No, why do you look like such a saintly romantic, aren’t you just playing with him?”

“When was I only playing with him?” He Xuan knitted his eyebrows and asked back.

Xu Yu Hang froze, and practically dumbfoundedly stared at him for a moment, then stuttered, “Wh…… what do you mean? You…… you…… right now, you…”

“Me(g) and Xiao Zuo are both in love with each other, a match made in heaven.” He Xuan glanced at Xu Yu Hang as though spuriously smiling, and curled his lips, “What? Jealous of me(g)?”

“I…… I…… I’m jealous of you?” Xu Yu Hang got so angry he laughed, and fiercely glared at him, and took up a watermelon on the table and continued eating, then spoke with a muffled tone, “You must make a proper decision, marriage is a big thing, it’s not a trifling matter.”

“I’ve made my decision, of course.” He Xuan flattened the lychee shells without any care, “Whatever, I will go back first, you should go back and spend more time with your wife, you’re about to become a father.”

“Heh heh, of course.” Xu Yu Hang smiled so big only his teeth could be seen, with a happy look of indulging in a wonderful life, he and his wife’s relationship was really deeply affectionate like a devoted couple, and could be considered a widespread story among the aristocratic families.

Before He Xuan returned to the residence, he passed by the vermilion street, and measured out one liang of preserved fruit from a preserved fruits and nuts store very popular as of late, bagged very simply with oiled paper, and passed through an alleyway going towards the residence.

“Your……” Qing Xing was holding a silk fan fanning Xiao Zuo taking an afternoon nap, when she heard sounds of footsteps, she hurriedly turned around and bowed. He Xuan shushed, and waved his hand to have Qing Xing retreat. He took over the silk fan and sat on the edge of the bed, then lightly swayed it while leaning on the back of the bed.

Xiao Zuo dreaded the heat, so these two days, some more ice pans were added to the room, and was evidently much cooler, and the tiles were cool to the touch. “Qing Xing, pour me some……” When waking up from the afternoon nap, the throat would be a bit dry and hoarse, Xiao Zuo turned his head and wanted to call Qing Xing to pour him a cup of tea, but when he just spoke through halfway, his gaze suddenly touched He Xuan’s sleeping face, and his words also got blocked.

When He Xuan closed his eyes, he seemed very much like a beauty that came out from a painting, each inch was contained with the most purest of effort from the artist. Xiao Zuo looked at it for a while in a trance, could not help but bend over, and lightly touched his lips, then got up.

Who knew that He Xuan would suddenly open his eyes, and with one hand, forcefully wrapped over his still-limp waist from the afternoon nap, and very familiarly pried open his teeth, and audaciously seized territory. Xiao Zuo was originally did not have much strength, with this long deep kiss of his, in the end, he directly gave up and buried his head into his embrace, and took deep breaths like he went through a disaster.

“I brought preserved fruits for you, give it a try.” He Xuan opened up the paper bag, took out one piece from inside, and put it close to Xiao Zuo’s mouth. Xiao Zuo laxly bit onto it, the tongue carelessly licked over his fingertips, and commented on it with puffed cheeks, “Mm, tastes good.”

“Did you see those paintings Empress Liu gave me?”

Xiao Zuo paused, and said in a muffled voice, “I did.”

He Xuan laughed, then reached out and occasionally pinched Xiao Zuo’s fingertips, and lowly teased him , “Any one you like?”

Xiao Zuo sulkily pulled his hand back, and stiffly choked, “All a bunch of warped gourds and cracked dates, I don’t like any of them.”

“En, they naturally cannot compare to Li Nu.”

“Why…… why compare me with them.” Xiao Zuo tossed two preserved fruits into his mouth in spite, and moved forward a bit, “So hot, don’t get so near me.”

“I’ve already chosen the person.” He XUan did not move, and pinched Xiao Zuo’s waist and moved him towards his arms, then lowered his head and bit his earlobe.

“Hiss……” Xiao Zuo knitted his eyebrows, and spoke with a bit of sullenness, “Why are you telling me this.”

He Xuan hung his eye downs and looked his own teeth mark, it was wet, like a marked territory. He satisfactorily patrolled around it for a moment, then reached out and stroked that red shaky smear at the end of Xiao Zuo’s eye, speaking with an enticing tone, “Don’t want to know?”

“If you’re going to say it, just say it.” XIao Zuo turned his head, while the bottom of his eyes seemed like they were sealed with a black and dark sea.

He Xuan sighed, and kissed his eyelids, “It’s Fang Shi Yuan’s eldest daughter.”

“I had someone go look at his residence, his eldest daughter has a weak body, and cannot live more than two years, then we’ll have marriage delayed again and again.” He Xuan used both hands to lift Xiao Zuo’s face up, and his gaze fell onto his reddened eye sockets, “I promised you, I wouldn’t marry another person.”

Xiao Zuo froze, the red on the corner of his eyes fell onto his cheeks, and dyed them into a dense rouge, “Where did you buy the preserved fruits, I will go buy it next time.”

He Xuan lightly laughed, “Vermilion street.”

❀

That day Zi Wan got married, was a seldom overcast day. The leaves on the parasol tree in the courtyard went all droopy from the consecutive days of intense sun, and the edges of the leaves shrivelled and curled. Xiao Zuo slightly dejectedly leaned on the side of the door, and absentmindedly watched maids hold jars of water watering the sun-damaged plants and trees.

He Xuan had morning court early in the morning, last night before sleeping, he especially handed a wooden box to him, saying it was a congratulatory gift for Zi Wan. Xiao Zuo just opened it now to look, inside was a land deed at the capital outskirts, quite expensive.

“Duke, the new bride is here!” Qing Xing’s hands swayed a fan, and held the thin and light hem of her dress and smiled as she made a small run over, “The new bride is here!”

Xiao Zuo looked towards the direction she came in, Zi Wan was dressed in a deep-red bridal clothing, the chest was embellished with layers of elaborate tassels, swaying left and right as she moved, creating mottled fragmented shadows on the pebbled path. She was wearing a decorated phoenix coronet on her head, probably very heavy, that Zi Wan was hanging her head down looking at the floor the entire way, but even if she seemed slightly weary, her features still rippled with an inconcealable joy.

Before Xiao Zuo could move away his eyes from that phoenix coronet she was wearing, in the blink of an eye, Zi Wan already arrived in front of him, “Duke……”

“You are the new bride today, no need to be so courteous.” Xiao Zuo hurriedly stopped her from bowing, and smiled. Xi Wan’s face went slightly red, then obediently stood up, just when she was going to speak, De Qing got helped in by xiao’Chong’zi beside him into the courtyard’s door, and came close while trembling.

De Qing’s sickness got a bit better these two days, today, he especially wore a deep-blue long robe, the collar was starched straight, and the hair also was brushed tidy and neat, and looked to be much more vigorous.

“De Qing……” Zi Wan quietly called out to him, De Qing answered her, then turned to say to Xiao Zuo, “Duke should speak with Zi Wan first then.”

“De Qing should go first, I’m not in a hurry. You won’t be able to stand up after a moment.” Xiao Zuo swept a glance at De QIng’s slightly shaking legs, and pressed down the unwillingness inside, and slightly hung down his eyelashes.

De Qing sighed. His face already grew with some bluish black liver spots, normally it would hide in the deep and shallow wrinkles, but at this time, underneath the sunlight, it suddenly had nowhere to hide anywhere.

Before he spoke, he first coughed two times, xiao’Chong’zi lightly patted his back to help him with his breathing, then after a while, De Qing then slowly spoke, “Once people get old, they are unfit for anything. This old servant is considered to have watched Zi Wan grow up, and now, she grown so splendidly.” De Qing delightfully smiled, and took out a pouch from his sleeve, “This is a congratulatory gift for the girl, in the future, do take care of yourself, and…… keh keh……”

De Qing covered his mouth and coughed, “And be happily married to old age with your husband.”

“De Qing……” Zi Wan’s eye sockets emitted with a faint red, she took the pouch that De Qing handed, reached out to hold De Qing’s withered thin hand, and spoke with a slight sob, “Zi Wan understands it all, you must stay healthy even when old……”

“Aye, aye.” De Qing patted her hand, and the wrinkles on the face piled together from smiling.

“De Qing, head back first, the outside is still a bit hot.” Xiao Zuo lifted his chin at xiao’Chong’zi by his side, xiao’Chong’zi understood immediately, and helped him back.

“This…… is from his Highness and me.” Xiao Zuo put the gold ingot he prepared together with the land deed into that box, “If he bullies you in the future……you naturally have us to back you up, do not make yourself suffer.”

“Duke!” Zi Wan pursed her lips, her eyes already accumulated with a lucid watery light, and was pretty much going drop down in the next instant.

Xiao Zuo lifted the back of his hand, then carefully wiped the tears on the corner of her eyes, then laughed as he teased, “A new bride mustn’t cry, you woke up so early to do makeup, if you ruin it from crying, you will miss the lucky hour in a bit.”

Just as he finished speaking, Qing Xing hurriedly made a small run in from the courtyard, “The new groom has reached the entrance!”

Xiao Zuo’s heart suddenly jumped, he pretty much used all his strength to bring up the tightly pursed corners, and barely squeezed out a strange-looking smile, “Go on, don’t let the new groom wait long.”

Zi Wan nodded her head, she half-joyously half-nervously tightened the celebratory handkerchief in her hands, and the wet nurse following beside her helped her put on the red veil. Xiao Zuo gave a final glance, and only saw her chin applied with powder flash by.

“Duke, please wait, this old servant shall sent the new bride.”

Xiao Zuo’s steps slightly paused, he stiffly nodded his head, “Please take care of Zi Wan.”

Zi Wan’s face was hidden in the bright red fabric, and heard her slightly shaking voice coming though the veil, “Duke…… Duke, please take care of your body more, in the future…… Zi Wan will be unable to serve the duke.”

“When [I am] free in the future……” Xiao Zuo took a deep breath in, and held the tears about to fall back in, “I will go to the residence to see you.”

“Duke, the auspicious hour is almost here, the groom’s side……” The wet nurse sending off wanted to say something, Xiao Zuo turned his face around and no longer looked at Zi Wan, with his voice so light it was pretty much like a drifting flute sound, “En, help Zi Wan onto the sedan then.”

[1] 齐人之福… to have one legal wife and one concubine.