The cicadas were chirping furiously in the blazing summer heat, and with the night breeze swaying through, the Qiushui Pavilion finally settled into a serene peace.
Even the cicadas were overheating and moaning like they were about to melt; it’s not surprising that ice pops melt, right?
Ying Bing was a sight to behold, her icy skin almost melted away. She leaned against a wall, feeling all soft and floppy, like a noodle in a hug. Her hairpin and tassels, freshly donned, were now all wonky and she didn’t have the energy to escape to any hiding spots.
The sound of cicadas had faded from her ears.
What could you expect? That childish ghost couldn’t hear a thing after she caught a whiff of the cold air; her ears were burning up. Was this what it felt like to lose your hearing by being devoured?
Little Ke Mo loosened his grip after a while.
“Wait, you can’t seal mosquitoes on my neck!” Ying Bing shrank her neck, her eyes seeming about to shatter like the moonlight.
“But summer is here, right?”
Ke Mo was serious, diligently grinding his teeth like a little sealing master, fully consumed by worries over mosquitoes.
“Mom and Dad will see it….”
Ying Bing murmured softly.
Everybody knew that Little Ke Mo was a genius.
He thought for a moment, “Can’t we look for an invisible spot to seal it?”
Well, if it’s invisible, the mosquitoes wouldn’t bite, right?
But the bright Ying Bing didn’t consider that option; she could only squirm a little:
“Let go, behave.”
“I am! Since my sister approved, I won’t let go.”
“You’re poking me.”
“Hmm? I got it….”
Ke Mo paused, pulled out the imperial decree from his sleeve, and quickly wrapped it back up.
The blush on Ying Bing’s ears hadn’t even faded yet as she shot him a disgruntled glance; she was really getting shy about the ear-munching.
Since she had to be held anyway, she simply sat on his lap…
Just as she settled down, she felt stiff and immediately regretted it.
How could she forget something so obvious? If the decree poked people, it definitely wouldn’t be burning hot, right?
Ying Bing wanted to shift away a bit, but her long legs had no strength, so she just wriggled like a cocoon in his arms a couple of times.
“……”
Little Ke Mo took a sharp breath of cold air, and out of the corner of his eye, he noticed a shadow outside the door.
“Hmm?” Ying Bing noticed someone passing by outside too.
“Are there bad guys around?”
“It’s Clan Leader Shang,” Ying Bing said, biting her lip.
There were sunflower seeds by the door.
No idea how Shang Qin Qing managed to crack them so quietly though.
Gazing at the sky, it was indeed getting bright, and if they dawdled any longer, her parents would probably be wondering why she hadn’t come down. Reluctantly, Ke Mo stood up.
As he stepped outside, he spotted the sneaky Shang Qin Qing not too far off.
“Clan Leader Shang, you haven’t left yet?” Ke Mo asked, puzzled.
Shang Qin Qing’s speed could rival a bolt of lightning; how on earth was she still around?
“Ahem! I was just passing by. What do you mean, I haven’t left?”
Shang Qin Qing nonchalantly spat out a sunflower seed shell.
“Passing by to do what exactly?”
“Uh, you know, to use the restroom.”
“?”
Looking at the seeds scattered on the ground, Ke Mo felt no urge to call her out.
So it wasn’t that she didn’t have time to leave; it was that she hadn’t cracked enough…
Shaking his head, Ke Mo returned to the first floor. His parents were still around, so he had to temporarily stay in the guest room, or at least that was what it looked like.
“I feel like I forgot something….”
After shutting the guest room door, Ke Mo sat on the carved wooden bed, suddenly feeling around his body.
Then it hit him.
He hadn’t taken that ‘auspicious date’ imperial decree with him.
But leaving it with Ice Chunk was just as fine; according to Gu Xueqin, what’s yours is mine….
“Hm?”
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Li Mo suddenly froze mid-sip of his tea.
He stared at the table with a dazed expression.
“I didn’t just use the restroom, you know. I’m not Elder Xu… wait a second.”
Little Li became serious all of a sudden.
Curiosity piqued, he leaned in to sniff.
……
In a room atop the Qiushui Pavilion.
Ying Bing had changed into a fresh outfit, stuffing the old one into a big-headed doll, thus skipping the cleaning step altogether.
Now, she was elegantly perched at the edge of the bed, curling her pale legs, her forehead resting on her knees, and her gaze distant and dreamy.
If anyone familiar with her from her past life knew what had just happened, they’d probably think this world had gone mad.
She herself felt like she was in a dream, floating as if walking on clouds.
Once upon a time, the cold-hearted mistress of the Gui Palace, the Phoenix Sky Empress, actually…..
“He shouldn’t have noticed…..”
Ying Bing encouraged herself before daring to lift her head.
Her eyes drifted down to the imperial decree lying on the table, still blank on the ‘auspicious date’ line.
It had to be said, Emperor Jingtai was quite considerate; he hadn’t set a date for them but made it a favor, letting them decide, perhaps influenced by his own youthful escapades?
She ran her fingers through the tassel’s tip.
Cupping her delicate hand, she picked up a brush, her hand trembling for quite a while before finally signing off on a beautifully appointed date with year and month.
If Li Mo saw this, he’d probably feel that date was all too familiar.
….
The next morning.
Shang Qin Qing and Qin Yuzhi were both up bright and early.
Well, “up” might be a stretch since they hadn’t slept at all last night; Shang Qin Qing just kept tossing and turning. Once she spilled her experiences to Qin Yuzhi, the latter also couldn’t fall asleep one bit.
Dizzy from cracking seeds, the two barely had their eyes open as dawn broke.
As they stepped outside, they found two figures in the small courtyard.
Were there more experts around?
Were they up even earlier than them?
“Little Ice Girl, what are you doing standing there so early?” Shang Qin Qing asked.
“One day starts in the morning,” Ying Bing replied, sipping on her tea.
“Boss, what happened to your pants this morning?” Qin Yuzhi asked Li Mo.
“Oh, spilled some tea on the front,” Li Mo said as he cleared his throat, glancing at Ice Chunk, then focused back on wringing out his pants, particularly one spot that was bubbling up with trouble.
And there they were, two people early in the morning, just not speaking to each other.
The atmosphere felt off.
Qin Yuzhi’s eyes widened: “Qin Qing, what you said last night…”
“Ahem!”
Shang Qin Qing saw the cold fairy’s teacup nearly slip from her hand and coughed heavily.
It’s okay to crack seeds sneaky-like; why go on blabbing broadside like that?
“I’ll go make breakfast.” Li Mo hung the clothes out to dry and dashed into the kitchen.
Ice Chunk was still in a daze when Shang Qin Qing turned the topic back to her:
“Little Ice Girl, your hairpin and tassels look amazing! Where did Little Mo buy them?”
Ying Bing lowered her gaze gently, “They’re family heirlooms.”
“Ah? Whose family?”
“Li Mo’s.”
“!”
Shang Qin Qing and Qin Yuzhi recoiled slightly.
They exchanged glances and hurriedly covered each other’s mouths, afraid of bursting out in wild laughter.
