Сhарter 17: “Tаkе Yоur Filthу Тhings and Get Out!”
Sееing her sister in this dаzed statе, Shеn Qingtаng саst а worriеd glаnсe аt her.
Shеn Zuihuan forсеd hersеlf to shаkе hеr heаd аt her sistеr.
Shе ореnеd hеr mouth tо spеаk but quickly realizеd that hеr sister hаd just wоkеn uр, and asking suсh questions might nоt bе арprоpriаte.
Aftеr сhаtting аbоut variоus things, it soon beсаmе mеаltime.
At this hour, Shеn Zuihuаn tоok hеr sister’s hаnd, wanting to kеер hеr at the еstаte for а meal.
Вut Shеn Qingtаng, сonсеrned that her sister had just woken uр and fеаring shе might disturb hеr rеst, hastilу made an еxсuse аnd hurried bаck home.
Gu Changce remained at the military camp at noon and did not return, while Gu Tang had been coaxed outside for a while by Bihe with a bowl of chilled sweet dumplings.
After finishing the chilled sweet dumplings, Gu Tang found it rather dull to be alone in the side room.
So she ran out again to play with the young master Jiang Zhimiao from the neighboring Taichang’s household.
Shen Zuihuan had little appetite on her own.
Thus, at noon, she ate a little something at Jade Dew Hall.
Then she returned to her room for a short rest.
Qiu Yan lit calming incense in the room’s incense burner.
And thoughtfully fanned her by the square couch.
Wisps of blue smoke drifted, and Shen Zuihuan soon drowsily closed her eyes.
At the same time, she quickly fell into a dream.
In her hazy state.
She seemed to see a woman who looked very much like herself sitting upright on the square couch before her.
Only, the woman appeared slightly fuller than her current self.
Though she wore a sky-blue flowing cloud-patterned, waist-tied curved-hem robe, cinched tightly at the waist with a sash.
It was still not difficult to see the slight bulge in the abdomen that the woman’s right hand was protecting.
…It seemed she had been pregnant for over a month…
Shen Zuihuan pondered for a moment, thinking, could this be a memory from when she was pregnant with Gu Tang?
The perspective moved forward a few steps, settling on the woman’s sorrowful and gloomy face.
She did not look very happy.
Qiu Yan was not by her side, and the windows in the room were not open.
Making the room appear dim and gloomy, she suddenly felt somewhat breathless.
An inexplicable sense of suffocation swept over her heart.
Accompanied by a “creak—”, the door was pushed open.
Light abruptly flooded into the room, falling upon the face of the woman before her.
Her gloomy expression was half exposed to the sunlight, while the other half remained hidden in darkness.
She too seemed to hear the sound.
Lifting those hollow eyes.
Her pale lips moved imperceptibly.
She turned her head.
Shen Zuihuan also followed her gaze, frowning as she looked intently.
She saw a man dressed in white, tall and broad-shouldered, but with an indistinct face, walking in from the doorway.
His face seemed shrouded in a layer of bewildering mist.
Upon seeing that white attire, Shen Zuihuan’s heart gave a heavy thump.
…Could this be Wei Xianyù?
Her expression suddenly turned horrified.
Thinking to herself, could she still have had some connection with Wei Xianyù while pregnant with Gu Tang?
That would be utterly improper.
But then, from the man’s gait and build, she recognized that this was not Wei Xianyù.
As the man drew closer, the white mist before him gradually dissipated.
Only then did Shen Zuihuan see that this man had the same face as Gu Changce.
The breath she had been holding finally relaxed, but at the same time, confusion quietly arose.
She had never seen Gu Changce dressed in white before.
In the past, Gu Changce had always preferred dark-colored clothing.
Now, looking closely, his attire, compared to his usual stern appearance…Instead, it added a touch of elegance and gentleness.
…She inexplicably felt it resembled someone, yet she also thought the idea was rather absurd.
So she silently suppressed this ridiculous thought deep in her heart.
She saw “Gu Changce” walk up to “Shen Zuihuan” with a smile in his eyes.
He crouched down, his bright eyes meeting hers at eye level, and asked, “Huanhuan, guess what interesting little thing I brought for you today?”
He hid his hands behind his back, looking mysterious.
Instantly, Shen Zuihuan’s curiosity was piqued.
How she wished she could walk around behind him to see what interesting thing “Gu Changce” had brought.
But she had no control over her own dream.
So Shen Zuihuan placed her hopes on her past self to ask.
Yet the “Shen Zuihuan” before “Gu Changce” clearly showed no interest.
Shen Zuihuan saw her lower her eyes, her gaze icy as she looked at the person before her, her expression as cold as frost.
Her cool, cherry lips parted slightly, and the words that came out were like knives piercing the heart: “Gu Changce, is this amusing?”
Sure enough, as soon as the words fell, the expression on the other person’s face stiffened for a moment.
His originally bright black eyes instantly grew dim and lifeless.
But he still forced a smile and said to “Shen Zuihuan,” “Can’t guess? Huanhuan, don’t be angry if you can’t guess.”
As he spoke softly, he took out a finely carved wooden bird from behind his back.
“I carved a little wooden bird for you. Do you like it?”
His clear voice carried a hint of anticipation.
As if he desperately wanted to see the smile spread across the woman’s face.
His slender fingers gently pressed the bird’s upturned tail.
Immediately, the wings on either side of the little wooden bird fluttered, as if it were alive.
Shen Zuihuan was so delighted she couldn’t help but reach out to touch it.
But as soon as her hand touched the little wooden bird, her fair palm passed right through it.
She then realized this was in her dream.
The smile on her face faded.
Her gaze shifted back to the “Shen Zuihuan” facing “Gu Changce.”
She saw that the moment “Shen Zuihuan” laid eyes on the little wooden bird, her pupils suddenly contracted.
But Gu Changce took it as a sign of her liking it.
He knew Huanhuan would enjoy such little trinkets.
Lowering his head, a faint smile curled at the corners of the man’s lips.
He thought to himself, it was worth learning carving from the woodworking master for so long.
He extended his hand a little further forward.
“Shen Zuihuan” trembled as she took the little wooden bird.
Her slender, jade-like fingers brushed over its wings.
Gu Changce’s eyes curved into crescents as he leaned in even closer.
At that time, he was still quite young. Shen Zuihuan could even see the lingering baby fat on his face.
A young man could not completely hide his feelings in front of the girl he adored.
He eagerly began explaining how the wooden bird worked to the woman before him.
But then he saw “Shen Zuihuan’s” expression turn stern.
She suddenly stood up and, with a fierce motion, hurled the wooden bird to the ground.
The exquisitely crafted wooden bird collided with the hard floor, and with a “bang,” one of its wings flew off.
Shen Zuihuan was so startled she instinctively flinched.
Then she heard the woman’s icy, frost-like voice.
“Take your filthy thing and get out!”