After the meal, Huiyin rose and followed Li Cheng into the inner chamber. She looked at him and asked, "When you have nothing to do on ordinary days, how do you pass the time? Surely you don't just sit around."She seemed like a very straightforward person.Li Cheng smiled and said, "When I have free time, I play the zither and read books. Recently, I've been reading Lunheng.""Is it Wang Zhongren's Lunheng?" Huiyin asked.Li Cheng nodded. "Yes. Have you read it as well?"Huiyin shook her head. "I prefer reading tales of the strange and fantastic, but I'm also quite afraid of ghosts, so it's rather contradictory. Books that are too profound just make my head spin.""Tales of the strange? You mean the kind about spirits and monsters?" Li Cheng said casually.Huiyin hadn't expected anyone else to know of such things, so she quickly nodded. "Exactly. Though sometimes I also enjoy reading storybooks. Most of the time, though, I spend my days at home doing needlework."Huiyin was only a few years younger than him, so one could say they were of the same generation. Moreover, she spoke lightly and easily, without burdening you, and she went about things with a sense of ease. Just like now, she said, "I also have a gift for you, but it's not convenient to bring it out.""Oh? I have a gift too. I wonder what it could be?" Li Cheng guessed it was probably something like jewelry.Huiyin, however, looked a little embarrassed and said, "Actually, I'm just offering a gift that was given to me. Originally, my father, knowing I was marrying far away, specially gave me a Dayuan Steed. But I'm not skilled in riding or archery. I've observed that you, Young Prince, have a noble bearing, are brave and skilled in battle, resourceful and wise, and excel in both letters and martial arts. As the saying goes, 'A fine steed is a gift for a hero.' I wonder if you would deign to accept it?""A Dayuan Steed? I must go see it." Li Cheng suddenly stood up, eager to go look at once.Huiyin laughed. "You really are impatient. It's already getting dark now. Even if you wanted to see it, it would be pitch black."In truth, this horse had originally been part of her dowry, intended to be given to Li Cheng. If it were given to him directly, it would seem like paying tribute. But by offering it in her own name, he would cherish it all the more.Li Cheng laughed and sat back down, his eyes sparkling.Huiyin, meanwhile, sat nearby reading. After a while, she took out her needle and thread to do some sewing. She was making a lotus-pink sachet, her hands moving swiftly with the needle, clearly quite practiced.When it grew late, she rose and had the servants prepare a bath for the night. Li Cheng felt that she was just right—not so lively and talkative that it left you no room to breathe, nor so stiff and dull that it made things boring.However, he said, "In a few days, I'll be heading to the military camp to train the troops. I'm afraid you'll be left here alone. If you'd like, I can have someone escort you back to Jianye. For one, you could attend to my grandmother, and for another, Jianye is livelier. This place is too quiet and dull."One couldn't bring family along on military campaigns. Although this was his residence, he spent most of his time drilling the troops. Had it not been for the marriage, he would likely have been with the army full-time.Huiyin thought to herself that consummating the marriage had indeed been the right move. He was often away from home, and even if she wanted to bear a child, she couldn't make something out of nothing. Moreover, in her previous life, Li Cheng had died around the same time as Li Heng—he, too, was short-lived.But returning to Jianye was out of the question. Not only was she unfamiliar with the place, but as Li Cheng's wife, she would be the mistress of the household while he was away. If she went back, she'd have a great-grandmother-in-law above her, and that would be truly difficult.Thus, Huiyin shook her head. "No, I don't want to. Although I would like to serve Grandmother, it's just that…""What is it?" Li Cheng asked, puzzled.Huiyin's face showed a hint of timidity: "I only know you. We are husband and wife, so that's fine, but I'm afraid of other people. Since I came here, only you have spoken Mandarin with me."So that was it. Li Cheng hadn't thought of this problem, and he too felt a bit troubled: "But if you stay here, I'm rarely at home either?""Even if you're rarely at home, you're still here sometimes. Otherwise, when you return to Jianye, I'll go with you—I wouldn't dare go alone." Huiyin tugged at his sleeve, still somewhat fearful.Li Cheng thought to himself that she was only seventeen this year, having married from Jizhou across a thousand miles. She was all alone, with only him speaking Mandarin to her; on ordinary days she probably didn't even have anyone to talk to. He felt a pang of sympathy."Alright." He placed both hands on Huiyin's shoulders and agreed.Huiyin said happily, "Then let's rest early tonight."That night the two of them only slept, and no water was called for. Nanny Chao, listening to the sounds, clasped her hands together: "Amitabha, Amitabha."Yun Hui trimmed the lamp wick, and the candlelight in the room brightened considerably: "Mother, now that you're at ease, hurry and rest. Don't think too much."Seeing that her daughter was meticulous even in her nightclothes and was still working on a shoe sole, Nanny Chao said, "Why are you making shoes so late at night? Are they for the young prince?""The young prince's feet sweat easily, and he doesn't like wearing shoes from outside. The seamstresses can't finish them in time, so shouldn't I make them? I was widowed before marriage, and the young prince, out of our past friendship, took me in and made me head stewardess. I have no other way to repay him." Yun Hui smiled.Nanny Chao felt sorry for her daughter: "If it weren't for Miss Xun constantly finding fault with you—if she had been even a little more generous—you would have become the young prince's woman long ago. There would have been no need to marry out."Yun Hui stopped her needlework: "Mother, why bring that up now? Now that the Princess of Zheng has entered the household, if anyone overhears, how could I hold my head up?""Alright, I won't say any more." Nanny Chao quickly fell silent.Early the next morning, Huiyin, dressed in slightly worn clothes, went to the kitchen. The kitchen staff were startled, and when they heard she wanted to cook personally, they were afraid to let her touch anything.Huiyin smiled: "It's fine. The young prince asked me to cook for him myself, so I should show a little of my sincerity."She planned to make hand-pulled noodles—the kind that get thinner and thinner as they're pulled. She first kneaded the dough and set it aside to rest. Then she had someone chop the pork ribs. She wasn't making clear-broth ribs, so she first stir-fried the ribs in a wok, added a little soybean paste, scallions, ginger, and garlic, then mixed honey, chili paste, soy sauce, sugar, and white sesame seeds with half a bowl of water to make the sauce.As the ribs bubbled away, she calmly began pulling the rested dough. The kitchen staff had never seen anyone pull noodles before—the dough in her hands was like magic, as a large lump transformed into thin, long strands.When the ribs were almost done, she added rice cakes, then took the beef bone broth that had been simmering in the kitchen and used it to cook the noodles for a while, topping them with soft-boiled eggs, seasonal vegetables, and silverfish balls.It was done quickly, and it looked delicious.But Nanny Nan worried: "Your Highness, what if the young prince doesn't like it?"“Don’t worry, with my seasoning, even a shoe sole would taste delicious, let alone with all these good ingredients. The young prince and I are both young people—if he doesn’t like it, I’ll eat it all myself.” Huiyin wrinkled her nose.Nanny Nan couldn’t help but laugh. That was just how the second young lady was—if you turned your nose up at her cooking, she wouldn’t think her food was lacking; she’d simply think you didn’t know what was good for you. If it were the eldest young lady, she’d have been anxious and fretting over it.
Chapter 11
Rebirth of the Empress