RPAGF Chapter 132 Making Kites
Chapter 132 Making Kites
Dingbei Palace.
Ling Huanan invited Xue Wen to go on a spring outing the day after tomorrow, and received a positive reply.
Without stopping, he took a dusty cabinet from the study, wiped off the dust with a handkerchief, and slowly opened it.
A musty smell wafted over, carrying a faint scent of wood and the aroma of time.
This cabinet is filled with Xue Wen's old belongings: his favorite hairpin, a half-finished sachet, and the calligraphy brush and Xuan paper he used to practice calligraphy...
There's still one kite that hasn't been given away...
Looking at the paper kite, now covered in blemishes, Ling Huanan seemed to see Xue Wen eighteen years ago, begging him to make him a kite and take him on a spring outing.
While he coldly complained about the trouble, he secretly studied for a long time before finally managing to cobble together this monstrosity...
Thinking of this, Ling Huanan shook his head, put the things back, then instructed people to prepare bamboo strips and other materials, and then rolled up his sleeves and sat in the courtyard to make a kite again...
The afterglow of the setting sun pierced through the swaying shadows of the trees in the courtyard, falling on Ling Huanan, the golden light making her appear even gentler.
When Ling Yi returned, this was the scene that greeted him. He couldn't help but feel a little emotional, for he had never seen his master so gentle and down-to-earth before!
Ling Huanan naturally sensed her return, but only glanced at her briefly before continuing with his own tasks without looking up.
"Speak." Then, the cold voice made Ling Yi feel that everything before was just an illusion, and that his master was still that unapproachable God of Slaughter Prince!
Ling Yi quickly reported what he had found out: "Master, the maid you asked me to investigate was punished by Prince Xian for breaking valuables, and then hanged herself yesterday. Prince Xian was saddened by this for a long time and ordered that she be given a proper burial..."
"Too stupid." Ling Huanan muttered under his breath, his hands still busy, seemingly having finished the kite frame and was now tying the string.
Ling Yi knew that the "stupid" was naturally referring to Feng Qing. The Dingbei Prince's Mansion had just had an accident, and the culprit there had been punished and even died. If it were an ordinary person, they would think that Feng Qing had killed him to cover it up!
After thinking it over, Ling Yi nodded in agreement, then added:
"I investigated that maid again. Her name is Suqin. She is from Jianghe Village on the outskirts of the capital. Five years ago, she saved Prince Xian on the outskirts of the capital. Later, she sold herself into slavery and gained Prince Xian's trust..."
After listening to Ling Yi's report, Ling Huanan remained silent until all the frame joints were securely fastened. He then picked up the prepared silk paper placed to the side and began pasting the paper while speaking:
Do you know what the maid's surname was before she became a slave?
Ling Yi was a little confused as to why Ling Huanan asked this, and was momentarily stunned, but quickly recovered and replied, "His surname is Zhao!"
"Her surname is Zhao! Hmm... So it's her."
Ling Huanan repeated Ling Yi's words, then held up the finished kite and admired it for a while in the sunset. Judging from its shape, it was an eagle, and that was all she could make.
Upon hearing this, Ling Yi wondered to himself: Who is it? How could Master guess who it is just from the surname?
Having seemingly enjoyed the kite enough, Ling Huanan took it into the study, and Ling Yi quickly followed. He saw his master standing in front of the desk, grinding ink, and then picking up his brush to paint, completing the task in one go.
As Ling Yi watched in disbelief as Ling Huanan drew a ferocious dragon on a kite that swallowed a poor little lamb whole, he heard an unpleasant voice:
"Go and dig up the maid's body and send it to the First Princess's residence."
Ling Yi quickly agreed to get lost, not knowing why Ling Huanan had suddenly gotten angry again.
It wasn't until long after they left that they realized their master was born in the Year of the Dragon, and that sheep was Xue Langjun. They had been staring at it for so long; with their master's petty nature, it was no wonder he was angry...
As Ling Huanan watched Ling Yi's departing figure, he let out a low, contemptuous "tsk." Did this eldest princess think he was a fool?
Jianghe Village on the outskirts of Beijing was a refugee resettlement village twenty years ago. Back then, it was I and Feng Han, who was then a princess, who were in charge of disaster relief and resettlement. I knew this situation all too well.
The original inhabitants of Jianghe Village were all surnamed Jiang and He. Later, a family surnamed Zhao and a family surnamed Wu were settled there.
Among them, the Zhao family, due to poverty, wanted to send their son to the palace to serve as a palace attendant. They set their sights on the charming and gentle Feng Han. Their son was quite capable, as he managed to get into her bed and become pregnant.
Unfortunately, she was unlucky and passed away shortly after giving birth to her daughter.
That daughter is none other than the current Crown Princess Feng Xin!
Feng Han disliked scheming people, and it was already merciful of her to spare the Zhao family's lives. The Zhao family dared not show their faces and pretended that the young man never existed...
Feng Han probably never expected that the Zhao family had secretly gotten involved with the First Princess! Indeed, who would be willing to give up power and wealth?
……
Thinking that he had drawn a stroke crookedly, Ling Huanan frowned and filled in the gaps, finally finishing the last stroke.
Looking at the finished painting, I felt something was missing. After thinking about it for a while, I picked up my pen again and wrote:
The dragon lies in the clouds, lost in thought; the sheep roams the green fields, their spirits soaring.
Overwhelmed by longing, I could not restrain myself; I alone savored its fragrance.
After finishing writing, Ling Huanan looked at the painting on the kite and the explicit poem beside it, and finally nodded in satisfaction...
……
The study in the residence of the First Princess.
"Clang, clang..."
A cacophony of sounds—the clinking of teacups and porcelain, the falling of brushes and inkstones—rang out. The eldest princess, seated in the main seat, glared fiercely at the strategist who had given her the idea, her face dark with malice.
"Didn't you say Ling Huanan was definitely going to die? Absolutely certain?"
"Your Highness, I beg you to calm your anger, my subordinate deserves no loss!"
The strategist knelt on the ground, so terrified he dared not breathe, his face almost pressed against the earth. He uttered words the eldest princess wanted to hear, but inwardly he thought:
[I only mentioned it briefly, but in the end, it was you, the eldest princess, who made the decision, and also that good-for-nothing Lin Dafeng...]
"I am currently under house arrest, and the few chess pieces I planted are all useless, yet I have accomplished nothing. How do you expect me to appease your anger?"
The eldest princess stood up and kicked the strategist in the chest. Since she had been confined to her feet, she had been unable to do anything except have sex with her husbands, and her temper had become increasingly volatile.
Seeing the strategist's face contorted in pain, the other strategists nearby all turned their faces away, choosing to remain aloof and not get involved, fearing they might be implicated.
Only the woman in black who had been protecting the eldest princess saw this and spoke up to comfort her, changing the subject:
"Please calm down, Your Majesty. The Grand Empress Dowager's birthday is just around the corner. You can ask Prince Rui to intercede on your behalf and have your confinement lifted..."
As for that lackey, seeing that she's still loyal enough, let's not bother with her. Getting angry and ruining our health would be a loss..."
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