The Cloud Feather of the Red Chamber: A Marriage Arranged with Gong Yuanzheng at the Start

Today's lunch was again eaten at the Kaku Palace, but Miyako no Kaku did not eat with them.

Having just learned what the Four Directions Demon looks like, he has too many things to do.

Gong Yuanzheng was already used to this situation. In the past, whenever his brother was busy, he would eat alone.

Now that Lin Qingyue is here, he no longer has to eat alone.

He skillfully instructed his servants to bring the prepared dishes to the study in the corner palace.

Lin Qingyue looked at the two dishes of vegetables that were taken away, and asked in surprise, "Young Master Jiao only needs this much food?"

Gong Yuanzheng looked somewhat helpless. "My brother has never had a good appetite; he only eats one meal a day."

“My brother is away from home all year round and has seen many bloody scenes, so he dislikes meat.”

“I prepared a special medicinal diet for my brother, and Jin Fu will serve it to him after he finishes his lunch.”

Watching the servants depart, Lin Qingyue thought to herself: This is purely relying on medicinal herbs to supplement nutrition.

While people in ancient times might not know this, Lin Qingyue did. Meat is rich in various trace elements that the human body needs, which cannot be replenished by medicine alone.

Lin Qingyue lowered her eyes. They were allies now. If Gong Er collapsed first, could the current members of the Gong family still cooperate with the imperial court?

By then, it will probably be a long way off before Wu Feng is wiped out.

She came up with a plan to at least keep Gong Shangjiao alive until Wu Feng was wiped out.

After lunch, as usual, I drank a large bowl of medicinal food.

Seeing that the sun was shining brightly, Gong Yuanzheng persisted and dragged Lin Qingyue to a pavilion in the corner palace.

This pavilion is located halfway up the mountain. The mountain is not high, and it only takes the time it takes to drink a cup of tea to climb up, but you can overlook most of the palace gate.

Several wild white plum trees grow beside the pavilion, unattended and growing freely, creating a unique natural charm.

At the foot of the white plum blossoms, a clear stream, formed by melting snow, meanders down.

Lin Qingyue played with the white plum blossoms in her hand; these were just picked for her by Gong Yuanzheng.

After carefully selecting, he broke off a branch of white plum blossoms that had fully bloomed and were arranged in a pleasing manner, and handed it to Gong Yuanzheng.

"This branch is pretty; you can put it in my hair later."

Gong Yuanzheng hurriedly took it, and having nowhere to put it, he simply put it in his mouth.

Although he was being ordered around to do the work, he did it willingly.

We should take Yue'er out more often; the afternoon sun is warm and it's good for her health to get some sun.

Here, he can practice styling his hair, while Lin Qingyue can enjoy the beautiful scenery.

This achieves several goals at once, which is excellent.

Compared to Gong Yuanzheng's enthusiasm, Lin Qingyue seemed rather listless. She placed all the white plum blossoms in her hand beside her and leaned against the railing listlessly.

At first, she was unwilling to come to this mountainside, nor did she want Gong Yuanzheng to use her hair to practice styling.

But was her objection effective?

No, Gong Yuanzheng simply picked her up around the waist and was about to fly directly to the pavilion.

Not wanting to attract too much attention, Lin Qingyue had no choice but to agree.

As for the hair-tying incident, Gong Yuanzheng looked at her with reddened eyes.

"Yue'er, I am your future husband. It is only natural for a husband to style his wife's hair. Why are you refusing me?"

Lin Qingyue: "......."

If you can't win an argument, then try to make amends. Will it hurt? No!

Besides, once he learns it, it will save him trouble; tying up hair isn't an easy task.

Wait, what do you mean she's saving herself trouble? She's not really going to marry him, so what trouble is there for her!

Feeling increasingly frustrated, Lin Qingyue's voice carried a hint of emotion as she asked, "Are you done?"

Gong Yuanzheng's hands weren't particularly clumsy, but he just couldn't hold onto the strands of hair in his hands. Every time he managed to gather them up, they would immediately slip down.

After several repetitions, Gong Yuanzheng became increasingly interested.

He refused to believe it. He could easily handle poison and hidden weapons, so how could a tiny strand of hair stump him?

Hearing Lin Qingyue's somewhat muffled voice, Gong Yuanzheng immediately took the white plum from his lips, moved closer to her, and felt relieved to see that she looked normal.

"What's wrong? Are you tired of sitting?"

The worry on his face seemed genuine; Lin Qingyue was angry, but she couldn't vent it on someone who cared about her.

She changed her posture. "Okay, you can continue."

Gong Yuanzheng smiled and his movements became even gentler.

Lin Qingyue leaned against the railing, looking down at the palace gate. The snow on the passageway had been cleared clean, and the snow on the eaves had mostly melted, revealing the dark blue tiles.

Teams of agile guards moved through the corridor in an orderly fashion.

Now, standing halfway up the mountain, Lin Qingyue could see most of the palace gate, and she couldn't help but sigh in her heart.

This palace gate is not only large in area, but also boasts stunning scenery.

Small bridges over flowing water, ancient trees and old houses, pavilions and towers—the layout may seem chaotic and disorderly, but it possesses a subtle and ethereal beauty.

Though made by man, it seems as if created by nature.

Lin Qingyue thought to herself, if her father and Yu'er were here, they would probably compose several poems on the spot.

Thinking of her family thousands of miles away, Lin Qingyue couldn't help but sigh softly, a touch of melancholy creeping into her heart, instantly extinguishing her mood for appreciating the scenery.

This sigh naturally did not escape Gong Yuanzheng's ears. He paused slightly as he tidied his hair. He saw the white plum blossoms beside him and thought of his own palace, which was planted entirely with medicinal herbs, without a single flowering tree.

"Yue'er, do you like these white plum blossoms? I'll move all of these white plum blossoms to Zheng Palace."

Lin Qingyue shook her head, then stopped immediately, remembering that Gong Yuanzheng was still tying his hair up.

“They’re thriving in the wild, there’s no need to move them into the yard.”

Gong Yuanzheng didn't quite understand her words. If she liked something, she would definitely keep it under her own nose and look at it anytime, anywhere.

If he didn't like it, why did he have to wear the white plum blossom in his hair?

Did Yue'er like or dislike what she said?

Though puzzled, my hands continued moving. "What kind of flowers do you like?" I asked. "I'll plant some in the Zheng Palace."

Lin Qingyue casually replied, "I like them all. I like all flowers."

Gong Yuanzheng: "?"

There are so many kinds of flowers in the world, if he can't plant them all in the natal chart, then he'll plant them in the horn chart!

"If you're going to plant, you don't need to plant anything special. Just plant some varieties for all four seasons, so you'll have flowers to enjoy all year round."

After saying that, she turned her head and looked at Gong Yuanzheng strangely, "Your Zheng Palace is full of medicinal herbs. You planted flowers, so what do you do with your medicinal herbs?"

The girl he loved looked up at him, her clear eyes reflecting his face like a pool of clear water, her soft hair brushing gently against his fingertips and swaying slightly in the air.

Gong Yuanzheng felt his heart beating a little faster, though he couldn't tell if it was because of his eyes or his hair.

"Yuanzheng?" Lin Qingyue tilted her head, looking at Gong Yuanzheng with a puzzled expression.

Gong Yuanzheng snapped out of his daze, immediately reached out and pinched Lin Qingyue's chin, turning her head back into place. His voice was slightly hoarse.

“Brother’s corner palace still has a lot of empty space. Move all these medicinal herbs to the corner palace.”

"..." Lin Qingyue: "You are your brother's good younger brother."

Gong Yuanzheng did not reply, but merely curled the corners of his lips, his eyes growing even deeper, while his movements became even gentler.

The afternoon sun made Lin Qingyue feel drowsy.

Gong Yuanzheng finally finished, only managing to tie his hair into a tiny bun at the back of his head, barely big enough to hold the white plum blossom.

He bent down, about to take credit, but saw that Lin Qingyue had closed her eyes, so he immediately picked up a thick cloak from the side and wrapped it around her.

She secretly regretted her carelessness; how could she not have noticed that Yue'er was asleep? What if she caught a cold?

Lin Qingyue was startled awake by his movements. She opened her eyes and asked groggily, "Are you done?"

Gong Yuanzheng felt even more guilty. "It's my fault for making you stay here for so long. I'll accompany you back to your room to rest."

Lin Qingyue quickly replied, "It's nothing, I'm not sleepy, it's just that the sunshine is too comfortable."

If Gong Yuanzheng were to watch her sleep by the bedside, there would be no way she could fall asleep!

Gong Yuanzheng said, "If you're sleepy, don't push yourself. I'll go with you to rest for a while."

Lin Qingyue shook her head, "I haven't been to the palace gates yet. Why don't you accompany me for a walk around?"

"Alright." Seeing her insistence, Gong Yuanzheng stopped trying to persuade her. He gazed at Lin Qingyue and reached out to smooth the hair at her temples.

Like a lotus emerging from clear water, naturally beautiful without any artifice.

The poem immediately came to Gong Yuanzheng's mind.

The more he looked at his Yue'er, the more he wanted to keep her as a treasure.