"You should take a good rest this afternoon. You don't need to tidy up. If you have time, you can go to the Palace Treasury and see Eunuch Liu." Seeing that it was almost time, Hui Ming stood up and said to Liu An.
Liu An agreed. Although Hui Ming repeatedly declined, Liu An insisted on carrying out the water Hui Ming used for washing and pouring it away. She also confirmed again and again that "Auntie" didn't need her to bring lunch at noon today. Only then did she smile, her round eyes curving into crescents. "Auntie, don't worry. I will go after noon. Uncle will be free then too."
Listening to her, Liu An would still clean the room as usual before doing anything else.
Since Liu An came to Qiande Palace a few days ago, Hui Ming felt like she had returned to the days when she was the Head Palace Maid serving the previous Emperor. Every morning, Liu An would prepare hot water for her to wash up. Before going to bed, Liu An would diligently make the bed for her, not to mention the trivial matters of cleaning the room. In fact, if Hui Ming hadn't firmly refused, Liu An would even have offered to hand her a handkerchief to wash her clothes!
Hui Ming wasn't unfamiliar with being served like this. When she was the only Head Palace Maid close to the late Emperor, it was common for several low-ranking palace maids to serve her in the palace. However, it was different now. Not to mention that she was just an ordinary palace maid, even if she really had the status of Wei Gu Gu, it wouldn't be appropriate to order a female attendant from the Emperor's chambers around like this.
Although Hui Ming knew that Liu An's attentiveness was due to Eunuch Su's reputation and power, she felt ashamed of it. She also didn't want to be arrogant and tarnish Eunuch Su's reputation. In the past few days, she had become even more polite when getting along with Liu An. During the days she brought Liu An to work, she carefully taught her everything, not only the superficial duties of the Department of Adornments, but also her decades of experience serving in front of the late Emperor, including her understanding of human nature and how to handle interpersonal relationships. She intentionally or unintentionally told Liu An a lot.
However, contrary to Hui Ming's intentions, her wholehearted teaching made Liu An feel grateful and even more sincerely admire her. In their daily interactions, Liu An became more and more sensible and diligent.
Indeed, the person Eunuch Su specially picked would definitely not be as troublesome as Bai Hao.
Thinking of Eunuch Su, Hui Ming looked at the sky and didn't delay any longer. She hurried out the door.
She was going to bring Eunuch Su his meal.
"Oh, Auntie, why are you so early today? I'm the one who's late!" Seeing Hui Ming from afar, Yuan Bao immediately smiled so widely that his eyes became slits. He immediately bent down and welcomed her in.
It was said to be bringing the meal, but except for today, most of the time, Yuan Bao had already prepared it in advance, making Hui Ming only take the name. Hui Ming declined a few times, but seeing that Yuan Bao still insisted, she thought that it was only right to bring water and food to her master in the palace, so she didn't say anything more. She just paid attention to the tasks in Qiande Palace and only went to get the meal herself when even Yuan Bao was too busy to handle it.
Fortunately, Eunuch Su probably had a very good temper and didn't like to refuse. With her persuasion, he had really changed his bad habit of not eating breakfast and lunch. This not only relieved Hui Ming, but also made Yuan Bao happy to be attentive every day, not minding the trouble at all.
The reason why Hui Ming did this, besides repaying Eunuch Su's kindness, was more importantly because every time she thought of Eunuch Su being killed by the rebels in her previous life, she couldn't sleep or eat well. Although there were still nearly two years before the day King Rui forced the palace coup, such a major event was not something that could be accomplished overnight. How Eunuch Su was involved and how much risk he took, Hui Ming didn't know at all. Every time she thought of this, she knew that her actions might annoy Eunuch Su, but she had to bite the bullet and come often. Only after getting acquainted would she have the opportunity to inquire about the future King Rui.
After Yuan Bao escorted Hui Ming into the room, he didn't stay to be an eyesore. He just said, "Auntie, please take a seat. I'll go make you a cup of tea."
Hui Ming thanked him and stood at the door for a while, waiting until her eyes adjusted to the slightly dim light in the room before carrying the food box inside.
This was a side room behind Qiande Palace. It was only a place for eunuchs and palace maids with sufficient status like Eunuch Su and Madam Xu to rest temporarily when they were on duty. It was not a real residence, so naturally, it was not big. There was a short bamboo couch against the wall, a small square table facing the door, a few small stools, and nothing else. Fortunately, because the place was small, although there was no heated brick bed, it was warm enough to just burn a brazier.
Eunuch Su was sitting on the stool facing the door. Although the stool was low, Eunuch Su didn't look as cramped and restrained as others when he sat on it. Instead, he carried an indescribable nobility, as if the light from the brazier was shining only on him. Hui Ming glanced at him and lowered her head to step forward. She put down the food box in her hand and arranged the dishes one by one on the table in front of Eunuch Su. "Eunuch, you came back early today."
"Yes, I happened to be free today." Eunuch Su nodded politely. Every time Hui Ming took out a plate or bowl from the food box and put it down, he would take it with both hands as if she was someone of noble status who couldn't stand being served by her. He was very polite. Seeing this, Hui Ming put down the dishes even more carefully. The four or five porcelain pieces, including soup and dishes, were placed without a sound. Only the brazier on the ground made a slight crackling sound.
Perhaps this was the rule of serving in front of the Emperor.
Because of this serious atmosphere, Hui Ming couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief every time she finished placing the dishes. Only then did she say, "I noticed that you seemed to like this tender bamboo shoot last time, Eunuch. It just so happens that we have some today, so I brought more."
Eunuch Su's hand holding the soup spoon paused. He looked up at her and said in a low voice, "I've troubled you."
There were no windows in the side room, and the light came entirely from the brazier and candles. Perhaps it was because the firelight also reflected in Eunuch Su's eyes, but Hui Ming felt that his eyes were amazingly bright at the moment. Hui Ming only glanced at him before she couldn't help but lower her head again and sat down on the stool beside her with her knees bent.
Eunuch Su didn't speak again. He just lowered his head and slowly took a few bites of the tender bamboo shoots. Seeing that Hui Ming didn't move her chopsticks, he asked, "Why aren't you eating? Is the food not to your liking?"
Hui Ming shook her head and said, "I've eaten. Eunuch, please enjoy yourself. Don't mind me."
This was a lie. Hui Ming had calculated the time and brought the food box back as soon as the kitchen served the meal. How could she have time to eat first? The reason why she didn't eat was not because of anything else but because she was really uncomfortable eating next to Eunuch Su…
Palace people had rules for clothing, food, housing, and transportation, so logically speaking, their table manners wouldn't be too bad. Hui Ming had never paid attention to how others ate before, but Eunuch Su was really different. He also used chopsticks to pick up vegetables and a spoon to drink soup, but when Eunuch Su did it, it was different from others. It was as if every move he made had its own rhythm, somewhat like the real nobles in the palace.
But thinking about Eunuch Su's background, it was indeed not surprising that he ate like a noble. However, being with such an Eunuch Su, Hui Ming always felt as if she should be the one standing behind and serving. If she were to sit with him, she would really feel ashamed of herself and extremely uncomfortable.
Anyway, she came early enough today. Even if she waited for Eunuch Su to finish eating before going back, there should still be food in the kitchen. It would not be too late to eat then. Thinking of this, Hui Ming simply decided not to touch her chopsticks anymore. She wanted to take a good look at how Eunuch Su ate. If she could learn a thing or two, she wouldn't look so vulgar when she came again.
Hui Ming had planned well, but Eunuch Su's movements paused again. He looked up at the sky outside, and the light in his eyes dimmed little by little.
With his caution, he could naturally figure out that with the current time, Hui Ming definitely didn't have time to eat beforehand. She clearly hadn't eaten, but she said she had. She would rather go hungry than eat at the same table with him.
Since she was so unhappy to come, why bother torturing herself and not even eat properly? Su Jin put down the chopsticks in his hand, swallowed the bitterness in his heart, and said in a low voice, "Since that's the case, you must be tired. Go and rest while His Majesty is taking his afternoon nap."
Huh? Hui Ming was stunned. Eunuch Su's performance was so obvious that she could naturally see his sudden depression and displeasure. But, wasn't everything fine just now?
Why?
Author's note:
Eunuch Su o(￣▽￣)o: Ahhh, eating with my sweetheart! I have to be super careful, super serious, and super particular about every move! I wonder if she's touched!
Hui Ming =@=: Uh, the pressure is too much… I don't dare to move…