Cheng Yujin replied: “Do it later. The eunuchs and female officials from the Palace Service Personnel are still outside. Go distribute the rewards to them.”
Lian Qiao suddenly remembered. She immediately ran into the inner chamber and walked out with a brocade bag prepared beforehand in Yichun Marquis Manor. Having had enough rest, Cheng Yujin stood up and let the palace maids undress her. A Diyi dress was extremely complicated and couldn’t be put on or taken off without several people’s help.
Cheng Yujin extended her hands aside and stood still. The palace maids were all well-trained. They knelt beside her and took off various accessories and decorations from the dress in orderly manners. Another group of palace maids stood nearby with a red tray on their hands, stepping forward just in time to receive the accessories before stepping back again. Their movements were extremely busy, but also very orderly and smooth like flowing water.
After the diyi dress was taken off, Cheng Yujin wore only a thin middle shirt. Du Ruo stepped forward to take off her hair bun and comb her hair gently. At this time, Lian Qiao came back. She slid in front of Cheng Yujin, lowered her voice, and reported: “Crown Princess, this servant went as you ordered and distributed the rewards to the eunuchs and female officials who attended the ceremony. Can you guess what happened?”
Cheng Yujin was holding a comb in her hand and carefully combing a lock of her thick hair. She asked: “What happened?”
“The Crown Prince has already sent someone to distribute a reward, one in his name and one in your name. This servant didn’t dare to decide on my own, so this servant also distributed the rewards you prepared to them. Like this, everyone who comes to the Eastern Palace for today’s wedding receives three times the reward. One from His Highness the Crown Prince, one under your name, and another one that this servant distributed just now.”
Lian Qiao counted with her fingers, feeling extremely envious. Cheng Yujin gave her a slight glance: “His Highness is rich and wealthy; how can he care about this small reward? How the Crown Prince doing things is his business, but we must never skimp on the things we should give.”
“This servant understands.” Lian Qiao nodded repeatedly. Du Ruo held Cheng Yujin’s long hair on the side. Hearing this, she couldn’t help but chuckle: “Crown Princess, Lian Qiao isn’t praising the Crown Prince’s generosity. She clearly wants to say that His Highness is very attentive to his Crown Princess.”
Lian Qiao also smiled and blinked innocently: “Yes. Our Crown Princess is clever and wise. How can she not guess the true meaning of this servant’s words just now?”
“Your mouth is still lively as usual.” Cheng Yujin pretended to be annoyed and gave Lian Qiao a glance. “We will still be busy tomorrow. Go and check whether the bathwater is ready.”
Lian Qiao didn’t dare to be talkative anymore and quickly slipped away.
After Cheng Yujin took a bath, she changed into her nightclothes. The speed of men and women bathing was totally incomparable. Cheng Yujin spent a long time in the bath. When she came out, Li Chengjing was already there, and he had been waiting long enough to finish half the book in his hand.
Hearing the sound, Li Chengjing put down his book and sighed deeply: “So long?”
Cheng Yujin’s hair was still damp. The bathroom was full of water vapor from the bathwater, making it inconvenient to dry a long hair there, so Cheng Yujin just wiped her hair once before she returned to the bedroom.
Of course, the Eastern Palace had more than one bathroom. Cheng Yujin and Li Chengjing’s bath was arranged separately, so they wouldn’t get in each other’s way. Since Cheng Yujin could remember, she had always lived alone. No one disturbed her in the bath just now, and she was served by the servant girls she was familiar with. Cheng Yujin subconsciously felt that she was still at home. After wiping her hair once, she walked out of the bathroom, still with damp hair. Suddenly hearing a man’s voice, she almost jumped in fright.
Cheng Yujin was startled at first, thinking that a man had intruded her bedroom. Fortunately, she immediately remembered that she had married today. Here was not Yichun Marquis Manor’s Jinning Courtyard, but the Crown Prince’s Eastern Palace.
It was not him who intruded her space, but she entered his.
Cheng Yujin stood frozen for a while, not knowing whether to advance or to retreat. She wondered why Du Ruo and Lian Qiao didn’t remind her, making her come out with disheveled clothes. However, when Cheng Yujin’s eyes swept across the room, there was no other figure besides Li Chengjing.
All palace personnel, including Cheng Yujin’s dowry servant girls, had been kicked out.
No need to think who the culprit was. Who else besides Li Chengjing?
Cheng Yujin felt extremely awkward. Even when she only went out for a walk in the manor, she always dressed carefully. Each clothing item and its matching accessory was selected with great care. Never before did she appear in front of someone else who wasn’t her personal servants with hair loose and untidy nightclothes. Especially that her hair now was still damp with some droplets of water.
After a moment of awkward silence and embarrassment, Cheng Yujin turned around and was about to return to the bathroom. Li Chengjing, who noticed her movement, stood up and immediately pulled her hand: “What are you doing?”
The strength Li Chengjing used to hold Cheng Yujin’s hand at this moment couldn’t be compared with when they were in front of the palace gate this afternoon. Unable to pull her hand away from his, Cheng Yujin tried to hide her face: “Your Highness, please let go. I will go back to the bathroom and tidy up my appearance a bit.”
Li Chengjing didn’t seem to expect this reason. He raised his eyebrows and couldn’t help but smile: “Look at the sky outside. Do you know what time it is? You are still going to put on makeup and get dressed?”
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