Chapter 357: Chapter 137: Hibiscus_2
However...
Being able to eat one’s fill is of course best.
Lu Tong walked over and lifted the lid of the food basket.
Pei Yunmeng raised his eyebrows slightly.
In the bamboo food basket, there were pastries, and on a cloisonné enamel dish with a yellow base and red flowers, several delicate lotus pastries were placed—each only about half the size of a palm, and beyond that, there was nothing else.
Lu Tong felt a bit disappointed in her heart but also maliciously thought that Pei Yunmeng, a tall and big man, only ate these delicate desserts, which really seemed out of place.
Pei Yunmeng didn’t know the criticisms in her mind and, seeing her motionless, asked, "Don’t you like it?"
"No," Lu Tong replied, picking up a piece of lotus pastry and putting it into her mouth.
Pei Yunmeng was taken aback, seemingly not expecting her to be so forthright, and after a pause, he smiled and spoke, "Aren’t you afraid I’ve poisoned it?"
"I’m not afraid," Lu Tong said, "I am immune to all poisons."
She was truly a bit hungry now; originally, her appetite hadn’t been very good, but previously at Renxin Medical Hall, when she was sitting at the clinic, Yin Zheng and Du Changqing always brought her some fresh fruit to eat, and over time, she had almost forgotten what it felt like to be hungry.
Pei Yunshu must have considered Pei Yunmeng’s preferences; the cakes were not very sweet, and to Lu Tong, they tasted somewhat bland.
She ate very calmly, as if only to fill her stomach, not caring about the taste of the food, without the slightest ripple—Pei Yunmeng watched her for a while, as if he couldn’t bear it, and said, "Be careful not to choke. Do you want some water?"
"No need."
The people of Southern Pharmacy had cleaned out the kitchen leftovers, plainly intending to make things difficult for her; if she were to alarm anyone now, it would only cause more trouble, so she might as well make do here.
Thinking this way, memories suddenly surfaced in her mind of the nights in the kitchen with Lu Rou and Lu Qian, sneaking roasted sweet potatoes behind their parents’ backs.
How similar it was to the present.
The movements of her hands unconsciously slowed until she heard Pei Yunmeng’s voice, "Your hairpin..."
Lu Tong was startled and subconsciously reached up to touch the silver hibiscus hairpin in her hair.
The silver hibiscus hairpin—her sister’s hairpin—she wore on her head. Since the day she entered the palace, she had pinned it in her hair, constantly reminding herself what she must do and why she came here.
Pei Yunmeng leaned against the window, seemingly casually asking, "Is the hairpin from your sister?"
Lu Tong said, "Yes."
He nodded, "No wonder you spent a lot of money to redeem it back then."
At that time, at Lu Yuan pawnshop on Qinghe Street, she had ostensibly collected many old pieces of jewelry, but in fact, it was all for this hibiscus hairpin.
Pei Yunmeng’s gaze fell on the hairpin in her hair and said, "It suits you very well."
Suitable?
The pastries in her mouth suddenly became difficult to swallow, and Lu Tong lowered her hand, silently for a moment before speaking, "Does Lord Pei know that the hibiscus is considered a lowly flower?"
Pei Yunmeng was taken aback.
Her hair was a bit disheveled, and her robe was not exactly clean after a day’s work; in such a slightly disheveled state, her beautiful face was not diminished at all, and even the silver hairpin, slightly askew, made her resemble a flower battered by wind and rain, with its radiance fading and vitality weakened.
Yet her voice was very indifferent.
"This flower blooms in the morning and withers by evening, a mere symbol of transient glory. It only grows along the roadside and wild banks. The wealthy families with their gardens and orchards disdain such flowers."
People often say that the hibiscus is the lowest among flowers; perhaps in the eyes of those noble guests and grand households, her sister, she, or even the Lu Family, were like this lowly flower, existing for just a day—living or dying, unbeknownst and unnoticed by others.
Pei Yunmeng looked at her, seeming to want to say something, but ultimately he didn’t speak.
Lu Tong lowered her head and continued to eat the piece of pastry she hadn’t finished, as if the words she had just spoken didn’t weigh on her mind.
Not until she had finished the plate of pastries did she put the empty dish back in the basket and cover it with the lid. Then she said to Pei Yunmeng, "Thank you for the snack, Lord Pei."
He leaned against the window, looking at her with a smile, "I didn’t come here to bring you food."
Lu Tong thought for a moment, took out the purse Yin Zheng had stuffed her, poured out a handful of pieces of silver, thought for a moment, and then picked out the smallest piece to hand to Pei Yunmeng.
Pei Yunmeng looked at the piece of silver for a while, his gaze shifting from the silver to her face, he sighed, "Doctor Lu is being a bit too stingy."
"I have just entered the palace, there are many places where silver is needed. I will repay Lord Pei when I get my salary," Lu Tong answered earnestly.
Hearing this, his smile faded slightly, "Do you think you can return to the Medical Officer Institute?"
"Of course."
Pei Yunmeng fell silent, the moonlight shining through the window onto his face; those dark eyes quietly watched her, enshrouded in a mist that was hard to discern and hard to explain.