Chapter 197: Chapter 92 Breaking Dan Gui_2
That was her former self, yet so alien that she felt as if she were another person.
Five- or six-year-old Lu Tong ran past her like a wisp of wind that couldn’t be caught, and she instinctively followed the shadow of the girl’s rapid sprint, only to see the little girl standing behind her, looking at her with a face full of shock and suspicion, "Who are you?"
"I am... Who?" she murmured in repeat.
The moonlight was gradually obscured by clouds, no longer bright; her past family stood together, their gazes complex, interwoven with suspicion as if looking at a dangerous stranger who had suddenly intruded.
Lu Rou held Lu Tong tightly in her arms, as Lu Qian looked at her with surprise and exclaimed, "Blood!"
So Lu Tong looked down.
She didn’t know when her hands became soaked in fresh blood, that sticky blood tinted with a thick smell dripping drop by drop from her fingertips, seemingly endless, forming a small puddle of blood on the ground.
She looked on blankly.
That’s right, she had killed someone, her hands stained with blood.
She was no longer the protected, carefree Third Young Miss of the Lu Family, no longer the precious pearl cherished in her family’s heart. From the moment she killed, she could never go back.
Someone called her name, with a tone gentle and loving.
"Little Shiqi."
She turned abruptly, Lady Yun stood behind her, her peach-red robe adorned with persimmon and folded-paper flowers, luxuriantly embroidered, holding a bowl of brown medicinal soup, smiling and beckoning her.
"Come here."
The cold wind blew through the cracks of the window, and the candle on the table flickered several times.
Lu Tong jolted and woke up suddenly from her dream.
There was no courtyard of the Lu Family in Changwu County, no Moon Festival in the fifteen courtyards, no parents or siblings, and no Lady Yun.
In the distance, there were blue drapes hanging down, the room bustling and warm; this was not Changwu County, but the bedroom of Princess Pei Yunshu in Prince Wen’s Mansion.
It was just a dream...
The dim candlelight was like a layer of light gauze, softly draped over her, she sat there in a daze, hearing someone calling her, "Doctor Lu."
Lu Tong lifted her gaze vacantly.
Across the table, Pei Yunmeng saw the expression on her face and paused slightly.
The night was already deep, and Pei Yunshu and her daughter had temporarily escaped from danger. The servants in the yard were busy, and Pei Yunmeng had intended to find Lu Tong to inquire about Pei Yunshu’s condition. As he entered the room, he saw Lu Tong sitting at a corner table, her head down, dozing off.
She had arrived at Prince Wen’s Mansion early in the morning, supposedly only to deliver medicinal tea for Meng Xiyang, but by accident, she stayed, busy the whole day, and was probably extremely exhausted, hence falling asleep while sitting.
He circled around the small tabletop, intending to grab a thin blanket to drape over Lu Tong, but then he saw the deep furrowed brow of Lu Tong. Before he could react, sensing someone approaching, Lu Tong opened her eyes.
Probably because she had just woken from a dream and was not completely clear-headed, her gaze lacked its usual calmness and wariness, looking scattered and hazy, like a porcelain vase covered in cracks, poised to break apart the next moment.
Pei Yunmeng’s eyes stirred slightly.
After a pause, he spoke, "Is everything all right?"
At his words, the hazy look in Lu Tong’s eyes quickly faded away, and her expression became clear again as she shook her head at him.
"My sister has fallen asleep," Pei Yunmeng glanced in the direction of the bed and said in a low voice to Lu Tong, "How about going outside to eat something?"
With this reminder, Lu Tong felt the emptiness in her stomach for the first time all day, having not eaten at all, and so she tidied up the papers and pen on the table and walked out the door with Pei Yunmeng.
It was the end of the Hai Hour, and the moonlight flowed through the courtyard. Under the osmanthus tree in the small garden, the stone table was set with some fruits and melons. The Prince’s Manor Garden was always lush with flowers, golden osmanthus, silver osmanthus, cinnabar osmanthus... A gust of wind carried the fragrance of flowers as petals drifted down, enveloping the courtyard in floral scents.
Amidst this fragrant osmanthus, Lu Tong sat down.
Pei Yunmeng followed suit, sitting across from her. On the table was a carved red lacquer begonia flower tea tray containing six delicate moon cakes. There was a jar of sweet osmanthus sugar, a plate of steamed chestnut cake with osmanthus, and several bowls of sweet dumplings served in a lotus-patterned bowl.
He poured tea from the porcelain jug, saying, "It’s very late, and the snacks are rushed, please make do, Doctor Lu."
Lu Tong thanked him and reached for a small bowl of the sweet dumplings, bringing it over to herself and scooping it into her mouth with a silver spoon.
The sweet dumplings were soft and chewy, filled with osmanthus and walnut, fragrant and sweet. The warm food comforted her belly, and warmth spread through her body.
Seeing Lu Tong enjoying her food, he smiled and pushed the blue-and-white tea cup in front of Lu Tong.
Lu Tong glanced at the cup.
Pei Yunmeng said, "It’s not wine, just Cinnabar Osmanthus Tea Dew."
Lu Tong had never tried it before and, hearing his words, took a light sip; the taste was a subtle sweetness combined with the fragrance of tea.
The moon was shining, the wind was clear, there was no one else in the courtyard, only the distant music floating over from the town, the sound of the guqin passing over the brightly lit brothels, through the perfumed streets of the pleasure quarters, through the quiet alleys, past the deep houses with their high walls, gradually drifting into the osmanthus shade under this moonlit night.