Chapter 12

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Author: Xiao Yao

Chapter 11 – Title – Chapter 13

It had been cloudy for several days and now that the sun had finally showed itself, especially at this time when His Majesty was taking his afternoon rest, any noisy movements weren’t allowed, so the entire Hall of Heavenly Virtue had a sigh of relief, the guards along the way had their eyes squinted with a wave of lazy energy around them.

Under this comfortably warm atmosphere, Hui Ming was in a hurry, and only until she arrived outside the Hall of Heavenly Virtue and saw Su-gonggong, did she slow down. Please read at insidethemirror translations. DO NOT REPOST.

Su-gonggong was standing on the golden bricks outside the hall, hanging his head slightly in the warm winter sun, looking at the miniature Narcissus on the water under the steps, the sun shone brightly making Su-gonggong, who was originally pale, seemed to glow with a layer of light, making him who had always been cold and lonely in a trance seemed to have some illusion of warmth.

Hui Ming was stabbed by this light for a moment, thinking about the story of Su-gonggong’s life which Xu-momo had mentioned earlier, and for a moment did not dare to take a step forward.

Su Jin was the first to notice something and he carelessly looked back, then after seeing Hui Ming he slightly lowered his eyes and watched her slowly walk up using his brown eyes that was radiated by the sun, making him look as if he was a bit drowsy and with his silky hoarse voice: “Is something the matter?”

“Su-gonggong.” Hui Ming slowly approached and bent her knees in ceremony.

After Su-gonggong nodded, he looked sideways at her with a look of inquiry.

Under the sun, facing those peach blossom eyes of Su-gonggong that overflowed with gentleness, Hui Ming looked at him for a moment before quickly looking away and finally recovered her composure, then she started to say: “Yuan Bao sent me some tea leaves yesterday and said that it was ordered by you, thank you for the thought.”

“It’s nothing.” Su Jin glanced down at her again, it seemed like Hui Ming wanted to say more, but he didn’t urge and just waited quietly.

“And also about Wei-gugu, you had a disagreement with Wei-gugu for my sake, and have asked Xu-momo to take up post to support me, with these many kindness, I just don’t know how to repay!”

Su Jin seemed to be a little surprised, but also didn’t rush to reply: “Bai Hao’s words and deeds lacked integrity, she was sent away for my own face, it has nothing to do with you, and regarding Xu-momo, because she has been away from the palace for a long time, after a new group of people entered the palace, it turns out that they only recognized Wei-shi, and Xu-momo had already established her status long ago, it’s just a matter of taking you in passing…”

“Why?” Hui Ming suddenly interrupted Su-gonggong’s straightforward thread of thought, she spoke quickly, as if a few minutes later would make her lose the courage to speak: “Me and Su-gonggong had never met before, why did Gonggong promote me and showed consideration?”

She used to think that it was sentimental and mistakenly believed that Su-gonggong was plotting against her, it wasn’t until Yuan Bao was ordered to send her to the palace of Imperial Concubine Kang in the previous life, that it was explained to her that this was not the case, that it was just when she had first entered the palace she had encountered Su-gonggong several times, then after that he happened to see her being punished by the head momo, so he reached out to lend a hand.

But Hui Ming had thought about this for a long time afterwards, and no matter what she couldn’t remember when she had met Su-gonggong, even if it had been a few years ago, with Su-gonggong’s talent and looks, if she had met him, why didn’t she have any impression of him at all?

This has been Hui Ming’s misgivings for two lifetimes, she didn’t have a chance in the previous life so now that she could really ask this question, Hui Ming’s eyes were very bright.

Under these bright eyes that didn’t hide anything, it was actually Su Jin who evaded Hui Ming’s gaze, holding the ruyi on his waist he hesitated for a moment, he slightly lowered his eyes and said: “To say that we haven’t met before isn’t right, five years ago, you and I have met in the Palace Affairs Office.”

Indeed, it was as what Yuan Bao said previously, Hui Ming secretly nodded, she entered the palace at the age of ten, and now she was fifteen, so it was just five years ago when she had entered the palace, but in this way, it didn’t make sense that she had no impression of meeting him, after all she was still young and not yet very sensible, but despite this, Hui Ming insisted on asking: “Forgive me for being confused, but just when was that?”

Su-gonggong raised his eyes, wondering if it was just a misapprehension, but every word she said seemed to be very serious: “At that time, you were hiding under the large water pot1 and crying, I saw you when I was replenishing the water.”

Speaking of crying, Hui Ming also had some vague notion, that should have been when she first entered the palace, she couldn’t remember why she was crying, it’s just that when a momo found her later, she was hit using a cane in front of all the little palace ladies, and until now when she thought about it, she could still painstakingly remember the burning pain in her heart.

A maid couldn’t cry in front of others, that was the first rule that she had learned, so when her palm was ripped by the cane, it was also the first and last time she was beaten.

Thinking about it, those bamboo cane may not be a big deal now, but for her who was just ten years old at the time, with her parents when she was at home only used to slap and scare her, she had never really been beaten so cruelly before!

It hurt when it was hit, it hurt when learning to hold a broom with a broken hand, and it hurt even more when threading the embroidery needles.

Since then, she has been extremely diligent and obedient, just because she was really afraid of pain, and even preferred to suffer hardship anything was fine as long as she wasn’t beaten, if not for this, she would not have been able to enter a relatively decent bureau to do needlework.

“At that time, you saw that I was hungry and gave me half of your rice cake.” Su-gonggong said, then as if seeing Hui Ming’s confusion, he paused, and looked at her thick black hair: “That was when you were shaved, and was bald…” Please read at insidethemirror translations. DO NOT REPOST.

That’s right! It’s was because her head was shaved! Hui Ming suddenly remembered, all the little maids who had just entered the palace would have their heads shaved then grown back again for fear that they would bring some sordid bugs from outside, when her head was shaved, she was still muddled and did not dare to resist, then after waiting for all of it to be shaved off and she went out, she saw her reflection from the water, and she couldn’t help feeling sad, so she went to find a corner and secretly cried, but she didn’t expect to meet Su-gonggong at that time.

Hearing this, Hui Ming also understood why she couldn’t remember it, apart from her being young, most of it was because of the caning she suffered after that, the memory was too painful that she purposefully tried to forget that painful experience, had it not been for Su-gonggong mentioning it, she was determined not to remember the only beating she had suffered after entering the palace due to having her head shaved.

Wait, shaved head! Hui Ming suddenly reacted again, so when she had first met Su-gonggong, she was not only a little palace maid who was crying, but also a shaved bare little bald-headed palace maid?

Looking up at the splendid Su-gonggong in front of her, and then thinking about that scene again, Hui Ming recalled how she looked in the past, and she couldn’t wait to lower her head and bury her face in a crack!

Su Jin didn’t know what Hui Ming was thinking in her heart, and he just tightly held his hands looking at Hui Ming who was filled with anxiousness, he didn’t know if he himself wanted Hui Ming to remember the first time she met him.

It was clear that since entering the palace, he was no longer the clean and kind grandson of the Duke’s Mansion, but when he faced Hui Ming, he was unwilling for Hui Ming to know the unscrupulous and filthy him.

That day was his fifteenth birthday, that is, on that day, his years of currying favor, and fawning here and there had showed some initial results, the steward finally yielded and promised to remove him from doing those hard and unprofitable sundry duties transferring him instead to sweep in the Hall of Heavenly Virtue.

But when he returned to his residence, he found that his only little cousin had passed away due to negligence, and at this point, he was the only man left in the Su family.

He didn’t know what to live for anymore, no one knew that when he was suffering from hunger, cold and sickness, and was pouring buckets of well water into the large water pot, he was also thinking of giving up on all this, to close his eyes and throw himself into the overflowing clear water to forever savor peace and tranquility.

It was at this time, because he was in a daze that he poured water on Song Hui Ming, who was crouching under the pot, she was still really small at that time, like a little ball, and she did not cry out when she was splashed with the water, but instead just quivered and sobbed, with her bald head, she was like a young bird that had fallen off the canopy, a young bird that hadn’t grown out their feathers yet.

When Su Jin was still at home he had seen such a baby bird before, even though he took it home with his own hands and carefully cared for it, in the end, it still grew weaker day by day, it’s crying getting softer until it never opened its eyes again.

“I miss my parents, I want to go home…”

“Where are your parents?”

“You, don’t cry, I secretly hid a rice cake, I’ll give it to you to eat!”

“Why didn’t you bring the ruyi knot? Momo said that new palace servants should always carry their ruyi so that everything would turn out as they wish, I want to go home so I’ll give you mine, then in the future you can also go home.”

What Hui Ming said to him at that time, Su Jin remembered each sentence clearly, she was undoubtedly just a helpless chick, but after seeing he was sick and his palms were trembling, unexpectedly she seemed to be the most reliable support that showed him the kindness and warmth he hadn’t felt since his family was ruined.

One was just entering the palace, a bald and immature maid, and the other was a skin and bones young servant who had gone through hardships, in this way they snuggled up to each other under the large water pot, one was silent, and the other sniffed and choked as they shared the rice cake that had been dried, then before leaving, Hui Ming gave him the ruyi knot that she had just received.

Speaking of the ruyi, Su Jin’s hands holding the ruyi froze, and he suddenly thought that if Hui Ming knew that this ruyi was the one she had given him before, then his habit of not letting this knot leave his body would seem strange, thinking about Hui Ming’s undisguised fear and rejection of himself a few days ago, Su Jin’s eyes sank, and the idea of wanting to remind her of the ruyi immediately dissipated, instead, he turned slightly sideways and pulled the rope to the side so that it was covered more, lest Hui Ming accidentally sees it and remember.

But where could Hui Ming manage to pay attention to any ruyi knot at this moment? Ever since Su-gonggong mentioned about her head being shaved, the shame and embarrassment that rushed into her heart had already occupied all her thoughts, and she only wanted to leave and stay far away, but she was so embarrassed and she didn’t know what to say to take her leave.

Then in the weird atmosphere where these two were occupied with their own thoughts about each other’s silence, a figure appeared in the hall, it was the person that served in front of the emperor, Wei-gugu.

Hui Ming’s heart shuddered, and even the posture on how she stood became more disciplined in an instant.

Su-gonggong turned his head to look, and instantly decreased all the fluctuations in his expression, letting in become cold as frost. Please read at insidethemirror translations. DO NOT REPOST.

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The author has something to say:

Song Hui Ming (holding her full head of hair and refusing to believe it): So when you saw me for the first time, I was bald?

Su-gonggong (looking at the heroine’s black braids with a pitiful expression): En, being bald looks good…

TRANSLATOR’S NOTES:

1. Large water pot ↩

If there are any mistakes, please do not hesitate to point it out.

Chapter 11 – Title – Chapter 13

❀.(*´◡`*)❀. °˖✧°˖✧° ˖✧°˖✧° ❀.(*´◡`*)❀.

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