T R C L W (COMPLETE)

1

After a ride of about a month, the carriage finally reached the boundary of Qing Zhou City.

Summer had arrived, and with it the sound of lively cicadas in the trees, causing people to feel drowsy as they listened.

Just past the moat, a delicate and tender voice sounded from the carriage. "Ah Niang, will be we living here from now on?" A corner of the embroidered gold curtains were lifted, revealing a round and defined chin, before they were quickly shut tight by the person inside. The curtains tightly blocked off the earlier, fleeting view of snow-like skin。

A woman's voice called out, "Little lamb, don't move too much, we'll only draw the curtains when we reach home."

The carriage was silent for a while, and the driver drove through the city gates, reaching the main street.

Qing Zhou could not compare to the prosperous and bustling capital; after all, it was a small place, so the streets were not as wide. When driving two carriages on the street, there was undoubtedly some congestion. Only after making several turns did they manage to successfully leave the place. After reaching the south of the city, there were fewer carriages, as most of the dignitaries and nobles lived in the south, and ordinary people did not dare to visit.

Beside both banks of the river grew many willow trees, providing shade in the sweltering heat. On the carriage, apart from a beautiful woman, there was also a maidservant and three young children. As it was incredibly spacious, there was more than enough space to easily accommodate all of them.

The three children were all asleep. There was one boy and two girls. The one who spoke up before was the eldest daughter Xie Zhen, who was five that year.

Xie Zhen inherited her mother's beauty, and from a young age she was already beautiful beyond words, with an appearance of precious jade, like a young girl standing at the feet of the lotus seat of Guanyin. Her hair was combed into an elaborate bun, decorated with strings of small beads. She wore a cherry-coloured embroidered overcoat, and underneath she wore a gauze skirt embroidered with a hundred butterflies and flowers. Paired with a five colour auspicious lock pendant, she looked even more innocent and adorable.

At that moment she held a green feathered handheld fan and imitated Leng shi's way of fanning herself. "Ah niang, when will we reach?"

Leng shi glanced at her meaningfully, and she stuck her tongue out, returning her fan to its original position.

"In another half-hour or so," Leng shi said as she patted her head.

They were travelling from the capital in order to find the Second Master of Duke Ding's household, Xie Liqing. He had been sent to Qing Zhou to be a magistrate, and having reached earlier than Leng shi and his children by a month, he had long ago finished preparing everything and was waiting for their arrival.

Hearing that there was only half an hour left, Xie Zhen's limpid eyes curved upwards, and she cheered excitedly, "We're going to see Daddy soon!"

She turned to look at Xie Rong, "Brother, aren't you happy?"

Xie Rong calmly agreed, "Happy".

Xie Rong was older than her by five years, and was also much more mature than her. He rarely expressed his emotions freely, and unlike her, he did not chatter and tweet nonstop as though he were a sparrow. On the way there he made sure to take care of his younger sisters. As the saying goes, the eldest brother is like a father, and Xie Rong had understood that since a long time ago.

On the bridge, the carriage bumped a little, and happened to wake up the youngest daughter Xie Qian. The three children together talked incessantly, and soon they reached the gates of Xie Fu.