thefictionvixens Chapter 100 Green Plum
Chapter 100 Green Plum
The white kimono to be used at the wedding was personally delivered by the eldest daughter of the Kamisato family.
The girl named Ayaka smiled apologetically at her: "Brother originally intended to come by himself, and even took care of his official duties a few days in advance. But for some reason, the envoy from Zhidong suddenly arrived, and brother had no choice but to greet him personally."
He Que shook her head gently: "I understand that the Society Magistrate is very busy."
Ayaka Kamisato hesitated, then said, "Miss Kujo, she really is completely different from your father..."
Kujo and Suzume paused in their tea-serving gesture.
Ayaka Kamisato took the teapot from her hand and, ignoring her subsequent refusal, poured a cup of tea for both of them with a slightly forceful manner.
He Que hesitated, then said, "You are a guest; this is something I should do."
"It's alright. I'd be happy to serve tea to Miss Kujo if it's just the two of us." Ayaka Kamisato handed her the teacup. "Once Miss Kujo and my brother are married, we'll be family."
He Que lowered his head and took a small sip of tea, without uttering a word.
Ayaka Kamisato seemed oblivious to her silence, and rubbed the white porcelain teacup in her hand apologetically, saying softly, "Although it's not good to talk about others behind their backs, the Tenryo Magistrate's expression was quite unpleasant when he found out my brother wasn't here."
Compared to his gentle daughter, Kujo Takayuki was more headstrong. When Kamisato Ayaka arrived with some things, she happened to meet him and received a lukewarm sarcastic remark—
"Kamizato's brat, hmph..."
She didn't explain these things too clearly, but even if she hadn't said it, Kazusa could have guessed what Kujo Takayuki had said.
She comforted him, saying, "Father has been troubled lately because of the approaching winter. Perhaps he is just in a bad mood and is not deliberately blaming the magistrate."
Ayaka Kamisato, however, felt that Takayuki Kujo was angry because he thought Ayato Kamisato had neglected his daughter, so she wasn't really angry.
She voiced her thoughts and then remarked with emotion, "My brother really should have come. He and Miss Kujo have known each other since childhood and are engaged. He should definitely spend more time cultivating their relationship."
Ayaka Kamisato was born a few years after Ayato Kamisato. From the time she could remember, her older sister, Kazusagi Kujo, often followed behind her brother and would occasionally play with her with toys along with her parents.
But later, Kujo and Suzume gradually stopped appearing, and her parents also disappeared.
Perhaps because of the presence of Suzume in her most tender memories, Ayaka Kamisato has a strong bias towards her. Although Suzume has become much more silent than when she was young, she is still the older sister she used to know.
"Perhaps my brother thinks so too; he sometimes mentions you to me."
*
Ayaka Kamisato left before noon, politely declining Suzume's invitation to stay for lunch, jokingly saying that she still had to go back to report to her brother.
He Que couldn't persuade her otherwise, so he could only see her off. But as soon as she left, he immediately sent the maid outside the door to inform Kujo Takayuki that he would not be going to lunch today.
Having eliminated any potential visitors, she closed the door and slid down to sit on the floor.
Thinking that Ayaka Kamisato had mentioned Ayato Kamisato's recent situation before leaving, whether intentionally or unintentionally, she let out a sigh of relief.
...How long has it been since we last met?
He Que thought, it seems like many years have passed.
It's really ridiculous. Despite the existence of this engagement between the two, they have never met in private. In fact, the discussions about the engagement before today were all done through formal invitations.
Unfortunately, this was entirely her own fault.
After all, even this marriage contract was obtained through coercion and deception.
*
To trace back to the beginning, Suzume knew Ayato Kamisato when she was very young.
The youngest daughter of the Heavenly Commander and the eldest son of the Society Commander—there could be no more fitting identity. After a noble banquet, He Que became completely entangled with this gentle older brother.
Although she has two older brothers and one older sister, for some reason, the three of them always have endless important things to do, either studying or practicing martial arts. When they do pay attention to her, it's just perfunctory. Only Ayato Kamisato is willing to spare some attention to take care of her.
Children also know how to seek advantages and avoid disadvantages. Over time, He Que grew to like this older brother who would feed her a piece of cake and pat her head even when she was practicing calligraphy.
As she grew a little older, the noisy Suzume learned to be quiet and could obediently lie on the table and watch him write. Even though her older siblings no longer resisted her approach, she still retained the habit of sticking to Ayato Kamisato.
When she got a little older, Suzume was able to understand what was written on the papers on Ayato Kamisato's desk.
She couldn't help but become curious.
"Ayato, I recognize what's written here—" She pointed to the words and slowly read them aloud, "Ganjin Island Fireworks Festival... I know about it, but I begged my brothers for a long time and no one was willing to take me."
Ayato Kamisato smiled and said, "Yes, this is last year's document. The Society is in charge of rituals and culture, and folk entertainment activities also fall under this category. My father wanted to give this to me so that he could see if I could find any shortcomings in the original plan."
Because it was last year's document, Ayato Kamisato didn't mind Kujo and Suzume watching from the side.
He Suzume tilted his head in confusion: "Ayato's father is so strict, even stricter than my father. My brothers didn't start learning about these things until they were fifteen, and Ayato is only a little older than me, isn't he?"
"I asked my father to teach me these things." Ayato patted her head, his expression forlorn. "My father is usually very busy, and recently—I hope I can share some of his burden."
He Que seemed to understand, but was too embarrassed to ask again, fearing that he would think she was too stupid and wouldn't want to talk to her anymore.
But curiosity is something that can't be suppressed no matter what. She tried and tried, but she still wanted to know what was left after the unfinished sentence. In the end, she decided to go back and consult her clever sister, Saro.
Kujo Sara had just come down from the training ground, still covered in sweat from archery practice. Worried about getting it on her, she quickly dodged her tugging and said, "I don't know much about the magistrate's affairs, but I've heard that the magistrate's health has been deteriorating recently. Young Master Kamisato probably just hopes that with my help, my father can rest and recuperate in peace."
He Que nodded, seemingly lost in thought.
Seeing her like this, Kujo Sara guessed what she might be up to and couldn't help but remind her, "It's best if you don't bother young master Kamisato lately. His time is precious. Wouldn't it be better to bother Kamaji for treatment?"
Kamaji is her second brother's name.
He Que pouted, "I'm very obedient and not annoying at all."
Children are always stubborn. Just like Suzume always felt that Ayato Shinri must be very sad right now and needs someone to be by his side to share his sadness.
Although the Kamisato family has another young lady, Kamisato Ayaka is too young. Even if Ayato wanted to, he couldn't talk to her, let alone let his sister share his feelings.
So Suzume went to the Kamisato family's house even more often. When they got there, they didn't do anything, but quietly moved a small stool and sat next to Kamisato Ayato, watching him complete his father's task.
After this happened a few times, Ayato Kamisato also found it a bit strange.
Inazuma's education of noblewomen emphasized manners, one aspect of which was to avoid showing their faces in public as much as possible. Otherwise, Suzume wouldn't have been forbidden from even attending a small fireworks festival; visiting the Kamisato family once a week, as before, was already the limit.
But lately, He Que has been visiting him almost every day.
"Does the Tenryo Magistrate not mind?" Ayato Kamisato had heard that the Kujo family's education was very strict.
Kujo Sara was merely an adopted daughter of the Kujo family, and possessed the bloodline of the Tengu. From the beginning, she was designated to join the Tenryo Magistrate, which is why she was not bound by such restrictions. However, Kujo and Suzume should not be bound by such restrictions.
According to the tradition of the Kujo family, Suzume should have been confined at home by this age to learn waka poetry and household management.
He Que didn't understand the deeper meaning in his words. Upon hearing this, she put down her hand that was carefully copying his elegant handwriting and replied loudly, "I've already spoken to my father. He doesn't mind at all. He even encouraged me to visit the Kamisato family more often during this time and get closer to Ayato."
She looked up at him with a big smile, but in doing so, she didn't see the sudden darkening of Ayato's face after a brief moment of surprise.
It's understandable that he overthinks things. The head of the Kamisato family is seriously ill, and the health of the Kamisato family matriarch is also deteriorating. During the time that Kamisato Ayato has been with his father, he can clearly feel the constantly changing gazes of the retainers who occasionally come to visit.
Of course, it wasn't just these small families that were eyeing the gradually declining Kamisato family; the Kujo family and the Hiiragi family, both of the Three Commissioners, were also coveting it.
At this sensitive juncture, Kujo Takayuki ordered his daughter to get close to him, making it hard for Ayato Kamisato not to suspect that he might have some kind of conspiracy.
So what about Kujou and Suzume? What role does she play in all of this?
Unaware of his thoughts, and seeing him fall silent, she curiously walked to his side and tugged at his sleeve: "Ayato?"
Ayato Kamisato suddenly snapped back to reality.
The ten-year-old child could not hide his expression well. The coldness on his face had not faded. He looked down at Que with extremely cold eyes, and there was a faint fear of being betrayed hidden deep in his pupils.
He Que was so frightened by that look that she froze on the spot.
Ayato Kamisato finally realized his lapse in composure and immediately lowered his head to cover his face: "...Sorry, Suzume, I remembered something unpleasant."
The dim-witted Suzume immediately forgot everything that had just happened and looked at him worriedly, asking, "What's wrong? What's wrong? Ayato, what are you thinking about? If you're unhappy, do you want to rest for a bit? I'll go find a maid to get you a glass of water."
Ayato Kamisato first calmed his turbulent emotions before finally speaking: "It's okay, don't worry, let's get back to what we were talking about."
He Que nodded obediently and sat down again next to him.
"Although Lord Tenryo Magistrate doesn't mind, perhaps you should consider it yourself. It's really outrageous that the young lady of the Kujo family keeps going to the Kamisato family."
Ayato Kamisato doesn't know what role Kazusaru plays in all of this, and he can't even be 100% sure that Takayuki Kujo harbors any designs on the Kamisato family.
But he couldn't take any risks; he had to eliminate all possible sources of danger.
"So, could you please stop coming to the Kamisato family's house?"
(End of this chapter)
作者说:感谢在2024-06-02 11:16:44~2024-06-05 02:50:51期间为我投出霸王票或灌溉营养液的小天使哦~
Thank you to the little angel who threw the landmine: 70625385 (1 landmine);
Thank you to the little angel who watered the nutrient solution: Your friend Qiu Musu has logged in 1 bottle;
Thank you so much for your support! I will continue to work hard!