Fortunately, Qingju stood on one side and stopped her.

Through a door, Lu Wu heard intermittent crying coming from her room, and the trembling sobs also made her tremble. Previously, she had only heard about Prime Minister Bu Zuo's indifference, but this was the first time she felt this.

So depressing.

The wind howled incessantly, mixed with the girl's fragile voice, like a wisp.

I do not know how long it has been.

Finally, the door was pushed open from the inside.

Lu Wu shuddered and hurriedly looked toward the door, only to see Bu Zhan walking out with a cold face, leaving Jiang Ling alone in the master bedroom.

The lady's crying also stopped.

Upon seeing Bu Zhan, the female servants guarding the courtyard lowered their heads one after another, nervously daring not to speak out.

Only the sound of very light footsteps was heard, and the man stepped onto the threshold of the hospital.

Lu Wu wiped away her tears and finally ran into the master bedroom.

The light in the master bedroom was not lit, and when he pushed the door open, the whole room was filled with gray. The incense in the octagonal incense burner had also burned out, and a thin layer of mist was wrapped around it, spreading over the messy bed tent.

Jiang Ling threw her head back and collapsed on the bed, her right arm hanging weakly from the edge of the bed, like a sad and beautiful painting.

She was only covered with a thin layer of white gauze, her neck was bright red, and her collarbones were also covered with messy marks. It made people's hearts tremble when they saw her, and she couldn't help but shed two lines of tears.

"Little... miss..."

Lu Wu held back his cry and stepped forward.

Jiang Ling seemed to be very tired. He raised his eyes numbly, glanced at the girl and then gently closed his eyelids. Her slender eyebrows were frowned, as if she was enduring something.

Lu Wu came to the bedside, opened the messy curtains, and hurriedly picked up the quilt from one side and put it on her body.

"Miss, are you... in pain?"

"My slave, go ask someone to get a basin of warm water, and then ask Aunt Qingju for some ointment. Please wait a moment, my slave, my slave—"

Lu Wu's wrist was suddenly held.

Jiang Ling's strength was very small. She was like a flower that had been beaten by wind and rain. She had to rely on the other party's strength to sit up from the bed. Seeing this, Lu Wu couldn't bear it anymore and hugged her and cried loudly.

"Miss, I don't understand why the Prime Minister does this to you. Didn't you just buy a red dress? You don't know that the Prime Minister doesn't like red. Besides, let's not buy it next time. Just don't buy it...

…”

Lu Wu was crying when he felt his master turn his head blankly. At this moment, Jiang Ling suddenly stretched out his hand and covered Lu Wu's mouth.

"Lvwu, don't say that."

Her voice was hoarse, "It's all my fault, I won't do this again."

"Miss……"

Jiang Ling endured the pain in his body and slowly stood up with his hands on the wall.

"Miss, where are you going?"

Jiang Ling gathered her clothes, pointed to the table on one side, and said softly:

"Bring over all the paintings."

Although Lu Wu didn't know why, he could only follow her wishes and take a thick pile of paintings from the table.

These are the paintings that the young lady makes on a daily basis. Because they are exercises, they have not been framed, but the drawing papers are just piled together.

"And that one," Jiang Ling's lips were dry, "the scenery of water and mountains."

Lu Wu put the drawing paper in her hand, walked around behind the desk, and tiptoed to take "Water Waves and Mountains" off the wall.

"Here, miss."

"Bring over the charcoal basin."

"What?"

Jiang Ling repeated as calmly as possible: "Charcoal basin."

Because of her childhood experiences, she was afraid of open flames. Lu Wu was also afraid that the charcoal pot would hurt her, so he hesitantly took the thing and placed it not far from Jiang Ling.

Unexpectedly, in the next moment, the woman standing beside the bed actually threw the drawing paper in her hand!

With a "thump", the flames shot up excitedly.

Lu Wu was startled for a moment, then realized and stopped her crying:

"Miss, what are you doing? These are all your hard work. You can't burn the things you painstakingly painted stroke by stroke! Miss, you can't burn them!"

"What happened today is not your fault at all. You don't know that the prime minister doesn't like the color red. Let's just not buy brightly colored dresses next time. You are not wrong. Please don't burn these paintings!!"

Every time Jiang Ling threw a piece into the brazier, the flames jumped up a little, and the billowing smoke hit the girl's face, making her look pale and tremble slightly.

Boundless fear came over her like a tide, and cold sweat broke out on her forehead again.

But even so, she still lowered her eyes and threw in the paintings in her hand one by one.

Lu Wu kept crying: "You like these paintings so much. If they are burned, there will really be nothing left..."

The vivid spring spirit on the scroll was devoured by the fire, leaving behind charred dregs.

the last one,

"Water Waves and Mountain Colors".

Jiang Ling's fingers holding the scroll became stiff. She pursed her lips, restrained her body from trembling, and opened the painting for the last time.

Lu Wu's eyes widened and he exclaimed: "Don't—"

But it's too late!

The girl's pale face was seen, and she threw the scroll into the fire with determination. The blazing fireworks made her face even more devoid of blood.

The moment he let go, Jiang Ling lost all his strength and took half a step back in despair.

She is guilty.

It's all her fault.

It was she who insisted on taking Ji Zheng as her teacher, it was she who went to the Danqing Pavilion every day, it was she who did not know how to avoid suspicion and get along with her foreign husband, it was she who ruined the reputation of the Bu family.

She is self-righteous and the following is the wrong thing.

She shouldn't contradict Bu Zhan, just like she shouldn't like Ji Fusheng's paintings last year, and she shouldn't buy that bunny candy man in the market...

Jiang Ling closed her eyes.

The sound of roaring flames fell into my ears like Ling Chi.

It rained heavily outside the window, the rumble of thunder fell like a drum, and a bolt of lightning struck her pale face.

Suddenly, Jiang Ling opened her eyes. She stood up suddenly and reached out to the brazier——

Lu Wu trembled with fright.

"Miss, miss!!"

Jiang Ling endured great fear and pain and picked up the scroll from the brazier. Fortunately, the material of the scroll was very good, and the "Water Waves and Mountains" was not burned by the flames, only part of it was scorched.

"Miss--"

The little girl next to her rushed forward and hurriedly checked the injury on her hand. She held her master's wrist while crying, "What are you doing? You are obviously the most afraid of fire..."

Yes, she was obviously scared to death of fire. When she saw an open flame, she would tremble uncontrollably.

Jiang Ling lowered her eyelashes feebly and watched as the other party hurriedly fetched cold water and applied a wet towel to her fingers.

There was silence in the master bedroom for a while, with only the sound of heavy rain pouring in the courtyard. After an unknown amount of time, Lu Wu finally heard a very low and hoarse call:

"Green."

"Miss, I'm here."

"From now on...don't call me miss again."

The girl's clear eyes turned into ashes in the dark night.

"Call me instead, Mrs. Bu."

…

Since that night, Bu Zhan had never been to Tingyun Pavilion even though he stayed at the Prime Minister's Mansion.

The huge courtyard returned to its previous coldness and silence. Maybe because of the cold wind, Jiang Ling actually felt that Tingyun Pavilion was even more lonely than when she first came to Bufu. Everything here was lifeless, the sky was gray, and the trees were dry.

Trees, and dull servants who dare not say another word.

The Great Xuan Jing and the first snow in twelve years fall.

In the past, every year when it started snowing, Ayan would go out to enjoy the snow with her neighbors, and her concubine would accompany her aunt on the street to buy things for the winter. She was the only one locked in the courtyard with closed doors and windows, either reading or tuning the piano.

, or learning how to make incense as a female worker. From time to time, a carriage entering the palace would stop outside the Taifu's Mansion and take her into the palace to learn various rules.

Although she felt bored, she had to obey obediently.
To be continued...