When people are extremely incredulous, they will produce a feeling of dizziness close to dreaming.
It's like the earth is spinning, and it feels like walking on cotton. Even the light and shadow in front of you will gradually darken.
Jiang Sheng had many such moments.
When Eldest Brother was busy working in the Imperial Academy, Third Brother was fighting bloody battles on the frontiers, Second Brother went out of town, and Fourth and Fifth Brothers were trapped in the palace, she would always hold the account books of Jiuzhen Lane in a daze.
Life is too good now. She doesn't lack food or worry about clothes. She has her dad and grandmother. She is no longer the little beggar that everyone hated and dogs despised, who had to struggle in hunger and cold.
The hardships of the past faded over time. In a trance, she even doubted whether she had met the five brothers.
Those days when the siblings supported each other and experienced the sweet, sour, bitter and spicy together evaporated into bubbles in the daily yearning, and they inexplicably began to slip away.
When Jiang Sheng came back to her senses, she broke out in a cold sweat all over.
If the price of wealth was losing her brothers, then she would rather go back to the past and live precariously from day to day.
But yearning was just like that. The more eager she was, the more blurred her mind became. And the more she looked forward to it, the more vague it became.
Until that person appeared alive.
Jiang Sheng's dreamlike feeling reached its peak at this moment. The corners of her mouth curved downwards like countless nights. Her nose and throat tingled at the same time, and tears welled up uncontrollably.
Was it true or false?
Was it real or a dream?
Her thoughts intertwined back and forth. In the end, the fear of loss outweighed her expectations, and the surrounding scenes distorted accordingly. The only thing she could grasp was the corner of the person next to her.
"Second Brother, I'm dreaming again. I dreamed that Fifth Brother came home. I can't tell if this is true or false..."
She babbled as much as possible, as if to express her panic, and to recite her uneasiness.
Not until the real feeling of fabric friction came, did Jiang Sheng realize belatedly that this didn't seem to be a dream.
The distorted scenery gradually recovered, the noisy buzzing sounds disappeared, and the lively and fragrant small courtyard unfolded in her mind.
Along with it was the familiar sobbing.
"Woo woo woo, woo woo little Five... This is not a dream, this is true." Zheng Ruqian grinned and howled, "Little Five really came back. Jiang Sheng, wake up, this is not a dream."
This really wasn't a dream.
Jiang Sheng suddenly looked up, her big eyes fixed firmly on the front, the androgynous boy who had grown more handsome as he aged, but still as beautiful as ever, outshining everyone around him.
It was him, it was him, it really was him.
"Fifth Brother!" Jiang Sheng screamed tearfully, opening her arms to pounce forward.
But someone was faster than her.
The tall and sturdy Second Master Zheng poked his butt out to block his sister, rushed over and hugged Chang Yan. Tears surged at the same time, "You ungrateful thing, you know to come back. Did you forget about us? Enjoying wealth and luxury every day, forgetting about the rest of us living hard lives out here."
"You met Eldest Brother, you met Little Sister, you met Little Four, how could you miss Second Brother? Don't you miss Second Brother? Don't you love Second Brother?"
"Ungrateful, you little ungrateful thing."
He cried and scolded at the same time, remembering to catch the tears and snot with a handkerchief so as not to dirty his precious younger brother's clothes.
Everyone was amused and exasperated.
Jiang Sheng was even more sad, but she couldn't help laughing.
But on second thoughts, Zheng Ruqian and Fang Heng were indeed the only two who had not seen Chang Yan since Auntie Zhang's grand wedding. Fang Heng could be said to not see anyone on the frontier, leaving Zheng Ruqian yearning but never able to wait for his brother's return.
In the emotional world of the six siblings, it was not just the bond between brother and sister, but also that between brothers.
Just like now, seeing Second Brother hug Fifth Brother, Wen Zhiyun couldn't help but mumble softly, "Second Brother, don't you miss me?"
"Miss, miss, miss them both." Zheng Ruqian finally stopped bawling, and put his left arm around his little Fourth Brother.
One was tall and slightly stout, the other two were slender and thin.
Huddled together at this moment, they looked so harmonious and warm.
If they hadn't looked back to see the teapot sprite.
"While you brothers have deep affections, I'll go to the corner over there." Jiang Sheng put her hands on her hips. "It's rare for Fifth Brother and Fourth Brother to come back. Second Brother, what right do you have to bump me away?"
"I was too emotional just now." Zheng Ruqian argued. "Who told you to be shorter than me? Eat two more elbows next time."
Jiang Sheng's eyeballs glared bigger and bigger.
Seeing the siblings about to make a ruckus again, Chang Yan quickly smoothed things over, "Don't worry, we'll see each other often from now on."
This time it was Jiang Sheng and Zheng Ruqian's turn to look at each other in disbelief.
One raised her eyebrows in puzzlement.
The other frowned in worry.
Before their thoughts could tangle into a mess, Wen Zhiyun quickly spoke up, "He wasn't chased out or stripped of his status. Little Five is free now, no longer needing to hide."
The powerless Fifth Prince had to hide in the depths of the palace, while the all-powerful Crown Prince could come and go freely.
Those concealed relationships, those people he cared about, could finally all be taken under his wings.
It sounded good, but who still remembered his former leisurely and carefree days carving wood, the freedom and joy of stroking the wind, and gazing into the distance with hope and anticipation?
Bearing his mother's expectations, he should have flown freely in the distance, but was trapped in this dense quagmire instead.
Was he really happy?
Jiang Sheng didn't know, nor could she ask.
Things had come to this, what use was there in talking about it now, could it change anything?
Only immature people would reopen someone's wounds after the conclusion was set.
No matter how upset Jiang Sheng felt, she still had to force a smile and rush over to pull her two brothers' hands and act coquettishly to Auntie, "Auntie, auntie, auntie, Fourth Brother and Fifth Brother want to eat braised elbows."
"Looks like you're the one who wants to eat it." Zhang Xianglian wiped the tears from the corners of her eyes. "I know what Zhiyun and Chang Yan like to eat. I'll go prepare them now."
No matter what, it was good to be home.
The temporarily quiet small courtyard came alive again. Smoke billowed with fragrance spreading into the distance. Braised elbows and stir fried dishes were brought out in order, along with new pastries from Jiuzhen Lane, the most tender lamb from Baiwei Life.
Family members who had been absent for a long time were gathered around the round table again, laughing as they picked up bowls and chopsticks.
"Isn't Eldest Brother coming home for dinner?" Wen Zhiyun looked around and asked softly.
Looks like Little Four missed his big brother too.
Zheng Ruqian hadn't come over with dishes yet. Chang Yan smiled and explained, "The Imperial Academy provides lunch. Officials who are too busy can choose to eat on site, in order to get off work earlier."
The Dayu Dynasty had comprehensive laws and regulations. Officials not only had a set time to start work, but would also be punished for being late, with deductions from their salary.
Similarly, to prevent absenteeism, each official had different tasks to complete each day. Failure to complete them meant they had to extend their time to go home, which was the so-called getting off work time.
That was fine, but officials of the Golden Sacred Hall had it the toughest.
The ancestral precept was to be punctual for the morning court at the set time. The ministers could hardly make the Emperor wait, so they had to wash up and travel even earlier, sometimes before dawn in winter. That was commonplace.
By comparison, Xu Mo at the Imperial Academy was quite relaxed.
But this relaxation was unlikely to last too long.
Chang Yan pulled back his thoughts, and pretended to casually ask, "Just now outside I heard you guys talking about a wedding, who's having a wedding?"
