Transmigrated Female Official

206 is already open.

"But..." Wu Yang said somewhat embarrassedly, "I'm afraid not many children will want to learn the flute, and then..."

"It doesn't necessarily have to be limited to children. Anyone interested in the flute is welcome." Chu Qingluo wasn't too worried about this. "Don't forget, you are the legendary flute player of Yancheng, and a flute master specially invited by the palace. If you were to open a private school, would you be afraid of not having enough students?"

This advertisement was just casually placed; I don't believe no one would come.

"If Qingluo says it's true, then it definitely is." Wuyang smiled shyly, quite happy to hear Chu Qingluo's support.

Tong Ling followed silently behind the two of them, but because she wasn't close enough, she couldn't hear their conversation very clearly.

However, judging from Wu Yang's attitude towards Chu Qingluo, he did not show the same respect and humility as he would when meeting other tenth-rank female officials. Instead, he seemed to have a natural sense of familiarity with her.

Moreover, Wu Yang, who was usually taciturn and cautious, seemed to be constantly trying to strike up a conversation. Tong Ling occasionally caught a glimpse of his profile as he spoke, and was surprised to find that his smile was genuine and heartfelt.

Could it be that the master Wu Yang mentioned before, that very good person... is Chu Qingluo?!

This assumption made Tong Ling gasp, because she never expected that Wu Yang's master would be someone from the palace, and not just any person, but a high-ranking official of the sixth rank, and the female official she admired the most!

She continued to follow them secretly until she saw the two of them board the Chu family's carriage together, at which point she became even more certain of how correct her judgment had been.

With so many major events happening in the palace recently, even without deliberately inquiring, she knew about the misfortune that the Sixth Princess and Chu Qingluo encountered on their return journey from Yuezhi Kingdom.

This current stage must be particularly difficult for both Chu Qingluo and Wu Yang...

Tong Ling couldn't help but feel pity for her.

……

Rest day.

On the table in Chu Qingluo's room sat the jade-handled purple-tipped brush she intended to give to Gongsun Yu, while she herself held a wine cup, gazing at it in a daze.

Having been back for so long, Gongsun Yu's room remained a forbidden place for her. She only instructed Tongmu to remember to clean it daily and keep it as it was.

A gentle knock on the door interrupted her reverie.

"Come in." Perfect timing, she needed another pot of wine.

“Qingluo…” Wuyang came to Chu Qingluo’s side and glanced at the pencil case on the table. He then realized that she had not been biased and had bought the same gift for him and Gongsun Yu.

"Is something the matter?" Chu Qingluo asked.

"I'm here to thank Qingluo for the gift." After saying that, Wuyang stretched out her hand from behind her back and said, "This... is for you."

Chu Qingluo looked up and saw that he was holding an exquisite bamboo flute. From this distance, she could even smell the fresh scent of bamboo.

"Thank you." She took it and touched the row of small holes on it. The bamboo flute was polished very smoothly, without any roughness to the touch. Her gaze unconsciously shifted to Wu Yang's hands, and she noticed that his slender fingers had many tiny scratches.

"Did you make this?" she asked, her eyes wide.

"Hmm..." Wu Yang nodded and said, "It's been a long time since I've done this, so I'm quite rusty. I hope Qing Luo won't mind if it's not done well." He just wanted to make something for her by hand, but after thinking about it, this was the only skill he had.

"Well done!" Chu Qingluo gently put down the flute and pulled his hand over to examine it carefully. "But your hands... are naturally meant for playing the flute, how could you hurt them?"

"It's nothing." Wu Yang's ears turned slightly red, and he tried to pull his hand back, but Chu Qingluo held on tightly and showed no intention of letting go.

"I'll have Nine-Tailed Fox get some medicine for you to apply later." After saying this, she waited for him to nod before letting go of his hand.

"Um..." Wu Yang stared at the empty wine pot on the table and asked cautiously, "Let me drink with you."

"Uh..." Chu Qingluo's dark eyes darted around. Considering Wu Yang's previous performance, it seemed that his alcohol tolerance was not very good. Moreover, she also wanted to be alone, so she said tactfully, "This little bit of wine is not enough for me, so please don't argue with me."

Seeing that she had no interest, Wu Yang was too embarrassed to say anything more, and only said, "...Then you should drink less." Then he walked away dejectedly.

Just then, Nine-Tailed Fox entered and said, "Miss, Lorife and Lady Peony have arrived."

"Oh?" Chu Qingluo was slightly taken aback, then said, "Then please invite them in, and bring out two more jugs of wine as well."

Nine-Tailed Fox hesitated for a moment before saying, "But the Second Young Master and Young Master Yanlu have also come. Should we invite them in as well?"

so many people?

Chu Qingluo breathed a sigh of relief and said, "Please invite them to the courtyard." After saying that, she stood up herself.

"Okay." Nine-Tails immediately went to make the arrangements...

The four were led to the courtyard of Ningxiang Courtyard, the place where a large group of people used to eat barbecue and recite poetry together. But now, all the former liveliness was gone; only a lonely swing remained, swaying alone in the breeze beneath the trees…

"Please sit down." Chu Qingluo was sitting at the stone table and invited them to sit down. "You've come at just the right time; the fine wine has just been opened."

"Hey, hey, hey—" Chu Yilin took a few deep breaths, rushed to the table, and said urgently, "This wouldn't happen to be the vintage wine I hid in the Bamboo Green Courtyard, would it?!"

Chu Qinglu glanced at him expressionlessly, without denying it: "Anyway, you've already left, so I'll drink it for you."

"You robbers! I only left it here temporarily to store, planning to drink it slowly later. Third Sister, your behavior is unacceptable!" Chu Yilin looked at her opened wine with a pained expression, on the verge of tears.

Luo Lifei, who was next to him, kept nudging his arm with her elbow, signaling him to watch his words. She lowered her voice and said, "Don't be so heartless."

However, Chu Yilin didn't think so. He believed that he needed to provoke Chu Qingluo and make her live like a normal person, instead of being a wooden figure who only had a straight face and never cried or laughed. "I want to make her have a heart and lungs, flesh and blood."

"..." Chu Qinglu stared at him blankly and said, "It's already opened, so do you want to drink it or not?"

"Of course we have to drink!" Chu Yilin sat down without any hesitation and filled his glass. Seeing this, the others also took their seats.

Chu Qingluo looked at the other three people who looked bewildered and said, "Today is not a celebration banquet. Since everyone is here, please drink as much as you like."