Crying While Filling the Pit I Dug - Chapter 44

Song Miaomiao was very unaccustomed to the “serving” of these maids. So she just found an excuse, dressed herself, washed her face, and rinsed her mouth.

The reflection in the bronze mirror looked very similar to her appearance in the modern world—much fairer and more tender than the rougher appearance she had in the previous world, with a hint of baby fat. At first glance, she looked like a pampered lady.

The feudal society was indeed extravagant! There were sixty-four dishes served in one meal! There were hot dishes and cold dishes, meat dishes and vegetarian dishes, stir-fried dishes and soup dishes—every kind of dish imaginable was available.

How could she possibly eat it all by herself?!

And that was not all!

A few servants passed the word, and the Emperor gave her another twenty-four dishes.

Song Miaomiao stared at the terrifyingly full table.

The maid Yan Yu said, “Princess, are today’s dishes not delicious?”

“No,” Song Miaomiao replied, not daring to express her true opinion about the dish’s palatability. She just thought it was too wasteful, okay?

Song Miaomiao only moved a few dishes in front of her. “Oh my god, this is too delicious,” she thought to herself. She served herself the dishes and ate three bowls of rice. She couldn’t hold on. After filling her stomach, Song Miaomiao gave all the remaining  dishes to the maids. Most of the dishes were untouched; otherwise, she would be ashamed to give away her leftovers to others.

The Princess could only rest her belly and think about how to complete the task and advance the plot.

In the book’s world, the male lead was Yi Qing, who served as a bodyguard.

The Emperor’s surname was Xiao. During the story’s setting, it was a time of peace. In that dynasty, being a bodyguard was a prestigious job, representing identity, status, and martial arts skills.

The bodyguards were typically the children of princes and ministers, and they could participate in the selection process between the ages of twelve to fourteen. After a series of assessments, those who remained were chosen for training in the forbidden barracks. After five years of training, they would be further selected based on their performance evaluations. Several guards of varying ranks, such as first, third, and fourth, would then enter the palace to serve. After serving in the palace for five years, they could be released and appointed to official positions.

The male lead, Yi Qing, was the second son of Yi Changcheng, the great general of the dynasty. Despite being born into a slightly weaker birth, he possessed extraordinary abilities and talents and was highly favored by others. Yi Qing participated in the election at the age of twelve and entered the Forbidden Army. By the age of seventeen, he had secured the first place in the assessment and was named a first-class bodyguard. At eighteen, he was promoted to the position of head of the guard, attaining the rank of fourth-rank official.

The female lead, Gu Jiaren, was the male lead’s childhood sweetheart, and the two desired to marry each other.

The names of the male and female leads, as well as the title of the book, all come from an ancient poem “There Are Beautiful Women in the North”.

Song Miaomiao extracted a few words from the ancient poem and used them as the names of the male and female leads.

As for the other supporting roles, Prince Xiao Chengqi and Princess Changrou Xiao Luxiao, their names were all randomly chosen and have nothing to do with the poem.

When he married, Gu Shangshu had not been promoted and was only a minor official. However, he was able to become the son-in-law of the general. Gu Jiaren, the daughter of the Minister of the Finance Department, was selected as a female official in the palace due to her outstanding character, appearance, excellent talents, virtues, and a good reputation. Later, she won the appreciation of the Empress with an excellent embroidery of a hundred birds and a phoenix and was promoted.

There was a saying in the art of war that if one knew themselves and the enemy, they would never be defeated in a hundred battles. Song Miaomiao decided to investigate the male lead first, to find out his current situation.

This time, where should the male lead Yi Qing be?

In Song Miaomiao’s setting, Yi Qing, as the head of the guard, was naturally responsible for the safety of the palace, but he did not need to guard every day; his main responsibilities were commanding and patrolling.

After resting for a while and feeling less full, Song Miaomiao decided to move around. She planned to visit the Imperial Garden to digest her food. Firstly, she could see what the Imperial Palace in her book looked like. Secondly, she might meet Yi Qing or other guards, or make other preliminary preparations to pave the way for the mission event between her and the Male lead—falling from the tree and being caught by him.

Song Miaomiao stood up and said to Yan Yu, “I want to go to the Imperial Garden.”

The maid Yan Yu immediately ordered the maids and guards to organize Song Miaomiao’s clothes. She felt a little flattered; she should take care of the clothes herself.

Compared with the gardens in the modern world, the Imperial Garden was quite different in style. The private gardens were small and delicate, while the royal one was dignified and grand.

Song Miaomiao was so stuffed that she couldn’t walk for a while. She found a gazebo to rest. Beside the gazebo was a sycamore tree with thick branches and yellow leaves, and there was an open space under the tree.

After resting for a while, Song Miaomiao still felt a little uncomfortable in her stomach, which could not be relieved by sitting down. So she stood up and jumped. When she was little, her mother would let her rest for a while after eating too much food.

As soon as Song Miaomiao jumped for the first time, Yan Yu said, “Princess, do you want to kick the shuttlecock?”

Song Miaomiao blinked, “You brought a shuttlecock?” 

Kicking the shuttlecock was not bad, but jumping around in place actually looked quite silly.

Yan Yu said, “I will order someone to get it now.”

The palace maid A took the order, and after a while, she brought the shuttlecock.

Song Miaomiao hadn’t played shuttlecock for several years. After receiving the shuttlecock, she started kicking it in the open space.

It had been a long time since she had kicked the shuttlecock, and she was a little shaky. Song Miaomiao couldn’t find the strength and accidentally kicked the shuttlecock away with one kick.

There was a small rockery behind the open space. Song Miaomiao watched helplessly as the shuttlecock flew to the other side of the rockery.

Maid B said, “I’m going to look for the shuttlecock.”

At that moment, a slender man in a bodyguard uniform, with a long sword at his waist, emerged from behind the rockery.

He knelt down on one knee, held the shuttlecock in his hand, and said in salute, “This official sees the Princess.”