Walking out of the door, Fan Xian tossed the cup of cold tea he was holding.
With a splash, the cup landed directly stacked on top of the other cup, with very little tea spilling out.
He walked downstairs and said something quietly to Hong Zhu, and the two of them left the little tower, walking along the cold stone paths.
After seeing Fan Xian off at the palace, Hong Zhu went around Taiji Palace, through the stone arch gate, and went to the royal study to report back on his orders. All along the way, he joked with the serving girls he saw, and chatted with the eunuchs. He was unspeakably happy. The eunuchs and serving girls found this to be a little strange. They noticed that since Hong Zhu had begun serving the Emperor, his status had gone up and his personality had become steadier and stricter. What had happened today for him to be so cheerful?