Luzhou-Mond - Kapitel 146
After a busy afternoon, they finally found Ah Zhu and Ming Hua, who had deserted the group, at the Yue Lao Temple in the east of the city before 7 PM. They seemed to know they had caused trouble, for both of them kept their heads down and remained silent when brought up.
Although I know I shouldn't lose my temper with children, disobedient kids are really a headache, and my tone unconsciously became a bit stern: "You two want to go to some temple to worship some Buddha? Can't you tell the guard uncle who's with you and ask him to take you? Or did you tell him, but he didn't want to?" I don't think they wanted to worship the God of Marriage; they just stumbled upon it by chance and thought that any temple was a place they could go in to worship.
"We went there secretly on our own, the guards didn't know," Minghua whispered. Azhu glanced at me nervously, then looked at Minghua with some worry.
"Why didn't you tell the guard? Were you afraid he wouldn't take you?" Seeing that they were quite remorseful, her tone softened.
"Yes," Minghua replied, her little face suddenly flushing red. Azhu lowered her head even further, her small hand gently tugging at Minghua's sleeve. If they were ten years older, this scene would surely evoke all sorts of fantasies, but these two children seemed strange no matter how you looked at them. Don't tell me they really went to worship the Old Man Under the Moon; that would be far too precocious.
"Ah Zhu, do you really want to marry Minghua?" Xiao Ping suddenly spoke up, and I almost spat out my tea, coughing uncontrollably. They actually really...
That's enough, I can't ask any more questions, or I'll corrupt the other children.
Ruosheng skillfully patted my back; my cough had finally subsided, but my throat was still a little sore. I waved my hand, signaling everyone to disperse, and led them to dinner before the large group of us went out onto the street.
The streets were much livelier tonight than during the day, with many graceful young women among the crowds—young ladies from various families who rarely came out to admire the lanterns. The streets were so crowded that everyone had to disperse, but there was no need to rearrange things. As soon as the crowd dispersed, the children skipped and jumped towards the various lanterns, leaving the guards looking worried.
Gan Lin and Ruo Sheng stood close to me, their faces obscured by the colorful light and shadows.
"Miss, isn't that lamp beautiful?" Ruosheng pointed to a jade lotus lamp in front of her. Upon closer inspection, she realized that the lamp was not made of paper or silk, but carved from jade. The petals were translucent and bright, and it was in a completely different league from the other lamps around it.
"It's beautiful, but not something an ordinary family can afford." Judging from the pure jade and exquisite carving, it must be very valuable.
The stall owner quickly spoke up, "Young lady, this lamp is not for sale."
"So it's your family's signboard." I suddenly realized.
The stall owner waved his hand and said, "A friend asked me to sell this lantern. It's not for sale with money, but with a line of poetry. If you can complete the second line, you can take the lantern away. Many people have come today, but no one has been able to complete the second line. I wonder if you are interested?"
He was about to refuse, but seeing Ruosheng's delighted expression, he couldn't help but agree: "I wonder what kind of poem it is?"
The stall owner took the lotus lantern from Ruosheng's hand and pointed to a line of words under the lantern base: "It's this sentence: May we all live long and prosper."
May we all live long and prosper.
My breathing quickened. Who was the original owner of this lamp? To use such a method to find his companion. Should I tell him that there are people like him in this world?
After much deliberation, Ruosheng and Ganlin assumed I was struggling to come up with the next line. Looking at Ruosheng, I finally made up my mind and recited: "We share the same moon, though we are thousands of miles apart."
The stall owner looked at me with great surprise and said repeatedly, "Congratulations, young lady, it's exactly this one! You can take this lamp." He handed me the lamp, which I took and then placed in Ruosheng's hands. "Since you like it so much, I'll give it to you." As I spoke, I looked at the stall owner with some doubt. The lamp had been taken, so why was he happier than the person who took it? A vague unease crept into my heart.
Ruosheng blew out the candle on the lamp holder and hugged the lamp tightly to her chest. Somewhat amused, she asked Ruosheng, "There are many more beautiful lamps in the palace than this, why do you cherish this one so much?"
"There are many good things in the palace, but none of them are truly mine, not even mine," Ruosheng replied casually, though only those who have experienced it can understand the true meaning behind it.
"There's a lantern riddle competition ahead, let's go check it out." He pulled Ruosheng along and strode forward, leaving the faint sadness behind.
Before they even arrived at the lantern riddle festival, a large group of people came against the flow, shouting that they wanted to go to the Rainbow Pavilion to watch the Flower Queen Competition, and the crowd immediately became chaotic. In the jostle, Ruosheng's hand was lost, but it was tightly grasped by another warm hand. Turning around, he saw it was Ganlin.
"Thank goodness you're here."
"If you've lost it once, how can you lose it a second time?" Amidst the noisy crowd, Gan Lin's voice was soft, yet every word was firm.
Gan Lin pulled me away from the crowd and we stood in a corner at a distance.
Standing on tiptoe, peering into the crowd, Ruosheng realized she'd been pushed aside. Similar memories flooded her mind; some people were still beside her, others were just blurry silhouettes...
The two streams of people finally made their way to their destinations smoothly. The street suddenly became much wider. A small figure on the opposite side looked around nervously, smiled, and pulled Gan Lin towards her.
"Miss." Ruosheng saw me too and quickly came to greet me, still clutching her lotus lantern tightly in her arms. The joy and happiness on her face made it hard to recall her former seriousness and composure. If she were to return to the palace in the future, would she be able to adapt?
When we arrived at the lantern riddle festival, almost all the riddles had already been solved, leaving only exquisite lanterns adorning the radiant full moon night.
As the crowd gradually dispersed, we slowly made our way towards the inn. Even from some distance, we could see the inn brightly lit, as clear as day, becoming another highlight of the night.
Some doubts lingered in his mind; the postmaster hadn't mentioned any activities for the evening during the day. He quickened his pace.
Do not lean against the west railing to lock in the clear autumn. Chapter 128
Chapter word count: 3823 Update time: 09-09-18 13:58
Before we even entered the post station, the postmaster rushed out in a hurry. Upon seeing me, he was overjoyed: "Holy Maiden, you've finally returned! This humble servant has been out here several times already."
"What's happened again?" I wonder if those kids have caused trouble again.
The postmaster wiped the sweat from his forehead before saying, "Your Highness has been waiting for you for a long time."
Your Highness? Zinuo?
"Princess Luoyang has arrived?"
As they were talking, a white figure strode over, its movements dappled with golden light. Who else could it be but Zinuo?
"Didn't I tell you not to come..." Seeing the exhaustion on Zinuo's face, he swallowed the rest of his words.
"Sister, let's talk about it tomorrow. It's almost 9 PM." Zi Nuo took my hand and strode into the garden.
In the garden of the post station, various palace lanterns had been hung up at some point, and it turned out that the lights seen outside came from here.
On the stone table in the pavilion, there was a candle flame, and through the candlelight, you could see that underneath was a birthday cake!
I was taken aback. Zi Nuo urged me expectantly, "Sister, hurry up and make a wish, the time is almost up."
Suppressing my excitement, I took a deep breath, blew out all the candles on the cake, closed my eyes, and made my deepest wish.
Zinuo removed the candles from the cake, then cut a piece of cake with a knife, put it on a plate, and handed it to me: "Sister, try it, is it the taste you wanted?"
I forked a small piece of cake and put it in my mouth. It was soft, sweet, and fragrant, with some fruit pieces mixed in. It had no cream, yet it had a unique flavor. Lacking the necessary tools, I had no idea how this cake was made. Besides surprise, I was deeply moved. Zinuo clearly remembered all the things I said when I was little, and then, when he was able, he helped me fulfill them one by one.