Do not lean against the west railing to lock in the clear autumn

Chapter 71

Do not lean against the west railing to lock in the clear autumn. Chapter 55

Chapter word count: 3689 Update time: 09-08-12 12:54

After changing my clothes, I swaggered out of the Prince Qing's mansion. Before, without a mission, I could never have left so easily. I always had to sneak around and go to great lengths. I really have to thank Shen Haoyu for the token he left me last night.

Walking alone on the street, I would have enjoyed it immensely if I weren't worried about their safety. Shopping like this seems to be something I've only done before, back when I was with Shen Zexuan. There are quite a few people on the street today; everyone knows that not only Princess Luoli is returning, but Princess Ziling will also be accompanying her, and everyone is ready to watch the spectacle. I hide myself in the crowd, listening to the murmurs and gossip.

"I heard that the Golden Sparrow Kingdom was just putting on a show and never really intended to marry Princess Luoli to us. They are very picky about our princes and grandsons."

"Yes, yes, I heard about it too. It happened right there in the Golden Hall. If the Third Prince has some flaws, what a handsome young Prince Qing is! Yet he was..."

"Thanks to His Majesty's magnanimity and genuine desire for peace between the two countries, he not only did not blame the Jinque Kingdom for its rudeness, but also sent the most noble bloodline of the late Empress to the Jinque Kingdom."

"His Majesty is truly a rare and wise ruler!"

...

I found it amusing. A wise ruler? Or was Emperor Youjing just a plant for himself? The Golden Sparrow Kingdom was indeed picky, but didn't Princess Luoli later say she had taken a liking to Shen Zexuan? It was Shen Zexuan who refused, so why is no one saying that now? I knew that sending Princess Ziling away wasn't just for the sake of so-called peace. I only thought it had something to do with the Empress, but it turns out he also gave himself such a high hat, while incidentally damaging the image of the Golden Sparrow Kingdom. How clever!

If you went to a restaurant or teahouse, the comments you made would probably be even more outrageous.

Although I knew there would be a grand farewell ceremony at the palace gate, I still chose to stand on the street and wait, and it seems that my trip was worthwhile.

The sound of gongs clearing the way could be heard from afar, and people rushed to both sides of the street to stand in line. The once noisy street instantly quieted down, and the sound of approaching carriages and horses' hooves could be heard. All the windows facing the street were crowded with heads, which was quite a sight, except for one window of the restaurant diagonally opposite that was empty.

Wait, isn't that Liuzui Residence? The place Shen Zexuan and I used to frequent. The location of that window... I vaguely remember it being the Luomei Room... The vibration in my chest seemed to be accelerating uncontrollably.

The sound of gongs and drums grew closer, and the sound of horses' hooves became clearer. Finally, four squads of imperial guards in bright armor rode tall horses from the other end of the street, their ranks orderly and their bearing solemn. The first squad of guards passed by slowly, followed closely by Shen Haoyu and Prince Luochen, one in purple robes and the other in yellow robes, both quite eye-catching.

"Hmph, our young prince is so handsome, yet Princess Luoli doesn't even fancy him!"

"I thought their Golden Sparrow Kingdom was so great. Look at that prince, he's far inferior to the young prince. How dare he walk with the young prince? You don't know until you compare them, and the difference is shocking."

I looked in the direction of the sound and saw that it was a group of young girls who were speaking up for Shen Haoyu. They were all about twelve or thirteen years old. Their voices were not loud, but they were very clear. I'm sure many people around heard them.

“Very well, the young prince won’t marry a woman from the Golden Sparrow Kingdom. There are plenty of good girls in our Youjing Dynasty!” A little girl in a white dress embroidered with begonia flowers raised her eyebrows and said loudly, her demeanor quite arrogant, unlike the daughter of a poor family.

As I was pondering this, I felt a gaze upon me. Looking up, I saw Shen Haoyu smiling at me. Beside him, Prince Luochen glanced at the girls who had just spoken, his expression expressionless, revealing no anger. I grinned at Shen Haoyu and silently mouthed "Take care." Shen Haoyu's smile deepened, and he waved in our direction. The girls nearby immediately erupted in cheers, shouting, "The young prince smiled at us and waved!" Some even jumped up, disregarding their image, waving handkerchiefs at Shen Haoyu and yelling, "Young prince!"

I was surprised by Shen Haoyu's popularity. I winked at him, and he gave me a helpless pout and a warning look. As he passed by me, Shen Haoyu flicked his finger, and something hit my forehead. I quickly covered it with my hand. This guy is really petty. I just made a joke at him, why did he have to flick me like that? I opened my palm to see what Shen Haoyu had flicked me with—it was a pearl the size of my little finger. I happily put it away. It was worth the flick. I even gave Shen Haoyu a slight bow in thanks, but he immediately turned his head away.

I stopped arguing with Shen Haoyu because I saw Zinuo, two riders behind him. His slender frame looked particularly out of place on that large horse, and he had that oddly shaped backpack slung across his shoulder. I forced a smile, but couldn't manage it. Zinuo had obviously seen me before, glaring at me with displeasure, gesturing for me to go back. I nodded and quietly slipped out of the crowd. When I looked back in an open area, Zinuo and Shen Haoyu had already walked quite a distance, and they were now passing the Golden Sparrow Kingdom's envoy.

I've seen what I wanted to see, and I'm no longer interested in Princess Luoli and Princess Ziling's luxurious carriages. I'll straighten my clothes, which were a bit wrinkled from being squeezed, and get ready to return to Prince Qing's mansion. I have important things to do next.

I was walking slowly down the road with my head down when a red figure blocked my way, and I caught a faint, somewhat familiar fragrance. I slowly looked up, and there stood Shen Zexuan, his face flawless, smiling broadly. He looked so different from when I saw him at Wangcang Mountain that day. Every time I thought of him, my heart would race, but seeing him would miraculously calm it down. I bowed respectfully to him: "Third Prince!"

Shen Zexuan's smile froze slightly as he said indifferently, "No need for formalities."

I looked around but didn't see Guangqi or any other guards, and I couldn't help but feel a little annoyed: "Where are Your Highness's guards? Why can't I see a single one?"

Shen Zexuan immediately smiled again: "So you still care about me after all."

I snorted coldly: "I may not care about other things, but if something happens to His Highness in front of me now, it's not something I can bear the consequences of."

Shen Zexuan smiled indifferently, then said, "Since we're out, why don't we go upstairs and sit for a while?"

Upstairs? I was a little confused, then I immediately thought of the empty window at Liuzui Residence. "Was His Highness really at Liuzui Residence just now?" I thought it was a room that Shen Zexuan had booked for a long time, but I didn't expect him to actually be there. Didn't he need to see Princess Ziling off?

Shen Zexuan nodded with a somewhat somber expression: "Is it strange? Let's talk upstairs."

Although I knew that Shen Zexuan's actions had some seductive element, I wanted to know what exactly made him not see Princess Ziling off at the palace, but instead go to the restaurant to watch from the shadows.

Following Shen Zexuan into the Plum Blossom Room, a place I hadn't visited in a long time, I couldn't help but smile bitterly. After all this wandering, I'd finally come back here; the six months or so that had passed seemed almost laughable. Shen Zexuan casually poured me a cup of tea, which I accepted without ceremony and took a large gulp. How long had it been since I'd felt this way?

"Do you know who suffered the most when Zi Ling went to the Golden Sparrow Kingdom?" Shen Zexuan's face was turned towards the window, so I couldn't see his expression.

Originally, we might not have known, but now, who wouldn't guess? "I remember that His Highness and Princess Ziling aren't usually close."

Shen Zexuan turned around, glanced at me with a hint of pain in his eyes, then looked back at the teacup and said in a low voice, "If I had married that Princess Luoli, Ziling wouldn't have had to go so far."

Exactly, I also can't understand why he doesn't marry Princess Luoli, since he's not really gay. Logically, it would be troublesome if Shen Haoyu married her, but he's a prince, so it's perfectly legitimate. Although I would feel a little uncomfortable if he really did marry her.

"No one would have expected the Emperor to do this," I said, trying to comfort him. This side of Shen Zexuan was also unfamiliar to me. Recently, the people around me have been deviating from the norm, which is very unsettling. Zi Nuo is one example, Shen Haoyu is another, and now Shen Zexuan is yet another.

"Father?" Shen Zexuan curled the corners of his lips, but there was a hint of coldness in his expression.

That smile made my heart ache. As far as I know, although Consort Wei is of noble birth, Emperor Youjing has always been rather distant from her and Shen Zexuan. Perhaps this has something to do with the Prince Qing's residence. As for the princesses, he hasn't shown any particular favor to any of them. So, among the four princes now, who does Emperor Youjing favor the most? Could it be Shen Tingxuan, who has been secretly raised in the Marquis of Qiyun's residence for over ten years?

For a long time, Shen Zexuan maintained that smile that wasn't really a smile, his eyes filled with a faint mockery. Emperor Youjing and Marquis Qiyun were such similar people, perhaps even more so. Unconsciously, I found myself putting Shen Zexuan and Zi Nuo together, except that Shen Zexuan's life seemed more glamorous on the surface than Zi Nuo's, and the dangers and complexities he faced were probably far greater.

Thinking about it this way, I suddenly felt a sense of kinship with others in the same boat, and all the concerns I had before didn't seem so important anymore...

I thought the silence would continue for a while, but then I heard Shen Zexuan slowly speak: "Want to know why I rejected Princess Luoli?"

Want to know? I was both secretly looking forward to it and a little afraid to hear the answer.

"Someone once said that the person she loves, whether a nobleman or a commoner, must be someone she loves in return, loyal to each other, and never abandoning. I was with her with a purpose when she said that, and I found it strange and laughable. But when I saw her fall off the cliff, I felt a fear I had never felt before, and without thinking, I rushed over to try to grab her..." At this point, Shen Zexuan stopped, a faint blush appearing on her face. I chuckled inwardly, thinking that she must have remembered that not only did she fail to catch me, but she also risked breaking my ribs. He then said, "Realizing my own feelings, I made excuses to visit her every day while she was recovering from her injuries. Unconsciously, this provoked her mistress, who liked her but was unwilling to show it, which caused her misunderstanding and dissatisfaction, making her even less willing to believe me. In the Chongde Hall, I was initially rejected because of the rumors of my homosexuality. Princess Luoli, in order to relieve Prince Luochen's predicament, said she was willing to marry me. Anyway, she wasn't sincere, and I remembered that person's words about 'mutual fidelity,' so I made an excuse to refuse. I thought my father would blame me for this, but to my surprise, he only said that I should take good care of my illness, and soon after, he issued an imperial decree to send Ziling to the Golden Sparrow Kingdom. It turns out that my father had already considered everything. In any case, Ziling's departure to the Golden Sparrow Kingdom is most related to me. I have no face to see her off in person, so I can only take sick leave and see her off from afar here."

Hearing Shen Zexuan's words, I felt both joy and pain, but I couldn't speak for a long time. I just looked at him quietly.

Shen Zexuan looked at me for a while, then revealed a captivating smile: "Huai'en, from now on, believe in my sincerity, okay?"

He did hear what I said that day after all. Having wasted so much time, instead of hesitating, I should take a bold step and try. I nodded gently, exchanged a smile with him, my heart overflowing with something.

Do not lean against the west railing to lock in the clear autumn. Chapter 56 of the main text.