Чистая вода и прекрасные горы

Глава 100

I covered my right shoulder with my left hand and struggled to pick up the pen with my right. I didn't have a spare hand to unfold the paper. Lu Xiu and Han Yufeng came forward to help me, but I shook my head slightly and avoided their hands.

I took the pen and walked towards the white wall to the east. I channeled my energy into my fingertips, and the strokes left their mark on the wall:

Jade shatters in the spring breeze, a sorrowful sight. When will this regret end?

I cannot sing while holding back tears. Love and hate can both be cast aside.

I no longer care about rhyme or format. I just write whatever comes to mind. As I write, the words fly by. Finally, with a "smack," I throw the pen far away…

I turned around, gazing at the astonished crowd. My gaze swept coldly over his still-gentle face. His deep eyes were fixed on the words on the wall, and there was a faint glimmer in them. Was it the glimmer of tears? Or a fleeting moment of melancholy?

He turned back to look at me, stunned. My clothes were stained black with ink. My black hair was disheveled. How wretched I must look now…

Tears fell silently.

When he humiliated me, I didn't shed a tear. When I severed our relationship with my own hands, I held back my tears. Even when I left in resentment, I didn't cry... But now, I quietly shed tears in front of him. There is no grief or anger, no hatred, just a faint helplessness... How proud I am!

"Miss Rong's calligraphy is truly beautiful, elegant yet unrestrained, and unconventional. Lord Lu's calligraphy is profound and meticulous; even the smallest details, such as the concentration of ink, are perfect and impeccable. This round is a draw..."

I had a record of one draw, two losses, and three wins out of five games.

At this moment, who would care about these things? I slowly walked up to Yunniang and said, "Yunniang, congratulations, you won."

"No, you've won more games than I have."

I smiled, a faint smile.

"At least you won his heart."

From the very beginning, I knew I was going to lose! From the very beginning, I lost to you... Yunniang.

I walked out of the crowd, and Luo Ying glanced at me indifferently. Her eyes were moist. She... must have understood my poem.

"In this life, the only person I admire is you," she said slowly behind me.

I walked out of the chrysanthemum garden, looking utterly dejected... The hand that had been clutching my right shoulder loosened, and blood flowed down my right arm. Although I managed to parry Lu Li's sword strike in time, it had still damaged my meridians, but fortunately, it wasn't serious.

Lu Xiu came up from behind and picked me up, placing me in the carriage without saying a word.

After a long silence, until the ethereal and magnificent chrysanthemum garden could no longer be seen, Lu Xiu gently embraced me, his cold, wet clothes falling onto my shoulders. His voice was hoarse: "You wretched woman, why do you always make my heart ache?"

I turned to meet his gaze and gently wiped away his tears, but the tears showed no sign of stopping.

I closed my eyes and gently kissed his handsome face, streaked with tears. The tears were for me… I wrapped my arms around his shoulders, ignoring the bleeding wounds, and carefully kissed away every tear that had fallen for me. This was the only way I could repay him… Following the tears down his face, I reached his soft lips, their scent lingering. I trembled. He held me tightly, our lips pressing even closer together. The taste was sweet, tinged with the saltiness of tears…

I sat quietly in Yu Shang Zhai, unable to sleep, my shoulder throbbing slightly. Below the window, carriages and horses bustled about; it truly was a city that never sleeps.

"Miss Rong—we have a guest."

At the sound, I stood up, fully expecting Lu Xiu to come and deliver the medicine. I smiled and went to the door, but I froze instantly!

It was him! And her too!

He led the two of them inside, and they remained silent.

Yunniang smiled and smiled again, "We came to see you."

I smiled in response, then suddenly turned to look at Lu Li on the other side, my heart filled with hatred, anger, and turmoil—emotions I couldn't control.

"Kiss me!" I said suddenly, looking at him, right in front of her!

He was clearly taken aback, but remained calm and composed, though his gaze was no longer clear as he looked at me.

"Do I need to say it a second time?" I stubbornly vented my hatred.

"Need not!"

The words had barely left his lips when his cold lips covered mine, unhurried and gentle, his breath growing thinner. They were indeed cold, but that wouldn't last long. A glint seemed to flash in my wide-open eyes, and almost simultaneously, his eyes flickered, and he slightly raised them to meet my gaze. Our lips brushed together; even with difficulty breathing, I had to endure! He stopped looking at me, seemingly resolving to bear it, and slightly closed his eyes. Sure enough, his lips grew hot…

Yunniang stared at the two people who kissed without any reason, her face almost pale. Finally, she couldn't bear it and left in sorrow!

A metallic taste lingered on my tongue. In the distance, Yunniang closed the door and left. I abruptly pushed Lu Li away. His lips were stained with blood, yet his face remained indifferent.

"Does it hurt?" I asked with a smile, knowing that such a rough and bloody kiss would be something he would remember for a lifetime.

He reached up and wiped the blood from his lips, revealing a shocking wound on his lower lip.

"I just kissed Lu Xiu." I wiped the bloodstains from my lips with a handkerchief. His bloodstains on the handkerchief were shaped like plum blossoms. "The difference is, it was very gentle just now!"

"I'm just here to deliver medicine." He placed the medicine on the table, as if he hadn't heard me. "You can lie, but the blood on the tip of a sword doesn't lie."

"Really?" I smiled indifferently and turned back to look at the people coming and going downstairs.

"There's no need to concern yourself with such trivial matters of the court." He spoke these words vaguely. So, he knew everything. Yes, how could he not know what I was thinking? He's such a clever man. Then, he should also understand my attempt to seduce Han Yufeng… No wonder he was so calm and composed.

"Let me offer some advice!"

I laughed: "What?"

"The women of the inner palace must not interfere in politics."

"What a joke!" I snapped, rising to my feet. "You shouldn't be saying that to me. This isn't your harem!"

"Someone will come to take you to the palace!"

"I'm tired—I won't see you out." Completely ignoring him!

He stood up, and I smiled slowly: "Sir, there's no need to rush off. The most beautiful place in the world is right downstairs."

He raised his eyebrows and smiled slightly: "I know Yunniang is there, thank you anyway. But thank you for showing mercy tonight and sparing my life."

I turned around, walked to the balcony, and leaned on the railing to look down at the building.

night view.

“I’ve never lost before… but tonight I’ve lost to you,” I said with a sigh.

"You may not know, but my sword wound has healed. So next time, there's no need to worry; just thrust your sword at me."

"I've got it." Without turning around, he simply replied casually. Does all of this still concern me?

"I--"

Perhaps due to the sword wound, he could no longer hear what he was saying. Suddenly, his vision blurred, and his body felt light and airy as he fell backward. He vaguely felt himself flip over the railing and gently fall downward...

"I hate you..." she murmured, the sound of the wind in her ears.

Two hands blocked my way, but everything was still black...

"I know." A soft whisper.

Perhaps it's an illusion, perhaps...

As evening fell, just as the louvered lamps of Xiaoxiang Pavilion were lit, Han Yufeng arrived, not alone. Lu Li, dressed in white, followed behind him... to find Yunniang.

Green bamboo forms the railing, curtains hang lightly, incense burners are lit, and wisps of fragrance rise.

I chuckled, "I knew you must be feeling really uncomfortable today, so I asked Lord Lu to call you out. You were so kind to me last night, and I haven't repaid you yet."

"How will you repay me, young lady?"

I blushed and remained silent.

"Shall we play chess?" he said with a smile, bringing out the chessboard. "If I win, the girl will be mine tonight, and she must stay with me until dawn."

"What if I win?" I asked softly.

"What does the young lady want?"

"I can't think of anything right now, I'll think of something after we win!"

"Hahahaha—" he laughed, "I certainly won't let the girl worry about it."

Yunniang would sometimes pour tea for us, sometimes watch us play chess, and sometimes... quietly observe him playing the zither not far away...

After three rounds, I lost two.

To outwardly deliver a spectacular victory, yet secretly fall short by a few points, seems even more difficult than winning.

"Rong'er, you have no excuse this time, do you?" Han Yufeng laughed gleefully.

"As you...sir."

"Hahahaha..."

Han Yufeng put his arm around me and turned to Lu Li, instructing him, "Brother, don't go back tonight. Spend some time with Yunniang. We can go back tomorrow after we've had breakfast."

Lu Li smiled faintly and agreed, his eyes clear...

Han Yufeng sat in the inner room listening to me play the piano, completely absorbed...

“Rong’er, your back view… looks just like hers.”

"What you say is true, young master..."

"A woman standing on a cloud."

He was drunk and shook his head in despair.

"Rong'er understands now, the person Young Master truly loves..."

"Yesterday, you emerged faintly from the woods; that figure, that aura, could only belong to her..."

I slowly walked over to him and sat down, pouring him a drink.

"What's on your mind, young master? There's no need to keep it to yourself... Rong'er doesn't care."

"She really is a fairy from the clouds, so high and mighty."

I was stunned, somewhat confused.

He leaned on my shoulder, his voice soft.

“Rong’er, you don’t need to worry. I can never reach her, only admire her… When I was eighteen, I entered the capital and accompanied my father to the palace for the first time. She sat beside the late emperor, gazing steadily at me. I knelt at her feet, and she gently asked, ‘Are the almond blossoms of Da Meng more beautiful, or those in the palace?’ That voice still echoes in my ears, never fading away… When I was nineteen, I was made crown princess. I saw her standing on the high platform, her skirts fluttering. I remained kneeling on the ground, not daring to look up at her face. I always carried almond blossoms from Da Meng for her. When will she ask me that question again?”

The Crown Princess? Could it be my elder sister?!

He smiled faintly, and I felt tears slowly streaming down my shoulder.

I helped him to the bed, undressed him, and extinguished the candlelight...

“Luoying—” I called softly.

A figure emerged from the shadows.

"Tonight—" a trace of desolation escaped my voice, "you can not only play the piano for him—"

It was already early morning when I sneaked back to my room and woke up the fallen petals on the bed.