Chapter 23: The Joy of First Love and the Anguish of Eternal Separation in the Withered Willow...

Mu Boxiu had been racking his brains to praise the magnificent appearance of the young man before him, which was so different from that of the young master of the Gao family, but he was unconsciously captivated by a ray of pleasant sunlight and was momentarily speechless.

"This is the 'Ink Examination'—the exam questions for the imperial examinations?" Li Shimin asked curiously, his eyes filled with clarity and joy.

Mu Boxiu felt that the man was the source of the sunshine, and he too became somewhat talkative in response: "Some of the questions are still remembered by old scholars, old experts, and old graduates; some are questions that Confucian scholars have created themselves according to the rules of the imperial examinations. However, recently fewer and fewer people have been inquiring about them. Does your father know any fifth-rank officials?"

"I'm not well-educated, and no matter how many fifth-rank officials my father knows, it's all useless. Mr. Mu is joking," Li Shimin said self-deprecatingly. "The exam questions here are like heavenly books to me."

“Mr. Mu, don’t listen to Young Master Li’s jokes. His mentor was a Doctor of the Imperial Academy! And his father knows far more than just fifth-rank officials!” Changsun Qingjing took the scroll and put it away. “Mr. Mu, you don’t need to worry about him not finding someone to recommend him.”

"That's good. It won't stop this young master from trying his luck in Luoyang. I still think that a fleeting act of submitting a petition is better for the country and its people! Well then, we commoners will not presume to comment on politics."

As he was lamenting, he suddenly noticed that dozens of books on husband-taming techniques were ostentatiously displayed next to Mo Cheng. Unfortunately, these crude and uncouth items had already fallen into the eyes of the two refined young men. Mu Boxiu hurriedly swept away these dozen or so "husband-taming secrets."

“My wife and the clerk were confused. It’s truly an insult to our culture; we shouldn’t have let you two see this,” he explained with a self-deprecating laugh, his eyes flickering. “But there are some businesses that, if I don’t do them, someone else will definitely snatch them away…”

Changsun Qingjing and Li Shimin chuckled to themselves.

“Sir, there’s no need to be so formal.” Changsun Qingjing picked up the book that Mu Boxiu had dropped in his haste to cover up the mistake. The folds had been stretched several feet long. She bent down and folded the book back into place, placing it back in Mu Boxiu’s hands. “How could we laugh at your dilemma…”

"Do people really buy books on how to tame their husbands? Can a new bride really make her husband completely obedient after reading these books?" Li Shimin asked Changsun Qingjing curiously, lowering his voice, "Have you read them? Did your mother buy them for you?"

Changsun Qingjing glared at Li Shimin and said to Mu Boxiu half-jokingly, "Mr. Mu, is your art of managing husbands like the classics, which are divided into categories such as Mingjing, Xiucai, Jinshi, and Mingsuan, categorizing men's personalities? What about the violent, cowardly, and arrogant categories? I have a cousin who is about to get married. We are like sisters, and I don't want her to be mistreated after marriage, so I might as well give her a copy."

"What kind of personality does your fiancé have?" Upon hearing that a business opportunity had come his way, Mu Boxiu immediately switched from his reserved demeanor to his smooth-talking self, asking with a beaming smile.

"Although he is somewhat hot-tempered and arrogant, he is still a gentleman who puts others first, upholds integrity and righteousness." Changsun Qingjing looked Li Shimin up and down and spoke eloquently.

"Young Master Gao, are you joking? Are you showing off that your cousin has found an excellent husband? I dare not do business with you like that," Mu Boxiu said with a smile.

"Where have I been irritable and arrogant?" Li Shimin asked softly.

"Who said it was you? Don't be so self-righteous," Changsun Qingjing said reproachfully.

"Gentlemen, please don't joke with me. See if there's anything you need. I have a newly acquired copy of 'The Tale of the Goddess of Beauty' from Jiangling. It has a few more chapters than the one you bought before. If anyone else asked, I would boast that it's the complete and authentic copy. But in front of Young Master Gao, I can only say that I'm not sure if it's a forgery... I'll go and urge the scribe to come and serve you both." After saying this, Mu Boxiu began to examine the newly arrived books.

Changsun Qingjing selected two almanacs for the coming year, several collections of poetry and prose, two volumes of Miao Bo's "Preface to the Analects," more than ten volumes of Buddhist scriptures, one volume of Xiao Yi's "Records of the Beautiful Goddess," and some unsigned legends. He spent two thousand coins. It seemed he had collected all the books the family needed. Just as the transaction was completed, A-Cai returned to Changsun Qingjing's side and whispered in his ear, "Everything's taken care of."

Li Shimin had no intention of delving into what agreement A Cai and Wang Wude had made; he simply stepped past A Cai and presented the scroll to Changsun Qingjing. The group then bid farewell to Mu Boxiu.

The antique shop of the Arab merchants was nearby. Changsun Qingjing and the Turkic laborers tried to communicate in several languages ​​for a long time. The clever Turks suddenly realized what was going on and showed them a pile of coins with the portraits of foreign kings, several intricately decorated water jugs, and a stack of gilded plates decorated with exquisite reliefs.

Changsun Qingjing picked up one of the silver plates decorated with grapevines around the edges. In the center of the plate was engraved a handsome young man with shaved hair and a crown, wearing a long robe and holding a wine cup. She asked about the price and couldn't help but gasp.

"The master instructed that this is an antique from the Qin Dynasty, and there is no room for negotiation," the Turkic servant said somewhat awkwardly.

Changsun Qingjing smiled and said, "Okay. I'll come again next time."

Li Shimin suppressed the urge to order the entire antique shop to be packed up and given to Changsun Qingjing, and instead asked her half-jokingly, "Is this the kind of antique plate that can knock someone unconscious?"

Changsun Qingjing, however, remained unperturbed and unperturbed: "I was indeed a bit ruthless when I fled that day. I should have asked my uncle about the young gardener's condition, but with all the elders present, I couldn't find an opportunity to ask him privately; I also wanted to repay the damaged antiques, but I was short of money and couldn't verify their authenticity. My uncle also scolded me a bit, saying that he was originally the youngest son in the family, about the same age as my half-brother, and lacked cunning and foresight, and it was inconvenient for him to interfere in my brother's family affairs, which resulted in him being completely unaware of the family upheaval. But my mother and I..." When I was dismissed and sent back to my maternal uncle's house, he still treated the Gao family with courtesy. He certainly wasn't a shameless scoundrel like An Ye. After the demotion order was issued, my uncle immediately took me away and protected me. When the marriage contract was being drafted, although he was the closest elder among my relatives, I repeatedly said I felt guilty towards my father and gave the right to draft the marriage contract to my uncle. He was also a righteous and honorable man. Thinking it over, I feel I have done nothing wrong in my life. Only because of my escape, my uncle worried unnecessarily, and my family suffered unjustly. These are the two people I have wronged the most recently.”

Li Shimin could only nod in agreement, and dared not buy any antiques to please the beauty before him. He thought confidently, "I will repay this favor for you slowly in the future, so you don't need to worry."

A biting wind howled, and the withered willows on both sides of Liren Market trembled, tore, and twisted, proving their vitality. The daytime was bleak and devoid of warmth; the wind and sand, accomplices of the gale, slowly stole the last vestiges of heat from the pedestrians. Sometime later, Changsun Qingjing had donned a newly bought turban.

"I want to go back. I want to spend more time with my uncle." Changsun Qingjing wrapped his robe tighter, pulled down the brim of his hat, and murmured to himself.

The camel caravan that had blocked the way was now moving slowly forward. The bright smile of the Uyghur woman still drew people to stop. The aroma of sesame flatbread wafted through the entire street. A customer who had bought a fake antique was arguing loudly with Mu Boxiu. People who had just come from near the Hundred Plays Stage unconsciously hummed the tune of the Shaking Maiden...

She heard someone calling her name in the wind, and looking around, she only saw Li Shimin's strange expression.

This morning, she put some incense in the censer in Gao Shilian's study. When she felt it wasn't enough and wanted to add more, Gao Shilian said it was enough.

No, she had to add some sandalwood incense. Otherwise, the fragrance would dissipate as soon as the maids opened the doors and windows for ventilation in the afternoon, making reading at night unpleasant.

She suddenly lost interest in everything in Liren City.

When Li Shimin escorted Changsun Qingjing back to the Gao residence in Chongde, it was nearly dusk. The simple and dilapidated house had been carefully decorated just by looking at the door, as if it had been fully prepared for the wedding.

As the two dismounted, Changsun Qingjing looked at her fiancé with some hesitation, as if she wanted to say something but stopped herself. Li Shimin then said something surprising: "Are you hesitant because you don't want people to gossip behind your back and slander you for having an affair? Then I'd better not go in."

Changsun Qingjing nodded. She was also hesitating about how to tactfully decline Li Shimin's request to visit.

"I'll watch you and A-Cai go inside. I won't bother you any longer today."

These words were exactly what Changsun Qingjing wanted to hear. Her face was cheerful and lively: "Thank you for walking so far with me and saying so many things."

The cautious yet sweet-hearted couple thus ended their time together.

As soon as Changsun Qingjing entered, she went straight to her uncle's study with the carefree spirit of a child. She wanted to tell Gao Shilian that her trip to Liren Market today hadn't been in vain. She was determined to delve deeper into the Analects; no matter how superficially she read the book, she believed that reading the various commentaries would always be beneficial.

She also found a collection of supernatural tales written by the mad emperor Xiao Yi, who burned books. This time, she found a few more chapters than usual, since Wuji had given away the original copy.

She took a fancy to a beautiful foreign antique that she couldn't afford. But it didn't matter; that gilded plate would be hers sooner or later anyway.

After she finished reading all these miscellaneous tales and legends, she tried to write one herself and sell it to Muberxiu.

If the Hu people who perform Hesheng offer a high enough price, it wouldn't be unreasonable to write lyrics for them.

Of course, she wouldn't actually sign her name. It would be bad if she wrote books like the female scholars of the past, leaving behind a bad reputation for writing legends.

Since she left no trace, Gao Shilian certainly wouldn't blame her.

Once she has the money, she will try to buy the mansion back, and the family can live like before.

Countless crazy thoughts surged like bubbles rising from a hot spring, fiery, disordered, and even tyrannical, so tyrannical that she disregarded the reality that she was about to get married.

Changsun Qingjing simply felt that she could support the family like her husbands. She had countless wonderful ideas about the future to tell her uncle, and she was content even if he only responded with "humph" or "ha".

Ah Cai could no longer keep up with her wife's light steps, so Changsun Qingjing simply took the book from the maid's hands and, with bursting energy, went to find her uncle who was willing to patiently listen to her describe her unrealistic fantasies.

The study was as cold as an ice cave, and the lingering scent of incense had long since dissipated.

The mother and aunt were silently doing needlework.

"Where is my uncle? He should be back soon, right?" Changsun Qingjing was filled with a sense of foreboding.

“He’s gone. He’s not coming back,” Xianyu replied calmly.

"Where did he go? To Master Lu's house?" Changsun Qingjing's chest began to feel tight.

"Go to Jiaozhi to take up your post in Zhu Yuan. You've always known that." As if to lessen the guilt of everyone conspiring to deceive Changsun Qingjing, Madam Gao deliberately emphasized that Qingjing had known about the place of his demotion all along.

All the enthusiastic bubbles dissipated into the void, and the hot spring in my heart became a stagnant pool.

Changsun Qingjing froze on the spot as if struck by lightning: "Didn't we say we'd postpone it for a few more days? Didn't we say we'd wait until after the wedding? Didn't we say we'd visit old friends today? Didn't we say we'd bring the calendar, Buddhist scriptures, and poetry collection home for us to enjoy together?"

“Your uncle and Wuji concealed the fact that you are departing today from your plans,” Xianyu said. “They don’t want you to worry too much, nor do they need you to see them off. We just went to the outskirts of the city to offer a simple sacrifice to the road god, and Minxing and Lu Fayan went with us. Your uncle wasn’t actually that sad; he chatted and laughed with us for a few moments before leaving in his light fur coat. He has admired chivalrous men since he was a child, and now he’s pretending to be one as he departs.”

Suppressing her grief, Xianyu pressed down on Changsun Qingjing's shoulders and said through gritted teeth, "We must all live well, eat well, and wait for him to come back."

"What about Wuji? Did he also abandon us to become a wandering knight?" Changsun Qingjing pressed.

“Wuji will return after escorting your uncle to Lantian Pass. Your uncle will not allow any family members to accompany him to Zhuyuan.” Madam Gao picked up the calendar and Buddhist scriptures that had slipped from Changsun Qingjing’s hands, and patted her daughter’s shoulder. “This was something that could not be avoided. We will get through it together. Guanyinbi, you can cry if you want to. No one will blame you.”

The two elders quietly discussed the details of the wedding ceremony and ceremonial attire on the wedding day, then slowly walked out of the study, leaving the door slightly ajar.

Ah Cai lowered the curtain and continued adding charcoal to the brazier.

Changsun Qingjing was filled with remorse: she should have realized that the family was conspiring to deceive him when she met Changsun Minxing!

Artemisia annua, Dichroa febrifuga, Anemarrhena asphodeloides, Trionyx sinensis, and Glycyrrhiza uralensis—these are clearly medicines for treating malaria. Lu Fayan and Changsun Minxing had prepared them in advance because they were worried that Gao Shilian would not be able to withstand the miasma in Lingnan.

And then there's Li Shimin. She's ridden horses in Daxing so many times and never bumped into him once, so why is it such a coincidence today? Maybe Wuji and he conspired together all along.

Forget it, he's not important. She was just too stupid!

Changsun Qingjing slumped to the floor. After a long while, she finally moved her stiff legs and managed to place her knees on the cushions.

Qingjing picked up the "Preface to the Analects," glanced at it a few times, and then casually tossed it aside by the brazier. Acai hurriedly stomped out the few remaining embers that were licking the pages.

“Ah Cai, I’ve been abandoned by my father again. Although each separation is not their intention. This kind of life is unbearable!” Her lips moved, and the grayish-yellow sunlight, filtering through the loose curtains, divided her face into an unpredictable mix of light and shadow, like a dull knife.

The young girl, embracing a dream unknown to all, misunderstood by all, and mocked by none, wept without a trace of restraint or hesitation. Her tears, like pearls, fell onto the papers transcribed with all sorts of words. Even the joy of first love could not replace or alleviate the torment of eternal separation.

The willow branches outside the window were more withered than when I first arrived; I wondered if they had been broken by the strong wind or deliberately cut off. The withered willows shrank and trembled in the increasingly dim sunlight, perhaps lying dormant and gathering strength, or perhaps facing eternal death.

Author's note: That's all for today.

Inevitable separation

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