Chapter 16 016 She bit her rosy lips

Xie Huaiyuan sat there quietly, his expression calm, his eyes gentle and kind. His arrival caused the noble ladies around him to blush even more.

Lin Wan, sitting across from him, could vaguely smell the fresh scent of his clothes, which seemed to have been recently added compared to before.

She looked down at her soft fingertips, savoring the sensation as she caressed them. She was secretly pleased that she had touched his palm earlier; it wasn't soft, but firm and hard. His palm was large, and she was a little greedy, wishing she could hold his hand directly.

Lin Wan glanced at him furtively, taking in the expressions of the young noblewomen around her. She pondered how to strike up a conversation with him again, since opportunities to meet him were rare.

Xie Huaiyuan did not stay there for long. He only sat for a short while before the Crown Prince sent someone to summon him.

The court officials who had just played polo were having a separate banquet at a lakeside pavilion in another part of the courtyard. There were more men than women there, and they drank quite a bit. It might be inconvenient if the young ladies were also at the same banquet.

"The peach blossoms in the manor are so beautiful, I specially had peach blossom wine brewed," the princess said, gesturing for the maids to add a pot of peach blossom wine to each seat. "The wine is not intoxicating and tastes quite good, everyone should try it."

"It's rare to have such a beautiful day; many of the peach blossoms in the grove by the stream have bloomed, which reminds me of the time when I first met the prince."

Upon hearing this, Lin Wan was somewhat surprised. Did the prince and princess really not shy away from talking about their past?

Su Furong put down her wine cup, leaned closer and whispered, "She keeps talking about the marriage stone in the peach grove. She says it almost every time. I'm sure there isn't one. I've looked for it several times and haven't found it. She's definitely just fooling us."

Even so, all the noble ladies present had their eyes on the princess, listening with great interest.

"Back then, I met the prince at the Marriage Stone in the Peach Blossom Grove. He always mentioned that he was attracted by the Marriage Stone when we first met, which is why we met. This Marriage Stone is truly effective. We even left a mark on it, hoping that the Marriage Stone would witness more lovers getting married in the future."

"It's right by the stream next to the peach grove, very easy to spot. If you'd like to take a look, you can go check it out later. Just walk through the courtyard. And since the peach blossoms are in full bloom now, it's a perfect time to enjoy the flowers together."

"Of course, if you feel tired, you can also play pitch-pot. Pitch-pot equipment has been prepared in the open space in front of the courtyard. After the banquet, the girls can choose to play whichever they like. Later in the evening, there will be fireworks to enjoy by the lake. I hope everyone has a good time today."

The princess spoke with a smile, but her eyes were secretly watching Lin Wan in the seat to the side. She took a small sip of peach blossom wine, pondering the words she had heard from the physician Hua earlier.

"Last year, after the prince was injured and went missing, he was rescued by a woman. They spent more than a month together, and now that woman..."

She's also come to Beijing; she's the granddaughter of the Su family.

We spent a month together day and night?

Could it be that they're trying to curry favor with the Prince of Xiangyang's family through this?

Although she was eager for Cui Xie Huaiyuan to settle down as soon as possible, she did not have her eye on this kind of merchant's daughter. A cold glint flashed in her eyes. If she did not know what was good for her and tried to covet what did not belong to her, she would not hesitate to teach her a lesson.

After the winding stream party, people gathered in twos and threes in the courtyard, and some even took the initiative to form teams to play pitch-pot.

Unlike typical aristocratic families, Lin Wan's family did not confine her to the home to solely study music and compose poetry; she spent most of her time playing.

In particular, the young men who helped out at her father's shop taught her things like horseback riding and pitch-pot, which she did quite well.

After the banquet, Princess Li suggested that they play pitch-pot in teams and insisted that Su Furong join in. Knowing that Princess Li was usually arrogant and domineering, Su Furong was afraid that Lin Wan would be taken advantage of, so she wanted to team up with her to help her.

Princess Li looked like she wanted to mock her. She had just learned that this was just a country girl who had come to visit her family, so she didn't take her seriously. She was jealous that she had finally had a chance to speak with the prince, but this girl had interrupted her. Moreover, she had taken the opportunity to touch the prince's hand. She had admired the prince for a long time but had never had any physical contact with him. Now, a country girl had beaten her to it.

Unexpectedly, Lin Wan was still able to hit the target every time until the second round, and only then did he realize that she was a master of pitch-pot, and he was the one who lost face.

Su Furong, who was standing to the side, was worried that Lin Wan would be bullied and suffer losses by Princess Li because she was not good at pitch-pot. She did not expect that Lin Wan would be so good at pitch-pot.

On the last occasion, Lin Wan was hit in both ears, which surprised the onlookers. However, they could not show it when they saw Princess Li's gloomy face. Lin Wan noticed this and immediately felt bored.

She declined the invitation from the girls who came after her to play pitch-pot, and instead made an excuse to go admire the peach blossoms.

Su Furong was invited by a friend to play pitch-pot, but said that she could see the peach blossoms every year and didn't want to go, so she let Lin Wan go. Fortunately, there were still quite a few girls in the courtyard who went to the peach grove together, saying that they wanted to find the marriage stone.

"Could the princess be trying to trick us with the marriage stone she mentioned?"

"Who knows? Anyway, I've been looking for it every year, but I haven't seen a trace of it. If I can't find it this year, I won't come looking for it next time."

“I’ve searched for it three times. I come to this manor every year to see what this marriage stone is really like.”

The voices of several elegantly dressed noble ladies ahead of her faintly reached Lin Wan's ears. Shi Liu, who was with her, assumed that she was also looking for the Marriage Stone: "Miss, listen to what they're saying. The Marriage Stone is very hard to find. It seems that no one has found it. Are you also going to look for it?"

Lin Wan smiled and said, "Since it is a marriage stone, it must be seen by those who are destined to see it. This cannot be forced."

She had seen peach groves before, but never one like this. The peach trees, arranged in a pleasing, staggered pattern, were in full bloom. When a gentle breeze blew, the pink and white petals fluttered down, creating a beautiful sight.

A babbling brook flows through the peach grove, and the banks are lined with stones of all sizes. Fallen petals cover the water's surface in layers, creating a scene resembling a fairyland.

The noble ladies walked along the stream, some looking down to search for stones, others looking up to admire the flowers.

Lin Wan: "I wonder if there's also a peach orchard upstream?"

"Young lady, where are you going?"

Shiliu followed Lin Wan, who walked along the stream, stepping on the small stones by the stream, towards the depths of the peach grove upstream.

The further they walked, the denser the peach grove became, and the laughter and chatter of the noble ladies could no longer be heard. Lin Wan walked while carefully watching the stones by the stream.

“Miss, ahead of us is not a peach grove, but a bamboo grove. Perhaps we should stop here.”

Shiliu was timid. Seeing the dark bamboo forest blocking out the sky, and the fact that it had gotten dark without her noticing, she felt a little uneasy. "Should we go back?" she asked.

Lin Wan: "Hmm, it really is a lie. We've almost walked through the entire peach grove, and there aren't any markings on the stones by the stream. Where is the matchmaking stone?"

They turned around and retraced their steps. Suddenly, they saw a cluster of peach blossoms in full bloom on a branch in front of them. Thinking that they hadn't found the marriage stone, it would be nice to break off a branch of peach blossoms and place it on their desk. Lin Wan stopped, stood on tiptoe, and reached out to break off the branch. However, the branch was too tall, and she couldn't reach it no matter how many times she tried.

Even the pomegranates are out of reach.

Lin Wan tiptoed with all her might and finally touched the flower branch, then broke it off with force.

Unexpectedly, the peach tree was near the stream, and the stream water constantly soaked the stones underfoot. In a moment of carelessness, she slipped and fell into the stream, instantly soaking her shoes and socks. The bottom of the stream was also uneven with stones, and Lin Wan couldn't react in time and twisted her ankle.

Lin Wan sat down against a large rock by the stream. She had twisted her ankle and felt too weak to walk any further. Looking ahead, she realized there was still a long way to go before she left the peach grove. With a sigh, she said, "I'm afraid I won't be able to walk back. Go and find my aunt and the others. I'll wait here."

-

A secluded room deep within the bamboo grove of the manor.

The discussion of political affairs with the Prince of Jin and others continued at this moment. If the Prince of Jin had not had to leave early due to an urgent matter, it would probably have continued.

As Xie Huaiyuan passed through the bamboo forest and peach grove, he unexpectedly spotted a woman sitting alone on a rock by the stream in the peach grove.

As dusk approached, Xie Huaiyuan saw that the person was Lin Wan.

She sat casually on a large rock, her dreamlike skirt spreading out on the stone, seemingly oblivious to the stream water soaking it. She was completely devoid of the dignified demeanor she had displayed earlier; her head was bowed, and her frail figure trembled as if she were weeping.

Looking around, she couldn't see her maid.

Xie Huaiyuan's palm suddenly felt inexplicably itchy again, and the delicate touch seemed to coil up his sleeve like a venomous snake. He disliked this and looked away, not wanting to pay attention to it.

"Splash—"

Suddenly, she was seen swaying and falling straight into the stream.

In a flash, a figure moved, incense wafted, and a strong arm suddenly tightened around her slender waist. A voice rang in her ear: "Are you out of your mind?!"

Although the stream is not deep, there is no guarantee that there are sharp rocks at the bottom, and if you fall in and get seriously injured, it could be life-threatening.

"Bang bang bang—"

Suddenly, dazzling fireworks burst in the sky, their colorful light illuminating the mischievous smile on the face of the person in my arms.

“Your Highness, I was just trying to pick up my shoe that had fallen into the stream. I didn’t mean to kill myself.”

Xie Huaiyuan lowered his chin slightly and glanced at the stream. Startled little fish swam around in the water, and a shoe drifted further and further away with the current. She was indeed holding a cluster of peach blossoms in her hand.

He paused, released the person in his arms, took a step back, and scrutinized her with his cold eyes: "Why are you here?"

A spring breeze caressed my face, dispelling some of the lingering intimacy from the soft fragrance in my arms.

Lin Wan was clearly not expecting to meet Xie Huaiyuan here. When she heard his voice, her tense body relaxed, and she looked up at him with a charming and seductive look in her eyes, which exuded a spring-like charm from her very bones.

She bit her rosy lips and murmured in a coquettish tone, enticing him to lean closer: "I sprained my ankle, it hurts."

Xie Huaiyuan was now awake. He looked down at her and saw Lin Wan's bare feet slightly raised, her fair and delicate toes were very lovely. Under the light of the fireworks, he could vaguely see the reddened insteps. She was holding her plain silk stockings in her other hand, looking quite disheveled.

Seeing his confusion, Lin Wan explained further: "I heard from the princess that there is a marriage stone in the peach grove, so I came to look for it. But instead of finding the marriage stone, I sprained my ankle."

Her voice trailed off, a hint of pain flashing across her face: "I was thinking of waiting for someone to come and help me, but it's so dark here, and I'm all alone. My feet hurt so much that I can't walk."

"Will you carry me back?"