Chapter 7 First Love

“You’re right. Over the years, I’ve only been able to dream of the scenery of Wu County a few times.”

Xie Yunyu replied, "Then let's send a letter home in the next few days, pack our things, and go."

Grandpa Xie nodded in agreement.

Since the Crown Prince arrived, Xiao Ling has never had a moment of peace.

Finally, five days later, the Crown Prince was summoned back by the Emperor.

Xiao Ling breathed a sigh of relief and remembered to go find Xie Yunyu to clarify things between the two of them.

But when he arrived at Wangyue Villa and knocked on the door, the gatekeeper told him that the old master had taken the young lady back to his hometown in Wu County.

Xiao Ling stood at the door for a long time before turning around helplessly and slowly walking down Qingliang Mountain.

Finally, he came to the pavilion, sat on the stone bench, and stood there in a daze for a long time.

Does she really not care at all about what happened that night?

No, no woman would be indifferent to that.

She said our families are not a good match, so she's avoiding me?

Xiao Ling thought for a long time, then reached out and opened the stone table. Looking inside, it was empty, as if his heart was as empty as the stone table.

I remember the first time I saw that bag of roasted pine nuts on this stone table.

It was packaged in a light blue bag, and when opened, a fragrant aroma of nuts wafted out.

I don't know how she made it, but it had a salty and savory flavor. I tasted one and it was delicious, so I inexplicably took the pine nuts with me.

To express his apology, he took off the sandalwood bracelet from his wrist as a return gift.

The second time, the agarwood bracelet disappeared, and a packet of plum candy appeared inside.

I tried one myself, and it tasted pretty good, with a sweet and sour flavor.

The third time, he saw a string of jade prayer beads here.

The fourth time, I saw my painting being filled with color.

The fifth time, a first line of a couplet.

The sixth time, the seventh time...

Looking back now, the roasted pine nuts, the candied plums, the delicate colors in the painting...

Everything about her revealed her identity as a woman; why didn't I think of that at the time?

Perhaps it was because he hadn't seen the young lady at the Wangyue Villa when he visited with his master earlier.

After they clarified their identities, they avoided each other and almost never met again.

If you do the math, the two of them have only met twice.

The first time was in spring when she was sheltering from the rain. Her hair and clothes were soaked, and she looked a little disheveled.

Even so, it is not hard to see that she is beautiful and dignified, and her scholarly air cannot be hidden.

Our second meeting took place on that moonlit night at the Green Pool.

Under the moonlight, Xiao Ling not only saw Xie Yunyu's body, but also her beautiful face.

That face seems to be imprinted in his mind these past few days.

It will appear during the day, it will appear at night, and it will even appear in dreams.

The Heart-Cleansing Mantra is no longer effective.

After the master saw through it, he only said, "You have been tempted by worldly desires. It's time for you to go down the mountain. Don't let your family worry."

Xiao Ling blushed and asked, "Master, is she my destined soulmate?"

Master Tianyi smiled and said, "That depends on you."

If you can marry her, she'll be your destined partner. If you can't, she'll become your inner demon.

Xiao Ling recalled Xie Yunyu's wet hair, her face flushed with emotion, and her soft, fair skin from that night...

It's really starting to become a mental obsession.

But she had already returned to Wu County in Jiangnan with her grandfather. What should she do?

The servant Qingfeng stood beside him for a long time, staring at Xiao Ling in a daze.

Seeing that it was almost noon and time for lunch, he went up to remind Xiao Ling.

"My lord, it's almost noon, we should go back."

Xiao Ling finally came to her senses.

As I walked along the flooded bridge, I passed by the absurd scene from that night and couldn't help but glance at it a few more times.

The beauty is gone, leaving only a pool of still, clear water.

Xiao Ling looked at the pool and said quietly, "What would you do if someone hid from you and went to a very far place?"

Qingfeng, Qingchen, and Qingquan were all Xiao Ling's personal servants.

The incident a few days ago when I was drugged was something Qingchen was serving me at the time, but Gu Lianfei tricked her into leaving.

Xiao Ling was furious at his dereliction of duty and demoted him back to his original post, replacing him with Qingfeng.

After Qingfeng came over, he learned his lesson and Xiao Ling followed him almost everywhere.

Now, after hearing Xiao Ling's question, he thought for a moment and said:

"I am a guard, so I certainly cannot leave my lord or the capital without permission."

If that's the case, then check if her family members are still in the capital. If they are, then ask them.

If not, have a friend inquire first...

Xiao Ling's lips curled slightly after hearing only the second sentence.

That's right, they can run away but they can't hide. The Xie family is still in the capital, isn't they?

Xie Yuntang was on duty at the Hanlin Academy, his father taught at Nanshan Academy, and his second brother was preparing for the imperial examination the year after next.

I refuse to believe she can stay in Jiangnan forever and never come back.

Thinking of this, Xiao Ling's steps became much lighter, and he instructed Qingfeng behind him:

"Go and find out why Grand Tutor Xie left Wangyue Villa, where he went, and when he will return."

"Yes, my lord." Qingfeng accepted the order and left.

After the crown prince returned to the palace, he immediately went to see the emperor.

"Greetings, Father Emperor."

The emperor looked up from the memorials and glanced at the crown prince: "Hmm... the crown prince is back."

Tell me, after trying to persuade you for several days, how's it going?

The Crown Prince replied solemnly and respectfully, "Once Ling'er has made up her mind since childhood, how can it be so easy to change it?"

The child tried to persuade him for two days without success, so in the end he asked Master Tianyi to come and talk to him.

The master said that he was not yet free from worldly ties and was not suitable to become a monk.

Your subject asks the master, what should I do if my cousin refuses to get married?

The master said that he was destined to marry someone special; if he married her, it would be his true love; if he didn't, it would be a demon in his heart.

The emperor perked up upon hearing this: "Oh, did the master say who it was?"

The prince shook his head.

"Your subject also wants to know who it is, but the master did not say."

"What did Ling'er say?" the emperor continued to ask.

He said that since the master said his worldly ties were not yet severed, he agreed to the marriage.

But he wants to decide for himself who he marries and when he marries.

And I was told to return and inform Father Emperor that you should issue a decree to him, lest my aunt later change her mind.

The emperor sighed and said, "Alas, children are all debts."

The crown prince glanced at the emperor, and then said, "Father, he has now agreed not to become a monk."

In my opinion, we should follow his advice.

Otherwise, if my aunt and he start arguing again, it might end up with both of them losing, which is not what we want to see.

The emperor nodded in agreement: "That makes sense. Over the years, it has been your aunt's fault for forcing him to get married."

"It's good to issue another decree like this; it'll save your aunt from making a fuss."

The emperor wrote an imperial edict and summoned Princess Jinyang to an audience.

After hearing Xiao Ling's request, the eldest princess asked, "He can get married whenever he wants, but what if he gets married at fifty?"

The emperor replied, "Then I will add a time limit, setting it at thirty years old, how about that?"

"Thirty years old, the age of establishing oneself, isn't it a bit late?" Princess Jinyang frowned again.

Upon hearing this, the Crown Prince advised, "Aunt, Cousin Ling grew up in the temple and has little contact with the secular world."

We should first stabilize him, bring him back from the mountain, and then assign him some work in the court.

This mundane world is full of countless colors and patterns; if you get involved in it long enough, you'll eventually encounter something you like.

"It's better than him spending all his time on the mountain, isn't it?"

The emperor nodded and said, "A gradual approach is the right thing to do, as the crown prince said."

Princess Jinyang nodded in agreement, saying, "The Crown Prince is right. The key now is to keep him from making any further plans to become a monk."

Then we should devise a plan to get him back to the capital and not let him continue living on the mountain, which is the right thing to do.

"Alright, Your Majesty, we'll listen to the Crown Prince."