Zhan Xinjia fell asleep from crying herself to sleep.
A thin sliver of moonlight seeped through the curtains, the wheels made a soft noise as they rolled over the uneven dirt road, and the carriage swayed gently, but she, held firmly in the young man's arms, remained completely unaffected.
Half-asleep, Zhan Xinjia, whose eyes were hurting terribly, wanted to rub them, but as soon as he raised his hand, the young man grabbed his fingers and tucked them back into his warm sleeve.
His gentle voice came from above.
"Sweetie, don't rub it, it will only hurt more if you rub it."
Mr. Xiao Shen?
Zhan Xinjia groggily opened one eye, but was quickly overcome by sleepiness and her consciousness waned again.
She snuggled closer to him, finding a more comfortable angle, and closed her eyes peacefully. Her long eyelashes cast a faint dark shadow beneath her eyelids, like fluttering butterfly wings.
Shen Suqing chuckled softly.
He lifted a strand of her hair with his fingertips and twirled it around his fingers.
He leaned his head against the car window, looking down and muttering to himself.
"You were the one who started clinging to me, the one who wouldn't leave. You had so many chances to leave..."
But now I'm not going to give you another chance, Ah Zhi.
Your name lied to me, your identity lied to me... Have you ever told me the truth...? Do you know how much this hurts me...?
His voice grew softer and softer, dissipating in the wind.
When Zhan Xinjia woke up again, it was already late at night. She was alone in the familiar dark cabin. The sound of the wooden oars stirring the water was clear and particularly pleasing to the ear.
Outside the cabin, people were talking in hushed tones.
"The last person Magistrate Wang saw before he died in the dungeon was you, teacher. Shouldn't I ask you what he said?"
Or perhaps you saw someone else there, or learned something, which is why you looked so upset when you came back.
"Your Highness, please forgive me for not being able to tell you."
"What about her? She only ran away from home because she was playing around. Does the teacher really want to detain her?! She has her own parents and her own home. To detain her with an unclear identity as if it were self-deception seems to go against the principles of conduct that the teacher has taught me in the past."
This time, the second voice remained silent for a long time.
"What's so unclear about it?"
Yes, Shen Suqing never felt that his relationship with Azhi was anything but ambiguous.
He wasn't stupid or blind, so he could naturally see the obvious admiration in her eyes as she looked at him.
He didn't make it clear simply because he was considerate enough to take into account her young age and the fact that her views on relationships were not yet formed. Perhaps what she felt for him was just a kind of filial piety towards an elder or relative, rather than love.
Shen Suqing felt that he had been patient enough.
He repeatedly guided her to ascertain her own feelings, teaching her to distinguish between different emotions time and again. Now, he absurdly discovered that he didn't care what the answer was.
If you like it, then that's for the best.
It's not about liking her; after all, not everyone in the world can be with the person they love. It's normal to have some regrets in life. He will spend more time convincing her and proving this to her.
Shen Suqing didn't even think there was anything wrong with his logic.
At first, she sweetly called him husband, but in reality, it didn't matter whether he was husband, brother, or any other identity.
It's okay, he will always patiently play the role of "Master Shen".
Gentle, kind, mild-mannered, and non-aggressive.
Ah Zhi kept staring at it with bright, sparkling eyes.
Master Xiao Shen.
——
When they arrived in Jiangyuan County again, it was already noon, and Zhan Xinjia's eyes were still hurting badly.
She was as if she had been knocked unconscious, her mind completely blank.
The girl gritted her teeth in protest as her hand, which was about to rub her eyes, was pulled down again by the young man walking beside her.
She clearly remembered that she and Lord Shen seemed to be arguing because Lord Shen was silent and aloof, trying to distance himself from her, and acting as if he didn't know her at all.
But now—
Zhan Xinjia looked down at his hand, which was clasped around hers, beneath his wide sleeves.
Did she make up with him?
How could she not remember?
Why are we childishly holding hands with so many people around? It's so embarrassing!
Moreover, upon closer inspection, Yan Xiyue's expression also seemed rather sour.
Zhan Xinjia lowered her voice and leaned closer to her.
"Where's that idiot who went back when the wild geese returned? He's off somewhere in the martial arts world, leisurely drinking a pot of turbid wine."
Yan Xiyue first glared at Fu Shouan, then at the composed and calm Shen Suqing, and finally snorted in annoyance, her tone full of disdain for her ancient-style brother.
"He, I don't know what went wrong with him in the middle of the night. He jumped off the boat like he was possessed by a ghost and left. By the time I found out, he had already dog-paddled to the other side in one breath."
"..."
The crown prince of a nation is actually such a scoundrel. As a citizen of the Great Sheng Dynasty, Zhan Xinjia really feels that the future is bleak.
The Great Sheng Dynasty has remained prosperous for so many years, firstly because her father guarded the border in his early years, deterring most of the nearby small countries, and secondly because the ancestors of the Yan family must be kowtowing to each other in the afterlife...
There were still some strange emotions lingering in my heart that I couldn't quite explain, but soon, this little bit of awkwardness vanished completely.
Zhan Xinjia beamed with a bright smile the moment she saw Qiaoqiao again.
Qiaoqiao was overjoyed.
"Ah Paper Girl!!"
Avoiding Qiaoqiao's embrace, Zhan Xinjia led Old Man Meng, who looked dazed, out of another carriage.
"Here, it's what I promised you."
Zhan Xinjia didn't say it explicitly, but the moment Qiaoqiao saw that thin, withered, and weathered face, she understood everything.
Her eyes welled with tears, her lips trembled, and she dared not even take the small step forward, for fear of disturbing her sweet dream. When her gaze fell upon the ever-burning lamp in his arms, she burst into tears and sobbed uncontrollably.
She couldn't utter a single word, sobbing uncontrollably, and finally collapsed to her knees beside Meng Zhiyuan's legs.
Surprisingly, Old Man Meng, who had been somewhat mentally unstable, reached out and smiled as he touched Qiao Qiao's hair. His cloudy eyes gradually cleared, and he became no different from a normal person.
He's no longer crazy or insane.
Seven years ago, his daughter's departure took away the old father's soul, leaving him in a daze. Now, after their reunion, the soul that had been wandering outside, desperately searching for his daughter, returned to his side with her arrival, piecing him back together.
Meng Zhiyuan bent down and knelt on the ground, tightly embracing both the lamp and his daughter.
"Daughter, your father and mother are back."
He wasn't saying your parents found you, but that you've come back.
In the eyes of the Meng Yu couple, home is perhaps only where their daughter is.
"Master Xiao Shen..."
Unable to bear seeing such a tragic scene, Zhan Xinjia's eyes welled up with tears, and she turned away, hiding her face in his outstretched palm.
She also started to miss the two unreliable, empty-nest elderly people back home in Beijing.
I want to go home.
He gently stroked her soft face with his palm, his expression calm and his tone loving.
“Ah Zhi, I have something else I want to ask you.”
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