As soon as I left Pei Mansion, I smelled a light lotus fragrance.
The closer you get to the county gate, the stronger the lotus fragrance becomes, refreshing your heart.
From afar, you can see a colorful river, like a long silk ribbon, stretching between the tall and low houses of Qinghe County.
The streets are full of vendors selling various snacks and river lanterns.
Xie Ling gave each of the three children one or two taels of silver and asked them to buy what they liked.
After a while, the three of them came back with four beautiful river lanterns.
Ru Jie'er took the lotus-shaped one, while Gu Li and Yun Chuan took the lion and tiger-shaped ones.
Yunchuan was holding a rabbit lantern in his hand, which he carefully handed to Xie Ling.
Xie Ling blinked, "You bought it for me?"
The three little ones nodded in unison.
"This is the most beautiful one!" Ru Jieer said loudly.
Xie Ling was infected by their joy and smiled faintly, "Okay, let's go and release river lanterns."
The four of them followed the crowd towards the county gate.
Along the way, I also bought some special snacks of Qinghe County, including soft and sweet green rice dumplings, white, tender, sweet and crispy water chestnuts, and fried dumplings that were fried until golden on both sides. When you take a bite, the hot soup flows out, leaving a lingering fragrance on your lips and teeth.
Each stall has a different paper lantern hung on it, with various patterns painted on it.
Xie Ling sighed while biting the osmanthus cake in her mouth, it seems like she won’t have to eat dinner today.
There was a huge crowd of people at the county gate.
The separation between men and women in Qinghe County was not so strict. There were many well-dressed little girls by the river, wearing thin skirts and revealing their frosty white wrists, and they put the river lanterns in their hands into the water.
Upon closer inspection, one can see that each little girl has a beautiful cinnabar pattern in the middle of her forehead.
This was the makeup that Pei Leqing accidentally drew when she was the eldest daughter of the Pei family. After a lantern festival, it was imitated by girls at that time and it is still popular now.
Naturally, there were quite a few young men on the shore, holding folding fans and sitting in groups of three or five, chatting or drinking. Their eyes casually glanced at the little girls by the river, holding the lotus flowers in their hands, ready to move.
There is an unwritten agreement in Qinghe that during the Lotus Lantern Festival, a young man can give the lotus in his hand to the girl he likes. If the girl accepts it, he can come to propose marriage the next day.
Xie Ling was born beautiful. Under the dim light, her cold facial features looked even more stunning, and her every frown and smile was touching.
Unconsciously, it attracted the attention of many men.
But she had three children with her, and the bun she wore was neither a girl's bun nor a woman's bun.
Those young people suppressed their restless hearts.
Not far away, a young man in white clothes observed for a while, then walked over. He had a gentle temperament like jade and asked in a warm voice, "Girl, are these children your brothers and sisters?"
Xie Ling was a little confused, but still replied politely, "It is indeed my sister-in-law. What's the matter?"
The young man had a look of surprise in his eyes, revealing the long-handled lotus in his hand.
Just as he was about to speak, a slender arm suddenly stretched out from the side, blocking the two of them with unquestionable dominance.
The young man looked up and saw a tall man in purple.
The colored lights cast mottled shadows on one side of his body, revealing only half of his face that was as outstanding as the bright moon.
His eyes were as cold as a pond, and his indifferent look made people feel a strong sense of oppression for no reason.
Gu Wei opened his thin lips and said, "This is my wife."
The young man in white suddenly felt ashamed, bowed, apologized, and hurried away.
Gu Wei casually walked around Xie Ling's shoulders and whispered in her ear, "Madam, how can you have the leisure to come here to play?"
Xie Ling pointed at the three children beside her and said, "Bring them to play."
Gu Wei nodded slightly, thinking that Xie Ling must not know the customs of the Qinghe Lotus Lantern Festival.
Then he took her hand.
"I'll accompany you," he said softly.
Xie Ling didn't know what was going on with Gu Wei's sudden possessiveness, so she nodded, "Okay."
Gu Wei held Xie Ling's hand and walked in front, his pace was neither fast nor slow, but it made people feel the elegance and nobility of a leisurely stroll in the garden, and everything around him became his background.
He had an outstanding appearance and a dignified demeanor, which attracted the attention of countless young girls along the way.
Naturally, it also dispelled the thoughts of some people in the dark.
The young men looked at Gu Wei and silently put away the lotus flowers in their hands.
Gu Wei took Xie Ling's hand and led her across the arch bridge, past the willow trees, past the wooden pavilion, and came to a riverside where there were few people.
The river lanterns on the river surface flickered in the wind.
Xie Ling lit the candle, put down the rabbit lantern in her hand, and looked around. "This place looks so familiar. Is this the entrance we saw when we first arrived in Qinghe County?"
Gu Wei nodded, "Yes, because it is the entrance, there are fewer people."
As the two were talking, a small wooden boat suddenly floated over among the thousands of twinkling river lanterns.
An old boatman stood at the bow, rowing and sighing, "There are too many river lanterns, it's not easy to row!"
"What bad luck! Never again, never again!"
An old voice sounded from inside the ship, but the tone was playful.
Xie Ling narrowed her eyes. Why did this voice and tone sound so familiar?
Gu Wei also looked towards the black-sailed boat, "Madam, what's wrong?"
Xie Ling frowned, "I think I know the people on the boat."
As soon as he finished speaking, an old man with white hair and a youthful face came out of the black-sailed boat.
The old man took the wooden paddle and said, "Let me help you paddle. Go to the riverside, where there are fewer people."
The black-sailed boat gradually approached the shore. Jiang Yunzi looked up and happened to meet Xie Ling's eyes.
Xie Ling's eyes widened, full of surprise.
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