Bonus Chapter: The Bright Moon Shines with Heart and Light
In May of the seventh year of the Taigan era, five-year-old Qi Yu secretly slipped out of the palace with his personal eunuch, Xiao Kangzi.
In the alleyway by the street, a small head peeked out, looking left and right. Seeing that no one was paying attention, he quickly stepped out, his big eyes scanning the things on the long street as if he had never seen them before.
A boy about the same age as Qi Yu immediately appeared behind him. His name was Xiao Kangzi, and he was specially chosen by Qi Dou for Qi Yu.
Although Xiao Kangzi is young, he is quick-witted, extremely intelligent, and has a silver tongue.
Qi Yu stood on the long street, unsure of where to look first.
He had a fair complexion, red lips and white teeth, and his beautiful eyes were the icing on the cake. These eyes really resembled his mother's. His black hair was neatly tied up and he wore a black hair crown.
Because he was sneaking out of the palace, Qi Yu deliberately wore inconspicuous black clothes.
Qi Yu walked ahead, buying a little of this and a little of that, while Xiao Kangzi followed behind, paying for everything for him.
Qi Yu really wanted to explore the entire city, but in the end, seeing Xiao Kangzi's hands full of things, he decided to stop and return to the palace, and come back another time.
"Stop!" A voice suddenly rang out, followed by a series of "rat-a-tat-tat!" sounds.
Qi Yu turned around and saw a girl a few years older than him running towards him. The girl was wearing a black and white ink-colored dress, with bright eyes and white teeth. She had two small braids by her ears, and the rest of her hair was draped down her back. She wore a moon hair ornament.
A group of people were chasing after her, shouting, "Stop! Little girl! How dare you hit our young master! If you've got guts, don't run away!"
The girl glanced back at them and laughed, "If you're so capable, then catch up with me."
In the blink of an eye, she had run up to Qi Yu and was about to bump into him.
The girl remained calm, smiling as she ran past. Their eyes met, and their gazes shone brightly on each other.
The girl's hair strands drifted in the wind across Qi Yu's arm, leaving a lingering impression.
Before Qi Yu could even speak, the girl had already run far away, leaving Qi Yu standing there blankly, watching the direction she had gone.
Xiao Kangzi, being sensible, stepped forward and said, "Young master, this servant will go and look for that young lady. Please return to the manor first."
After listening, Qi Yu thought for a moment and said, "No need, we will meet again if we are destined to."
At night, inside the East Palace, Qi Yu sat upright in a chair reading the Book of Rites. The wind outside the window blew towards him again and again. The May weather was hot, and so was the wind.
"Tap tap tap!" Suddenly, footsteps reached Qi Yu's ears. Qi Yu slowly put down his book, stood up, walked to the window, put his hand on the window frame, and flipped it over to the outside.
Qi Yu took a few steps forward, turned around and looked at the roof, and met the person's gaze. The person was dressed in black, and the light of the waning moon behind her shone on her. The two familiar braids and the familiar eyes made them instantly recognizable to each other.
The girl smiled, jumped off the roof, landed safely, and walked straight towards Qi Yu, who was puzzled by her appearance.
Why isn't she running away? Is she walking right into a trap?
The girl stopped in front of Qi Yu and asked, "Crown Prince Qi Yu?"
Qi Yu was puzzled again.
How did she know I was Crown Prince Qi Yu?
The girl looked at him and immediately understood. She smiled and said, "Your Highness underestimates me. Besides, your unique temperament is obvious at a glance."
Qi Yu thought about it carefully and felt it made sense, so he said, "You have good taste. What's your name?"
Even though asking might not yield an answer, Qi Yu still wanted to know her name.
Upon hearing this, the girl glanced at the moon, tilted her head slightly, and smiled, "Guess."
Qi Yu calmly looked at her and said, "Your name must contain the character 'moon'."
The girl straightened her head, smiled, and said, "Anything else?"
Qi Yu thought for a moment and said, "I can't think of anything."
After hearing this, the girl smiled at him and said, "Your Highness, I am He Jiaoyue."
Qi Yu asked, "Why did you come to the East Palace?"
He Jiaoyue explained, "I had no intention of hurting anyone tonight. I was just really curious about what you look like, which is why I offended you. I apologize."
Qi Yu then asked, "Now that you've seen it, what do you think?"
He Jiaoyue was taken aback for a moment, seemingly not expecting him to ask that, and smiled, "Your Highness has such a magnificent bearing, this humble woman naturally has the honor of seeing you..."
"Falling in love with you".
"Thump thump!" Qi Yu felt nervous upon hearing this, and his heartbeat became clearer and clearer. He didn't know how to answer for a moment.
He Jiaoyue smiled at him, turned around, lightly touched the ground with her toes, and leaped onto the roof. She turned back and smiled, "Your Highness, it's better for you to study more at such a young age."
After saying that, he left. Qi Yu looked at the empty rooftop and pursed his lips.
...You're just as young as I am.
Xiao Kangzi then stepped forward and said, "Your Highness, Miss He only recently appeared in the capital. Today, she saw the young master of the Zhang family bullying others, so she beat him up, which is why she was chased and beaten by his servants."
Qi Yu said, "Then she's quite capable."
Xiao Kangzi then said, "Your Highness, this servant cannot ascertain Miss He's identity, but this servant believes that Her Majesty the Empress might know. Would you like to...?"
Qi Yu thought about it carefully, then turned and left, saying, "Let's go to Fengyi Palace."
At Fengyi Palace, Xiao Kangzi followed Qi Yu with a food box. As soon as Qi Yu entered the room, he saw Li Xingyi.
Li Xingyi sat in the chair, looking at the baby girl lying in the cradle in front of him. The baby girl looked at Li Xingyi with a smile.
Qi Yu stepped forward and bowed, saying, "Your subject greets Your Majesty, and wishes Your Majesty a long and healthy life."
Xiao Kangzi bowed and said, "This servant greets Your Majesty the Empress."
Li Xingyi nodded and said, "Get up."
Xiao Kangzi then got up and helped Qi Yu up. Qi Yu took the food box from Xiao Kangzi, placed it on the table, and said, "Mother, I have ordered someone to make bird's nest for you. Please try it."
Li Xingyi said, "Yu'er is so thoughtful."
Qi Yu smiled, walked to the cradle, reached out and touched the baby girl lying on it, and said with a smile, "Was Le'er good today?"
Qi Le was born in February of this year and is only three months old now. She is Qi Yu's younger sister.
Qi Le lay in the cradle, smiling happily.
Li Xingyi looked at Qi Yu and said, "Le'er is very well-behaved, but she misses her imperial brother a little today."
Qi Yu was stunned for a moment when he heard this. He understood what Li Xingyi meant. This meant that Li Xingyi knew that he had sneaked out of the palace.
Qi Yu looked at Li Xingyi and said, "Mother, I didn't mean to hide it from you. I was just too curious about the scenery outside the palace."
Li Xingyi calmly said, "Yu'er, your mother is not blaming you. Your mother just hopes that you will tell her when you leave the palace, so as not to worry her."
Upon hearing this, Qi Yu immediately smiled and replied, "Yes, Mother."
Seeing this, Li Xingyi lowered his eyes and said, "You may all leave. I wish to have a private conversation with Yu'er."
The palace maid curtsied and said, "Yes."
After everyone left, Li Xingyi gestured for Qi Yu to come forward. Qi Yu obediently stepped forward, and Li Xingyi patted his head and said, "Yu'er, tell your mother, why do you want to know He Jiaoyue's identity?"
Upon hearing this, Qi Yu was not surprised, because his mother was the leader of the martial arts alliance, so naturally she would know these things.
Qi Yu pondered why.
Seeing this, Li Xingyi said softly, "Yu'er, your mother is waiting for your answer."
Qi Yu said, "Mother, I was just curious, and besides, she knows martial arts and is a very skilled martial artist."
Li Xingyi closed his eyes and lowered his gaze, saying, "My mother has a master named Han Sheng. She married the former head of the Flying Crane Sect and had several children. Her eldest daughter is named He Jiaoyue."
Qi Yu asked, "Is it her?"
Li Xingyi nodded slightly and said, "Yes, she is eight years old this year, three years older than you."
Qi Yu muttered, "No wonder they say I'm so young."
Li Xingyi deliberately said, "Speaking of which, you can also call her sister."
Qi Yu said unhappily, "No."
Li Xingyi added, "You can call me whatever you want, but Yu'er, you still need to practice your martial arts more."
Qi Yu said, "Yes, Mother."
On this day, the Dragon Boat Festival, Qi Dou held a banquet to entertain all the officials, bestowing rice dumplings, sachets, and realgar wine upon them.
Inside the Hall of Supreme Harmony, there was singing and dancing. Qi Yu came out for some fresh air after finishing his zongzi, only to see a familiar face.
He Jiaoyue waved to him from a high place, and the next second she was in front of Qi Yu and said, "Long time no see, Your Highness."
Qi Yu asked in confusion, "Why are you here again?"
He Jiaoyue thought for a moment and then smiled and said, "I came to find you."
Qi Yu was even more puzzled and asked, "Looking for me? What do you want with me?"
He Jiaoyue looked at him with a smile and said, "I've come to make friends with you."
Qi Yu asked, puzzled, "Why?"
He Jiaoyue slowly said, "Because you are the child of my mother's disciple. My mother often said that she had a very good disciple. She was outstanding in ability, wise and brave, and good to everyone."
Qi Yu's eyes widened in surprise. "You know?" he asked.
He Jiaoyue smiled and said, "It's a coincidence. I came to the capital to see you. It just so happens that we met, it just so happens that we met again, and it just so happens that I came to find you again. Everything is just right."
Qi Yu didn't mind being friends with her and said, "Okay, let's be friends from today onwards."
He Jiaoyue happily replied, "Okay."
At this moment, Qi Yu seemed to have thought of something and said, "Wait for me."
He left immediately after speaking, and He Jiaoyue sighed as she watched his retreating figure.
A short while later, Qi Yu returned. He took out a zongzi (sticky rice dumpling) and handed it to He Jiaoyue, saying with a smile, "He Jiaoyue, Happy Dragon Boat Festival."
He Jiaoyue stared at the sincere Qi Yu for a moment, then took the zongzi and whispered, "Qi Yu, Happy Dragon Boat Festival."
Qi Yu looked at her without saying anything, but both of them understood that Qi Yu had heard what she said.
Qi Yu said, "Jiaoyue, go back after you finish eating the zongzi, it's getting late."
He Jiaoyue smiled and said, "I know."
Qi Yu looked at the boundless sky, feeling the cool night breeze, and said, "The sky is full of countless stars, but the wind cannot shake them into my embrace."
While eating zongzi, He Jiaoyue said, "Spending the Dragon Boat Festival with friends makes me feel neither lonely nor envious of immortals."
The cool moonlight shone on the two of them, and Qi Yu felt that He Jiaoyue could be called the white moonlight. He blurted out: "The white moonlight is unforgettable and unforgettable."
He Jiaoyue was stunned. After regaining her senses, she looked at Qi Yu and said, "Your Highness, there are white moonlights every night. It is not necessary to be unforgettable or have them etched in one's heart."
Qi Yu smiled and said, "Sister He is right."
The wind blew past the two of them, time flew by, and the memory remained unforgettable.
The bright moon shines in my heart, and I think of it morning and night.
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