In a flash, she asked, "Did you use incense?"
South of the Imperial Garden, a ten-meter-tall white magnolia tree is in full bloom, its petals falling softly.
On the low table, Tao Qingyun was sitting on a cushion, sipping tea. Seeing her approach, her eyes lit up, and she hurriedly said, "Where have you been? I couldn't find you anywhere. I even ran into Ping An and Xiao Shu." Her voice seemed to carry a hint of anger: "Did that barbaric woman burn you? My aunt seems so gentle, how could she raise such a wild daughter?"
Qin Weixi approached and sat down, picking up the porcelain teapot from the low table. The teapot was scalding hot, and the tea in the cup was steaming. His brows furrowed slightly, and out of the corner of his eye, he noticed a cup of cool tea beside him. He picked it up and drank it all in one gulp.
"Hey!" Tao Qingyun exclaimed in surprise.
"I was delayed by meeting a few wives of noblewomen." Remembering that she was now in the palace, surrounded by many people, and recalling Kang's words, she suppressed her thoughts and asked, "Why aren't you leaving the palace at this hour? What are you doing here?"
A hint of unease flashed across Tao Qingyun's eyes, but she quickly opened her folding fan and said nonchalantly, "Let me invite you for tea. That old blockhead is holding that jade pendant, and my uncle is crying and getting quite angry." As she spoke, she closed her fan and waved her hand, gesturing for her to come closer.
She leaned closer and Tao Qingyun whispered, "I was just about to tell you that the gold hairpin was a gift from my aunt to Xiaoxing back then."
Qin Weixi was somewhat surprised: "If I accept today, wouldn't it seem to outsiders that I've joined the Luo family?"
Tao Qingyun gazed at the weeping willows on the opposite bank and whispered, "It must be my aunt's intention."
Qin Weixi looked up at the magnolia tree in full bloom overhead and said lightly, "Third Brother, do you think I can join the Tianjia, the Jiang Dynasty?"
Tao Qingyun composed herself, pushed the snacks on the low table in front of her, and said, "You haven't eaten all day, have you? Some people are just troublesome."
Just then, Chu Yening walked out from behind the artificial hill, his face tense and gloomy.
The two were puzzled. Tao Qingyun asked, "What happened? I sent you to find Xiaoxing, why did you come back like this? Did someone bully you? That's really unexpected."
Qin Weixi looked at him with a cold expression, his thin lips pressed into a straight line, and then calmly lifted his robe and sat down at a small table next to him.
A breeze blew by, carrying a fresh scent of tangerines with it, which was surprisingly comforting and reassuring.
She asked, "Did you use incense?"
Her eyes, clear as a wild deer's, drew her closer without her noticing, one hand holding a teacup.
“No,” he said.
Following the curve of her arm, he looked at the chipped teacup she held in her palm; the damage was so subtle it was almost imperceptible. Then, looking at the steaming hot tea in the center, his long eyelashes fluttered slightly, and his previously tense expression relaxed, a faint smile appearing in his eyes.
"Is my tea delicious?"
"What?" Qin Weixi asked, puzzled. Then she followed his gaze to the cup she was holding in her hand.
"Yours?" She suddenly felt like she was holding a hot potato and quickly let go.
Tao Qingyun was observing the two people opposite him when suddenly a large magnolia blossom fell between them and rolled into the empty teacup. He suddenly burst into laughter.
"......"
The two were completely baffled.
The smile faded, and Tao Qingyun asked him, "Did you perhaps see Liang Gou'er?"
Liang Lang! She recalled the scene of meeting Liang Lang outside the Jinshui River and the words he had said.
Qin Weixi turned to look at Chu Yening, but Chu Yening did not answer. Tao Qingyun started rambling on about everyday things again, and the two began to chat idly.
It made her seem like she was invisible.
Then Qin Weixi turned his gaze to the distant magnificent palace, the Kunning Palace with its glazed tiles and golden splendor.
One moment she was resting her chin on her hand, the next she was using her arm as a pillow, and she drifted off to sleep, inhaling the half-real, half-illusory scent of tangerines.
In a hazy dream, it felt like I had returned to my childhood. The girls were swinging under the magnolia tree, while the boys each had their own hobbies, some playing chess and sipping tea, others pushing them from behind.
Those were truly wonderful times!
Chu Yening suddenly turned his head and looked at her fair face, which was covered by half a shadow cast by the flowering tree, and her forehead was also covered with a thin layer of sweat. His starry eyes followed her gaze, as if trying to explore the mystery behind her face.
Tao Qingyun took a sip of tea, gently put down the cup, and then opened her folding fan, gently waving it to create a light breeze above her head.
He squinted slightly, raised his chin slightly, and his brows were full of joy as he said, "In the past ten years, I have had two moments of joy: one was when she came back, and the other was when you came back. And today, the world is at peace, and the people live in peace and prosperity, with plenty of food and clothing."
"very nice."
"I'm home—" Tao Qingyun chuckled softly as she spoke.
However, when he was thirteen, he lost his home and became an orphan. The eight-year-old girl also lost both her parents and her entire family.
Have you ever been displaced and had nowhere to settle down?
Chu Yening turned to look at the wooden box on the low table, his dark eyes revealing no emotion.
Tao Qingyun said, "Back then, I really didn't expect what happened. Well, there's no one else here, so would you be willing to tell me? Back then, you didn't take anything with you. You didn't reply to any of the letters we sent, and you even returned all the silver we sent you. I really thought you had severed ties with us." Thinking of this, Tao Qingyun was so angry that her teeth itched.
“No matter what happened in the past, we’re still the same as before, aren’t we?” He nudged Chu Yening with the corner of his fan.
A low, light footstep sounded, and the girl beside him frowned slightly before slowly waking up.
Tao Qingyun looked at the person opposite her and smiled at her: "What time did you go to sleep yesterday? You were able to take a nap here."
She rested her hand on her temple, her elbow on the low table, unwilling to open her eyes, and said in a cool and aloof tone, "I can't sleep at night, how can I get any sleep?"
The Jiang siblings walked over one after the other, and Luo Ling was the only one missing from the group.
Tao Qingyun looked behind him: "Where is he?"
Jiang Yuanjun laughed and said, "He said he wouldn't come since it's just a casual get-together for us kids."
Upon hearing the sound, Qin Weixi was instantly wide awake.
Tao Qingyun gritted her teeth and let out a soft groan.
Jiang Yuanfu paused for a moment in front of Qin Weixi, then walked around Tao Qingyun and sat down next to him, opposite Chu Yening, while Jiang Yuanjun sat alone in another place.
Jiang Yuanfu laughed and said, "I thought you had already left the palace!"
Tao Qingyun asked, "How is it?" He was asking Jiang Yuanjun.
Jiang Yuanjun glanced at Chu Yening and said to the others, "Li Sheng is going to be beheaded. Li Yuanda will still be exiled as originally intended. Miao's death seems to have been a great blow to him and his son. Li Sheng tried to kill his father by taking Xu Lin's sword but failed. He even wants to use Xu Lin as a hostage to get out of Dali Temple."
"When the Emperor learned of this, he praised him for his assistance. He also did not punish the two guards from the Dali Temple, and ordered Xu Lin to appease them. In short, at this critical juncture, everyone was pointing the finger at the Li family."
As for the final scene, Li Sheng bit off a piece of flesh from his father's jaw while he was still alive. Because there were young women present, he did not mention the bloody scene.
And that fire.
He continued, "His narrow-mindedness and jealousy towards his elder brother Ashu had lasted for years. When he saw the jade pendant, he knew there was no way out. On the day he failed the imperial examination, some people compared him to his elder brother Ashu. He got drunk and began to slander the Qin family. The three young children overheard this and spoke up to defend their cousin. He killed them all in a fit of rage." At this point, he suddenly turned to Chu Yening and said, "Yening, I said that day, could I find the truth for all those who died, and make it known to the world?"
"Ye Ning, the day the Qin family is exonerated will also be the day you find peace of mind, won't it?"
Chu Yening looked up at him.
Jiang Yuanjun suddenly gave a bitter laugh and said in a very cold tone: "All the women in the Qin family, from the elderly women and children to the young children who do not know what is going on, whether you go to the Northwest or Seventh Sister is buried in the river, I cannot protect any of them. I cannot protect a single one."
Therefore, when the Emperor is old and frail, if he successfully ascends the throne, and the Qin family is exonerated and the truth of the past is revealed, that will be the day he sheds these shackles and hands over the imperial power to the Zhao family.
Chu Yening took a sip of tea, gently set the teacup down, his expression unchanged. He suddenly glanced at Jiang Yuanjun, a half-smile on his face, and said, "What? Just like when you told me back then that I was your friend? But the Chu, Qin, and Luo families were also friends of the founding emperor back then. And friends of His Majesty now. What difference does it make whether you believe me or not?"
"My father didn't come back alive from the Battle of Huangtupo!" He casually rested one elbow on the small table behind him, shifting his lazy gaze into the distance, his tone drawn out and quite arrogant.
He said, "The difference between believing and not believing is just a matter of a single thought. When a person dies, the light goes out; dwelling on the past only adds unnecessary trouble."
"A day is a day, whether you're happy or not. Life is short, so why not live it to the fullest?"
Qin Weixi stared at him intently.
Beneath the magnolia tree, the wind seemed to stand still, creating an unprecedentedly oppressive atmosphere.
Everyone remained silent. Qin Weixi withdrew his gaze and turned it back to Jiang Yuanjun, who was one person away.
"Fifth Brother..."
"Fourth Brother..."
Qin Weixi was in front, followed by Jiang Yuanfu, as if they were trying to cut off the conversation in unison.
Jiang Yuanfu said, "Fourth Brother..." She gripped the teacup tightly with one hand, and a crystal tear escaped from her eye, falling onto the teacup with a soft patter.
“You’ve suffered so much. Back then, we all did our best. If we could have saved Seventh Sister that day, I would have died for it.” She choked up, “Father once went to Little Penglai and stayed there all night, but he was the emperor, he was the emperor! We couldn’t, we couldn’t stop him. I’ve spent so many days and nights thinking about bringing Seventh Sister back. The Qin family is still here, Uncle Chu is still here. I wish I could go back to my childhood, stay there, and not go back to that winter ten years ago. I’ve convinced myself of that countless times.”
"Fourth Brother, do you resent my brother? Or do you resent all of us? Back then, in the case of the Duke of Dingguo, Gao Jian is dead. The words carved on Gao Jian's chest before his death—whether it was a sudden pang of conscience or something else—are enough to bring the Qin family's old case back to the forefront. None of us don't want the Qin family to be exonerated one day. Fourth Brother, don't you want that too?"
"Fourth Brother, you've been alone on the border all these years. Back then, you were so young, and we've worried about you every single day. How have you managed all these years? So, Fourth Brother, you also believe that the Qin family won't rebel, right? We were so close when we were young, and Aunt Qin treated us like her own children."
Jiang Yuanjun looked up at her, feeling a pang of sadness. If this younger sister could retain the innocence she had ten years ago, it would be a good thing for her.
He recalled the words mentioned in the secret letter: "Among you, the Jiang family, no one else should know about this matter except you."
Chu Yening suddenly withdrew his gaze and lazily scoffed, "Do you remember Cai Yuan?"
Qin Weixi gripped the teacup tightly for a moment, then suddenly loosened his grip; the warm tea in the cup had already cooled down. Jiang Yuanfu also abruptly raised her head.
"A-Fu?" After a moment, Qin Weixi looked at everyone with a faint smile in her eyes, then at her, and gently shook her head.
Jiang Yuanfu's crying gradually subsided.
Qin Weixi looked back at Chu Yening, the once dashing young man. Now, he was no longer as naive as he had been; his slightly upturned chin was covered with fine stubble.
Back then, they both naively believed that they could be a part of each other's future, watching each other get married and grow up. However, during those ten years of mutual absence, some people seemed to have quietly grown up overnight.
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