0111 Shining Night (Part 4)
Shu Fu won the white egret lantern and, after leaving Jianfu Temple Pagoda, kept her promise and handed over the pole carrying the lantern.
"A promise is a promise. Here, you can have this lamp!"
Zhan Yaoguang was only eighteen years old. He was overjoyed to receive a gift from the girl he admired, and he couldn't help but pick up the lamp and look at it several times along the way.
The two arrived at the canal together, where they saw the canal decorated with all kinds of river lanterns, swaying up and down in the water, like the Milky Way inverted in the sky, dazzling and incomparable.
Zhan Yaoguang raised the white egret lantern in his hand and waved it a few times over the canal. The water below then rolled up and down as if to devour the lantern.
He was somewhat startled and quickly withdrew his hand, firmly protecting the lamp behind him.
An old woman selling river lanterns at a nearby stall noticed their interest and called out to them from afar, her smiling eyes crinkling as she said, "Young lady and young man, would you like to buy a couple of river lanterns to release? The lanterns will float down the canal into the Feng River and then flow to Penglai Immortal Mountain. If the immortals see them, they will bless you both with good fortune this year!"
Shu Fu thought for a moment and then smiled and said, "Alright then, we'll trouble you, elder, to fetch a river lantern for each of us."
The old woman accepted the coins and handed over two palm-sized lanterns, one depicting a goldfish and the other a red persimmon. Both were drawn with a few hasty strokes, not particularly exquisite, but surprisingly charming and rustic.
Shufu took the two lamps, held them in her palms and examined them carefully for a while, finally keeping the persimmon-shaped one in her hand.
"I'll take the persimmon lantern, and this goldfish is for you." She handed over the goldfish lantern, gathered her clothes, squatted down on the spot, and began to write with the willow branch the old woman had given her.
Zhan Yaoguang took the ugly goldfish lantern, but for a moment he didn't know what to write.
If he had read more books, perhaps he could have coined a few beautiful phrases like "eternal happiness and peace." But he was truly at a loss for words. Glancing at Shu Fu, who had already written a long passage, he had no choice but to put pen to paper as well. After hesitating for a while, he casually drew a crooked persimmon and added a note beside it:
—If the immortal sees this fish, he will entrust the wish on the fish's belly to the young lady who writes persimmon lanterns, so that all her wishes may be fulfilled. Zhan Shisan here expresses his gratitude to the immortal for his kindness.
As Zhan Yaoguang paused, he felt a head approach beside him, wafting a faint fragrance. His back stiffened instantly, and he pushed the small lamp into the water, letting it drift away.
"What are you doing? I haven't even read what you wrote yet!" Shu Fu said, displeased.
“What’s so interesting about that? I just drew a funny face for the fairy,” he breathed a sigh of relief. Seeing Shu Fu turn her head away, he took the gold-embroidered shawl hanging from her skirt and moved closer to her. “Do you have anything else to do tonight?”
Shu Fu picked up the persimmon lantern, puffed out her cheeks to blow away the dust, and carefully pushed it into the water. Only then did she turn to look at him and declare firmly, "Yes!"
"Huh?" Zhan Yaoguang was somewhat disappointed.
Shu Fu stared at him for a while, then finally smiled and said, "I was lying to you. Of course I have nothing else to do tonight. I already said that I'm giving myself to you today, and I won't accept any invitations from anyone else."
The boy's eyes lit up, and he stood up abruptly, reaching out to pull her up.
"In that case, I'll take you somewhere else!"
...
The two arrived together in a narrow alley, where they saw a blue-curtained carriage standing quietly inside, which was the one that Zhan Yaoguang had asked Zhan Yinyuan to rent last time.
Before the driver arrived, Zhan Yaoguang opened the carriage door and hung the white egret lantern on the inner wall, instantly filling the entire carriage with a dim white light.
"Did you rent this car?"
Shu Fu, holding her skirt, stepped onto the carriage shaft and looked around the interior. In the center was a spacious seat covered with a soft, plain satin cushion. To the left was a low teak stool, on which a curved willow branch was inserted diagonally into a sky-blue vase.
It wasn't particularly luxurious, but it was very clean and tidy.
“Hmm,” Zhan Yaoguang pulled her along and half-carried her into the car. “How about we go see the sunrise? It’s on Leyouyuan. If we drive there now, we’ll definitely see it first thing tomorrow morning.”
She had read many books and experienced a variety of things, but witnessing a sunrise was something she had never done before.
“Okay, shall we leave right away?” Shu Fu’s eyes shone brightly.
Zhan Yaoguang sat opposite her and nodded slightly: "We'll wait for the coachman to arrive..."
He paused abruptly, his expression darkening slightly. He listened intently to the sounds outside the car, faintly hearing footsteps, but also the rustling of at least two people.
Shu Fu noticed something was wrong with him and asked in a low voice, "What's wrong?"
“Someone’s coming from outside, not the coachman,” he suspected that they had been caught by the clan when he went to find Zhan Yinyuan last time. He immediately grabbed Shu Fu’s hand and pushed her against the carriage wall. “I’ll go out and take a look. No matter what happens later, don’t show your face…”
However, before he could open the car door, a soft panting sound came from outside, and the next moment, it was as if something was slammed against the wall in the alley.
Zhan Yaoguang froze, then opened the car window a crack and looked out. He saw a man and a woman embracing and pulling at each other. The man pressed the woman against the wall and they pressed themselves against each other in a hurry.
Shu Fu, sitting in the car, noticed his strange expression and couldn't help but feel nervous. She asked cautiously, "What's going on outside?"
Zhan Yaoguang suddenly came to her senses: "Don't be afraid, it's not my people chasing after us, it seems to be..."
Before he could finish speaking, his ears turned slightly red, as if he was having some difficulty speaking.
What is it?
Shu Fu knew there was no danger outside, so she relaxed and went over to look out the window with Zhan Yaoguang.
The man, clearly eager, had already reached under the woman's skirt, kissing her cheek with erratic breathing, murmuring, "Second Mistress—"
Shu Fu's heart skipped a beat, realizing that the voice was incredibly familiar.
Just then, the man found the woman's red lips in front of him, and after a few quick kisses, he still felt it wasn't enough. So he simply tore off the Kunlun slave mask from his face and threw it on the ground, and then kissed her passionately again.
This time, she clearly saw the man's face; it was undoubtedly Liang Zhiyan.
"It's him again!"
Shu Fu had no patience for him at all. She immediately slammed the window shut, turned around, and buried her face in the soft cushions. "Ugh, so ugh! I finally get to go out, and I always have to see such filthy things! Next time I go out, I'll definitely check the almanac first!"
Zhan Yaoguang glanced at her, almost laughing, but after thinking for a moment, she reached out to cover her ears and whispered to comfort her, "They said they might leave in a little while... and at most in half an hour, the driver will be here. As soon as the driver arrives, we'll leave immediately!"
———
Once again—
I, Ge Hansan, am back again! (coococoo)
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