Chapter 80: People Have Different Plans 11 Proposal
Li Xuanhe's sleepiness disappeared all of a sudden.
The matter he had been avoiding all day was finally brought to the surface by Xun Shu, forcing him to face it.
The title of Duke of Daliang carries no real power. Since the death of his grandfather, no one from the Pingyang Marquisate has held a high-ranking position in the court. Had the Marquis not married the Grand Princess, the Pingyang Marquisate would have long since fallen into decline. The Marquis's son was merely speaking in flattering terms; in his eyes, the position was less important than the Junior Secretary of the Dali Temple.
Everyone thought that he and his mother wanted to fight for the position of the crown prince... It was just an empty title, what was there to fight for?
To be fair, he had no particular feelings towards the position of Crown Prince. He didn't envy his brother being the Crown Prince, and he wouldn't mind being the Crown Prince himself.
Unfortunately, he met Xun Shu.
Xun Shu didn't like the wall that blocked his view, nor did he like the countless courtyards and irrelevant people, but he couldn't abandon his father and grandmother and forget everything.
If no one in the Li family inherits the title, the title will be taken back. What will the people in Pingyang Marquis' Mansion do then?
It's hard to have it all, and that's probably how it is with most things in the world.
Xun Shu was still looking at him, his almond-shaped eyes sparkling, devoid of any unnecessary emotion, as if he had simply asked a casual question. Li Xuanhe remained silent for a long moment. Then, his voice, softer than the evening breeze, colder than the moonlight, filled with apology and uneasiness, "Ah Shu, I'm afraid I have to break my promise. I can't move into a small courtyard with you and Uncle Jiang. But I promise you, I'll find you a beautiful and elegant courtyard. When you find Uncle Jiang, you can move in there."
There was only her and Jiang Zheng, but not him... Was this a farewell?
Xun Shu felt a dense stabbing pain in her heart, and she felt that the air was thinner, pressing her to the point where she couldn't breathe. She didn't want to cry, but her eyes were unconsciously moist. She could only lower her eyelashes as if to hide it, clutching her sleeves tightly, and choked out, "Third brother, I have no shortage of places to live. I'm not picky. I can live in the woods, in the mountains, or in a dilapidated temple. A place to me is just a place to rest, but who you live with is the most important thing. You don't have to worry about us. When we find Uncle Jiang, I will go back to Chaozhou with him to take care of him until the end of his life. You can live well in the capital and marry a wife of equal status. If you miss us in the future, come to Chaozhou to see us. The coffin shop will always be there anyway, and we won't leave... You will always be my third brother."
The more Li Xuanhe listened, the more he felt something was wrong. His mood was in turmoil, and he frantically tried to explain, "When did I ever say I wanted to marry someone of equal social status?"
Xun Shu raised her head, tears rolling down her cheeks as her eyelashes could no longer hold back. She seemed to sense something was wrong, turned her back, wiped her tears with her sleeve, and choked out, "You want us to move to the small courtyard, but you don't live with us. Aren't you just trying to drive us away? You—"
Before she could finish her words, she was cut off. Li Xuanhe hugged her tightly from behind, like an ordinary young man embracing the girl of his dreams, eagerly and tenderly.
"Ashu, there is no one else but you."
"Ah Shu, I love you. I want to be with you forever, until we grow old together."
"Ashu, are you willing to marry me?"
It was as if fireworks exploded in Xun Shu's mind, leaving only a blank after the curtain fell. She leaned into Li Xuanhe's arms, their hearts pressed together, their heartbeats gradually syncing. She wanted to turn and look at the person behind her, but he wouldn't let her. He held her waist tightly, his voice full of self-mockery and sighs, "Ah Shu, don't look at me. If you don't agree, if you don't say anything, I'll know. I don't want to see the rejection in your eyes... Please be magnanimous and leave me with a little thought."
Xun Shu lowered her eyes, placed her hand on the hand at her waist, ran her fingers across the back of her hand, and finally clasped it tightly: "Third brother, I won't lie. I think I am willing to marry you and live with you, but before that, I have some things I must complete. I have to find Uncle Jiang first, and then I have to think of a way to get rid of those who have been looking for me and looking for Sitian Pavilion. I like a peaceful life. I don't want to live a life of hiding anymore, and I don't want the people around me to be implicated because of me." She broke free from Li Xuanhe's arm, turned around and hugged him actively, "Third brother, I don't like this big house where I can't see the sunset, but if you can accompany me to sit on the roof on a day with sunset, I think I can live here too."
Li Xuanhe didn't know how to describe his mood at the moment. He was happy and nervous. He wanted to indulge in the happiness of the moment and never wake up, but he was also afraid that everything was just a dream and he would still have to face the loneliness when he woke up.
If that's the case, it's better not to give him hope.
He gently held Xun Shu's face.
Her skin was softer than the most precious white jade, and as bouncy as freshly baked milk cake. Li Xuanhe's heart was pounding, his fingers trembling slightly, and he gritted his teeth and slammed into her.
It was a fierce collision, their teeth colliding through their lips, the pain making them wince. Li Xuanhe had no experience kissing, but he had been eager to learn since childhood, and he learned everything quickly and well. He groped, nibbling at Xun Shu's lips with his teeth, licking them like he was eating maltose. By the time they separated, he was already panting.
Xun Shu's face was even redder than the sunset he saw on the roof a few days ago, and his earlobes were like dripping blood. His eyes were big and round, with an unconcealable shyness, but more of it was curiosity.
She raised her eyes and looked at Li Xuanhe intently: "Are we going to practice dual cultivation next?"
Li Xuanhe was stunned, a little unsure: "...Dual cultivation?"
"Yes," Xun Shu said confidently. "I've heard from my senior brothers that if you meet a man you like, you can practice dual cultivation with him. They say dual cultivation can harmonize yin and yang and sense the essence of heaven, earth, sun and moon. After that, the divination will be more accurate, and perhaps I can even predict Uncle Jiang's location."
Li Xuanhe's mind was completely consumed with "dual cultivation," so how could he possibly care to listen to what she said next? His face flushed red as he stammered, "Ah Shu, we're not married yet. We can't, we can't do this. Only when we're husband and wife can we, only then, perform those rituals of respecting family ties..."
"We don't have to do it in the bridal chamber." Xun Shu's eyes lit up. "I saw in the picture book that a couple can have their wedding night in the bridal chamber only after they are married. But we don't have to do it in the bridal chamber! My brothers said that if we go to the mountains and wilderness, where the spiritual energy is the most abundant, to practice dual cultivation, we can gain more cultivation than usual. I'm not very familiar with the capital. Do you know which mountains are high and which waters are deep?"
She looked extremely serious, and actually thought so. Li Xuanhe was at a loss whether to laugh or cry, and refused with gritted teeth: "Ah Shu, you can't do this. If you do this, you will definitely be laughed at."
Seeing that he had been refusing, and now that he had clues about Jiang Zheng, Xun Shu no longer insisted, but there was still a hint of regret on his face: "Well, that's a pity."
Li Xuanhe felt a hundred times more regretful than she did, but he still maintained his composure on the surface, fearing that he would do something offensive in excitement and displease Xun Shu, thus shattering the illusion and realizing that it was nothing but a dream.
"Ah Shu, Ah Shu..."
Li Xuanhe sighed and stroked Xun Shu's hair as if it were a treasure.
That night, he felt like he was walking on clouds. He fell asleep in the middle of the night, opened his eyes before daybreak, and went to the Dali Temple to report for duty with a bright and energetic look. Xun Shu slept until noon, and after waking up, he sat on the bed for a long time, his consciousness slowly returning, and he remembered what happened last night.
Just like that, she secretly decided to spend her life with Li Xuanhe.
Her heart was half sweet and half uneasy. She walked to the stone table in the yard in her slippers and sat down. She took out the copper coins and started to throw them. After tossing them several times, she stared at the copper coins on the table in a daze and did not move for a long time.
She had just asked if her relationship with Li Xuanhe would be successful, and received the Tianshui Song hexagram. This hexagram suggests a confluence of fortune and misfortune: misfortune first followed by fortune, or fortune first followed by misfortune. If the question was about relationships, it suggested arguments and suspicions, which might lead to their breakup, a fate unfulfilled.
It's really not a good sign.
But how could she and Li Xuanhe have any arguments or suspicions? Although each had their own secrets, they also trusted each other. Moreover, Li Xuanhe had always given in to her and had never argued with her.
It seems that she has been away from Sitian Pavilion for too long, and her divination ability is no longer as good as before. She should coax Li Xuanhe to practice dual cultivation as soon as possible.
Xun Shu was sitting at the table, lost in thought. Ah Shui walked in from the courtyard gate. Seeing her, she smiled and said, "Miss, you're up just in time. I just brought you lunch, it's still hot." She placed the lunch box on the table, noticed the copper coins, and asked, "I've heard you're skilled in divination. Could you tell me my fortune? I'd like to ask about my marriage."
Xun Shu nodded and shook his head, putting the copper coins into his sleeve pocket. "Of course I can help you with your fortune, but not today. I just had my fortune told, and it wasn't very accurate. I guess my luck is just not good today."
Ah Shui had said it casually, not in a hurry. She went to Xun Shu's room to get a hairpin and comb, and while combing Xun Shu's hair, she joked, "Your luck isn't so good today, is it because you slept late yesterday? Yesterday, you and Li Sanlang were chatting in the courtyard so late, do you know where I was? I hid in the room, not daring to make a sound, for fear of disturbing you."
Xun Shu was a little embarrassed: "You are actually in the house! I thought you went out to play."
"With something as serious as this happening at the Marquis of Pingyang's mansion, how could I dare to leave so easily? If something bumps into something, wouldn't that cause trouble for you and Li Sanlang?"
"Then this afternoon, call Yuchang and let's go out for a walk together."
"Thank you for your kindness, young lady."
Xun Shu originally wanted to take A Shui to visit the market in the capital, but just before leaving, Li Xuanhe rushed back home from the Dali Temple and brought the latest progress of the case.
"Zhuang Bo spent the entire night poring over medical texts and confirmed that the poison your brother was poisoned with was a drug called 'Buwang Powder.' The ingredients for this drug are sourced from the snowy plains of the far north, and since it's difficult to refine, it's only sold locally and has never appeared in the capital. I've sent people to all the major pharmacies and clinics in the city, as well as to traveling merchants from the north, to see if they can get any information about this drug or if anyone has recently purchased Duanchang Powder. The Dali Temple is short-staffed, so you can come with me and see if you can help."
Li Xuanhe's eyes were evasive, not daring to meet Xun Shu's, as if he had some secret. Although Xun Shu felt a little strange, he didn't delve into it. Instead, he asked, "I've made an appointment with Ah Shui to go out together. Can she go with us?"
How could Li Xuanhe let Ah Shui follow them? He thought for a moment and immediately said, "It would be good to have one more person to help. Let Ah Shui go with Yu Chang, and we can go our separate ways, okay?"
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