Chapter 50 She rode on top of him!!
A thunderous buzzing sound exploded in Lin Yu's ears.
"Xiao Xun, are you out of your mind?!"
The Azure Cloud Steed was only a foal less than four feet tall. If it jumped down, it would be lucky enough to land on the lushest and softest part of the grass at the top of the slope, and would most likely only scrape its skin. If it was unlucky and didn't land on the grassy slope, it would suffer broken bones, but it would probably not be fatal.
They can walk on clouds more than eight feet high and move as fast as the wind.
Xiao Xun was skilled in riding and archery, but he was holding the panicked Lin Yuan, his loose robes were cumbersome, and his left arm was still wounded from a sword. It was like a skilled swimmer being dragged by a drowning person; in the end, both of them would only fall straight to the bottom of the water.
The cloud-stepping creature's forelegs lifted several feet off the ground before crashing down heavily, scattering dust as it knelt and neighed.
Without its master, the Qingyun Steed galloped wildly across the waist-high barren hillside, stirring up a gust of wind and rustling the reeds.
Lin Yu's vision blurred, and he jumped down from Sheng Yun.
The two slowly rose from the grassy slope.
Lin Yuan's face turned deathly pale; she was still in shock.
The moment she hit the ground, she thought she was dead.
They ascended to immortality through metamorphosis.
She leaped forward, but her stirrup caught on the tip of her shoe, and she almost fell off the horse.
But it didn't hurt as much as I had imagined.
As it falls, the clouds fall, and the sky falls.
She fell from the Azure Cloud Steed, landing on the azure clouds, light and soft.
The clouds are churning, and so is she. The clouds are enveloping her as she tumbles.
As she rolled down the grassy slope, her eyes were filled with Xiao Xun's face, and he suddenly pressed her down beneath him.
Yu Guangzhong, the horse Qingyunju raised a fist-sized sharp stone, which flew straight at him and hit his waist with a loud bang.
Lin Yuan's heart pounded. Fear, worry, and lingering fear all rushed in at once.
"How are you? Why did you jump down with me?" Her eyes were blurry with tears.
"I'm fine, I have a talisman." His lips were pale, but he managed a slight smile.
Lin Yuan frowned at the inappropriate joke.
"Really, I told you, you are my talisman." He was very close to her, tears glistening on her dark eyelashes, right below his lips.
I really want to kiss away those tear stains.
He lowered his head, his Adam's apple bobbing, and a metallic sweetness surged through his throat and on his lips and tongue.
He turned away, sat up, and slowly took out a pouch with dragon and phoenix patterns from his waist.
“That stone just now hit this spot. It took the blow for me.” As he spoke, he untied the belt of the pouch, raised the dragon-tiger pendant inside, squinted at the twilight sunlight for a long time, and sighed, “What a pity, there’s an extra crack here.”
He turned his head, smiled apologetically, and said, "I'm sorry."
Lin Yuan couldn't see exactly where the crack was, but she breathed a sigh of relief.
His words sounded strange, but upon closer examination, it was his ancestors in the imperial tomb, the true owners of this dragon-tiger pendant, who protected him.
After he finished speaking, he carefully put away his jade pendant, tucking it close to his chest.
When he got up, Xiao Xun swayed unsteadily and almost fell straight onto Lin Yuan.
Fortunately, Lin Yuan was not tall, so his shoulder served as his walking stick.
Lin Yuan staggered, and when she saw the face that had suddenly appeared on her shoulder, she was still shaken and asked in a panic, "Are you really alright? You, you, where are you hurt?"
"I told you I wasn't hurt."
The sound came muffledly from the folds of her clothes piled up on her shoulders.
"Don't lie to me, you have to tell me the truth," she asked, biting her lip and her voice trembling.
"..." Xiao Xun paused for a moment, "Alright, I'll tell the truth."
Immediately, a long sigh reached Lin Yuan's ears.
Xiao Xun, still leaning on her shoulder, said weakly, "Actually, there's something I'm very uneasy about—"
Lin Yuan turned her head away, only able to see Xiao Xun's profile, which appeared deathly pale in the sunlight.
My heart was about to jump out of my throat.
Xiao Xun said slowly, "Just now I suddenly noticed that my face and clothes were dirty. It was really embarrassing. I felt very uneasy."
He rested his head on Lin Yuan's shoulder and chuckled softly, "Therefore, I'll borrow your clothes to wipe myself clean."
"you……"
Lin Yuan's deathly pale face turned crimson. She pushed him twice, took a step back, and finally managed to push him away.
Xiao Xun slowly straightened up, a mischievous smile flashing in his eyes.
His hair was covered with bits of grass, and his eyebrows were speckled with mud. His blue clothes looked even bluer.
Lin Yuan asked suspiciously, "Where did you see that your face was dirty?"
Xiao Xun clenched his fist, pressed it to his lips, and gazed at her with a smile: "From your eyes."
He coughed twice, probably because he was laughing too hard.
He turned his head away.
Amidst his laughter and coughing, a long neigh from a horse rang out.
Lin Yuan looked up and saw Lin Yu mount his horse, crack the whip, and shout "Giddy up!"
Sheng Yun's lithe figure flashed past his eyes.
"Brother, where are you going?" Lin Yuan called out to the departing figure.
"Chase the Azure Cloud Steed—" Lin Yu's voice echoed far and wide, and in just a few words, they had already sped several miles away.
But the Azure Cloud Steed had long since disappeared.
Lin Yuan suddenly realized and stamped her foot, saying, "Yes, if Qingyun Steed runs wildly like this, it will reach the market in Huaiyang after running for another ten miles or so. It would be terrible if it bumped into someone."
She watched as Lin Yu's horse reached the horizon and turned into a speck of dust, muttering to herself, "Brother, brother, you must catch up. You will definitely catch up."
Before he finished speaking, several more fine horses suddenly appeared at the edge of the grassland, and five or six Imperial Guardsmen chased after the Azure Cloud Steed from all directions.
Lin Yuan turned to Xiao Xun and asked, "By the way, didn't you say that the Azure Cloud Steed was docile? And that it was personally trained by the Grand Master of the Imperial Stud?"
Xiao Xun said dejectedly, "I don't know either. This Vice Minister of the Imperial Stud, he—"
“It is five li of plowing.”
Not far away, He Ji, pale-faced, stumbled toward them, as if he had been frightened out of his wits by the Azure Cloud Steed.
As he approached, he held up a fallen leaf he had picked up: "I saw some scattered on the ground. The Azure Cloud Steed must have eaten quite a bit, which is why it went berserk."
Xiao Xun glanced over and widened his eyes: "Isn't this the grass you were holding in your arms like a treasure just now?"
Lin Yuan's eyes widened when she saw "Jing Yu," and she was filled with regret when she realized it was because of the handful of weeds she had scattered.
She bit her lip and remained silent, thinking bitterly, "The name 'Li Wuli' should be changed to 'Ma Jingfeng'."
He Ji hurriedly argued, "That's Panax notoginseng, it's different."
“What’s different?” Xiao Xun frowned. “Look, they’re exactly the same.”
"The difference is—oh no, you're bleeding!" He Ji exclaimed in surprise.
Lin Yuan finally snapped out of her daze from the withered leaves in his hand and looked up at Xiao Xun. Sure enough, she saw blood seeping from his sleeve again.
He Ji pulled a handful of Panax notoginseng from the sheepskin coat hanging on the horse's neck, wiped the mud off it with his hand, chewed it a couple of times until his lips turned bluish-black, then grabbed Xiao Xun's arm, rolled up his sleeve, and spat it out.
"You are insolent!"
Xiao Xun's face darkened, and she tried to shake off his hand, but she couldn't break free.
"Panax notoginseng is used to stop bleeding. How long has this injury been going on?"
He Ji mumbled, spitting the remaining stalk in his mouth aside with a "pui pui" sound, and wiped his lips with his sleeve. "Young Master Xiao, I'm sorry. In this desolate wilderness, in your condition, it will take quite a while to get back. If you keep bleeding like this, be careful you don't bleed to death before you even get back to the palace."
Xiao Xun opened his mouth, but seeing Lin Yuan's obvious worry after hearing He Ji's words, he remained silent.
He looked at the bluish-black herbs in his hand with disdain, unsure whether to throw them away or keep them.
It was so disgusting to look at that, so I took out a handkerchief and covered the wound.
"Let me do it, let me do it." Lin Yuan understood what had happened, blushed, found a clean stone, and helped Xiao Xun sit down.
Xiao Xun could no longer see the wounds and herbs, nor He Ji; all he could see was Lin Yuan.
She knelt on the ground, her eyes lowered, and her lips slightly pursed.
"Hiss." He gasped, cold sweat pouring down his back, constantly licking the countless wounds inflicted by the gravel when he landed on the grassy slope.
He Ji was the same.
He scratched his head: "Ah Yuan, the wound can't be tied too tightly, otherwise the blood will get blocked."
As he spoke, he squatted down, his eyes crinkling into a smile, "You were just startled, your hands are unsteady, let me do it."
Lin Yuan was taken aback, nodded, and let go of his hand.
In Xiao Xun's eyes, He Ji's face appeared.
His eyes drooped, his lips were dark, and his cheeks were swollen.
"So ugly."
Xiao Xun uttered those two words softly.
"What?"
"Your knot is really ugly."
Xiao Xun glanced at his arm and flicked his sleeve.
He Ji curled his lip and snorted: "If you had a thick, long scar on your arm, that would be truly ugly."
After what seemed like an eternity, the sound of horses' hooves finally came again.
In the direction where the setting sun was, Lin Yu sat high on Shengyun, bathed in the evening glow, holding the reins of Shengyun with one hand and the reins of Qingyun Steed with the other.
The Azure Cloud Steed wasn't moving fast; its panting breaths mingled with the clatter of its hooves, showing no trace of its earlier arrogance and wildness.
Even so, when He Ji stepped forward and saw the approaching Azure Cloud Steed, he still felt a chill in his heart.
He stopped a good five or six zhang away and called out to Lin Yu, "Hey, your clothes are all wet. Did you chase the horse into the river?"
Lin Yu laughed, "We chased for almost seven or eight miles before catching up. I also have to thank Young Master Xiao's guards for blocking the road to the market. Qingyun Steed had nowhere to go, so I led it to Cuiwei Mountain and let it run around the foothills—now that the disaster victims have been resettled elsewhere, there are hardly any people there. After running for dozens of miles, the horse is now exhausted, its hooves are covered in rubble and it has suffered some injuries, but it won't hurt you."
As Lin Yu spoke, she playfully tugged on the reins of the Azure Cloud Steed.
The Azure Cloud Steed suddenly kicked up, its breath hitting He Ji's face, startling him so much that he took two steps back.
A horse-drawn carriage also accompanied them.
The driver was dressed in the servant's clothes of the Prince of Huaiyang's mansion, followed by the few Imperial Guards who had been on horseback earlier.
"Let's go back. Get in the carriage," Xiao Xun said to Lin Yuan.
Shengyun walked to Lin Yuan's side and stopped. Lin Yu said, "Young Master Xiao is injured, so I think it's better for him to ride in the carriage. I'll take care of A Yuan."
"It's just a few drops of blood from an old wound," Xiao Xun said casually. "Besides, Master He has already applied medicine and bandaged it properly. Riding a horse is no problem, so why would I need a carriage?"
He Ji's face lit up with relief upon hearing this.
Xiao Xun turned to Lin Yuan and smiled, "You've been frightened, how can you ride a horse? Take a carriage back."
He made a circle with two fingers of his right hand, gave a whistle, and then came rushing over on cloud-riding.
Lin Yuan obeyed and boarded the carriage.
Seeing the carriage leave, He Ji quickly mounted his horse and chased after it.
Sheng Yun and Ta Yun walked slowly, gradually falling behind.
"Young Master Xiao, how are you?" Lin Yu asked.
“I told you, it’s fine,” Xiao Xun replied calmly.
Lin Yu looked up and saw Lin Yuan's carriage leisurely in front of her: "I didn't see A Yuan, but I saw her."
"What did you see?" Xiao Xun pulled on the reins, and Ta Yun's steps paused.
Sheng Yun took two steps closer to Ta Yun, and Lin Yu stared at him: "You just vomited blood."
He saw the two of them shoving each other as they got up and walked towards him. Behind where Lin Yuan had stood, there was a striking patch of crimson grass.
Lin Yuan took a couple of steps, then remembered something she had left behind and turned back to look for it.
As soon as she turned her head, Xiao Xun reached out and turned her head away.
Lin Yuan shrank back and stepped aside, as if to ask, "What are you doing?"
Xiao Xun smiled, her eyes crinkling, "When I borrowed your clothes to wipe myself, I got mud on your face."
Lin Yuan slapped his hand away and walked faster on her own. She took out a handkerchief and slowly wiped her face where he couldn't see her.
Therefore, she wasn't actually walking very fast; it was Xiao Xun's pace that was clearly too slow.
"I landed pretty hard. It's nothing serious, I'll be fine in a couple of days," Xiao Xun said casually.
His gaze followed the carriage ahead. As the carriage receded into the distance and reached the corner of the meadow, he added, "Don't tell A-Yuan."
Lin Yu nodded slightly: "In any case, I thank Young Master Xiao today. If it weren't for Young Master Xiao's timely rescue, A-Yuan—"
He had intended to tease her, saying that A-Yuan would definitely get a scrape, and might even break a bone, but what came out of his mouth was, "I wonder how badly she'll fall."
As he spoke, his breathing grew heavier, "But didn't Young Master Xiao consider that jumping off the Cloud-Stepping Platform might have resulted in even more serious injuries? What if he hadn't landed on that grassy slope?"
Below the grassy slope, gravel lay scattered.
"What if it gets trampled by the Azure Cloud Steed?"
The steed galloped heavily, raising clouds of dust.
"What if, by that flying sharp rock—"
"There won't be any 'what ifs'."
Xiao Xun interrupted him, raising an eyebrow and a smirk playing on her lips, "So worried about me?"
The rope binding Lin Yu held tightened imperceptibly.
Xiao Xun laughed, "I've been chasing and playing with others since I was a child, and I'm used to jumping around." He looked into Lin Yu's eyes, "I've also rolled and fought on the ground. Now, I'm a little rusty, but I still have the skills I had as a child."
"Really? I didn't realize." Shengyun took two steps to the side, and Lin Yu turned her head, unable to help but curl the corners of her lips and chuckle softly. But then she said, "I'm worried about A Yuan. Your old injury hasn't healed, and you've gotten a new one. I don't want A Yuan to feel guilty and insist on staying to take care of you."
Xiao Xun seemed to understand something, and then hummed in agreement: "Then, since A Yuan is in the East Garden, she doesn't need to go back, right?"
“Ah Yuan has her own ideas.” Lin Yu said noncommittally, “She was injured when Young Master Xiao saved her, and she feels very guilty. She insists on staying, and I can’t take her away. If she wants to leave, no one can stop her.”
Guilt...is that all? Xiao Xun looked up but could no longer find Lin Yuan's carriage, and sighed softly with a sense of loss.
"By the way, what did you call me just now?" Turning his gaze away, Xiao Xun looked at Lin Yu. "When you jumped off the horse, I think I heard you say, 'Are you crazy?' What did you shout before that?"
Lin Yu then realized his loss of composure in the heat of the moment.
His eyes darkened, and he unconsciously clenched his fingers inside his sleeve, but he still said without changing his expression, "Young Master Xiao."
"Yeah?"
Ta Yun took two steps closer to Sheng Yun, the man on horseback glaring at him. "What I heard wasn't those three words."
“Yes, Xiao…” Lin Yu sat on his horse, almost as tall as him, looking directly at him without fear, “Brother.”
Xiao Xun's eyes narrowed. Lin Yu had already dismounted, stood upright, bowed his head, and clasped his hands in a salute: "I was in a moment of panic and spoke arrogantly, which was impolite."
Xiao Xun looked at him with a complicated expression.
He wasn't really sure what he had heard.
The hoofbeats of the Azure Cloud Steed, the neighing of the Cloud-Treading Horse, the panting of the person in his arms, the rustling of the grass beneath him—he almost thought he was hearing that voice from his memory.
When he was seven years old, he jumped down from the snow and onto the grassy slope, rolled over, and stood up lightly.
Xiao Yu chased after him from behind, but when he couldn't see anyone after dismounting, he became so anxious that he abandoned his usual solemnity.
Xiao Xun had already quietly circled around from the other side of the grassy slope and suddenly appeared behind Xiao Yu, giving him a big fright.
Xiao Yu's face was still wet with tears, and she had also put aside the principles of filial piety and brotherly love.
In Siqi Garden, by Kunming Pool, beside the Ba River, and atop Bowang Pavilion, this voice resounded through the heavens:
"Ah Xun, are you out of your mind?! I'll beat you up!!!"
It seemed that it was this sentence that made him leap forward and catch Lin Yuan.
Seeing that he was still a few feet away from the grassy slope, he recalled his childhood and suddenly felt as light as a swallow. He lightly touched the horse's body with his toes to gain momentum and leaped to the edge of the grassy slope in one breath, then rolled under the hooves of the Green Cloud Steed.
A myriad of emotions welled up inside me, yet I couldn't quite put my finger on them.
Only the feeling of the gravel scraping against his shoulders and back when he rolled onto the grass was exceptionally clear and vivid, cutting him like knife wounds.
Why isn't it Ah Xun?
Why not Ah Xun?
He clearly heard a voice... Ah Xun.
That sound, the sound from my memory, the sound from my dreams.
—Yes, only in memories, only in dreams.
Even his name, a long, long time ago, had to have a taboo word added to it.
Lin Yu lowered his head and said, "I beg Your Majesty's forgiveness."
Xiao Xun's thoughts were interrupted by the address "Your Majesty," and his brows slowly furrowed.
"How did you know?" he asked after a long pause.
Lin Yu kept his head down, his expression unreadable, and respectfully replied, "Who else but the Emperor could make the Grand Master of the Imperial Stud personally buy and train horses, and even have him continue to feed them in the future?"
Xiao Xun scoffed lightly: "The Grand Master of the Imperial Stud is not as good at training horses as a teacher. In the future, I think we won't even need to feed the horses."
He pulled on the reins, and the horse turned forward: "I am traveling incognito, and I know what is important, so don't tell anyone."
"Yes." Lin Yu cupped his hands in greeting.
"Just like before is fine." Xiao Xun paused, then urged, "Then why aren't you mounting your horse?"
Lin Yu agreed and mounted the horse as instructed.
The two walked forward one after the other, remaining silent for a long time.
Xiao Xun suddenly asked casually, "By the way, so you knew my identity before the horse race?"
"Yes." Lin Yu nodded.
Xiao Xun's expression was somber. He spurred his horse, Ta Yun, and its pace quickened considerably. In a short while, it had left Sheng Yun, who was walking slowly, several feet behind.
Lin Yu curled her lips into a smile, chasing after his retreating figure, and called out, "However, I did not give way during the horse race just now."
The wind ahead, carrying the sound of horses' hooves like raindrops, brought a voice that said, "If you were willing to yield, how could the difference be only two zhang?"
The carriage in front swayed and rocked.
The person in the car leaned against the window, their thoughts swaying.
How come her jade pendant was inside that dragon and phoenix patterned pouch?
The twilight sunlight streamed in through Lin Yuan's car window, strand by strand, forming golden threads in the shape of dragons and phoenixes.
—Well, his pouches are probably all decorated with dragon and phoenix patterns, just like his belt.
The items produced in the weaving workshop are all similar in shape and appearance; at a glance, they are all pretty much the same.
They arrived at the west wing of the East Garden.
As night fell, a section of rope dangled from the copper bell on the eaves, its reflection shimmering on the window screen.
Ding-ling-dang-lang.
She jogged over and opened the west-facing window.
Looking up, I saw that the straight-lattice window opposite was tightly closed.
She turned around and suddenly heard a "click," as if the window frame had been knocked on.
She quickly leaned forward and looked to the left and right, but saw no one.
Looking down, I realized that I had knocked over the bamboo cane that was propping up the window when I turned around.
She let out a long sigh. No one was bothering her, which made her feel half relieved, but the other half...
Alas, the white mist swirled in the moonlight, forming hazy clumps, and transformed into the dragon-patterned pendant at his waist and the phoenix-patterned pendant at hers.
So the remaining half breath got stuck in his mouth.
She stood by the window for a long time.
The moonlight was as calm as water, yet a piece of the rope of a copper bell stirred up ripples.
She looked towards the eaves.
—Did he not see the moon when he looked out from the west-facing window?
...
Can't you see it?
Two nights ago, when Xiao Xun asked her to look at Altair, Lin Yuan leaned out of the window upon hearing his voice.
What came into view was a crescent moon hanging in the eastern sky. She found it dazzling, so she didn't try to look at the Altair star that Xiao Xun was pointing to.
The phoenix and dragon pattern pendant she received in exchange was intricately carved and quite large, making it uncomfortable to wear around her waist.
In the blink of an eye, the crescent moon fell down and transformed into the gleaming, smiling eyes of a person.
Xiao Xun stood outside her window, his elbow resting on the window frame, seemingly relaxed, but actually to prevent her from closing it.
"I almost forgot, you face west from here, so you can only see the sky to the east."
He raised an eyebrow. "Come out, I'll show you."
Lin Yuan really wanted to decline.
She wanted to say that it was windy outside, but the copper bell remained motionless.
I thought to myself that the night was already deep, and the water clock had just struck the first watch.
She didn't care whether Altair was bright or not, but she saw that his eyes and eyebrows were tinged with starlight.
In the end, his enthusiasm was not dampened.
As you walk into the passageway, the eaves of the buildings are so tall that they block out half the sky.
Further ahead, towering bamboo and cypress trees blocked out the sky.
Further ahead, plum trees are scattered, their branches leaning and twisting.
After passing through the passageway, courtyard, and plum grove, the sky widened, with drifting clouds and night winds rolling in together.
Lin Yuan shivered, looking up at the empty sky above her.
"Your Majesty, where is Altair?"
Xiao Xun clenched his fist, secretly cursing the heavens for not being on his side.
When he lowered his head to face Lin Yuan, his expression remained calm:
"No rush, the clouds are moving fast, you'll see them soon."
The clouds drifted by very quickly.
Before long, even the moon disappeared.
The surroundings were pitch black, a heavy curtain hanging down.
Neither of them had brought a lantern when they arrived, so for a moment they couldn't see clearly. The houses, pavilions, gardens, and even he himself all turned into dark shadows.
Only the night wind blowing through the forest, the ice melting into water, and the mournful sound amplified in the darkness, clearly penetrating the ears.
Lin Yuan recalled the night in Shanglin Garden Mountain and the ghosts beneath Kunming Pool.
Even though I was wrapped in a fur coat, I still felt chilly.
She turned around and walked back.
Feeling apologetic, Xiao Xun didn't stop her from leaving. Instead, he followed two steps behind and initially explained, "The Milky Way was so clear and shallow just now, it was truly beautiful," "But unfortunately, the drifting clouds caused trouble," "Tomorrow, tomorrow will surely be a good day too."
Seeing that Lin Yuan remained silent, focused only on the road ahead and her mind entirely on her feet, he reluctantly kept quiet.
Upon reaching the plum grove, the stone path became even more secluded. Lin Yuan walked too fast and slipped. Xiao Xun quickly reached out his hand, only to find that Lin Yuan had already grabbed onto a tree trunk.
"This road is narrow and not easy to walk on." He awkwardly placed his outstretched hand on the plum tree as well.
Lin Yuan corrected, "It's too dark, it's not easy to walk."
"How about I hold your hand?"
As he spoke, his hand tentatively touched Lin Yuan's fingertips.
Lin Yuan quickly withdrew her hand and waved her hand to say no.
Xiao Xun was startled; all he could see was her back.
Her clothes fluttered in the breeze, like smoke and a dream.
A gentle breeze blew, and the plum tree she had helped and then pushed aside splashed petals, leaves, and cold dew onto his face.
Xiao Xun suddenly rushed forward, picked her up horizontally, and then, with a scream, flipped her over onto his back.
When Lin Yuan came to her senses, she found herself in a wide-open space.
She sat on Xiao Xun's shoulders.
"Do you see it? Altair!"
Lin Yuan's heart skipped a beat, and she was startled. Upon hearing this, she raised her head in a daze.
I saw it.
I didn't see it again.
She didn't know which one was Altair.
...
Clouds drift by, and the sky and earth are filled with stars.
In my hazy vision, they blossomed into flowers.
The sky is filled with stars.
Plum blossoms are beneath my feet.
The stars fell on the plum blossoms.
The plum blossoms twinkled and shone, becoming like stars.
A crescent moon hangs overhead.
A crescent moon hangs beneath my feet.
He tilted his head back, his brow and cheek gleaming: "The Book of Celestial Officials says that in the first month of the lunar calendar, the one that is 'dark in color and has a bright light' is the Cowherd Star."①
"..."
Lin Yuan looked at him, then looked up at the sky. "The stars here are all pale blue and bright."
“Look south, do you see the six stars of the Southern Dipper? The Southern Dipper is the celestial temple, and to its north is the Jianxing star. The Jianxing star is like a flag in front of a temple. As for the Cowherd, you can think of it as an object of worship in front of the temple.”②
Looking south, where is south?
Lin Yuan was bewildered.
She sat high above, the Milky Way stretching endlessly, becoming a true great river. Beneath her, a small boat swayed gently. East, west, south, and north no longer mattered.
She hadn't seen such a vast starry sky in a long time.
It started because of the cold.
Later, because of what the old palace maid who was sweeping the floor said.
Later, because the stars and the moon were so bright they were dazzling, they would bring tears to people's eyes.
The sky above the top of Shanglinyuan Mountain is also vast, especially in winter, when the endless falling leaves rustle down, and the sun and moon seem very close.
Xiao Xun supported her gently swaying legs and turned south.
He looked up and could only see the intertwined branches, but even with his eyes closed, he knew where Altair was.
Several months ago, the Grand Astrologer observed the celestial phenomena and came to the Xuan Room to report to him on the auspiciousness or inauspiciousness of launching a military campaign.
The Grand Astrologer said that upon observing the celestial phenomena at night, he saw Venus chasing after Mars, which meant that there was a risk of the Po Jun star killing a general.
The Grand Astrologer also stated that Mars' encroachment on the constellations of Taiwei, Xuanyuan, and Yingshi was truly detrimental to the ruler.
Seeing his worried expression and equally tense demeanor, Xiao Xun anxiously asked, "Where is Mars?"
The Grand Astrologer then spent the entire night with Xiao Xun identifying the stars.
What kind of star is this?
"Your Majesty, it is Altair."
Where is Vega?
The Grand Astrologer then spent most of the night explaining the location of Vega, how far apart Altair and Vega were, why the Milky Way was so vast, and how magpies should build a bridge on the seventh day of the seventh lunar month.
Finally, the elderly Grand Astrologer's head throbbed, his mind went blank, and he was drenched in sweat, almost forgetting about the matter of Mars guarding the heart.
Finally remembering the important matter, the Grand Astrologer pointed to the horizon in a daze, “There is a star, red in color, like chicken blood.”③
Xiao Xun's voice suddenly turned cold, "Look carefully, what is that?"
The old historian, his eyesight failing, looked closely and saw that the sky was vast and the new red sun had already risen in the east.
Both the Grand Master of Ceremonies and the Grand Historian were from the Qu family. Xiao Xun had known this for a long time.
While he was busy redistributing military power among the generals, he also coldly watched as the civil officials were busy being opportunistic, currying favor, and taking sides, their stance becoming increasingly clear.
The Grand Master of Ceremonies had calculated too many days of yin and yang in harmony, which was "too much of a good thing," resulting in the emperor and empress being childless for many years. Several months ago, he resigned from his post and was imprisoned.
Even though the Grand Astrologer had poor eyesight and was reprimanded, he was dismissed from his post the next day and returned to his hometown. On the way, he fell ill and never recovered. However, the saying "The army is destroyed and the general is killed, which is not good for the ruler" had already been quietly spread by those with ulterior motives.
Following closely on the rumor of the "Emperor's Night Flight".
Mars is associated with war and death, and has always been considered an ominous sign.
The ominous signs indicated by the stars caused widespread panic throughout the court and the country.
Xiao Xun smiled and watched it. Finally, he held court and led the Hu cavalry from Changshui and Ganquan to the city. The Qu family was defeated without a fight, and the report of the false emperor's head falling to the ground was delivered.
"The Grand Historian is close to the Qu family, and the traitor Qu Qingchuan has proclaimed himself Grand General and installed an unknown orphan of the former Crown Prince as his ruler. How can this not be considered a case of destroying the army and killing the general, which is detrimental to the 'ruler'?"
He never believed in astrology and had no interest in Mars.
Even though Altair and Vega are so far apart, they still stirred his thoughts.
But the position of Vega is precisely in the direction of Shanglin Garden.
Fortunately, she is currently perched on his shoulder.
He laughed heartily.
As Xiao Xun lowered his head, seemingly lost in thought, Lin Yuan reached out and picked up a waist-high plum blossom, placing it in Xiao Xun's hair.
He was oblivious, but she took a liking to it and put one flower in her hair, then another.
Finally, when they reached the door of the west wing, he knelt down and put her down.
Seeing the smile still on her face, Xiao Xun was also delighted and asked softly, "Does it look good?"
Lin Yuan thought he was asking about the starry sky. She looked up at him, bit her lip, and couldn't help but smile: "Yes, it's beautiful, extremely beautiful."
After saying that, she went inside, stepping one foot over the threshold, but then leaned against the door and looked back, meeting his smiling gaze. She paused for a moment, then turned and jogged back.
"By the way, Your Majesty..."
"Um?"
She hesitated, and Xiao Xun felt a little embarrassed, his heart pounding in his chest.
He watched as she tilted her head back, took a deep breath, and stood on tiptoe.
Her breath grew closer, gently brushing against his cheek.
My cheeks are itchy, and so is my heart.
All I heard was a voice saying, word by word, "Thank you. And sweet dreams."
*
The lamplight flickered in the east wing.
When Li Shun helped Xiao Xun change his clothes, he was horrified to see the blood-soaked undergarments.
Looking closer, one sees a large area of abrasions, bruises, and scratches on her fair and delicate shoulders and back, some deep and some shallow, crisscrossing each other.
Because the bleeding had lasted for so long and the journey on horseback had been so bumpy, the clothes were almost stuck to the skin when they were taken off.
Li Shun was shocked, and his hands trembled.
His Majesty's horsemanship is so superb. He held his own against the Grand Master of the Imperial Stud. Tayun was his longtime mount, which was very intelligent and understanding. How could he have fallen off his horse?
How did His Majesty, in such a privileged and noble position, manage to endure all this journey?
He remembered that as soon as His Majesty returned to the East Garden, he saw Lin Yuan get off the carriage and wait in the courtyard. So, with a smile on his lips and a smile in his eyes, he jumped off the horse lightly. He looked calm and composed, walking with a breeze. Even his lips were as red as blood. There was no sign of injury.
Lin Yuan jogged up to him and said, "Shall I help Your Majesty reapply the medicine and bandages? Do you have any other injuries?"
His Majesty laughed and said, "Wounds like being scratched by an eagle or pricked by grass, do they count? If so, they're all over my body, on my back, my stomach, my legs. I'm sorry to trouble you..."
For some reason, Lin Yuan blushed, her almond-shaped eyes filled with resentment, and she pursed her lips without saying a word before returning to her west wing.
Once inside, as the emperor leaned against the armchair, Li Shun clearly saw a thin layer of sweat dripping down the back of his neck.
"Your Majesty, shall we summon Palace Attendant Lin...?"
"Summon the medical staff."
The sound was squeezed out from between his teeth.
When the medicine was applied, a sharp pain came, and my chest felt tight. The medic said that this was because the lungs and internal organs had been damaged, causing blood stasis, which led to vomiting blood. The bumpy ride had aggravated the injury, and I could only rest.
Xiao Xun listened to the physician's words half-heartedly, gritted his teeth, and picked up a plum blossom from the silk painting tucked inside the desk.
That night, my cheek felt tingly and numb, just like a kiss!
After Lin Yuan finished speaking, a blush rose on her face, and she lowered her eyes, looking shy and timid.
He looked down, watching the stars and moon dance on her eyelashes, on her cheeks, and into his heart, exploding like fireworks.
"If you like it, that's good. Wouldn't it be too formal to say thank you?"
As for good dreams, he only wished that they weren't dreams and that he would never dream of them again.
The people around me are real, and so is the joy.
He reached out and touched her jade-like cheek, hesitated for a moment, and then gently stroked her hair.
Incidentally, he plucked the plum blossom she had tucked into her hair and quietly pinned it to her hair.
After returning to his room, he smiled at the mirror for a long time, and then carefully tucked the other plum blossom into the painting.
The plum blossoms smiled, just like her.
He asked the person in the painting:
You like flowers, you like stars, when will you like me too?
-----------------------
Author's Note: National Day is almost here, so let's have some sweet moments, hehe.
Grand Astrologer: How do magpies build a bridge...? Wait, is this really something I, as the Grand Astrologer, should be concerned with?
①, ② Sima Qian's "Records of the Grand Historian: Treatise on Celestial Offices" states, "The Southern Dipper is a temple, and the Northern Dipper is the Jianxing Star. The Jianxing Star is a flag. The Ox is a sacrificial animal." "In the first month, the Dipper, the Ox, and the Dipper appear in the east at dawn, which is called Jiande. Its color is bluish-green and has a bright light."
③《Book of Han, Treatise on Astronomy》: Also, when Mars guards the heart of the sky and the constellation of the Heavenly Market appears, its color is as red as chicken blood.
According to historical records, after the death of the First Emperor, his sons and concubines killed each other. When the Second Emperor ascended the throne, he slaughtered his own flesh and blood and executed his generals and ministers... and the Qin Dynasty perished.
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