When Jiang Li heard Zhang Yingying's words, she was momentarily stunned. After processing what her friend had said, she quickly laughed and replied, "Yingying, what nonsense are you talking about? The willow-shooting competition is about to start. Pay attention!"
Zhang Yingying could tell that Jiang Li didn’t take her words seriously. She pouted, wanting to say more, but noticed Jiang Li’s gaze was fixed intently on Huo Jue. Swallowing her words, she turned her attention to the long corridor.
On the corridor stood a row of young men holding bows and arrows. Huo Jue, standing half a head taller than the others, was impossible to miss.
As the monk dropped the red cloth, Huo Jue swiftly raised his bow. In the blink of an eye, the arrow shot through the air, striking the gourd hanging at the highest point. With a *ding*, the gourd opened, and a small white pigeon flapped its wings and flew away.
The crowd erupted in astonishment, and the young men standing beside Huo Jue were left speechless.
They had barely drawn their bows when Huo Jue had already hit the gourd and released the pigeon.
With such speed, how could they possibly compete?
Exchanging glances, they still shot their arrows, determined to finish what they had started, regardless of the outcome.
Soon, two more pigeons took flight, but they were far behind the first one.
Huo Jue had won effortlessly. He picked up the琉璃灯 (glass lantern) and descended the steps, walking steadily toward Jiang Li.
All eyes were on him, and many young women whispered shyly as they watched.
Huo Jue seemed oblivious to the attention. He casually made his way through the corridor and handed the lantern to Jiang Li, asking, "Is one enough?"
"Enough," Jiang Li replied softly, taking the lantern’s handle under the watchful eyes of the crowd. Her ears turned red without her realizing it.
Zhang Yingying glanced at Huo Jue, then at Jiang Li, suddenly feeling like a third wheel. Her eyes darted between the two, and she smiled. "A Li, my father is managing accounts at the shop on West Willow Street today. I’ll go find him. Let Huo Jue take you back to the tavern later."
With that, she waved cheerfully and walked away.
After Zhang Yingying left, Huo Jue asked Jiang Li, "Aside from the temple fair, is there anywhere else you’d like to go?"
Jiang Li rarely had the chance to stroll the market with him, so she eagerly nodded.
They spent nearly an hour wandering the streets, watching an old craftsman make sugar figurines, marveling at a fire-breathing performer, and sampling various street snacks.
As the sky gradually darkened, Jiang Li walked side by side with Huo Jue back to Zhu Fu Street, holding a stick of candied hawthorn in one hand and the琉璃灯 in the other.
As they neared the tavern, Huo Jue suddenly stopped and called out, "A Li."
Jiang Li, who had just bitten into a piece of hawthorn, was startled. The other half of the fruit fell from the stick and landed on her shoe, which was embroidered with auspicious patterns.
With one cheek still puffed out from the hawthorn, Jiang Li blinked at Huo Jue, her dark eyes wide and slightly dazed.
Huo Jue’s lips curved into a faint smile. He crouched down in front of her and used his sleeve to carefully wipe the sugary stain from her shoe.
Jiang Li felt a little embarrassed and was about to say, "You don’t have to," when Huo Jue looked up at her, his gaze steady and serious. "A Li, after the provincial exams, I’ll marry you. Is that alright?"
Bathed in the moonlight, the young man looked up at her, his long brows framing star-like eyes. His deep voice wrapped around Jiang Li’s rapidly beating heart like delicate threads.
Her eyelashes fluttered slightly, and the琉璃灯 in her hand spun halfway in the breeze. The half-hidden face of the Bodhisattva in the lantern’s painting illuminated Huo Jue’s face, casting a gentle, compassionate glow.
The sugar coating of the hawthorn melted into sweetness, spreading from her mouth to her heart.
Jiang Li, suppressing her shyness, softly replied, "Alright."
---
Wei Huan stayed at the inn for half a month before moving to the easternmost part of Tong’an City, East Willow Street.
Xue Wu had rented a three-courtyard house there called Ruyi Garden.
The house had previously belonged to a scholar. While not extravagant, it was elegant and tasteful, with lush trees, blooming flowers, and a pavilion for relaxation.
But Wei Huan was still unsatisfied. She sent Nanny Tong out to purchase various items, such as a high-quality golden-thread nanmu bed and an antique sandalwood dressing table. She even personally painted and blended fragrances, transforming the eastern room into a space of refined elegance.
Xue Wu leaned against the doorframe, watching her with a sidelong glance. "You’re putting so much effort into a room someone else will live in. We won’t be here long—why go to all this trouble?"
Wei Huan glanced at him, ignoring his jealous tone. As she crushed sun-dried spices with a stone pestle, she replied indifferently, "When are you leaving?"
Xue Wu’s smiling eyes narrowed slightly as he studied her for a long moment before answering, "I’ll leave once Zhao Qian and the others arrive, probably in the next day or two."
Wei Huan’s hands paused briefly before she resumed grinding the spices.
Xue Wu walked over, stopping her hand, and rested his chin on her shoulder. In a low voice, he whispered in her ear, "Once I leave, it’ll be at least four months before we see each other again. Little Lychee, will you miss me?"
Trapped in his embrace, Wei Huan couldn’t move. She let go of the pestle, turned her head, and kissed his chin.
Xue Wu’s eyes darkened. He bent down, picked her up, and carried her straight into the inner chamber of the western room.
---
The next afternoon, Zhao Qian arrived. With him came a dozen of Xue Wu’s暗卫 (hidden guards) and seven or eight maids and nannies from Wushuang Courtyard.
In addition, the carriages carried three chests of gold and silver, as well as half-person-high boxes filled with rare treasures.
Judging by the timing, Xue Wu must have arranged everything Wei Huan would need in Tong’an City as soon as he began pursuing her from the capital.
Once everything was settled, Xue Wu left for the capital that very night.
After he left, Wei Huan opened a wooden chest and selected a gilded enamel jewelry box inlaid with pearls. Inside was a complete set of blue jade and red agate hair ornaments, including hairpins, tiaras, and earrings.
She handed the box to Nanny Tong and smiled. "Nanny, we finally have a proper gift for A Li."
---
By the end of May, Ruyi Garden was fully renovated.
Huo Jue did not move into Ruyi Garden, choosing to remain at the Su family’s pharmacy. After Zhao Qian arrived, aside from tending to Wei Huan’s health, he was frequently "invited" by Huo Jue to administer acupuncture treatments to Su Shiqing to detoxify him.
Zhao Qian was an old acquaintance of Huo Jue’s from his past life. The two had crossed paths many times.
Born into a family of physicians, Zhao Qian’s ancestors had served as院判 (chief physicians) in the imperial hospital. Though highly skilled and intelligent, Zhao Qian refused to work in the imperial hospital, disliking the constraints.
Four years ago, Zhao Qian’s father, Zhao Huaide, was implicated in a poisoning case in the imperial harem, nearly leading to the execution of the entire family. Thanks to Xue Wu’s intervention, he was cleared of the charges of harming the royal heirs.
From then on, Zhao Qian was fiercely loyal to Xue Wu. Knowing that Wei Huan was Xue Wu’s most cherished person and that Huo Jue was her long-lost brother, Zhao Qian reluctantly but diligently treated Huo Jue’s adoptive father, Su Shiqing.
Under Zhao Qian’s care, Su Shiqing’s condition visibly improved.
On the day of Jiang Li’s coming-of-age ceremony, Su Shiqing even personally visited the tavern to present her with a gift.
In the Great Zhou, the coming-of-age ceremony for common girls was simple. It usually involved a hair-pinning ritual at home, attended by a few close friends, followed by some celebration.
Unlike the elaborate ceremonies held by noble families, which took place in ancestral temples with numerous female guests and solemn music, Jiang Li’s ceremony was modest.
On the sixth day of the sixth month, the tavern closed for the day. Yang Hui Niang invited a few happily married women from Zhu Fu Street and Jiang Li’s closest friends to witness the ceremony.
The young girl, dressed in a crimson cross-collar dress with her hair styled in double buns, knelt facing east as Yang Hui Niang pinned a hairpin in her hair.
With that, the ceremony was complete.
From that day forward, Jiang Li was considered an adult and eligible for marriage.
"A Li, you look so beautiful today!" Zhang Yingying linked arms with Jiang Li. Being a month younger, she eagerly anticipated her own coming-of-age ceremony after witnessing Jiang Li’s.
Jiang Li secretly pulled out a small copper mirror and examined herself, whispering, "Do I really look good?"
Zhang Yingying nodded. "You look stunning. In all of Zhu Fu Street—no, in all of Tong’an City—no other girl compares to you."
The girl in the mirror, with her bright eyes and delicate features, was indeed beautiful.
Jiang Li put the mirror away and smiled.
Zhang Yingying glanced at Jiang Li and, struck by a sudden thought, asked, "After the ceremony, are you going to see Huo Jue?"
Jiang Li nearly dropped the mirror in her hand. She quickly glanced at Yang Hui Niang and whispered, "Keep your voice down! If my mother hears, she’ll skin me alive."
She then frowned, touching the golden hairpin in her hair. "I haven’t figured out how to sneak out yet."
Zhang Yingying’s eyes sparkled with mischief. She pointed to herself and grinned. "I have an idea."
---
In the alley near the Su family pharmacy, Huo Jue stood under a poplar tree. Hearing hurried footsteps, he looked up.
In the golden light of the setting sun, a girl in a red dress hurried toward him, lifting the hem of her skirt. She soon reached him.
The thin golden light made her skin appear as white as snow, and her clear, dewy eyes resembled those of a young deer emerging from the forest at dawn. Innocent and pure, yet the red dress and her rosy lips added a touch of striking beauty.
Huo Jue stared at her for a long moment before finally looking away.
"Huo Jue, have you been waiting long?"
Jiang Li didn’t notice the turmoil in his eyes. Slightly out of breath, she instinctively touched the hairpin in her hair and adjusted her sash. She had rushed over and worried she might look disheveled.
Today, she was a grown woman. She couldn’t afford to be careless.
"Not long," Huo Jue replied, reaching up to adjust her golden hairpin. His deep voice was slightly hoarse as he looked down at her. "A Li, I want to take you to meet someone."
No comments:
Post a Comment