Chapter 108: Strolling Through the Lantern Market
The lantern market was located within the West City, stretching across several sprawling main streets. The people of Chang’an always loved a good bustle more than those elsewhere; despite the slight rise in prices, the crowds of tourists showed no sign of thinning.
Xie Qianli stood amidst the bustling, shoulder-to-shoulder throng.
Laughter and chatter echoed from every direction:
“Ming-lang, wait for me! I just got the money from home!”
“I’m not buying anymore, I’m really not buying anymore…”
“Whatās so good about a shadow puppet show? Your second uncle is a butcher; his shop is full of pigskinsāhow come I never see you treasuring those?”
The surrounding voices blended into a haze of white noise.
Xie Qianli felt a bit dazed.
It felt as though he had been instantaneously transported from a smoke-filled battlefield to a place of brilliant lanterns and flourishing peace.
Even though he had been on a long vacation lately and had visited every night since the market opened, he still wasn’t quite used to it.
Xie Qianli walked deeper into the lantern market.
He was taller than the average person. When he brushed past others, people would often turn back to steal a glance at him. This made him uncomfortable, and he frowned slightly, which in turn frightened many into quickening their pace.
His posture was ramrod straight; even without his armor, he looked completely out of place among the playful, merry masses.
In truth, he hadn’t strolled through a lantern market in many years.
In his youth, the Xie family rules were strict, and too many expectations had been placed upon him from a young age, so he rarely came out.
As an adult, military affairs were complex and heavy; he felt he shouldn’t show a frivolous, pleasure-seeking side to anyone.
In his twenty-two years of life, there was only one period when Xie Qianli paid close attention to the worldly affairs of Chang’an.
Which stall had added new snacks, whether the pastries were delicious, which street led to the famous scenic spots outside the city, and which official road had the fewest people to allow for the fastest escape from Chang’an…
Recalling it now, Xie Qianli realized that even ten years ago, he already had the idea of eloping with Xiao Xi.
Realizing this after the fact, though it never came to fruition, was enough to make one feel sentimental.
Youthful arrogance wasn’t about conquering a city single-handedly.
It was about secretly having someone in his heart, protecting Ying Xi, and hiding the fact that he was close with Xiao Xi from all his elders.
That was the youth he found truly unforgettable.
“Is the young master here? Would you like some wontons?”
His footsteps stopped in front of a snack stall. Xie Qianli stood taller than the roof of the stall. Two young children sensibly moved a stool and wiped the table.
The young boy greeted him, “Grandmother is cooking wontons, meat wontons!”
The young girl helped the old lady lift the lid of the pot, her small arms struggling to raise the heavy wooden board. The wontons rose and fell as they hit the boiling water.
Xie Qianli was a complete stranger to this grandmother and her two grandchildren.
But by eating wontons, he could hold a bowl and quietly observe the crowd, making his search appear less deliberate and pathetic.
What kind of luck was he hoping for?
He didn’t know either.
Ying Xi had given him a long vacation, and it wasn’t appropriate to seek an audience recently. He didn’t want Ying Xi to feel smothered, yet waiting for a chance encounter was like fishing for a needle in the oceanāthe possibility was miniscule.
Still, he chose to try.
“Finished eating?”
“Mhm. Another bowl.”
The boy lifted a ladle to refill the steaming wontons. “The young master eats a lot every time he comes. Grandmother said this bowl is on the house.”
“Your Majesty, Briā”
The carriage drove quietly into the lantern market. The Sweetie System had been chirping all the way.
As the carriage passed an inconspicuous little wonton stall, Yu Lianjingās eyes lit up. He discovered Xie Qianli was currently eating wontons. The man was tall and sturdy, but the stool was too low, leaving his long legs with nowhere to rest.
For some reason, Yu Lianjing felt a sudden urge to curry favor and began, “Briā”
Ying Xi was sitting on the other side of the carriage, rubbing his temples. He seemed to be immersed in tedious official duties, and the atmosphere around him was very low. “Bridge? Why would there be a predatory bird in the lantern market?”
The deep furrow in the Emperor’s brow made Yu Lianjing unsure. Should he inform him that the British Duke was outside the carriage?
The Emperor’s eyes were completely closed.
The little Sweetie System’s chatter also lost its momentum.
Yu Lianjing felt sincere fear and trepidation. Had some conflict occurred between the two during the southern campaign?
Yu Lianjing didn’t dare ask more, so he suppressed the thought of reporting the British Dukeās news. The carriage continued to move slowly in silence for a long time.
Only after they had traveled a significant distance did Yu Lianjing speak, “Master, the lantern market is almost at its end. Would you like to go out for a walk?”
Ying Xi frowned deeply. “Stop the carriage.”
Yu Lianjing hurriedly called for a halt, and the carriage stopped.
Ying Xi got out and turned to Yu Lianjing, saying, “You go back. I want to walk alone.”
Yu Lianjing could only assume the Emperor was in a bad mood, and he didn’t dare ask more. “Yes. How will Master return?”
“I’ll return on my own.”
This Master was no ordinary master; he was a man of great talent and strategy with many ideas of his own.
Yu Lianjing could only obey. He dismissed the driver and found a very, very far place to secretly follow and protect the Emperor.
“System.” Using his own eyes, Ying Xi gave the Sweetie System a quick tour of the lantern market’s general layout and asked, “Do you all have internal regular meetings?”
[System: Youāve even learned the term ‘regular meeting’!?]
Ying Xi didn’t answer. “I want to ask if thereās an exchange rate for top-ups.”
The Sweetie System was stunned. [What do you mean???]
“The silver of Great Qin is pure and currently undergoing deflation, yet the mall items are listed at this fixed price.”
“If you serve other clients at the same price, I will be at a loss. Therefore, I need you to ask the company for clarification.”
Very good. These few words successfully stunned the Sweetie System again.
The Sweetie System felt that the two of them weren’t reading the same kind of “Overbearing CEO” novels.
After thinking carefully, the host’s words actually made quite a bit of sense. It really was quite a loss.
The Sweetie System immediately said, [I’ll go offline to ask, right now.]
The Sweetie System was a very human-like little girl.
Ying Xi pressed his lips together and smiled. He felt a bit guilty, but not much. He said to it, “Thanks.”
[System: Wuwuwu, no need to thank me, Your Majesty~]
The Dating System was temporarily shut down.
Given the efficiency of the main brain, it would take a long time for the Sweetie System to reconnect with him.
Ying Xi shook his head slightly.
He didn’t know what was wrong with him today. When he had spotted the “Doggy” from the carriage, his heart had suddenly skipped a beat.
He hadn’t seen Ju-er in a while. Theoretically, he could have just crooked a finger to summon Xie Qianli into the carriage for an audience, yet he went through all this trouble to send Yu Lianjing away and distance the Sweetie System.
What did he want to do?
Ying Xi walked toward the wonton stall through the autumn air.
The wonton stall was steaming. Ju-er sat on a small stool, looking like quite a large specimen.
As he drew closer, Ju-er looked up. His bright eyes seemed filled with stars.
Xie Qianli froze for a moment.
His sword-like eyebrows and starry eyes flickered. He didn’t even blink, his pupils capturing Ying Xi’s reflection as if he feared it was a hallucination.
Xie Qianli was afraid of shattering the illusion. He missed Xiao Xi.
Ying Xi, however, awkwardly avoided his gaze because the look in the other’s eyes was too sincere.
“Are you two friends? Would the gentleman like some wontons too???”
Seeing someone arrive, the young boy enthusiastically greeted the customer.
The young girl brought a stool and invited Ying Xi to sit opposite him.
The two children waited for him to order.
Ying Xi nodded and sat down. This slightly dissipated the awkwardness, as he didn’t want to seem deliberate. “I saw an acquaintance and came to say hello. His wontons are on me. Here is extra for the tea.”
The boy spoke with childhood innocence, “Grandmotherās treat! This young master comes every night to eat five bowls of wontons; we can’t take his money today.”
Ying Xi could not hide his surprise.
His dark grey eyes shimmered as he tilted his head slightly to gaze at Xie Qianli’s bowl.
This look caused Xie Qianliās excitement to turn into a tightening of his heartstrings, fearing he had been looked down upon.
The war was over now.
So, would a general who ate too much be thrown away?
Xie Qianli cautiously set down the wonton bowl and captured Ying Xi’s reaction, as if he had been caught doing something.
For some reason, Ying Xi felt a moment of panic. “You visit the lantern market every night?”
Xie Qianli couldn’t sit still on the bench anymore; the chance encounter had turned into something deliberate.
He was clumsily managing his romance. Moreover, the little witness was right there; there was no way to deny it. “Yes.”
“The wontons are good. I take a walk to see the lantern display after eating.”
Only then did Ying Xi’s brow gradually relax, believing him about ninety percent.
The young boy was overjoyed. “Hehe, my grandmother makes the best wontons!”
At this time, other customers arrived at the wonton stall, and the two children ran off to serve them.
Was Xie Qianli’s mind even on the wonton bowl?
Love had already filled his heart and lungs.
He pretended to look at the rim of the bowl, but in reality, his gaze fell upon the tip of Ying Xi’s nose, which was sharp and cool.
He quickened his pace of drinking the soup, yet he was also afraid his eating manners were unsightly.
Having spent a long time in the military, Xie Qianli had long since lost the habit of the polite eating style favored by the Chang’an nobility.
When Su Xueyi accompanied His Majesty for a meal, was he very elegant?
Did Xiao Xi also have a good impression of Su Xueyi?
A bowl of wontons left Xie Qianli feeling fearful and apprehensive, full of guesses and covered in sweat.
Ying Xi waited opposite him, not rushing him, gently propping his chin on his hand.
This version of Xiao Xi was very gentle. Perhaps in the current world, no one else would dare use the word “gentle” to describe the Emperor.
Yet from childhood until now, Xiao Xi had always been very gentle to him.
Xie Qianli was extravagantly treasuring this exception.
Seeing each other amidst the lanterns tonight was both an opportunity Xie Qianli had forced into existence and a precious coincidence granted by the heavens.
Xie Qianli mustered his courage and took a small step further.
He brought out the reason he had long since prepared. Because he had rehearsed it too many times in his mind, the wording was ingrained in his heart.
In the autumn night, the tips of Xie Qianli’s ears turned red, and his earlobes burned with heat.
He suppressed his excitement and said, “The lantern market is a mix of all kinds of people. Nothing must happen to Xiao Xi. I have nothing to do tonight, so I can protect Xiao Xi while we tour the lantern display.”
Ying Xi: “…”
Since he had ascended the throne, calling out a childhood name had become a one-way street.
No one dared to call out the Emperor’s childhood name.
On the contrary, he was the one who could recklessly call those around him Ju-er, Dang-er, or Tong-er.
Somewhere in his heart, in a very deep and soft place, it felt as though he had been brushed a few times by a fluffy tail.
The innocence and cleverness he tried his best to hide were shallowly surfacing because of that childhood name.
But he also couldn’t find it in himself to think Ju-er was being presumptuous.
Perhaps Ju-er was being thoughtful. If he called him “Duke,” or “Master,” or something like that, coupled with Ju-erās build and stature, half of their identities would be exposed.
It was rare not to have the little Sweetie System around to make wild shipping comments; he could relax.
Ying Xi said, “Itās been hard on you, Ju-er.”
“I did indeed intend to give you a long vacation,” Ying Xi said in a low voice.
Scenes from “Presidential” novels involving two male leads going on an outing floated before his eyes. He mentally chided himself for his wild thoughts and turned to blend into the lantern market.
He looked up at the ten thousand lanterns.
The lights near and far along the entire street were like a thousand points of stars falling into the mortal realm, sublimating the reality before him into a magnificent and ethereal dream.
Lanterns only counted as a spectacle when they were grouped together; a solitary lantern only served to heighten the desolation.
The lanterns lining the corridors of the Weiyang Palace were far from enough to look at.
Today, Ying Xi’s eyes were finally filled with a powerful light full of vitality.
Why did light and Ju-er always appear together?
Was Ju-er perhaps the sun?
The wild thoughts he had just suppressed poked their heads out again, and were again pushed down by Ying Xi. He felt a sense of guilt for no reason.
Ying Xi directed, “Let’s browse over there.”
“Okay.”
In a place where Ying Xi couldn’t see, Xie Qianli carefully blocked the jostling crowd for him, his eyes filled only with him.
Time traced back; ten years felt like just a moment ago.
The ones strolling through the lantern market together were still each other.
Xie Qianli breathed a small sigh of relief, his heart full of tenderness as a smile secretly surfaced on his face.
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