Chu Yueying's face bloomed like a Chinese flowering crabapple in the wind, her eyes brimming with radiance.
Her heart seemed to flutter lightly, ready to take flight.
This mysterious, noble, and incredibly handsome man before her understood her feelings!
Accepting her token of love meant he reciprocated her affection...
Chu Yueying was so happy that she almost burst out laughing. She bit her lip, trying hard to appear reserved.
Running to the door, she suddenly looked back, shyly stealing a glance at Liang Yuzhou.
Liang Yuzhou averted his eyes indifferently and mounted his horse.
All the way, he rubbed the small embroidered pouch in his hand over and over again.
His fingertips felt the fine stitches. It was as if the warmth of Wan Chu's palm still lingered on the pouch. Gradually, the warmth seeped through his skin into his flesh and blood, warming his cold and lonely heart.
...
After the Qian mother - and - son were driven out of the Chu family, the Chu family returned to peace.
In the blink of an eye, the Winter Solstice was approaching.
Grandma Chu sent word to every courtyard that on the day of the Winter Solstice, they would go to the Songhe Taoist Temple on Wuyin Mountain to hold a religious ceremony to pray for blessings. Firstly, to bless Ning with a smooth delivery of a legitimate son. Secondly, to pray for the prosperous business and continuous wealth of the Chu family in the coming year. Thirdly, to ward off evil spirits and disasters.
Normally, for the religious ceremony of the Chu family, external relatives like Song Wanchu and Shi Luohan didn't need to participate. However, Grandma Chu thought highly of Song Wanchu, and Shi Luohan had helped Chu Shangxu solve several tricky business problems. So they were warmly invited.
"Liang Yuzhou is at the Songhe Taoist Temple."
Just thinking that Wanchu would inevitably meet Liang Yuzhou again, Shi Luohan felt restless.
"It's my fault for being negligent. I didn't inquire about the news here in Yunzhou in advance before bringing you here. If I had known Liang Yuzhou was here, we wouldn't have come to Yunzhou. We also have a mansion in Qingzhou. It would be the same there."
Song Wanchu was much calmer than Shi Luohan.
"On the day of the Winter Solstice, there must be many families going to the Songhe Taoist Temple to pray. We may not even see him."
"You may not pay attention to him, but he'll stick to you like dog - skin plaster!"
Shi Luohan was seething with unnamed anger.
At this moment, he looked like an insecure child.
Song Wanchu put down the needlework in her hand. Her clear and calm eyes fixed on Shi Luohan's.
"Brother, are you afraid that I'll rekindle my old feelings for Liang Yuzhou?"
Her words were too straightforward. While she didn't feel embarrassed, Shi Luohan felt awkward instead.
His mind was completely exposed.
Song Wanchu understood Shi Luohan's inner uneasiness very well.
During the three years when she was married to Liang Yuzhou, whenever someone mentioned Yu Huiyan, she would be like this.
She would toss and turn in bed, finding it hard to eat and sleep. She didn't know how to face herself when Yu Huiyan returned to the capital.
She didn't even dare to imagine seeing Liang Yuzhou and Yu Huiyan being affectionate with each other.
She couldn't bear it.
Even if Liang Yuzhou had given everyone a shocking reversal, so what?
She had taken Liang Yuzhou's show of deep affection for Yu Huiyan seriously.
Those tortures, pains, sufferings, desolations, and heart - breaking sorrows were like having her flesh torn and her heart dug out, over and over again.
She had been in the rain, and she wanted to hold an umbrella for her elder brother.
Shi Luohan was annoyed that he had shown his insecurity so obviously when a pair of soft little hands grasped his.
Song Wanchu got up from the small couch and stood in front of him, her eyes calm and determined.
"Brother, if I give you a promise, will you feel at ease?"
Shi Luohan stared blankly into those beautiful eyes and murmured obsessively, "What promise?"
"Right now, I haven't completely forgotten Liang Yuzhou, but I no longer care about him. Give me a little more time, and I'll make him completely leave my memory. By that time, if brother is willing to marry me, I think I'll be ready."
Shi Luohan was stunned for a long time. Song Wanchu's words echoed in his mind, making his blood rush to his head. It was so stimulating that his scalp went numb, and he was almost excited to explode.
This was the first time Wanchu had clearly indicated that she was willing to marry him.
Wanchu wanted to marry him.
He was so excited that he wanted to jump up and spin her around three times, but he knew that would be too unsteady and not in line with his status as an elder brother.
But he couldn't hold back the upturned corners of his mouth. He desperately tried to restrain his wild joy and let out a muffled "um".
The tremor in the end sound still betrayed his emotions.
Song Wanchu also smiled. Her heart was both light and heavy.
Giving a promise meant fulfilling it with the rest of her life. She had been deeply hurt by love, so this was not an easy thing for her.
But for her elder brother, she was willing.
"Thank you, brother, for understanding."
Shi Luohan held her hand tightly in return. "Wanchu, no matter how long it takes, I'll wait for you."
...
On the day of the Winter Solstice, there were already a multitude of carriages and horses in front of the Chu family's main gate early in the morning.
After breakfast, Grandma Chu led the Chu family members in a grand procession to the Songhe Taoist Temple.
The men rode horses, and the women took carriages.
Song Wanchu and Chu Yueying shared a carriage.
Ning's belly was getting bigger, and she was heavy. Grandma Chu was afraid that the journey would be too tiring for her, so she specifically told her to stay at home and take good care of the baby and not to go.
All the way, Shi Luohan's horse always followed Song Wanchu's carriage.
In Song Wanchu's arms was the hand - warmer that he had personally added charcoal to.
After riding for a while, he would ask if she was thirsty or tired.
Chu Yueying said playfully with a smile, "Sister, a husband like Brother Luohan is really hard to come by in a thousand years. Grandma often praises you for being blessed. She even wants to be a matchmaker for you two."
Song Wanchu had been married once, so she wasn't embarrassed by such teasing.
"Yinger is envious. Do you also want to find a good husband?"
The little girl was instead teased. After all, she was young and shy. Her face blushed like a rosy cloud.
After hesitating for a moment, Chu Yueying leaned over and whispered in Song Wanchu's ear, "Sister, actually I already have someone I like."
These days, she had been constantly recalling the few conversations she had with Liang Yuzhou when she gave him the small embroidered pouch.
Liang Yuzhou seemed to have taken root in her heart. She would think of him no matter what she was doing.
This was the first time the little girl had tasted the bitterness of lovesickness. Thinking that she would see her sweetheart soon, she just couldn't hold it in and blurted it out.
In her eyes, Song Wanchu was a beautiful, gentle, and understanding sister who would surely understand her young girl's feelings.
She added shyly, "I think he likes me too."
Song Wanchu thought of the small embroidered pouch. Her eyebrows twitched, and a bad premonition welled up in her heart.
"Who did you give the small embroidered pouch to?"
"The Taoist priest Qingzhou who came to our house to perform the religious ceremony."
"Boom!" Song Wanchu's mind went blank. It took her a long time to calm down. She was extremely shocked. "He accepted it?"
Chu Yueying nodded, her face blushing even more.
Song Wanchu had noticed early on that Chu Yueying liked Liang Yuzhou, and she had also guessed that she would give the small embroidered pouch to him. But she had thought that Liang Yuzhou would surely reject it and say cold words to make Chu Yueying sad and despair.
He actually accepted that small embroidered pouch!
Liang Yuzhou, what on earth are you up to!