"Prince?"
Under the night sky, the lights at the tails of fireflies were like floating stars. The dappled starlight shone on the girl's fair face. This scene was so beautiful that it took people's breath away.
Ji Lingchuan suddenly came to his senses and shifted his gaze from her face in embarrassment.
He didn't expect to meet her here by chance. Ji Lingchuan subconsciously thought she had done it on purpose.
But when his gaze moved down, he saw a small lantern made of gauze in her hand.
There were already many twinkling fireflies in the lantern, looking extremely beautiful.
Moreover, Song Yihuan was still some distance away from the pavilion, indicating that she had come here early to catch fireflies.
It was actually him who had disturbed her tranquility here.
Song Yihuan also didn't expect to meet Ji Lingchuan here again. Such a coincidence made her can't help but feel a bit suspicious—
Why had she always met him everywhere recently?
Could it be that he was actually following her on purpose?
But she subconsciously denied this possibility.
He had always been cold to women other than her eldest sister. He even hated her. How could he do such a thing?
It must really be a coincidence, she thought.
To avoid him scolding her for deliberately setting things up, Song Yihuan raised the gauze lantern in her hand and explained first:
"Xuan'er suddenly had a heartache for no reason today. I saw there were many fireflies in the yard, so I thought of catching some to make a lantern to cheer him up."
What she meant was that she hadn't deliberately inquired about his whereabouts. This encounter was also an accident.
Ji Lingchuan felt a lump in his throat. He was silent for a while before he replied, "Okay."
After a pause, he added:
"I've suffered more serious injuries than this when leading troops in the border areas. I'll recover after a few days' rest."
After saying that, he pursed his lips. He thought she would say something, but she just replied with an "oh" and then turned around to continue catching fireflies.
Seeing her being so heartless, as if she didn't care about him at all, Ji Lingchuan felt a sense of depression in his heart. Even the pain from the wound on his shoulder became more obvious.
As if in a competition, since she ignored him, he also kept silent.
Didn't she want to cling to him? He wanted to see how long she could endure it.
The light in the yard was dim. Only the moon in the sky and the scattered fireflies provided some illumination.
The girl's graceful figure loomed in the dim light. Every move of hers was full of innocence and coquettishness. When she caught a firefly, the corners of her lips would curl up slightly, and her plump lips would form a crescent-like arc.
But if she missed, she would frown in annoyance, pout her lips slightly, and then continue to move on without discouragement.
Gradually, there were more and more fireflies in the gauze lantern in her hand. The light in the lantern gradually changed from dim to bright, illuminating her face as beautifully as the bright moon.
Just like... in that dream.
Ji Lingchuan didn't make a sound and completely hid his figure in the shadow of the pavilion.
But Song Yihuan could clearly feel that the man's gaze had always been on her. That gaze was like a shadow following her, and she couldn't ignore it.
Remembering that the night she served him in bed was also under dim light, and the only light source around was the flying fireflies, Song Yihuan's heart skipped a beat.
Could it be that he had discovered something?
Biting her lower lip, Song Yihuan hid her figure behind the tree shadows while pretending to catch fireflies.
Thanks to the isolation of the branches and leaves, that gaze finally disappeared.
The firefly lantern in her hand twinkled, illuminating the patterns on the hem of her skirt.
She lowered her head and waited quietly behind the tree shadows for a while before walking out carefully.
In the pavilion in the garden, there was no sign of Ji Lingchuan. He had left without her knowing, which made Song Yihuan heave a sigh of relief.
After catching enough fireflies, Song Yihuan returned to Tinglan Courtyard.
When Song Yixuan saw her come back to the small courtyard with a twinkling firefly lantern, he was extremely surprised and hugged Song Yihuan's leg tightly.
"Fourth sister, you're so amazing! Xuan'er likes this firefly lantern so much!"
Seeing his bright smile, Song Yihuan was also very happy. She stroked his soft hair and said with a smile:
"Put this firefly lantern beside your bed. It will look like there are stars twinkling in front of your eyes."
"If you have any troubles in your heart, tell them to this firefly lantern. God will bless your wishes to come true!"
"Really?"
Song Yixuan looked at her in amazement and believed every word she said.
"Then Xuan'er is going to make a lot of wishes tonight!"
In the dead of night, the twinkling firefly lantern lit up the dark room.
Song Yixuan held his little face and looked at the lantern made by his sister devoutly, telling his wishes.
"God, fourth sister said that if I make a wish to you, you will bless my wishes to come true."
"Then please bless me to grow up safely and not let fourth sister worry about me."
"Um... I also want to ask you to bless fourth sister to marry a good husband and not to live a hard life like mother..."
Outside the half-closed window, Song Yihuan listened to her younger brother's innocent and sincere wishes, and her tears wet her clothes.
Yes, her younger brother's wishes would surely come true.
She would definitely find a way to find out what her eldest sister was hiding, break free from her eldest sister's control, and take Xuan'er far away!
...
In Jingtao Courtyard, Ji Lingchuan sat in the study. Enduring the pain from his shoulder, he picked up his pen and continued to write the manuscript in his hand.
Due to his shoulder injury, every stroke was very difficult for him. But he had great endurance. Although his writing speed was much slower than before, his strokes were still as strong as ever.
He copied it stroke by stroke, oblivious to the pain and fatigue.
Only in this way could he suppress the desire he had for his sister-in-law deep in his heart.
Whether he wanted to admit it or not, this concubine daughter of the Ding'an Marquis Mansion had really messed up his heart.
However, the more clearly he realized this, the more he couldn't indulge himself.
His position didn't allow him to make the slightest mistake. He needed to be responsible for the Ningqin Prince's Mansion and also for this marriage bestowed by the emperor.
The light in the study of Jingtao Courtyard stayed on from night till dawn and then from dawn till dark. He actually wrote continuously for two nights and one day in the study regardless of his shoulder injury.
On the fourth day of July, before dawn, Ji Lingchuan finally put down his pen and let out a long breath.
This book, "Miscellaneous Notes of Yangshan", which described the scenery and strange people and events in the border areas, was finally completed.