Wang Heiyue had many regrets in life.
One of the top was definitely that one, sunny day.
The weather was torrid, scorching hot and he was drenched with sweat. The tiny crescent bloodied wounds on his palm were throbbing profusely, blood vessels quivering and tingling ever so lightly as if reminding him of its almost-little-to-none existence. His insanity was being questioned severely.
A slight pat on his arm by the one he swore to never associate himself with.
It was a terrible day.
Elements of surprises just seemed to accelerate to the worst from there. Yet, as if in drunken spur, Wang Heiyue shamelessly allowed the situation to flow intrinsically. Only until he made a brief eye contact with Bai Shuyin did he cut the flow off hastily.
A smile. The way the other boy's eyes crinkled on each side and curved up into crescents. The way that boy reached out and took her hands in his to guide her away. To a place that made his gut unconsciously twisted heavily.
His heart weighed like a thousand tons, seeing her walking away like that.
A bad omen.
Rooted in place. Like heavy chains that draped over his shoulders, weighing him down, undoubtedly refraining him from taking any further actions.
It was a terrible day. This one sunny day.
Self-condemnation was the only thing he knew to express.
***
Bai Shuyin was hungry and chose a random packed restaurant, dragging a very willing scholar with her. The restaurant turned out to be one that specialized in concocting lotus roots.
The restaurant had a faint lingering fragrance, similar to the one she was used to at Madam He's Tea House. The place was also filled with the unique scent of lotus seed. Despite smelling and tasting anything that associated itself with lotus daily, which she assumed she should be getting sick of, her stomach didn't have the heart to reject a free meal.
Her mouth even watered at the smell of fresh chilli coming from the kitchen. "Is that spicy stir-fry lotus roots?"
"Welcome, welcome!" A youngster came out of nowhere and stopped at their table, skillfully reporting the restaurant's signature dish. "Yes, yes, yes, you are right! Your sense of smell is incredibly top-notch, Young Miss! That's our signature dish, 'The Impenetrable Four Rivers'!"
Bai Shuyin scrunched her nose at the given name.
The teen interpreted her little action as confusion and threw a question excitedly. "Young Miss, Is this your first time visiting this restaurant?"
Bai Shuyin nodded. Even though she lived here for quite some time, Bai Shuyin wouldn't spend a single money on buying food outside. Why waste money when she could get some free meals from the leftovers?
Even if she did, she normally only bought them for Wang Heiyue.
"If so, you definitely have to give it a chance, Young Miss! Our signature dish here uses lotus roots that are all freshly and delicately picked! Once you have a taste, you will experience heaven!" The young boy convinced them.
"It's sweet and earthy, with a slightly crunchy texture. Twelve different kinds of chili!" The boy wildly gestured with his hands. "Assemble to create the flavor of nirvana–" He continued his well-versed script like he had it memorized at the back of his hand.
"Then we will have it." Wu Jiangfeng cut him off, looking quite intrigued by what the teen said. His eyes sparkled at the mention of lotus roots, making Bai Shuyin pat herself on the back for picking this restaurant, despite randomly.
"Good choice, good choice!" The teen responded merily. "One 'Impenetrable Four River' coming right up!" He called out, skipping away to inform the chefs in the kitchen.
The restaurant was quite crowded, buzzing with customers coming and leaving without stopping. It was good that they managed to slip in and get themselves a vacant spot without much hardship or squeezing in with others.
This made her even more interested in the taste she thought the teen was bluffing about. Was it that good?
However, when she overheard the same speech being recited by the teen; this time from the table next to them, Bai Shuyin rolled her eyes, having a doubt. That young boy had a handwritten script ready and memorized.
A minor but repeated movement under the table caught her attention.
"Is Young Master Wu excited about having this dish?"
Wu Jiangfeng immediately broke off his wiggling leg and straightened his posture, as if remembering who he was in the first place, but Bai Shuyin noticed how the Crown Prince thumped his feet once in a while, unable to hide the giddiness.
"That's right! Lotus roots are the best thing in the world!" The redhead proclaimed like he had declared a decree.
He must have liked lotus roots so greatly that even his fingers couldn't stay calm at all, drumming on the wooden furniture, his eyes kept glancing at the kitchen, hoping their order came out quickly. She sniffled a laugh every time his face turned discontented when every dish that appeared was served to another table.
Besides the cold night, the weather in the Li continent was warm all year long, a perfect place for sun-loving plants like the lotus plant. This was probably why it was easy to cultivate lotus roots here. Bai Shuyin leaned against her palm, studying the Crown Prince across her. He must have really like the taste of lotus–
A sudden realization made her scoff, though unheard by the loud buzz of customers, nevertheless, she covered her mouth, hiding the curved lips. It was absurd to think that this might be one of the reasons Southern Wu accepted to form an alliance with Northern Li.
There were countless probable factors, but now Bai Shuyin could safely assume this might be one of them. The Southern Wu had everything but lotus roots, which happened to be their prince's beloved diet, making them a mandatory material to be imported.
Despite much brain power they wield to cultivate the same lotus, the redhead insisted that the lotus from the Li Continent was always the best.
Well, now that he was going to take Li Fantong as his concubine, Wu Jiangfeng would have an abundance of lotus roots in store to satisfy his craving.
And she, herself, needed to find something more promising to offer if she wanted to aim higher than that position. Without realizing, Bai Shuyin pulled on the Crown Prince's sleeve, who turned back and tilted his head in confusion. "Huh?"
"Say… What does Young Master Wu think about the young girl?"