Boom--
There was a clap of thunder followed by a sudden downpour.
Pedestrians on the road fled to the nearby houses where they stood under the eaves for shelter.
In the rain, a little figure was staggering about.
"Brother, where are you—
"Hu'er can't find you. Come out!"
A little girl was crying and wiping her teary face while she dragged her cold and exhausted body along the street.
Who?
Who is calling him?
Within the haziness, a cold little thing squeezed into his arms.
"Brother! Wake up! Wake up!
"Hu'er is here, look at Hu'er!
"Wuwu, you can't die. You're not allow to die, do you hear me?!"
It hurts. His heart felt like it was being pricked by needles, but the voice in his ear kept echoing inside.
A familiar voice.
Who is calling out to him?
He endured the headache and tried to open his eyes.
The small pink face with crystal teardrops and lips twisted into a pitiful expression called him distressfully.
Wei Yu was stunned.
This is... his five-year-old childhood sweetheart?
The girl was still immersed in the sorrow of his death. She cried as if using up all the tears in her life.
He reached out and pinched the little girl's cheek hard.
"Ah–it hurts!"
The person stopped crying and immediately screamed from the pain.
"So it's not a dream," Wei Yu murmured.
He... went back in time.
Back to the year he was ten.
The starting point of the story.
She was innocent and ignorant.
He was mature and calculating.
If he starts all over, will it all be different?
"What dream? Brother, you pinched Hu'er really hard!"
The little girl complained with tears in her eyes.
"Achoo—"
She suddenly sneezed then rubbed her nose, which had reddened from the cold.
A piece of clothing was draped over the little girl's back.
"Brother?" She stared at him blankly. "Aren't you cold?"
"A little, but I'll feel bad if you catch a cold." The boy answered seriously. His eyes were brimming with uneasy emotions.
"Then...wear it together. That way, we won't catch a cold!"
She simply lifted a corner of her robe and beckoned him to sit closer.
"I'm afraid it won't cover us both. Why don't I hold you, then we can both warm up," he said in a calm voice.
"All right!"
The little girl obediently climbed onto his lap and made herself comfortable.
He trembled as he held the person in his arms.
It was wonderful.
If this was a dream, may he never wake up.
"Brother, you're shaking. Are you cold?" She didn't know the ups and downs in the other party's heart. She was still young and asked naïvely.
"It's not cold. With Hu'er here, how can I be cold?"
He turned his face and placed a light kiss on her ear, which made her giggle. Pushing him away, she said, "That tickles, Brother! Stop making trouble! Please!"
Two people fought for a long time.
The little girl was yawning as she talked and couldn't help falling asleep on his chest. Slowly, her hands on her on his shoulders slipped down.
He hugged her carefully and covered her well.
The sound of rain gradually ceased.
The golden bells under the eaves swayed in the drizzle, making a crisp and pleasant sound. In the distance were cascading mountains that resembled a beauty's painted eyebrows. Green willows softened in the misty rain, and the dropping tails of a few swallows swept across the serene lake.
Going back to the past, we had met on a rainy day.
She fell asleep in my arms.
A suspicious liquid was leaking out from the corner of her mouth.
Wei Yu was dumbfounded.
Having gotten so used to her graceful side, the sudden appearance of her childhood was quite the contrast.
He stretched out his finger and gently wiped her saliva.
Sleep well, my little bride.
Five years, ten years, I will patiently wait for you to grow up.
Then, we'll bind our hair on our wedding night, never to part again.
He thought of the day he places the phoenix crown on her head. She will be remarkable.
In this way, Wei Yu unabatingly watched over her for ten years.
He taught her how to play chess and how to paint.
He blocked all the crafty plots and machinations in the deep manor for her.
He watched her transform from a naïve and ignorant young child into a feminine beauty. The matchmakers were rushing to break through the door and pair her with the famous young talents in the capital.
But Linlang never gave in.
She was waiting for someone.
It was now another year where the grass grew tall and the nightingales were in flight. The eldest miss was about to celebrate her seventeenth birthday.
On the day Zhou Manor held a banquet, the city gates were opened wide, through which a handsome general returned in great triumph. The whole nation was in celebration. The emperor broke the longstanding tradition of succeeding the throne to the eldest son and canonized Wei Yu as the crown prince. He was to live in the East Palace from now on.
The ministers were all in favor of this outcome. After all, the third prince had both integrity and talent. He was also a master in both civil and military matters. Simply put, he was the best candidate for the crown prince!
As for that eldest prince who idled through life with no ambition, while he had a powerful maternal family, it was not worth mentioning before the third prince's outstanding military feats!
The civil and military officials, who carried gifts to the East Palace in congratulations, could not find the protagonist.
That was because, at that moment, their newly-minted crown prince was tucking the corners of his robe to climb over the Zhou family's wall.
As the young miss grew more beautiful by the day, the Zhou family worried there would be mishaps and so built the walls very high up, much to the bitterness of His Royal Highness.
Bump––
A heavy object fell to the ground.
The young lady skillfully closed her book and stopped the maid who was about to go out and check. She smiled, saying, "Yu'er, go brew a pot of tea for me. A guest is about to arrive."
Yu'er was a newcomer. She couldn't understand her master's smile but thought it was better to be sensible, and so she obediently went to make tea without asking questions.
Linlang tightened her collar and walked over to see the youth jump to his feet like a carp and then brush off the grass and dust on his body.
"Brother, your appearance is always so special." Linlang greeted him and removed the leaves in his hair.
The man grabbed her hand and gently slid a cool mutton jade bracelet through it. After examining her from top to bottom, he said with a smile, "Brother knew jade would suit you."
However, Linlang was more concerned about the wound on his palm. "It's so deep, does it hurt?"
"It really hurts, but it won't if you blow on it." The young prince pretended to be pitiful.
Linlang glared at him. "If you know it hurts, why didn't you protect yourself before?" Although she complained like this, the girl lowered her head and carefully blew over his wound.
He was watching her quietly. Her face had become more beautiful, and the cinnabar between his brows was eye-catching. She began to resemble the noble consort in his mind as the days passed. Every frown and smile was full of elegance.
Wei Yu couldn't wait to marry her back.
He was now the crown prince, and the former emperor has become an idle prince who only cared to enjoy the spring scenery1.
The biggest stumbling block has already been eliminated. No one can hinder their future.
Therefore, he can willfully announce to the world that this will be his wife and his only empress.
Wei Yu no longer wanted to suppress his feelings.
He wanted this person to know the sincere and fervent admiration he held for her and that he had the ability to promise her a lifetime of wealth and glory.
"Hu'er, Brother wants to tell you something."
The man was a little apprehensive. This earnest confession was going to be the first one in this life. He was more nervous than the time he captured the enemy leader's head.
He took a deep breath. "In fact, I—"
"By the way, Brother, is that dummy back?" Linlang asked suddenly.
"Wh-what?"
"Your guard, Lin Fengjun. The one I saw falling into the ditch last time."
As if thinking of something interesting, the girl chuckled. Her eyes were like autumn ripples. This was clearly the look of a girl in love.
Suddenly, he froze, feeling somewhat at a loss.
In the end, he could only listen to the girl's grumble in silence.
"He's so clumsy, he can't even bandage his own wounds. What would he do without this lady!" Linlang said with a melancholic expression, "He's a thorough dummy!"
She couldn't help laughing again, "But the dummy is still endearing."
"Brother, what did you want to say? It seems to be quite important?" She patted his head and quickly showed an expression that she was 'all ears'.
"It's nothing, just an insignificant joke." He smiled faintly.
"What joke? I want to listen, I want to listen! Hurry up and say!" She tugged his sleeves coquettishly like when she was a child.
She loved listening to stories the most.
Every time Wei Yu went to handle affairs in other regions, he got into the habit of sending his subordinates to collect folk stories and jokes. He would polish them himself and then share them with her.
It was just this time, he couldn't say.
"Secret."
He pressed a finger to his lips and winked mischievously at her.
I like you.
It's a secret I can never tell.
She was eighteen when he was twenty-three.
Gongs and drums clamored with ten miles of dowry.
As the eldest brother, he carried her across the brazier.
He delivered the sweetheart he waited for thirteen years to another man.
That night, the new couple's conjugal love took place in the bridal chamber.
That night, the prince was as drunk as a lord then lost consciousness.
Later on, he vanished.
One doesn't know lovesickness until they're assailed with it.
I'm sickened beyond hope, with no more life left to live.
Please, take good care of yourself.