The following morning, when Jing Zhe helped Jiang Zhiyi rise and prepare herself, she noticed her mistress’s half-closed eyes and weary appearance, as if she hadn’t rested well.
Considering that Lord Shen’s letter had arrived quite early the previous night, and that Jiang Zhiyi had not stayed up waiting for it but retired early, Jing Zhe asked while helping her dress, “Did the Princess sleep late last night?”
Jiang Zhiyi yawned casually and gave a noncommittal “Mm,” extending her arms into the sleeves of her spring robe.
“If you couldn’t sleep, might there be something on your mind?”
Jiang Zhiyi’s dressing motions faltered slightly, and the drowsiness on her face dissipated: “…What would I have on my mind? I simply took too long a nap yesterday afternoon.”
Jing Zhe gazed at her quietly for a moment, then guided her to sit at the dressing table and began combing her hair: “Gu Yu told me that you sent a reply to the Young General last night.”
“It wasn’t much of a letter, just one sentence!” Jiang Zhiyi blinked rapidly. “I merely thought Gu Yu made sense. If he delays his return and my uncle’s escort arrives, am I supposed to wait for him to come back before I can leave…”
“The Young General hasn’t confined you. Once the Marquis’s people arrive, we can depart immediately. Whether Lord Shen is here or not shouldn’t matter, should it?”
Jiang Zhiyi cleared her throat lightly: “As the saying goes, courtesy demands reciprocity. If he had restricted my movements, I would certainly leave without a word, given the chance. But since he has treated me with respect, I should at least bid him farewell in person before departing. That would be the proper conduct of someone with breeding.”
“So you wish for his return only because you hope that when the Marquis’s people arrive, you can formally bid him farewell at the earliest opportunity, leaving naturally—parting ways amicably with no lingering attachments?”
As if stung by certain words, Jiang Zhiyi’s eyelashes trembled, and she froze before the bronze mirror.
“After returning to the capital and breaking off the engagement, he will continue as Young General in Hexi while you resume your life as a Princess in Chang’an. From then on, you’ll each live at opposite ends of the world, with nothing more to do with each other?”
Jiang Zhiyi’s throat constricted, and her hand resting on the dressing table clenched tightly.
“In the future, should you meet a worthy man, you could arrange a new engagement, and the Young General might also find someone new…”
“He’s not allowed!” Jiang Zhiyi blurted out.
Jing Zhe’s hand, holding the sandalwood comb, paused at the ends of her hair.
Jiang Zhiyi’s gaze flickered briefly, and she slowly straightened her back: “What I mean is… with all those secrets he carries, our accidental entanglement was one thing, but how dare he go and harm someone else?”
“But Chang’an is so far from Hexi, and you’ve already broken your engagement. If he truly wishes to harm someone else, you wouldn’t be able to stop him, would you?”
Jiang Zhiyi furrowed her brow, crossing her arms in anger.
“Princess, I’m merely speculating. Please don’t be upset with me for speaking out of turn. These past days, I’ve watched you and the Young General—at first, your attitude toward him softened, and I worried you sympathized with his background and were yielding to him. I thought if you stayed due to momentary compassion, conflicts would inevitably resurface between you… But in these days of his absence, I’ve noticed your distraction and restlessness, and now I worry that if you leave out of stubborn pride, you might find yourself unhappy after parting with the Young General…”
Jiang Zhiyi gazed absently at the unhappy face reflected in the mirror.
Jing Zhe finished arranging her hair and set down the comb: “Your sleeplessness last night suggests you’ve been pondering these matters. Whatever decision you make, I will accompany you. I only hope you don’t stay out of mere compassion or leave out of sheer obstinacy, as either would surely lead to regret.”
After breakfast, Jiang Zhiyi took Yuan Tuan to the courtyard to bask in the sunlight as usual.
In late spring, wearing a thin spring garment no longer brought any chill. Jiang Zhiyi sat on the swing with Yuan Tuan in her arms, enjoying the gentle breeze while quietly reflecting on Jing Zhe’s words. After contemplating for a while, seeing no one around, she suddenly lowered her head and called out: “Yuan Tuan.”
Yuan Tuan flicked his white ears and raised his head.
Jiang Zhiyi stroked his forehead: “Have you ever encountered a fierce and frightening dog?”
Yuan Tuan looked at her with his tongue lolling out, appearing rather confused.
Jiang Zhiyi continued, raising her eyes: “If there were a vicious dog who was once cruel to you, who kept you locked in his cage and wouldn’t let you out, you’d be frightened and want to escape, right? You’d lose your temper with him, but he’d say he confined you because he enjoyed your company… At first, you certainly wouldn’t believe him, would you?”
“But later, he seems to realize his mistake and gradually improves, becoming gentler, fawning over you every day. Little by little, you begin to forget his fierce demeanor and start to feel that perhaps he truly likes you. And you discover he remembers so many things you once said to him, so many things you did together. You realize he may have liked you long ago…”
“So perhaps his initial confinement of you wasn’t entirely because he feared you might harm him—perhaps he truly liked you as well. Maybe these two reasons each accounted for a certain percentage… If that were the case, would you want to forgive him?”
As Jiang Zhiyi finished speaking, she looked down to find Yuan Tuan had nodded off, drowsily lying on her lap. Far from not understanding, he simply hadn’t been listening.
Jiang Zhiyi let out a sigh, and when she looked up again, she saw San Qi standing uncertainly at the courtyard entrance, peering inside. She straightened with a start: “When did you arrive?”
San Qi hurried forward, bowing with lowered head: “In reply to the Princess, this servant just arrived. Seeing no one in the courtyard but hearing speech, I feared something might be amiss and came to check.”
“…I was talking to Yuan Tuan.”
“This servant thought he heard something about forgiveness…”
Jiang Zhiyi lifted her chin slightly: “Yuan Tuan was bullied by an outside dog a few days ago. I wasn’t sure if he wanted to forgive and play with the other dog, so I was asking him.”
“I see, but Yuan Tuan can’t speak, so asking won’t help…” San Qi scratched his head. “If the Princess wishes to know, this servant has a way.”
Jiang Zhiyi asked curiously: “What way?”
“Whether to forgive depends on whether Yuan Tuan likes the other dog. You should let them get close to each other and see if Yuan Tuan rubs against the other. When dogs want to make friends, their bodies are most honest.”
Whether they like each other, the body is most honest…
Jiang Zhiyi repeated San Qi’s words to herself, furrowing her brow and blinking thoughtfully.
That evening before retiring, Jiang Zhiyi received another letter delivered by San Qi.
Yuan Ce’s journey had first taken him northwest to Ganzhou, then southeast to Shanzhou and Lanzhou, before circling back to Liangzhou in a counterclockwise route.
Three days earlier, he had written that he had reached Jincheng in Lanzhou. In today’s letter, he detailed his itinerary there, extensively describing the translucent steamed rice noodles he had eaten, elaborating on the perfect combination of salty, sour, fragrant, spicy, and savory flavors in the sauce. After a lengthy discourse on how delicious the noodles were, he mentioned that the local governor had invited him to visit nearby towns. Thinking he could enjoy a few more bowls of noodles, and since she had told him “to return slowly when the flowers bloom along the path,” he decided to delay his return.
“…”
Jiang Zhiyi read this with wide-eyed disbelief. Liangzhou and Lanzhou were only a few hundred li apart, so their cuisines must be similar. She couldn’t believe that after living in Liangzhou for nineteen years, he had never tasted steamed rice noodles!
A mere bowl of noodles had delayed his return! And she had just told Yuan Tuan that this man had liked her for a long time—what kind of affection was this, exactly?
And that line about “returning slowly”—did she truly mean for him to return slowly? How could he misunderstand something so simple?
It was like a scholar meeting a soldier—utterly pointless conversation!
Jiang Zhiyi stuffed the letter into a box and forcefully shut the lid, her chest heaving with anger.
To think that earlier today, she had desperately sought counsel from a dog about her feelings! Perhaps she should empty her mind of these matters and simply get some proper sleep!
Jiang Zhiyi climbed onto the bed, pulled up the quilt, and closed her eyes in vexation.
Perhaps due to her anger, Jiang Zhiyi’s sleep was restless as she tossed and turned. When she finally did fall asleep, her dreams were filled with steamed rice noodles.
In her dream, she asked Jing Zhe and Gu Yu what was for breakfast, and they replied, “Steamed rice noodles.”
At lunchtime, she asked what was for the midday meal, and they again answered, “Steamed rice noodles.”
By evening, she protested that surely they couldn’t have steamed rice noodles again for dinner, to which they responded that the Young General had brought back so many steamed rice noodles that the entire estate was filled with them, and if they didn’t eat them, disaster would strike!
Infuriated and dizzy with anger, Jiang Zhiyi slammed her hand down hard on the table.
But instead of hitting the solid tabletop, her hand struck something both hard and soft. Simultaneously, a muffled groan sounded beside her ear.
Jiang Zhiyi opened her eyes in confusion. Turning her head, she saw someone lying beside her bed. Before she could gasp and scramble away, she recognized the face turned toward her, bearing a weary expression.
“Jiang Zhiyi,” Yuan Ce pressed his fist against his lower abdomen, an inch above where her blow had nearly landed. “Sleeping with you is quite dangerous.”
Jiang Zhiyi’s eyes widened gradually as she sat up with disheveled hair, looking around to confirm she was indeed in her bedchamber in the deep of night when she had fallen asleep.
“How are you here? Weren’t you eating steamed rice noodles in Jincheng…” Jiang Zhiyi lowered her head in astonishment, tilting to examine the man she hadn’t seen in half a month. She noticed dark circles under his eyes, as if he had traveled a long way without rest, though he had changed into clean casual attire and smelled of the fresh soap he had used to bathe.
Yuan Ce recovered from the “nightmare” of her sudden strike. Seeing her blinking eyes, he pulled her down in one swift motion.
With a surprised “Ah!” Jiang Zhiyi tumbled crookedly down, her head landing on the pillow as he drew her into his embrace.
Yuan Ce turned to lie on his side facing her: “After you asked me to return, why would I still be eating steamed rice noodles?”
His sturdy arm behind her back, his chest pressing against hers, his face a breath away—Jiang Zhiyi’s breathing tightened, every inch of her tensing from the tips of her hair to her toes. She barely moved her lips: “But you said yourself…”
“I wanted to surprise you, but didn’t expect you’d be asleep so early tonight.”
“So when you received my letter—”
“I was eager to return, spurring my horse to gallop back as quickly as possible.” Yuan Ce fixed his gaze on her eyes.
Jiang Zhiyi’s gaze softened as she looked at him, her heart surging in waves.
Yuan Ce narrowed his eyes: “I rode horseback for a day and a night, just for that look in your eyes?”
“What else do you want…” Jiang Zhiyi raised her hand to rub her itchy nose.
Yuan Ce’s gaze followed her hand downward: “What do you think?”
Realizing where his eyes had landed, her blood surged like a breaking dam. Jiang Zhiyi opened her mouth to say “dream on,” but suddenly remembered something and reconsidered.
“I say…” Jiang Zhiyi swallowed nervously, “It’s not impossible, but… I need to experiment first.”
Yuan Ce raised an eyebrow, his face questioning: “What experiment?”
She wanted to test whether, without the chaos of assassination attempts, without the intoxication of peach and apricot blossoms, without the allure of romantic novels—with just him, plainly and simply himself—what answer her honest body would give her.
“Anyway… lie still and don’t move.” Jiang Zhiyi pointed to the bed.
Yuan Ce hesitantly released her and lay flat on his back.
Jiang Zhiyi sat up, brushing her black hair to one side. After gathering her courage in the empty air, she took a deep breath. Just as she was about to lean down toward him, seeing his unwavering gaze fixed upon her, she raised her hand and covered his eyes.
Yuan Ce blinked in the darkness of her palm, feeling her seemingly regulate her breathing before gradually leaning closer to him, only to stop a hair’s breadth away.
Yuan Ce opened his mouth, about to ask what experiment she intended to conduct—
A soft, moist warmth grazed his lower lip.
Like a thunderclap, fire surged to the top of his head.
Had she just… licked him?