That person clutched his head in pain, speaking with both distress and great nervousness, “I was just speaking casually.”

His voice carried fear!

The storyteller said, “Alright, let’s continue talking about that living bodhisattva.”

He continued narrating colorfully.

Little did the storyteller know that right there in this teahouse, Jingrong and Ji Yunshu were also listening to his “nonsense.”

Hearing these words, Jingrong was completely immodest.

“This prince is not just a living bodhisattva, but a celestial immortal.”

Ji Yunshu had just taken a sip of tea and nearly spat it out.

“The bodhisattva they’re talking about is female. Don’t tell me you’re female now? Almond eyes, cherry lips, willow-leaf eyebrows and a refined nose? All I see is your thick eyebrows and large eyes.”

“Are you saying this prince is ugly?”

“They say the dragon’s son is handsome beyond measure. How could you be ugly?”

Jingrong smiled.

He continued listening to the storyteller over there spouting nonsense.

Ji Yunshu asked him, “The matter of the disaster relief silver has come to a conclusion. What do you plan to do next?”

“With nothing to burden me, I’ll take this time to enjoy myself properly.” His tone was lazy as he took a sip of tea.

Across from him, Ji Yunshu’s expression was grave as she uttered half a sentence, “Then about your return to the capital…”

At this mention, Jingrong fell silent for a moment before saying, “There’s no way I can return to the capital anytime soon. If Father Emperor sees that letter and knows this case cannot be solved, he might issue an order for this prince to remain in Yu Prefecture forever. If you decide to set out and return to the capital to investigate the Linjing Case, this prince will send Lang Bo and others to escort you back. They can stay by your side and look after you on this prince’s behalf.”

Ji Yunshu: “Back then you said that you and I would return to the capital together. I cannot leave first. Moreover, His Majesty’s decree hasn’t come down yet, so everything is still uncertain.”

“But what if…”

“There are no ‘what ifs.’ You will definitely return to the capital.” She was very firm.

Jingrong smiled without saying anything.

The two left the teahouse and strolled through the streets, where they encountered someone selling lanterns.

Jingrong immediately pulled her over.

“What would you two young masters like?”

“Do you have sky lanterns?”

“Of course! I have as many as you want.”

“Give me one.”

“Right away.”

The shopkeeper quickly retrieved a sky lantern, prepared it, and handed it to him, saying, “Young master, thirty wen.”

Jingrong took out silver and gave it to him.

Ji Yunshu didn’t understand and asked, “What are you buying this for?”

“Buying a lantern, naturally to light it.”

That made sense!

He then smiled with deep meaning and said, “Wei Yi told me that in the past when you were in Jinjiang, you once released a sky lantern together. So this prince also wants to release one with you.”

Oh!

So that was it.

Ji Yunshu lowered her eyes and smiled. Put plainly, this young man was secretly jealous again.

So that night, the two lit the lantern in the courtyard.

Little Xiyue also came over. She was carrying a lantern in her hand, circling around the courtyard. Seeing Qiao’er and Zhuang’er bringing out brush and ink, she quickly ran over to grab a brush and began writing and drawing on her own lantern.

She was very focused.

Zhuang’er asked with a smile, “Little Xiyue, your lantern won’t fly up to the sky. What’s the use of writing on it?”

“To give to my brother.” She kept her head down, continuing to write and draw.

It was quite amusing.

Zhuang’er stopped asking and stood beside her watching her write.

Qiao’er took the brush and ink to Ji Yunshu and Jingrong’s side, saying, “Your Highness, sir, here’s the brush and ink you requested.”

The two had just propped up the sky lantern.

It was very large!

The craftsmanship was exquisite!

“What did you write on the sky lantern last time?” Jingrong turned his head to ask her.

She picked up the brush and dipped it in ink. “If I tell you, won’t it lose its effectiveness? Anyway, you write yours, I’ll write mine. No one is allowed to peek.”

With that, she began writing on the sky lantern.

Jingrong smiled and shook his head, his eyes full of adoration, then also picked up a brush to write.

After a short while, both finished their work.

As for what was actually written on it, neither asked the other.

The fuse was lit, and the two stood facing each other with the large sky lantern between them.

“Yunshu.” He called her name softly.

“Mm?”

She couldn’t see him, much less make out Jingrong’s features clearly. She could only see the faint flickering shadow on the opposite side through the brightly lit sky lantern before her.

After a long pause, his voice came.

“Nothing, just calling your name.”

“Oh!”

She couldn’t help but smile.

That sky lantern then slowly separated from their hands, rising bit by bit.

Under the inky sky, that ball of firelight grew smaller and smaller…

On the sky lantern, one side read “Live and die together, share the same tomb.”

The other side was written in modern Chinese characters: “Stay by your side, sleep in the same tomb together.”

Fourteen characters, written very beautifully.

The meaning was essentially the same.

The moment the sky lantern was released, Jingrong couldn’t wait to see what she had written, but those Chinese characters were completely incomprehensible to him.

His brows furrowed deeply several times.

“Are those characters? Or flowers?”

Ji Yunshu smiled. “Flowers.”

“Flowers?” Jingrong was completely confused by her answer.

He craned his neck upward with all his might, stretching it long to look…

Ji Yunshu secretly laughed and walked over to little Xiyue’s side.

She was still holding the brush, continuously writing and drawing on the lantern.

Her characters were very elegant and neat, but her drawings were somewhat crooked and shapeless.

“What are you writing?”

“I want to make a lantern for my brother. He used to love lanterns so much. There were many lanterns in his room and courtyard. But a few years ago, he suddenly threw away all the lanterns. He never lit another lantern in his room again. So I want to make one for him.”

“He used to love lanterns?”

“Yes, very much. Every time he came back, he would be carrying a lantern in his hand, then hang it in his room. He cherished them so much and wouldn’t let anyone touch them. He always lit the lanterns himself.”

In that case, Wen Xian must have been quite a romantic person.

Xiyue finished drawing and lifted up the lantern.

She said very happily, “The pattern on here is what my brother used to love most. Every lantern he brought back had this kind of flower on it.”

On the lantern was written a line: “A gentleman pays respect to life and his beloved is present.”

Beside it were two relatively clear zisang flowers, though their shapes were crooked.

But they were still recognizable.

Zisang flowers were love flowers.

If Ji Yunshu remembered correctly, she had once accompanied a team that opened a tomb in a small county town in Zhangzhou. In a joint burial coffin, they discovered seeds of the long-extinct zisang flower. Everyone present was extremely excited and immediately sent the zisang flower seeds to the research institute. It was said that after a month, the seeds bloomed.

Those flowers looked just like the two that little Xiyue had drawn on this lantern.

Red with hints of white!

White with hints of pink!

The colors were very beautiful!

Unfortunately, Ji Yunshu had only seen them once at that time.

And all of Wen Xian’s lanterns had zisang flowers on them. Presumably, they were all gifts from Miss Ye’er.