Longing for Love (Twice Reborn) - Chapter 18

With the arrival of May, the overcast skies that had shrouded Shangdu throughout spring finally parted to reveal a glimmer of golden light.

The floods had finally subsided, and the people afflicted by the epidemic gradually recovered, slowly emerging from their makeshift shelters.

Shangdu’s ordeal, though perilous, had passed without disaster and was about to turn a new page.

As the imperial envoy, Song Mi still needed to remain behind to oversee the final arrangements for the aftermath. Yuan Zheng, however, could lead his troops back to the capital and report ahead of schedule.

Before his departure, Yuan Zheng stood holding his horse’s reins, lost in thought, his brow slightly furrowed as he let out a long sigh.

Lu Feng, hearing the sigh laden with unspoken meaning, couldn’t help but ask.

Known for his easygoing nature, Lu Feng was on friendly terms with most of the aristocratic youths of their generation in the capital including Yuan Zheng.

Familiarity bred casualness in their conversation.

Yuan Zheng voiced his worries: “I have to return to the southern frontier first to fetch Xuyang.”

Since Princess Xuyang had married him in Dongdu and followed him back to the Yunnan Prince’s estate in accordance with tradition “marry a chicken, follow a chicken; marry a dog, follow a dog” she had paid respects to their ancestors.

During their time in the southern frontier, Xuyang had suffered from constant discomfort with the climate and had clashed fiercely with his mother, nearly reaching the point of mutual hostility. After much deliberation, Yuan Zheng decided it was best for her to return to the capital and reside in her princess manor, sparing them both the tension of being forced together and leaving him caught in the middle.

Having contributed greatly to maintaining Shangdu’s defenses and governance during this period, Yuan Zheng deserved due recognition. Song Mi, seeing him off, did not miss a single word of promised rewards or formal pleasantries.

Yet upon learning that Yuan Zheng was going to fetch Xuyang, the normally reserved Prince Pengshan, who never interfered in others’ private lives, unexpectedly inquired, “You’ve been here so many days why haven’t you received any letters from Xuyang?”

Yuan Zheng froze, then smiled bitterly. “Our relationship isn’t the best.

She’d rather I stay out of her sight.”

Song Mi’s voice deepened. “Not the best?”

The moment the words fell, the surrounding temperature seemed to plummet, an inexplicable chill permeating the air.

Meeting Song Mi’s icy gaze, Yuan Zheng’s vision swam as he suddenly smacked his forehead.

He had nearly forgotten! Though they were the same age, by seniority, Song Mi was Xuyang’s uncle and by bl00d, her elder half-brother from the same mother!
As the saying went, a mother’s brother held great authority…

Cold sweat broke out on Yuan Zheng’s forehead as he hastily added, “But I’ve always yielded to her! Between us, if she says east, I’d never dare go west.”

Yet inwardly, he couldn’t help but muse. In his memory, though Prince Pengshan and Xuyang shared the same mother, they had almost no interaction.

Mainly because Xuyang’s family background was… complicated, to say the least.

Putting himself in Song Mi’s shoes, Yuan Zheng would completely understand if the prince harbored resentment toward this sister and never wished to see her again. But if Song Mi showed even the slightest concern despite past grievances, he’d accept it wholeheartedly.

After hearing his explanation, Song Mi merely gave a slight nod.

Yuan Zheng mounted his horse and urged it forward. After riding several meters, he glanced back at his brother-in-law’s figure still tall and imposing, his handsome features as cold and grave as ever, not a trace of relief in sight.

——

By late May, Dongdu entered the rainy season.

Drizzling mist shrouded the city, thick and unyielding.

The entire capital was blanketed in a vast expanse of white, and even the usually bustling Golden Market had grown unusually quiet.

At the second mark of the mao hour, before the morning light could pierce through the veil of clouds, a carriage rumbled down Suzaku Avenue, heading toward the southern gate.

Before long, it came to a halt before the eastern city gate’s checkpoint.

Juchen lifted her skirt as she alighted from the carriage. Raising her eyes to the drizzling rain, she took the umbrella handle from Mingluan’s hands, freeing her up. “Take another one,” she said.

The rain was coming down heavily. If they shared a single umbrella, Mingluan would inevitably get her shoulders wet while trying to keep Juchen dry. With the weather so unpredictable lately, catching a chill would be troublesome.

Mingluan understood her intentions perfectly. She quickly opened another umbrella and couldn’t help but step forward to adjust the collar of Juchen’s cicada silk blouse. Frowning, she said, “The young master clearly wrote in his letter that he wouldn’t arrive until at least the si hour. Why did you come so early in the morning?”

And dressed so lightly at that.

Juchen reached up to touch the pearl hairpin at her temple, answering a question with another question. “Is my hair messy?”

Mingluan’s brow twitched in exasperation. “It’s perfectly neat.”

“Does it look nice?”

“When have you ever not looked nice?”

Satisfied with the response, a faint smile appeared at the corners of Juchen’s lips as she recalled the official document submitted to the court by the Prince of Pengshan, stating that he would return to the capital today.

But he hadn’t specified the exact time. She feared that if she rose too late, she might miss him.

Amid the silent drizzle, Juchen stood by the city gate under her umbrella, craning her neck to gaze down the official road ahead.

She waited like this until noon.

As the surrounding earth grew increasingly muddy and the chill in the air deepened, Mingluan grew concerned about her catching cold. She glanced at the few stalls sheltered under the city gate’s eaves. “Shall we return to the carriage to rest? I’ll buy you some warm pastries.”

Juchen shifted her slightly aching legs and hesitated for a moment before nodding. Gripping the umbrella handle, she had just turned around when….
Suddenly, the rhythmic sound of disciplined hoofbeats approached from behind.

Juchen instinctively turned her head. Squinting through the misty rain, she could see the riders clad in straw raincoats and bamboo hats, their faces obscured.

Yet for some reason, her heart began to pound violently, her feet rooted to the spot, unwilling to move.

In an instant, several magnificent steeds came galloping into view.

Song Mi had been racing toward the eastern capital with his guards when, upon rounding a bend in the official road, he spotted a few vendors and two young women holding umbrellas near the city gate.

At first, he paid them no mind until the moment they passed each other, when his gaze inadvertently met hers.

With just that one glance, before he could even process it, his hands had already instinctively tightened on the reins.

The magnificent steed let out a long whinny, circling in place.

Juchen lifted the edge of her umbrella, revealing her lovely face in full, her lips curving slightly as she parted them to greet him.

But just then, from further down the road, came a clear, youthful voice: “A-Chen!”

Juchen turned instinctively to see Yuan Zheng riding hurriedly through the heavy rain, followed by an ornate carriage. Inside, a girl suddenly drew back the window curtain and beamed at her with a radiant smile.

Juchen’s eyes lit up with delight. “Ranran!”

Princess Xuyang couldn’t wait any longer despite the drizzling rain. She halted her carriage and rushed over without even an umbrella, immediately clinging to her while chattering excitedly in her ear, “Ahhh, I’ve missed you so much!”

“You have no idea how bored I was in the southern frontier no one to play with, and they kept speaking words I couldn’t understand.”

“The climate didn’t suit me either endless summers without winter. My skin even darkened.”

“The food was awful too. Can’t you see I’ve lost so much weight…?”

So, she had come to fetch Xuyang.

Song Mi tightened the reins, silently observing the two girls embracing from behind without interrupting. After a brief pause, he raised his reins to leave when Yuan Zheng noticed him and hurried over with a bow. “Uncle… I mean, Your Highness.”

Xuyang turned in surprise at his greeting and only then noticed the striking figure of her celestial-like ninth uncle astride his steed nearby. Instantly releasing her embrace, she adopted the same dignified royal bearing as his, as if to preserve his dignity before others, and respectfully addressed him, “Uncle.”

Song Mi gave a slight nod. Xuyang murmured timidly, “Why are you here, Uncle?”

“I returned to the capital today to report on my duties.”

Xuyang let out a soft “Oh,” then smiled gently. “What a coincidence I’m heading to see Mother as well. Shall we travel together? It would be safer that way.”

Her voice grew increasingly hesitant toward the end, though the calculating thoughts behind her words were so transparent that Juchen couldn’t help covering a faint smile with her hand.

Xuyang’s strained relationship with her mother-in-law at the Yunnan Prince’s residence had escalated to the point of her returning to the capital for an extended stay. Though the Empress Dowager couldn’t bear to see her only daughter suffer and had granted her wish, a scolding was inevitable.

Xuyang knew she would face punishment upon entering the palace, but with Song Mi present, her mother’s attention would surely be divided. From years of observing the Empress Dowager, Xuyang was certain she would not reprimand her in front of Song Mi. Even as a child, her mother’s mood always lifted during palace banquets whenever he appeared. Once, when Xuyang had shattered a prized porcelain vase while playing, her mother had not even been angry.

Song Mi glanced almost imperceptibly at Juchen before nodding in agreement.

Along the way, Song Mi and Yuan Zheng rode ahead while the two girls chatted and laughed inside the carriage.

After the late Emperor had his heir, he longed for a daughter with the Empress Dowager. From birth, Xuyang became the cherished jewel of the entire Liang dynasty.

Such indulgence inevitably bred willfulness. Watching her daughter grow increasingly arrogant under the late Emperor’s doting, the Empress Dowager feared she would raise a little tyrant. After sleepless nights of deliberation, she steeled herself and sent Xuyang out of the palace to the residence of Lady Xianning for discipline.

Lady Xianning, the first female scholar recorded in Liang’s history, was gentle yet strict where the Emperor and Empress hesitated to punish, Xuyang received no leniency under her tutelage. The private academy at Xianning’s residence was renowned, attracting talented youths from noble families vying to enroll their children.

Among the many girls sent there, Lady Xianning selected Juchen to be Xuyang’s companion.

Later, when Juchen grew up, she once asked Princess Xianning why, among all the noble daughters from prestigious families, she had chosen her someone rather unremarkable.

With a smile playing on her lips, Princess Xianning tapped Juchen’s nose and said, “Because that day, when Xuyang snatched the doll from your hands, you pouted and snatched it right back without hesitation. No matter how much she fussed, you ignored her until she took your little hand and asked nicely if she could borrow it. Only then did you give it to her.”

Juchen had been just two years old at the time and had no memory of it.

Hearing this now, she could only marvel at how bold she must have been, daring to treat the imperial princess of Daliang like that.

By the time Juchen had formed childhood memories, she had already become Xuyang’s partner in crime getting caned together, sneaking cheat sheets for exams, and growing up as inseparable as two little green plums.

Inside the carriage, after nearly half a year apart, Xuyang grabbed Juchen’s hand and looked her up and down. Noticing she was wearing the coral colored peony patterned gauze dress she had gifted her last year, she gushed without restraint, “You look absolutely stunning today! Especially in this dress it perfectly highlights your heavenly beauty, fair skin, delicate waist, and long legs.”

Juchen chuckled in agreement. “Well, it is my prettiest dress, after all.”

“Of course it is!” Xuyang declared without hesitation.

The two shared a laugh. As Juchen smoothed her sleeves, she couldn’t help but steal a glance through the carriage curtain at Song Mi’s retreating figure outside.

Three months had passed since they last met. When he first saw her today, had he thought she looked… nice?

Perhaps her gaze was too intense, because the man leisurely riding his horse outside seemed to sense it. He suddenly turned his head.

Heat rushed to Juchen’s face. Caught off guard, she quickly averted her eyes to the person beside him, pretending she had merely been looking outside.

Following her line of sight, Song Mi glanced sideways at Yuan Zheng.

Her attire today was unusually refined, clearly the result of deliberate effort quite different from her usual style. He had noticed it the moment he saw her at the city gates.

But now, it seemed her meticulous, eye catching preparations… were all for the sake of the Yuan heir?