The sweet-scented osmanthus flowers in late autumn attracted people the most. They could be used to brew wine, make sweet osmanthus cakes, brew tea and more. It would depend on a person"s mood as to whether the osmanthus flower products turned out to be elegant or vulgar. Hence, as soon as this season arrived, the commoners in Chang"an City would vie to make some delicious food and drinks using osmanthus flowers as an ingredient to compete with one another. It was also a type of entertainment.
This vibe naturally spread to the Feng Residence as well. The First Lady and the Second Lady gained an interest and brought the maidservants along as they busied themselves in the residence. When Feng Luodi finished counting all the guqins in her room, she saw Scarlet and Jet carrying a bunch of exquisite and tasty-looking sweet osmanthus cakes inside.
"Miss, have a taste. The ones on this side are made by the First Lady. The shape is stylish and the flavour is gentle. The ones on the right side are made by the Second Lady. The shape is small and the look exquisite, so you can eat one in one bite."
Jet was smiling brilliantly as she placed the tray onto the table beside Feng Luodi and introduced the pastries to her one by one.
Feng Luodi smiled as she looked at those few plates of sweet osmanthus cakes and didn"t say anything.
She initially thought that she had a whole lot she"d like to say but, in the end, she couldn"t utter a single word.
"Scarlet, pack some into the food box. We"re going to the Gan Residence."
After staying silent for a while, Feng Luodi finally spoke and stood up. When she saw that she was still dressed in cyan, she panicked a little. Immediately after that, she shook her head and looked at Scarlet instead.
She merely smiled at Jet"s great efforts in recommending the cakes; she wasn"t planning to have a taste.
Seeing this, Jet simply thought that Feng Luodi didn"t like sweet osmanthus cakes and didn"t think too much into it.
On the other hand, Scarlet had a feeling that Feng Luodi didn"t try because she was afraid that once she tried the taste, she wouldn"t be able to bring herself to part with it. This was exactly the same kind of premonition she had had for the past few days.
She couldn"t say anything because her Miss hadn"t done anything up until now.
Feng Luodi and Scarlet went out together and ambled along the bustling streets.
On the way, Scarlet wanted to say something but hesitated while Feng Luodi looked around, wanting to imprint the surrounding scenery into her heart.
When they arrived at the Gan Residence, they could already hear a resonant crying sound before they had stepped into the courtyard. Immediately after that was Gan Qingjia"s bewildered pacifying voice, Qi Jianqiu"s teasing voice, Situ"s aloof voice, as well as Xue Yiqi and Shangguan Yan"s curious and perplexed voices.
She thought that this was a dream. She could only treat this as a dream.
She suppressed the woes that were about to well up and smiled as she entered everyone"s gaze.
"Ah, Luodi, you"re here!"
It had almost been a month since Qi Jianqiu had given birth. She was about to stand up from the soft chair when Gan Qingjia fl.u.s.teredly pa.s.sed the child to the person closest to him, Xue Yiqi, and went to support Qi Jianqiu himself.
As such, the child directly pulled Xue Yiqi"s hair. Although Xue Yiqi was in pain, he didn"t dare to say anything. On the other hand, Shangguan Yan wasn"t pleased upon seeing this. She immediately carried the little girl over to coax her. In the end, the little girl bawled loudly and frightened Shangguan Yan so much that she hastily stuffed her into Situ"s arms.
Situ was just standing at one side, watching a good show just a second ago, but now he was staring at the baby in his arms in a daze.
The little girl didn"t cry nor made a fuss in his arms and looked at Situ with her pair of big round eyes. She even foolishly laughed and waved her little fists around.
This was just like a dream. A dream that she would wake up from.
Feng Luodi smiled as she approached Situ. She merely teased the child in his arms and didn"t take her over.
Gan Qingjia gloomily commented at one side, "My own daughter is smiling at another man instead of her own father. Hmph."
Qi Jianqiu smiled and patted Gan Qingjia, who wasn"t very well-liked by his own daughter. Feng Luodi looked in her direction and Qi Jianqiu said, "You finally arrived. We were simply waiting for you to eat together."
"Together"…what a beautiful word. Everyone was gathered together.
Feng Luodi nodded.
"I forgot the time when I was reading. I brought some of your favourite sweet osmanthus cakes."
The gluttonous Qi Jianqiu immediately cheered in joy. Even though she was already the mother of a child, she still preserved the pureness and innocence everyone was delighted to see. Gan Qingjia had also indeed fulfilled his promise in providing Qi Jianqiu and their child an immaculate world.
Feng Luodi never stopped smiling since arriving here, causing Scarlet next to her to become increasingly uneasy.
"What about me?"
Situ finally pa.s.sed the child in his arms to the impatient Gan Qingjia beside him. As he looked at Gan Qingjia coaxing the little girl, he lowered his head and gazed at Feng Luodi. She was smiling attractively with no traces of gloominess.
"Come to my house for lunch tomorrow."
Feng Luodi raised her head and smiled at him. This was a smile that he"d longed to see for the longest time. After the cold war and sad incidents, he thought that he"d melted the wall around her heart and that everything had returned to how it was in the past.
But he also knew that this was only a facade. This woman before his eyes had already made a decision. He understood Feng Luodi too well. How he wished that he didn"t understand her at all, then he could feel jubilated upon seeing this charming smile without knowing the sorrow behind it.
After having eaten and drunk to their hearts" content, everyone ran to the courtyard. In front of the large cl.u.s.ter of flowers, Shangguan Yan used her red cloth as a weapon while Xue Yiqi held his sword. The two exchanged blows with each other. Rather than exchanging blows, the people watching them felt that they were watching a performance where one danced gracefully while the other performed a sword-dance. A woman dressed in red and a swordsman dressed in blue. They looked so harmonious.
No one cared about their ident.i.ties, whether it was a descendant of a military family or a Supremo of a jianghu faction. Everything looked so splendidly harmonious.
The person with a child had the greatest say. Soon, Qi Jianqiu was in the mood and wanted to see another performance with Feng Luodi playing the guqin and Situ performing a sword dance.
As soon as she suggested this, Gan Qingjia and Xue Yiqi were shocked.
They had seen Feng Luodi play the guqin before. She would also not reject this proposal. But if she wanted Situ to perform a dance with the sword, then that would really be "uh oh". They had only seen Situ using a sword to kill people and never seen him use one to perform.
Gan Qingjia was still thinking about how he should phrase his words to persuade Qi Jianqiu to give up on this notion when Situ accepted the sword from the housekeeper next to him without a word and wielded it.
Feng Luodi had no choice but to ask someone to get the guqin. In front of the flowers, she played the piece Man Jiang Hong[1][2][3]. Regardless of whether the melody carried traces of compa.s.sionate or heroic sentiments, this piece made everyone discover that a guqin and a sword dance could match so harmoniously.
This would be an unforgettable scene. This memory would be deeply engraved in her heart.
When the piece ended, Feng Luodi was asking someone to take the guqin away when Situ walked over and smiled at her.
"Only now did I recall that we haven"t really collaborated before. We will also have the chance in the future, right?"
Feng Luodi raised her head to glance at Situ"s expression and smiled.
"What do you think?"
In outsiders" eyes, this would be a woman"s bashful reply to her lover"s admiration while the misery in it would forever only be known to the people involved.
Everyone played and joked for a long time again before they returned to their respective residence.
Situ naturally sent Feng Luodi back while Fei had come and taken Scarlet away long ago.
The beautiful twilight illuminating Chang"an City was as evocative as ever. Faint mist shrouded the surrounding scenery with golden, purple and red shades blended together to form a gorgeous hue in the sky, making it absolutely magnificent sight.
"The "air" here is really good."
Feng Luodi smiled as she looked at the surrounding scenery. Then, she turned back to glance at Situ who was walking leisurely behind her.
"What does the word "air" mean?" Situ looked at the woman, who could attract him even when she was just taking a walk, and cooperatively asked.
"It"s this." Feng Luodi pointed at thin air. "You can"t see it but it"s a very important thing in your life."
"Then that"s really mystical."
Situ strode forward and approached Feng Luodi again.
She was still smiling sweetly as she stared at the surrounding shops that were very familiar to her. She then continued, "I will cherish the memories, Situ, I will cherish our memories."
Situ remained silent and continued to look at Feng Luodi as she walked forward. Only after a while did he say, "You can keep looking around. Whether it"s this street, Chang"an City or the whole of the Xuan Kingdom, no matter what you want to see, I can take you there."
Feng Luodi was all smiles. Her smile extended everywhere like purple wisteria flowers climbing the rocks everywhere and on the verge of collapse.
"Situ, I"m glad that you"re Situ.
"I, Feng Luodi, love Situ."
The woman in front of him, who was walking backwards, could even say that she liked him without any scruples on the main street in front of everyone. What else did she not dare to do?
The only thing was that…she wouldn"t stay behind.
When she"s no longer around, their love would also no longer be around.
"Is it tomorrow?"
Situ asked as they stood before the Feng Residence"s entrance, his gaze tightly locked on Feng Luodi.
"That"s right. Let"s go to Mount Guan together; that place where we could see the sky studded with twinkling stars."
Feng Luodi also fixed her gaze on Situ.
"Unfortunately, it"s daytime so we won"t be able to see the stars again."
I won"t be able to see the stars with you again.
Perhaps, I would regret it after I return. But that"s my choice.
Perhaps, I could stay behind. But I would also regret it.
Humans had to continuously make choices…eternally, with no end in sight.
"I"ll come to pick you up tomorrow. Whirlwind also misses you."
Situ wanted to use his eyes to remember this woman"s smiling and crying appearance.
She smiled because of him. She cried because of him.
"Alright, I also want to see Whirlwind."
Feng Luodi stared at the figure which was blurry due to her tears and smiled even more brilliantly.
The words "I"m sorry", she wouldn"t be able to say it out loud.
Mount Guan, Hunting Pa.s.s.
This was originally the hunting grounds of the Xuan Kingdom, but as the new emperor was industrious with his duties and political affairs, he wouldn"t be going this year. The civil and military officials wouldn"t be able to go either.
This time, only Situ and Feng Luodi went.
She leaned in Situ"s embrace while Whirlwind galloped away without a care.
There was wind throughout the whole journey and also this man"s warmth.
Feng Luodi shut her eyes and smiled. The last person she saw and spent time with before leaving the Xuan Kingdom was Situ and the last scenery she would see later would be at Mount Guan. If there were stars, then that would have been perfect.
But there were no stars. It was now daytime.
After dismounting Whirlwind, the two walked to the places in their memories hand in hand while Situ carried Sonorous on his back.
No words were sufficient to describe the feelings of departure. The two snuggled up to one another and sat on the small mountain slope. As they gazed into the distance, they didn"t utter a single word.
When the sun s.h.i.+fted from the east to the centre, Feng Luodi wanted to stand up but Situ pulled her back. When the sun started to move towards the west, Feng Luodi shut her eyes.
"It"s time, Situ."
The two stood face to face. Sonorous was already in Feng Luodi"s hands.
"Situ, you have to remember the words I have said to you." Feng Luodi tried her best to prevent herself from bursting into tears.
"I will also remember everything you have said to me. I"ll remember them forever until I die."
"Don"t say inauspicious words."
Situ quickly cut her off.
"But I won"t say "see you again"."
I wouldn"t be able to see you again.
"Alright, I also won"t say it."
Feng Luodi stared at Situ unwaveringly, wanting to engrave his appearance into her heart. She then turned around with determination, hugging Sonorous as she walked forward step by step.
"Luodi."
Situ"s voice sounded from behind.
Feng Luodi still disappointed herself by stopping in her tracks. She turned around to take a look. Situ was reaching his hand out to her.
She had never refused Situ"s hand before, whether it was when they first met, when they became well acquainted with each other, when she was angry or when they were together.
Feng Luodi shook her head without saying anything. She looked at that hand, then glanced at Situ"s visage. She couldn"t refrain her eyes from turning red, but she still hardened her heart and turned around, leaving that man"s field of vision step by step until she totally vanished from his sight.
1. The t.i.tle translates directly to something like "The Whole River is Red". This is the link to an English translation of the poetry:
2. This is the YouTube link to the song:
3. This is the Guqin version: