Chang'an City.
In addition to the East and West Markets, there are also various shops and restaurants in each block to avoid inconvenience after the curfew. In addition to Xuandu Temple, the most famous building in Chongyefang is Xingyue Tower, and the most attractive part is the private room on the second floor. The rooms on one side are all connected to the terrace outside. The railings are painted red and hung with soft gauze curtains. When the wind blows, it feels a bit like floating in the air.
The guest who came to the restaurant today was an honored guest. He was generous and booked the entire second floor. The ladies and gentlemen from noble families gathered together and sat on the terrace, waiting for the people who were coming from Suzaku Street.
"… The tea is tasteless, and the snacks are not crispy enough, not as good as Jinshuilou." The speaker was Zheng Hanyuan, a noblewoman from the Zheng family of Xingyang. She had a bright face and tapped the edge of the snack plate with her nail polish-painted fingertips. "In my opinion, it's just a name."
"Of course they can't be compared. Jinshui Tower was famous before the founding of the country, while Xingyue Tower was only established in recent years." Du Erlang quickly replied. He had been trying to please Zheng Hanyuan these days. "Let them change now."
He called over the waiter who was serving tea and snacks, stuffed some change into his pocket, gave him a few instructions, and then moved closer to Zheng Hanyuan. Unfortunately, Zheng Hanyuan didn't want to pay attention to him, so he smiled back, held his chin, and looked outside, bypassing the veil and railings.
"There's nothing we can do about it. Let's just make do with what we have. We're not really here to eat anyway." Du Erlang was not amused. Wen Qiniang on the other side smiled and said, "Don't you agree?"
"Who said we're not here to eat?" Zheng Hanyuan was a little annoyed that her best friend saw through her thoughts, and glared at Wen Qinnan.
Wen Qiniang laughed for a while, then hit herself lightly: "Okay, okay, you are the one who eats, but I am not."
"Then what are you doing here?" Another unfamiliar noblewoman asked, "Are you here to see some young man?"
This was a bit of a teasing remark, but Wen Qiniang was not annoyed. She still smiled and responded immediately: "Yes, the Prince of Yanyang is returning to Chang'an today. If Xingyue Tower was not facing Zhuque Street, I would not have come."
Chang'an City has its own circle, with aristocratic families and powerful people intertwined. No matter how unwilling you are to interact with others, you can't really not participate in anything. Xie Wangzhi's background is there, so he had to invite her. She didn't have the intention of getting close to others, and she was just a bonus. Suddenly, when she heard Li Qishen's title, her pupils shrank and she sat up straighter unconsciously.
Sun Yuandao noticed it keenly, moved closer, and pretended to hand over a plate of snacks: "Why, Madam Xie doesn't know about this?"
"Thank you." Xie Wangzhi politely declined, "I really don't know."
"If you don't mind, I'll talk to you about it?"
Xie Wangzhi glanced at Sun Yuandao, then quickly lowered his eyes and shook his head: "Thank you for your kindness, but I'll just listen to what Qi Niang says."
Sun Yuandao has been all over Chang'an City for so many years, but he has only run into a wall with Xie Wangzhi. This young lady is so beautiful that he is angry, but at the same time, he feels that Xie Wangzhi's silent look with eyes downcast is so beautiful that he can't bear to get angry. He held it in for a while, touched the dust on the tip of his nose, and waved his fan: "Okay, if there is anything you don't understand, I will tell you again."
Xie Wangzhi responded and stopped talking.
There was no sound here, but Wen Qiniang's voice was particularly clear over there. Her voice was clear, neither too loud nor too soft, and it sounded quite comfortable: "... According to the rules, the Prince of Yanyang should stay in Fengzhou, but this year His Majesty seems to be planning to have all the governors from all over the country come to Beijing to celebrate his birthday. In addition, the Turks invaded the border years ago, and Prince Ning led the Prince of Yanyang to drive them back. It was considered a meritorious service, so he came back."
"I heard that the Turks nowadays are just borrowing the name, they are just hooligans, what achievements have they made?" Du Erlang couldn't stand Wen Qiniang's praise, for fear that it would seduce Zheng Hanyuan, "Tell me more."
"You don't understand this. I heard from my brother that this group was directly under the western Turkic tribe. They fled to the northern desert and wanted to come back for revenge. Unfortunately, they ran into a snag and not only did they fail to get their revenge," Wen Qiniang deliberately kept people in suspense and paused before saying, "Not only was the entire army annihilated, but the Khan of that small group was also hanged in front of their tent by the prince."
"… Is he injured?!"
The news was frightening. Before anyone could react, this sentence suddenly came out in a hurried tone, as if he was a long-time friend of Prince Yanyang and wanted to confirm it in a hurry after hearing the news.
Everyone present was stunned, and their eyes moved towards the person who spoke.
Xie Wangzhi immediately realized that she had blurted out what she had said in a hurry, but she couldn't openly talk about her relationship with Li Qishen. She could only explain: "The Turks are many vicious people. I... just asked."
"Look at you all, your faces are pale, we might as well forget about it." Wen Qiniang poked a man sitting next to her on the face, leaving a finger mark on his frightened pale face, and continued, "I don't know about that, maybe there are bumps and bumps, but it shouldn't be a serious injury, otherwise he wouldn't be able to come to Chang'an this time."
"... I understand." Xie Wangzhi nodded and whispered, "Please continue."
No one knew about the past relationship between Xie Wangzhi and Li Qishen, so this was just a small episode. Wen Qiniang didn't care and continued talking. On the contrary, Zheng Hanyuan next to him had a feeling that something was wrong, so he turned his head and glanced at Xie Wangzhi.
The girl sitting in the corner had her long hair half-tied up and half-dressed, and she was dressed in plain clothes. She lowered her eyes silently and lowered her head. Half of her face was hidden in the shadows, blurry. To be fair, Xie Wangzhi's face was indeed beautiful, and it was not an exaggeration to say that she was so beautiful that she moved Chang'an. But as long as you can't see that beautiful face, she seems to be non-existent and you can't find her even if you throw her into the crowd.
She is restrained and petty-minded, and she only has beauty for show. There is nothing to be afraid of.
After Zheng Hanyuan made his evaluation in his mind, he snorted coldly, retracted his gaze, looked down at the ruqun he had carefully selected, and then listened to Wen Qinnan.
Wen Qiniang loved to talk about random things. Her father and brother worked in the Ministry of Rites, so she knew all the news in Chang'an, no matter how big or small. She then went on to talk about Li Qishen's affairs, such as how he won the Golden Sunflower when he first arrived in Fengzhou and how he saved Princess Zhaolin when he was patrolling the border. She described every single thing in a coherent manner, as if she had seen it with her own eyes.
Xie Wangzhi listened patiently, without saying a word, letting his emotions flow.
The letter Li Qishen sent was a mess, and the things attached to it were inexplicable, as if he had done nothing serious on the grassland. The letter was also bland, and did not mention the game of life and death. Now, after learning from Wen Qiniang, Xie Wangzhi could not say what she was thinking. On the one hand, she felt that Li Qishen was not a good person, and did not mention such a big thing. On the other hand, she felt that maybe Li Qishen was afraid that she would worry.
“… So stupid.” She wanted to cry and laugh at the same time, but in the end she just said it very softly.
Sun Yuandao, who was standing next to her, didn't hear clearly. He only heard what she said. Just as he was about to go over to ask, Wen Qiniang suddenly started to make noises: "I saw it, I saw it! Come over here!"
She had a talent for storytelling, and in her previous speech she made Li Qishen seem like the protagonist of a legend. Everyone who listened to her became interested, and regardless of whether they felt envy, admiration, disdain or jealousy, they all wanted to see with their own eyes what this prince looked like.
Unfortunately, everyone present had a good background, and rushing out like this would be cheap, so no one stood up for a while. Hearing the sound of horse hooves outside, Zheng Hanyuan was anxious and was thinking about what excuse to make, when suddenly a breeze blew by his side.
She was startled and saw only a slender figure with a plain skirt and no dark patterns on the shawl.
The first person to rush to the terrace was Xie Wangzhi.
Zheng Hanyuan thought about it, then quickly lifted her skirt and followed him out.
Once the two ladies started, the rest of the people lost their restraint and followed them to the terrace.
The second-floor terrace was also connected, spacious and open, as long as one side of the building. Xie Wangzhi had no idea what the people around her were thinking. She stood at the corner of the railing and saw the army slowly marching on Suzaku Street.
A few days ago, a military governor also entered Chang'an City with his personal soldiers from the garrison. The Tiande Army was generally in the same state, solemn and orderly, with cavalry first and infantry later, and the flag of the Tiande Army unfurled in the wind.
The one riding in the front was a middle-aged man, who should be the King of Ning. Behind him was a young man, who looked to be in his twenties. He was wearing a light armor, with his long hair tied into a ponytail. His back was straight, his expression was calm, and he was as cold and beautiful as a jade sculpture.
After not seeing him for five years, Xie Wangzhi recognized him at a glance. It was Li Qishen.
He had grown up, no longer the slightly skinny boy, his body was steady in the light armor, giving people the feeling of being somewhere between a boy and a man. Li Qishen had long hair when he was young, but now it was neatly tied up, and his face looked particularly beautiful, catching people's eyes from a distance. Compared to the past, his skin color was darker, no longer bloodless and pale, but more like a transparent jade, and his eyes were more beautiful, like molten gold under the sun.
The young general in light armor had just repelled the Turks and had such a handsome face. People on both sides of Suzaku Street couldn't help cheering. Many young ladies were shy but couldn't help shouting "Prince", wanting Li Qishen to take a look at her.
However, Li Qishen looked ahead calmly, silently controlling his horse forward, as if he didn't hear the shouting beside him at all.
Xie Wangzhi watched him approaching little by little, and the things that surged in her heart were so indescribable and so heart-wrenching, as if they were going to break her apart. She held onto the corner of the railing, her whole body tense, her hands trembling slightly, and she felt dizzy and almost couldn't stand.
Years of longing came flooding back to her. She once tossed and turned at night. When the maid wasn't noticing, she would get up and find letters, reading those simple words all night long until dawn. She also once sat alone in front of the window, ignoring the injuries on her fingertips, repeatedly plucking the fourteen strings and finding temporary peace in the familiar guzheng music.
… So she thought of him that much.
She didn't like those letters or guzheng at all. She just desperately wanted something to express her unspeakable longing, to use those things to recall the past so as not to be consumed by the longing that burned her bones.
"... Prince!" Xie Wangzhi couldn't help it. She didn't care about the people around her. She leaned over the railing and called Li Qishen like the girls below, "Prince, Prince... Prince!"
The author has something to say: Little General!!! It’s Little General!!!
Do you think Changsheng heard Wangzhi calling him
Also, I wanted to find a school uniform of the young general of Tian Ce for you to see, but after looking around, I felt that they were not very good, so I gave up. It turns out that I still have inner aesthetics (spreading hands). Then, in fact, Wang Zhi didn't know that she liked Changsheng. She just felt that Changsheng was very, very important and couldn't help thinking about him. Obviously, she was more slow, and the two of them still had to test and temper each other. Why did you all say that Changsheng was 8 lines in the last chapter_(:3)∠)_