As soon as Prince Qin arrived at the lake, he saw the beautiful figure in the bustling crowd, standing in front of the lantern stall, watching the lotus lanterns slowly floating in the lake. From his angle, he could only see Mingyu's half face facing him, stained with a warm color by the candlelight, her hair was thin and her shoulders were shaved. When he got closer, he could also see the round pearls on her fair and small ears. The night breeze blew by the lake, and the corners of her white skirt also fluttered gently with the night breeze.
In fact, Prince Qin had no intention of going over there, and he had no intention of even seeing Xu Mingyu again. However, when she caught his eye again, his previous determination was instantly forgotten, and his feet walked uncontrollably in her direction. When he came to his senses, she was already within reach.
Mingyu looked at the lotus lantern that Prince Qin handed to her. She was surprised and a little embarrassed. She waved her hand and said, "No need, I'm just taking a look..." However, Prince Qin kept handing it to her, and his pair of dark eyes looked at her stubbornly.
Well, Mingyu let out a sigh of relief. If she refused again, she would be hypocritical. After taking the lotus lantern, Mingyu smiled and said, "Thank you... Sir."
When the owner of the lantern stall saw the Prince of Qin's attire, he knew that this man must be rich and would not care about a few dollars. He wanted to do more business, so he immediately smiled and said, "Sir, if two people make a wish together on this lantern and put it in the lake, it will be more effective! Whatever you wish for will come true!"
Prince Qin had a cold expression on his face. He glanced at the owner of the lantern stall, ignored him, and threw a piece of silver over to him.
The boss hurriedly caught it, surprised and happy, and saw Mingyu and Qin Junwang turned around and were about to leave. He hurriedly called out, "Sir, I haven't given you your change yet!"
Prince Qin did not stop, so Mingyu had to wave to the owner of the lantern stall and followed him with the lotus lantern.
The owner of the lantern stall saw such a generous person for the first time. He felt a little sorry. The money given by this cold-faced nobleman was enough to buy more than a dozen lanterns. He hurriedly called out, "Young Master, take a lantern and make a wish!"
However, the young man, who had already taken a few steps, paused and did not look back, as if he did not hear the words of the lamp stall owner, and quickly disappeared into the crowd.
Mingyu quickly walked a few steps to catch up with the Prince of Qin, slightly behind him. The Prince of Qin stood straight in his purple robes. His black hair and jade crown made him look lonely even in the bustling crowd. After a long while, Mingyu mustered up the courage to ask, "Why don't you take a lamp, Your Highness?"
Prince Qin stopped and looked back at Mingyu. His eyes were cold and he said, "I don't have any wishes to make."
Mingyu was a little stunned. She looked at the Prince of Qin who continued to walk towards the lake. She lowered her head silently and followed him again. Well, you are so cruel. Compared with this genius like a god, she is just an ordinary person on earth, the kind that is so vulgar.
There were many people releasing lanterns by the lake. Most of them were couples of men and women who took two lanterns and released them into the lake. They blushed and looked at each other shyly, whispered to each other, and then released the lanterns, watching the lanterns drifting farther and farther in the lake. The Prince of Qin didn't like to go to crowded places, so he walked with Mingyu for a long time until the candles in the lanterns were half burned. They finally found a quiet place that satisfied him.
Mingyu walked to the lake, looked at the dancing flame in the lotus core, silently made a wish to the lamp, and was about to squat down to put the lamp into the lake. However, as soon as she moved, Prince Qin suddenly grabbed her arm.
"Have you made up your mind?" Prince Qin looked at Mingyu with an unprecedented seriousness and eagerness on his face. "You can change your wish before lighting the lanterns."
Mingyu was stunned for a moment, then lowered her head under the burning gaze of Prince Qin, and said in a low but firm voice: "I've made up my mind, I'll make this wish, and I won't change it." Prince Qin was not included in her wish, and she didn't intend to have him.
Prince Qin slowly loosened his hand that was holding Mingyu's arm and put his hands behind his back. This place was far away from the hustle and bustle, with only the quiet sound of water and the vast starry sky covering the earth. For no reason, Prince Qin closed his eyes, and the melancholy and helplessness in his heart seemed like a tide that was about to drown him completely.
"Now that you have made up your mind, just turn off the lights." The cold voice of Prince Qin came over, and it was impossible to tell whether he was happy or angry.
Mingyu held the lantern in her hand and squatted down by the lake. She carefully placed the lantern on the water. A breeze blew by, and the lotus lantern swayed, circling and floating towards the center of the lake. The small candle in the middle of the petals burned with a tiny flame, trembling slightly in the night wind, until it blended with the other lanterns and she couldn't tell which one was hers.
"Can a wish come true if you make one on a lantern?" Prince Qin asked in a low voice, with the corners of his mouth raised, as if containing a hint of sarcasm.
Mingyu thought about it and said, "I don't know about that, but I think whether a wish can come true depends on how hard the person who made the wish works."
Prince Qin looked at the twinkling lights in the lake, smiled at Mingyu and said, "Your statement is quite novel. If everyone thinks like you, then who would go to the temple to pray to the Buddha?"
The night wind gradually picked up. Mingyu reached out and tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. She smiled and said, "I wonder if Your Highness has heard of this story. A pilgrim went to the temple to pray to the Buddha. He saw the man behind him also praying to the Buddha. His eyebrows and eyes were exactly the same as those of the Buddha in the temple. He asked, 'Are you the Buddha?' The Buddha said, 'Yes, I have also encountered difficulties, but it is better to rely on yourself than to rely on others."
Prince Qin smiled. He had heard this story as early as when he entered school. He had forgotten it at that time. Now that he had experienced so many things, he felt sad when he thought about it again.
"I want to ask you..." Prince Qin spoke slowly. The only sound by the quiet lake was the croaking of frogs. "If I don't have a wife, will you be willing to..."
Mingyu lowered her head and smiled, "Your Highness, the fact is that you are already married. What is your identity and what is mine?" Even if Prince Qin did not marry, it would not be her turn to be his principal wife. She never daydreamed.
"You have always been clear-headed." Qin Junwang sighed in a low voice, looking at the bright crescent moon above his head. He hated Mingyu's clarity. Her clarity made her reject him and always reminded him that he had an unhappy marriage.
Mingyu didn't know how to respond, and after a long while she asked carefully: "Madam...are you okay?" She thought that although she had never met Qin Junwang's wife Fang, she felt that the sickly Fang must have admired Qin Junwang and her husband from the bottom of her heart.
Prince Qin shook his head and did not answer.
"I heard that Lord Lu wants to propose to you?" Prince Qin asked directly, which was quite like his usual style.
This time it was Mingyu's turn to shake her head. She smiled and said, "Lord Lu is a good man, but..." Mingyu didn't say anything else and smiled and shook her head again.
He knew Mrs. Lu's attitude. She treated Mingyu like that in public, which showed that she was not satisfied with her daughter-in-law. He estimated that this marriage would most likely not be successful. When he knew about it, he felt a kind of secret joy in his heart that he could not tell others. He even wondered if Mingyu would remember his kindness after suffering this blow.
However, seeing Mingyu talking about this matter in a relaxed and generous manner, without any sadness at all, he was a little surprised.
As the time gradually got later, the number of tourists on the street gradually decreased. The paper lotus lanterns that had been put into the lake earlier became soaked by the water and sank one by one into the lake, and the sporadic candlelight also disappeared.
Mingyu was worried about her brother and Fu Lemei who had been separated from her before. Seeing that Prince Qin was standing there with his hands behind his back and had no intention of leaving, she said to him, "Your Highness, I got separated from my brother when I came here. It's getting late now. He will be worried if he can't find me."
Prince Qin came back to his senses from his chaotic thoughts and nodded, "Then you go first."
Mingyu bowed to Prince Qin and left. When she left the lake and walked onto the street, Mingyu could not help but look back at where she had been standing. In the dimly lit place, Prince Qin was wearing a purple brocade robe, standing tall and graceful, still standing there with his hands behind his back. Her expression could not be seen clearly, but she felt that he looked cold and lonely under the moonlight.
Not long after walking back, Mingyu saw Xu Mingye and Fu Lemei looking for her. She smiled and greeted them, "Why are there only two of you?"
Xu Mingye saw Mingyu standing in front of him. He breathed a sigh of relief and said, "Where did you go? It's so easy for us to find you."
Fu Lemei glanced at Xu Mingye, her cheeks flushed, and said, "I'll ask my brother and Miss Hong to wait for us over there, and come out to look for you." Just now she was anxious about not finding Mingyu, but when she saw that Mingyu was safe and sound, she felt fortunate. She actually went out with Xu Mingye on the night of Chinese Valentine's Day, just like those young men and women on a date.
The girl was safe and sound, and Xu Mingye's anger subsided. He looked at the lanterns on the street and said with a smile: "You haven't set off the lanterns yet? I'll buy you one while there's still time."
Mingyu shook her head and smiled, "She has been released, but Lemei hasn't been released yet, right?"
But Fu Lemei also shook her head and said with a red face: "I let it go. When I was looking for you just now, I put a lantern in the lake."
Mingyu looked at Fu Lemei and then at Xu Mingye. Xu Mingye was still smiling calmly. Mingyu could only tease Fu Lemei, "I thought you were only looking for me. It turns out that looking for me is just a side job. Lighting the lanterns is the main thing!"
"No." Fu Lemei was anxious, her face flushed. "There were too many people just now, and we couldn't squeeze through. We couldn't find you for a while. We all thought that you might have gone back to the store first. Brother Xu bought me a lamp by the way. It only took a short while..."
Seeing that Fu Lemei was so embarrassed that she was speechless, Xu Mingye spoke up to help Fu Lemei out and asked Mingyu, "Isn't your purse with me? What did you use to buy the lanterns?"
Mingyu was shameless and smiled, "I'm pretty, so they gave it to me for free."