At the hour of Si, sunlight poured over Zhuque Street in the capital. The blue stone slabs of the road were warmed, dispelling the last chill of the first month.
The street was bustling like a boiling pot. An old man selling sugar paintings had his copper pot ready, drawing animals and birds with syrup on the stone slabs, attracting a crowd of clapping children. Hawthorn candy vendors had their straw stands filled with bright red fruit skewers, the sweet aroma drifting far. Street peddlers carrying poles shook rattles and called out, “Needles, threads, rouge, and powder!” — drawing the attention of passing women.
Among the crowd, two tiny figures hugged the wall as they moved forward. Five-year-old Wen Junye wore a deep blue coarse cloth short jacket, sleeves rolled up to his forearms, showing his thin but strong arms. He tightly held the hand of his younger sister, Wen Lingxi.
His brows furrowed like a little adult as he glanced back repeatedly, worried that the mansion maids would catch up. “Lingxi, keep your voice down. Don’t let Aunt Zhang find us.”
Lingxi wore a pink floral jacket and skirt, embroidered with little butterflies along the hem. Pink pom-poms adorned her two braids, swaying lightly as she ran.
Her attention was completely on the sugar painting stall not far ahead. She leaned forward eagerly, eyes sparkling like stars, her babyish voice urgent: “Brother, look! Sugar painting! I want the little rabbit one!”
Yesterday, Wen Yinyue had been busy organizing Wang Ma’s testimony and hadn’t had time to play with them. Junye had taken advantage of Aunt Zhang the maid being busy cleaning Tingyu Pavilion to secretly sneak Lingxi out of the Hou Mansion. He remembered his mother saying Zhuque Street had many fun things, so he wanted to show his sister and buy her favorite sugar painting.
“Got it. Don’t run ahead.”
Junye held Lingxi back as she tried to rush forward and pulled a copper coin from his pocket — pocket money Wen Yinyue had given him. He rarely spent it. “After we buy the sugar painting, we’ll watch the performers and then go home. Mother will worry if we stay out too long.”
Lingxi nodded eagerly and obediently followed him, pointing to the sugar painting stall. “Brother, look at the little rabbit that grandpa is drawing! So cute! I want to show it to Mother!”
Just then, a sudden crowd pressed past the sugar painting stall. Lingxi lost her balance and stumbled forward a few steps. She gasped as the coin fell from her hand, and she collided headfirst with a man standing by the stall.
“Ouch!”
Lingxi bumped against the man’s leg, frowning from the pain. She looked up to apologize and first noticed a pair of black cloud-patterned brocade boots. Looking higher, she saw the hem of a dark brocade robe embroidered with subtle gold dragon patterns, exuding an indescribable nobility.
The man paused slightly, lowering his gaze to the tiny figure at his feet. He wore a dark patterned brocade robe with silver cloud embroidery at the collar, a jade belt at his waist, and a mutton-fat jade pendant engraved with the character “Yuan” — the heir of the Zhenbei Prince, Chu Yuan.
He had come to Zhuque Street to check accounts at some shops. As he reached the sugar painting stall, his thoughts were interrupted by the suddenly colliding child.
“Are you alright?”
Chu Yuan’s voice was low, with a hint of subtle warmth. He instinctively bent down to help the child, but when his eyes met Lingxi’s face, his body froze, pupils contracting sharply. The child’s features were strikingly similar to his own.
Lingxi had large, bright eyes, slightly upturned at the corners, resembling Chu Yuan’s mother in her youth. Her nose was small but straight, her lips curved the same way, and even the tiny dimple at the corner of her mouth when she smiled was identical.
Especially the lively spark in her eyes — it was like a miniature version of himself as a child. Chu Yuan’s heart clenched as an inexplicable familiarity and fluttering surged within him.
“I… I’m fine.”
Lingxi, feeling shy under his gaze, bent down to pick up the coin. Pointing at the sugar painting stall, she whispered, “I wanted to buy the little rabbit sugar painting and accidentally bumped into you, uncle.”
Chu Yuan squatted, bringing his eyes level with hers, his gaze fixed on her face. His voice trembled slightly without him realizing: “What’s your name? Where do you live? Your father and mother…”
Before he could finish, hurried footsteps interrupted him. Junye came running over, grabbed Lingxi’s hand, and glared cautiously at Chu Yuan. His small face was full of alertness. “Lingxi, let’s go!”
He had noticed his sister bump into someone from across the crowd. He had wanted to apologize, but seeing Chu Yuan’s attire and presence — the aura of a high-ranking noble — he remembered his mother’s words: Don’t get too close to strangers, especially those who seem important. He quickly decided to pull his sister away.
“Brother, I haven’t bought the sugar painting yet!”
Lingxi pouted but allowed Junye to pull her backward.
“Next time. Let’s go home first!”
Junye’s voice was firm as he led her back into the crowd. Their small figures soon disappeared from the lively street, leaving behind a pink pom-pom that rolled to Chu Yuan’s feet when Lingxi turned her head.
Chu Yuan stood rooted, staring in the direction the two children had run, long lost in thought.
The faint milky scent lingering in the air from when he had almost helped Lingxi still remained. Her face kept appearing in his mind — those bright eyes, the small dimple — how could she look so much like him?
“Your Highness, are you alright?”
His attendant rushed forward. Dressed in black armor with a sword at his waist, Qin Feng was Chu Yuan’s personal guard. He had seen the prince bend down to talk to the child and feared something had happened, only to find the children had run off.
Chu Yuan bent down, picking up the pink pom-pom embroidered with a tiny butterfly — clearly fallen from Lingxi’s braid.
He held it between his fingers, lightly touching the threads, his eyes filled with questions. “Qin Feng, find out who those two children belong to. Especially the little girl. I want her name, address, and her parents’ identities.”
“Yes!”
Qin Feng was momentarily stunned, then realized the prince’s unusual interest must be related to the child. He had served Chu Yuan for years but never seen him care for a child like this, let alone order someone to investigate.
Chu Yuan stared at the pink pom-pom, his confusion deepening. The children appeared only five years old, which matched the time of an incident near the Anyuan Marquis Mansion. Five years ago, he had encountered an accident there. He remembered rescuing a woman but her face was blurry in his memory. Could… these two children be related?
He looked toward the direction they had run. The sunlight shone on the street, still lively, but his thoughts were no longer on checking accounts. Lingxi’s bright eyes and Junye’s cautious expression were like two small stones dropped into his heart, sending ripples across his mind.
“Report back immediately when you find out. Don’t alert anyone.”
Chu Yuan carefully placed the pink pom-pom into his sleeve, needing to know the truth: who were these children? Why did the little girl resemble him so much?
Qin Feng bowed. “Understood. I’ll start investigating right away.”
He turned and quickly disappeared into the bustling crowd, beginning inquiries in the west end of the street to find the two children — a boy in a deep blue short jacket and a girl in a pink skirt, looking to buy sugar paintings. With such clear characteristics, they shouldn’t be hard to find.
Chu Yuan remained at the sugar painting stall, watching the old man drizzle syrup onto the stone slab to form a little rabbit. The sunlight reflected lightly off his dark brocade robe, but it could not illuminate the questions clouding his mind.
He clutched the pink pom-pom in his sleeve, thinking silently: Whoever you are, I will find you.
The sun rose higher, and Zhuque Street remained lively. The sugar painting old man called out, “Fresh sugar paintings, sweet and tasty!” Hawthorn skewers were replenished on the straw stands, and the peddlers’ rattles rang from afar.
Chu Yuan did not yet know the children he sought were the offspring of the woman he had once rescued — Wen Yinyue. Likewise, Wen Yinyue was unaware that the father she did not know had just encountered her children on the street.