Xie Zhengming had changed into a grey-purple long robe, his hair half-bound, giving him a refined, elegant, poised, and distinguished appearance.
He took his seat in the main hall and instructed Zhuuzi:
“Tell the kitchen that they need not prepare dinner for this Prince and the Lord Consort.”
Qin Duan did not understand why, and the servants were equally baffled.
Xie Zhengming pulled Qin Duan along as they headed out, where Zhou Ji was already waiting with a carriage at the manor gates.
Once Xie Zhengming had brought Qin Duan into the carriage, Qin Duan finally asked:
“Where are we going?”
Xie Zhengming looked to be in a pleasant mood. He adjusted the moon-white outer robe on Qin Duan, then straightened his own sleeves, hm, today’s attire matches (Duan’er) very well.
“I heard from Old Xu and the others while drinking during the day that Princess Anhui has funded the construction of Guang’an Temple here in the capital. During the day, she invited eminent monks to lecture on the scriptures, and tonight she’s holding a grand three-day temple fair. Furthermore, the Princess herself will be gracing the temple fair to mingle with the common people. I figured you’ve been cooped up in the manor all day and should get out more. Today, we’re heading out to relax and clear our minds, hm?”
Princess Anhui was the adopted daughter of the Empress Dowager. Her father, Lord Lin, and Emperor Jian’an’s father, Marquis Wenyuan, had been close personal friends, and Lord Lin had poured out his entire family fortune to assist during the Li family’s uprising. However, by the time His Majesty ascended the throne, Lord Lin had already passed away from illness, so the Emperor bestowed upon his only daughter the title of Princess Anhui.
Yet the reason Xie Zhengming brought Qin Duan out today actually had another, more personal motive. He vividly remembered that in his previous life, this Princess Anhui had harbored secret romantic feelings for him and had thus privately begged the Empress Dowager to bestow a marriage decree. Back then, the Empress Dowager had summoned him to sound out his intentions, but he had politely declined.
At the time, by turning down the Empress Dowager’s face, the Emperor had felt deeply displeased inside, though he did not outwardly erupt. Yet because of this incident, the Emperor later issued a decree directly betrothing him to Princess Ningning without inquiring about his wishes—serving as a warning to him.
He thought that in his past life, perhaps he had been wrong from the very beginning. He had clearly only wanted Qin Duan, but held back out of concern for his pride and a lingering sense of shyness and awkwardness regarding the status of male partners, which ultimately led others to mistakenly believe that Qin Duan was dispensable to him. This time, he wanted to bring Qin Duan openly and high-profilely before Princess Anhui, so that anyone harboring thoughts of marriage alliances with him would retreat in the face of difficulty.
He would no longer suppress his feelings for Qin Duan in front of outsiders; he wanted the Emperor to know that he was willing to surrender his military command and retire to seclusion in the countryside, desiring only to grow old together in harmony with Qin Duan.
The carriage arrived in front of Guang’an Temple. By this hour, the sun had already set, but the streets were brilliantly illuminated with bright lights and bustling with boisterous noise.
The temple fair had already begun, and many shops, eager to show respect to the Princess, had spared no effort to prepare exquisite, ornate festive floats. Dragon and lion dance troupes hoisted long bamboo poles, wielding golden-bodied dragons with fierce, lively momentum. The dragons were exquisitely crafted and remarkably lifelike; under the glow of the lanterns, their scales shimmered with golden light, making them look like flying dragons from the nine heavens weaving through the clouds.
On the streets, men and women momentarily set aside the cumbersome restraints of worldly etiquette, walking together in twos and threes, chatting and laughing amidst the lively festivities.
Xie Zhengming held Qin Duan’s hand tightly, terrified that he might be separated by the surging crowds. Zhou Ji followed closely behind them, tasked with ensuring their safety.
Suddenly, the crowd ahead slowed their pace until they came to a complete halt. Whispered discussions rippled through the throng:
“Look quickly up at the city gate tower, so many palace attendants, the Princess is coming out!”
“The Princess is coming out! We’re fortunate enough to catch a glimpse of the Princess!”
The people appeared exceedingly excited. Xie Zhengming, however, pulled Qin Duan back, exchanged a glance with Zhou Ji, and then murmured softly beside Qin Duan’s ear:
“Duan’er, hold onto me tight, your husband is going to fly you away!”
Before Qin Duan could fully comprehend his meaning, his feet suddenly left the ground, and his entire body soared into the air, sweeping forward.
“Ah—”
“Don’t be afraid, I’ve got you, you won’t fall.”
Xie Zhengming carried Qin Duan over the heads of the crowd and landed near the city gate tower. The area ahead was already packed with people, all waiting to gaze upon the Princess’s graceful posture.
As soon as Qin Duan’s feet touched the ground, his legs went weak and he nearly stumbled, fortunately caught firmly around the waist by Xie Zhengming. He felt a trace of annoyance, yet could not bear to direct his anger at Xie Zhengming, merely reproaching him in a soft grumble:
“We’re grown men now, yet you still act like a child. What if we had fallen, how would that have been good.”
Xie Zhengming chuckled softly. His Duan’er was always like this, clearly several years younger than him, yet acting precisely like an old scholar. If not for that snow-and-orchid-like handsome face and flawless, delicate skin, anyone who didn’t know better would have thought he was much older.
“My good Duan’er, do you trust your husband that little?”
Qin Duan had not heard this fellow speak such teasing words to him in a very long time, and in a daze, it felt as though he had returned to their youth. Back then, after they became male partners, their affection grew increasingly deep day by day. Whenever Xie Zhengming was happy, he would always tease him like this, tirelessly pulling him every night to engage in those shy, intimate acts until he was thoroughly entangled, ultimately surrendering his whole person and entire heart to him.
Qin Duan gave him a light glance, his face growing slightly warm.
“Oh! The Princess is coming out!”
Cheers erupted among the crowd, followed by a massive wave of people dropping to their knees all around.
Qin Duan also prepared to bow and kneel, but was stopped by Xie Zhengming, who gave a slight shake of his head.
Qin Duan furrowed his brow. He was a commoner, lacking Xie Zhengming’s title of Prince; how could he not pay respects?
Yet before he could even speak, a sharp, piercing voice echoed down from the city gate tower.
“Audacious—the Princess has arrived, why do you not kneel and pay homage!”
Qin Duan instantly realized this was directed at him and Xie Zhengming, because right now the surrounding area was a sea of black-capped heads, making the two of them stand out like cranes among chickens; anyone on the city tower could spot them at a glance.
At that moment, Xie Zhengming laughed leisurely:
“Manager Zhang, what is this? Are the lanterns on the street tonight not bright enough, leaving your old eyes so dim that you fail to recognize even this Prince?”
When Manager Zhang, who served beside Princess Anhui, heard this voice, he hurriedly took two steps forward, leaned over the edge of the city tower to look down, and upon widening his eyes to clearly recognize Xie Zhengming, immediately plastered his face with ingratiating smiles and terrified awe:
“Oh, it is Your Highness the Prince of Ding; this old slave’s eyes are dim, please accept my greetings.”
Upon seeing Xie Zhengming, Princess Anhui instantly revealed a trace of bashful coyness, then nodded in acknowledgment toward Manager Zhang. Immediately following this, Manager Zhang relayed the command:
“The Princess invites the Prince to step up to the city tower.”
The crowd quickly and automatically knelt and scrambled sideways to clear a path leading toward the city gate.
Xie Zhengming addressed the surrounding populace:
“There’s no need for such trouble.”
He then turned his head and spoke softly to Qin Duan:
“Did Madam find the previous flight to your liking? This time we’ll fly a bit higher.”
Sensing the arm around his waist tighten with strength, Qin Duan instinctively wrapped his arms tightly around Xie Zhengming’s sturdy waist.
With a slight push of his toes, Xie Zhengming lifted them both aloft, soaring through the air with a few brisk, airborne strides before landing steadily atop the city gate tower.
He waited until Qin Duan stood firm and adjusted to the solid ground before releasing his grip around Qin Duan’s waist. At this moment, Princess Anhui’s expression had already turned exceptionally unsightly.