They boarded the carriage together, leaving the guests of the Mid-Autumn banquet behind as they leisurely passed through the palace gates.
For once, Pei Yunting didn’t bicker with him. They each sat on opposite sides of the carriage, lost in their own thoughts.
As the carriage entered the bustling marketplace, the lively clamor outside grew louder and louder.
Half the city shimmered beneath drifting smoke and lantern light. Crowds flowed endlessly through the streets, and the magnificent prosperity of Yanjing unfolded right before their eyes.
Lifting the curtain, Pei Yunting happened to see two children chasing each other down the street. The younger one, realizing he couldn’t catch up, shouted loudly,
“Brother Asheng! Wait for me!”
Hearing the word “brother,” Yan Huaijin, who had been leaning against the opposite side of the carriage with folded arms, twitched an eyelid and finally stirred.
He slowly glanced at Pei Yunting, then looked away the moment she turned toward him, letting out a cold snort.
Pei Yunting: “…”
Did he take the wrong medicine or something?
Seeing the corners of his mouth drooping and his face full of displeasure, she asked suspiciously,
“You’re not… angry, are you?”
Yan Huaijin remained silent, his expression indifferent. His eyes lowered as though he couldn’t be bothered to answer her.
Pei Yunting narrowed her eyes and carefully studied him.
She knew him too well.
One glance was enough to tell that His Highness was sulking. Yet his pride was too great—he would never admit it himself. He always waited for someone else to notice, then lower themselves to coax him.
He’d really been spoiled.
She sneered.
“If you’ve got something to say, then say it. Don’t waste that mouth of yours. If you don’t want to come out with me, I’ll get off and head home. Why should I sit here watching you pull a long face?”
As she spoke, she made a move to call for Zhan Yuan outside to stop the carriage.
Across the entire empire, how many people would dare scold the Third Prince like this, much less openly disregard his pride?
But unfortunately for him, this was the little childhood sweetheart he had treasured since they were children.
The moment he heard she intended to leave, Yan Huaijin immediately reached out, pulled her back into her seat, leaned forward, and trapped her neatly in the corner of the carriage.
“No!”
Pei Yunting craned her neck and met his gaze.
“Then tell me. Why are you angry?”
“I…”
Looking into her pair of enchanting peach blossom eyes, he hesitated for a long while, unable to form a complete sentence. In the end, he simply turned away in frustration.
“Figure it out yourself!”
She nearly laughed from exasperation.
“Suit yourself.”
Seeing that she truly wasn’t going to ask again, Yan Huaijin grew even more aggrieved.
“You treat Yan Huaize with warmth and gentleness, but all I get from you are cold looks. Pei Wanwan… you’ve really outdone yourself.”
Pei Yunting turned to stare at him in disbelief.
She was astonished by his ridiculous reasoning.
A moment later, however, she finally understood.
So this was what he’d been sulking about all this time.
Her expression softened somewhat as she pondered how to explain her complicated feelings toward Yan Huaize.
Yet before she could speak, Yan Huaijin mistook her silence for unwillingness to explain.
His chest tightened with bitterness.
He had met her first.
He had always been the one protecting her.
His feelings had become so obvious, yet she seemed completely oblivious.
Proud and noble by nature, he had never treated another young lady with such indulgence and favoritism.
But she…
Jealousy flooded his heart like overturned jars of vinegar.
Unable to hold it in, he blurted out,
“‘Brother Aze,’ ‘Brother Aze’… You sure call him affectionately enough.”
She frowned.
“What nonsense are you talking about?”
He scoffed.
“Then why have I never heard you call me brother?”
“You’ve been giving me the cold shoulder all evening… over that?”
“…”
Yan Huaijin choked for a moment before muttering quietly,
“What else?”
Pei Yunting shot back,
“Your Highness is an imperial prince, deeply favored by His Majesty. Who would dare claim kinship with you? Call you ‘brother’? Even the Nanping Commandery Princess wouldn’t dare. As for me—”
Before she could finish, Yan Huaijin interrupted her.
The hand holding hers tightened slightly as he gazed directly into her eyes.
“I have nothing with Nanping beyond ordinary acquaintance. In my eyes, she’s nothing more than a younger sister. Pei Wanwan… don’t tell me you’re worried your place in my heart isn’t as important as hers? What a joke.”
This time, it was Pei Yunting who found herself speechless.
The wine she’d drunk at the banquet seemed to rush to her head all at once.
Her limbs weakened.
Her heart pounded furiously.
Her face burned crimson, while her bright eyes sparkled even more vividly.
“I knew nothing good would ever come out of your mouth.”
She stubbornly retorted.
Outside the carriage, Zhan Yuan had heard every single word.
One moment he was pounding his chest in silent frustration on behalf of his master.
The next, he desperately wished he couldn’t hear their flirtatious quarrel.
How he wished he were deaf!
After getting off the carriage, they left everyone behind, though shadow guards continued to watch discreetly from nearby.
Because of their conversation inside the carriage, an oddly delicate atmosphere now lingered between them.
Pei Yunting walked ahead, curiously looking around.
She rarely had the chance to enjoy festivals outside, and the last time had been two or three years ago.
Everything now seemed wonderfully fresh to her.
Yan Huaijin followed half a step behind.
Whenever she wasn’t looking, he kept one hand subtly extended behind her, making sure no passerby came close enough to bump into her.
As the two walked side by side through the crowded streets, countless pedestrians couldn’t help but steal glances at them.
Such an exceptionally handsome young man and such a breathtakingly beautiful young lady were truly a rare sight.
Sensing all the attention directed at them, Pei Yunting slowed her pace and glanced back at Yan Huaijin, whose face remained expressionless.
She had always known he was handsome.
His bone structure and features were flawless, carrying an innate nobility tempered by the faintest trace of earthly warmth.
Sharp brows and striking features.
Eyes that seemed to hold starlight at their corners.
Lips that appeared forever touched by the warmth of fine wine.
He was the dream lover of countless noble ladies throughout Yanjing.
Feeling her gaze, Yan Huaijin turned toward her.
“What is it?”
“Hm?”
Pei Yunting snapped out of her daze and tugged gently at his sleeve.
“There’s a lantern-riddle stall over there. Let’s go have a look.”
They stopped before the stall, each casually picking up a wooden tag hanging beneath a lantern.
The riddle on hers read:
“To ascend the Moon Palace and pluck the laurel branch.”
She smiled faintly before answering without hesitation,
“Beyond one’s reach.”
The stall owner beamed.
“Miss, you’re remarkably clever.”
Seeing this, Yan Huaijin picked up another wooden tag.
Its riddle read:
“Clouds veil the Mid-Autumn moon; rain drenches the Lantern Festival lights.”
The answer was a four-character idiom.
It posed no challenge for him.
After only a brief pause, he answered,
“Missing without a trace.”
And so it continued.
Before long, the pair had solved every lantern riddle at the stall.
Without suspense, they won the grand prize—the cutest rabbit lantern.
Watching Pei Yunting hug the rabbit lantern with unrestrained delight, Yan Huaijin quietly curved his lips.
Her happiness seemed contagious.
The lingering jealousy and resentment in his heart quietly melted away with her smile, replaced by gentle warmth.
Further ahead, a large crowd had gathered into a circle, waves of astonished exclamations rising from within.
Curiosity immediately piqued, Pei Yunting started toward it.
Before she could squeeze through the crowd, however, Yan Huaijin grabbed her wrist and gently pulled her back.
Lowering his head, he whispered beside her ear,
“There are too many people over there. It’s not safe. Don’t go.”
“But I want to see…”
She looked regretfully toward the bustling crowd.
“It’s just performers from the western regions putting on illusion acts and beast taming. If you want to watch, I’ll take you somewhere better.”
“Alright.”
Trusting him completely, Pei Yunting allowed him to guide her against the flow of people.
The street was packed shoulder to shoulder.
Yan Huaijin’s broad shoulders shielded her view almost entirely.
For some reason, it gave her an overwhelming sense of security.
Ever since childhood, no matter what trouble she got into, as long as he was by her side…
She had never once come to harm.
The warmth from his palm spread through their clasped hands.
Even her own heart felt gently warmed.
Yan Huaijin led her to an elevated terrace nearby.
From there, they could overlook the entire bustling avenue below.
The marketplace teemed with life.
The streets of Yanjing blazed beneath countless crimson lanterns.
Foreign performers breathed fire and performed impossible illusions.
Beast tamers guided ferocious animals through astonishing routines.
Everything was wonderfully novel to Pei Yunting.
Leaning against the railing, she watched without blinking.
She was watching the performance.
Yan Huaijin was watching her.
Beside the avenue, the waters of the Grand Canal continued to flow in quiet silence—
just like the love he had hidden in his heart.
For ten years, it had remained unchanged.
Silent.
Unspoken.
The full Mid-Autumn moon reflected upon the water’s surface.
Now and then, a gentle breeze stirred faint ripples across its mirrored glow.
He quietly set aside all the exhaustion weighing on him.
In his heart…
and in his eyes…
there was only the young lady beside him.
The moon in the water is the moon in the sky.
The one before my eyes is the one within my heart.