As the sun neared the horizon, the Eastern Market gradually grew busier, the sounds of various merchants bargaining rising and falling, filling the air with lively energy.
Amidst the bustling crowd, although it was somewhat crowded, the young boys and girls dressed in the “Intertwined Branches” still caught the eyes of passersby, causing them to glance back and pause.
Shangguan Qiuyue and Yun Mu were both not very tall, with only about half a head’s difference between them.
Such a misleading height difference made them appear like childhood sweethearts to these passersby, a rather beautiful sight.
Seeing them would inevitably stir up some childhood memories, bringing a knowing smile to their faces.
However, quite a few people recognized Shangguan Qiuyue, and their thoughts mostly ran along the lines of —
“Who is this brat? He looks delicate, but so skinny, how could he possibly be worthy of Qiuyue?”
No matter what opinions they held, it only made the already shy pair feel more awkward.
Walking along, the girl suddenly turned around, pulling the boy into a nearby alley.
She bent over, clutching her chest, taking deep breaths.
After about ten seconds, she finally straightened up as if a weight had been lifted.
“I’m alive again…”
She raised her eyes to look at the boy before her, smiling brightly.
Though it was a cloudy day, the evening glow painted her delicate face a soft pink.
“Um… Little Mu, how about we go somewhere with fewer people? They don’t mean any harm, but being stared at like this makes me really uncomfortable inside.”
“Somewhere with fewer people?”
“Yeah, yeah, I know a place where the lantern festival looks especially beautiful, but almost no one goes there. Although we have to pass through crowds to get there, it’s better than staying in this thick crowd, right?”
“If that’s the case, Miss, you lead the way.”
Seeing Yun Mu nod in agreement, the little girl happily responded with a
“Mm.”
She grabbed his arm, ready to run, but was suddenly pulled back.
“Little Mu, what’s wrong?”
Stopping and looking back, she was full of confusion.
“It’s nothing serious, just…”
Yun Mu whispered, gently pulling the girl in front of him.
Then, slowly letting go, he raised his hands bit by bit, unknowingly closing the distance between them.
“Eh! Little Mu, isn’t this a bit inappropriate?”
The sudden intimacy startled Shangguan Qiuyue into an exclamation.
She placed her hands on her chest, feeling awkward, and instinctively took a few steps back, only to find herself against the wall.
Feeling the warmth approaching, she couldn’t help but close her eyes.
Beside her ears was the distant noise of the crowd; before her was the clear, steady breath drawing nearer.
Her mind swirled into a mess, but her head instinctively lifted slightly.
Her body trembled uncontrollably, gripped by a mixture of “excitement” and “shyness,” and her lips puckered.
She recalled vague memories of her mother waiting for a kiss, clumsily imitating and waiting for the so-called kiss to come.
But after a long time… she did not receive the imagined response.
Instead, she felt something heavy pressing down on her head, like being covered by something.
Opening her eyes, she saw the brim of a hat and half of the boy’s face.
“Miss Qiuyue, now you don’t have to worry about those people always staring at you.”
In that instant, in just that instant, Shangguan Qiuyue, in all her years, clearly realized for the first time what “self-misunderstanding” meant, what “embarrassed anger” was, and what it meant to be completely “off-topic.”
She lowered her head, her eyes full of displeasure, her little fists clenched tightly, as if she was ready to strike at any moment.
To be honest, she didn’t like the feeling of dashed expectations.
But just as she was about to ask Yun Mu why he was so dense, she looked up and met his innocent gaze.
Caught off guard, most of her anger evaporated.
On top of that, the boy tilted his head, looking at her pouty lips with a “What’s wrong with you?” expression, which completely dissipated her frustration.
She could only slap her own cheeks hard and ask herself quietly.
Shangguan Qiuyue, what are you doing?
Aren’t you just overthinking?
Really, Little Mu hasn’t done anything wrong.
He’s such a pure child; he wouldn’t behave badly like you do at such a young age…
Seriously, you brought this on yourself!
After this stern self-reflection, she stamped her little foot and said, “Let’s go buy lotus lanterns,”
then pulled Yun Mu and left the alley without looking back.
Not far away, in front of a shop specializing in selling lotus lanterns, a crowd had gathered.
Strangely, the crowd formed a semicircle around the stall, and in the empty space before them, a woman in a black robe was slowly putting the lotus lanterns into her Qiankun Bag, giving the impression she was monopolizing the entire stall.
“Miss Qiuyue, there seem to be quite a lot of people at the lantern stall. Do you still want to go?”
“Of course, we have to. Tonight, we can have nothing else, but we absolutely cannot be without lotus lanterns.”
Shangguan Qiuyue pulled him forward, not once looking back as she pressed into the crowd.
Yun Mu moved a little closer to her, placing his arms on either side of her body, saying, “Excuse me, please make way,”
as he slowly made their way through.
Finally, after a “battle” through the crowd, they reached the lantern stall — only to see the onlookers suddenly scatter.
“This…”
The girl looked at the stall owner who was packing up, pointing at the now-empty stall, stammering,
“Little Little Mu, a-are the lanterns… sold out?!”
“Miss Qiuyue, don’t worry, I’ll ask what’s going on.”
Yun Mu gently reassured her, then approached the stall owner.
After a few words exchanged, the scene unfolded —
The stall owner suddenly rummaged through a box of miscellaneous items, took out two lotus lanterns, and handed them to Yun Mu.
He tried to pay but was pushed aside repeatedly by the stall owner, who finally accepted a single copper coin before leaving directly.
Shangguan Qiuyue was left staring blankly.
“Little Mu… what’s going on?”
Before the boy could get closer, she hurried over to his side.
She noticed that the lotus lantern had a carved rabbit pattern and asked quietly, “Is this last year’s lantern?”
“Yes. The owner said they were selling fine, but suddenly, a girl in black robes bought all the lanterns.”
Yun Mu looked down at the lantern, gently dusted it off, then blew a little dust to the side before handing it to the girl.
“He said these were leftover from last year, probably broken, so he hadn’t sold them. He even wanted to just give them to us just now, but I still paid. It should be… okay, right?”
“Of course it’s okay…”
The girl raised the little rabbit high, softly murmuring, “Rat, Ox, Tiger, Rabbit, Dragon… so this year is the Year of the Dragon.”
“Hmm, the books say dragons are symbols of emperors. The garments of every Heavenly Emperor are called Dragon Robes — extremely noble. Though I wonder if dragons really exist in this world.”
“Emperor robes, huh?”
The girl pondered, a dignified figure frowning in her mind, “Then dragons must be fierce, right? I still prefer rabbits after all. I stayed home last year and didn’t come to the lantern festival — that’s pretty good~”
Shangguan Qiuyue smiled sweetly to comfort herself, looked up at the clear moon, and took the boy’s hand as they headed toward the streets, where lanterns had just been lit.
“Let’s go, Little Mu. Now we’ll go to that less crowded place.”
“Mm, let’s go.”
On both sides of the street, bright lights shone, golden and resplendent buildings glittered with grandeur, and ancient-style architectures framed the passage of time.
In the middle of the road, the boy and girl walked hand in hand beneath racks full of lanterns, passing through the crowd and over a wooden bridge spanning the river, arriving at a quieter side.
“Little Mu, this way. Watch your step.”
By the riverside, the girl gently pushed aside tangled branches, frequently looking back as she led the way.
The boy clumsily trod on the stone path.
Once all obstacles were behind them, looking up, they saw thousands of bright lanterns floating on the river’s surface, like bright moons and stars in the Milky Way, shining brilliantly and merging like a sea of light.
Looking down, he saw the girl’s smiling face among the radiant fire trees and silver flowers.
Her apricot-shaped eyes reflected the colorful lights from the street lanterns, as if she held all the worldly beauty within herself, captivating him without resistance.
After a long while, the girl softly spoke, bringing him back from his daze.
“Little Mu, what are you looking at?”
Shangguan Qiuyue gently tugged the dazed boy.
“Is it me or the lanterns that are prettier?”
“Uh… both are beautiful…”
“Is that so~ is that so~”
The girl repeated twice, cupping a lantern in her hands and holding it out before him, eyes full of playful laughter.
“Since that’s the case, accompany me to set the lotus lanterns afloat, and then we can make a wish together, how about that?”
“Okay.”
Lotus lanterns?
He seemed to have released them as a child before, with his master.
They had made wishes then, but what they were… he couldn’t remember.
Yun Mu watched the two rabbit-shaped lotus lanterns float into the water, mimicking the girl’s gesture, pressing his palms together and silently wishing in his heart.
I hope Miss Qiuyue, Sister Xun Yi, Grandpa Xie, and Little Chun and Little Qiu can be happy in the future.
And… it would be best if they can soon forget… um… forget me.
Simple words, yet filled with the boy’s full-hearted blessings.
He glanced sideways at the girl, still murmuring to herself, and couldn’t help but smile.
What he didn’t notice was that Shangguan Qiuyue’s face had already turned somewhat pale.
It seemed the Miss had many wishes.
Well then, I’ll wait a little longer, just a little longer…
Waiting,
Suddenly, a “splash” was heard.
The girl, who had been squatting by the riverbank, suddenly fell forward into the water.
“Miss!”
Yun Mu snapped back to reality and without hesitation jumped into the river, swimming toward the now unconscious girl.
The icy water engulfed his entire body, the biting cold piercing his soul, yet he pushed even harder downward until he reached the girl’s body, then struggled upward to lift her to the riverbank.
However, the heavy clothes dragged him down, making him slowly sink.
He tried desperately to reach shore when a figure in black robes appeared.
Then, once again, he was submerged beneath the water.
But along with the cold came a familiar softness on his lips and a drowsiness that spread through his entire body.
Sister Xun Yi…?