Chapter 67

Chapter 67

"No, you cannot." Rong Tang solemnly looked up to refuse, yet his hands were clenched tight.

Su Huaijing blinked, asking softly, "Really? I can't?"

Rong Tang kept a straight face: "You can't."

"Alright then." The antagonist nodded regretfully and stepped back a bit, then asked, "Can I still sleep in your room?"

Rong Tang frowned, about to refuse, but Su Huaijing said with a pitiful look, "It was Tang Tang who invited me first."

Rong Tang instantly fell silent.

He stood facing Su Huaijing for a moment, then got up, took a thin blanket from the wardrobe, and laid it on the couch.

Seeing Rong Tang's squirrel-like movements, Su Huaijing couldn't help wanting to laugh.

As the moon reached its zenith, surrounding Suzhou City with misty waters, Su Huaijing smiled and went out to prepare washing utilities for Rong Tang. They sat side by side like two little friends, washed up, and then lay down on the bed.

Rong Tang wasn't really sleepy; moonlight scattered through the window, and he watched the various carvings on the ceiling in the dim light.

Su Huaijing asked him, "Can't sleep?"

Rong Tang nodded slightly, his hair rustling softly against the pillow. Su Huaijing then asked, "Want to hear a story?"

Rong Tang perked up with interest: "What story?"

"What does Tang Tang want to hear?" Su Huaijing gave him the choice.

So, Rong Tang pondered and asked, "You and General Wei are cousins and you lived in the Marquis Xian's mansion as a child. Did you ever meet the Emperor's sons?"

The Emperor's sons, each with a noble and elegant demeanor. Rong Tang couldn't help wanting to touch those memories hidden in the past, uncelebrated, unknown, even erased from history books.

Rong Tang said, "I always feel they were very good people. If someone remembers them, does that mean they haven't truly perished?"

His words fell in the summer night, with the cicadas' long song outside, mosquito-repellent incense burning inside, and ice in the corner cooling the room, all serene and tranquil, as if untouched by the world's conspiracies.

Su Huaijing reached out and grasped Rong Tang.

Rong Tang was slightly startled, yet didn't pull away. Then he heard the villain's warm voice, "Then close your eyes and sleep, Tang Tang. I'll tell you slowly."

He spoke of the meticulous and composed Crown Prince, the profound and earnest Second Prince, and most of all, the passionate and unrestrained Third Prince.

He wanted to talk about the Fourth Princess, the most spoiled and daring, yet tender and lovely pearl of the palace. But a princess so young rarely left the palace, and even if she did, she was unlikely to meet men outside. Given Su Huaijing's status, he had no reason to see her, so he refrained.

They talked for a long time, mostly with Su Huaijing speaking, while Rong Tang listened quietly, occasionally responding, until sleepiness gradually enveloped his mind.

The breathing beside him became more even, the clouds unable to obscure the moon, its silvery light softly illuminating. Su Huaijing slowly ceased his narrative, turned his head, coaxing gently, "Tang Tang?"

Rong Tang's mind was muddled with sleepiness, almost drifting to dreamland, yet subconsciously aware someone was calling him, instinctively responding with a "Hmm."

Su Huaijing chuckled softly, again gently and politely, with great poise, making his request, "May I kiss you now?"

The person in a daze couldn't give any rational response, only murmuring unclearly, something like a 'Hmm' or a soft 'Mmm' in reply.

Su Huaijing, as if he had received an imperial edict, gently curved his eyes and rose from his seat with the lightest of movements, using the moonlight streaming through the window to study Rong Tang's face.

The slightly pale complexion, refined and elongated eyebrows, thick and curled eyelashes, and the somewhat thin and light lips.

Objectively speaking, his Tang Tang was indeed a very attractive person.

Like a masterpiece meticulously crafted by a world-renowned painter.

The facial features, noble and handsome, were delicately depicted with ink, each stroke perfectly placed, only to realize that cinnabar and red ochre were used up when it was time to add color. The painting lost its color but not its charm, so it was left uncolored.

Su Huaijing gazed down, believing he had received consent from his beloved, and tenderly, respectfully, placed a light kiss on Rong Tang's forehead.

He really liked Rong Tang so much, the moonlight and evening breeze were witnesses, the chirping cicadas their attendants, and the heaven and earth their grand hall.

-

The seventh day of the seventh month, the Qixi Festival.

Early in the morning, Rong Tang saw a pair of beautifully designed lanterns painted with mandarin ducks hanging under the porch, symbolizing love and affection.

Su Huaijing walked over with breakfast. Rong Tang glanced sideways and asked, "Did you hang these?"

Su Huaijing smiled softly, "Yes, do you like them?"

Rong Tang, the young master, looked at him with an indescribable expression, asking, "Why did you hang these?"

"To pray to the Cowherd and the Weaver Girl to make my husband develop feelings for me," Su Huaijing innocently replied.

Rong Tang choked up, words stuck in his throat. After washing up in the bathroom, he changed direction midway to instruct the servant Shuangfu before joining Su Huaijing for breakfast.

When they came out again, the morning light was bright, and the lanterns under the eaves had been changed to a pair with swans, their necks entwined, adorned with small bells that tinkled in the breeze.

Su Huaijing looked closely, slightly surprised, and turned to Rong Tang, "Did Tang Tang order this?"

"Yes," Rong Tang nodded proudly.

"Why?" Su Huaijing asked.

Rong Tang hummed, "I always thought you were omnipotent and omniscient."

"..." Su Huaijing fell silent for a moment, then asked uncertainly, "Is Tang Tang scolding me?"

Rong Tang's lips curved upward slightly, "That's right."

Su Huaijing: "..."

He was silent for a while, then chuckled softly, took Rong Tang's hand, and as they walked into the garden, he said, "Then, may I trouble my husband to enlighten me?"

Rong Tang felt a peculiar sense of being playfully outwitted, his ears slightly red, "Actually, mandarin ducks are not faithful at all."

"Male mandarin ducks are particularly fickle, having many mates in their lifetime. The ancients were deceived by them, believing that mandarin ducks represented marital love," Rong Tang explained.

After pondering for a moment, Su Huaijing asked, "So, swans are the faithful birds?"

"Yes," Rong Tang said, "Swans are monogamous. Once they find a partner, they remain devoted to them for life, in life and death."

"I see," Su Huaijing murmured, gripping Rong Tang's fingers, feigning just the right amount of confusion, "Then why did Tang Tang replace my prayer lanterns for me?"

Rong Tang pursed his lips, saying nothing.

Su Huaijing's smile deepened, teasingly probing, "Is it out of pity? Compassion? Affection? Or is it that... Tang Tang has granted my wish?"

Rong Tang stared at the ground beneath his feet, shaking his head, "None of those."

Su Huaijing pressed, "Then what is it?"

"To pray for your wish," Rong Tang said softly.

Su Huaijing was momentarily stunned, then smiled happily, "Tang Tang knows that only you can fulfill the wish I have, one that even the Cowherd and the Weaver Girl cannot."

Rong Tang muttered something softly, causing Su Huaijing's expression to change, thinking he had misheard, "What did Tang Tang say?"

Rong Tang, resigning himself to his fate, blurted out, "You should find someone else to love."

Their hands still clasped together, the statement lacked credibility, almost making Su Huaijing laugh out loud. He shook their intertwined hands, pressing, "Why?"

Rong Tang frowned, searching for a reason: "I'm not a good person."

Ahead was an octagonal pavilion, where a young man in purple and another in white were conversing. Su Huaijing slowed his pace, half a step behind Rong Tang, gazing at his profile and sighing softly, "I always say Tang Tang never speaks a word of truth."

Rong Tang was taken aback, indignant, "You're spreading rumors about me."

"When have I ever spread rumors?" Su Huaijing asked with a clear conscience, "On the day the young master deceived me into engagement, you said you were at least a good person. Now, to reject me, you’re willing to tarnish your own reputation?"

He asked somberly, "Is my affection for you really so unbearable?"

The great villain was genuinely emotional, wronged and aggrieved, his head hung low, his eyes narrowed, with golden sunlight sprinkling over his eyelashes, looking pitifully endearing.

Rong Tang couldn't bear to see Su Huaijing like this, opened his mouth, almost immediately ready to apologize. The two people in the pavilion noticed them, Ke Hongxue waved his folding fan, calling out, "Young master, care to join us for a chat?"

For the first time, Rong Tang felt like Ke Shaofu was his savior. He stepped forward to join them, but his hand was firmly grasped, anchoring him in place.

He turned back to look; Su Huaijing was still standing there, quietly watching him, as if expecting an explanation.

Ke Hongxue urged from the pavilion, while the usually uninterested Mu Jingxu turned his head, frowning, wondering why the two had suddenly stopped in the middle of the path.

Rong Tang felt overwhelmed and decided to relent and apologize.

But before he could speak, Su Huaijing pulled him forward, his voice softly reaching his ear.

"It's my fault for being too fond of Tang Tang, too eager for a response. I shouldn't impose my hopes on you. Don't be angry, Tang Tang."

Rong Tang: “?”

Su Huaijing added, "I just don't want to hear you speaking ill of yourself. You're a very good person. Don't talk nonsense just to reject me. That would make me angry, but I don't want to be angry with Tang Tang."

It was a catch-22, and Su Huaijing couldn’t find a way out at the moment, so he childishly gazed at his little Buddha, stuck in place.

But seeing Rong Tang's bewildered expression, Su Huaijing immediately felt it wasn't right.

He shouldn't make Rong Tang uncomfortable or even apologize in public, just for his own selfish desires.

Privately, anything goes. He could appease Tang Tang, and no one else would see his perplexed state. But in front of others, Su Huaijing always wanted Rong Tang to be the elegant and distinguished young master, never to compromise himself for Su Huaijing's affection.

Holding Rong Tang's hand, he walked towards the pavilion. Ke Hongxue and Mu Jingxu both looked at them, the former with a smile, the latter still aloof but with a thoughtful look in his eyes when he saw Su Huaijing.

The morning breeze blew across the pond, leaving Rong Tang somewhat dazed.

Just before entering the pavilion, he tugged at Su Huaijing's sleeve and whispered, "I lied."

Su Huaijing also lowered his voice, "I know." Tang Tang always says the opposite of what he feels; he was used to it.

Rong Tang looked up, gazing at his profile.

The villain's face was still handsome and striking, a fitting smile on his lips, but with a hint of unnoticeable melancholy in his eyes.

Rong Tang pursed his lips, thinking to himself, you don’t know.

I do wish your dreams come true, but...

It seems you don't want to choose someone else either.

But I don’t want you to die for me, so what should we do?

Rong Tang was quite perplexed.