Ever since he held her hand, he had grown fond of the feeling. Holding her, he felt a warmth in his heart, and the chilling cold that permeated him vanished.
"This zither is not a matter of haste. Your attainments are quite high, and in time, you will surely surpass me."
Wuqing's words were gentle and soothing, making one's heart well up with a pool of emotion, inexplicably comfortable.
Qingyao looked up at him. Although he appeared ethereal and detached at this moment, thinking of his previously black hair still caused her immense heartache and distress, her brows furrowing involuntarily.
"Wuqing, please don't hurt yourself like this anymore, okay? Do you know how sad I am? Truly."
Wuqing's slender hand released hers, gently caressing her brow. His expression remained placid, but his words were impossible to ignore:
"You don't need to be sad. The fact that you can be with me now makes me extremely happy. Truly. Before, I was just afraid that something would happen to you, which is why my hair turned white. If you don't like it, I'll dye it black when we return to the valley."
Upon hearing this, Qingyao reached out and clasped his hand, shaking her head forcefully.
"Let it be. No matter what appearance Wuqing has, he is always so special. So don't dye it. Let it stay like this." Qingyao held Wuqing's hand, her fingertips smooth and tender, like brocade, inviting another touch.
It wasn't until the end that she came back to her senses. Her actions were undoubtedly a form of harassment. Her face immediately flushed crimson. She wanted to pull away, but Wuqing held her hand instead. His hand was warm, yet at times, it was also cold.
Qingyao furrowed her brow slightly and couldn't help but ask.
"Your body temperature is so strange, sometimes cold, sometimes hot. It's different from most people."
Wuqing smiled faintly. "I was born with a cold constitution, and coupled with the cold nature of the internal energy techniques I practice, my body temperature is normally on the cooler side. However, because my heart is always thinking of you, it changes."
"How strange," Qingyao said faintly. In the moonlight, Wuqing's eyes seemed to be filled with water, so luminous that it was impossible to look away.
The two of them simply gazed at each other, as if a warm current was flowing through the entire small pavilion.
Though they didn't speak much, the atmosphere was as warm as wine, and a fragrant aroma intertwined in the air.
"After we rescue Moyou, we'll return to Wuxing Valley," Qingyao said. Wuqing nodded vigorously. This was his greatest longing: to live ordinary days with her. "Alright."
Night deepened. Qingyao stood up, her smile radiant and dazzling like summer flowers.
"I'm going back to rest now. You should sleep early and take care of yourself."
"Alright, you go back. I'll sit here for a while longer." He waved his hand, watching her melt into the moonlight until she completely disappeared.
Qingfeng walked into the pavilion from outside and stood quietly by. He watched his lord gazing fondly into the distance, his entire face glowing with a brilliance that hadn't been seen in years. Since meeting her, the young master seemed to have forgotten everything, only wanting to spend quiet moments with her.
"My lord, it's getting late. Let's go back."
"Mm, alright," Wuqing nodded. Through the sheer curtain, he gazed at the crescent moon on the horizon, his joy spilling out. "Qingfeng, I'm so happy. Happier than ever before."
"I know, my lord."
Qingfeng nodded. How could he not know? His lord's face was radiating happiness.
As long as he was by Miss Mu's side, knowing she was well, he could feel his joy even without a word. Wuqing turned. "Let's go back."
"Alright," Qingfeng put away the zither and pushed his lord away from the pavilion, walking back.
Because of days of travel, Qingyao was very tired and slept in a little longer in the morning. To her surprise, early in the morning, Mo Chou's loud, excited voice echoed in her room.
This girl, for some unknown joyful reason, had been tossing and turning all night, getting up very early in excitement.
"Mistress, Mistress, good news, good news!"
Qingyao groggily opened her eyes and snorted impatiently. "What are you so worked up about now? Haven't you had enough tossing all night?"
Upon hearing this, Mo Chou knew her mistress had been affected by her excitement. Her face immediately flushed hot. She really couldn't sleep thinking about the kiss between the two of them last night.
This was because she had actually kissed Moyou, who was younger than herself. This made her belatedly uneasy, feeling as if she had taken enormous advantage.
Moyou was only fifteen, of noble status, and handsome. By any measure, he shouldn't have liked someone like her.
After much deliberation, seeing her lady about to fall back asleep, Mo Chou quickly grabbed her arm. "Miss, listen to me, there's good news."
"What is it?" Qingyao asked with her eyes closed, not moving.
"I just heard the young maids talking about something. An envoy from Yun Cang Kingdom is heading to Huang Yuan Kingdom. Do you know who is leading the delegation?"
Mo Chou said with feigned mystery, her voice unable to contain her excitement. Seeing her mistress remain still, she quickly continued:
"They say it's the Third Prince Wen Yu. Many people in Huang Yuan Kingdom say that the Third Prince Wen Yu is exceptionally handsome. Didn't you tell me before that Chu Qianyi was still the Third Prince of Yun Cang Kingdom? Could it be him?"
Mo Chou's last sentence finally startled Qingyao. However, she wasn't confused about whether the Third Prince was Chu Qianyi. Instead, she was puzzling over why Yin Xuan had said he was leaving.
How could he appear in Huang Yuan Kingdom and become the leader of the envoy mission?
But he had seemed to say he had something to do. So he was going to Huang Yuan Kingdom on an envoy mission.
In Qingyao's mind, Yin Xuan was Chu Qianyi, and now the Third Prince Wen Yu.
"It's him."
Qingyao nodded, opening her clear, shimmering eyes to look at Mo Chou and smiling faintly. She realized that this girl, who usually seemed so composed, was quite cunning. She wanted Moyou to sneak out of the city disguised within the envoy mission, so no one would pay him any attention.
This was a good idea. Alright, she would visit Wen Yu at the imperial post station.
"Alright, I know what you mean. But it's only early morning. Let me sleep a little longer, and don't disturb me again, or don't blame me if I get angry."
Qingyao warned coldly, then ignored the stunned Mo Chou and rolled back onto the bed to sleep.
Mo Chou was speechless. However, she was too excited and forgot that the members of the envoy mission might not be awake yet. It was heard that the Emperor had hosted a banquet for the envoys last night, so they must have slept very late. Why would they be awake now?
Moreover, her mistress had gone back to sleep. It was better to wait for her to wake up to discuss it. She turned and quietly walked out.
When Qingyao woke up, it was already afternoon. The sunlight in the room was warm and gentle. Wuqing sat quietly in his wheelchair, gazing at her with focused, affectionate eyes. As soon as he saw her wake up, he smiled lightly, his face full of vitality.
"You're awake."
"Mm," Qingyao nodded, stretching her body and saying cheerfully, "It's a new day."