The faint glow of the setting sun fell behind her as Qi Huan walked with her back to the light, her steps light and graceful.
Her jet-black hair was styled in an elegant bun, adorned with a white birch leaf jade hairpin that Li Shuchen had given her last Qixi Festival. Her fair face was as white as snow, with bright, clear eyes and cherry lips lightly coated with a tomato-red gloss.
She wore a pure white soft silver gauze lily dress, paired with a moon-white belt that accentuated her slender waist, making her appear unparalleled in her beauty.
The moment she caught sight of her, Old Lady Song couldn't help but straighten her back, proudly telling Nanny Wu beside her:
"Do you see? This is my granddaughter!"
Nanny Wu immediately understood and lavished praise on both grandmother and granddaughter.
Qi Huan graciously thanked her for the compliments.
After paying her respects, she nestled up to Old Lady Song and said coyly, "Grandmother, I've heard that the Lantern Festival in the capital is lively and magnificent. May I go and see it?"
"Of course you can," Old Lady Song replied with a smile, a hint of nostalgia in her expression. "The flower markets are as bright as day, a breathtaking sight. Go if you want to, Huan Huan, but remember to take several guards with you."
"Thank you, Grandmother!"
With the permit to leave the mansion in hand, Qi Huan stepped lightly onto the carriage, slowly heading towards their agreed meeting point.
Meanwhile, in Qing'an Courtyard.
Song You'an nervously clutched her veil, stammering, "... Is this really okay?"
"My dear girl, what are you afraid of? You're wearing a silk hat on your head and covered with a veil, two layers inside and out. Who could possibly see you?"
"Since the Old Lady allowed Miss Qi to go out, she would surely allow you to go out too. Don't you want to see the splendor of the lantern market and buy a little rabbit lantern for yourself?"
"... No... I don't," Song You'an shrank back.
With her reddened eyes and fair skin, she looked just like a little rabbit.
She too longed for the outside world, but she dared not step foot outside the Song Mansion.
Seeing her so timid, Yun Que felt displeased.
She had heard that Miss Qi's maids could not only go out with her but also buy and eat peach pastries and roast duck, while she could only follow her own mistress, cooped up in this tiny courtyard day after day.
The comparison was infuriating.
If only her mistress were Miss Qi...
Today was the Lantern Festival, and the capital had temporarily lifted the curfew. The ban on night travel was relaxed, allowing for all-night celebrations. Every street was decorated with lanterns and streamers, teeming with people, presenting a scene of prosperity and excitement. Yun Que couldn't help but yearn to join in.
She really wanted to go out and explore!
Seeing the longing in her eyes, Song You'an tugged at her clothes, her voice as soft as a mosquito's buzz: "Yun Que, why don't I... tell Mother..."
"Tell her about going out?"
"... Mm." Song You'an was about to say she could go out and play for the night when she saw Yun Que had already run out excitedly.
"Miss, I'll go relay the message!"
Song You'an was stunned.
It wasn't until Elder Madam Song and Elder Master Song tearfully sent her off in a carriage that she came to her senses.
"Yun Que, what did you say..."
"This servant told the Madam and Master that you wanted to go out!"
"... That's not... I just wanted to let you go out and play." Song You'an anxiously shrank into the corner of the carriage.
She had never left the Song Mansion in over a decade. Even though her parents wanted her to be a bit more outgoing, they never forced her.
Tonight, upon unexpectedly learning that she wanted to go out to see the lanterns, Elder Madam Song and Elder Master Song hugged each other and wept with joy.
An'an finally wanted to go out!
They never thought An'an was inferior to others. If other young ladies could go out to see clothes, jewelry, lanterns, and night scenes, why couldn't An'an?
Heaven had been unfair to An'an, but they still hoped she could live a brilliant life.
In truth, Elder Madam Song and Elder Master Song were also very nervous about this sudden decision.
Although they had sent many guards to accompany her, the couple still couldn't sit still.
In the end, they decided to go out as well.
*
Meanwhile.
As the moon rose above the willow trees, it was time for their rendezvous.
When the carriage came to a stop, Qi Huan eagerly stepped down using the mounting block and hurried through the back door into the courtyard of Mingyu Tea House.
The young lady lifted her skirts, her clothes fluttering in the evening breeze like a little butterfly, suddenly flying into Li Shuchen's field of vision.
He immediately leaped out of the second-floor window, landing in front of Qi Huan, and gently called out, "A'Huan."
His magnetic voice instantly sent a tingling sensation through Qi Huan's body.
She raised her smiling face, blinking her eyes: "A'Shu, let's go see the lanterns."
Let's go on a date!
Among the streets adorned with thousands of silver flowers, amidst the bustling crowds, in this beautiful time of youth, let's go on a date!
"Alright."
Before they left, Li Shuchen took her delicate hand and went back inside to fetch two painted masks.
They were in the style of a little pig and a little dog.
"A'Huan, you choose first."
"......"
Qi Huan's gaze moved complexly between the two masks, her lips twitching almost imperceptibly.
If not a dog, then a pig.
Was there really any choice?
She looked up at Li Shuchen and asked, "Were there really no other masks available?"
"These are from the twelve zodiac set. A'Huan was born in the year of the pig."
"......"
A moment later.
Qi Huan, wearing the little pig mask, looked at the "little dog" beside her and couldn't help but burst into laughter.
Li Shuchen gazed at her lovingly, interlocking their fingers as they walked down the lively street.
Yan Wu and Yan Qinghe followed behind them, secretly guarding them.
Yan Wu: "His Highness actually wore the dog head mask!"
Yan Qinghe: "A'Shu wears a dog head, A'Huan wears a pig head, and you're not fit to be either."
"You dared to trick A'Shu by saying these masks were a set, looking like a family."
Yan Wu began to defend himself: "... How was I to know His Highness would actually believe it? When it comes to Miss Qi, His Highness seems like a different person."
Yan Qinghe sighed: "No wonder the first page of the sword manual says, 'With no woman in your heart, your sword naturally becomes divine.'"
"I want to become a sword god! I'll never love a woman!"
Having learned from A'Shu's "lesson," Yan Qinghe shook his head while touching his sword.
In the next moment, chaos suddenly erupted in front of them.
Under the glow of the intermingling lanterns, a young lady with silver hair was surrounded by a crowd, people pointing and whispering.
"A demon!"
"Quick, find a priest!"
......
In the center of the crowd, Song You'an helplessly covered her head, her eyes like those of a frightened deer, filled with fear and uncertainty. Large teardrops fell from her eyes.
Her soft, crying voice was full of terror: "I'm not..."
"... not a demon..."
"Huh, if you're not a demon, how can you have white hair and such a youthful face?" a middle-aged woman immediately questioned.
Another man, who looked like a scholar, added, "I know! She must have absorbed people's vital essence to stay forever young! To maintain her youth!"
"Demon! Kill the demon!"
As the crowd grew more agitated, people began throwing whatever they could get their hands on at the surrounded young lady.
Song You'an curled up on the ground, hugging her knees, tears streaming down her face.
At this moment, she desperately wished for someone to save her.
Even if they just killed her outright to end her suffering, it would be better than this.
Suddenly, her vision went dark as she was enveloped by a cloak and pulled into a warm embrace.
A man's clear voice rang out: "If she were really a demon, why hasn't she eaten all of you yet?"
"Fools."
