I am an extremely awkward person.
When I was young, I liked to eat fish but not shrimp. But when fish and shrimp were served on the table together, and my father asked me what I liked to eat, I timidly pointed to the plate full of shrimp. It was as if letting others know my preference was something very embarrassing.
To the extent that even now, I find it difficult to admit my fondness for Jiang Muye.
At that time, he desperately wanted me to give him an answer. Faced with his repeated questioning, I merely blushed and remained silent, not even giving him a nod or shake of the head in response.
Fortunately, though I had a thin face, he had a thick one.
Seeing that I did not speak, he took my hand directly and held it to his chest, smiling as he said:
"No response is a positive response."
After that, the two of us naturally fell into a relationship.
It was also from that day onwards that I discovered that a cold, wooden person like him could actually look so good when he smiled.
At that time, since he had already gone through the coming of age ceremony, he was able to freely enter the palace.
Whenever he had free time, he would take me out to wander around the city. With my own hidden motive, I would gradually guide him to where my former home used to be.
To call it home, in fact, my home was long gone.
A few years after I entered the palace, the old site of my family home was requisitioned by the court, demolished, and turned into a crop field.
When all was said and done, the old scenery was gone, and the people were no more. As I gazed at the golden wheat fields that now covered the land, I felt a sense of melancholy in my heart.
I don't know if Jiang Muye noticed my declining mood, but he embraced me from behind, affectionately resting his chin on my shoulder, and gently said:
"Come, I'll take you somewhere."
He took me all the way to the seaside, where I saw a solitary house standing in the distance.
As we drew closer, it became more and more familiar.
It looked, so much like...!
This house was almost an exact replica of my former home!
He led me to stand outside the door, my feet feeling as though they were filled with lead, unable to move another step.
He tightened his grip on my hand and smiled brilliantly:
"Why are you dazed? We're home."
It wasn't until later that I learned that years ago, when I found out my home was being requisitioned by the court and demolished, I had painted a picture.
I painted my memory of what my home looked like, and looking at the painting, I remembered my parents and cried uncontrollably.
At that time, Jiang Muye happened to see me crying,
and casually asked me the reason.
After I told him the circumstances, I myself almost forgot about the incident.
Little did I expect that he would take it so much to heart, and even secretly instructed someone to visit my family home, noting the layout of the house and the interior arrangements, and had an exact replica built by the seaside.
Although I was delighted, I also curiously asked him:
"At that time, you were only thirteen years old, constantly criticizing me here and there, so why did you keep my words in your heart and secretly do all this without telling me?"
He merely smiled: "When I saw you crying like a little kitten, I couldn't help but feel distressed too, and I wanted to do something for you."
Indeed,
he had been silently caring for me from an early age, but never spoke of it.
I was thinking, perhaps it was precisely because of his wordless protection that I have always been able to feel a constant sense of security from him?
Like me, he was someone who disliked being overly sentimental.
Seeing that the situation was becoming a bit too emotional, he hurriedly changed the subject, saying:
"From now on, this will also be our home. If you ever tire of living in the palace, we can come here. Listen to the sea, watch the sunset - I think it would be wonderful."
In my heart, I also felt that this scene was incredibly blissful, but I couldn't resist teasing him:
"Oh, doesn't Your Highness Jiang think that living here with me, eating simple fare day after day, would be beneath your status?"
He gave me a sideways glance and pinched my cheek, saying:
"Any dish made by my wife is a heavenly delicacy that cannot be found on earth. How could I ever complain?"
I laughed at his playful banter, and he had indeed become increasingly smooth-tongued and unrestrained.
On that day, after dining at home, as we idled by the seaside watching the sunset, I leaned against his embrace, feeling the sea breeze while basking in the warmth of his breath.
As the horizon was dyed a warm orange-yellow by the lingering rays of the setting sun, I heard an infatuated man excitedly tell me:
"Yangr, look, this sky is the exact color of the sunflowers you love. I plan that on the day I take you as my wife, I will plant these flowers all over Zhu Yin!"
I chided him with a smile: "Those flowers will not easily thrive in Zhu Yin, so why plant them everywhere?"
He said: "With determination, nothing is difficult."
