In reality, Chu Shao didn’t wait for too long. But before going to find Xiao Jin, she stayed in the Fifth prince’s consort’s tent and made two sky lanterns out of bamboo strips.
The Fifth prince’s consort didn’t expect Chu Shao to learn so quickly. In just a short moment, she made a sky lantern that looked just like the one the consort made, and the second lantern was even more delicate.
As Chu Shao lifted the lantern, her thoughts were unclear, but a faint smile appeared on her face. It seemed that her thoughts flew away before the lantern even took off.
The Fifth prince’s consort shook her head, knowing that she couldn’t keep Chu Shao. She sighed, “Forget it, I’m already very happy to have a chat with Third sister-in-law today. You should go find the Her Highness Prince Yan soon. If you wait too long, she will be anxious, and you will be anxious too.”
If it were someone else, they would definitely exchange a few more words, engage in polite conversation for a while.
However, Chu Shao was not an ordinary person. After hearing the Fifth prince’s consort’s words, she smiled slightly and readily agreed, “Alright.”
After saying that, she carried the two lanterns covered in red paper and left.
However, Chu Shao didn’t expect that as soon as she lifted the tent curtain, she saw Xiao Jin sitting in a wheelchair, about to speak.
Their eyes met, and both of them were stunned.
After a moment, Xiao Jin pursed her lips slightly, as if she wanted to say something. But in the end, she closed her mouth and didn’t speak.
Chu Shao, holding the two lanterns, couldn’t help but smile and called out, “Your Highness.”
Xiao Jin responded with a soft “Hmm.”
Chu Shao asked again, “How did Your Highness know that I was here?”
Xiao Jin raised her hand and pointed to Ye Suyu, who was hiding beside the tent.
Ye Suyu, being praised, forced a smile and silently mouthed to the group of hidden guards behind her, “Disperse.”
Chu Shao looked at the black hawk perched on Ye Suyu’s shoulder and understood that the other party must have secretly informed Xiao Jin.
It had to be said, they did a good job.
The sky on the grassland was very blue, and the wind was gentle. On such a hot day, Xiao Jin, sitting in a wheelchair, looked at Chu Shao with a relatively normal expression, except for her pair of bright black eyes that remained silent, resembling a dumb bride.
She had mastered the cold and indifferent attitude, but the displayed attitude was not much different from a young wife sulking.
Seeing this, Chu Shao smiled and asked, “Why aren’t you speaking?”
Xiao Jin felt aggrieved in her heart, but she couldn’t say it. She simply said, “It’s too hot, I don’t feel like talking.”
Chu Shao slightly frowned and earnestly replied, “But it’s equally hot on the grassland, and I can’t do anything about it. Your Highness, you’ll have to endure a little longer.”
Chu Shao could endure, but Xiao Jin couldn’t endure anymore. She looked into Chu Shao’s eyes and said, “Let’s go back together. Perhaps it won’t be so hot.”
Of course, at first listen, what she said seemed reasonable, but reality was cruel.
Being together in a stuffy tent might be more suffocating than being outside.
However, Chu Shao gazed at Xiao Jin, her brows and eyes curved with a smile, and pretended to be hesitant as she said, “But it seems even hotter inside the tent. Besides, the Fifth prince’s consort just invited me to go to the lakeside to release lanterns later tonight.”
As she spoke, the two lanterns she held swayed in the wind, quite fitting for the occasion.
The two lanterns covered in red paper were particularly eye-catching in Xiao Jin’s eyes.
Or rather, they were glaring.
Xiao Jin couldn’t help but sneer, thinking that the Fifth prince’s consort was indeed quite remarkable to capture Chu Shao’s attention in such a short time. It seemed she was not an ordinary person.
Unfortunately, Chu Shao’s mood was as changeable as the clouds in the sky.
Being able to cope with the moment didn’t necessarily mean she could cope with a lifetime.
At this moment, Xiao Jin began to assess her own advantages, but as she counted, she fell silent.
Because she realized that besides occasionally pretending with the system and telling fairy tales, she didn’t seem to have any other strengths.
Hmm, she even ended up as a disabled person.
She was the epitome of negative gains.
Realizing that she was losing to the Fifth prince’s consort in so many aspects, Xiao Jin suddenly felt dispirited. She began to indulge in negative thoughts: Yes, she couldn’t move, and sooner or later, she would return to the modern era.
Why did she appear here? While Chu Shao was getting along well with the other princess consorts, why did she come to join the fun?
Just a moment later, Xiao Jin figured it out.
Heh, what was the Fifth prince’s consort? There was no festivity she couldn’t participate in.
Wasn’t it just watching lanterns? She was determined to join in the festivity.
After this enlightenment, Xiao Jin’s expression changed faster than turning a page in a book. A smile appeared on her lips, and her ink-like eyes looked at Chu Shao. “But I also want to watch the lanterns with the princess. What should I do?”
Chu Shao silently looked at Xiao Jin, without saying a word.
Xiao Jin lowered her eyelashes and sighed softly. “If I could be fortunate enough to find a sky lantern, I would be able to enjoy the lanterns by the riverside with Shao’er and my Fifth sister-in-law tonight.”
Ye Suyu, who was standing beside them, heard Xiao Jin’s words and had a look of disbelief on her face. She was so shocked that her eyeballs almost fell out.
Were such affected words really spoken by her master?
She was just a subordinate of the Prince Yan, and she couldn’t help but turn around and pretend to admire the scenery, feeling that she couldn’t afford to associate with this person. Not to mention the guards standing dumbfounded around the tent, and the group of maids stifling their laughter.
Xiao Jin didn’t think her words sounded affected at all. On the contrary, she smiled and looked at Chu Shao, asking in a gentle tone, “Shao’er, do you have any ideas?”
Before Chu Shao could speak, the maid Yun Xing, who had been acting as a background prop for a long time, couldn’t help but step forward. This Yun Xing, who was stained with the aroma of tea, bravely volunteered, “Your Highness, you don’t have to worry! This servant has many sky lanterns here, please feel free to take them!”
The maids who were watching the scene also chimed in, blushing and giggling, “Yes, if Your Highness is lacking sky lanterns, this servant has made many. If you don’t mind, this servant can bring them to you.”
The girls all naturally called her “Your Highness.”
Chu Shao slightly frowned, and the smile on her lips faded a bit. She didn’t quite understand why hearing others call out Xiao Jin’s name made her feel somewhat annoyed.
But she knew how to respond.
Chu Shao said, “Your Highness, you can have mine.”
This sudden statement, along with the inappropriate self-reference, not only surprised the maids, but even Xiao Jin, who was sitting in the wheelchair, was stunned for a moment.
Chu Shao took a few steps closer with a gentle smile and handed the sky lantern in her hand to Xiao Jin. Her fingers against the colorful paper lantern made her look delicate and fragile.
There was a touch of teardrops burning like rouge in her eyes, but her voice was full of tenderness. “This lantern is made for you, Your Highness, by me.”
“So, do you want it?”
No one could refuse Chu Shao. No matter how straightforward Xiao Jin was or how peculiar her thinking was, she couldn’t say no.
Because she was just an ordinary person, completely powerless to refuse Chu Shao. So when the sky darkened, Xiao Jin soon arrived at the riverside, sitting in the wheelchair and watching the shepherds gathered around the bonfire.
Her brows and eyes gradually became blurred amidst the crackling sparks, as if she was pondering something important.
Even when Ye Suyu called her a few times, Xiao Jin didn’t hear it.
It wasn’t until Ye Suyu couldn’t help but raise her voice and shout, “Your highness!” that Xiao Jin snapped out of her thoughts and looked at Ye Suyu standing in front of her.
Ye Suyu had a black line on her face as she handed over the ink-stained pen and the decorated paper, reminding her, “Your highness, it’s time to write the wishes.”
“Write a wishes?”
“Yes.”
Xiao Jin fell silent for a moment, then motioned for Ye Suyu to come closer and asked seriously, “Have you seen me write by myself these days?”
Ye Suyu answered, “No.”
Xiao Jin nodded and returned the paper to Ye Suyu. “That’s right. I don’t believe that releasing a lantern can make wishes come true, and I don’t want to write by myself. You understand, right?”
Ye Suyu coughed and discreetly pointed to the other side.
Xiao Jin followed Ye Suyu’s direction and saw Chu Shao lowering her gaze, placing the paper on the table, and writing something with a pen.
Perhaps sensing Xiao Jin’s gaze, Chu Shao wrote a few words and also looked at Xiao Jin, her eyes still containing a faint smile.
Ye Suyu said, “Your Highness, so…”
Xiao Jin shifted her gaze away, extending her hand to Ye Suyu. “Pass me the pen.”
Her expression was calm, and her actions were swift.
Ye Suyu once again handed the paper and pen to Xiao Jin, feeling somewhat stunned. She had never seen someone change their mind so naturally, even more so than a prince.
As Ye Suyu caught a glimpse of Xiao Jin lifting the pen and starting to write, seemingly very adept at it, she couldn’t help but want to see what the other person had written.
But just as she turned her gaze, Xiao Jin calmly raised her other hand and shielded the paper.
The manner resembled that of a malicious classmate during an exam, not allowing the neighboring desk to copy the answers.
Ye Suyu was taken aback by this move, feeling inexplicably insulted, and at the same time, she felt that Xiao Jin’s actions carried a hint of childishness.
Indeed, not far away, Chu Shao, who had been observing the commotion out of the corner of her eye, let out a soft laugh.
Chu Shao had already finished writing the paper and placed it inside the sky lantern. She then put down the pen and slowly walked towards Xiao Jin.
Although Xiao Jin started writing much later than Chu Shao, she persisted in writing simplified characters because she wasn’t very good at writing traditional characters with a brush in her hand.
So when Chu Shao approached, Xiao Jin had just finished writing and put the paper inside the lantern.
Unable to see what Xiao Jin had written, Chu Shao didn’t feel disappointed. A smile appeared on her lips as she stared at the sky lantern and asked, “Your Highness, are you done writing?”
It was an obvious question.
Xiao Jin nodded.
Sure enough, the next words from Chu Shao were, “Oh? Your Highness, what did you write? You finished so quickly.”
Xiao Jin wasn’t easily tricked and countered, “I’m also curious about what the princess wrote, taking so long.”
Chu Shao’s smile remained unchanged. “I only wrote one wish, hoping that Your Highness will be free from illness and calamity, and live a long and healthy life.”
I don’t believe you.
Xiao Jin recalled the overly delighted expression on Chu Shao’s face when she coughed up blood, and she had a thousand reasons not to believe her.
So she followed Chu Shao’s laughter and said, “What a coincidence, I also wrote that the princess can fulfill her lifelong wishes, living a life of luxury and ease, free from calamities and difficulties.”
Of course, that was only part of it.
And the lifelong wish that Xiao Jin mentioned naturally referred to Chu Shao being able to restore the country and trample the male lead under her feet.
When Chu Shao heard these words, a smile appeared in her eyes. “Does Your Highness wish for my wish to come true? Then I will accept your auspicious words.”
Ye Suyu, as a bystander, naturally had no idea what the two of them were playing at or what hidden intentions they had. She simply coughed as a reminder, “Your highness, Princess, you can release the lanterns now.”
Xiao Jin nodded and then lit a match, first helping Chu Shao light her lantern, and then igniting her own Kongming lantern.
The Kongming lantern resembled a flying crane made of glass, slipping from their palms and floating into the night sky.
It ascended higher and higher, resembling the timeless stars that hung in the sky.
Chu Shao didn’t like sky lanterns, nor did she like stars, because sky lanterns would eventually burn out and lose their light and warmth, ultimately falling from the sky irretrievably.
And stars, they were so high above, overlooking the entire world. They were bright, but in their eternal existence, they turned a blind eye to the sufferings of humanity.
She didn’t resist experiencing pain, and even in moments of extreme boredom, she would enjoy the thrilling sensation brought by the dripping blood.
Over time, she couldn’t distinguish between pleasure and agony anymore. She couldn’t tell which one was more real.
Chu Shao didn’t dislike this feeling, but she loathed being looked down upon.
However, when she stood beside Xiao Jin, it felt rather strange. Chu Shao watched as Xiao Jin released her grip, allowing the sky lantern to soar into the sky, and she followed suit, releasing hers as well.
Together with the villagers, Xiao Jin looked up at the sky, tracing the lantern she had set free.
Chu Shao also lifted her gaze, observing the Kongming lantern merging with the stars.
As she continued to watch, snow-like lights reflected in Xiao Jin’s eyes.
They were described as snow because their color was pure and radiant, still beautiful even without warmth, as if they had just taken flight into the sky.
At that moment, Chu Shao furrowed her brows and began to ponder whether there was a lantern like that in her own eyes, or perhaps many lanterns.
If Xiao Jin could look into her eyes, maybe she would know.
Sure enough, after Xiao Jin finished admiring the lanterns illuminating the sky, she turned her head to meet Chu Shao’s gaze and smiled, asking, “Can’t find the lantern you released?”
Chu Shao shook her head.
Xiao Jin seemed somewhat skeptical. “If you can find it, then where is it?”
Chu Shao looked at Xiao Jin and whispered, “Just now, I already saw it.”
“Just now?”
“Yes, Your Highness. I saw it just now, right in your eyes.”
Xiao Jin was momentarily stunned but quickly caught on, smiling and saying, “In that case, the lantern I released is also in your eyes.”
“Did you see it too?” That snow-like lantern.
“I saw it.”
Xiao Jin said, “It was beautiful. It’s the most beautiful lantern I’ve ever seen, Shao’er.”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Translator’s note: Their wish is to stay with each other for a lifetime ðŸ¤. And, I hope it will come true~.
You are the most beautiful lantern I have ever seen.
TO BE CONTINUE…
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