Food Fairy Lord

Chapter 829 Time Fades, Spring Remains (Part 3)

Pei Ye couldn't see Li Xizhou often, even though they were both in Shenjing.

The most important reason is that everyone has their own things to do. After the Scale Trial, Pei Ye suddenly realized that without a common enemy, the Crown Prince and the Sword Academy students' life paths did not actually overlap much.

They practiced swordsmanship from dawn till dusk, sometimes even sleeping in the Hidden Sword Pavilion. Living in the Sword Cultivation Academy was certainly better than living in the Literature Cultivation Hall.

For the woman, the identity of Xu Chuo had lost much of its meaning. She still preferred to return to the brothel when she had free time, but most of the time she had to sit in the Crown Prince's office. According to ancestral custom, she also had to accompany the emperor to court for four out of seven days.

Under such circumstances, it was naturally difficult to meet. Sometimes, when Li Xizhou had a free afternoon, he would change into casual clothes and come to the Hidden Sword Pavilion to find him. However, the young man was studying a certain sword manual without sleep, and the woman would sit cross-legged next to him watching. They might not say more than a few words for two hours, and then she would leave quietly when night fell.

Or perhaps Pei Ye had finished a small part of his cultivation and was finally able to rest for a day, only to find that the brothel hadn't been lit for several days. When he went to the East Palace, he saw Li Xianfang holding up a finger to him and whispering that His Highness had been very busy these days and had just gone to sleep.

So when I saw the lights on at the brothel last night, which hadn't been on for a long time, I knew she had some free time, and at that moment, the two of them were probably thinking about their date today.

Another, less important reason is that if two people are together every day, they will actually argue.

Logically speaking, Li Xizhou should never have argued with Pei Ye in the half year since they met. Even back in the Dragon Lake Mirage, it was Pei Ye who argued with him.

Even though they get along well, the Crown Prince's air of superiority lingers. When Pei Ye gets angry, the woman will either nod with a smile and remain silent, or gently utter a few seductive words like "You can scold me now" or "I can be very well-behaved too."

But in the year since the trial, this feeling has not disappeared, though it does sometimes vanish.

The woman's mysterious composure was innate; her bloodline shaped her appearance, and her experiences sculpted her eyes. Even now, Pei Ye never felt he could truly understand her. But this aura would indeed retreat into the shell of her body, at which point she would no longer have any control over the outside world.

Therefore, if Pei Ye angered her, he would inevitably be met with sarcastic remarks. Pei Ye was often unaware of the trouble he was causing, and feeling bewildered, he would naturally retort.

Master Xu was sharp-tongued, and Young Master Pei was quick-witted. The two engaged in a war of words, often getting angry but finding it difficult to truly be angry, leaving them in a stalemate until their attention was drawn to another matter.

There are many reasons for arguments, but not all of them are common. Pei Ye tried to summarize them carefully, but couldn't find any pattern.

Many times it was because he dirtied the clothes she gave him, or forgot what she said. Sometimes it was because they were reading and discussing history and had different opinions, so they would argue. Other times he would complain that she asked him for no reason, "Did Li Piaoqing teach you how to do this makeup?" or "Why does He Yaoyao write to you every day? Doesn't she have any other friends?" and he would insist that she give him a satisfactory answer.

There were also two unique leads that could not be categorized, but which Pei Ye remembered vividly.

On one occasion, Xu Chuo returned to the Imperial Academy to teach a class, which Pei Ye attended. After class, the two went to the small room filled with books. As they were talking, Changsun Jue entered excitedly, clearly missing Mr. Xu whom he hadn't seen for a long time.

Although the young girl should know that Mr. Xu was the Crown Prince, she had never spoken to that aloof figure. At this moment, she was very restrained and earnestly asked Mr. Xu a few questions that had been accumulating for a long time before reluctantly leaving.

Xu Chuo gazed at the door after the girl left, then suddenly turned his head and smiled gently, "I will plan for you."

Pei Ye was stunned for several moments before she understood what she meant, and immediately became annoyed. Then she realized that she was not deliberately teasing her, so she was really annoyed.

They had a big fight that day. Xu Chuo said that since Changsun was willing to be with both him and him, and he especially liked her, what was wrong with that? Pei Ye said that he was not worthy of Changsun's respect. But no matter how intense the fight was or how many hurtful things were said, the two of them would not really break up. They ate dinner in silence together and made up before nightfall.

Pei Ye later thought about it carefully and eventually felt that she seemed to want him to have worldly love wives and concubines in order to better prove that their relationship was extraordinary, unique and unrepeatable.

Pei Ye didn't keep anything to himself. Later, he seriously asked the woman about this guess. Then he saw that her beautiful eyes first pause slightly, and then slowly brighten, as if she had discovered a world she had never thought of before.

"...Your brain has been eaten away by the worms of love." Pei Ye covered her eyes and said seriously.

Li Xizhou chuckled.

Another time, it was the first snow of early winter last year. The two of them went back to the former prime minister's residence for a stroll, ate beef bone soup, and sat together quite comfortably. Li Xizhou swung on the swing, while Pei Ye flipped through the sword manual next to him, occasionally asking her a few words.

Then the woman suddenly said, "Pei Ye, why don't we separate... and go back to where we were before?"

Pei Ye found it hard to describe the chill in her heart at that moment.

He hadn't thought about it then, but later, when he was alone, he realized the meaning of those words. The so-called retreat didn't mean retreating back to Fenghuai, but rather retreating back to the time after he left Bashui.

To be more precise, it's about going back to before that night in the brothel.

To be even more precise, it means he needs to retract those words that revealed his true feelings.

This time, there was no argument, because the moment the words left his mouth, Li Xizhou softened. Pei Ye pulled her off the swing and pressed her for answers. After several rounds of questioning, the woman didn't explain, only trying to remain calm as she said, "Nothing else needs to change. We can get along as we always have, as long as you take back those four sentences... three sentences—"

Before he could finish speaking, the snow in the courtyard that day was like a thick blanket. Pei Ye pressed her down under a tree and stripped her naked. Only when she clung to him tightly, choking back tears and saying she was cold, did Pei Ye stop, panting. He then brought a warm cloak to wrap around her trembling body, and the two of them embraced for a long time.

However, both of these incidents happened quite a long time ago, and such unpleasantness has not occurred since.

It was only recently that Pei Ye began to vaguely understand some of it.

A woman's emotions are not random; when she is in pain, she is calm and composed, and when she is happy, she often has nightmares.

Her loss of control over the outside world couldn't be traced back to any pattern within herself, because it was something Pei Ye had pushed back. Pei Ye only later became somewhat aware of her own ego and domineering nature.

The time she argues with him is when she loves him the most.

Of course, those were rare upheavals in their lives. Most of the time, they got along peacefully and stably, unlike the newlyweds in storybooks who would get angry and cry, experiencing all sorts of emotional turmoil.

Pei Ye could completely understand.

A vast shadow looms over the skin, and the deepest unease in one's heart must never be revealed.

Since he ascended to the throne, that matter could not be mentioned again. Pei Ye did not know what exactly happened during that selection. Perhaps the Qilin could not sense the Crown Prince's thoughts and words, or perhaps even in the dream of the Queen Mother of the West, mentioning this matter would be noticed.

Pei Ye had no way of observing her connection with the Qilin after each day. Perhaps she was no longer the same person after leaving the Zichen Palace, or perhaps the Qilin had already discovered the Mirage Knot just a moment ago.

She had no way of knowing whether Pei Ye was still keeping that promise. People's circumstances and thoughts always change. He used to draw his sword as soon as he saw an enemy, but now he has learned to keep a low profile.

But this is precisely the weight of the Mirage Pact.

Even if there is no further conversation from this moment on, and the world changes like clouds, you must believe that the other person, like you, has not changed a single word of what they said in their memory.

This is just the beginning.

Therefore, even if it's just scratching the surface, love is still a means of comfort and affirmation.

Pei Ye withdrew from her lips, and Li Xizhou lay on his shoulder, opening a box of candied fruit and offering him a piece.

What did Li Jian say?

“It’s nothing, we just talked about some details,” Pei Ye said. “They even dared to laugh at me last night.”

Li Xizhou smiled: "You can't let others mention what you've done."

She looked up again: "Did Ming Qitian reply to your letter?"

"No," Pei Ye said. "I think Miss Ming's seclusion should be a true closed-door affair. I also wrote on the envelope that I should try not to disturb her. It was probably thrown in front of the steps of the Divine Peak."

"One letter after another," Li Xizhou laughed. "I'll ask someone to inquire for you."

"Then I'll trouble Your Highness—why did you get such a big blanket? It's big enough to roll around in."

"Ah."

"Um what?"

Li Xizhou said with a slight embarrassment, "What if Young Hero Pei wants to roll around on the ground?"

Pei Ye stared wide-eyed: "...I'm a pervert, here?"

Li Xizhou exclaimed in surprise, "What are you thinking? Your mind is really dirty."

Pei Ye grabbed some candied fruit from her box and ate it himself.

"The wind was so strong in the carriage just now, but it's stopped now." Pei Ye looked up for a while. "There are still so many flowers on the trees, and they're not falling."

"Just wait patiently. It looks quite nice like this." Li Xizhou hugged his knees and rested his head on his shoulder.

It was indeed quite beautiful, a clear, breezy night after the rain, with tall, clean flowering trees surrounding ancient carved railings and jade steps, and two people sitting by candlelight beneath the lush, fluffy canopies. Even without the wind and falling petals, it was still a rare and beautiful night.

The two sat quietly for a while, then Li Xizhou whispered on his shoulder, "Are you leaving tomorrow?"

"The day after tomorrow is fine."

Li Xizhou raised his hand and gently rubbed Pei Ye's chin, and Pei Ye hummed twice.

Then the woman straightened up, placed his head on her lap, and pulled out a thin razor blade.

"Can't you shave yourself?" she said gently, scratching his face.

Pei Ye squinted and gave a mumbled "hmm".

The woman took out the prepared soap pod, heated the wet towel on the wine stove, applied it to his chin, and then slowly scraped away the tangled stubble. As the blade moved, her fingertips followed, gently stroking it as if she lingered on the sandpaper-like texture.

"Xixi," Pei Ye murmured in her sleep.

"Ah."

"I'm going to sleep."

"Go to sleep."

"No. We still need to see the flower rain," Pei Ye said in a muffled voice. "Otherwise, we'll have to wait until next year again."

"You might not have time this time next year."

"If you ask me out, I'll have time."

"It's all shaved." Li Xizhou cradled his head.

Pei Ye didn't move, only lazily opened his eyes, a smile still on his lips.

"Get up! You're not allowed to sleep here."

"You were letting me sleep just now."

"Now I have something to do."

"what?"

"Didn't you ask why we laid out such a big blanket?"

"Because you want to secretly roll around with me."

No, it's because I want to dance for you.

"..."

Pei Ye sat up, slightly startled.

“Look, I wore this dress specifically for this occasion.” Li Xizhou sat on the carpet, the beautiful long dress flowing to the ground. She then lifted a corner of it, making it look like the wings of a cicada or butterfly.

“…I didn’t know you could dance,” Pei Ye said softly.

“We all had to learn it when we were little. But I did forget it later. I practiced with Xianfang a few months ago.” Li Xizhou lowered his eyes and chuckled softly, “Don’t stare like that. I’m not shy at all.”

Pei Ye sat up straight and clapped her hands: "Sister Xixi, jump quickly!"

Li Xizhou stood up, backed away, and smiled as he spread his arms to him, his body twirling lightly.

Pei Ye didn't know the name of the dance, nor did he think to ask.

In fact, he forgot many things in those short fifteen minutes. It was a beautiful night with flowers and the moon shining, but all the beautiful scenery disappeared from his sight, leaving only the woman's dance and skirt.

Her earnest, smiling face was nestled amidst the fluttering fabric of her clothes. She seemed to want to keep looking at him, but she also had to occasionally be distracted by her still-unskilled dance, and would give a playful smile when she made a mistake.

Could there be such a beautiful dance in the world, unless it were in a fairyland?

Halfway through the race, a sudden gust of wind and rain arose, and countless petals swirled and fell in an instant. The woman's clothes and hair billowed upwards as she gazed at the sky. A burst of laughter erupted from the stage as the two women exchanged glances. They looked at each other with smiles.

Pei Ye didn't actually have high expectations for the wind and rain of falling flowers at Phoenix Terrace.

But even the most beautiful spring night couldn't compare to this scene of hers.

……

……

Pei Ye didn't know much about Li Xizhou.

As she gets closer to that position, this lack of understanding will only increase.

But actually, he gradually learned more about her.

Moreover, much of it is something that others will never know.

She does cry, and it's not uncommon for her to cry.

She enjoys reading erotic novels, but dislikes those with lots of vulgar language.

Sometimes she's timid, so she pretends to be very brave.

She subconsciously separated her identities as Xu Chuo and Li Xizhou, even unconsciously altering her preferences and habits. She valued her status as the Crown Prince highly, and dealing with government affairs was often when she was most serious, disliking any overstepping or offense.

She likes eye contact and conversation, but dislikes talking from behind, saying it's like walking on a narrow bridge, always requiring coaxing or coercion. However, she likes to kiss him, but only when he's clean.

……

Today he learned that she could also dance.

Every step away from a certain distance represents a step forward.

Perhaps all of this understanding will become outdated someday, but the only thing Pei Ye is certain of is that she is growing to love him more and more.

Pei Ye was absolutely confident that he could keep all the promises he had made.

"Shall we set off at dawn?" Li Xizhou whispered from the side.

"We'll set off at dawn." Pei Ye put his hands behind his head.

Do you remember the first time I said I wanted to give you a gift during the Lunar New Year?

"I thought you were going to renege on your promise."

"Who's like you? I've been preparing all along."

"What kind of baby do you need to prepare for for two years?" Pei Ye laughed. "Having a baby is enough in a year."

“You may not want a baby, but you definitely want this,” Li Xizhou laughed. “Now that you’re going to the west, it’s perfect timing.”

"What is it?"

"News about the famous sword."

(End of this chapter)