The harem is too complicated; the empress, a lazy bum, wins by doing nothing.

Chapter 420 Extra (Establishing a Lifetime 6)

Jiang Yuxian paused for a moment, then lifted the carriage curtain and looked in the direction where Jiang Yuyan had disappeared.

Why are you in such a hurry? Could it be that something serious has happened?
"what happened?"

Seeing his anxious expression, Shen Qingwan moved closer.

"It's alright." Jiang Yuxian's expression relaxed for a moment. "The main street is just ahead. The front of the carriage was damaged. Why don't we get off and walk around?"

“Okay.” Shen Qingwan nodded and put the veil she had brought in advance on her head.

Jiang Yuxian jumped off the carriage first. He stood on the ground, looked up at Shen Qingwan who came out of the carriage, and stretched out a hand.

She paused slightly, placed her hand in his palm, and the moment their fingertips touched, Jiang Yuxian clearly felt his breath catch for a moment. A tingling sensation quickly spread throughout his body, his chest heaved heavily, his face was already flushed, and a faint blush spread to his neck as well.

He lowered his eyes somewhat awkwardly, as if he dared not look directly at her.

Compared to him, Shen Qingwan was much more at ease. She grabbed Jiang Yuxian's hand and, following the force of his wrist, jumped directly off the carriage.

Normally, when she jumps off the carriage, she lands steadily on the ground every time, and can even bounce a few more times with the force of the impact.

But for some reason today, perhaps because the carriages in the palace are different from those in ordinary households, when she jumped down, she clearly felt a soreness in her ankle and unexpectedly bumped into Jiang Yuxian.

"Well……"

She clearly heard Jiang Yuxian squeeze out a muffled groan through his teeth.

Shen Qingwan panicked. She was about to reach out and touch the ground where Jiang Yuxian had been hit when she suddenly realized that her hand was still being held tightly by him.

Her face suddenly turned red.

Jiang Yuxian hurriedly let go.

The two walked side by side toward the long street, heads down, neither speaking.

With this little incident, the seemingly peaceful journey was no longer calm for either of them.

Shen Qingwan wore a veil, so no one could notice that her cheeks were already flushed with shyness. On the contrary, Jiang Yuxian felt that his heart was about to jump out of his body. Even when he was punished by his master to run laps during his usual martial arts practice, he had never jumped this fast.

The two walked into the long street, and their chaotic hearts were gradually soothed by the bustling scene.

As the crowd grew denser, Jiang Yuxian was caught off guard and Shen Qingwan had already disappeared. He looked around in a panic before realizing that she had stopped in front of a lantern stall not far away.

She was holding a small rabbit lantern in her hands.

Jiang Yuxian finally breathed a long sigh of relief. He quickly walked to Shen Qingwan's side. Although he was very angry, he couldn't bear to scold her. "Why didn't you tell me you were coming?"

He thought Shen Qingwan would make excuses, deny it, or blame him for not holding her back, but to his surprise, she acted as if she hadn't heard him at all. Holding the rabbit lantern in her hands, she turned to him and asked, "Brother Xian, is this rabbit lantern pretty?"

Jiang Yuxian: ...

"nice."

As soon as he finished speaking, he looked up at the lantern seller and asked, "How much is this rabbit lantern?"

The lantern seller was dressed in plain clothes with several patches, making him look somewhat like a scholar.

With the imperial examinations approaching, many scholars have come to the capital to participate. Most of these scholars are from poor families and have worked their way up through the examinations.

These students could often be seen along the long street, selling their calligraphy, paintings, or handicrafts to earn some money. "Aren't you selling this rabbit lantern?"

Jiang Yuxian repeated the scholar's words, somewhat curious. He was so poor that his clothes were patched, yet he refused the money that was offered to him.

"Yes, not for sale!" the scholar said firmly. "If you want it, young master, you only need to answer the riddle on the rabbit lantern."

lantern riddles?

Jiang Yuxian then remembered that there was indeed a custom of appreciating lanterns and guessing riddles during the Lantern Festival. However, he usually spent such days in the palace. If Shen Qingwan hadn't come to the capital, he would never have left the palace.

Shen Qingwan grew up in Rongcheng. During the Lantern Festival in Rongcheng, every household ate tangyuan (sweet rice balls) and had never seen anyone admiring lanterns, let alone guessing lantern riddles.

Where are the riddles?

She asked with great curiosity.

"Right below the lantern, if the young lady and gentleman can guess the riddle under the lantern, this lantern will be given to the young lady."

Jiang Yuxian lowered his eyes and looked at the lantern in Shen Qingwan's hand. Following the lantern downwards, he found a note hanging at the very bottom.

"Ten days of longing feel like ten months, wild geese tread the sun at sunset over the grassy pond, and ducks in the fields seem to be mandarin ducks, their hearts intertwined. Today and yesterday, I turn my heart alone to love."

Jiang Yuxian read the riddle on the rabbit lantern, and by then a lot of people had gathered around.

"What kind of puzzle is this? I've never seen anything like it before."

"Aren't all riddles about guessing words or objects? What are they trying to guess here?"

"Since you say you can take the lantern if you guess the riddle correctly, the riddle must be more than that..."

Everyone chimed in with their own comments, but no one could figure out the mystery behind the riddle. Instead, more and more people gathered around.

Jiang Yuxian stared at the riddle and thought about it seriously. "Ten days of longing is like crossing ten months, which refers to the morning. Wild geese tread on the sun at sunset over the grass pond, which refers to longing. Ducks in the fields are like mandarin ducks, which refers to the evening. Today and yesterday, I face my feelings alone, which should refer to yearning. So, put together, it means longing day and night?"

The scholar's eyes lit up, seemingly quite surprised. "Young master, you are very learned!"

Got it right?
Actually guessed it right?
When Shen Qingwan looked up at him, her eyes were filled with shock, and even a hint of admiration.

"seven……"

Seeing so many people around her, she hurriedly changed her words, "Brother Xian, you're so amazing!"

Jiang Yuxian's smile froze noticeably when she praised him. He coughed awkwardly, trying to hide the burning heat on his face.

"It's just a small trick."

"Longing for you day and night?" Shen Qingwan repeated the answer to the riddle he had just posed.

"Thinking of you day and night." The scholar repeated, as if he could see the tenderness in Jiang Yuxian's eyes, as if there was deep affection hidden in them. He then continued, "Just like the young master's longing for the young lady, thinking of her day and night."

Shen Qingwan was taken aback, her cheeks flushed with shame as she lowered her eyes. She stuffed the rabbit lantern in her hand into Jiang Yuxian's arms and squeezed out of the crowd.

"Hey……"

After watching her leave, Jiang Yuxian said anxiously, "The riddle has been solved, so can I take this rabbit lantern now?"

"Of course," the scholar said, gesturing for him to proceed.