<h4>Chapter 617 - Zisang Flower</h4>


    The man covered his head in pain and said bitterly and nervously, "I’m just saying it casually." His voice wasced with fear.


    The storyteller said, "Well, let’s continue talking about that living bodhisattva." He continued to narrate his story vividly. He had no idea that Jing Rong and Ji Yunshu were also listening to his "nonsense" in this teahouse.


    Jing Rong was not modest at all after hearing these words. "This prince isn’t just a living bodhisattva, I am a Great God." [1]


    Ji Yunshu just took a sip of tea, and almost spat it out. "A bodhisattva is usually a woman. Are you a woman? With almond eyes, a cherry-like mouth, willow eyebrows, and a prominent nose? Rather, I think you have thick eyebrows and big eyes."


    "Are you saying that this prince is ugly?"


    "They say that sons of emperors are usually more handsome than the average person, so how could you be ugly?"


    Jing Rong smiled and continued listening to the storyteller over there talking nonsense.


    Ji Yunshu asked him, "The incident of the disaster relief funds hase to an end. What are you going to do next?"


    "Take advantage of this time to rx and have fun doing nothing important." He spokezily and took a sip of tea.


    Opposite him, Ji Yunshu maintained a solemn attitude. She asked tentatively, "Then the matter of your return to the capital..."


    Speaking of that, Jing Rong was silent for a moment and said, "It’s impossible to return to the capital at this current time. If Imperial Father receives that report and knows that the case can’t be solved, he might order this prince to stay in Yufu forever. If you decide to return to the capital to investigate the ‘Lin Capital Case’, this prince will send Lang Po and the others to protect you and stay by your side. They will also be able to take care of you for this prince."


    “Did you not tell me at the start that you and I will return to the capital together? There is no way I will leave first. Furthermore, the Emperor’s decree has yet to arrive. Everything is unknown."


    "What if..."


    "There is no ‘what if’, you will return to the capital." She was very sure about it.


    Jing Rong smiled and didn’t reply.


    They came out of the teahouse and were wandering in the street when they saw someone sellingnterns. Jing Rong immediately pulled her over to the stall.


    "What would the two young masters like?"


    "Do you sell Kongmingnterns?" [2]


    "Of course! We have as many as you might want. "


    "I will buy one."


    "Okay." The seller hurriedly took out a Kongmingntern, packed it nicely, then handed it to him, saying, "Young master, that will be thirty copper coins."


    Jing Rong took out the money and gave it to him. Ji Yunshu was puzzled, "What are you buying this for?"


    "What else would I do with antern other than to light it up?" Nothing wrong with that!


    He said with a meaningful smile, "Wei Yi told me that when you were in Jinjiang, you hadunched a Kongming Lantern with him, so this prince wants tounch one with you as well."


    Oh! So that was it. Ji Yunshu lowered her eyes and smiled. This guy was secretly jealous again.


    So that evening, the two of themunched antern in the courtyard.


    Little Xiyue also came over. She was carrying antern in her hand and walking around the courtyard. When she saw Qiao’er and Zhuang’ering out with writing brushes and ink, she quickly ran over and grabbed a brush to start drawing and writing on herntern. She was very focused.


    Zhuang’er asked with a smile, "Little Xiyue, yourntern won’t be able to fly into the sky. What’s the point of writing on it?"


    "I will give it to my elder brother." She kept her head down and continued to write and draw. How interesting.


    Zhuang’er didn’t ask again and stood beside her, watching her write. Qiao’er brought the brushes and ink over to Ji Yunshu and Jing Rong, "Your Highness, Teacher Ji, here are the brushes and ink that you wanted."


    The two of them had just set up the Kongmingntern. It was huge and exquisitely made.


    "What did you write on the Kongmingntern thest time you released one?" Jing Rong turned his head slightly to ask her.


    She lifted her pen and dipped it in ink, "If I tell you, the wish won’te true, will it? Anyway, you write yours and I’ll write mine. Neither of us is allowed to peek." She started to write on the Kongmingntern.


    Jing Rong smiled and shook his head. With his eyes brimming with warm indulgence, he then lifted his brush to write as well.


    After a little while, they were both ready. As for what exactly was written on thentern, no one asked again. After igniting the wick in thentern, the two stood facing each other, with thatrge Kongmingntern between them.


    "Yunshu." He called her softly.


    "Yes?" She couldn’t see him, let alone his face. She could only see the shadow on the opposite side through the bright Kongmingntern.


    It took a while before his voice sounded again. "Nothing, just calling out to you."


    "Oh." She couldn’t help but chuckle a little.


    The Kongming Lantern then slowly detached from their hands, rising up little by little. It drifted into the inky sky, the bright light getting smaller and smaller.


    On one side of the Kongmingntern, the words were ‘Together in life; inseparable in death’. On the other side, written in modern Chinese characters, it read ‘Apanying my lord everywhere; resting forever in one grave’. In total, the fifteen characters were beautifully written; both sentences also had simr meanings.


    The moment the Kongming Lantern was released, Jing Rong couldn’t wait to see what she had written, but he couldn’t understand those modern Chinese characters at all. His eyebrows furrowed deeply a few times. "Are those characters? Or drawings?" [3]


    Ji Yunshu smiled, "Drawings."


    "Drawings?" Jing Rong was confused by her. He then tilted his head hard and stretched his neck to look at it.


    Ji Yunshuughed to herself and walked over to Little Xiyue. She was still busy writing and drawing on thentern with a brush. Her handwriting was very clear and neat, but her drawings were a little crooked and out of shape.


    "What are you writing?”


    "I want to make antern for my elder brother. He used to loventerns. There used to be so many of them in the house and in the courtyard. However, a few years ago he suddenly threw away all of them, and never lit anotherntern in the room again, so I’m going to make antern for him."


    "Did he likenterns very much before?"


    "Yes, he did. Every time he came back, he would have antern in his hand and would hang it in his room. He loved them so much that he won’t let anyone touch them and always lit them himself."


    So, Wen Xian was a man of great sentiment.


    Little Xiyue finished painting and raised thentern. She said happily, "The drawing on this was my brother’s favorite. Everyntern he brought back had this kind of flower on it."


    There was a line of words on thentern, "Committed to this gentleman I admire".


    Right next to the words were two clear Zisang flowers. Although the shape was crooked and twisted, it was obvious what they were meant to be. The Zisang flower was a flower that represented love. [4]


    If Ji Yunshu remembered correctly, she was once part of arge team that opened a tomb in a small county in Zhangzhou. In a coffin of that tomb, they found seeds of the long-extinct Zisang flower. All the people present were very excited and immediately sent the seeds to the research institute. It was said that the seeds bloomed a monthter. Those flowers looked just like the two now painted on thentern by Little Xiyue. [5]


    The flower’s petals had a gorgeous colour; white intertwined with red and pink intertwined with white.


    Unfortunately, Ji Yunshu had only seen it that one time.


    Since all of Wen Xian’snterns had Zisang Flowers on them. It should be Miss Ye’er who usually gave them to Wen Xian.


    [1] Omg how arrogant are you...?


    [2] These are also called skynterns, often released during the Mid-Autumn Festival, which falls on 1st Oct this year! https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Skyntern


    [3] Hello author, modern chinese is not so different from ancient that they’re unrecognisable as words ok. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chinese_characters#:~:text=The%20earliest%20confirmed%20evidence%20of,dated%20to%20around%201200%20BC.


    [4] Author probably drew inspiration from Gesang flowers, which represent ’the one in front of you is far better than your dream girl’. http://.china.org/travel/2011-10/26/content_23727620.htm


    [5] Isn’t this a little too convenient? The tomb raiding expeditions are just your favorite excuse for knowing random trivia eh?