Time flies, spring comes and autumn goes, and before you know it, another year has passed.
The Capital City seems unchanged, yet in truth, it transforms every day.
For instance...
The street vendors are different from those twenty years ago, and the big pagoda tree not far from the East City Gate is more lush than before.
The row of shops at the East Street Market still stands, but the shopkeepers have been replaced by young people.
The bustling in the West Market remains, but the pedestrians coming and going on the street are from a new generation.
Zhao Junyao and Xia Ruqing left the palace in civilian clothes.
The two sat in a simple green pagoda tree oil carriage, strolling from the West Market to East Street, from the north of the city to the south, indulging in a whole day’s wanderlust.
As the sun set and twilight enveloped.
They got off the carriage hand in hand, walking the bustling streets of the Capital City.
It was The Sunny March.
Xia Ruqing wore a moon-white thin silk jacket, with a lotus pink skirt below, her hair, flecked with strands of white, was completely bound at the back of her head, adorned only with a few old jade hairpins.
Her whole demeanor was fresh and graceful, yet dignified, even though she was nearing forty, she showed no signs of vulgarity.
Zhao Junyao, being a martial artist, had a body full of muscles and didn’t age easily, so even past forty, he remained robust and suave.
Compared to his younger days, the icy demeanor had softened considerably, replaced by wisdom and a mature grandeur cultivated over the years.
At a sudden glance, he seemed both a cultured and refined scholar and a seasoned veteran of battle.
These apparently contradictory qualities merged on him so fittingly, so suitably.
Xia Ruqing held his hand, noticed the occasional glances from those passing by, and laughed.
"I feel so uneasy with how I’m being looked at!"
Zhao Junyao was puzzled.
Xia Ruqing signaled with her eyes to the young wives around them.
"Look, no matter how the Capital City Street changes, your allure remains unchanged!"
"I bet even twenty years later, there’ll be loads of young wives secretly admiring you!"
Her words were subtle.
With a touch of reproach, a bit of grievance, and a slight hint of jealousy.
This mixed sentiment was expressed perfectly, hitting Zhao Junyao’s heart.
Feeling softened, he embraced her, laughing as he replied.
"Qingqing, having you is enough for me!"
"After all these years, haven’t you seen through my intentions?"
Xia Ruqing covered her mouth, laughing.
"I may not be old yet, but when I do age and lose my charms, who knows who you might fancy then!"
Zhao Junyao tapped her on the nose.
"Oh, you! Even giving up on the selection process, you still speak so mockingly. Watch me give you a good scolding today!"
Saying this, he feigned sternness and reached out to catch her.
Xia Ruqing, startled, quickly dashed away.
The two laughed and playfully chased each other down the street uninhibited.
Passersby occasionally looked at them with eyes that seemed to say ’idiots’.
But... who cares? Even if they return to their youthful folly as they age, what does it matter?
...
That night, as they returned from outside the palace.
They happened to encounter Yue Er heading back from outside the palace.
She rode a horse, her expression somewhat angry, eyes slightly swollen and red, with Ying Luo and two other palace maids following behind.
A group of them slowly made their way back to the palace.
"Yue Er?"
Xia Ruqing called out to her from afar.
Yue Er suddenly realized, hastily wiping away the tears from her face with her sleeve before adjusting the reins to approach.
"Father, Mother? Why are you returning so late?"
Zhao Junyao lightly coughed, speaking blandly.
"Why? You’re coming back early?"
Yue Er felt a bit awkward.
Xia Ruqing quickly nudged him aside.
"How are you speaking to our daughter?"
She pushed Zhao Junyao aside, making room for Yue Er.
"Come over, let’s sit together!"
Yue Er hesitated for a moment but eventually dismounted to join them in the carriage, sitting next to her mother.
Xia Ruqing didn’t notice anything wrong with Yue Er’s mood, intending to ask where she went today.
Zhao Junyao suddenly asked.
"Who bullied you?"
He looked directly at Yue Er’s slightly red eyes, asking firmly.
He had said before, if anyone dared bully his daughter, he would ensure the entire family paid the price.
Yue Er knew this well.
She hurriedly shook her head.
"Father, what are you talking about? Daughter doesn’t understand! What bullying?"
Zhao Junyao asked again.
"Who bullied you?"
Yue Er felt uncertain but stuck to her guns.
"No one!"
"Who dares bully me!"
"Look at the whip my brother gave me, who in the whole court would dare retaliate?"
Zhao Junyao seemed to see through it all, saying.
"Indeed, no one dares, but first, you must be willing to strike!"
"So, tell us!"
Yue Er lowered her head, silent.
Xia Ruqing felt utterly perplexed.
She looked at one and then the other, it seemed like father and daughter were speaking in riddles.