Chapter 151 - 150: Promise
"I’ll take you to see it in the future."
The clear voice of a young man exploded by her ear.
Du Yunluo’s hand trembled as she lifted the curtain of the carriage. The curtain shook and threatened to fall, but she instinctively hooked it with her fingers, staring straight at Mu Lianxiao.
She met a pair of deep, profound eyes, their clarity lighting up her world in an instant.
He said he would take her to see it in the future.
That ’future’ meant after they were married, right?
At a time when she had completely let her guard down, he gave her a promise in person.
This was the first promise Mu Lianxiao gave to her in this lifetime.
Du Yunluo thought that at the end of the lights, if Mu Lianxiao reached out to her, she would surely rush over, regardless of everything.
Mu Lianxiao finished speaking with a smile, only to find that Du Yunluo was dazed.
She seemed so easily lost in thought. Just earlier in Cining Palace, she foolishly gazed at him, oblivious to the Crown Princess Consort’s quiet laughter beside her.
But it was precisely this Du Yunluo that made him find her genuine and adorable, wanting to talk to her more.
Mu Lianxiao controlled the reins and moved closer to the carriage, almost right in front of Du Yunluo, and softly called her, "Yunluo?"
Du Yunluo blinked, gazing at his handsome face within reach. She couldn’t suppress her accelerating heartbeat, her nose tingled, and past memories swept over her, misting her eyes with tears.
The shimmer in her eyes bore a hint of a smile, which deepened, climbing up to her lips, revealing two shallow dimples.
Du Yunluo nodded and said, "You promised me, you can’t go back on your word."
Her voice hoarse yet soft, like a lost child who found the person to lead her home, unwilling to let go.
The breath on her face swept away the winter chill, making Mu Lianxiao’s whole face flush. He wanted to straighten up quickly to create distance between them, but facing her glistening, moist eyelashes, he felt reluctance well up in him.
"I won’t go back on my word."
As soon as he finished speaking, he saw Du Yunluo’s smile deepen, blooming like spring flowers.
Mu Lianxiao smiled as he straightened up, not hiding the grin at the corners of his mouth.
Du Yunluo leaned against the carriage window, slightly tilting her head to look at him. On his tall horse, Mu Lianxiao gave her a sense of spirited vigour. She turned her eyes and asked, "Why... why are you good to me?"
As soon as she spoke, she remembered she had asked Mu Lianxiao the same question before.
Mu Lianxiao’s answer was still in her heart. He said, do I have any reason to be bad to you?
Du Yunluo was sulking at Mu Lianxiao back then, clinging to this sentence, claiming he was just doting on his wife, that it would be the same no matter whom he married, and not truly being good to her.
However long she fussed, Mu Lianxiao patiently coaxed her, always indulging her, letting her act willfully. Even her unreasonable antics were just seen as a woman’s temper by him.
Five years of marriage, none of Du Yunluo’s temper could be a reason for his detachment.
In Mu Lianxiao’s heart, being good to her was natural.
As expected, while Du Yunluo was still lost in memories, Mu Lianxiao had already given the exact same answer.
He spoke with such certainty, without a hint of hesitation or doubt.
Du Yunluo only felt her whole body burning; biting her lip as she gazed at Mu Lianxiao, meeting his eyes, she, the thick-skinned one, couldn’t bear it, fumbled to lower the curtain, and stopped looking at him.
In that moment, she felt, if she hadn’t quickly hidden, the next moment Mu Lianxiao would certainly kiss her, just like countless times before.
Her heart raced uncontrollably until the sound of the wheels rolling was clearly imprinted in her mind, and Du Yunluo realized she was overthinking.
Not to mention that one was inside the carriage, the other outside, they weren’t married yet. Mu Lianxiao wouldn’t kiss her...
Ugh.
He shouldn’t...
If he really dared to be so bold, wait until the next time Mrs. Zhen comments if Mu Lianxiao is a sensible man.
Du Yunluo was propped on her chin, still deep in thought.
Jin Ling almost buried her entire head into her knees. Sitting there in the carriage, how could she not overhear her lady and the Princely Heir’s conversation?
The two of them were engrossed in their conversation, and she could only awkwardly wish to disappear.
Du Yunluo gave Jin Ling a shy glance; her eyes were tinged with a rosy hue, not intimidating at all.
Jin Ling dodged briefly but couldn’t help it, covering her mouth with her hands, her shoulders shaking, laughing uncontrollably.
Du Yunluo gently nudged her: "You are not allowed to tell anyone! Not a word."
Jin Ling laughed even more heartily, still nodding vigorously: "I won’t say, I swear I won’t say."
Outside the carriage, Mu Lianxiao watched the slightly swaying curtain, thinking about the delicate face he saw before it fell, burning with a heat comparable to when he’d held her hand.
Du Yunluo’s hands were small, her fingers slender, delicate yet boneless, comfortable to hold so much that he couldn’t bear to let go.
Just like her, one glance and he couldn’t forget her, and even in dreams, it was her smile that appeared.
He loved her smile, loved when she smiled at him, just like he loved her as a person.
If there was one thing not so good, it was that she was too young, with a year left before she came of age.
Both were lost in thought.
It wasn’t until Mu Lianxiao said they arrived, that Du Yunluo lifted the curtain.
They had arrived outside Du Mansion, and now couldn’t converse as closely as they had on the street.
Du Yunluo smiled and thanked him. Her cheeks were no longer hot, but her palms were still sweaty. She raised her eyes to look at Mu Lianxiao.
She knew, Mu Lianxiao’s ears were the easiest to redden. Looking at him now, sure enough, they still had a touch of red. Du Yunluo felt happy, at least, she wasn’t the only one feeling restless, Mu Lianxiao was just like her.
Du Yunluo smiled and expressed her gratitude.
Standing in the alley under the tall trees holding his horse, Mu Lianxiao watched the carriage enter through the side gate. The servant boy guarding the gate saluted him, then slowly closed the door.
Mu Lianxiao mounted his horse, a gust of wind swept by, chilling his back. Only then did he realize that even his back had broken out in a sweat earlier.
It turned out, being so close with another person was so warm.
Meanwhile, Du Yunluo got off the carriage at the second gate.
The north wind blew her calm, and Du Yunluo knew Mrs. Xia was certainly waiting for her, so she took Jin Ling and headed straight to Lianfu Garden.
Just as she stepped inside, Lanzhi opened the curtain and came out. Seeing Du Yunluo had returned, she turned and went back to announce it.
Du Yunluo walked along the veranda to the main room outside, pausing to glance at Jin Ling.
Jin Ling, being perceptive, gestured to be silent: "Miss, I don’t know anything."
The person claiming not to know anything usually knows the most.
Du Yunluo tenderly hit her twice, then lifted the curtain and entered the room.
Du Gongfu wasn’t present. Old Mrs. Xia beckoned her to sit beside her and asked, "Was everything smooth?"
"I went to Cining Palace, met with the Empress Dowager, Imperial Consort, Crown Princess Consort, and the Imperial Grandson. Then, since the Emperor didn’t come, they gave plenty of rewards." After Du Yunluo finished speaking, knowing the ones at the gate saw Mu Lianxiao, she said directly, "The Princely Heir was also there; the Emperor had him escort me back."