Chapter Thirty-Three: Watching the Stars Together

Yun Shuo was now eight years old, a strapping lad nearly six feet tall, bearing a resemblance to Yun Ming in both stature and demeanor. Wei Spoonlight thought to herself, “This boy has certainly suffered under Yun Ming’s influence!”

What surprised Wei Spoonlight was that Yun Shuo, once lively and adorable in her memories, now greeted Feng Jinye with utmost propriety: “Yun Shuo greets the Prince of War, greets my elder brother, and greets the Princess Consort!”

The way Yun Shuo called her “Princess Consort” was as unwilling as could possibly be!

Wei Spoonlight paused in surprise—it had already been five years. She recalled that former child in the bustling street, longing for candied hawthorn, pretending to be lost, squatting and crying, “My sister-in-law will surely come to save me”—now that was adorable!

“Little fatty!” Wei Spoonlight blurted out the familiar nickname. Yun Shuo froze, his eyes fixed on her…

The longer Yun Shuo stared, the more his body trembled uncontrollably. Mouth agape, he was speechless for a long moment, clearly terrified out of his wits…

“Ah… brother, there’s… there’s… a ghost!” Yun Shuo stood rooted to the spot for a moment before crying out in alarm. In an instant, he darted behind Yun Ming, all his earlier dignified manners vanished without a trace…

Yun Ming rapped Yun Shuo’s head with his folding fan and explained to Wei Spoonlight, “Two years ago, Shuo’er thought you had perished in the Moonwater Pavilion fire. He cried for several days.”

“So, am I a ghost?” Wei Spoonlight looked at Yun Shuo’s panic-stricken face, unable to suppress a laugh.

She walked over and, as she had in the past, reached out and pinched Yun Shuo’s chubby cheek, a mischievous smile on her face. “Little rascal, even if I were a ghost, what’s so frightening about such a beautiful ghost?”

Yun Shuo stared dumbfounded at Wei Spoonlight, piecing together from his brother’s words that she was indeed the same sister-in-law he had met years ago…

“She’s not dead!” The realization exploded in Yun Shuo’s mind, leaving him utterly stunned!

Beyond shock, his heart brimmed with joy, and he was only a hair’s breadth from throwing his arms around Wei Spoonlight; tears welled up uncontrollably.

But Yun Shuo was no longer a toddler who would burst into tears at the drop of a hat—he knew to turn away and wipe the tears from the corners of his eyes.

“Are you really Wei Spoonlight? Are you truly alive?” Yun Shuo found all that had happened in these brief moments altogether incredible. His voice was hesitant and a little hoarse.

“I’m alive, not a ghost.” Wei Spoonlight patted his head and then handed him a skewer of grilled chicken wings.

Instantly, Yun Shuo remembered how, back by the river in the Maple Woods, Wei Spoonlight had taken him fishing and grilled fish and chicken wings over the fire.

Wei Spoonlight felt greatly comforted—Yun Shuo had not disappointed her. He had grown, become more sensible, but was still as lively and lovable as ever.

“These days, why haven’t you come to see your brother?” Wei Spoonlight led Yun Shuo over to the charcoal brazier and let him pick his favorite foods.

With chicken wings in hand, Yun Shuo ate contentedly, speaking without reservation: “Mother wouldn’t let me come. She said brother is seriously ill, and she feared I might catch it.”

“You’re a sturdy lad—what illness is there to fear?” Wei Spoonlight knew Yun Ming and Yun Shuo had once been close, and whenever she saw Yun Ming carrying Yun Shuo down the street, she always thought they looked more like father and son.

Yet now, with Yun Ming gravely ill, even his closest kin had grown distant—how could it come to this?

Wei Spoonlight tapped Yun Shuo’s head, feigning reproach: “I, a frail little woman, am still eating barbecue with your brother. If I’m not worried about catching anything, why should you be?”

“I’m not afraid!” Yun Shuo exclaimed, flustered, only to sigh helplessly after: “I wanted to come, but mother wouldn’t allow it.”

Only then did Yun Shuo recall Wei Spoonlight’s earlier words and thought to himself, “Princess Consort, you seem to have a rather unusual definition of ‘frail’ and ‘little woman’…”

Watching Yun Shuo eat his chicken wings with relish, Wei Spoonlight had Qing Xia grill some potato slices for her, as her own previous attempt had ended in failure.

Nibbling on a potato slice, she poured Yun Shuo some juice and said, “Have you heard any rumors lately about the legitimate daughter of the Marquis of Dingyuan?”

Yun Shuo shook his head, uninterested in such matters concerning girls.

“Then do you know the Empress Dowager has arranged a marriage for your brother? Your future sister-in-law is the Marquis’s legitimate daughter, Luo Yanqing!” Wei Spoonlight was unsure how much Yun Shuo knew of Yun Ming’s affairs.

“That I know. Mother also said that brother is soon to be married!” Yun Shuo was aware of the betrothal and knew Luo Yanqing was to be his sister-in-law, but was oblivious to the reasons behind it.

“What you don’t know is that rumors abound in Yue City that Luo Yanqing is ill-fated, bringing ruin to her husband and family!” Wei Spoonlight said earnestly, “Yun Shuo, I sought you out today to ask you to persuade your father to break off this engagement.”

“Just think, if Luo Yanqing truly brings calamity, can your brother ever recover from his illness?” Wei Spoonlight spoke with passion and conviction.

Yun Shuo stared intently at Wei Spoonlight and suddenly declared, “Princess Consort, say no more!”

Wei Spoonlight was left speechless, while Yun Ming inwardly applauded his younger brother: to render Wei Spoonlight silent—well done!

“All your impassioned words amount to nothing more than trying to have my father break the engagement,” Yun Shuo said astutely. “Leave it to me!”

Though only eight, Yun Shuo did not believe in such baseless rumors as being ill-fated or bringing calamity to one’s family.

Wei Spoonlight stared, shocked—this seemingly silly child had inherited Yun Ming’s insight and saw through everything!

She could hardly resist giving the boy a good cuff—why hadn’t he spoken up sooner, letting her attempt to coax him like a child, nearly feeling guilty for it!

She realized it was her own mistake to have regarded him as the little child she had known five years before.

With the plan to have the Marquis of Xibo break off the engagement tentatively set, Wei Spoonlight took Yun Shuo to grill fish together…

By the hour of the pig, at eleven that night, she finally sent Yun Shuo home. The people of Qinglan Court dispersed, leaving only Wei Spoonlight and Feng Jinye.

The winter night was tranquil and lovely. Wei Spoonlight gazed up at the star-strewn sky and suggested, “Shall we watch the stars together for a while?”

Feng Jinye looked at her profile but could already imagine that her eyes would outshine all the stars above.

“Do you know that today is the Festival of Harmonious Stars?” Wei Spoonlight turned to ask him, her bright, clear eyes meeting his just as he expected—luminous and pure.

Feng Jinye turned away awkwardly, replying, “There is such a festival.”

“Yes, on the Festival of Harmonious Stars, elders are supposed to teach the younger ones to recognize the constellations. You teach me the stars!” Wei Spoonlight tugged at his sleeve, adopting the manner of a little girl.

The word “elder” reminded Feng Jinye of how Wei Spoonlight had just called herself “sister” to Yun Shuo. “Sister” was one thing, at least the same generation, but now, suddenly, he was the elder.

Wei Spoonlight watched his frozen expression, then teased, “Or should I teach you the stars?”

Feng Jinye wouldn’t fall for it. He wrapped his arm around her waist and, with a turn, leapt to the rooftop. “Which star do you want to know about?”

“The Year Star,” Wei Spoonlight said, pointing to an orange-yellow star in the sky.

“You need me to teach you?” Feng Jinye’s usually cool tone carried a warmth unfamiliar to him.

“Uh, which star do you like?” The constellations Wei Spoonlight knew surely differed from those Feng Jinye did. The Year Star, as she called it, was Jupiter.

Feng Jinye had never considered liking any particular star, but after scanning the sky, he replied, “The Morning Star.”

“The Herald Star?” Wei Spoonlight knew that the Morning Star was also called the Herald Star, the brightest in the night sky after the moon.

“Why do you want to know about the Year Star?” Feng Jinye asked, glancing up, though even the brightest star could not compare to her eyes.

“Because it is our guardian star!” Wei Spoonlight loved Jupiter because, to her, it was the protector of humanity.

Feng Jinye didn’t quite understand but, inexplicably, he believed her.

After Yun Shuo returned to the Marquis of Xibo’s residence, he pestered the Marquis all day: “Father, if you do not break off the engagement, and brother never recovers, what will we do?”

“Father, if you ignore brother, and in the future, brother does get well, and the Empress Dowager dotes on him, won’t you be estranged from him?”

“Besides, Father, your visit to the Marquis of Dingyuan’s is to discuss matters. The marriage was bestowed by the Empress Dowager herself; how could you break it off just like that? But going at least shows outsiders that you care for your son!”

It was this last argument that moved the Marquis. Should Yun Ming one day ascend to power and become estranged from the family, it would bode ill.

On the tenth day of the first month, the Marquis and Marchioness of Xibo visited the Marquis of Dingyuan’s estate. The people of Yue City all speculated they had come to break off the engagement.

Luo Yanqing had been confined for five days, unable to find a single chance to slip out and negotiate with Wei Spoonlight.

Today, with the arrival of the Marquis’s party and the estate caught unprepared, servants rushed about, providing Luo Yanqing the opportunity to slip out the back door.

She had no idea what important guests had arrived at her home. It was only after leaving the Marquis of Dingyuan’s estate that she noticed the townsfolk pointing and whispering, their glances flickering toward her family’s gates.

“The Marquis of Xibo must be here to break off the engagement today!”

“Well, Yun Shizi is the Marquis’s own son—how could he stand by and let his child be brought to ruin!”

“Yes, even if the Empress Dowager bestowed the marriage, this engagement must be broken!”

Hearing the chatter, Luo Yanqing understood—the Marquis of Xibo was here to break the engagement. No longer caring about anything else, she broke into a run toward the Prince of War’s estate.

The Marquis of Dingyuan’s was in the east of the city; the Prince of War’s manor was in the west. It was hardly a distance a delicate, sheltered maiden could cover on foot.

Alone, Luo Yanqing realized how much she missed Yinghong. She wanted to hire a carriage, but had no idea how to go about it. She had called Yinghong useless, but now was more helpless than her maid.

Only at sunset did Luo Yanqing finally reach the Prince of War’s manor. Standing before the gates, bedraggled and forlorn, she bore no trace of her former noble bearing.

Looking so disheveled, she was of course stopped outside. In a fit of rage, she shouted, “I am the legitimate daughter of the Marquis of Dingyuan, here to see your Princess! Let me through!”

Unlike other grand estates, which were surrounded by the wealthy and spaced far apart, the Prince of War’s manor was built in the poorer western part of the city. The surrounding streets teemed with common folk. Luo Yanqing’s outcry soon spread, becoming gossip: the noble daughter of the Marquis of Dingyuan had made a scene at the Prince of War’s gates.

Upon hearing the visitor’s name, the guards reported to the Princess, but Wei Spoonlight did not allow Luo Yanqing to be admitted.

When informed, Wei Spoonlight told Qing Xia to help her dress and do her hair: “Qing Xia, style it in a returning-heart chignon—gentle and winsome!”