The middle-aged scholar laughed as he prattled on.
Chen Rong held the sachet in her hand feeling tumultuous inside. Why, this was a love token. Before, she could say that her being close to Wang Qilang was for self-preservation. But she had accepted his jade ornament last time, if she were to take his sachet this time, wouldn’t she be saying that she had accepted this man?
Both of her hands shook. One hand wanted to hug the sachet to her bosom. He was Lang’ya Wang Qi; even as his concubine, splendor and wealth would never be far from her. The other hand wanted to refuse the gift. So what if it was the Wang House in Lang’ya? Was she even good enough? Not being good enough would only bring heartbreak. Had she not tasted the consequences of this in her previous life?
At the thought of her past life, the beautiful dream along with all of her longings went away as fast as they had come.
Seeing the scholar turn away, Chen Rong hopped down from the carriage and ran up to him. She put the sachet back into his hand and gave him a hasty curtsy. “Ah Rong of the Chen House is but a humble girl,” she tremulously began. “I am unworthy of Qilang’s personal item. Please take it back.” Then without looking up, she turned and ran back to her carriage, fleeing in panic even though she had been the one to dole out the rejection.
The scholar raised an eyebrow, stared after her back in surprise, and at length looked down at the sachet. “There’s a girl in this world who is indifferent to Qilang? Now that’s interesting.” He then turned around, hummed a song and returned inside.
The carriage began moving.
Outside the carriage, Old Shang, who did not know that Wang Yi had mentioned matrimonial ties to Chen Gongrang, began to mutter: “What is Lang’ya Wang Qi thinking? He isn’t willing to take my mistress yet he gives her his sachet. Does he just want to play around with her?”
His muttering made its way to Chen Rong’s ears. She was leaning absently on her seat, hands in a knot. Her beautiful face glowed one moment, then fell dejectedly the next, apparently conflicted…
The wheels clopped on the snow. Silvery moonlight filtered onto Chen Rong through the curtain slit.
After some time, she raised the curtain to let the chilly wind sober her troubled heart. By the time her cheeks grew red, tranquility had gradually been restored to her eyes.
When the carriage headed for the side entrance, she looked to the front gate and suddenly said, “Let’s go to the main entrance.”
“Aye.” Old Shang drove the vehicle around a bend and to the front gate.
As he drove, he curiously looked back at Chen Rong. Against the moonlight and snowy background, her lips were drawn into a stubborn line. He suppressed his curiosity and did not open his mouth to ask.
It took about half an hour to get to the front gate from the side gate.
Once this half hour had passed, abashment and joy had both disappeared from Chen Rong’s face, replaced by a clarity in her eyes.
When the carriage got closer to the front gate, Chen Rong poked her head out and gazed to where the gatemen stood. It didn’t take her long to see the upright and temperate Zhang Xiang, humbly dressed, among the strapping guards.
The carriage slowly approached them.
Everyone turned to look when they heard the rolling carriage, some lighting up at the sight of Chen Rong.
This had included Zhang Xiang. He fixedly stared at her with a smile of admiration in his eyes.
Chen Rong returned his gaze.
While Zhang Xiang was taken by surprise, she slowly smiled a sweet smile at him, one that was all at once charming and luminous.
In the past, she had practiced this smile countless times in front of her mirror, believing that it could change Ran Min’s ill feeling toward her. This was a smile a woman used to seduce a man.
Zhang Xiang was obviously taken by surprise for he dumbly looked at Chen Rong. As her carriage got closer and closer to him, he suddenly looked to the ground and retreated behind a tall guard, thereby cutting off Chen Rong’s view of him.
Chen Rong paused. She slowly dropped her gaze and retracted her head inside.
The horse-drawn carriage drove out the front gate.
When she turned to look back a dozen paces later, all she could see were still a group of tall guards and a corner of Zhang Xiang’s robe. She wryly smiled and thought to herself: I was too hasty. My smile had not only failed to make a good impression, I fear, but it had also made him suspicious and disdainful of me. She sighed, having suddenly lost her mood.
Hearing her sigh, Old Shang tilted his head and asked, “Miss, are you alright?”
Chen Rong did not care whether he had seen her; she shook her head.
The carriage’s rolling became a lonely tune in the night.
At this time, Old Shang whispered, “Miss, you should marry Qilang if he is serious. I believe that he will protect you. He won’t let his future wife harass you.” Though he said this, there was an uncertainty in his voice that sounded as though he didn’t believe