The Legend of Zhen Huan: Year after year, we share the spring breeze

Chapter 555 Returning to Beijing

"Cousin," he said with a trembling voice, "marry me!"

"What..." An Lingrong scratched her ears subconsciously, almost thinking she had misheard. "What did you say?"

Now that you've said it, it's much easier to say it a second time.

"I say—" His voice was clear, and every word was powerful. "I, Shen Yunfei, want to marry you!"

The moment the last word escaped his lips, he felt the weight in his chest melt away, as if a thousand egrets had been startled and taken flight from the lake of his heart. His blood raced in his eardrums, and even his fingertips trembled slightly, not with fear but with a certain anticipation that bordered on exhilaration.

Unexpectedly, the reaction of the person in front of him was completely beyond his expectations.

Not shy, not surprised, not angry, but looking at me like a fool:

"You have a fever?"

Shen Yunfei subconsciously touched his forehead and replied: "No, I'm fine!"

"Didn't I just say it?" An Lingrong said word by word, "I am a widow!"

"So what!" Shen Yunfei did not retreat but advanced, supporting himself with his hands on both sides of the boat, trapping An Lingrong in a small space.

His gaze was so scorching it could almost burn people: "I know you have concerns, but as long as you nod, I will take on any difficulties."

The lake breeze suddenly changed direction, making his robe rustle.

The reflection of Leifeng Pagoda in the distance shattered into golden dots in the ripples, and then slowly pieced itself together.

"Since your sister has the final say in your family, I'll go and beg her. No matter how she hits and scolds me, I'll definitely get her consent. Not to mention my family, my mother and my eldest brother treat you better than they treat me, they'll agree. Don't worry about anything, leave it to me."

An Lingrong: ...

Shen Yunfei became more and more excited as he spoke: "As for your children, I will definitely treat them as my own. If they can change their surname to Shen, I can record them in the Shen family ancestral hall, and like Huaijin and Wuyu, they will inherit the Shen family business..."

An Lingrong: ...

Seeing that she was still silent, Shen Yunfei hurriedly added: "It doesn't matter if you don't change your surname! In the future, I will buy them property, and I will also prepare a generous dowry for your daughter. As long as you agree, these are not a problem..."

Originally, when Shen Yunfei said those words, he was just a little excited, but the more he spoke, the more he felt that this idea was really great - he could marry the woman who made his heart beat faster, preserve the relationship between the two families, and have both a son and a daughter. It was really a good thing to kill three birds with one stone.

An Lingrong: ...

"I'm a playboy, and you're a widow. We're a perfect match!" He waved his folding fan with a beaming expression, his peach-shaped eyes gleaming with excitement. "I haven't married in all these years. It turns out I was waiting for you..."

Liu Zhu was so frightened that the handkerchief in her hand fell down. Now she was frantically trying to hold up her chin which was about to drop to the ground.

An Lingrong finally lost her patience and suddenly reached out to press his shoulders. Shen Yunfei was speaking excitedly when he was caught off guard by a sudden force that sent him reeling backwards.

"thump!"

The water splashed everywhere, startling the floating light in the pool.

Shen Yunfei struggled in the lake for a few times before steadying himself. He wiped the water off his face and looked up, shouting, "Cousin! Why did you push me?!"

An Lingrong stood by the boat, looking down at the soaked Shen Yunfei. "Are you feeling more alert now?"

Shen Yunfei was stunned and said loudly: "My mind is very clear."

An Lingrong ignored him and raised her hand to signal the escort boat in the distance to come closer.

When the guards approached, they jumped onto the boat with oars and rowed away.

On the black-sailed boat, Liu Zhu came over and whispered, "Sister Rong, if we just throw Young Master Shen into the lake like this, will it..."

"It's okay." An Lingrong said stiffly, but she couldn't help but glance back. "Didn't he just say that he's a good swimmer?"

Shen Yunfei floated in the water, looking at the black-sailed boat going farther and farther away, with drops of water sliding down his brow.

The slender figure standing at the stern gradually turned into a blurry silhouette.

So familiar!

——Have they met before?

——Is it fate from the previous life?

Shen Yunfei wiped the water off his face and dove into the water. His agile figure broke through the surface like a swimming fish and chased after the black-sailed boat.

Back on the shore, An Lingrong had just stood firm with her skirt lifted up when she heard the sound of water splashing behind her.

Turning around, Shen Yunfei had already swam to the shore.

He was soaked to the skin, with water dripping from the ends of his hair, but his smile was brighter than the midday sun.

"Look, cousin! I caught a fish!" He held up a live, silver fish in his hand like he was presenting a treasure. "This is shad, so fresh and tender, it's really hard to find. I'll ask the chef to cook it for you when we get home."

An Lingrong finally couldn't help herself and chuckled softly with her hands covering her lips.

Shen Yun swiftly climbed ashore and handed the still-thrashing shad to the guard. While twisting the water stains on his clothes, he said, "Cousin, what I just said..."

An Lingrong interrupted him, "As for what you just said, I just assumed you didn't say it, and I didn't hear it either!"

After saying that, he walked forward without looking back.

Shen Yunfei looked at her straight back, the light in his eyes dimming for a moment before perking up again. Traditionally, marriages have required three matchmakers and six betrothal gifts. Today's incident was indeed too abrupt, so it was understandable that she found it difficult to accept.

The group walked silently along the lakeside path. Suddenly, An Lingrong stopped and stood still.

Shen Yunfei followed her gaze and looked—

Not far away, two gray-haired women were walking slowly, supporting each other.

The old lady on the left, wearing a crimson double-breasted shirt, was smiling and saying something, while the old woman on the right, wearing an indigo jacket, was nodding as she listened, her silver-white hair bun glowing softly in the sunlight.

They walked very slowly, but each step was steady, their wrinkled hands always tightly clasped together.

The north wind blew by, bringing with it fragments of their conversation:

"...I remember we often came here when we were young..."

"That's right. At that time you always complained that I walked too fast..."

An Lingrong's eyelashes trembled slightly: "Liu Zhu, how long have we been out?"

Liu Zhu calculated: "It's almost November now, and we've been out for more than eight months!"

An Lingrong murmured, "More than eight months..."

"Yeah! It's already snowing in the capital!"

"Let's go back to the capital!"

Shen Yunfei was stunned: "Return to the capital? Now?"

"Correct!"

"Why did you suddenly think of returning to the capital?"