Ties of Love, Ruan Wan

What a wonderful fate.

Lou Qianyuan sat at a table by the window on the second floor, watching the farce unfolding in the Hundred Flowers Pavilion across the street, drinking wine to warm himself with a wry smile.

After five months of fruitless searching, he had planned to find Wan'er back when he was at the bottom of the cliff.

Lou Qianyuan noticed at the time that Wan'er's footprints were heading south, but he concealed it.

Being generous under these circumstances would be too unfair to myself. Although my cousin said he had let go, there's nothing I can do if he suddenly changes his mind.

After all, imperial power is supreme.

On this eve of the Lunar New Year, I feel utterly desolate.

There was no one left in the shop; the owner had gone home long ago, and the cooks and waiters had also gone home.

Lou Qianyuan could only warm his wine and eat peanuts while watching the two old men across from him fight over a prostitute; it was quite a sad sight.

Just as he was watching the commotion, a familiar figure appeared before him. Although it was only a fleeting glimpse, Lou Qianyuan recognized it at a glance.

How could I not recognize the person I've been thinking about day and night?

The maid who had just run out pulled a "man" to the front of the Hundred Flowers Pavilion; that figure must be Wan'er.

I've seen the portrait of Wan'er in men's clothing drawn by my cousin before, and it's appeared in my dreams countless times.

Lou Qianyuan could not contain his excitement. He stood up, leaned half his body out from under the eaves, and stared at the 'man'.

The two stood in front of the door, shaking off the snow. Lou Qianyuan looked closely at the person's face and was overjoyed to see that it was indeed Wan'er.

Lou Qianyuan immediately pinched his cheek; it was true.

Lou Qianyuan immediately turned around and went downstairs, wanting to see Wan'er right away. But as soon as he got downstairs, he changed his mind and stopped, thinking he had to maintain his image.

Ruan Wan was dragged into the Hundred Flowers Pavilion, where she saw a large group of people gathered around, treating the place as their home on New Year's Eve.

Two middle-aged men, one fat and one thin, were sitting on the ground, being pulled apart by several servants from the Hundred Flowers Pavilion.

The fat man's face was covered in blood, and the skinny man's hands were also dripping with blood, with shards of porcelain embedded in them. The ground was also covered with blood-stained porcelain shards, indicating that they had indeed engaged in a fierce fight.

The two of them kept repeating, "Mengniang likes me the most, it's me."

Xiao Tao pulled Ruan Wan through the crowd, shouting, "Make way, make way, the doctor's here!"

Both of them were completely out of their minds, and several people couldn't hold them down as they kept moving; it was clear they had been given a lot of drugs.

Unable to clean their wounds, Ruan Wan reached out and pressed an acupoint on the fat man's neck, causing him to faint.

As expected, the skinny man also fainted, much to the astonishment of those around him.

Ruan Wan quickly cleaned and bandaged their wounds, then said to the girls, "Which of you carries these two into your room? You can collect the money tomorrow."

The girls who had been alone for several nights ran up to him with smiles, one for each of them, and with Xiao Si's help, they went back to their rooms.

Ruan Wan looked at the two of them and shook her head. "Beauty is a curse."

I glanced again at Mengniang on the stairs, who had been watching the commotion. Mengniang had an expression that said "What's it to me?" She rolled her eyes and turned to go upstairs.

Ruan Wan followed her upstairs, and the people behind her sighed. Rumors were circulating that Ruan Wan was Meng Niang's lover.

That's good, it saves a lot of trouble.

Upon entering Mengniang's room, they found Menglan and Mudan sitting inside, eating melon seeds. The two were Mengniang's sisters and also friends with Ruan Wan.

Xiao Tao brought water for Ruan Wan to wash her hands. After washing, Ruan Wan sat down at the table and asked, "Why aren't you all enjoying yourselves today? Why are you all gathered here?"

As she spoke, Ruan Wan grabbed a handful of melon seeds and started cracking them open.

Peony put down the peanuts in her hand, clapped her hands, and with a charming smile, swayed her hips to Ruan Wan's side. She leaned on Ruan Wan's shoulder, stroked Ruan Wan's neck, and said in a coquettish voice, "Isn't it all because I was waiting for you, you rascal? Such a handsome young master, if you redeem me, I will serve you well every night."

The group burst into laughter. Ruan Wan, who had initially blushed, remained calm and composed.

Shamelessness really is something you develop through practice. "If you were a man, I'd buy you off the hook."

Ruan Wan grabbed an apple and shoved it into her mouth. Mudan took a bite, then returned to her seat with the apple, playfully complaining, "Your heart is as hard as iron!"

Ruan Wan smiled and shook her head. "Tell me, who is it this time?"

Looking at the three people in front of her, Menglan extended her hand. Ruan Wan took her pulse and sighed, "Sister Menglan, should we keep them or not?"

Menglan smiled and shook her head. "Keeping him here will only harm him. It's better to send him away to a good family as soon as possible."

"Does Young Master Mei know?"

Menglan smiled and shook her head.

“If he loves you, he should marry you,” Ruan Wan said, taking medicine out of her medicine box and handing it to him.

Menglan replied, "Whether he loves me or not, I don't know. Men, you know, I only gave myself to him because I loved him, and I didn't tell him because I loved him."

Ruan Wan was very confused, looking puzzled. Meng Niang raised a cup of wine, tilted her head back, and drank it down. "If you love each other, be happy together; if you don't love each other, break up. Be happy to the fullest when you're happy, and be sad to the fullest when you're sad. A lifetime will pass by in no time."

Ruan Wan laughed and joked with them for a while before getting up and leaving. Xiao Tao saw her off downstairs.

Ruan Wan never spends the night here.

Upon closer examination, their lifestyle becomes quite clear: in such an environment, one should enjoy life to the fullest to avoid feeling so depressed.

Ruan Wan sometimes thought that she was not as good as them. At least they had loved, been together, and been happy. But she skipped everything and went straight to sadness.

The people behind him resumed their hedonistic lifestyle, drinking and singing, with beautiful women in their arms, enjoying themselves immensely.

The snow fell heavily, and the wind picked up. Ruan Wan wrapped her coat tighter, opened her umbrella, and walked outside. Every household was brightly lit.

The snow was falling heavily and everything became hazy. I thought I had to hurry back, because the snow would pile up and the road would be difficult to travel in a while.

A familiar voice rang out through the rustling snow, "On New Year's Eve, young master, you are all alone. Why not keep me company?"

Ruan Wan looked up and saw Lou Qianyuan standing in the snow, holding an umbrella and wearing a fur coat, smiling. What was he doing here?

Stunned and frozen in place, Ruan Wan never expected to run into him here.

Ruan Wan immediately realized something and looked behind him, only to find wind and snow behind him.

Lou Qianyuan looked at the person in front of him with a worried expression, and smiled, "Don't worry, I'm all alone. It's too cold outside, let's go inside."

Lou Qianyuan smiled and pointed to the inn across the street.

Ruan Wan followed him up to the second floor. The entire inn was empty. He was the only person in the inn. Well, it was New Year's Eve, so there was no one else there.

On the table by the window was a plate of peanuts and a pot of wine. Lou Qianyuan stepped forward and pulled out a chair, and Ruan Wan sat down.

Lou Qianyuan also sat down opposite her. Only then did Ruan Wan see him clearly. His once smooth face had grown a beard, and his appearance had become much more weathered.

"Young Master Lou, what brings you to Liuzhou?"

Lou Qianyuan smiled provocatively and said, "Would you believe me if I said I came to see you?"

Ruan Wan frowned as she looked at him, wondering if Xia Changfeng had sent him to find her.

"Looking for me, could it be..."

Before he could even ask, Lou Qianyuan said with a look of displeasure, "Can you stop thinking like that? I am me, and he is him."

"Why are you two always inseparable? Then why are you looking for me?"

Lou Qianyuan suddenly became shy. "I originally planned to propose marriage to you, but your father kicked me out. Later, I learned that you had left, so I came out to look for you. It's been five months, but I've finally found you."

Seeing Lou Qianyuan's excited expression, Ruan Wan was quite surprised. He had gone to such lengths to find her.

But being touched didn't mean Ruan Wan had feelings for him. "Now that you've found me, you can go back."

After saying that, Ruan Wan turned to leave, but Lou Qianyuan stopped her. "Ah, wait a minute, aren't you coming back with me?"

Why should I go back with you?

"This, this..." Lou Qianyuan scratched his head, momentarily speechless, then resorted to pleading, "If you don't go back, I won't go back either. Wherever you go, I'll go."

Ruan Wan looked at him helplessly, "Big brother, please let me go. You should go back to the capital and be your young master. Staying here with me will only bring you suffering."

"I don't care. I've suffered a lot these past five months. I'll get used to it after a while."

Lou Qianyuan held onto Ruan Wan's arm tightly, saying, "Besides, I can't be a young master anymore if I go back. I resigned from my official post to come find you. I gave up everything for you. You can't abandon me."

Unexpectedly, he took it so seriously; Ruan Wan was truly on the verge of tears.

This scene is exactly like Ruan Wan seducing a poor scholar from a wealthy family, and then abandoning him after starting the affair.

Lou Qianyuan continued, "Look, it's New Year's Eve, and I've been freezing and starving all alone in this inn just to find you. How can you bear to leave me all alone?"

As he spoke, Lou Qianyuan put on a pitiful look. Before Ruan Wan could even speak, he pulled her downstairs and casually took the medicine box from her hands.

He opened his umbrella and walked in the direction Ruan Wan had come from. It seemed he had spotted her early on and was waiting for her there.

"Can you not stick so tightly?" Ruan Wan said, pulling her hand away from Lou Qianyuan's.

"I won't run, and I can't run away anyway."

Lou Qianyuan said seriously, "It'll be better if we get closer so I can protect you. It's pitch black here, and besides, we only have one umbrella."

As she spoke, she glanced at the umbrella above her head and realized it was his umbrella. Ruan Wan could only shake her head; it seemed he was determined to cling to her.

Braving the wind and snow, the two returned to Ruan Wan's pharmacy under one umbrella, both of them covered in snow.

Ruan Wan opened the door, shook off the snow, lit a tinderbox and a candle, and led Lou Qianyuan into the inner room.

Ruan Wan found an unused dry towel and handed it to him, saying, "Wipe yourself off."

Lou Qianyuan took the towel and began to wipe the snow water off his body, while Ruan Wan also began to take care of herself.

Lou Qianyuan looked around Ruan Wan's room like a child, glancing here and there.

"You stay here, I'll go get something to eat," Ruan Wan said, turning and heading to the kitchen.

Lou Qianyuan obediently sat back down at the table, looking like he was waiting to eat. "Okay, I'll wait for you."

It's very interesting.

After busying herself in the kitchen for a while, preparing a few dishes and warming a pot of wine, Ruan Wan stood at the door, calling out, "Come and open the door."

Lou Qianyuan hurried to the door, opened it, and took the food from Ruan Wan's hands, placing it on the table.

Ruan Wan closed the door, untied her apron, placed it aside, and sat down. She saw Lou Qianyuan staring at her, grinning foolishly.

Lou Qianyuan looked at the table full of food and wine, and Wan'er was untying her apron. They looked just like an ordinary couple. Happiness came too suddenly, and his heart could hardly take it.

"Is it funny?"

Lou Qianyuan quickly shook his head, "It's happiness."

Seeing him still grinning foolishly, Ruan Wan got up and poured him a glass of wine, then poured one for herself. "Eat up."

Lou Qianyuan looked at the dish in front of him. It was a plate of food that was as clear as amber, something he had never seen before.

I picked up a piece; the juice, like amber, stretched into long strands. After finally breaking it, I popped it into my mouth—it was incredibly hot.

Ruan Wan was amused by his appearance; he no longer resembled a young master from a prominent family.

Seeing him pouting and panting, looking pained, Ruan Wan couldn't help but laugh out loud. "Haha, spit it out if it's hot!"

Lou Qianyuan waved his hand, and after some effort, finally swallowed what was in his mouth. He exhaled and asked, "What is this? I've never seen anything like it in the capital."

"This is candied lotus root. The lotus root from Liuzhou is the best. The lotus root starch and snowflake-like flakes in the palace were all tributes from here."

Lou Qianyuan glanced at the candied lotus root and said, "It's delicious, but it's too hot."

Ruan Wan raised her glass and smiled, "Come on, let's have a drink, Happy New Year!"

Lou Qianyuan hurriedly picked up his wine glass, his face full of doubt, "What does this mean? 'Happy this year'?"

Ruan Wan smiled and said, "This is my own opinion," before downing the wine in her hand in one gulp.

Lou Qianyuan also finished his drink.

The two ate and chatted, with Lou Qianyuan doing most of the talking and Ruan Wan listening.

At first, he said that he had been searching for himself for the past five months and had indeed suffered a lot.

Later, after drinking too much, he started talking nonsense, grabbing Ruan Wan's hand and saying that he had fallen in love with her at first sight and how much he loved her. Finally, he slumped onto the table and lost consciousness.

Ruan Wan poked his face with her hand, but there was no reaction. She sighed. He used to always seem so carefree, but now he looked like a child.

It took Ruan Wan a lot of effort to get him into the guest room.

Back in my room, it was too late to bother tidying up, so I washed up and went to bed.

Ruan Wan began to think about the problem at hand. She really didn't expect Lou Qianyuan to be able to find this place. She had left in too much of a hurry.

Ruan Wan felt a growing sense of fear. If Lou Qianyuan could find his way here, Zhang Lucheng's men might also be able to find it.

Moreover, it's possible that he followed Lou Qianyuan here. The current empress's nephew resigning from his official post and running here would attract too much attention.

Having finally established myself here, am I destined to wander again?

Thinking about this gave Ruan Wan a headache. It was New Year's Eve, so she decided to put these thoughts aside for now.

Although I didn't drink much, I'm feeling dizzy and slightly tipsy, like I'm floating on air.

Actually, I'm quite happy today. It's the first time in so many years that I've spent the Lunar New Year with other people, and it feels pretty good.

Inside the guest room.

Lou Qianyuan opened his eyes as the footsteps faded into the distance. Having spent so many years in the officialdom, he still had a decent capacity for alcohol.

Lou Qianyuan sat up, looked around the room carefully, and couldn't help but laugh out loud.

Now that we have successfully infiltrated the enemy, the next step is to gradually disintegrate them, occupy their stronghold, and strive to move into that room within a year.

Inside the palace, the atmosphere remained peaceful and prosperous. The emperor was very pleased with the alliance with Chu this year, and today was a day for the emperor and his ministers to enjoy themselves.