Quick Travel to the Clouds

Chapter 502 Koi Little Lucky Star 31

She asked this question with a bit of childish fear, afraid that the person in front of her would deny it, be indifferent, and just say it was a normal greeting.

Those eyes, filled with expectation, now clearly reflected Yun Chu's figure, without a trace of the majesty of a princess, only an almost devout prayer for a confirmed answer - she needed to confirm that this connection from the past was real.

Yun Chu raised his head, and his eyes finally met Lin Fubao's without any obstruction.

The long river of time seemed to flow backwards briefly at this moment.

The person before him was the precious princess, the future queen, a being who could influence the fate of Ji family and even more people... But deep in those tearful eyes, she was persistently searching for the mark of her hometown.

Yun Chu saw very clearly the little girl Lin Fubao, whose cheeks were rosy from the sun and who would fight with her for a wild flower on the river bank in the summer.

The "truth" that was hard to find in the deep palace was like a ray of light, instantly penetrating the layers of barriers piled up in Yun Chu's heart - political, interests, and past grudges.

She met that gaze, and her eyes gradually filled with genuine warmth. It was no longer the cautious smile of a subject, but a moving expression of reunion after a long separation, filled with the emotion of time.

"Lin Fubao..." Yun Chu's voice was very soft, with a sigh-like echo, and she finally uttered the name that had been on her lips and teeth countless times. It was not "Princess" or "Empress", but a name that belonged only to their memories.

The air in the pavilion seemed to stagnate suddenly, and then became lively in an instant, with a kind of scorching temperature.

The word "Lin Fubao" was like a rusty but extremely sharp key, which unexpectedly opened the gate of dusty memories.

Lin Fubao felt his eyes suddenly warm up, and the tears that had been accumulating for a long time could no longer be controlled. They rolled down in an instant, hitting the satin of the imperial concubine's palace dress, leaving small dark spots.

She even forgot to wipe it off, and just stared at Yun Chu blankly, her lips slightly parted, and she let out a sound that was almost like crying:

“It’s…it’s you…”

Those tears were not of pity from the princess, but of the ecstasy of a drowning man grabbing a piece of driftwood, and of the grievance and relief of a child who had wandered away from home and was finally recognized by an old friend.

Yun Chu looked at Lin Fubao's tears, and the pity that he had been suppressing surged up like a tide.

She took a step forward, almost subconsciously wanting to wipe her tears, but her hand reached out mid-air, and the courtesy of being a Hanlin wife instinctively froze her movements again. Her fingertips curled slightly, and she could only whisper:

"Don't cry..." There was genuine heartache in her tone.

"How can I not cry..." Lin Fubao sniffed suddenly with a strong nasal sound, not caring about his dignity.

She slapped her face with a silk handkerchief, raised her tearful face and looked at Yun Chu, like a child complaining: "...you just bowed to me like that...called me 'Princess'...you were like a stranger...I...I..."

The more she spoke, the more aggrieved she felt, tears welling up in her eyes again. The fetus inside her seemed to sense her mother's turbulent emotions and moved slightly. Lin Fubao let out a soft "ouch" and subconsciously touched her belly.

"What's wrong?!" Yun Chu's face changed slightly. He was really anxious now. He didn't care about any rules. He stepped forward and stretched out his hand to hold Lin Fubao's arm. "Are you feeling uncomfortable? Sit down!"

Her movements were natural and fluid, tinged with instinctive concern.

Lin Fubao was helped by her to sit on a stone bench covered with a brocade mat. Feeling the warmth from her arms, which came from real concern, the soreness in his heart miraculously subsided a little.

She patted her belly gently, and smiled sheepishly, "It's okay, it's... the little guy just moved a little. Maybe he thinks I'm too embarrassing as a mother."

Yun Chu breathed a sigh of relief upon hearing this, and a sincere smile appeared on his face. The slight estrangement seemed to be diluted a lot by this familiar smile.

She sat down sideways on the stone bench next to her, her eyes carefully examining Lin Fubao's face: "Look at your complexion... Are you okay? This royal family is so high..."

She paused mid-question. After all, this was the princess's innermost affairs, and asking too much would inevitably seem like prying.

Lin Fubao seemed to have found an outlet for his venting. He shook his head, his eyes filled with an indescribable complexity. "Of course, the food and clothing in the mansion are excellent, and the imperial physician often comes to check on my pulse...but, but..."

Her voice trailed off, revealing a hint of confusion and fragility. "Sometimes I feel like a delicate ornament placed in this waterside pavilion... I can see the willow branches outside, hear the cicadas chirping and the birds singing, but I always feel like there's an invisible layer of glass covering me... I can't breathe."

She raised her eyes, staring straight at Yun Chu, grasping at straws. "Yun Chu... home... the riverbank... the patch of dirt where I used to pick wildflowers... how are you doing now? And... me, my mother..." Her voice trembled slightly, carrying the uneasiness of not daring to ask, yet unable to resist. Deep within the palace walls, news from home seemed a world away.

"Everything is fine, everything is fine!" Yun Chu replied quickly, his voice deliberately light, trying to dispel the gloom in Lin Fubao's eyes.

"The riverbank is still there. In the spring, wildflowers bloom all over the mountains. Perilla leaves grow wildly, and the fragrance spreads far away. The old willow tree is still very strong..."

She talked about everything about her hometown, the customs and people that were familiar yet distant to Lin Fubao.

Lin Fubao was so engrossed in listening that even her breathing became lighter, as if through Yun Chu's description, she could touch the land that carried all her romantic times.

The gentle glow on her face that belonged to a princess gradually faded, her eyes became bright, and only deep attachment and longing for her homeland remained.

"It's so nice..." She murmured, and a gentle arc appeared on the corner of her mouth unconsciously, as if immersed in beautiful memories, "I really want to... go back and take a look..."

At this time, Chunying brought out some chilled fruits and whispered, "Your Majesty, Madam Ji, would you like some fruits to cool you down from the summer heat?"

Lin Fubao finally came out of her memories, glanced at Yun Chu, then looked at the crystal clear fruit cup that was still steaming with cool air. The reserve that belonged to a princess returned to her face, but the intimate light did not completely disappear.

She picked up the silver fork, picked up the largest and reddest piece of iced bayberry, and handed it to Yun Chu:

"Yun Chu...try this, the newly made shaved ice from the Imperial Food Bureau of the Palace."

Yun Chu looked at the bayberry she handed over, looked at the mixture of dignity and sincerity in her eyes, looked at her slightly bulging belly, and stretched out her hand, not as a concubine, but as a fellow villager, and steadily took the bright and juicy fruit that was condensed with complex friendship.

"Ah."

After chatting for quarter of an hour, Yun Chu left because Lin Fubao was pregnant and could not sit for long.

When he left, Lin Fubao gave him a lot of jewelry and a letter from home.

In the past two years, Lin Fubao only occasionally heard a few words from his parents and relatives from King Ping, and he couldn't even write a letter home.

She was like a caged canary.

There is no freedom at all.

Yun Chu felt sad in his heart. Lin Fubao was only twenty years old, in the prime of life, but because of his good fortune, he had lost his freedom.

I don’t know whether this good fortune is good or bad.