Gifted Bride of the Sinned Prince

227 A Lotus Water Lantern

Lóng Wei returned to his manor. It surprised him to see Li Hua on the pavement, smiling with the maidservant. Her smile fluttered his heart when the maidservant saw him. She stopped smiling and told Li Hua about him.

Li Hua turned and smiled to see him. She had a lotus lantern in her hand, and she walked up to him.

“Your Highness, I was waiting for your return only. Let’s go to the main lake in the palace. We will light this lantern together,” Li Hua requested, and looked at the lotus-shaped lantern.

However, Lóng Wei was unable to understand her. He agreed with her and decided to ask about it later. He looked at the maidservant and asked her about Feng Lao.

“He is in the guest chamber, Your Highness,” the maidservant replied.

“Will His Highness not take this name in front of me?” Lóng Wei was astonished by Li Hua’s words. Earlier, the opposite used to happen. She was the one telling him not to take Feng Lao’s name in front of her.

“Li Hua, do you remember your promise to me?” Lóng Wei wanted an answer from her related to Feng Lao. He wanted to know if she could kill Feng Lao and his father.

“I remember, Your Highness,” Li Hua said. The smile on her lips had disappeared. “Let’s not talk about it now,” she urged him. Lóng Wei didn’t insist on talking about that and took her to the main lake of the palace, which was situated in the Northern Palace.

“Shall I hold it?” Lóng Wei asked and extended his hand out to hold it when Li Hua slapped at the back of his palm.

.....

“No. I must hold it,” Li Hua answered.

“Why?” Lóng Wei was interested in knowing the reason.

“I will tell you once we reach the lake,” Li Hua answered.

“Are you going to give a surprise to your husband?” Lóng Wei looked curious and excited.

“No,” Li Hua refused, and shook her head. They saw a few servants coming from the front, who stopped and lowered their heads.

“I never get any surprises. You can give me one,” Lóng Wei opined.

“I do not know what His Highness likes. I still have to learn a lot of things about His Highness,” Li Hua answered.

“Whatever you give me, I will gladly accept that and that will be my favorite thing,” Lóng Wei affirmed. Li Hua’s lips curled up into a smile. She promised Lóng Wei that she would give him a surprise soon.

“Since you have not lit the lantern, then,” he quickly stood behind her and carried her up in his arms in a bridal style, “I can do this.”

Surprised, Li Hua asked him to put her down. Lóng Wei shook his head and started to walk. “Peng Yuxian has told me to give you enough rest. However, you didn’t listen to me. First, we agreed to go to the hill, and now, we are heading to the Northern Palace. I cannot let you walk anymore,” he stated.

“Everyone will talk about it in the morning,” Li Hua complained.

“No one bothers about us, so we are free to do anything.” Lóng Wei smiled at her. Li Hua got a sudden realization. It felt to her that Lóng Wei intentionally created an image of a notorious prince among everyone. He had no fear of rules, and customs as he frequently broke them. Because of that, he wasn’t scolded about it anymore. It was more like the freedom for him to live as a commoner rather than a prince.

Li Hua lifted her face and kissed his cheek. Lóng Wei came to a halt and lowered his gaze to look at her.

“What was that?” Li Hua amused him today many times.

“Nothing,” Li Hua didn’t tell him the reason behind that.

“Wifey is forcing me to make out with her in the open,” Lóng Wei remarked. “Well, no one is around. Should we kiss more passionately?”

Li Hua widened her eyes in shock. “Can His Highness not refrain from using such words in the open?” She looked around, making sure that no one had heard Lóng Wei.

“You started it,” Lóng Wei said.

“Fine. I won’t do that anymore,” Li Hua proclaimed.

Lóng Wei smiled at her annoyance. That cute side of hers always flattered him. He resumed walking, and they both soon reached the northern palace. He gently put Li Hua down and asked her to tell him the reason for coming to the lake at night.

“I already told His Highness that I want to light this lantern with him. Then, we will let this lantern shed in the water. It is said that if a lantern is lit with your husband, then it leads to a happy marriage,” Li Hua explained the reason to him.

“Are you accepting my love for you? Are you saying that you will return those feelings too?” Lóng Wei interrogated her. He was too desperate to know the answer at the moment. He knew for Li Hua that it was difficult to reciprocate his feelings.

“Yes, Prince Lóng Wei,” Li Hua admitted in front of him. “I accepted His Highness’ love a long time ago,” she stated.

“You gave me the biggest surprise today,” Lóng Wei said, and his smile broadened.

“Shall we light this lantern?” Li Hua asked again.

Lóng Wei asked her to wait for him as he had to bring a candle. He returned with a candle on a holder that was covered on all sides to keep the flame from being extinguished by air.

He lit the lantern with Li Hua, and they both walked to the lake bank. Getting on their knees, they let the lotus-shaped lantern flow into the water. Li Hua moved her hand into the water and the ripples formed on its surface. The water lantern moved ahead and illuminated its vicinity.

A smile formed on Li Hua’s lips. That moment was one of the happiest moments of her life. She had decided to move on with Lóng Wei. She began it with this beautiful custom that was popular among young men and women.

She turned her head to look at Lóng Wei. “Let’s return to the manor,” she said, and stood up. Lóng Wei got up too, but he held her wrist. He closed the distance between them and kissed her lips.