Chapter 527 - It's Lovely
Chapter 527 – It’s Lovely
"What's this?" Zhu Lin asked Lei Wanxi as she saw the bouquet of orchid flowers in his hand.
"Orchids. Don't you know?" Lei Wanxi asked back.
"I know, but why are you giving it to me?" Zhu Lin questioned him. Lei Wanxi was out of words upon hearing her. He searched the orchids for Zhu Lin in the market, and she was replying this way. He slammed the bouquet on the table in the restaurant where they both had decided to have their lunch.
"Be gentle on the flowers," Zhu Lin scolded him.
The owner of the restaurant came to them and greeted them. "Prince Wanxi has come here after a long time," stated the honor humbly.
"I missed the food of this restaurant. Soon, I will become one of the regulars in your restaurant," Lei Wanxi informed him while giggling. The owner was delighted to hear that and asked them what they would like to have.
"Dumpling soup, rice and," Lei Wanxi looked at Zhu Lin, who said, "…and vegetable broth." The owner rubbed his hands and told them to wait for a few minutes.
The owner saw the orchids on the table and amusingly asked Lei Wanxi, "Prince Wanxi, are you going to propose to someone?" The owner understood the meaning of orchids.
Zhu Lin peered at Lei Wanxi and arched her right brow. "Hmm… something like that, but she refused to take it," Lei Wanxi replied and glanced at Zhu Lin.
"That's so bad. The woman does not deserve our Prince then," the owner said and started to laugh. Zhu Lin lifted her head and glared at him. The owner somehow felt intimidated, so he left after making an excuse.
Lei Wanxi rested his right elbow on the table and rested his chin on his fist. "Did you hear? The owner thinks that you do not deserve me. You kicked off the love of the great Sixth Prince of the Han Empire," Lei Wanxi said in a teasing tone.
"If you hand someone flowers like this, he will definitely get surprised," Zhu Lin argued with him.
"Wrong. If a man gives flowers to a woman, then there's a special meaning behind that." He picked the bouquet of the orchids and took their pleasant smell. "I think you do not know the meaning of orchids. It means Love," Lei Wanxi stated and again put the bouquet back on the table.
"But you already declined my love," Lei Wanxi sighed.
"No. I did not. You should have at least told me," Zhu Lin replied.
"Zhu Lin, come here. Sit beside me. I want to tell you something," Lei Wanxi requested to her.
"Why?"
"Why do you ask so many questions? Just sit beside me," Lei Wanxi stated. Zhu Lin stood up and went towards his side. She sat beside him when Lei Wanxi put his arm around Zhu Lin's shoulder and drew her closer to him.
"Look over there– to your left. A few women are staring at me," Lei Wanxi whispered in her ear. Zhu Lin turned her glance towards her left and saw a few women from upper-class families. One of them was familiar to her.
"If I give these beautiful orchid flowers to any one of them, she might think I love her. Zhu Lin, you are never given flowers by any man, that's why you do not know," Lei Wanxi then deduced.
Zhu Lin furrowed her brows. "How do you know?"
"It's written over your face," Lei Wanxi replied.
Zhu Lin yanked his hand away from her shoulder. "This is the second reason no man tried to get close to you. You get violent," Lei Wanxi teased her even more.
"Am I more violent, or are they weaker?" Zhu Lin queried him. Lei Wanxi pointed his index finger at him, which Zhu Lin caught. "If the Prince thought that I had directed the remark towards him, then he is wrong," Zhu Lin affirmed and smiled.
"I did not think that, Zhu Lin," Lei Wanxi pinched her cheek.
"Ahh," Zhu Lin hissed in pain.
"Your cheeks are soft, that's why I did that," Lei Wanxi said and pulled his hand back. A middle-aged man brought their order and told them to enjoy the meals. After they finished the meals, Lei Wanxi paid the bills and left with Zhu Lin, who had picked the orchid flowers bouquet.
"People are looking at us. Why did you not leave it behind?" Lei Wanxi asked while fanning himself.
"The man who loves me has given me these flowers. How could I leave them behind?" Zhu Lin muttered and took in the scent of the flowers. Lei Wanxi was happy that Zhu Lin liked the flowers.
'Brother Sheng indeed has great knowledge about flowers. I used to think that he does not know about flowers and hidden meanings behind them,' Lei Wanxi thought. He saw a vendor selling hairpins and a few other accessories for women.
He closed the fan and put it inside his sash. "Uncle, how much is this hairpin?" Lei Wanxi asked as he looked inside the bamboo basket that the middle-aged man had held. Lei Wanxi liked a jade-colored hairpin and wanted to purchase that.
Zhu Lin smiled, seeing how Lei Wanxi was purchasing a hairpin for her. Her heart thumped against her chest. Lei Wanxi came to him after buying the hairpin.
"What happened? Why are you happy? Do you like these flowers this much?" Lei Wanxi asked.
"No. You purchased the hairpin for–"
"Ahh, this hairpin." Lei Wanxi showed her the hairpin. Zhu Lin nodded her head and turned her back towards him. "This I have purchased for Sister Lili," Lei Wanxi pronounced.
Zhu Lin immediately turned to him. "Pardon," she said as her heart shattered into a million pieces.
"It is for Sister Lili. Isn't it pretty? Sister Lili does not like expensive jewelry. Brother Sheng will get jealous, and I love to tease Brother Sheng. I miss Hu Jingguo. He was the perfect person to tease Brother Sheng." Suddenly Lei Wanxi turned silent, and even the smile on his lips disappeared.
It was weird to see him this way. Zhu Lin had never seen Lei Wanxi getting sad all of a sudden. They both started to walk back to the Palace.
"Who was Hu Jingguo? I only know that he sacrificed his life for the Crown Prince," asserted Zhu Lin.
"Hu Jingguo was the childhood friend of Sister Lili. He had come to Juyan to rescue Sister Lili as he thought that the Crown Prince would kill her."
"Pardon. Why did he think that way?" Zhu Lin confusedly asked.
"Everyone used to think that Brother Sheng was cruel. Hu Jingguo became a close friend of mine and also of the Crown Prince. Brother Sheng was so reluctant to go close to Sister Lili, so I gave him a task to make Brother Sheng jealous to the extent that he would get close to Sister Lili. Those days…I miss them," Lei Wanxi said, followed by a deep sigh.
"Hu Jingguo used to call Brother Sheng by his name. They both have gotten very close to each other. I used to roam with him, and we both have the same interests too," Lei Wanxi stated and chuckled. His eyes got misty, recalling his precious memories with Hu Jingguo.
"It is hard, right? I lost my older brother in a war. These values and these habits I have received from him," Zhu Lin stated. Lei Wanxi was shocked to learn about that.
"Don't be shocked. My Elder Brother sacrificed his life for this Empire. I am proud of him. I also miss him sometimes," Zhu Lin proclaimed. Lei Wanxi could not help but hug Zhu Lin tightly. He patted her back.
"You are a great warrior, like your brother. If you ever miss your elder brother, then you can talk to me," Lei Wanxi stated. Zhu Lin hummed and pulled away from him.
"You can do the same if you miss Hu Jingguo," stated Zhu Lin. Lei Wanxi agreed with her and the two went back to the Palace.
As Lei Wanxi escorted Zhu Lin to her chamber, he recalled the second hairpin that he had bought for her. He walked in to give it to her. "Do you want something?" Zhu Lin asked.
"No." Lei Wanxi grasped her hand and brought her towards the dressing table where the mirror was placed.
"What is the Prince doing?" Zhu Lin questioned.
"Stay quiet," Lei Wanxi stood behind her and put the hairpin in Zhu Lin's hair bun.
"Have you not bought it for the Crown Princess?" Zhu Lin tried to move away when Lei Wanxi put his hand on her shoulder to stop her from moving.
"I bought two hairpins. One for Sister Lili and another for you. I will give you an expensive one later," Lei Wanxi stated, and put his hand down. Zhu Lin tilted her head a little and saw the jade-colored hairpin. "It's lovely," Zhu Lin complimented and turned to Lei Wanxi.
Zhu Lin realized how close they both were standing, so she took a step back while tucking the lock of her hair behind her ear.. Suddenly, Lei Wanxi wrapped his arm around her waist and drew her towards him.