Without the elders' constant supervision, everyone indulged their inherent laziness to the fullest.
Yu Mingyue and her group left the detached courtyard around the hour of shen, and before they had even returned to the capital, they were already contemplating when they could visit again.
To stay cooler, they chose a forest path with more shade. It didn't matter if it took them an extra half hour to detour; they treated it as an outing.
Gu Youyou was initially going to ride a horse with Jing Zhan, but after a short while, she complained about the dust from riding and returned to the carriage.
However, she didn't go back to her own carriage. Instead, she went to Yu Mingyue's carriage. Mo Yuxi was also there. Seeing Gu Youyou return, she teased with a smile, "Aren't you riding with your sweetheart anymore?"
"Stop teasing me. I don't want to be covered in dust." Even on a shaded path, it was hot, and the dust on one's face felt sticky.
"It seems our Miss Gu values her beauty more than her Brother Jing Zhan!"
"My mother always said that a girl's greatest filial piety is to cherish herself, and only then can she receive even greater love." Gu Youyou said with a proud expression.
Yu Mingyue nodded in agreement, "Youyou's words make sense. That's how it is."
"While that's a good sentiment, if one day you two were in danger, and Jing Zhan had to choose between saving you and saving himself, would you want him to save you or protect himself?" Mo Yuxi asked Gu Youyou with curiosity.
Yu Mingyue pondered. This question was too difficult to answer.
Especially since they had just gotten engaged yesterday.
"I would tell him to protect himself and not save me, but if he insisted on saving me, I would live well too." Gu Youyou said after a long silence.
"But the Book of Songs says 'holding your hand, growing old together,' and storybooks say 'sleeping in the same quilt, buried in the same grave.' Don't you think such love is magnificent?" Mo Yuxi said, not entirely in agreement.
"Of course, that's the love I yearn for, but if I were truly faced with such a choice one day, I would still choose to live well. Because as long as I live, someone will always remember him, and this world can retain a trace of us for one more day..."
Gu Youyou looked out the curtain at Jing Zhan outside. As if sensing her gaze, Jing Zhan also looked in her direction.
Gu Youyou curved her lips into a smile. She and Jing Zhan probably wouldn't face such a day. With her father around, they wouldn't.
"It sounds quite romantic too, living out two lives in one person's existence..." Mo Yuxi sighed.
"Of course. My love, Gu Youyou's love, will undoubtedly be the best, the most romantic. You all must be envious, right?" Gu Youyou said proudly.
Laughter from the girls occasionally echoed from the carriage. Gu Tingyun couldn't help but look back.
Even though he couldn't see anything, the corners of his lips couldn't help but turn up. When Ming Jing returned to the capital, he could go to the Duke's mansion to propose.
The weather in June changed as quickly as it could. Moments ago, the sun was scorching, and suddenly dark clouds gathered, accompanied by lightning and thunder.
"It looks like it's going to rain," Jing Zhan said.
"Then what should we do?" Gu Tingyun instinctively sought Jing Zhan's opinion.
"Let's find a place to shelter first. I remember there's a small earth temple ahead."
The path they were on was narrow, barely wide enough for carriages. If it rained heavily, the road would likely become slippery and unsafe for travel.
However, such heavy downpours usually lasted no more than half an hour. Finding a place to shelter would be a brief wait.
"Then let's hurry," Gu Tingyun said, then spurred his horse to Yu Mingyue's carriage. "Sister Mingyue, it might rain. We need to go faster to reach the earth temple ahead and take shelter. You all hold on tight."