Rebirth: Not Being a Waste - Chapter 135

After returning, the little prince splashed cold water on his face, then thought carefully about what Qianjin had said earlier.

That’s when he realized—who said he didn’t like Qianjin? His heart raced whenever they were near each other. He felt jealous when he saw Qianjin with others. When they were apart, he missed him constantly. And when they were together, he found himself unsure of what to do.

Maybe the adults didn’t take it seriously, but he did. The feelings he carried since childhood finally came to the surface. After all, why was he never interested in other gers or girls? It was because someone had always held a large part of his heart.

He worked hard to study, practice martial arts, and better himself. All of it was for the day when he could marry Qianjin.

Now that he understood it, the little prince continued to follow Qianjin around, just as those young men did when courting. Qianjin wasn’t unpopular in the village, but due to his family’s background, most young men were too intimidated to approach him.

Qianjin saw everything. Slowly, he began to look at the little prince in a new light. As the little prince had said, he was handsome, elegant, and skilled in both civil and military matters. Any ger would naturally be drawn to him, and Qianjin was no exception.

As a young man in the throes of first love, the image of the young, noble hero from the stories seemed to manifest before him, showering him with attention, making it impossible for him not to be moved.

At first, Qianjin held back his feelings, thinking the little prince didn’t like him. But as the little prince’s gaze grew more intense, Qianjin couldn’t help but fall for him.

He began to show his affection—cooking delicious meals, making new clothes for him, paying attention to the little prince’s likes and dislikes, and helping him when his family gave him trouble.

Every time the little prince appeared, Qianjin’s eyes shone as if the only thing that mattered was the little prince’s presence.

Zhang Shu and Li Mujin privately observed that Qianjin’s temperament seemed to have returned to what it was when he was a child. He used to be soft and often acted spoiled, but as the eldest, he matured and became more composed, taking care of his younger brothers. Those little temperaments seemed long gone.

But now, in the presence of the little prince, Qianjin seemed to have returned to his old self.

They both knew that Qianjin was truly moved this time.

The little prince also enjoyed the attention. For the first time, he found that Qianjin was irresistibly cute. He was cute when he spoke, cute when he laughed, cute when he scolded him—there was almost no time when he wasn’t cute.

Whenever they were together, the air seemed to sweeten, and the other elders couldn’t help but feel a bit envious. This was the kind of relationship young people should have when they were in love!

Zhang Shu and Li Mujin were childhood sweethearts. Their relationship lasted for years and grew stronger with time, but they never reached the point where they couldn’t be apart.

Li Yan and Zhou Nan married later in life. Even if they wanted to be like young lovers, Zhou Nan wouldn’t cooperate. Both of them were honest men, neither frivolous nor seeking to play games with love.

Yu Xiaoliu and Wang Meng faced hardships since childhood and learned to rely on each other. Their relationship was one of mutual support, a bond that stood the test of time.

It wasn’t that their love was shallow; rather, love could change with time, yet their bond remained strong, unshakable.

Zhang Shu always said that as long as his ger was happy, nothing else mattered. He knew Prince Cheng for over ten years. While he didn’t fully understand all of his personality traits, he had a general idea. Prince Cheng was free-spirited and had no prejudices about social status. Moreover, with his status, there was no need to marry into a noble family. If the young prince’s wife came from a humble background, the emperor would be more at ease, seeing it as a sign that the prince had no designs on the throne.

Now that the two of them were getting along so well, Zhang Shu subtly hinted that the young prince could propose marriage. The young prince was thrilled and immediately ordered his guards to go to the city to buy the best gifts. He then took a bow and arrow to the mountains and shot a pair of live geese as a token.

The night before the proposal, the young prince snuck up to Qianjin’s window and knocked gently.

Qianjin quickly opened the window and leaned out. “Brother Chengzhang, you’re back! Did anything happen on the mountain?”

“No, Qianjin, don’t worry!” The young prince quickly reassured him. “Tomorrow’s the day we get engaged. Are you happy?”

“Happy,” Qianjin said softly, his face turning slightly red even though he was embarrassed to admit it.

The young prince reached out and cupped his face gently. “I’m happy too. Starting tomorrow, you’ll be my little husband!”

Qianjin scolded him playfully, “We’re not even married yet, and you’re calling me husband?”

“Of course I am,” the young prince said proudly. “By the way, I’ve already sent a pigeon with the wedding date and asked my father to consult the Imperial Observatory for an auspicious date. I’ll make sure they choose a later date, though. After all, you’ll be living in the capital, and it won’t be easy to travel back and forth. So, during this time, you should spend more time with your father and Aba.”

Qianjin hesitated, “What do you mean? I won’t be coming back in the future?”

“Of course, but the capital is about two thousand miles away from here. Even on horseback, it took me nearly two months to get here. Though I made a few stops along the way, it would take about the same amount of time by carriage, maybe even longer.”

Despite Qianjin’s experience in managing the accounts and doing business for Zhang Shu, he was still a young ger who never left home. He didn’t realize how far the capital was from Anyang County. His father went to Nanhai County, and it took almost a month for the round trip.

He never rode a boat since childhood, and sitting in a carriage for long periods was something he wasn’t used to. If he married and moved to the capital, would he ever have a chance to come back?

The little prince continued speaking, unaware of the concern on Qianjin’s face as the night grew darker.

Qianjin spoke up, “Can’t we stay here?”

The little prince, surprised, replied, “How can that be? I still have to inherit the palace! My parents are good people, don’t be afraid.” He assumed Qianjin was worried about that.

“Then… can we come back once a year?” Qianjin asked again.

“It takes more than four months to travel back and forth. It would be too rushed to come back every year. We could come back every few years, though.”

It seemed that there was no room for argument in the little prince’s words. Qianjin quietly accepted this and said no more.

The next day, preparations for the marriage proposal began. As usual, the matchmaker asked the young man for his opinion. Typically, boys either nodded shyly or had their relatives speak for them. No one expected that Qianjin would shake his head.

The little prince quickly leaned in and whispered, “Qianjin, you should nod your head. Are you not happy?”

Qianjin lowered his head and shook it again.

At this point, everyone realized something was wrong. The matchmaker standing nearby was visibly embarrassed. What was going on?

“Qianjin, explain yourself, why are you shaking your head?” The joy on the little prince’s face faded, and he gently lifted Qianjin’s chin, asking seriously.

Qianjin looked lost, his eyes heavy with dark circles, clearly not having slept the previous night. “I… I don’t want to get married.”

“Why? Weren’t you fine yesterday?” The little prince frowned.

“I don’t want to marry so far away,” Qianjin bit his lip and finally said.

The little prince laughed, “What are you afraid of? Didn’t I tell you my parents are easygoing? And I promised you that you can come back every few years. Don’t be stubborn, just nod, everyone’s watching us!”

In the little prince’s mind, his mother never returned to her parents’ home. She married from a faraway place, so it was impossible for her to visit her family freely.

“I’m not being stubborn. I’ve thought this through. It’s hard to leave my hometown. My family and all my memories are here. I don’t know how I can live without them.”

“It’s the same life. My mother, grandmother, and the other aunts all came from different places, and they’re doing fine!” The little prince’s face grew a bit hard. He thought it was perfectly normal.

“I’m not like them! I won’t be fine. I feel uncomfortable just thinking about how, one day, something might happen back home, and I’ll be far away, not knowing about it until much later.” His great-grandparents were elderly. If something happened, he wouldn’t even be able to attend their funerals. They cared for him since he was a child—how could he bear to leave them?

“Do you want me to stay here with you? Forget about my father and mother, forget about the Cheng Palace?”

“I didn’t say that. I just realized I was too naive before.” Qianjin’s eyes were red with tears. At the time, he only enjoyed the sweetness of love, not thinking about how his love was different from others.

“Do you regret it?” The young prince gritted his teeth, the words coming out harshly. His efforts during this time felt like a joke. The two live geese, the days and nights spent in the mountains—it all felt pointless now.

Qianjin lowered his head, remaining silent.

The young prince glanced at the Zhang family members nearby, then at the embarrassed matchmaker and the guards standing behind him. He pulled out his sword and swiftly beheaded the two geese. “Just think of me, Zhao Chengzhang, as sentimental, and say goodbye.”

With that, he turned and strode out of the Zhang household.

When they first met as children, a mark was already left on his heart. In May, they reunited, and by August, they fell in love. But it turned out that he was the only one deeply involved in this relationship. Never mind, he thought, let’s pretend this moment never happened.

Tears fell, one by one, as Qianjin stood in the room crying. This was the second time he watched him leave. He couldn’t remember the first, but now his heart broke. Who could he blame? He pushed him away both times.

Zhang Shu sighed, sent the matchmaker away, and then asked the others to leave. He and Li Mujin each held Qianjin, one on the left and one on the right. “Qianjin, it’s okay. Father and Aba are here. You’ve always been a filial child. I know you can’t let go of your great-grandparents, and you can’t let go of us.”

“Do you remember what Father said? Don’t let yourself regret it. If you truly love him, go after him. Let Father take care of everything else.”

Qianjin cried out, “I heard the sound of horse hooves, he’s gone… He won’t come back… He never thought about my feelings… I don’t want to chase him!”

“Then don’t chase him. Father will find you someone better in the future,” Zhang Shu said, his voice filled with sorrow.

“Okay!” Qianjin held back his tears, forcing out a response, but he couldn’t help but crouch down, clutching his chest in pain. “But it hurts so much… What should I do?”

Yes, what should he do now?