CHAPTER 359: CHAPTER 356: MISS YOU

"Sister."

Xie Liangchen heard Song Xian’s voice in her ear.

Having been called like this for a long time, it no longer felt as strange as before; instead, Song Xian’s way of calling her seemed particularly unique, and her heartstrings trembled slightly as well.

Song Xian said, "We’re engaged now."

Xie Liangchen responded softly, "Mm."

Song Xian continued, "I saw your engagement letter."

Xie Liangchen was a bit surprised, she looked up at Song Xian, "You haven’t returned to Zhenzhou, how did you see it?"

Song Xian smiled; the days waiting for the court troops in Dai State were not easy because he knew his grandmother would go to Chen Family Village to propose on his behalf. Even though he had discussed it with Uncle Xie beforehand, he was still apprehensive, fearing Uncle Xie’s refusal.

Finally, the news came, and he felt reassured, frequently taking out the family letter to look at it.

Not having seen Liangchen for a long time, his longing grew day by day. Yet, with the order forbidding him to leave the camp, he could only keep hoping each day. Later, he thought of a good way to have the household general return to Zhenzhou to fetch Liangchen’s engagement letter.

Seeing her name on the engagement letter and being congratulated by the soldiers in the camp, he finally felt a bit better.

Song Xian lowered his voice, "I couldn’t wait, so I had someone fetch it from the household."

Xie Liangchen looked at Song Xian; this person must be silly. What’s so special about an engagement letter? Yet he had someone bring it all the way from Zhenzhou to Dai State.

Xie Liangchen said, "What about now? Did you send it back?"

Song Xian replied softly, "I brought it to the capital, and we’ll take it back when we return to Zhenzhou."

Xie Liangchen didn’t know what to say; she just felt that Song Xian’s voice was extraordinarily gentle, making her heart melt completely.

The arm around her waist tightened slightly, Song Xian lowered his head, his warm breath falling on her cheek, his voice was right next to her ear, "Sister, I miss you."

Xie Liangchen only felt her heart was about to leap out of her chest.

Song Xian used his other hand to find Xie Liangchen’s and gently caressed her fingertip.

Xie Liangchen knew he was checking for the scar on her finger, "It’s healed."

Song Xian said, "Have you been tired these days? Running between the Familiar Medicine Institute and the Paper Workshop every day, and without resting, you’ve come to the capital."

In the darkness, Xie Liangchen felt Song Xian’s voice getting lower, so low only she could hear it.

Unknowingly, they stepped back step by step until they arrived behind a tree in the courtyard, her back pressed against the trunk. She was startled and leaned forward slightly, but just then, the arm Song Xian had around her waist moved slightly upward, his palm just covering her back, separating her from the trunk.

Song Xian took another small step forward.

Xie Liangchen only felt herself completely enveloped in Song Xian’s arms, finding it slightly hard to breathe.

"I’m not tired." Xie Liangchen’s cheeks were burning.

Being so close made her inevitably nervous, so she reached out to grab the hem of Song Xian’s clothes.

Song Xian said, "It’s too cold, but I don’t want to let you go back, so I can only get closer to you."

Xie Liangchen thought Song Xian was shameless and thick-skinned, "We can talk tomorrow."

Song Xian said, "During the day, you’re surrounded by people, especially when Uncle is around; you don’t even talk to me."

He sounded quite aggrieved, making Xie Liangchen laugh, "I’ll speak to you tomorrow."

Even with this promise, Song Xian still didn’t want to let go, feeling as if their time together was unusually short.

Footsteps approached.

Xie Liangchen’s breathing seemed to lighten, fearing someone would notice them. Fortunately, it was dark here, and Song Xian covered her completely.

"Have you seen Lord Chang?"

"The master had Chang An go and rest."

"What about the master? Did he also retire?"

"He probably did."

The two people speaking sighed with relief.

Xie Liangchen looked up at Song Xian; the two speaking must be the Song Family’s House Generals.

The two stood not far away, talking softly.

"The master has finally retired, my ears were about to develop calluses."

"Exactly, I’ve heard it several times. Just recently, after completing my task, I returned and saw the master engrossed in a family letter again. I was so startled I didn’t even drink water and ran out again."

"I tell you, even the people in Wang Family Village in Dai State know of it now."

"What did the master say when we first arrived in the capital? To stay away from those places in the capital, and now that he’s different from before, we must be even stricter."

"When did we ever go out? Let alone those places; the master wasn’t reprimanding us, clearly just finding an excuse..."

"Shh, that’s enough, do you want to end up feeding the horses in the stable?"

The two of them stopped talking and quickly walked away together.

Xie Liangchen looked up at Song Xian, "What were they talking about? What is it that even people in Wang Family Village know about?"

"Nothing," Song Xian said, "Perhaps they were talking about bringing troops back to the capital. I couldn’t help but say a few more words to Village Chief Wang. Before leaving Dai State, I had to remind them to be prepared, waiting for Zhenzhou to send the spinning wheels."

She wouldn’t believe him.

Xie Liangchen pondered for a while, probably realizing what the Song Family’s House Generals were talking about. For the sake of Song’s face, she could only pretend not to know.

Xie Liangchen said, "You can’t send people to the stables just for that."

Song Xian replied, "The two of us standing here, and they didn’t even notice."

Xie Liangchen said, "With you covering me so thoroughly, who could possibly see us?"

Hearing her slightly coquettish voice, a thrill surged in Song Xian’s heart, and he silently recited, "Feelings must stop where they should."

Xie Liangchen hadn’t heard Song Xian’s voice for a while. She slightly raised her head with a questioning look, only to be surprised when he lowered his head, pressing his warm lips to her forehead once more.

This time, unlike the last, which was just a brief touch, he stayed for a moment.

"Let’s go back," Song Xian’s voice was slightly hoarse when he spoke again, "we can’t stay longer."

Xie Liangchen quickened her steps and hurried back to the room, locking the door, then took off her clothes and lay down next to Old Mrs. Chen.

"Where did you go?"

Old Mrs. Chen suddenly grumbled, scaring Xie Liangchen into a panic, just as she was thinking about how to explain.

Old Mrs. Chen murmured again, "Gobble gobble, come back and eat."

Xie Liangchen let out a long sigh of relief, realizing she had never felt so guilty before, but her grandmother... was truly frightening, even her sleep talk was timely.

Curling up in the blanket, the back of her hand accidentally touched her cheek, feeling it burning hot.

Fortunately, the journey was exhausting, and soon Xie Liangchen fell asleep. Only Song Xian’s room at the inn remained lit. He first reviewed the documents he brought and then recalled the words exchanged with Sister Chen earlier. Although they had been alone for quite a while, it felt as if nothing was said.

Only after getting married could they be together all the time, so he was determined to work hard to bring the wedding date forward.

The next day, Song Xian got up as usual to practice martial arts. Upon returning, he happened to see Xie Liangchen being pulled out of the room by Chen Zigeng.

Xie Liangchen stood before Song Xian and spoke, "General Song."

Song Xian responded, watching as Xie Liangchen was called away by Mrs. Gao. Looking at Xie Liangchen’s back, Song Xian appeared calm outwardly, but inside, he was filled with mixed emotions. She said she’d talk to him, and this is it? Just a greeting?