“There is a singing yellow warbler in the shadow of the green sophora tree. There is an empty courtyard in the afternoon of spring.” The rear courtyard was tranquil in a spring afternoon. Wei Changying wore a pea green short upper shirt embroidered with camellia flowers and leaves. Its sleeves were tight. Her high-waisted full skirt was tied with a pair of love knots in front of her breast. Long tassels of knots flapped in the wind. She casually wore a single bun, without any ornaments on her black hair. On the contrary, some white sophora flowers fell on her temples.

Wei Changying chewed a string of sophora flowers. A curious yellow warbler with a pink beak was not far from her. A person and a bird stared at each other. Wei Changying thought that the two lines she had recited portrayed the scene before her.

After eating a string of sophora flowers, she looked around and finally chose another one over her head. When she was about to lift her hand, the yellow warbler suddenly chirped and fluttered away. The bird perhaps thought that Wei Changying would catch it.

Wei Changying originally did not want to disturb the yellow warbler. Now, it flew away and she felt a little unhappy. She was not interested in eating sophora flowers any more.

Wei Changying put the strings of sophora flowers that she just now had picked up into her sleeves, lying on the branch and looking at the sky absently.

In fact, the sky covered by the tree was invisible.

The sophora tree had a history of several hundred years. Although covered with moss, the tree was exuberant every year. The white sophora flowers came out vigorously. They were as beautiful as pearls.

Wei Changying hid in the middle of the tree. When she lay on the branch, she could only see the blooming sophora flowers and rare green leaves.

There were so many flowers that some of them even touched the face of Wei Changying.

Wei picked up these hanging flowers and put them into her sleeves. She thought that after returning to Xianshuang Court, according to the odor of the sophora flowers, Granny Huang would guess that she had hidden in the sophora tree. If so, she could not stay in the tree for peace any more.

Granny Huang was so sophisticated that it was hard for Wei Changying to disobey rules.

Today, she pretended to take a nap in order to let servants keep away from her room. And then she secretly slipped out of the rear window. She deliberately replaced the wood clogs with the silk shoes in case that she would make any noise. The result was that when she passed the stone-covered path, her feet were aching due to the stones.

However, Wei Changying knew that Granny Huang was sophisticated so that Wei could not have the chance to experience something like today.

Without the scent of sophora flowers, Mrs. Huang would still order servants to guard the windows.

Thinking of this, Wei Changying was a little upset.

Actually, she did not know what she could do after secretly leaving her room.

She slightly turned around her head. The half part of Ruiyu Hall was overlooked through the gap of the strings of sophora flowers. There were rows of houses and trees there. Some purple swallows and yellow warblers flew. On the lake in the garden, lotuses loomed. It could be imaged that colorful dragonflies flew over the water.

It was in March, late spring.

Several days ago, a group of people led by Shen Cangfeng had arrived in Fengzhou. They came here to escort Wei Changying to the Capital City for marriage. They did not live in Ruiyu Hall, but in another house.

Yesterday, they decided that they would head for the Capital City three days later.

Now, people in Ruiyu Hall were all busy. The elder generation and trusted servants were checking Wei Changying’s marriage dowries. Dowry servants had a farewell to their relatives who could not go together. Servants in the kitchen tried their best to cook tonics.

Wei Changying’s brothers were even prepared for the behavior for the wedding feast.

On the contrary, Wei Changying was rather idle now.

She had nothing to do. When people slept in the afternoon, Wei Changying slipped out of her room and climbed the ancient sophora tree, feeling blank among the flowers.

Being blank for a few minutes, Wei Changying casually sat straight. She did not get used to this sadness. Gloomy people were able to make many poems when they would get married, slipped out of the room in the afternoon or encountered so many white and sweet sophora flowers.

However, she racked her brain to recite two lines written by a poet.

“I had better pick up more flowers. It is nice to have Granny Huang make sophora flower cakes for me.” Wei Changying thought in a practical way, “If I eat too many sweet sophora flowers, I will start to get tired of them. Also, steaming sophora flowers and Fufang drinks are enjoyable. How could I not bring a bottle of Fufang Drinks just now?”

The tight sleeves of her upper shirt were not big enough to contain so many sophora flowers. Wei Changying observed for a while and lifted the bottom of her high-waisted full skirt. The skirt was grand enough to contain flowers. However, it was not easy to come down from the tree with a skirt filled with flowers.

Wei Changying came up with an idea. She tied the bottom of her full skirt to the belt in front of her breast. In this way, a simple cloth bag came into being. She shook the bag and tested that it was stable. She did not live up to her grandmother who praised her in usual. As for reciting poems, it was not practical.

Wei Changying picked up all the sophora flowers nearby her. The skirt teemed with flowers were heavy. She let out a sigh of relief and looked down from the tree. It was proper to take a rest to recover before going down from the tree.

At this time, she lifted the bottom of her skirt to support the flowers with one hand and picked out leaves and waste with another hand. Suddenly, an unnoticeable particle hit on the branch nearby her.

She took a glimpse of the particle. She considered that it had fallen off from the tree crown, so she ignored it and lowered her head to pick out flowers.

No sooner had she turned her head than another particle hit the branch nearby her again.

Wei Changying was confused to look up toward the top of the tree.

Although she had picked up all the sophora flowers nearby her, there were still exuberant flowers and leaves over her head. So she failed to tell whether the particles were from the top of tree.

It was the third time. A stone hit on the branch next to Wei Changying. She found that the stone was thrown up from under the tree.

She was startled and lowered her head to have a look. Suddenly, she was so scared that she was nearly falling off from the tree.

A handsome man under the tree wore a black straight-front robe and a golden crown.

He was Shen Cangfeng.

Wei Changying were stunned and wondered how she could explain her behavior.

She gazed at her fiance blankly and thought whether she could disguise herself as her cousin.

Wei Changying was rather scary while Shen Cangfeng raised his head and said something quickly. He was perhaps concerned that someone would notice that he was in rear courtyard so his voice was very low. Wei Changying could not hear clearly what he said, so she still stared at him blankly.

Shen Cangfeng repeated his words. It was hard to tell whether he discovered that Wei Changying could not hear his words or he thought that Wei Changying had agreed with his idea. He tucked the bottom of his robe into the jade belt. What his next behavior had shocked Wei Changying and nearly forced her to escape. He jumped into the air, kicked the trunk for three times, turned a somersault in the air and finally stood on the branch beside Wei Changying.

Wei Changying was alert, staring at him, and thought in mind, “Does he think that I am rude? Does he come to punch me?”

Shen Cangfeng seemed to think that it was a rude thing to come to rear court to see his fiancée. After being gazed by Wei Changying, he blushed and looked away to focus on the sophora flowers nearby, silent.

There were a few minutes of silence. Shen Cangfeng lightly coughed, gazing at the string of sophora flowers, and whispered, “Do you prefer sophora dumplings or sophora pastries?”

“Neither. I want to eat sophora flower cakes and steaming sophora flowers made by Granny Huang,” Wei Changying unconsciously responded.

Their conversation was followed by another silence.

A few minutes later, Wei Changying clenched her fists, took a deep breath and seriously asked, “Why the hell are you here?”

Wei Changying complained in mind, “It is not proper for me, a daughter of an eminent family, to clamber the tree. However, why do you, a son of an eminent family, secretly come to court yard before marriage?”

Wei Changying thought that she must find his mistake if she did something wrong.

Shen Cangfeng was embarrassed and said, without directly looking at her, “When I passed over here, I saw that you had stayed still on the branch. I wondered whether you were in need. So I came here for a look.”

Wei Changying looked at the direction where he pointed and asked suspiciously, “Did you visit Changfeng?”

“No, it is further than there.”

Wei Changying realized that the topic had been changed and became a little calm. When she was sure where he came from, she was surprised, “So, you have been..?”

“Father-in-law prefers tranquility. He was concerned that he would be too busy to see me three days later, so he ordered me to visit him in Leyi Court today.” said Shen Cangfeng, coughing for the third time, “When I went out of there, I saw you.”

“My father saw him, why did no one tell me?” Wei Changying thought in mind. She did not say something for a while and then deliberately asked, “What was the time when you saw me?”

“It was about a quarter ago.” Finishing his words, Shen Cangfeng appeared a little calm and murmured, “The servant escorted me to the second door, and I returned when he left.”

Wei Changying pondered his words for a while. She was sure that after his return, he must leap all the walls he encountered so that he would arrive at the court quickly. In other words, he had leaped at least five walls and eschewed guards and maids he had met.

Wei Changying came to realize that her material arts might be less than him. What mattered was how she could catch her fiance who ran so swiftly.

When she was about to ask more, Shen Cangfeng inquired her, “Would you like to come down from the tree?”

Wei Changying grumbled in mind, “Of course, I will go down onto the ground. If not you, I have already... Wait.”

Wei Changying grasped the meaning of what Shen Cangfeng said. She asked him with a strange expression, “Do you think that I am trapped on the tree?”

They were next to each other. Wei Changying was gorgeous. In March, she looked more beautiful. Shen Cangfeng seemed to gaze at sophora flowers, but he secretly glimpsed her out of the corner of his eye. Noticing her irritation, he replied, “How can I think so? I just consider that you may be tired.”

Wei Changying thought in mind, “It is true. But why does he find an excuse for me?”

“In our court, there is a buttonwood tree of several hundred years and my younger fourth sister likes climbing it for fun as she was a child.” Seeing her silence, Shen Cangfeng softly said, “It is me that help her come down every time.”

Wei Changying came to know that her sister-in-law, the fourth miss of the Shen family had always been rescued by Shen Cangfeng whenever she clambered the ancient buttonwood tree and failed to come down. Therefore, Shen Cangfeng thought that like his sister, Wei Changying was also trapped on the tree.

“The important thing is that I am not your sister.”

“You indeed look down on me.”

Wei Changying was furious to think in mind.

She continued, “I merely rested for a while. Do I look weak to need your help?”

“If I could not come down from the tree, how could I domesticate you in the future? There are many flowers on my full skirt, so it is not convenient for me to punch you now. But I have to let you know how powerful I am in case you thought that I could be bullied.”

Wei Changying narrowed her eyes. She was anxious to shock Shen Cangfeng by showing off her material arts, so she hit the thick branch next to her. The crack sounded and the branch was a little broken.

“Look.” said Wei Changying proudly. She implied that she was violent and warned Shen Cangfeng that if he plotted something bad in the future, he should recall of this branch. She was powerful and violent and did not need any help from Shen Cangfeng.

Before finishing her words, she suddenly fell off. She was frightened and instinctively cried out. Suddenly, her arm was pulled up and she was raised with effort.

“Gosh.” She was pulled and bumped into Shen Cangfeng’s breast. As she was frightened, her waist was tightly held by him. A strong sense of manhood came. Wei Changying had not been so close to a man since she was seven, so she was startled. She pushed his arms away, on the brink of tears, and asked, “What the hell are you doing?”

Because of the accident, Wei Changying now nestled against Shen Cangfeng. It was unknown whether Shen Cangfeng suppressed his laugh or tried to be poised, Wei Changying could sense his continuous deep breath. “The branch where you sat on,” Shen Cangfeng pressed his tone and said word by word, “is broken by you.”