Reborn To Be The Imperial Consort [BL]-Chapter 42: Blooming Pansy — V

"Palace of Moonlit Reflection?" Li Xinyuan echoed, his voice adopting a soft cadence as he looked around himself, slight wonder in his eyes.

Liu Mingyun answered him with a soft smile dancing upon his lips, his handsome face softening with the deluge of his emotions as he looked at his betrothed and nodded.

"Indeed, now come along Xin’er, let me show you some things."

Li Xinyuan nodded, eyes crinkling with smile as the warmth of Liu Mingyun’s tone affected him, making him relax as the Crown Prince led him into the palace.

A few twists and turns came along the way, flurry of servants busily filing around as they paid them their respect when Liu Mingyun passed by.

To an extent, it seemed like some sort of renovation and construction was underway in the Palace of Moonlit Reflection.

It was a curious little — well, not actually little considering the rush in the palace — detail that Li Xinyuan found himself taking a note of whilst Liu Mingyun gave him a simple tour of his soon to be residence, hand in hand, the two men walked, fingers laced together, palms pressed close and gaps filled with the appendages of another as though pieces of puzzle created to be together from the start falling in place.

The size difference between their palms was too much, not really, Li Xinyuan just had more dainty — well, as dainty as a martial artist doctors hands could be — hands in comparison to Liu Mingyun that they seemed to dwarf when in the latter’s grasp.

Did Li Xinyuan mind?

No, not one bit! He had never had a boyfriend or a lover in the past, much less a fiance, so the feeling of holding hands with Liu Mingyun was like having a boyfriend—who was not really his boyfriend.

Their relationship was — in Li Xinyuan’s very sharp golden eyes — somewhere between friends and something more, something nameless that he couldn’t quite identify yet.

It was funny. Him being a genius neuro and cardiothoracic surgeon while not being able to properly navigate through the endless sea of his own emotions, not being able to identify the nature of his feelings for Liu Mingyun.

It was akin to being a genius captain of a ship in the sea but being absolute pants in using sextant or even just the stars to navigate through the endless waves of ocean.

Except, in Li Xinyuan’s case, the ocean were his feelings and the emotions he was starting to develop for the Crown Prince and his emotional intelligence in the matter of love, a capsizing ship he was supposed to sail but just so happened to be absolutely shit at navigation and sailing.

It was almost funny. If, if it was not at his own expense, really.

Li Xinyuan snapped out of his zoned out self-mockery as he looked ahead, catching the sight of fleeting clouds in the sky so vast and so far away. It was blue, beautiful and lonely, unlike the sky Li Xinyuan had back in Beijing, in his last life, that is.

His elegant, slender but calloused fingers stroked the lush green grass under him, upon which he sat, as he took a deep breath, eyes closed while he relished in the feeling of clean nature.

It was almost reminiscent of the ecosystem in the Divine Phoenix Hospital.

His eyelids trembled as he leaned backwards, pushing his weight on his hands as he tilted his face up, golden eyes fluttered open as he gazed at the sky, warmth reflecting coldness as the colours clashed with one another.

Blinking slowly, Li Xinyuan straightened up, stretching his legs as he crossed them, staring straight ahead at the glistening pool not too far away from him — them — the water in it glistened, the rays of sun falling upon them as the glimmered, a slight breeze making the lotuses planted in the lake sway along a joyous melody the surgeon couldn’t hear.

Warmth bubbled in his heart as he watched the flowers, smile adorning his features as it widened upon his lips, a joy so pure danced in his golden eyes as he turned his head and cast his gaze upon the young adult who sat by his sight, quietly looking at him without making a noise.

When their eyes met, Liu Mingyun returned his smile, his chiselled features softening ever so slightly as he tilted his head, chin resting on the heel of his palm as he watched Li Xinyuan.

Crimson met gold, blood met opulence, war met peace as loftiness met humanity in a vibrant splash of warmth, their collision witnessed by none other than the sun hanging above them.

"Is it beautiful?" Liu Mingyun asked, breaking the silence as he took in the handsome visage of the surgeon, gaze flirting over his face, drinking the delight in those golden irises as he felt himself smile.

How curious it was, Liu Mingyun found himself smiling in Li Xinyuan’s presence more than he ever did in the past decade.

He liked this feeling of comfort, of warmth, of leisure in which he basked when Li Xinyuan was around him.

He relished in these moments of reprieve, latched onto them when he found himself breathless from business.

"It is." Li Xinyuan nodded, his voice thin in breathless awe as he twisted around to look at his surroundings. "It is beautiful."

The garden the Crown Prince had the servants and gardeners make just for him.

It was not yet complete, but the thought alone, the protagonist’s intentions alone were enough to leave the surgeon breathless, feeling his lungs full with a warmth he couldn’t hope to fathom.

Some patches were yet to be planted. Some flower beds holding germinating seeds captive while a few plants had started budding in the wake of spring.

When — in an overwhelmed voice — Li Xinyuan asked him about the flowers that were planted in this garden. freewёbn૦νeɭ.com

Liu Mingyun simply looked at him, stray fringes fluttering with the wind as his crimson gaze bore into Li Xinyuan’s form. Then, after a while, he spoke, carefully listing the plants he had asked to be planted.

"Hyssops." Sacrifice.

"Lilies." New beginnings.

"Anemones." Anticipation.

"Gladiolus." Bravery.

"Cherry Blossoms." Transience.

"Buttercups." Humility.

"Lotuses." New journey.

"Pansies." Shyness.

It was somehow extremely overwhelming for the surgeon to hear the list. He didn’t know the reason, but it felt strange. Each flower with its own different meaning, had its own importance in the world.

If there was something Li Xinyuan was certain about, as he watched the swaying lotuses, it was that this list would grow in future. More flowers were bound to be planted in this garden.

As the surgeon drew in a deep breath, he shuffled closer to the Crown Prince and cautiously moved his hand closer to the latter’s.

His slender fingers, traced over the grass as he continued to stare at the clear lake while his little finger slowly moved to intertwine with Liu Mingyun’s.

Tangling his finger with the protagonist, the surgeon curled it inwards, a gentle caress ghosted over the Crown Prince’s finger as he responded by curling his own finger.

Neither of them looked away from the lake of lotuses as their pinkies intertwined and a small smile curled on Liu Mingyun’s lips.

Very responsibly, Li Xinyuan pretended to not notice the smile on his stupidly handsome face.

It was a warm gesture of thoughtfulness from the Crown Prince. Very warm gesture.

It left Li Xinyuan’s heart feeling funny and ticklish as he tried to stifle a lopsided grin that threatened to split on his lips.

This garden was a gift from Liu Mingyun to Li Xinyuan before the latter could even express the desire for one.

And so, with the entirety of his heart, Li Xinyuan would accept this surprise and breathtaking gift as it was.