bayedsolid Chapter 369 Qiu Rongmu was ultimately missing something.
Chapter 369 Qiu Rongmu was ultimately missing something.
Amidst the hustle and bustle of Chang'an, Zhen Xiaosi, who had been out of the public eye for a long time, suddenly stirred up time with a pregnancy photo.
The woman in the painting, though over thirty pounds heavier, still possesses an extraordinary air. She embraces a fragrant bush, her delicate hand gently resting on her rounded belly. Her face is full and radiant, like the glow of a full moon, gleaming with a warm, jade-like luster, as if a flower fairy from the moon had descended to earth. The indescribable happiness emanating from her, combined with the tender glow of impending motherhood in her eyes, weaves a serene and abundant picture of life.
The long-buried past resurfaced with this joyous news. In Chang'an, who didn't know of Zhen Xiaosi's past romance with that wealthy young man? Two years ago, she and her lover returned to their hometown to visit their noble parents. Afterwards, the young man spent lavishly, renting an isolated island overseas and planting it with exotic flowers and rare herbs. At that time, amidst the sea of flowers, he stood in the midst of the blossoms and proposed to his beloved. Zhen Xiaosi nodded in agreement, and they immediately went to the government office to register their marriage. From then on, they lived a secluded life in a quiet courtyard, enjoying a harmonious and peaceful existence.
Now that the pregnancy has been announced, the whole city is talking about it. In every conversation, one name inevitably comes up—Qiu Rongmu.
As Qiu Rongmu neared thirty, he still frequented the brothels and theaters of Chang'an, playing the foolish and simple-minded in various variety shows to elicit a few dry laughs from the audience. Those who were curious peeked into his daily notes and found that wherever he touched upon his former lover, Zhen Xiaosi, every word and sentence remained unedited, all sealed away in the dust.
As life grew stronger in Zhen Xiaosi's womb, her steps became heavier, and she happily stepped into a new chapter of her life, eagerly awaiting the cries of new life. Meanwhile, Qiu Rongmu's figure seemed bound by invisible chains, deeply mired in the mire of the past, hesitant and struggling to move forward.
Looking back on Zhen Xiaosi's thirty-seven years of ups and downs, it is like a legendary tale of a great heroine passed down by word of mouth, fully depicting the indomitable spirit of a beautiful woman in troubled times.
Born in the Bohai Kingdom outside the Great Wall during the Zhenyuan era, she moved to Chang'an with her family in her childhood. The harshness of the northern lands forged her into a forthright and unruly person, with an unyielding stubbornness often between her brows. She would always speak out for justice when she saw injustice, and those around her admired her frankness and were also amazed by her courage.
In the seventeenth year of the Zhenyuan era, nineteen-year-old Zhen Xiaosi, with her courage alone, entered the Pear Garden Troupe of the Imperial Music Bureau, where she studied with Jingming, the daughter of the Prime Minister, and Du Xiaobing, the daughter of the Vice Minister. At that time, she wore a simple double-looped bun and a faded ruqun (a type of traditional Chinese dress). Looking up at the dazzling stage of the Imperial Music Bureau, her eyes were filled with dazzling sparks, completely unaware that the road ahead was full of thorns.
When she first entered the world of Peking Opera, her roles were limited to a fleeting glimpse of a lotus-picking girl in "The Palace of Eternal Life" and a disappearing maidservant delivering a letter in "The Story of Yingying." Even in these minor roles, she practiced diligently in front of the mirror every day, memorizing the lyrics and refining her movements until she was completely exhausted. An old actor once watched her short performance and sighed, "This girl has a hidden sharpness in her eyes and brows; though she wears only the dust of the world, her heart holds a vast universe."
What truly made Zhen Xiaosi famous throughout Chang'an was her play "Sparrow Shadow," which became a sensation in the capital in the fifth year of the Yuanhe era.
Her portrayal of "Li Niang" was, on the surface, the most vibrant and charming courtesan in Chang'an's taverns, her smile as beautiful as a flower, her endearing clumsiness captivating the audience with every laugh and gesture; secretly, however, she was a spy who had been lying in wait for years. Turning into a dark alley, her eyes flashed with a chilling glint, willing to sacrifice her very being for the greater good of her country. At the end, the line "I have no regrets about entering Chang'an in this life," accompanied by the gleam of a falling sword, brought tears to the eyes of the audience. Even the Minister of Personnel in the elegant pavilion exclaimed in admiration: "This woman has perfectly captured the true nature of humanity!"
The role of "Li Niang" earned her a nomination for the "Golden Chrysanthemum Award" for Most Popular Actress that year. Only then did the people of Chang'an realize that the woman from beyond the Great Wall, who had once been seen as merely a "sweet and pretty girl" fit for the boudoir, actually possessed a strong spirit that could hold up the world. Innocence and determination blended in her, radiating a dazzling brilliance.
At the height of their careers, their romantic relationships with their children also become a topic of conversation.
In the second year of the Yuanhe era, her feelings for Qiu Rongmu, a young and renowned Imperial Guard, became public. This romance between a woman five years her senior was once the envy of everyone in Chang'an. Their scenes of riding side by side by the Qujiang Pool and holding hands under the lanterns of the Lantern Festival were captured in paintings. The two even went to the Lishan Palace together to participate in the compilation of "Chang'an Inn," where their affection flowed between the lines—she playfully scolded him for accidentally applying rouge to her eyebrows, and he gently ground it in her hand; the ink trace of "I am Qiu Rongmu of Zhen Xiaosi" is still imprinted on the tattered scroll, a love confession that has burned through the years.
However, beneath the facade of a perfect couple, cracks had already begun to appear. After their relationship ended, Zhen Xiaosi secluded herself for several months. When she reappeared, her black hair was cut into a neat short style, and her dark black dress accentuated her bright and piercing eyes. In the zaju play "Suddenly Arriving in Leisure," she transformed into the unrestrained "Liuniang," her laughter and scathing remarks revealing the struggles of women trapped in the shackles of the mundane world. Her masterful acting revealed a profound understanding of human nature. The people of Chang'an suddenly realized: this woman had long since broken free from the label of "Qiu Lang's lover" and had become her own legend.
In contrast, Qiu Rongmu has spent these years indulging in banquets and hunting trips, playing the role of a jester, and his official career has been bleak. Occasionally, when asked about the past, he would still look westward towards Zhongnan Mountain with a sense of melancholy and softly utter "regrets that are hard to quell." His indulgent state is completely different from Zhen Xiaosi's carefree attitude.
As for Zhen Xiaosi's new love, she had always been vague about it. Now that her pregnancy has been announced to the world, the smile that she couldn't hide in her eyes and brows is the most silent yet most powerful declaration of happiness.
Looking back on these thirty-seven years, Zhen Xiaosi has gone from a maid who silently served water backstage in the opera world to a leading female singer who took on the main role; from a naive girl troubled by love to a composed woman waiting for a new life. Every step she has taken has been firm and open.
Love is not the entirety of life's tapestry. Those past experiences, interwoven with laughter and tears, are eventually distilled by time into a mellow wine that nourishes the soul. The pain and tears of the past have quietly settled, transforming into a gentle, jade-like radiance in her eyes and brows.
Whether Qiu Rongmu has found peace or not is already an irrelevant chapter in history. The Wei River flows on and on, eastward. And Zhen Xiaosi has already lit her own Peach Blossom Spring, where lights flicker in the dim light.