Mulberry Song

Chapter 2: Festive Lanterns

Qi perished, the city defenses were re-established, with Marquis of Chang Ye – An Zi Wu as monarch, the new reigning era named Chang Ge (meaning – long song).

Time flows by, in a blink of an eye, it is yet another year of the seventh-seventh festival. I quietly stand by the shore, looking out to the big ship in the middle of the river, currently holding a banquet, I stand there silently, wordlessly.

That's right, I died. Died on the night the imperial palace of the Qi nation was seized, but I have not yet left for the netherworld. It is not that I don't want to go down, but because no wardens of the netherworld had come to guide my spirit away, so I can only take on the form of a wandering soul amongst the human realm. The so called ––

Ghost.

To qualify being a ghost, one must be subjected to the existence of an intensely strong attachment. I have reflected over this for a long time, but I indeed cannot find any thing or place that I am still reluctant to part from in this world. I don't know where I should go, fortunately, I have been following my husband all along.

I watched him ascend the throne, become the emperor, clean up the bloodshed covering the imperial city inside out, then grandly bury me, exceeding the proper ritual an empress should have, a funeral that was practically a national mourning.

I know, perhaps in his heart he can only compensate me in such way. And I am really grateful I was able to see this.

I watch over him, every day in court, during meals, when sleeping. To the point of feeling that this period of time, compared to when I was still alive, I have spent much more time with him than ever before. There is no one able to see me, which means I can freely shuttle to wherever his presence lies.

But today I don't wish to be by his side. Because on an occasion like today, countless singing orioles and dancing swallows are bound to be by his side, with countless fragrant elegance and veiled screens. No matter how open minded I can be, I will still feel absolutely unpleasant. So it is better to hide a little further away, what the eyes does not see, is regarded as clean.

The lantern lighting dims a little on that luxurious pleasure ship, painted in joyfulness. The banquet seems to have ended. Thinking of the atmosphere of rouge and power on it, I am still not very willing to go back.

And what I did not expect, after a little while, was a line of people dressed in ordinary clothing, leaving the pleasure ship. That one walking right at the front is precisely my husband of my lifetime, An Zi Wu.

This is emperor incognito...?

Following by his side are all his trusted confidants, I curiously follow after them.

They head down to the town's night market, on the night of seventh-seventh, the town is brightly lit up, the road lined with shops selling lanterns on both sides, all around are couples walking hand in hand. He steadily walks to the front, choosing to head to the most bustling areas where the crowds are, not even caring for the guards behind, anxious like ants in a hot pan.

An Zi Wu is just a willful person like this. Still this willful after becoming emperor.

I follow after him without a sound. He seems to be deliberately trying to lose the guards, walking in several circles around the crowded areas, in the end, he buys a ghost mask to put on, and also buys a lantern, acting just like a man out searching for his lover.

I couldn't resist a little burst of laughter.

Time flies by, the people passing by me all carrying warm smiles on their faces, the little river running through the city is filled with lanterns, carrying phase after phase of either deep or shallow romances as they gently float by.