A Flower-Tipped Branch

Until she was ten, Shen Yuan lived with her grandmother at a country estate outside the city while her grandmother recuperated. The estate was surrounded by wooded hills, with open countryside stretching in every direction. While other young ladies studied music, chess, calligraphy, and painting, she raced along narrow paths between the fields. While they admired paintings and gazed at the moon, she waded into the river to catch fish and shrimp, ending up covered in mud. While they fussed over new seasonal clothes and freshly baked pastries, she perched high in a tree and asked the young boy beside her, "What do you think is beyond the mountains?" "I don't know." The boy watched her skirt flutter in the breeze. "You little mud-splattered girl, be careful. If you fall, I'll laugh at you." Shen Yuan gazed at the distant peaks and the vast sky above them. "I want to go see." At fifteen, Shen Yuan fell for Ling Yuheng, the gentle, courteous, modest, easygoing young man next door. Everyone said she would be very happy if she married him. Shen Yuan thought so too, and secretly looked forward to the day their families would arrange their marriage. But the obnoxious third son of the Ling family returned to the capital, appearing in front of her from time to time to make snide remarks. "You and he aren't suited for each other. How could a grubby girl like you become the principal wife of the Ling family?" "I'm not a grubby girl." Shen Yuan patted her clean skirt and lifted her chin stubbornly. "I'm going to marry Brother Yuheng." ** Ling Yueyue had spent five years traveling with his grandfather. The first thing he did when he returned to the capital was go looking for Shen Yuan. He wanted to show her all the treasures he'd brought back. That girl would surely be green with envy and beg him to give her something. If she called him "dear big brother," Ling Yueyue figured he could be generous and give her one or two things. But instead, he saw Shen Yuan covering her rosy cheek with a handkerchief as she gazed at his elder brother and softly called, "Brother Yuheng." Ling Yueyue turned on his heel and left. Later, Shen Yuan said to him, "I'm going to marry your elder brother, become the principal wife of the Ling family, and be your sister-in-law. Does that make you mad?" Ling Yueyue gritted his teeth in secret and smiled. "Ha. Dream on." ** Later, Ling Yueyue finally had the little kite tucked in his arms. He kissed her rosy cheek and called her, "Sister-in-law?" Shen Yuan shot him a look, pushed him away, and rolled over to the far side of the bed. Ling Yueyue moved closer and whispered in her ear, "You little grubby girl, what's so fun about staying cooped up at home all day?" Shen Yuan immediately turned around, her eyes shining. Ling Yueyue chuckled and kissed her hair. "Didn't you say when you were little that you wanted to know what was beyond the mountains?" "Kiss me, and I'll take you to see." Theme: The kite flies high into the sky, while the fish leaps into the deep.