#and then i totally forgot liu tongyi was coming over today bc official business

[foxghost]

excerpt of 皇叔 ／ Imperial Uncle by Da Feng Gua Guo, chapter 29, no spoilers --- in which Chengjun accidentally invited all of his love interests to a flower viewing party

and not a single internal dialogue of his finds this awkward at all, the DENSE IDIOT THAT HE IS

柳桐倚接過，道了聲獻醜，楚尋便再抬袖拂弦，琴聲似清泉流瀉，柳桐倚將笛橫於唇邊，一縷笛音，便如悠悠晚風，繚繞雲間，漾起泉上漣漪。 Liu Tongyi takes it, and says a humble phrase to begin. Chu Xun lifts his sleeves again to brush at the strings. The sound of the guqin is like a clear spring flowing; Liu Tongyi places the flute by his lips, and a thread of flute note, like a curl of unhurried evening breeze lingers on between the clouds; setting off ripples on a pool.

晚霞已褪，天色墨藍，銀星乍現，廊外暮靄深重，花色濃豔。唯有晚風悠然，杯中酒澈如泉。 The sunset's glow has faded; in ink-blue skies above, silver stars blink into existence. Outside the covered gallery, evening's mist deepens, and the flowers are rich and full. Only the evening breeze is at leisure, and inside our cups, the wine is as clear as a spring.

我與雲毓握著酒杯倚在座椅中，笛音琴樂中，我沒醉，又好像醉了。 Yun Yu and I leans back in our chairs, holding our wine cups. In the sound of the flute, in the melody of the guqin, I'm not yet drunk, yet it seems I’m intoxicated.

此時的一切，都彷彿暮色花香中的一場酣夢，讓人不願醒。 Everything right now is just like a wine dream in twilight and flowers' fragrance. It makes a person unwilling to wake.