The Butterfly Lovers' Meeting at Mirror Lake

Liang Shanbo and Zhu Yingtai sat side by side in a tree, looking at the lake, the boats, and the distant mountains.

There were two or three small boats on the lake, far away, as small as a few willow leaves, drifting leisurely.

Zhu Yingtai looked down at the tree beneath her, stretched out a hand, and gently touched the trunk. The bark was rough and slightly warm to the touch, probably because it had been baking in the sun all morning.

She placed her palm on the tree trunk and felt a solid power emanating from the old tree, as if it were surging up from the depths of the earth.

She turned to Liang Shanbo and asked, "Brother Liang, how long has this tree stood here?"

Liang Shanbo shook his head: "I don't know either. It was already this thick when I was a child, so I guess it must be at least a hundred years old."

Zhu Yingtai then asked, "Brother Liang, how many more years do you think this tree will stand here?"

Liang Shanbo looked down at the branches beneath him and smiled slightly at her: "Perhaps decades, perhaps centuries."

Zhu Yingtai sighed, "Hundreds of years? A hundred years from now, Brother Liang and I will no longer be alive."

This tree has stood for a century, witnessing the changing of the seasons. Countless people have lingered here, and many have turned to dust. A hundred years from now, the tree will still be here, but the people will be gone.

A wave of sadness washed over her.

Liang Shanbo's gaze softened, and he smiled slightly: "Even if we are gone, this tree will remember us, remember today. Besides, for at least several decades, you and I will still be alive, and for several decades, we can come here to see it."

Zhu Yingtai's eyes lit up, and the sadness that had been weighing on her brow was gently brushed away by those words.

Her tone was somewhat earnest: "If I were to ask Brother Liang to bring me to see it again in the future, would you be willing?"

Liang Shanbo nodded, his voice firm: "Of course."

Zhu Yingtai cheered up again, her lips curving upwards.

This "nature" is as if it's something self-evident, requiring no hesitation or calculation. For decades, whenever she wanted to come, he would bring her.

She turned her gaze back to the lake and felt that the scenery before her was even better than before.

The two sat in the tree for a while longer, not saying much, mostly just sitting quietly side by side, enjoying the cool breeze on their faces.

A moment later, Liang Shanbo climbed down the tree first. He stepped on a protruding knot on the trunk and landed steadily in a few steps. Then he turned around and reached out his hand towards the tree.

Zhu Yingtai offered him her hand and carefully climbed down. He held her hand in one hand and gently supported her with the other, catching her steadily.

Then came the boating.

During the Eastern Jin Dynasty, Mirror Lake was a popular tourist destination favored by scholars and literati, and in terms of popularity, it far surpassed Qiantang Lake.

Wang Xizhi and Xie An often held elegant gatherings at and around Mirror Lake, where they would float wine cups on a winding stream, compose poems, and engage in refined conversation.

Yuan Hongdao of the Ming Dynasty wrote, "Qiantang is as beautiful as flowers, and Shanyin is as lush as grass. People before the Six Dynasties have never heard of the beauty of West Lake," which describes this scene perfectly.

On the north bank of Mirror Lake lived a boatman familiar to Liang Shanbo, surnamed Tao. He was an old man of about fifty years old who made a living by rowing boats to ferry passengers. Over time, exposed to the wind and sun, his face was dark and his hands were steady and strong.

Liang Shanbo led Zhu Yingtai and Yin Xin to the boatman's house. The old boatman was sitting on a low stool in front of the door, basking in the sun with his eyes half-closed. When he saw Liang Shanbo arrive, he greeted him with a smile.

Liang Shanbo took out some copper coins from his pocket and handed them over. The old boatman took the money, stood up, dusted off his clothes, walked to the shore, bent down to untie the rope, and slowly pushed the small boat out. The boat was not large, with a black awning and a green pole, and could hold four or five people, but it was clean.

The three boarded the boat, and the old boatman poled it, propelling the light boat towards the center of the lake.

The lake water is clear and blue. As the boat passes, a shimmering ripple spreads out and then quietly closes again.

The sun shone on the lake, casting a shadow on the awning of the boat.

As the boat sails, the sound of gentle water can be heard. The nearby shore and the distant mountains seem to recede slowly.

As Zhu Yingtai sat in the boat, she would sometimes gaze at the scenery of the lake and mountains, and sometimes at Liang Shanbo beside her. A smile would always appear on her lips, as if it were overflowing from the bottom of her heart, something she wanted to hide but could not.

She had a wonderful time at Mirror Lake that day. She sat under the old willow tree, glided on the light boat, and enjoyed the beautiful scenery. She cherished every moment she spent with Brother Liang in her heart.

However, she still harbored a lingering regret. That was, today she had arrived in Shanyin and Liucun, and had toured Mirror Lake with Brother Liang, but she had not been able to visit Brother Liang's home or pay her respects to his mother.

She wanted to see Madam Lu. She had heard a lot about her from Brother Liang and had long harbored feelings of closeness towards her. However, she felt it was inconvenient. Firstly, she felt uneasy about visiting Brother Liang's mother for the first time in men's clothing; secondly, she feared that if she revealed her true gender, it would be embarrassing.

Liang Shanbo also felt that now was not the time to let his mother meet Zhu Yingtai. Some things required careful consideration and could not be rushed.

The boat slowly approached the shore, its hull gently tapping against the pebbles on the bank with a dull thud.

The old boatman skillfully re-tied the rope to the wooden stake on the shore, securing it firmly.

The three men disembarked and followed the same route towards Liu Village.

Zhu Yingtai walked beside Liang Shanbo, her pace slower than before. Neither of them urged the other, both walking slowly. The good time of the day passed quickly, like sand slipping through their fingers, unnoticed. She felt a pang of reluctance, yet she also found this reluctance itself sweet.

By the time we returned to the entrance of Liucun Village, the sun was already setting.

Zhu Yingtai stopped and looked at Liang Shanbo, saying softly, "Brother Liang, I shall take my leave here. See you at the academy again."

Although she came to Liu Village today and visited Mirror Lake with Liang Shanbo, it was inconvenient for her to go to Qiantang with him, as her parents had already sent someone to see her off and were waiting to meet her.

Liang Shanbo nodded and said, "Take care on your journey, and we'll meet again at the academy."

Zhu Yingtai glanced at him again, her gaze lingering on his face for a moment, then turned around and walked away with Yin Xin.

Liang Shanbo stood at the village entrance, watching her figure gradually disappear into the distance. Her silhouette shrank little by little in the sunlight until it vanished at the end of the dirt road. Only then did he turn around and walk towards his own courtyard gate.

……

……

Previously, Liang Shanbo left the school one day later than Zhu Yingtai to go home for the New Year.

On this day, he returned to Wansong Academy, a day later than Zhu Yingtai.

Liang Shanbo carried his luggage and returned to the schoolhouse.

Zhu Yingtai, who was in the inner room, saw him enter and her eyes immediately lit up with joy. She called out, "Brother Liang."

Liang Shanbo replied with a smile, "My dear brother."

He took off his luggage and placed it at the foot of the couch. He straightened up and looked around the schoolhouse where he had lived for most of last year. There were two wooden couches, each with a small table at the head of the couch, an oil lamp on the table, and a charcoal brazier in the corner... everything seemed the same as before, yet it also seemed different.

From Shanyin to Qiantang, from the New Year's Eve to the first month of the lunar calendar, this journey back and forth marks the beginning of a new year.

Zhu Yingtai looked at him.

Liang Shanbo also looked at her.

They both read the same message in each other's eyes: It's so good to see you again.

A breeze blew in from outside the window, causing the paper windowpane to bulge slightly before falling back down.

The days of the two studying and living together at Wansong Academy began again.