Chapter 123 Fool

"Zhao Xiheng, wake up..."

Someone whispered in her ear, calling her name in a low voice, like calling back a lost soul.

Zhao Xiheng went to bed too late last night and didn't want to pay attention to it. She pulled the blanket over her head and continued to sleep.

The person pulled back the blanket and continued calling for the soul.

"Zhao Xiheng~"

"Zhao Xiheng, Zhao Xiheng~"

"Xi Heng? Xi Xi? Heng Heng? A Dan? Wake up!"

"So annoying!" Zhao Xiheng scrunched up her face, grabbing the blanket and trying to pull it up again.

Wei Li propped his head up and lay down on his side next to her. "Get up."

Then I gave her a quick kiss.

Zhao Xiheng remained unmoved, kissing her repeatedly until her face was covered in saliva. Only then did she angrily open her eyes and throw the soft pillow behind her head at his face. "What are you doing? It's so early in the morning, you seem to have some serious illness!"

Wei Li wasn't angry. He removed the soft pillow and nibbled on her cheek.

It's still tough, but after several years, I've gotten used to it.

"Get up quickly, let's go hunting in the mountains." Seeing that Zhao Xiheng's eyelids were about to close again, he quickly shook her up.

"No, I don't want to go."

It's so cold outside, I feel like I'm going to freeze into a block of ice with every step I take.

"Come on, come on, come on." Wei Li pulled the person out of the covers, picked them up, stood up, and swayed them back and forth in his arms. "Wake up, wake up! Don't sleep!"

The feeling of weightlessness made Zhao Xiheng's heart clench, and she couldn't fall asleep anymore. "So annoying! Go! I'll go, okay?"

She said she was going hunting a while ago because she saw Wei Li was depressed and was trying to find ways to coax him. Now that he's better, she doesn't want to go to the back mountain anymore.

Wei Li was pleased and went to find her some clothes, trying to pique her interest in the hunting trip to the back mountain. "Zhao Xiheng, let me tell you, I have never taken any other woman hunting before."

Zhao Xiheng crawled back into bed, curled up, and looked at him coldly and indifferently, "Then how many more women do you want to bring? The key is, don't you know how many women you have? Besides me, who else would be willing to go with you? Should I feel honored?"

"Shut up!" Wei Li's face turned red and then pale from her words. Enraged, she threw a set of riding clothes at her.

Although Zhao Xiheng rarely went out, she had a wide variety of clothes.

Wei Li helped her tie the belt and wristbands. This dress must have been made before she was pregnant, as the size was just right in all the other parts.

Except... Wei Li's gaze lingered on her chest for a while, his ears suddenly turning red, and he didn't know what he was thinking.

It seems a bit tight.

Zhao Xiheng tied her hair up high like Wei Li, adding a touch of heroism to her original delicate beauty. Her riding outfit outlined her figure, adding a unique charm and a forbidden allure that made people want to explore her.

Wei Li placed his hand on Zhao Xiheng's waist, gently stroking it, and hesitated before speaking, "How about... we go tomorrow..."

He hasn't had "that" in a long time. He's not a beast, he's just...

I clearly didn't want to go, and after spending a lot of effort getting dressed up, I was told I couldn't go.

This is one of the most infuriating things for a woman in the world.

"I was just talking nonsense." Seeing Zhao Xiheng's unfriendly expression, Wei Li quickly dismissed his impure thoughts and stretched out his hand. "Let's go."

Zhao Xiheng reluctantly believed his nonsense, put her hand in his, and the two of them, like a pair of children, swayed hand in hand as they went out.

Early in the morning, Wei Li said he was going to take Zhao Xiheng out to play, and handed Zhizhi over to the nanny.

Zhizhi nestled in her nanny's arms, looking through the glass window at her parents' blurry backs, and let out a soft "woo-woo-ah-ah" sound to indicate that she recognized them.

The nanny patted Zhizhi on the back to comfort her, then waved to the two of them, telling them to go and play without worry.

She thought to herself that this couple was quite different from other princesses and their mothers.

At her age, having worked for several companies, she was quite worldly-wise, but she had never seen anyone with the same drive and spirit as Wei Li and Zhao Xiheng.

Well, to be honest, she couldn't really explain it clearly.

Even if a couple from a prominent family is deeply in love, after a brief period of honeymoon, the complexities of domestic and social life gradually drive them apart, and they become merely polite guests to each other. Young couples in the countryside, busy making a living and just getting by, don't have that kind of passion.

After thinking it over, she realized that this energy was probably the joy they felt when they were together. When they were together, not only were they in a good mood, but everyone who saw them was also in a good mood.

Even if they end up scratching each other's faces during a fight, it'll still seem funny and cute; young people are just so mischievous.

Wei Li led his horse and turned to see Zhao Xiheng strolling around the stables, picking out horses.

He patted the saddle and said in a rather generous manner, "Come ride with me."

"No!" Zhao Xiheng wanted to ride a horse herself.

If you can't take the opportunity to kiss and hug your wife while hunting, then the hunt will be meaningless. Wei Li even wanted to hug her from behind and help her draw her bow and nock an arrow.

"What did I tell you? Have you completely forgotten?" Wei Li's eyes darted around, and he started rambling on. "It's really dangerous in the mountains in winter. There are tigers, wolves, and black bears that wake up hungry and come out looking for food. You've never ridden a horse in this thick snow before. If they catch you, they'll tear you apart. If you come with me, I can protect you, right?"

Zhao Xiheng was a little scared after being fooled by him like that. She went over and grabbed his reins, saying in a coquettish voice, "If a man-eating beast comes later, remember to protect it."

Wei Li lowered his head and pointed to his cheek. Zhao Xiheng understood and tiptoed to give him a quick kiss.

"So easy to fool," Wei Li thought to himself, feeling quite pleased with himself. "The back mountain has already been searched; there are no ferocious wild beasts here."

He lifted Zhao Xiheng onto the horse, then nimbly mounted himself and embraced her from behind.

He bent down and tucked the cloak around her face, pulled her hat down, and then asked, "Are you cold?"

Zhao Xiheng shook her head and touched his face with the back of her hand. "Don't you need to protect your face?"

She had wanted to ask this for a long time. Wei Li seemed to have thick skin. She had never seen him wear any protective gear in winter, and he would run around outside without any problems.

Wei Li shook his head. "It's hot."

He looked down to check the arrows and bow that were tied to his horse, then eagerly reined in his horse and rode off.

He wasn't good-looking, lacking in cultural refinement, and not as handsome as Xie Qingyu. Looking around, Wei Li realized that all he was good at was being tall and having better martial arts skills.

Zhao Xiheng said she liked him, so he had to show his good qualities to make her like him even more.

For example, when hunting, one could demonstrate the skill of hitting a target from a hundred paces away.

He is very good at archery.

The journey was boring, so Zhao Xiheng tried to make conversation to pass the time, saying, "Have you been traveling far lately? Qingzhou and Youzhou have always seen you as a thorn in their side."

"I don't want to go out for the next two years. Zhizhi will be able to greet people soon. Don't think that you can get ahead by sending me away." Wei Li snorted.

Zhao Xiheng's automatic translation: I don't want to go out. Children grow up too fast, they change every day. I want to watch her grow up.

Wei Li was quite sensible; he knew his own limitations and how much he could eat.

Nearly twenty years of educational loss cannot be made up for in just two years of hard work.

You say let him fight a war, fine, he fights, that's easy, but after the war, who will defend it? Him?

Maintaining the status quo is much harder than fighting a war. I only have two hours a day to deal with those tedious administrative affairs. The rest of the time is spent sleeping, eating, raising children, and spending time with my wife.

This piece of land has already taken up a lot of his time.

If he were to encompass both the south and the north, he would have to devote himself to government affairs day and night. With a large territory comes many problems, and being an emperor is not an easy task. He neither wanted to nor could afford to be an emperor.

Expanding the territory was primarily intended to improve Zhao Xiheng's life, but Wei Li's busy schedule prevented him from spending time with her, thus contradicting the original intention.

Wei Li glanced at the map. He wanted Qingzhou. Osmanthus trees could be grown in Qingzhou. He would move there later. He had never given up on osmanthus trees.

The Xianbei will also want it in a few years. That piece of land is nothing special, but the head of the Xianbei king is quite rare.

We'll talk about the rest when Zhizhi is a little older.

Actually, he had a somewhat immature idea: once Zhizhi grew up a bit, he would gradually hand over the administration of Pingzhou to her.

If Zhizhi wants even more territory, then he'll go and conquer more; if she doesn't want it, he'll go out and play with Zhao Xiheng.

A section of the ridge was fenced off and used as a hunting ground. The snow was so thick that the horses' hooves barely made a sound when they stepped on it.

Zhao Xiheng tugged at Wei Li's collar and whispered, "Wild boar."

Wei Li became serious and carefully drew his bow.

He actually hated encountering wild boars more than wolves and tigers.

Wild boars have thick skin and lots of fat, but not much hair. They always roll around in the mud, getting covered in layers of pebbles and sand, like wearing a thick layer of armor that is not easy to break through.

Sows with piglets are the most troublesome.

Zhao Xiheng held her breath, afraid of disturbing Wei Li, as this was the first time she had ever encountered a wild boar.

It wasn't good-looking, with a long mane on its back and long, protruding teeth.

The wild boar had its back to them and was nudging its nose in the snow.

Wei Li shot an arrow into its rump, attracting its attention. The wild boar let out a howl and charged at them with grunts.

He then fired two arrows simultaneously, accurately piercing the wild boar's eyeballs and penetrating its brain.

Zhao Xiheng sat on her horse, still stunned and unable to react. Looking at the wild boar whose chest was still heaving in the snow, she asked wistfully, "Is this... over?"

Wei Li coughed twice. This wild boar looked quite inexperienced and had never fought a human before. An old wild boar wouldn't be so easily shot to death by him.

"What's so special about that? You're so ignorant. It's just a wild boar. I can even take down tigers and bears..."

"Oh~" Zhao Xiheng drew out a long exclamation to cheer him on.

He immediately clapped, "Great job!"

She wasn't sarcastic at all, which was really great; her archery skills were accurate.

A deer darted out from the woods, hopping and skipping about.

Wei Li, flattered to the point of ecstasy, seized the opportunity, grasped Zhao Xiheng's hand, and drew his bow, saying, "I'll teach you how to shoot an arrow."

Zhao Xiheng had the strength, but her aim was poor; her arrow missed and landed in the snow not far away.

The deer was extremely puzzled. It hopped over and looked around at the arrow that was stuck in the ground.

"Pingzhou specialty, the silly deer..." The most suicidal little animal in the world.

Wei Li grabbed Zhao Xiheng's hand, ready to draw his bow again, but Zhao Xiheng ignored the wild boar lying on the ground, pressed Wei Li down, and said with a double standard, "It's too stupid, don't hit it..."