Chapter 73: Respectful Pampering Xuanye Quietly Doing Great Things

Because of the snow, the carriage moved very slowly. Xuanye was holding a book in his hand, frowning and reading very attentively.

Xiu Yu looked at the book in Xuanye's hand—a Taoist classic. "Your Majesty is truly erudite."

"Hmm?" Xuanye raised his slightly lowered head and smiled, "You don't like reading this kind of book, so you're speaking ill of me?"

Xiu Yu shook his head. "That's not a sarcastic remark at all. It's clearly the nicest thing to say."

Xuanye saw the carriage slowly stop, and finally put down the book in his hand. Then he took Xiuyu's hand and said, "We're here. I'll take you to see 'good treasure'."

Xiu Yu was puzzled. It hadn't been that long since they last left Changchun Garden. How could such a treasure be conjured up in such a short time? It was clear that the imperial family's strength was not to be underestimated.

Xuanye looked at Xiu Yu's slightly confused eyes, with a slight smile on his lips. After getting off the carriage, he took her in his arms and walked straight into the garden.

The heavy snow was still falling. Xuanye took Xiu Yu to the front of Danning Residence. This area had always been cordoned off and no one was allowed to approach, so this was Xiu Yu's first time here.

"Look at this bridge and that pavilion." Xuanye pointed to a place not far away. "Do they look familiar to you?"

Xiu Yu didn't need to look closely, because all the drawings she had drawn were imprinted in her mind and would never be forgotten. The bridge and the pavilion that Xuanye pointed out to her were both on her drawings before.

"This..." She looked at Xuanye, "Is this my drawing?"

"It's your drawing." Xuanye's eyes were filled with a smile. "Don't think I don't know what you're doing just wandering around this garden every day."

Xiu Yu smiled and said, "Your Majesty is a wise man, but Yu'er never thought... that my drawing could really become a real object and appear in front of me." In an instant, Xiu Yu felt as if she were in another world. As the chief technical engineer, she always turned other people's drawings into reality. Now, Xuanye actually turned her drawing into reality.

Xuanye watched Xiuyu run up the bridge and then up to the pavilion. He felt the joy in her steps. "Liang Jiugong!" Xuanye called the servant who had been following him silently to come closer, then extended his right hand toward him. Liang Jiugong handed Xuanye the umbrella and then returned to stand beside Xiaotao. This is what a servant's self-awareness should be like.

Xuanye walked over to Xiuyu holding an umbrella, shielding her from the falling snow. "I know some people are born with natural talent, like the children of the Lei family, who can draw before they can even write. They never needed to learn. I believe you are one of them, too."

Xiu Yu silently held Xuanye's hand, interlocking their fingers: "Thank you for making my childhood dream come true."

"What's there to thank me for?" Xuanye said calmly, "This Danning Residence just happened to be missing a bridge, and this small island just happened to be missing a pavilion. You just happened to have drawn the blueprints, and I'm happy to take what's already there. Isn't everything just perfect?"

Xiu Yu of course knew how inappropriate Xuanye's words were: "Anyway, I'm very grateful."

Xuanye raised his hand to brush off the snow that had fallen on Xiuyu's shoulders: "I don't need your gratitude. As my woman, it's my duty to make you happy. If..." He looked into Xiuyu's eyes, his gaze full of affection: "If you must thank me, I will accept it. I can't let your kindness go to waste."

On this snowy day, Xiu Yu suddenly felt her cheeks burning as if on fire. She avoided Xuanye's burning gaze and said, "If you... don't want my thanks, that's all."

"Why not?" Xuanye walked beside Xiuyu, heading towards Qingxi Book House: "My money is not all in vain. We have been fighting a war recently. I used my private treasury to make you smile."

Xiu Yu pursed her lips, glanced at Xuanye, and said, "Then... let's play a round later, and I'll let you win?"

Xuanye knew that Xiuyu was prone to irritating people, but she was just trying to get away with it. "Let's just fight a round. It's hard to say who will give in."

The two of them got to work as soon as they said it. When they arrived at Qingxi Book House, Xuanye asked Liang Jiugong to set up the chessboard and Xiao Tao to make tea.

After taking their seats on either side of the chessboard, Xiu Yu sighed, "It seems like I haven't played chess in a long time. I wonder if my chess skills have deteriorated."

"You have to retreat," Xuanye said as he grabbed a handful of chess pieces and placed them on the board. "Now that you have a child, fighting on the chessboard won't be as straightforward as before."

Xiu Yu rolled her eyes silently, raised her pretty face, and said, "I don't believe it!"

Xuanye extended his right hand as a gesture of invitation: "Well, come on, guess odd or even?"

Liang Jiugong and Xiao Tao had seen the two masters play chess before. Liang Jiugong leaned over to Xiao Tao and whispered, "Who do you think will win, the Emperor or Master Yi?"

Xiao Tao pondered for a moment and said softly, "I guess, a draw." Xiao Tao knew very well that his master was competitive. Under the emperor's relentless pressure, his master would definitely use his best skills. However, the emperor was the emperor after all, and his master could not win... and the emperor probably didn't want his master to lose, so it had to be a draw.

Liang Jiugong said, "As for the chess and battle, I still think the emperor will win."

While the two servants were talking in low voices, Xuanye and Xiu Yu had already started fighting on the chessboard.

The game progressed slowly, and by the time lunch was almost over, the board was barely full. Xiu Yu, holding the white piece, gazed intently at the Tianyuan territory, hesitating for a moment, wanting to make a move, but ultimately unable to do so.

Xuanye also held a black piece in his hand, and his expression as he looked at the chessboard was almost the same as Xiu Yu's.

After a while, both of them threw the chess pieces back into the flag box.

Xuanye laughed and said, "I don't know what curse has been cast upon me. I've been playing chess with you for a few times now, and we haven't even won, right?"

Xiu Yu Yanran: "If the emperor doesn't take ruthless action when he should, it will be difficult to win."

"I'm not going to be soft-hearted." Xuanye gestured to Liang Jiugong to go down and arrange lunch, then he stretched out his shoulders and said, "I haven't played chess for such a long time in a long time. I'm quite tired."

Xiu Yu stood up and walked behind Xuanye, gently rubbing his shoulders and said, "You've been reading books all the way without changing your posture, and you've been playing chess for half an hour. It would be strange if you weren't tired."

Xuanye closed his eyes, pretending to enjoy himself. "After lunch, come and rest with me. I'll be reviewing memorials this afternoon. You can go stroll around the garden and see what Changchun Garden looks like under such heavy snow."

"Okay." Xiu Yu agreed readily.

During the twelfth lunar month, Xuanye had endless memorials to review. Xiu Yu was strolling in Changchun Garden, frowning and thinking about his worries.

Xiao Tao followed Xiu Yu and asked, "What are you thinking about? Your brows are almost knotted."

"I was wondering..." Xiu Yu paused and sat down on a nearby stone bench. "You said, the New Year isn't that long away. The Emperor couldn't have brought me here just to show me the bridge and the pavilion, right? Even if it was for that, there's no need to bring all the memorials from the Qianqing Palace here for review."

Xiao Tao smiled and said, "Since you're here, it's not like you don't like it here."

"I like you, but this is a different matter." Xiu Yu noticed a hint of evasion in Xiao Tao's eyes and asked, "What do you know?"

"I'm not sure either." But Xiao Tao couldn't lie to Xiu Yu, so he said, "It was Liang Jiugong who said that the emperor would bring you here to stay for half a month, and all the messy people and things in the palace would be over. When you go back for the New Year, everything will be peaceful."

"A mess of people and things?" Xiu Yu's brows furrowed even tighter. "What do you mean?"

Xiao Tao pondered for a moment and said, "In the harem, the concubines all revolve around the Emperor. The biggest event recently is undoubtedly the imperial decree issued by the Grand Empress Dowager. Although from your perspective, this matter has little to do with you, but from the perspective of others, such as Concubine Hui, Concubine Rong, and even the Fourth Prince's mother, I'm afraid they all think this matter has a lot to do with you! Those who are young and favored by the Emperor will naturally feel that raising their future children by their own knees may not be too awkward. However, those who have fallen out of favor and whose children are already raised by others will probably not feel good about it."

"So, maybe he's here to cause trouble for me?" Xiu Yu's frown finally relaxed: "What the hell is going on?"

"This is certainly a big deal," Xiao Tao analyzed seriously. "Think about it, it would be best for the Fifth and Ninth Princes to grow up by your side. Would you trust them to be raised by someone else? Even if that person is the Empress Dowager?"

Xiu Yu naturally shook her head. Only by raising the child by her side could she avoid those major events in the future.

"Yes." Xiao Tao smiled and said, "So, the emperor really treats you well, and you really should appreciate it. Not only does he understand your thoughts, but he also does his best to make your life easier and happier, so that you don't have to listen to the sarcastic words of those people in the harem."

"Xiao Tao." Xiu Yu looked at his disciple seriously and said, "Tell me, does your master look like someone who is easy to bully?"

"You're not easy to bully." Xiao Tao knew her master's temperament well. She didn't cause trouble, but she was never afraid of it. She seemed to be at peace with the world and lived a peaceful life. But don't mess with her. If anyone dared to provoke her, they would die without knowing how they died. "However, the emperor is afraid that you will be upset, maybe even a little bit."

Xiu Yu responded softly, then looked at the bridge and the pavilion in the distance. This was probably what they meant by "doing great things quietly."

At midnight, Xuanye finished reviewing the memorials and went to bed. Xiu Yu turned sideways and put her arm around Xuanye's waist.

Xuanye was surprised: "I thought you were already asleep."

"Waiting for you." Xiu Yu's words revealed an inexplicable temptation: "Didn't you say you wanted me to thank you? I can thank you properly."

"Is that so." Xuanye immediately understood what Xiuyu meant, hugged her back, and said, "I am indeed very tired today, but it is rare that Concubine Yi is so proactive. If I don't cooperate, I will seem incompetent." As he spoke, he lifted the quilt and covered both himself and Xiuyu.