Chapter 69 "We are now husband and wife, we must let..."

The clear blue sky reflected off the pond, making it appear like a piece of blue glass, shimmering with sparkling light.

In the small pavilion of Xie Mansion by the pond, Cen Zongjing gazed at the clear water, lost in thought. His shadow hung quietly on the surface, motionless. Suddenly, the sound of footsteps, one light and one heavy, one hurried and one slow, came one after the other, instantly stirring the shadow.

Cen Zongjing stood up and smiled as he looked at Princess Yongning approaching from afar. As the graceful red figure drew nearer, he gazed at his wife, whom he had not seen for many years, and softly called out, "Yaoyao."

Xue Mingyao smiled at him and said, "Sorry we're a little late."

Xie Zhuo, who was following behind Xue Mingyao, nodded. "General Cen, thank you for keeping me waiting."

“We’ve waited eight years, so why would we care about this short while?” Cen Zongjing’s gaze slid from Xue Mingyao’s charming, flushed face to her snow-white neck, and he said gently, “Yaoyao, you’ve become even more beautiful.”

Xue Mingyao tilted her head, the gold ornaments in her hair flashing brightly, her voice clear and joyful, "Is that so?"

Xie Zhuo's hand, which was hanging inside his sleeve, tightened quietly.

He was all too familiar with Xue Mingyao's little gestures; this was her way of flirting. With a gentle sway of her earrings and hair ornaments, she could captivate a man's heart.

She had used this trick on him before, and also on the students at Xichuan Academy who were amazed by his good looks. Whether she liked men or not was not important; what mattered was that she would always enjoy men's compliments.

It's laughable that the hair ornament in her hair today was put there by him. Just moments ago she was moaning sweetly beneath him, and now she's openly smiling at her ex-husband, not showing the slightest hint of disdain.

Xie Zhuo stepped forward, grabbed Xue Mingyao's hand, and pulled her to a seat.

Xue Mingyao was obedient and sat next to him quietly, letting him hold her hand for a while before pulling it away.

Cen Zongjing, with a calm expression, also took a seat. After exchanging pleasantries for a while, he brought up the matter of faking his death that day, "Yaoyao, when I found out I was 'dead' in Wuxi, I was thinking that I had left you with a mess, and you would probably find it troublesome."

Xue Mingyao laughed and said, "How could I be so heartless? I took good care of your funeral arrangements."

She counted on her fingers as she recalled the funeral arrangements she had made for him: the meticulous selection of an auspicious burial site, the expensive coffin, the forty-nine-day Buddhist rituals, the numerous burial treasures, including the short sword he always wore and one of her hairpins, and the endless procession of pallbearers...

She spoke earnestly, and Cen Zongjing listened attentively. Xie Zhuo, sitting to the side, found the scene utterly absurd.

After she finished speaking, Cen Zongjing said solemnly, "Yaoyao, thank you. With everything you have done for me, even if I had died back then, it would not have been in vain."

Xue Mingyao said, "You can't say that. Being alive is a hundred times better than being dead. But maybe it was the ritual I had someone perform that brought you back."

Cen Zongjing wholeheartedly agreed, "No wonder I was seriously injured and on the verge of death, but eventually I woke up and recovered."

Xie Zhuo: "......"

The ritual she performed was to send people into the cycle of reincarnation, not to summon their souls back to the mortal world. What does it have to do with Cen Zongjing's awakening?

Cen Zongjing then inquired about the fate of his property, and Xue Mingyao truthfully replied, "I have given all your property, along with your pension, to your uncles, nephews, and cousins."

She and Cen Zongjing had no children, and she had no intention of remaining faithful to him, so it was indeed necessary to return Cen Zongjing's assets to the Cen family. However, although the law stipulated this, it was not unreasonable for a widow to keep a portion for herself.

Xue Mingyao's dowry was generous, and she didn't care about Cen Zongjing's money. When Cen's relatives came to discuss it with her, she didn't embezzle a single penny. Cen Zongjing owned two houses, one in Zhongjing and the other in Xichuan. She gave the deed to the former to the Cen family, and used her own dowry to convert the latter into cash and give it to them, then kept it as a princess's residence.

"They don't seem to be in Zhongjing. Can you still get your money back?" Xue Mingyao asked.

As far as she knew, the Cen family members were not capable enough to become officials in the capital, and they later sold Zhong Jing's house.

Cen Zongjing smiled bitterly, "So many years have passed, I'm not going to ask them for it anymore."

Xue Mingyao felt quite sympathetic, "Then you don't have any stable property now?"

“They are all external possessions and not important. Besides, His Majesty has given me enough money to buy a house, but I can’t move in for the time being. I need to find a temporary place to stay.”

Cen Zongjing sighed as he said this, “Yaoyao, actually, you are the person I am closest to in Zhongjing. I even wanted to come here from the beginning to find shelter under your roof. But since you have already married General Xie, I can’t tarnish your reputation any further.”

Xie Zhuo frowned imperceptibly; Cen Zongjing's words were unsettling. However, he couldn't help but chuckle inwardly; Xue Mingyao had no reputation to speak of.

Thinking this, Xue Mingyao couldn't help but chuckle, "Actually, I don't have much of a reputation either."

Xie Zhuo: "......"

He looked at her with a stern face, "Don't talk nonsense."

Xue Mingyao glanced at him, her smile remaining unchanged as she looked at Cen Zongjing. "If you really have nowhere to stay, you can go to the Xue residence. My brother and you are quite familiar with each other, and he will definitely welcome you."

Cen Zongjing politely declined, saying, "I'm already staying at a friend's house. I'll go and bother your brother in a few days. By the way, I also want to pay my respects at your father's grave. General Xue was kind to me, as kind as my parents. I always hoped he would live a long and healthy life, but he passed away a few years ago, and I was unable to see him off."

His voice grew melancholic, and Xue Mingyao also felt a pang of sadness. "If he knew you were still alive, he would be happy. He even mentioned you before he passed away..."

Her father deeply regretted that Cen Zongjing died young, hoping to rely on him to control his willful daughter. However, Xue Mingyao became a widow and acted even more recklessly.

“Eight years. So many things have passed in the blink of an eye.” Cen Zongjing looked at Xue Mingyao’s bright red dress. “I still remember when I went to war, you were wearing a begonia-red dress. You are wearing the same one today. It really makes me feel like it’s still the same as before.”

"Oh, what a coincidence, it's kind of you to remember," Xue Mingyao said, smoothing her skirt and sipping her tea.

"I not only remember you, but I often see you in my dreams."

Xie Zhuo couldn't stand it any longer. "General Cen, it's getting late. Let's move inside and have dinner together."

After the three entered the main hall for receiving guests, Xie Zhuo took the opportunity to pull Xue Mingyao to the corridor and looked at her with a helpless expression.

"What's wrong?" Xue Mingyao tilted her head to look at him.

Xie Zhuo had something he couldn't say, so he only said, "Why didn't you tell me that you wore begonia red when you saw him off to the war?"

He even picked out the dress Xue Mingyao was wearing.

Ever since he helped her change clothes and do her hair after their several sexual encounters, she insisted that he do these things for her. She would grumble that she was exhausted by him and that he had to do everything for her. But after she was dressed up, she was worried that Cen Zongjing would be waiting too long, so she rushed to see him, showing no trace of her previous delicate appearance.

Xue Mingyao said, "How could I possibly remember what I wore eight years ago? You and he are so in sync, yet you're blaming me."

Xie Zhuo couldn't help but recall Xue Mingyao's comment that he resembled Cen Zongjing. He rubbed his temples. "Is it necessary for you to be so affectionate towards him?"

“Don’t you think he’s pitiful?” Xue Mingyao reasoned with him. “He was trapped among foreign tribes for eight years. When he came back, his wife was gone and his money was gone. If I’m cold to him, wouldn’t that hurt him too much?”

Xie Zhuo said, "I'm not telling you to be cold, but you also need to be careful. We are now husband and wife, and you need to make him realize this deeply."

Xue Mingyao laughed, "Of course he knows that. How much more do you expect him to realize it? To act all lovey-dovey in front of him? That's just too much!"

Besides, are she and Xie Zhuo really a loving couple?

Although the two had been getting along much better than before, and often had wild and unrestrained fights in bed, Xue Mingyao still felt that Xie Zhuo had a lingering unease in his heart. She herself felt the same way; something heavy stood between them, and if touched accidentally, it would cause a pang of sadness.

She dismissed the thought and tugged at his belt. "You used to feel so guilty towards him. Xie Zhuo, you're not as kind as me."

"Times have changed." Xie Zhuo said no more and took her hand to go into the house together.

The two walked hand in hand across the threshold, bathed in the glow of the setting sun, a beautiful, radiant couple.

Cen Zongjing took in all of this, picked up the wine on the table, and drank it all before the banquet even began.

The servants served up dishes one after another, meat dishes, soups, and stews, all in vibrant colors, creating a lively scene. The aroma of fresh food instantly filled the room.

Cen Zongjing was somewhat surprised, "So many Sichuan dishes? Yaoyao, you're so thoughtful."

Xue Mingyao knew that he must have misunderstood.

Before marrying her, Cen Zongjing had stationed troops in Xichuan. Wuxi borders Xichuan, and their cuisines are similar. He probably thought that this banquet was specially catering to his taste.

In reality, both she and Xie Zhuo preferred Sichuan cuisine, and the cooks in the mansion were used to making it.

"I'm glad General Cen likes it. Please start eating and try the cooking of my household chef," Xie Zhuo said.

Cen Zongjing tasted it and praised the flavor, saying, "The chef's skills are superb; Yaoyao is truly blessed."

"Yes, Yaoyao likes it very much," Xie Zhuo said calmly.

Hearing the sound, Xue Mingyao glanced at him, then buried her head in her food.

On the table was a dish of drunken shrimp with water pepper. Cen Zongjing rolled up one section of his wide sleeves and prepared to peel the shrimp.

Xue Mingyao, with her sharp eyes, noticed a deep red mark on each of his bare arms, about the size of a coin, with an uneven surface.

"Is that a brand?" she exclaimed.

It resembled a burn, but the shape was regular. Xue Mingyao couldn't help but think of a form of torture: branding someone with a red-hot iron, making life worse than death...

Cen Zongjing smiled and lowered his rolled-up sleeves. "It's the work of King Wuxi. I'm sorry to have frightened you."

"He used such severe torture on you?" Xue Mingyao said in a daze, "You really have a tough bone to stick."

"Just bear with it, it won't be hard to get through," Cen Zongjing comforted him.

"Are the other rumors true too? They say you were locked in an extremely cold place and lost a toe due to frostbite," Xue Mingyao asked again, her watery eyes wide.

"Yaoyao, let's not talk about this anymore, okay? Otherwise, you won't be able to enjoy your meal," Cen Zongjing said gently.

Xue Mingyao nodded. "Then I won't ask anymore."

She picked up a plate of fragrant shrimp and placed it on Cen Zongjing's table, saying, "You should take some to nourish your body."

Cen Zongjing smiled and agreed, then focused on peeling shrimp and cleaning fish.

Xie Zhuo silently drank a cup of wine.

A moment later, Cen Zongjing handed Xue Mingyao a plate of peeled, tender white shrimp meat and a plate of cleaned fish meat, saying, "Yaoyao, eat."

Xue Mingyao was stunned.

“I see that General Xie has not done these things for you, so I am overstepping my bounds and hoping you will not refuse,” he explained gently.

Xie Zhuo frowned deeply.

Xue Mingyao indeed disliked peeling shrimp. She could peel fish herself, but she always had her maids do the shrimp for her. During the time she was pretending to have a leg injury, she did order him to peel shrimp for her. Today, there were guests present, and it was inconvenient for the maids to serve her, so Xue Mingyao hadn't touched this dish yet.

"So you still remember these things. Of course I won't refuse. Thank you."

Xue Mingyao smiled and thanked her, then picked up her chopsticks and began to eat, finishing the food in no time.

Two more dishes were placed in front of them, one with shrimp and the other with fish, this time brought by Xie Zhuo.

"Thank you for reminding me, General Cen. I was so busy entertaining my guests that I neglected Yaoyao. I am ashamed to have you, a guest, do all this," Xie Zhuo said to Cen Zongjing.

Cen Zongjing simply laughed it off.

Xie Zhuo caught a glimpse of Xue Mingyao staring at him, a faint smile playing on her lips. He ignored her and went to drink with Cen Zongjing.

After a while, he saw that the two pieces of meat had only shrunk a little, and Xue Mingyao hadn't moved much.

He asked with his eyes, and Xue Mingyao immediately understood, saying innocently, "I ate a lot just now, and I'm a little tired of it. I'll eat some more later."

Xie Zhuo gave a soft "hmm".

Cen Zongjing quietly ate his wine, watching the couple thoughtfully.