Chapter 331 Extra 2 (Giving Up the World for Her)
"No... Your Majesty." The Queen shook her head slightly, her eyes blurred with tears but still dignified.
"You have not wronged me."
She looked at Xiao Heng with tears in her eyes and smiled serenely: "For several years, Your Majesty has trusted and respected me, and has given me a position of honor that all women in the world envy."
"Although these are not what Xie Shutong wants, they are what the Xie family's daughter pursues. You and I, born as the emperor and empress, are destined not to have the love and affection of ordinary couples, but to share the destiny of supporting this country."
Under the candlelight, her eyes were gleaming with tears, almost about to fall, she smiled gently,
"Your Highness...is also content."
What else could she not be satisfied with?
Whether she was born in her cradle or died a hundred years later, she was always the most dazzling woman in the world.
In this life, she had no biological children, but she was able to have An'er's filial piety and sit on the throne of empress dowager.
Even Yue'er... said that she would not leave me and would come back to be with me every year.
From now on, she can live the rest of her life in peace and comfort.
Although he heard her say this, Xiao Heng still felt a little uncomfortable.
In this life, the woman he owes the most and feels the most sorry for is her.
When she first married into the Eastern Palace, her father was seriously ill, and his eyes and thoughts were all focused on the court.
Later...she followed Shen Qingtang into the palace.
He turned his attention to Shen Qingtang again.
After meeting Liu Yuetang, he fell in love with her uncontrollably.
Over time, the queen became his family and his right-hand man.
He respected her, honored her, and trusted her, but there was no love between men and women.
After a moment, Xiao Heng slowly stood up.
The queen saw him off to the palace gate.
Finally, he turned around and looked at the queen. The palace lanterns swayed gently in the wind, casting their shadows on the vermilion palace walls.
"Shutong." Xiao Heng called her name softly, not the queen, nor Zitong.
But it's herself.
"I hope that in my next life, I will no longer be a daughter of the Xie family, but just be an ordinary person, living a happy life in Chang'an."
The Queen raised her red lips, "So does the Emperor."
After saying this, she bowed one last time.
This ceremony is the queen's respect for the emperor.
It was Xie Shutong's farewell to Xiao Heng.
It was also a farewell to the Emperor and Empress.
She nodded and lowered her eyes, "It's been many years since we last met, I hope you take care."
"treasure."
As Xiao Heng's voice fell, a figure on the palace wall gradually disappeared, leaving only the queen standing there.
She watched the figure disappear around the corner of the palace wall. A pearl had fallen from the pearl hairpin on her temples and rolled onto the bluestone slabs, making a slight sound.
The queen raised her hand and touched the gap in the pearl hairpin, as if there was a gap in her heart.
After all, they have been married for fifteen years, and although there is no love, there is affection.
This kind of affection is similar to the bond of family affection.
Returning to the Purple Palace, Xiao Heng sat on the couch and looked around the palace where he had stayed for thirteen years.
Zhou Defu tested the temperature of the tea with his hand, and his fingertips rested on the wall of the celadon cup for a moment before he stood up with satisfaction, holding the teacup and quietly bringing it to Xiao Heng.
"Your Majesty, you haven't had tea for half a day. This is the freshly warmed Rain Dragon Well tea. Moisten your throat."
When Xiao Heng took the teacup from his hand, his fingertips touched the thin calluses and wrinkles on Zhou Defu's hands.
He lowered his eyes to look at the hands.
The hands that had served him tea and passed him pens for twenty or thirty years were silent for a moment.
After he took a sip of tea, his eyes fell on the white hair on Zhou Defu's temples, and he opened his thin lips slightly:
"This is the last cup of tea."
"Starting tomorrow, there's no need to prepare any more."
Upon hearing this, Zhou Defu burst into tears and knelt on the ground, "I really want to make tea and serve tea to the emperor for the rest of my life."
"I want to be the emperor's slave for life."
Xiao Heng smiled, "Get up."
He tapped the table lightly and said, "Sit down and talk."
Zhou Defu was startled, looking at the seat next to Xiao Heng, he said hurriedly: "I dare not... How can I be worthy..."
"Get up and sit down!" Xiao Heng's voice became a little deeper.
"There is no master or servant tonight. Sit down and chat with me."
Zhou Defu hesitated for a moment before he stood up tremblingly and sat next to Xiao Heng.
"Zhou Defu..." Xiao Heng called out.
Zhou Defu responded subconsciously: "The servant is here."
Xiao Heng's eyes gradually became hazy. "You've been following me for twenty-five years, right?"
Zhou Defu nodded and said, "When Your Majesty came to be Queen Wen Yi's lap, I was assigned to serve you. This year has been exactly twenty-five years."
"Time flies...it's already been twenty-five years." Xiao Heng repeated in a low voice, his voice as light as falling snow.
The corners of Zhou Defu's lips trembled.
Yes, it's been twenty-five years.
When he first served Xiao Heng, he was nearly thirty years old, and now he has become an old eunuch with gray hair.
During these twenty-five years, he had accompanied Xiao Heng through the pain of losing his mother, watched him be hurt by his own mother, watched him fight for the throne, and step by step ascend to the supreme position...
No one knows the difficulties and sadness involved better than him.
"You should take a break too."
Xiao Heng pushed a rosewood box across the table and said, "You already have a house outside the palace, so I won't give you another one. The money in here is enough for you to hire two servants and live comfortably for the rest of your life."
Naturally, the wealth inside is enough for more than half a lifetime, but for several lifetimes.
Zhou Defu looked at the box, his eyes became hotter and moister, and he hurriedly wiped away his tears with his sleeves.
Xiao Heng smiled and said, "Alright, please don't make me worry about this before I leave."
"Over the years, my temperament has been unpredictable, and you've suffered a lot following me. You've been worried every day and haven't had a good night's sleep. From now on, you can spend your old age in the house, basking in the sun, listening to operas, and enjoying yourself."
Zhou Defu's throat was choked and his lips were trembling.
Ever since Concubine Xi left, the emperor's temper has indeed become more and more strange.
However, while he was feeling anxious and uneasy, he was also more distressed, just like he felt distressed for his own son.
How can it be considered suffering?
He held the wooden box in his hands and said nothing more, fearing to add to the sadness. He leaned forward and said, "Your Majesty, I thank you for your grace. Long live the emperor, long live the emperor."
At the hour of Yin, the sky was still dark.
Only a few remaining stars are dotted in the dark blue night sky, as sparse as the ink dots ground off in an inkstone.
Xiao Heng stood on the city wall, gazing at the hazy outline outside the palace.
"Your Majesty is well~"
"Your Majesty is well~"
Ziying's voice echoed on the empty city wall.
Xiao Heng turned around and saw that it was tilting its head, staring at him intently with its black bean-like eyes.
He slowly extended his hand.
The purple shadow flapped its wings and flew from the cage to Xiao Heng's palm, rubbing its head against Xiao Heng's thumb.
Xiao Heng raised his fingertips and gently stroked the soft fur on its head. He said softly, "Ziying, you have been in the cage for a full twenty-four years."
"I still remember that year when I first came to Queen Mother Wen Yi's lap. Seeing that I was withdrawn and didn't like to talk, she gave you to me. Since then, whenever I had something on my mind, I would confide in you. To me, you were my only friend at that time."
"Friend~Friend~" Ziying raised his neck and called softly.
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