Chapter 333: Extra 4 (Life outside the palace, peaceful years)
On the Zhaixing Pavilion, the morning light fills the sky, like dots of cinnabar.
The last time they were here, the two parted ways.
But today we meet again.
Looking at the white paper money all over the city, Liu Yuetang's eyes were filled with tears.
"For me, you gave up your position of power, thousands of beauties, and countless splendors. Is it really worth it, Xiao Heng?"
Liu Yuetang turned and looked at him.
Xiao Heng raised his hand and brushed the loose hair on her temples with his fingertips.
The morning light filtered through the window lattices of the Zhaixing Pavilion, bringing a gentle smile to his eyes, without any trace of the emperor's harshness.
"I just want to ask, are you happy to see me?"
"Or... I gave up the throne to be with you, would you be happy?"
Liu Yuetang burst into tears before she said a word, and just nodded heavily.
How could she not be happy?
This was something she had never dared to imagine before.
She had been in the harem for nearly four years, and although at the beginning, she and Xiao Heng were full of calculations and exploited each other.
But Xiao Heng really fell in love with me in the end, and he even wanted to dismiss the six palaces in order to make me stay.
How could she not be moved when the emperor treated her like this?
It's just that she has been restraining her emotions.
She always felt that she, Liu Yuetang, was not so lucky and did not deserve such warm treatment.
I always feel that the person Xiao Heng fell in love with was the former disguised Liu Yuetang.
I also feel that the emperor's love cannot last long.
However, after so many years, he still kept himself deep in his heart.
Even now... he has given up his kingdom for his own sake.
The moment I saw him just now, the throbbing hidden in my heart instantly overwhelmed all my rationality.
She was still afraid of losing him.
Xiao Heng smiled and wiped the tears from her cheeks, "As long as you are happy, it's worth it."
"Before I left the palace, my mother asked me, 'Is it worth it?'"
"I am the only one who knows that without you by my side, this land would be nothing but a wasteland."
"And right now, having you by my side is better than any other scenery in the world."
"Your Majesty..." Liu Yuetang choked in her throat and raised her hands to hug Xiao Heng's waist.
Xiao Heng took her into his arms, stroking her back and said, "Are you still calling me Your Majesty?"
"There is only my husband here, but no emperor."
"There's no such thing as me and my concubines, there's only you and me."
Liu Yuetang buried her head in his chest, her clothes already soaked with tears.
"Yes...husband, in the past..."
Before he could finish his words, Xiao Heng interrupted him, "Let's forget everything that happened in the past. Today... let's just treat it as the first time we met. From now on, the world will be vast and the sky will be wide. We will start anew together."
"Okay! I'll listen to my husband." Liu Yuetang hugged Xiao Heng tightly.
"So, husband... where do you want to go next?"
Xiao Heng didn't say anything, just rested his chin on her cheek, feeling the warmth that had been lost and regained.
After a long while, he whispered in Liu Yuetang's ear: "Wherever the madam is, that's where your husband wants to go most."
*****
Later, they traveled to many places.
The sun over the vast sea, the clouds over Chicheng; the snow over Yamei, the clouds over Wu Gorge; the moon over Dongting Lake, the rain over Xiaoxiang; the mist over Pengli, the waves over Guangling; the waterfall at Mount Lu, these combined wonders of the universe are painted on the walls of my study.
As the seasons change, their shadows are always in the same place, and every step is filled with deep love.
After living in Lanyue for a few months, Liu Yuetang was afraid that Xiao Heng would not be used to it, so she chose a place between Lanyue and Jingyuan and built a small courtyard.
A large square pond was dug in front of the door, and peach trees were planted around the house.
When you open the gate, you can see the endless grassland. In autumn, you can see sheep flocking across the slopes, and in winter, the snow is dazzling white when it falls.
We feed the fish together in the morning and sit together to watch the sunset at the end of the grassland in the evening. The days are as quiet as a painting that will never fade.
One day, Liu Yuetang was fishing.
She urged Xiao Heng in the small kitchen, "Husband, are you ready? I'm hungry~"
"Almost, almost, ma'am, the soup will be ready soon."
That soup is very particular.
These were the Cordyceps and Ganoderma Lucidum that Xiao Heng had dug with his own hands when they were traveling. He said that he would make some for himself after returning. He was busy in the small kitchen for the whole morning, and it was already past noon, but the soup was still not ready.
Liu Yuetang put down the fishing rod and walked towards the small kitchen.
She lifted the curtain and went in, and saw Xiao Heng squatting in front of the stove, with a little dust on the tip of his nose. He was clumsily stirring the contents of the casserole with a spoon in his hand, his brows tightly furrowed.
Liu Yuetang curled her lips: "I told you that I'm suitable for making soup and you're suitable for fishing, but you don't believe it."
"Look... I didn't catch any fish, and you didn't make the soup. We don't even have lunch, and you've made yourself look so miserable."
Liu Yuetang glanced at him coquettishly and raised her handkerchief to wipe the dust off his face.
Xiao Heng enjoyed it very much and turned his face further away.
After wiping his face clean, Liu Yuetang picked up a spoon and gently moved away the foam floating on the surface. When she saw what was inside clearly, she frowned slightly, but couldn't help but smile.
"This Ganoderma needs to be sliced and simmered for its medicinal properties to be released. Why didn't you even cut it into pieces and just threw it in whole?"
Xiao Heng followed her gaze and saw the Ganoderma lucidum floating in the soup like a piece of stubborn stone. His eyes twitched in embarrassment.
"Then...then it's not too late for me to take it out and cut it now, right?"
"That's fine." Liu Yuetang scooped out the Ganoderma lucidum with a spoon.
Xiao Heng quickly held her hand and said, "I'll do it, I'll do it...you sit down."
As he said this, he picked up the Ganoderma lucidum and was about to put it on the chopping board, but unexpectedly the Ganoderma lucidum was extremely hot and he almost dropped it on the ground.
Liu Yuetang shook her head and said with a slight frown, "Forget it, I'll do it. You're only suited to squatting in front of the stove and helping me burn firewood. I'm afraid you'll never learn how to cook."
In the past few years, Xiao Heng has cooked.
When he cooked for the first time, he proudly said that he wanted to show off his cooking skills and cook for her himself.
Unexpectedly, when the dish was put into the pot, the oil was poured too high, and it splashed high up, scalding his hands and causing several big blisters.
The second time, he still didn't give up. He armed himself fully, tied his cuffs tightly, and covered his head with Liu Yuetang's wide-brimmed straw hat, looking like a thief who was learning a skill.
I didn't get burned that time, but the fish was fried so hard that bones flew all over the place, making it hard to eat.
Liu Yuetang never let him cook again and only allowed him to cut vegetables and burn firewood.
Even learning how to burn firewood took me half a year.
Watching Liu Yuetang skillfully holding the kitchen knife to cut the Ganoderma lucidum, Xiao Heng sighed deeply.
He looked at his hands unsurely. "You know, my hands are good at everything from playing the piano, chess, calligraphy, and painting, but why are they so clumsy when it comes to using pots and pans?"
Liu Yuetang smiled sweetly, "On weekdays, I'm like a piece of crap, needing you to do everything for me. I guess God is displeased with me and wants me to serve you when I have the chance."
In the three years since he left the palace, Xiao Heng did nothing but pamper his wife all day long.
He personally handed Liu Yuetang tea, turned the pages of her books, dressed her, and carried her on his back when she was tired from walking.
This really makes Liu Yuetang live a useless life.
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