When Zhao Xiheng got up, it was almost noon. The window paper was thick and white, covered with a layer of frost, so white it was dazzling. In Pingzhou, winter days were often overcast, and the days were exceptionally short, making it difficult to distinguish between day and night, giving one the illusion that a day could pass in the blink of an eye.
She raised her arm and covered her eyes to adjust to the light.
She felt she couldn't continue living such a decadent life.
Human life is inherently short. If one dies peacefully in one's sleep, the longest life is a hundred or eighty years, and the shortest is only fifty or sixty years. It is not good to waste one's life like this.
Life is about taking risks and doing something meaningful.
Zhao Xiheng decided not to stay on the kang any longer and turned over to get up.
Then they saw Wei Li sleeping quietly to one side, a few strands of dark hair hanging down his forehead over his eyelids, the hair billowing with each breath.
He had a sharp chin, pale skin, little flesh on his cheeks, and very prominent bone structure. His thick, dark eyebrows raised an arrogant air.
To be fair, she looks very pretty when she's sleeping peacefully and obediently.
But why did he come back? Did his anger subside after seeing her letter, or did he come back simply because he didn't see her letter and his anger subsided?
Zhao Xiheng guessed that he was probably not angry anymore. If he were still angry, he probably wouldn't have come back quietly without waking her up.
A strand of hair slipped down Wei Li's forehead, almost touching the corner of his mouth. Zhao Xiheng felt uncomfortable and reached out to brush the hair away, tucking it behind his ear.
She snapped out of her reverie and met Wei Li's dark eyes, as black as the finest obsidian, though the whites were bloodshot, clearly indicating he hadn't had a good rest. Wei Li's eyes were devoid of emotion, even appearing somewhat wooden.
Zhao Xiheng thought that he was probably angry because she had disturbed his sleep, so she quickly patted his back and coaxed him softly, "Go to sleep, go to sleep."
Wei Li closed her eyes again, and Zhao Xiheng gently turned over. She heard Wei Li say in dissatisfaction, his voice hoarse, "Don't move." He was probably annoyed that she was making noise and disturbing his sleep.
"So energetic, so energetic," that's exactly what they mean by Wei Li. Zhao Xiheng lay in bed, afraid to move, lest she disturb his sleep again; he was too easily woken up.
I don't even know where I came from last night, I'm so exhausted.
Zhao Xiheng felt around in the bedding and found two warm objects. She frowned, took them out, and saw that they were two brass keys, about the size of her palm, just like the pile of keys in the drawer next to the kang (heated brick bed).
She wondered which storeroom the key belonged to. Zhao Xiheng remembered that she hadn't put it away when she was counting the keys yesterday. She certainly wouldn't sleep with two keys in her arms, so where did this come from?
She looked at it over and over again, glancing at Wei Li. Could it be that he brought it back in the middle of the night? How did it end up in her bed?
Never mind, let's talk about it when someone wakes up.
She quietly tucked her arms back under the covers and watched Wei Li sleep.
After leaving Zhao Xiheng, Xiao Tao headed southeast, leaving Pingzhou and heading towards Yongzhou.
She was unfamiliar with the place and the people, and had been living in the deep palace for many years. She didn't even know the Jinyang Emperor, let alone the vast world around her, and she lived in fear every day.
But remembering Zhao Xiheng's instructions to seek refuge with the Xie family, she continued her journey while wiping away tears.
Fearing that people might be attracted to him, he darkened his face and dressed as a man. Fortunately, he had enough money and didn't get cold or hungry along the way, and managed to enter Yongzhou Mausoleum City smoothly.
Only when he saw the plaque above the Xie family's gate did he finally let go of his burdens and burst into tears, his joy turning to sorrow.
As she recalled everything that had happened since November, she was overcome with grief and cried even harder, rushing forward to pound on the Xie family's door.
The Xie family has existed since the founding of the Great Zhou Dynasty. Although they have never been particularly prominent, they are a truly prosperous family with a century-long history, a family of great wealth and influence, and they have a great deal of prestige in Lingcheng.
Since the Xie family patriarch fought alongside the previous emperor Zhao Xinglie and considered each other confidants, and even arranged for his only daughter to marry Xie Qingyu, the Xie family flourished like oil on a hot fire. However, after Zhao Xinglie's death, the new emperor ruthlessly suppressed Zhao Xinglie's former subordinates, and the Xie family withdrew from the limelight, remaining relatively quiet in recent years.
Xiao Tao threw herself against the door and cried so loudly that the Xie family's gatekeeper rushed out to check on her.
After looking her over carefully, he realized she was a girl. He helped her up and slipped some coins into her hand. "Little girl, this isn't a place for you to beg. Go beg somewhere else. It's not easy during the New Year, take this and buy something warm."
Xiao Tao hugged the gatekeeper's leg and cried, "I didn't come here to beg for food. I am Princess Jingcheng's maid. I came here on the princess's orders." She handed over the token that Zhao Xiheng had given her.
The marriage between Zhao Xiheng and Xie Qingyu was known to all the older members of the Xie family. Upon hearing this, the gatekeeper quickly led the person in, took the token, and said, "Wait here, I will report back to the head of the family before we talk."
The jade pendant that Zhao Xiheng gave to Xiao Tao was the token they exchanged when they got engaged.
The head of the Xie family quickly instructed someone to bring Xiao Tao over.
After the jade pendant was taken away, Xiao Tao's initial excitement faded, replaced by trepidation.
Although the late emperor and the head of the Xie family were brothers, so many years have passed, and the Xie family has been suppressed by the new emperor. Who knows how much their feelings have been worn away? If they not only do not remember their past friendship, but also kill her to silence her, that would be terrible.
With a mix of trepidation and excitement, she was led inside and met the Xie father and son.
The head of the Xie family was in his early forties, but he was very gentle and dignified, with a composed demeanor. One could also see the charm of his youth in his face.
She turned her gaze to the younger man, and her breath caught in her throat.
"To have such a unicorn is like having orchids and jade trees planted in the courtyard."
This was Zhao Xinglie's evaluation of Xie Qingyu when they first met, and he gladly chose him as his son-in-law, which shows how outstanding Xie Qingyu was.
Xiao Tao had never witnessed Xie Qingyu's triumphant return as a third-ranked scholar at the age of thirteen, parading through the streets on horseback to a scene that drew huge crowds. But now that she saw him, she knew he truly deserved the late emperor's high praise.
He was dressed in a simple blue robe and stood upright at the desk. Xiao Tao was speechless and couldn't think of how to describe or evaluate this young man.
Only four words came to mind: "Peerless beauty".
The more Xiao Tao looked at Xie Qingyu, the more grief welled up inside her. She just kept crying, thinking that if the late emperor were still alive, their princess would marry this young man. Not to mention that the old king of Goguryeo, he would be a million times better than that vulgar, arrogant, tyrannical and domineering Wei Li.
Xiao Tao was crying so hard she couldn't breathe. Xie Qingyu half-squatted down, handed her his handkerchief, and said calmly, "Rest today, we can talk about it tomorrow."
Given Xiaotao's condition, she probably won't be able to adjust her emotions tonight, and likely won't be able to say anything.
After the people were taken away and settled, Xie Qingyu's brows showed a faint worry. "Father, the current way of doing things is very different from that of the late emperor."
From the moment Emperor Shunhe broke his engagement with A-Dan and sent her to Goguryeo for a political marriage, he no longer felt that the emperor's presence was a blessing.
Even a small country like Goguryeo had to make concessions repeatedly, and the loss of its territory was only a matter of time.
He also deeply hated himself, for he could only watch helplessly as his fiancée, with whom he had made a promise for many years, married far away.
The Xie family head patted his shoulder, sighed, and said with obvious sorrow, "Songjie, there are still three hundred people in the Xie family. Their lives will all be on your shoulders in the future." Songjie was Xie Qingyu's courtesy name.
Xie Qingyu's hands, which were hanging down from his sleeves, tightened slightly, and the veins on his neck bulged slightly. He closed his eyes for a moment to calm down, and then he was once again the dignified and upright Xie Langjun.
Wei Li slept until the afternoon, and Zhao Xiheng's body was already limp and numb. Seeing him open his eyes, she quickly climbed up from the kang (a heated brick bed).
"Princess, don't sleep anymore. If you keep sleeping, you won't be able to sleep tonight," she whispered in his ear, afraid that Wei Li would keep his eyes closed.
Wei Li was still tired; it would be strange if he wasn't exhausted after days of traveling.
"Zhao Xiheng, you're so noisy," he said, grabbing Zhao Xiheng's wrist in annoyance.
"My lord, you're talking to me now, so you're not angry anymore?" Zhao Xiheng pressed her advantage, leaning over to continue teasing him.
Wei Li snorted and turned his head away, ignoring her.
Zhao Xiheng knew that this meant her anger had subsided and she was no longer going to hold it against her.
She picked up Gou Dan'er from under the kang (a heated brick bed) and showed him his nails, saying, "Look, I've trimmed all his nails."
Wei Li turned her head again, gave Gou Dan a look that seemed to be giving her face, and then snorted through her nose, as if she was satisfied.
Zhao Xiheng compared the current Wei Li with the Wei Li she first met and found that his temper was getting better and better (he was becoming more and more like a paper tiger).
Wei Li's bottom line has been lowered again and again. Although he is still very irritable, he no longer jumps into Zhao Xiheng's minefield. The number of times Zhao Xiheng curses him in her heart has decreased exponentially.
Recently, Zhao Xiheng has been eating and sleeping well here, and she's not cold at all. She's living a comfortable life, and she has cats and a pretty young lady to keep her company. She's so happy that she doesn't want to go back home. Her temper has also become incredibly good, and the number of times she gets irritable has gradually decreased.
In short, both of them are in good tempers now.
She opened a small drawer by the kang (heated brick bed), rummaged through the keys inside, and found none missing. Turning to Wei Li, she asked, "My lord, where did these keys come from? They were in my bed last night. Did you bring them back? What's in the storeroom?"
Wei Li propped his head up with his arm, looking at her with his eyes practically rolling to the sky. "It's just a pile of junk. I gave it to you so you could keep it. Why are you making such a fuss?"
"..." Zhao Xiheng mentally clenched her fist. This old dog, he just said he had a good temper, but now he's showing his true colors and starting to act like a brat again.
He shouldn't have written the letter apologizing and asking him to come back; he might as well have frozen to death outside.
By the time the two of them got dressed and washed up, it was already getting dark. Not long after they finished eating, a maid came to report, "Madam, the things you ordered have arrived."
Zhao Xiheng bought a lot of rouge and face powder, jewelry and accessories, not including inner and outer garments, and ordered more than a dozen sets of clothes, which was a considerable amount.
“Uh…” Zhao Xiheng’s hand froze as she shuffled the cards upon hearing that they had come to deliver clothes, and she secretly glanced at Wei Li.
Wei Li sat with one leg bent, finished playing the cards in his hand, leaned back, propped himself up on the kang (a heated brick bed) with his left hand, pursed his lips and blew a breath. The paper strip stuck to his forehead was blown up with a "plop" and then fell back down. "If you have anything, just bring it in. Why leave it outside to feed the cat?"
He nudged Zhao Xiheng, "Play your cards, hurry up."
Zhao Xiheng brushed the strip of paper off her face and absentmindedly placed a card on the table.
After finishing their meal, the two of them, having nothing else to do, picked up playing leaf cards again.
Whoever lost got a sticker stuck to their face. After a few rounds, the two were evenly matched, and neither of them had a clean face.
Wei Li casually played a card and won. He then picked up a small piece of paper from the side, dipped it in glue, looked at her face from side to side, and pressed it against her chin.
The things Zhao Xiheng bought were carried in by the box, piled up so full that they not only filled the not-so-small open space in the bedroom, but were also stacked on top of each other.
She coughed lightly twice, her face slightly flushed, and used the card to partially cover her face. She waved to the maids, signaling them not to send any more inside.
When Wei Li saw her making a small movement, he tilted his head slightly, and the ponytail behind his head tilted forward. He tugged at Zhao Xiheng's hand, revealing her face, and curled his lips to reveal a sharp canine tooth.
"Let me see, are you blushing?"
He swept over the mountain of boxes on the floor, threw the cards on the table, and said, "Didn't I hear you were quite happy when you bought them? Now you're blushing? Look at your pathetic face."
Feeling guilty, Zhao Xiheng coughed twice more, "Ahem, mainly, it cost a bit too much."
If they were all usable, that would be fine, but some of them were things she bought on a whim, and... that's quite embarrassing.
Zhao Xiheng rarely showed any signs of embarrassment.
"Oh." Wei Li calculated his warehouse. Even if Zhao Xiheng emptied the entire Bu Xian warehouse, he would still have money.
But seeing how red her face was, Wei Li naturally wouldn't let her off so easily. He pressed her head towards him and flicked her forehead, saying, "You spendthrift woman."
"You told me to buy whatever I wanted," Zhao Xiheng glared at him and complained softly.
Wei Li was about to flick her forehead again, but Zhao Xiheng cleverly dodged it this time. Wei Li couldn't help but laugh, "You're arguing with me again."
"All done, open the box and let me take a look," he shouted to the people below.
"Let me see what treasures you bought." Wei Li looked at the things below and found it quite strange. Is raising a wife that difficult? Can you even use up all this stuff?
Women are such a hassle, he thought to himself.
The maid opened the boxes one by one. The first two boxes were filled with rouge and face powder, packed in small boxes.
"Don't bother looking at these things for a daughter's use." She cursed Wei Li in her heart, thinking he was a bastard. They agreed that she could buy whatever she wanted, but now that the things were bought, he still wanted to know.
"What are all these things?" Wei Li opened the box and found it filled with bright red paint. His fingers were slippery with some of it, and the bright red paste was still on his hands. "What are you buying so much paint for? To paint?"
"It's rouge and lipstick, for applying to the face." Zhao Xiheng quickly snatched it away, not letting him waste it.
Upon hearing its purpose, Wei Li blushed and quickly placed it on the table as if he had been burned.
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