Chapter 249 Final Chapter
Time flies, the world changes, and fifteen years have passed in the blink of an eye.
During the fifteen years, the Emperor of the Great Zhou worked hard to govern the country, the monarch and his ministers were of one mind, and with the strong support of the empress, the people lived and worked in peace and contentment, the country was stable, the country was peaceful, and the court and the people were prosperous.
Imperial City, Wenhua Palace.
The little prince, wearing a red gold nine-tassel crown on his head, had a tearful face and complained to Rong An, "Eunuch Rong An, does my father, the emperor, and my mother, the queen, not want me anymore?"
Rong An, whose eyes were already wrinkled, slapped his thigh and said, "Oh, little ancestor, how can you say that? You are the darling of the Emperor and Empress. They've held you in their mouths for fear of you melting, and in their hands for fear of you dropping. Who in this palace doesn't know you? Before you were even a month old, the Emperor announced to the world that you were crowned the crown prince. The Empress watched over you day and night. You've been weak since childhood, and to nourish you, the Empress has spent countless days and nights preparing all kinds of medicinal foods. I don't know how much effort it took to raise you to this strong and healthy state! How can you say that the Emperor and Empress no longer want you?"
"You're lying!"
Tears as big as beans immediately fell from the little prince's bright eyes, "If that's true, why did my father and mother leave the palace without taking me with them?!"
This is all the emperor’s fault!
Rong'an internally groaned bitterly. For years, the Emperor and the Empress had enjoyed a harmonious and deeply affectionate relationship, a story of love and affection. However, the Emperor had been too attached to the Empress, leaving the child feeling neglected due to the Empress's need to deal with him. Now, the couple had gone on an incognito tour, leaving the child at the palace. While the Empress Dowager was still alive, the relationship between the grandparents couldn't compare to that of a parent. No wonder the child was overthinking things.
What a troublesome father and son. The emperor is already so old and a father of several children, but he is still so immature and causes trouble for his servant.
Alas, who made him have such a master!
Rong An looked at the little prince, whose face was getting more and more tearful, and suddenly remembered something, "I got it! Prince, please wait a moment, I'll go get something and be right back."
The little prince was confused and watched Rong'an's fat body running towards the door quickly and flexibly.
In a moment, Rong An came back excitedly with a tray in his hand.
"What's this?"
The little prince looked at the mahogany tray, on which was placed a pile of various... let's call them embroidered objects.
Rong An placed the tray on the table and explained excitedly, "Your Highness, these are the little clothes that the Empress made for you when you were a child. You grew up wearing them. The Emperor was terribly jealous at the time, saying that the Empress was completely focused on you and had completely forgotten about her husband. Even with the Emperor's words, the Empress remained unmoved. This shows how much she loves you!"
The little prince became interested when he heard this and went forward to rummage through the cloth on the tray.
As soon as he saw it, his handsome little face suddenly twisted.
How did he fit into those pants with one leg thick and the other thin when he was a kid?
That crooked and ugly cat, it turns out the queen mother embroidered a tiger?
And this and that, what are they...
He grew up wearing these things...?
This is the love that his mother has for him, and his father is extremely jealous.
The little prince didn't know whether to laugh or cry for a moment.
Lu Haozhi and Meng Yan had been confined in the palace for a long time. Taking advantage of the peace in the world and the reunion of the people, they changed into civilian clothes and left the palace with only a few close followers.
Traveling all the way from the capital to the south of the Yangtze River, I saw countless famous mountains and rivers, local customs and people, and listened to many folk discussions.
Although it was very difficult to run the girls' school and the folk medical clinic, they are now quite successful and have made great contributions to enlightening girls and treating the sick people.
Even many far-sighted women regarded Bai Yuxin, who was in charge of women's schools, as the Empress Wenxian and wrote books in her honor.
Xiahou Yu's reputation is even higher than his, and he is now known as the Great Medical Saint.
Of course, everyone also understands who is the real leader of these two initiatives that benefit the people: the current Queen Meng Yan.
No matter what the historians or pedantic scholars said, the common people all recognized her as a truly virtuous queen, and many of them burned incense and prayed for her during festivals.
This scene made Lu Haozhi very jealous. He asked Meng Yan for a lot of tenderness and consideration in bed, and she finally gave up.
As for the eldest princess Lu Doukou, on her sixteenth birthday she suddenly vowed to go to the border and defend the country.
Meng Yan tried desperately to keep her, and even Lu Haozhi couldn't stop her. It was only then that Empress Dowager Jiang spoke out, saying that this was her biological father's last wish, and that she could inherit his legacy. Although Meng Yan was extremely reluctant, she had no choice but to let her go.
Though a woman, Lu Doukou possessed a true military talent. Upon reaching the border, she fully demonstrated her natural talent in military tactics and martial arts, winning several successful battles and forcing several hostile border states to retreat hundreds of miles, daring no further aggression. Even many villages and towns along the border have now regained their prosperity. Lu Hao's relatives bestowed upon her the title of Protector of the Nation Princess, but the border people preferred to call her the "Female General Guarding the Border."
It’s great that everyone has broken free from the constraints of the storybook and is now living their own lives.
They are no longer characters in a book, but living people, the protagonists of their own lives.
While walking among the people with Lu Haozhi, Meng Yan thought secretly in her heart.
When they arrived at a city in the south of the Yangtze River that day, the two did not stay in a hotel as usual, but instead found a Qingya Temple to stay in.
At night, the two of them stayed awake and went up to a nearby high pavilion hand in hand.
The pavilion is located on the top of the mountain, overlooking the river.
The two sat side by side in the pavilion, watching the night view, speechless for a moment.
The breeze was blowing gently, the stars were shining brightly, and the fragrance of nameless flowers lingered around me. I don’t know who had the first thought, and then they undressed, hugged each other, accompanied by the mountains, rivers and streams.
After a long moment, Lu Haozhi put his arm around Meng Yan's shoulders and they lay down on the couch in the pavilion together. He smiled softly and whispered, "Yan'er, I said I would overlook the mountains and rivers with you. Today I have finally fulfilled my promise. Are you happy?"
Meng Yan rested her head on his chest, silent.
She raised her eyes and saw the sky full of stars, the faint mountains, and the lights of thousands of houses; she closed her eyes and heard the roar of the river and the midnight fishermen's songs, and a hot heart was beating in her chest.
In this life, they will look down on the mountains and rivers hand in hand until the day they are buried.
"Happy."
She said softly.
(End of the book)
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