When Zhou Qiheng was born, Zhou Shaoyu was on the Northwest battlefield.
Zhou Shaoyu didn't want to miss out on the opportunity to have Zhou Qiyuan.
Aunt Cui and Aunt Chai tried repeatedly to stop him from entering the delivery room, but he insisted on going in anyway.
"I don't want to miss a single day with you, let me watch over you." Zhou Shaoyu held her hand and stayed by her side.
Xie Zhaozhao struggled to force him out: "With you here, I'm distracted and can't concentrate..."
My main concern is that I don't want you to be scared or upset.
Zhou Shaoyu held Xiao Heng'er and stood guard at the door.
Seeing the old women carrying basins of bloody water in and out, Xiao Heng'er asked Zhou Shaoyu with red eyes, "Will Mother Empress die?"
Zhou Shaoyu didn't know either. He originally thought he wouldn't die, but when he saw so much blood, his hands and feet turned cold and his vision went black.
When Xie Zhaozhao heard from Aunt Chai that Zhou Shaoyu was holding Xiao Heng'er outside the door and seemed very nervous, she gritted her teeth and didn't utter a sound during childbirth.
Logically speaking, the first birth is difficult, and the second birth is much smoother. But for some reason, the second birth was particularly difficult. She was in pain for three days and almost lost half her life before she finally gave birth.
When the child was brought out to show Zhou Shaoyu and Xiao Heng'er, Zhou Shaoyu held the child and asked Xie Zhaozhao how she was doing.
Aunt Chai smiled and said, "It's been quite tough, but both mother and child are safe and sound. They'll recover after a while."
Xiao Heng'er was the happiest. Cousin Xie Xingye, Brother Liu Qingyun, and Brother Qin Moxuan were all very nice, but Xiao Yuan'er was his own brother, connected by blood, and completely different from the brothers outside.
He wanted to hold his younger brother, but his father wouldn't let him, saying that his mother had carried him for ten months and had almost died before giving birth to him, so he should be cherished and protected from any mishaps.
"Little Heng'er, you must love your younger brother from now on, and love him even more on behalf of your mother. Your mother will definitely love it if you two brothers get along well."
"Yes, Father, rest assured, Heng'er will definitely do it."
He squatted down next to his younger brother, looked at his brother who looked like a red-skinned rat, and couldn't help but say, "Father, he's so ugly!"
“You were uglier than him when you were little, but you’ll be good-looking when you grow up. Look how long your little brother’s eyeliner is; he’ll definitely be a little brother with big eyes, a high nose, and fair skin when he grows up,” Zhou Shaoyu said. “However, a real man isn’t judged by his looks; it’s about whether he has a strong heart, whether he…”
During the Lunar New Year, civil and military officials pay their respects to the emperor.
Because Xie Zhaozhao had just given birth and was not easily exposed to the wind, only Zhou Shaoyu and Xiao Heng'er attended the tea party.
The good news was announced at the meeting, and everyone received red envelopes (containing money), creating a joyful atmosphere.
Before the New Year, Zhang Hexuan (Zhang Yanyan's fourth brother) was summoned back to the palace by order of Zhou Shaoyu to report on his duties. Xu Huanzhang and Xu Wenrong were also summoned to the palace.
On the first day of the Lunar New Year, Zhou Shaoyu announced that Zhang Hexuan had returned to the capital and would serve as the Vice Minister of the Ministry of Personnel.
He spent eight years in the poorest prefecture in the Northwest, governing Yuzhou to the point that the people were prosperous and the folk customs were simple. Two years ago, he was promoted to the fifth-rank prefect of Yuzhou. Now he has been transferred back to the capital to serve as a fourth-rank vice minister. His future is bright, and no one will look down on Zhang Yanyan anymore.
Xu Huanzhang is Xie Zhaozhao's maternal uncle and Xu Zhiyan's elder brother. He is a renowned scholar of the time, and Zhou Shaoyu and Xie Zhaozhao asked him to be Zhou Qiheng's mentor.
Xu Wenrong was appointed as the Grand Secretary of the Cabinet. When Xiao Yuan'er grew up, Xu Wenrong decided to become Xiao Yuan'er's tutor.
On the 16th day of the fifth month of the fifth year of the Yulong era, Xie Zhaozhao was born.
In the morning, magpies were chirping loudly on the branches. Xie Zhaozhao smiled and said, "What great joyous occasion is this?"
At noon, after the morning court session, Nanxing came to report: "Living Buddha Yuanji has returned."
Without saying a word, Xie Zhaozhao and Zhou Shaoyu personally went to greet Yuan Ji at the palace gate. Yuan Ji had already run in by himself!
No one knows where Yuanji Living Buddha has been all these years. He is still dressed in tattered clothes and acts like a madman.
"Oh my, it's been a long time," Yuan Ji greeted them with a smile. "Miss Xie, you've really made it big, you're now the emperor!"
"Thanks to the Living Buddha," Xie Zhaozhao thought happily. "Speaking of which, I really have to thank the Living Buddha for saving my life."
"This is your good fortune! No need to thank me. Look, you two have become emperors, complementing each other perfectly, understanding each other perfectly, and wholeheartedly serving the people. Isn't that wonderful!"
Yuanji said that along the way he saw many people who were well-fed and clothed, with children being cared for and the elderly being supported. There were even many people who offered him alms.
When Yuan Ji came in, Xie Zhaozhao brought the two children to greet him. Yuan Ji looked at Zhou Qiheng and Zhou Qiyuan with great satisfaction and said, "These are both virtuous people. The world will prosper for at least another hundred years."
Xie Zhaozhao and Zhou Shaoyu were especially happy.
A century of prosperity is enough; who cares about what happens a century from now?
Xie Zhaozhao said, "Would it be good for the Living Buddha to settle down in Daming Prefecture in the future? I want to build a temple here, and the people also need faith."
Yuan Ji waved his hand: "Build it if you want, but don't build it specifically for me. I'm afraid of trouble. I like to be free."
Yuanji's arrival was certainly not just for a simple reunion.
"I was passing through Daming Prefecture and came to see you. I also have something to tell you," Yuan Ji said in a madmanish tone. "I've read the newspaper you publish. You did a good job with the soul-summoning formation."
He said that everything in this world is a cycle of cause and effect, and that today's cause will be tomorrow's effect. This soul-summoning formation should not be used.
Guan Ying from Dongli came to this continent by chance. She could have used her knowledge from another world to do good for the people, but she was ambitious, killed more than she loved, causing war and suffering to break out.
The debts owed in this life must be repaid double in the next.
"She defied the laws of heaven and committed a grave mistake, so she was condemned to a miserable end in three lifetimes. Unexpectedly, someone set up a soul-summoning array to invite her back."
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