Su Rong was kissed breathless by Zhou Gu, her hand reaching out to pinch his waist.
Zhou Gu let her go and buried his face in her neck, breathing lightly, "This heavy snow really is deadly. It almost drove me crazy with worry, but at last, I’m back."
Su Rong hugged him, muttering, "You’ve lost so much weight, you need to drink some soup to recover."
She was still concerned about Zhou Gu returning to drink soup—he would finally understand the burden of love that came from the grandmother’s and mother’s affection, which he would taste three times a day, with soup after soup.
"What sort of soup?" Zhou Gu asked.
Su Rong smiled, "Nourishing soup."
Zhou Gu "oh"ed, not grasping the meaning behind it, and lowered his head to kiss her again.
Su Rong couldn’t bear his kisses, her hand slid into his collar, touching him.
Zhou Gu shivered, let her go, came down from on top of her, and lay beside her, hugging her and speaking in a husky voice, "The Great Wedding is in three days."
Seeing that he had let go, Su Rong obediently retracted her hand, "I thought you wouldn’t be able to return until the day of the wedding."
"I changed horses three times." Zhou Gu sighed, "I’ve looked forward to our Great Wedding for so long, I couldn’t let a heavy snow delay it. Otherwise, I’d be so angry I’d want to stab the heavens with a sword."
Su Rong laughed and hugged him back, "Are you exhausted? We can talk tomorrow. Let’s sleep first!"
Zhou Gu indeed was worn out. He kissed her once more and then "Hmm"ed and closed his eyes.
Seeing him fall asleep so quickly, utterly exhausted, Su Rong watched him tenderly for a while, wondering how long it would take to regain his strength with soup.
After watching and pondering for a while, she waved her hand and extinguished the lamp with a bead, then closed her eyes to sleep as well.
This was the most soundly Su Rong had slept in a long while.
The Morning Court Meeting was suspended for seven days due to the Princess’s Great Wedding. Starting from today, Su Rong woke up on time and, seeing Zhou Gu still sleeping deeply beside her, she didn’t feel like getting up. She snuggled up against him, held his hand, and closed her eyes again, enjoying a little more sleep.
When she woke up again, it was already bright daylight.
She opened her eyes, saw that Zhou Gu was still sleeping soundly, and sighed inwardly, thinking about how long it had been since he had a proper rest.
She slowly got up, dressed with careful, quiet movements, and left the room.
Yuewan saw her come out and was about to speak when Su Rong "shushed" her with a finger to her lips, silently signaling her to keep quiet. Yuewan understood and came closer, whispering, "Did the wet nurse say that the Fourth Young Master came back late last night?"
Scratching her head, she said, "I slept so soundly, I didn’t even hear anything."
Su Rong nodded, "He was so tired that he’s still asleep. I have no idea when he’ll wake up; he might only wake up when he’s hungry."
Yuewan asked quietly, "The Fourth Young Master has been so busy outside, has he become thinner? Should I go instruct the kitchen to prepare some soup to nourish him?"
Su Rong nodded and said decisively, "Yes, go and instruct them now."
Yuewan immediately went to do so.
Nanny Zhao came over with a basket of "joy" characters, asking Su Rong, "Has the Fourth Young Master not awoken yet? Are you hungry? Shall you eat first?"
"Just hand me a piece of cake, I’ll just have a little to tide me over," Su Rong said, looking at the beautiful "joy" characters in the basket, "Who cut such beautiful ’joy’ characters? Who is so skillful?"
"It was the Queen Mother." Nanny Zhao said with a smile, "I also praised the Queen Mother for her skillful hands. Even the palace maids with their nimble fingers can’t match the Queen Mother’s craftsmanship. I could never cut out ’joy’ characters as beautifully as these."
Su Rong showed a smile, "They’re truly beautiful." 𝘧𝓇𝑒𝑒𝑤ℯ𝑏𝓃𝘰𝑣ℯ𝘭.𝘤ℴ𝘮
After grooming and having a piece of cake, just as Su Rong was about to pick up another piece, she saw Zhou Gu walk out from the inner room. She blinked, "Awake so soon?"
Zhou Gu "Hmm"ed softly, walking over and wrapping his arms around her neck from behind, resting his chin on her shoulder, "Hungry."
Su Rong laughed and fed him a piece of pastry with a backhand motion then ordered someone outside, "Someone, quickly go and instruct the kitchen to serve the meal."
The Little Eunuch replied and immediately left.
Zhou Gu swallowed the pastry reluctantly, muttering, "Haven’t even washed up yet."
"Then go quickly," Su Rong urged him.
Zhou Gu released his hold and turned to leave.
Su Rong wiped her hands with a cloth, left the pastries untouched, and rose to follow him. While he was rinsing his mouth, she handed him things; when he was washing his face, she passed him the cloth.
Zhou Gu chuckled lightly, "Such good treatment, eh? Can I have this every day from now on?"
Su Rong coughed lightly, "Only for these few days."
She was clinging to the thought of him, he had just returned, and she cherished the novelty, but who knew, in a few days, if he angered her, whether or not she would want to kick him straight to the Zhou Residence.
Zhou Gu wiped his face and wrapped his arms around her, sighing softly, "Coming back feels truly good."
Even if such treatment was only for a few days, his thoughts had been fixated on returning day and night.
The Imperial Kitchen quickly delivered the meal, and Zhou Gu and Su Rong took their seats with several pots of soup arranged on the table.
Yuewan remarked from the side, "Miss, you should reward the Imperial Kitchen. When I went there, they had already started the soups, and they made several kinds, just waiting for the Fourth Young Master to wake up and drink. They knew the difficulty of the Fourth Young Master’s task this time and that he would certainly need to be nourished upon his return."
Su Rong nodded, "Reward them."
She pushed all the pots of soup toward Zhou Gu, piling them in front of him, "Drink more."
Zhou Gu had no objections and nodded, "Alright."
The Nanchu King, upon hearing of Zhou Gu’s late-night arrival, had wanted to come early in the morning, but he was delayed by the Ministry of Rites’ Chief of Staff entering the palace. Now that his affairs were settled, he made his way over.
His voice was heard before his arrival: "My good son-in-law, you’ve come back just in time, not missing the Great Wedding."
Zhou Gu hurriedly stood, "Father-in-law."
The Nanchu King hugged him tightly, "Ah, you’ve lost weight from exhaustion. This task was indispensable to you. From now on, you should not travel away any longer. Your departures not only prevent Xiaoqi from sleeping well but also keep me restless."
He released Zhou Gu and pointed to his own dark circles, "You see, your absence has worried me greatly."
Zhou Gu smiled, "I’ve caused father-in-law concern. Alright, unless it’s a special circumstance, I won’t leave the Royal Capital. Even if I do, I will take you and Xiaoqi with me."
"Exactly," the Nanchu King said with a joyful smile, still very fond of the days when Zhou Gu took him from hiding spot to hiding spot. Those days, although filled with trepidation and excitement, left him with unforgettable memories.
He gestured for Zhou Gu to sit down, "I’ve already had my meal, so you both eat quickly. After eating, hurry to the Zhou Residence, your grandfather, grandmother, and mother are all missing you. Especially the Eldest Princess Shengan, she has been longing for you and has finally waited for your return."
Zhou Gu nodded, "Alright."
He had not seen his family for over a year and naturally missed them deeply.
However, even though he said this, after the meal, Zhou Gu still spent a good while talking with the Nanchu King before he and Su Rong set off for the Zhou Residence.
On the way, Su Rong said with a smile, "Zhou Rui is very cute, he told me he won’t return to Daliang and wants to stay in Nanchu, to keep you company until he grows up."
Zhou Gu: "..."
Was this really good news? He seemed eager to inform him.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
