Chapter 100, 100 Tuan'er.
After shoveling the snow, and with hot water ready in the front yard, Xiao Yu glanced at his wife with reluctance, then picked up Hong Ge'er and went to the front yard.
Luo Fu missed Xiao Yu, but she didn't think of watching him take a bath. She strolled slowly in the corridor with Ping An. Her mood was obviously better than when Xiao Yu wasn't around. Even without Ping An teasing her, Luo Fu knew that she was smiling the whole time.
About 15 minutes later, Xiao Yu reappeared in the corridor, now wearing a royal blue brocade robe with crane patterns, and her long hair was tied up with a jade hairpin.
"Where's Man'er?" Luo Fu looked behind him.
Xiao Yu: "I told him that I was in a hurry to return to the capital and forgot to prepare gifts for Dalang and the others, so I asked Qingchuan to take him to the market to buy some for them."
He missed his son, but he missed his wife even more. He would first find some peace with his wife before spending time with his child.
Lord Xiao, known for his loyalty and integrity, was completely unashamed when he fooled his own child. Luo Fu glared at him, but when Xiao Yu approached and reached out his hand to her, Luo Fu still extended her hand.
Xiao Yu's broad hands were much larger than hers, warm and dry. As Luo Fu followed him inside, she changed her position, supporting the back of Xiao Yu's hand with her left hand and gently stroking the obvious calluses on his palm with her right. She exclaimed in surprise, "You went down to dig the ditch too?"
Xiao Yu explained, "We changed horses all the way back, and the reins got so tight from holding them for too long."
He set off from Pi County, a distance of 1,100 li from the capital. By changing horses at the post stations, he arrived in the capital in just three days. Of course, he could have traveled slowly by horse or carriage. The emperor did not urge him, but Xiao Yu remembered his wife's due date and was afraid of being late in returning.
Luo Fu often went out of the city to ride horses, and she could imagine how tiring it must be to ride a horse all day. After entering the house, she let Xiao Yu lie down on the warm couch in the side room. She went to the inner room to get a comb, then sat on the side of Xiao Yu's head, untied his hair bun and helped him comb his long hair that had just been washed but was not completely dry: "It's cold, it won't dry easily if it's tied up like this."
Xiao Yu lay on his back, staring intently at the lady above him.
Luo Fu ran her fingertip along the stubble that had sprouted on his chin: "Why didn't you ask Chao Sheng to shave you in the front yard just now?"
Xiao Yu: "I'm in a hurry to see Madam."
Luo Fu laughed: "I'll help you with that later. Have you been to the palace before?"
Xiao Yu: "Yes, the Emperor knows you are about to give birth and has granted me permission to rest until after the baby's third-day celebration."
Luo Fu snorted, "This is too little. If you had gone back normally, it would have taken you ten days just to get there. But you came back in three days. If I were to give birth tonight, your leave wouldn't even be enough to cover the seven days you saved."
Xiao Yu: "If Madam gives birth later, at least it will help me earn back those seven days of leave."
Luo Fu reached out to press her lips to his, but as soon as they touched, Xiao Yu's gaze changed, making Luo Fu inexplicably nervous. She withdrew her hand, lowered her eyes, and continued to comb his hair. Xiao Yu, however, had lost his patience. He first pulled his wife's hand away, then knelt up, supporting himself on the couch with one hand and holding his wife's shoulder with the other, and lowered his head to kiss those lips that he had longed for day and night.
The room was heated by an underfloor heating system, but it was freezing cold outside. A layer of white frost flowers had formed on the glass windows, blocking the view of the maids outside.
Ever since Luo Fu was diagnosed with pregnancy in early May, the couple had been keeping abstaining from sex. After a short separation, Xiao Yu became increasingly reluctant to part with Xiao Yu, and Luo Fu also found it difficult to control herself.
Her right hand grasped Xiao Yu's collar, and slowly moved up his long neck.
When Xiao Yu finally managed to lift his head, he saw that the lady before him had flushed cheeks and her eyes were filled with tears, as if she were accusing him of kissing her for too long, or perhaps feeling wronged by his departure. Seeing this, Xiao Yu couldn't help but press down on her again, and Luo Fu cooperated with him time and time again, until her lips began to hurt before she pushed him away.
Xiao Yu lay down, panting, his arms around his wife's waist, his face pressed against her lower abdomen, and he said in a hoarse voice to the child inside, "You have caused your father so much suffering."
Luo Fu calmed down faster than him. Upon hearing this, she tugged at Xiao Yu's ear: "I've thought of a nickname. What do you think of a formal name?"
Xiao Yu nodded, lay flat on his back, and looked at his wife, saying, "Hong means deep and wide water, and Cheng means still and clear water. My brother's name is Hong, and my younger brother and sister can both be named Cheng."
Luo Fu thought to herself that she liked it. It just so happened that Xiao Yu had been busy with canal construction for the past few years. She hoped that the names of the two children would help their father to successfully build a deep, wide and clear north-south canal.
"The nickname I came up with is 'Tuan'er'. It means that I was born around the Lantern Festival. The 'Tuan' in 'Yuanxiao Tuanzi' also means that the family is reunited."
Xiao Yu smiled and said, "The nicknames that Madam has chosen are all excellent."
Luo Fu recalled the past and glared at him: "This time you're not allowed to say anything nonsense in front of the Emperor."
Xiao Yu: "...Another concubine is about to give birth?"
Luo Fu: "...No, Consort Li's fourth prince was born last July, and Consort Liang's third princess was born in the winter. Their nicknames have already been chosen."
Empress Xie was frail and seemed unlikely to have children. She had only given birth to a son and a daughter in nearly twenty years of marriage to Emperor Xianping. However, Emperor Xianping's offspring were clearly very prolific. Consort Li alone had given birth to three princes and princesses. Consorts Lin and Liang, who were not particularly favored, also had a son and a daughter each. The harem was becoming more and more lively.
"By the way, the Empress and the Crown Prince came to my house to comfort me before the New Year. The Crown Prince is getting more and more handsome." Luo Fu praised sincerely. Whether it was her relationship with Empress Xie or Xiao Yu's teacher-student relationship with the Crown Prince, among Emperor Xianping's princes, Luo Fu definitely liked the Crown Prince the most. Moreover, although the Crown Prince had a cold face, he actually had the patience to take care of Hong Ge'er, which was really unexpected.
Xiao Yu didn't say anything, but instead pulled his wife's hand to his face and asked with a complicated look in his eyes, "Have I gotten a tan again?"
Because he was in a hurry to get back, he was exposed to sandstorms for three days straight, so his face must have become rough.
Luo Fu: "..."
The couple lingered for about an hour, and after Hongge returned, the three of them went to Wanhetang for lunch.
Xiao Rong was very concerned about his youngest son's job. Regardless of whether he understood it or not, he asked a lot of questions. In recent years, Xiao Yu's patience with his father had also improved. He answered every question, and the father and son got along quite well. In fact, as long as Xiao Yu did not cause trouble outside, Xiao Rong was always very kind to his young and promising son.
In the evening, Xiao Yu drank two bowls of wine with his two elder brothers. The next day, he took Hong Ge'er to Ganquan Town to deliver holiday gifts to his parents-in-law. After returning, Xiao Yu did not go anywhere else and stayed by his wife's side at all times.
On the fifteenth day of the first lunar month, the couple had just returned from eating glutinous rice balls at Wanhetang when Luo Fu felt she was about to give birth. Even though it was the second time, Xiao Yu's heart tightened immediately, and he quickly invited the doctor and midwife over.
Luo Fu was not a sheltered young lady who never left her home. She often played in the village with a group of girls, which gave her a good physique. After arriving in the capital, she would often go out of the city with the Princess to ride horses or travel around. Despite eating and drinking well, she did not gain much weight. She was very energetic when she was fighting with Xiao Yu. She did not suffer too much when she gave birth to Hong Ge. This time it went even more smoothly. She gave birth to a daughter safely after noon.
My little sister weighed two ounces more than her brother at birth. She had rosy, smooth cheeks and thick baby hair. She was a very lovable little one.
After his younger sister was born, Hongge'er didn't like to cling to his father as much anymore. He would often run to the swaddling clothes to see his sister. Not only did he look, but Hongge'er also remembered all of his father's rules. His older brothers could come to see his sister, but they had to wash their hands before they could touch her face. They could only touch her, not kiss her, and they were not allowed to cough in front of her.
On the day of Tuan'er's full moon celebration, although Empress Xie did not come, Princess Yi'an came to the Marquis's residence with Princess Kangping.
In recent years, Emperor Xianping had given Princess Yi'an several half-brothers and sisters, but Princess Yi'an didn't like any of them. She was only interested in being close to Hong Ge'er, whom she had met a few times. This time, she left the palace not only to deliver gifts to Luo Fu on behalf of her mother, but also to take the opportunity to get some fresh air. No matter how good the palace was, living there year-round felt like being in a cage. Princess Yi'an was hoping to choose a handsome consort after the imperial examinations this spring, so that she could move into the princess's residence that her father had built for her after the wedding.
Even at full moon, Tuan'er was still tiny in Princess Yi'an's eyes. She dared not hold or touch him, and didn't even find the little guy particularly cute.
When Kangping saw this, he teased his niece, saying, "When you were this age, you weren't as good as Tuan'er. You only had a sparse layer of yellow hair on the top of your head. It only started to grow thick after your baby hair was shaved."
Princess Yi'an: "..."
Disliking the crowds, Princess Yi'an asked Ying'er and Zhi'er to accompany her to stroll through the Marquis's garden. The two cousins from the Marquis's mansion were both twelve years old this year, barely enough to be playmates for the seventeen-year-old princess.
Kangping watched the three girls' retreating figures and whispered to Luo Fu, "How time flies!"
She always felt that she was about the same as when she was sixteen or seventeen and had just left the palace. Her love for eating, drinking and having fun had not changed. But the little niece she used to hold had grown into a young woman in the blink of an eye and was about to be married. No matter how much Kangping didn't want to admit it, she realized that she was really getting old.
Luo Fu could understand the princess's feelings very well, because she felt the same way when she looked at her niece, Zhi'er.
"As fast as it may be, Your Highness has never changed in my eyes. You are still as radiant as when I first met you."
Kang Ping liked what he heard, but he couldn't deceive himself. Pointing to the corner of his eye, he said, "You even have fine lines when you smile."
Luo Fu: "Even if she has them, she is still Your Highness. Even the fine lines on Your Highness's face are more precious than those of us mere mortals."
Kang Ping: "..."
.
In mid-March, Xiao Yu was going on another business trip to Pi County to supervise the labor service of the people. He had to ensure that the laborers could rest on time and eat normal grains for three meals a day, and also guard against common problems such as laborers filling in the numbers, impersonating others when receiving meals, or officials embezzling grains for their own pockets.
On the eve of their departure, Xiao Yu held his daughter and told Hong Ge'er a long, long story. After the two siblings went back to their room to sleep, Xiao Yu picked up his wife and took her to the inner room, where they lingered until the third watch of the night, unwilling to stop.
Luo Fu felt weak all over, both reluctant to part with him and annoyed by his tireless pace: "You're like a starving ghost reincarnated. You'll be back next month. Is it really necessary? Lord Xu and Lord Chen have been guarding the canal year-round. Aren't they suffering even more?"
Xiao Yu: "They're almost sixty, and you're comparing me to them?"
After saying this, Xiao Yu felt that his words were not respectful enough to the two old ministers, so he lowered his head and covered his wife's mouth again.
After a sticky, lingering night, Xiao Yu prepared to leave before dawn the next day, not daring to wait for the children to wake up, otherwise, if Hong Ge'er cried, Xiao Yu would feel even worse.
"wait for me."
Outside Shensi Hall, Xiao Yu took a few steps and then turned back, embracing his wife.
Luo Fu wrapped her arms around his waist and gave him a lot of advice, especially warning Xiao Yu not to rush back so quickly, or his body wouldn't be able to handle it.
As for whether to wait or not, she didn't run away when she was demoted, and now that she has two children, where can she run to?
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Author's Note: Ahem, the next chapter will be using the time-manipulation technique again! [doge]
100 little red envelopes, see you tomorrow~
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