Yu Yao put her things down and followed Lu Ze out the door.
Lu Ze was carrying a bamboo basket on his back, the contents of which were completely covered up, making it seem very mysterious. He also said that he couldn't show it to her yet.
Yu Yao looked at the setting sun on the horizon. Were they going up the mountain?
Judging from the direction Lu Ze went, he was heading towards the Swallow's Nest Cave.
The swallows have all gone back to their nests at this time, so it's not a good time to harvest bird's nests. What is Lu Ze taking her there for?
And so, the two arrived at the cave where the swallow's nest had been found. However, Lu Ze did not stop, but continued to walk eastward, passing through a rock wall.
"Ah Yao, we've arrived."
"Where is this..." Yu Yao's voice stopped abruptly, stunned by the scene before her.
What appeared before Yu Yao was a valley filled with wildflowers of various colors. Red, yellow, pink, and orange flowers bloomed in the emerald green valley, creating a flower carpet across the river.
The valley is filled with mist, and you can see colorful butterflies fluttering around. The valley is very quiet, with only occasional bird calls and the trickling river, like a fairyland.
Even if it's not a fairyland, it's still the idyllic paradise described by Tao Yuanming.
In the middle of the valley, there were indeed two tall peach trees. It was already late June, and while the peach trees on other parts of the island were just beginning to bear unripe, finger-sized peaches, the peaches on these two trees were already pink and juicy.
If it weren't for the smell of sulfur in the air, Yu Yao would have truly thought she was in a fairyland.
Lu Ze's voice rang in her ear, "Do you like this gift?"
"I love it, it's so beautiful here." Yu Yao was immersed in the beautiful scenery before her, feeling relaxed and comfortable. After a moment, she realized what was happening and asked with a puzzled look in her eyes, "You just said this was... a gift?"
Lu Ze looked at her and said, "Yes, it's a birthday present."
Birthday?
Yu Yao hesitated: "Isn't my birthday still a while away?"
She stopped abruptly as soon as she finished speaking.
This body's birthday is indeed some time away, but Yu Yao's birthday is today.
Lu Ze was referring to her birthday before she transmigrated into the book, which was her real birthday.
To explain why she knew Song Yiming wasn't dead, she had told Lu Ze about transmigrating into the book, and had mentioned his birthday at the time.
Unexpectedly, during their argument, Lu Ze not only remembered it but also secretly prepared a surprise for her.
Yu Yao's eyes were a little moist.
"Silly girl, why are you crying?" Lu Ze hurriedly wiped away his wife's tears, his eyes full of heartache. "Did the sulfur fumes get into your eyes? We're downwind here, if we go a little further in, it won't be so strong."
Yu Yao shook her head. "No, it wasn't from the sulfur fumigation, it was from being moved."
After her parents passed away, she stopped celebrating her birthday. At first, she couldn't afford it, but later, when she could, she got used to it and stopped taking it seriously.
She thought birthdays were just a ritual, and it didn't matter whether she celebrated them or not. It wasn't until Lu Ze celebrated her birthday that she realized that besides the ritual, a birthday is also a way for someone to feel loved.
Someone cares about you, someone loves you, someone celebrates your birth.
Her peach blossom eyes were like a clear spring, which made Lu Ze melt into tenderness. He reached out and pulled his lover into his arms, kissing her forehead. "Silly girl, I will celebrate your birthday every year from now on."
Yu Yao nestled in his arms and gave a muffled "hmm".
"Let's go inside and take a look. There are several hot spring pools under the peach trees."
Lu Ze led the way, and Yu Yao followed the tracks he had cleared, without worrying about getting caught on branches or weeds.
Under the peach tree, there are three hot spring pools, steaming, and the rising steam is the source of the misty clouds in the valley.
Two of the three hot spring pools were very hot, while the remaining one was not very hot. When you put your hand in, the temperature was just right, warm but slightly hot.
"The temperature is just right; it's a great place to soak in a hot spring."
Lu Ze encouraged, "Why don't you go down and give it a try?"
Yu Yao was eager to try it, but then she shook her head, thinking of something. "I came in a hurry this time and didn't bring any change of clothes. I'll come back for a bath next time when I'm ready."
Although there was no one in the valley, it was still open-air, and she felt a little embarrassed to go down without any clothes on.
"I brought a change of clothes." Lu Ze took out a change of clothes from his backpack.
Yu Yao and Lu Ze, dressed in light clothing, went down into the hot spring pool.
The hot spring pool is filled with running water, which flows from the hot spring vent and meanders through the valley along a small ditch beside the pool.
It is precisely because of this ditch that the temperature inside the ditch is higher than outside.
It's a bit hot in the summer, but in the winter, it becomes a resort paradise.
The hot spring pool wasn't deep; it only reached their necks when they sat there, making it very comfortable to run around in.
Yu Yao leaned against Lu Ze's chest for a while, her cheeks flushed, and fine beads of sweat appeared on her forehead. She felt extremely comfortable from every cell to every pore.
The fatigue that had accumulated in my body recently was relieved by soaking in this hot spring water.
Pregnant women shouldn't soak for too long, because Yu Yao only tried it for a short while before Lu Ze urged her to go upstairs.
After changing her clothes, Yu Yao looked at the bubbling hot spring pool next to her and licked her lips.
"It would be great if we had eggs; soft-boiled eggs taste really good."
Upon hearing this, Lu Ze said, "Eggs? I brought some, wait for me."
He turned and walked to the basket on his back, taking out four or five eggs. "Is this enough?"
Yu Yao was delighted, "That's enough, that's enough."
Her gaze fell on the basket on his back, a hint of curiosity flashing in her eyes. Just how much had Lu Ze prepared?
Besides a change of clothes, the backpack also contained three aluminum lunch boxes, four or five eggs, a chicken, and several lotus leaves.
Yu Yao was extremely surprised, "How did you come up with the idea of preparing all this?"
Lu Ze said, "I asked the quartermaster and Qin Ye. They told me."
So that's how it is. She had been saying that Lu Ze had never even been in a relationship, so how could he be so well-prepared for a trip?
Having eggs isn't enough. This hot spring pool is so big, we can't just throw the eggs in to boil, can we?
“I have a way,” Lu Ze said, picking up a few unknown wild grasses from the side.
With a flick of his fingers, each egg was soon covered with a layer of woven grass netting and a long tail.
The grass was tied end to end, with one end attached to a stone next to the hot spring pool, and the other end containing the egg soaking perfectly in the hot spring pool.
They then used the same method to put the lotus leaf chicken into the hot spring pool with the highest temperature.
Yu Yao watched from the side, her eyes shining as she looked at Lu Ze. "Commander Lu, you're a real treasure. How could I have such good taste to meet such a wonderful husband like you?"
Lu Ze's lips curled slightly, and he looked at Yu Yao with a smile in his eyes: "Speak, what do you want me to do?"
Yu Yao looked at the peaches on the peach tree next to her and said, "Commander Lu, I want to eat peaches."
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