Su Yushan was on the verge of tears. She had gone to such lengths to praise him, yet she still couldn't escape this fate. If she had known this would happen, why had she praised him at all? Since the punishment and reward were the same anyway, why should she struggle?
Realizing this, Su Yushan stopped flattering him.
That evening, Hongli really did put in extra effort, even skipping his studies and going to his tent early, which surprised Su Yushan.
"Why aren't you reading? Are you too tired from today's busy court affairs?"
He wasn't particularly busy today, but when she said that, he readily agreed, groaning, "You bet! My shoulders are aching from being so busy." As he spoke, he casually lay down on the pillow. Su Yushan had already guessed his intention; he probably wanted her to massage them.
But if she sat sideways next to him and twisted her body to massage him, it wouldn't feel right, so she straddled his lower back and massaged his shoulders.
Her soft knuckles pressed lightly and heavily on his shoulder. Sometimes she would raise her hand and lightly chop up and down like the back of a knife, and sometimes she would clench her fist and pound it rapidly.
With his head resting on his arm, Hongli felt a mix of pain, soreness, and numbness, but mostly he felt a sense of comfort as his muscles and bones stretched.
After massaging for a while, her arms became a little sore and numb, so she rolled over to rest. Suddenly, he covered her completely in the tent!
Su Yushan was caught off guard. When she looked up, she saw him smiling maliciously. "Tired? Now I'll serve you."
Su Yushan quickly shook her head, "I'm not tired! I don't need to be served, thank you!"
She tried to get up, but he held her down, preventing her from moving. "It's only fair, you help me massage, so I have to help you too, right?"
"There's no need for that!" She didn't believe he would honestly help her.
As it turned out, Yu Shan's premonition was quite accurate. She had been diligently massaging him, but he was being very restless. While she was massaging his shoulders, his hand slipped to the side, pretending to casually pick candy from the snow-capped mountains. Su Yu Shan gave him a disapproving glare.
"You're being naughty again!"
"If I were truly honest, wouldn't you suspect I have a problem?"
She disagreed, "When have I ever doubted you?"
Hongli calmly retorted, "You didn't say it, but that's what you were thinking."
You're bragging again! How do you know what I'm thinking?
"You don't believe me? I can guess what you're thinking right now."
"Take a guess," Su Yushan insisted, refusing to believe it was a joke. Hongli seized the opportunity to negotiate, "Is there a prize for guessing correctly?"
"Of course there is, guess!"
Isn't that simple? Hongli could guess what she was thinking right away. "I bet you're thinking... about me going down to sleep on the couch?"
Yu Shan had intended to deny whatever he said, but his guess was too accurate, and she was too embarrassed to deny it. "It seems you are quite self-aware!"
"I told you I could guess right, didn't I? I want a reward!" Before he finished speaking, his lips were already on her cheek, giving her a gentle kiss.
By the time she realized what was happening, he had already stood up, smiling smugly.
Su Yushan sighed inwardly, realizing she had fallen for his trick again. She could never win an argument with him; it was truly a miscalculation!
He was determined to make a good impression and win her over. Su Yushan had no choice but to respond openly.
Just as the two were lost in their passion, she suddenly remembered something and couldn't help but remind them, "Hey---these days are a bit dangerous, so you should be careful."
Suddenly interrupted, Hongli hugged her even tighter in displeasure, "I've always been very careful!"
Su Yushan gave a disgruntled snort, "You're being careful? How did Yongrong get here?"
The first three children were a decision made by the couple, but at the time Yu-shan's health was not very good, and no one could say for sure when she would get pregnant; it was all by chance.
After giving birth to three children, Yu Shan mentioned to him once that she didn't want to have any more children. However, Hong Li took it as a casual remark and didn't pay much attention. That's how Yong Rong was born.
Now that they have four children, Yu Shan is thirty-three years old. She really doesn't want to have any more babies, so she seriously discussed it with Hong Li. Hong Li also doesn't want her to suffer anymore, so he is very careful to prevent her from getting pregnant again.
"I'll be careful, you need to concentrate."
To prevent her from getting distracted, Hongli gave her a hard pinch as punishment. Su Yushan cried out softly and lightly punched him.
Unbeknownst to her, rain began to fall outside the window, its sound growing louder and drowning out the whispers within the tent. No longer afraid of being overheard, her voice grew even more melodious…
Since that day, Su Mingfeng had not mentioned his daughter's marriage again, so Zhang thought he had agreed and that the marriage was settled. She was just waiting for the emperor to bestow a marriage upon her daughter, and she even told her family about it.
Since the Imperial Noble Consort had spoken, it was unlikely to be false. Zhang Tingyu took it seriously and secretly rejoiced. He thought that as long as his granddaughter married the First Prince, the Zhang family's descendants should be able to live a good life after his death.
The Zhang father and daughter were full of anticipation, but what they received was the news that Su Tang had been rejected during the second round of selection!
Zhang found it hard to believe; something felt off. According to the rules, marriages were usually bestowed during the palace selection process. If one failed the second selection, then the bestowal of marriage was out of the question!
Upon seeing her daughter return home, Zhang was extremely anxious and hurriedly asked her what had happened.
"Where exactly did things go wrong? Did you perform poorly during the second round?"
Su Tang shook her head. "My daughter's behavior is normal; there's nothing wrong with it."
"Then why would she drop the sign?" The more Zhang thought about it, the more suspicious she became. She asked her again, "Have you seen your aunt? Did she say anything to you?"
Su Tang truthfully replied, "My aunt advised me not to be sad, saying that I am a good girl and will surely find a good match in the future."
Judging from the Imperial Noble Consort's tone, she seemed to know beforehand that Su Tang would be rejected, but she had clearly said before that the Emperor intended to marry Su Tang to the First Prince!
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