Ten months later
The annual Lantern Festival.
As far as the eye can see, shops on both sides of the street are adorned with colorful lanterns, and there are dragon and lion dances and theatrical performances, making the place lively and bustling.
The Prime Minister's residence in Kyoto, with its upturned eaves and green tiles, exudes both exquisite elegance and grandeur. At this moment, it is bustling with guests.
The current Grand Secretary and Princess Huguo are overjoyed to have twin sons, and today marks the one-month celebration for the two little ones.
Yes, Gu Nanjiao has given birth to twins again, this time two sons. At less than 25 years old, she already has two sons and two daughters, a total of four children.
Now they not only have padded jackets, but also leather jackets.
Everyone envied their good fortune, saying that the current prime minister was blessed because the princess was incredibly fertile, giving birth to two sets of twins in one go.
On what should have been a lively and joyous day, Gu Nanjiao was extremely depressed.
Two adults and two children were keeping her head spinning. She deeply regretted having so many children.
Lu Yanzhao glanced at her cautiously and felt a pang of heartache upon seeing her listless expression.
The current Grand Secretary doesn't go outside to greet guests; instead, he stays in the inner room and gently coaxes his wife.
"My wife, I was really wrong. Next time I promise I'll use a condom the whole time and I won't try anything funny. If I swear this, may I be struck by lightning."
Gu Nanjiao rolled her eyes. Men's words are deceitful; only a fool would believe him.
Lu Yanzhao truly dared not let her have any more children. Their previous contraceptive attempt had failed, resulting in her becoming pregnant with twins. Those two little devils were quite a handful for their mother, enduring a full day and night of labor before finally being born. He, too, had spent a day and a night in fear and anxiety.
From that moment on, he vowed that he would never let Gu Nanjiao have another child. Now that his life was complete, with both a son and a daughter, he would definitely control his desires and never allow a fifth child to be born.
He bent down and looked at the two little ones in the cradle who looked exactly like him. He warned them in a low voice, "Tell you two not to bother your mother anymore. She has already worked hard enough. When you grow up, you are not allowed to take things from your sister. You must protect your sister, understand?"
As soon as he finished speaking, the two babies seemed to understand him, shaking their little arms and babbling excitedly.
Daya and Erya pushed open the door and came in. They came to their younger brother and couldn't help but reach out and touch the little dumpling's face.
Daya said, "Grandma said that the older brother's nickname will be Gousheng, and the younger brother's nickname will be Goudan, so that they can be raised easily."
Lu Yanzhao's face darkened: "Your grandma really dares to say anything. My brothers will never call her that."
Daya disagreed: "This name is what Daddy used to call us when he was a child. Now we're using it for my younger brothers, so why can't it be?"
Er Ya chimed in from the side: "That's right. Grandma said that Daddy was called Gou Sheng when he was little. Every time she called 'Gou Sheng' to come eat, Daddy would run over happily."
"Pfft—" Gu Nanjiao couldn't help but laugh out loud. She couldn't help but think of how Lu's mother called Lu Yanzhao "Gou Sheng" when he was a child. Such a refined and elegant prime minister was actually called Gou Sheng when he was a child.
However, the older generation believes that giving a child a humble name makes them easier to raise. Although Lu's mother has moved to the capital, she still holds onto the old ideas of Toad Village and finds it difficult to change them in a short time.
Lu Yanzhao's face was so dark it could drip thick ink: "From now on, you are not allowed to mention the name Gousheng, and your younger brothers are not allowed to be called by that name either."
When the two little ones heard Lu Yanzhao speak, they seemed to understand and waved their little arms again, as if to tell everyone that their father was right and they didn't like the names Gousheng and Goudan either.
...
Lu Yanzhao carried his two sons to meet the guests, and wherever he went, he was met with the fawning voices of civil and military officials.
"The Grand Secretary is so powerful and accomplished, winning two awards in one fell swoop. He is truly the envy of everyone."
"Isn't that right? Two sons and two daughters, all twins. I must say, the Prime Minister is extraordinary. Hahaha, what a blessing! What a blessing!"
"Congratulations to the Grand Secretary and Princess Huguo on the birth of two sons! You are blessed with both a son and a daughter, and your happiness is boundless."
Bai Luochen walked over with his son, handed over the congratulatory gifts for the two little ones, and then leaned close to Lu Yanzhao's ear, asking with a hint of envy, "You managed to grow two this time, do you have any tips? Teach me!"
Since he married Zhou Yu, apart from giving birth to a son, Zhou Yu's belly has not shown any signs of pregnancy.
He was getting anxious. He was working on Zhou Yu day and night, but she just couldn't get pregnant.
He also longed for a sweet and caring daughter, and for both a son and a daughter. Look at Lu Yanzhao's two daughters, so pretty, so well-behaved and adorable, unlike his own little troublemaker who's always causing a ruckus.
Lu Yanzhao beckoned to Bai Luochen and lowered his voice: "What other way is there? Just be more diligent."
She paused for a moment and then said, "But my two sons were purely accidental. I really didn't plan to have any more children. Who knew I would get pregnant like this? Maybe I'm just too strong." After saying that, she patted Bai Luochen's shoulder and said earnestly, "Your body isn't strong enough. You need to exercise more."
Bai Luochen "..."
Was he just looking for trouble today? If he had known Lu Yanzhao wouldn't say anything nice, he wouldn't have asked him.
...
After the banquet, Bai Luochen rushed back to his residence without stopping. After leaving his son with his parents, he dragged Zhou Yu directly into the room.
"What are you doing? In broad daylight, why are you taking off my clothes?" Zhou Yu quickly pushed him away. What was wrong with Bai Luochen? She was exhausted after the banquet and hadn't even had a sip of tea before this man carried her to the bed.
"I want to have a daughter, Zhou Yu, please give me a daughter."
"Give birth my ass!" Upon hearing that she was going to have a child, Zhou Yu was immediately enraged: "You weren't the one who carried the baby for ten months, you weren't the one who suffered from morning sickness for three months, you weren't the one who was lying in bed in excruciating pain, and you keep asking me to have your baby? You have no shame! I'm not having a baby. If you really want a daughter, I'll arrange a few concubines for you, and you can have the baby with them."
Seeing that Zhou Yu was angry, Bai Luochen had no choice but to surrender: "Okay, okay, we won't have any more children. Don't give me any more concubines. One is enough for you. If there are a few more women, I'm afraid I'll lose my life from all the chatter."
...
After the full moon celebration, looking at the gifts piled up in the yard, Gu Nanjiao had a headache: "The warehouse at home is overflowing, what should we do with all this stuff?"
In recent years, he has made a fortune, and with the rewards from the new emperor and the empress dowager, his small warehouse is almost overflowing. Now, for his son's full-month celebration, all the civil and military officials have sent their congratulatory gifts, and even His Majesty the Emperor has sent a pair of jade longevity locks.
Even a pair of jade longevity locks, bestowed by the emperor himself, could be worth a fortune. It must be said that after ascending the throne, Prince Cheng was indeed more capable than his father in governing the country.
At the very least, he adhered to one principle: if you doubt someone, don't use them; if you use someone, don't doubt them.
The greatest taboo between a ruler and his ministers is mutual suspicion, but the new emperor and Lu Yanzhao opened their hearts to each other, cherished talent, and never harbored suspicions about their ministers' outstanding abilities.
I believe he will be a great emperor whose name will be remembered for all time.
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