When Chu Qiao and the others entered the side hall of Anyuan Temple, her cheeks couldn't help but turn slightly red, and Jingjing and the others laughed. Only Xiao Fei kowtowed seriously, then turned around and glared at the group of disrespectful youngsters.
The hall was filled with the lingering scent of incense and was solemn. The statue of Guanyin, the Goddess of Childbirth, was sitting on the Buddhist temple with a kind look. The midday light shone in from outside the hall, penetrating through layers of fine incense ash and sprinkling on the empty hall.
Zhuge Yue's voice was right beside his ear, with a mellow warmth and smile, he whispered: "Pray to the Buddha with sincerity."
Chu Qiao turned around and saw that his eyes were bright and he was looking at her with a smile, with some seriousness, yet a bit of childish playfulness.
She turned around with a smile, knelt down calmly, clasped her hands together, silently recited the wish that millions of women had made, then supported her hands on the cushion and bowed sincerely.
A bow prays for good health, good luck in everything and good fortune in all.
Bow twice, please bless us to stay together in peace and never be separated again.
Bow three times, praying that our wish will come true and that we can have a healthy child.
She bowed down again and again, so devoutly, with an unprecedented satisfaction and peace on her face.
Bodhisattva, you have blessed so many people, now, please bless me once.
Jingjing, Ping'an and others were laughing and joking in the back while Xiaofei was trying to persuade them earnestly to respect the gods. Yue Qi, He Xiao and others were standing outside chatting and talking about the embarrassing incident of a second lieutenant from a certain battalion or army who was caught by his wife in a brothel and beaten in the street. All the guards laughed out loud.
The weather in late autumn was a little chilly, and the sky was high. She knelt there, looking up at the gods above. She felt that life was peaceful and good. The bloody memories of the past were long gone. Her state of mind had never been as peaceful and tranquil as it was today.
Zhuge Yue helped her up, gently wrapped his arms around her waist, and kissed her forehead with his cold lips, and then chuckled.
Jingjing was sharp-eyed. She grabbed Xiaofei and kept shouting, "Sister-in-law, look! My sister and brother-in-law are the ones who are blaspheming God!"
Everyone laughed quietly after hearing this, but Zhuge Yue didn't care at all. Chu Qiao's cheeks flushed slightly, and she gently pulled away from his embrace, but her hands tightly grasped his arms from below and would not let go.
“Would you like to stay on the mountain and eat vegetarian food?” Zhuge Yue asked.
Before Chu Qiao could reply, she saw Ping An winking at her. She understood and said, "Let's go down the mountain. We are all carnivores. We should not force ourselves to be cultured."
Ping An heard this and immediately ran forward with a beaming face, telling Zhuge Yue how delicious a certain dish in Deyue Tower was, with Jing Jing also echoing his words. Zhuge Yue slapped Ping An on the head with a slap, jokingly scolded him as “stinky boy”, and led everyone out of the solemn Buddhist temple.
After donating a lot of money, the temple prepared a quiet courtyard for them. Yue Qi and the others went to prepare the carriages and horses, leaving only Zhuge Yue and Chu Qiao sitting among the maple leaves, chatting and drinking tea.
Xiao Fei became restless after sitting for a while. Chu Qiao thought she wanted to urinate but was too embarrassed to say it, so she pulled her to the side yard. Unexpectedly, her face turned red, and she thought for a long time before saying that there was a fortune teller in the Temple of Guanyin, who was very accurate in fortune telling and sold magical pills. She had two children, both because of the magic pills sold by the fortune teller. But Yueqi and the young master didn't believe it, so this time they could only buy it secretly.
Chu Qiao naturally didn't believe it. She thought to herself, your pregnancy and childbirth were all thanks to Yue Qi. What does it have to do with a street fortune teller? But seeing how earnest she was in her words, he could not bear to refuse, so he said hello to Zhuge Yue and accompanied her to the fortune-telling stall on the Maple Forest Road outside the main hall.
The fortune teller had white hair and beard, was thin and aloof, and looked somewhat like an immortal. When he saw Chu Qiao, he immediately said that she was a wealthy and powerful person, but had many entanglements in her life. As long as she was sincere in devotion to Buddha, she would be able to avoid disasters. Xiao Fei nodded repeatedly and kept blinking at Chu Qiao, as if to say: Look, how effective this gentleman is.
Chu Qiao knew that this was what all fortune tellers would say. Everyone has a few worries in their life. As for becoming rich and powerful, one could guess it almost exactly by just looking at what the two girls were wearing.
Xiao Fei sat in front of the stall, drawing lots to predict good and bad luck, and was very busy. Chu Qiao was standing there bored, when she suddenly saw a very familiar figure flash by in the distance and was stunned.
After a while, she lowered her head to give Xiao Fei some instructions, then quietly followed.
In the blink of an eye, six years have passed.
Amidst the beautiful red maples, he was wearing a white shirt, looking plain and simple, without the high spirits he had that day. When the autumn wind blows, a sleeve flutters lightly, like willow catkins without branches, floating softly.
"Your Highness, would you like some water?" An attendant of about eighteen or nineteen years old came forward with a cold voice. Although she was dressed in men's clothes, it could be told that she was a young girl. However, her back was facing Chu Qiao, so her face could not be seen clearly.
Zhao Song turned around, and his cheeks, which used to be slightly chubby due to his carefree life, were now as thin as a knife. Although his posture was still upright, he showed some signs of fatigue and thinness. His eyes no longer had the former spirit, and were as calm as a century-old well. He was only in his early twenties, but his temples were already gray.
He shook his head and said calmly, "I want to take a walk alone."
The girl didn't move at all, just lowered her head slightly, holding the water bag in her hand. The breeze blew across her face, bringing with it a faint sense of inexplicable familiarity. She suddenly raised her head, looked at Zhao Song, and asked steadily, "Your Highness, are you waiting for someone?"
Zhao Song looked slightly unhappy and frowned, "What did you say?"
"Your Highness, how long has it been since you left the house? Why are you so interested today?"
Zhao Song's eyes became more and more unhappy. He looked at her deeply, then turned and left. The girl was startled, and hurriedly chased after him, grabbed his sleeve, and said sadly: "Your Highness, have you forgotten what the Fourteenth Prince said?"
Zhao Song was pulled by her sleeve and slowly turned his head. His eyes were like a deep pool, staring deeply at the girl in men's clothing, and he said in a deep voice: "Wuxin, not everyone in this world owes you. Isn't your hatred too long?" After that, he turned around and disappeared into the layers of maple forest.
The girl stood there blankly with her back to Chu Qiao. Her back was swaying, her hair was as black as willows, and her body was so thin that it seemed like a gust of wind could blow her away. The lingering loneliness and solitude slowly flowed from her fingertips, drifting through the woods layer by layer. She stood there silently for a long time. Finally, she wiped her cheek with her sleeve, as if wiping off something, and raised her foot to chase in the direction Zhao Song left.
Birds are flying and chirping in the woods. Vaguely, Chu Qiao seemed to see him many years ago, wearing a royal blue robe with colorful birds embroidered on it, which was gorgeous and colorful. He swung a golden whip in his hand and said to her proudly, "You are the most pleasing to my eyes among all the maids in this mansion. How about I make you my gatekeeper general?"
A gust of wind blew, and she suddenly felt so cold.
Xiao Fei's voice was getting closer. She came to her senses and went back hand in hand with her good mother who was still unsatisfied after giving birth to two children.
After walking around for most of the day, everyone was a little tired, so they took a carriage to go down the mountain. The carriage was swaying as it moved along. Seeing that she was not in high spirits, Zhuge Yue frowned and asked her if she was tired. Chu Qiao nodded and said yes, leaning on his shoulder, closing her eyes drowsily, but she couldn't fall asleep.
Zhuge Yue held her hand, which felt cold. He couldn't help but feel a little worried, so he told Yue Qi to hurry up.
"Zhao Che will be getting married in a few days." Chu Qiao was stunned and raised her head slightly. Zhuge Yue smiled and said, "He has been unlucky these years and is almost a bachelor. You don't know the bride, but you will probably like her. She is the youngest daughter of the leader of the Donghu. Her name is Wanyan Rou. Although her name contains the word "rou", she is not gentle at all. She is a crazy and arrogant girl, but she is simple and kind-hearted. When she arrives in Beijing, I will take you to meet her."
Chu Qiao nodded, and remembered something, but she didn't say it in the end.
After the autumn festival, the weather started to get colder. The lake was frozen and a heavy snow fell. The sky and the earth were covered in white. The house was warm all day long and people became lazy.
These days, the Sima Mansion was bustling with people, and Zhuge Yue seemed to be particularly busy. Even Yue Qi had not been seen for a long time. Xiao Fei said that Yue Qi was sent out by Zhuge Yue to do an errand and had been gone for seven or eight days.
That night, Chu Qiao asked Zhuge Yue a question unintentionally, but he pretended to be mysterious and did not answer, but just said that he wanted to give her a surprise.
The surprise came quickly. Three days later, Sun Di sent someone from Bian Tang to bring her a private letter and official documents from the palace.
It turned out that Zhuge Yue, the military commander of Daxia, had sent people to Bian Tang to propose marriage to Bian Tang's Princess Xiu Li. The first batch of betrothal gifts and gifts had already been delivered to the Bian Tang Palace.
When Chu Qiao received the news, Zhuge Yue was lying on the bed, still not getting up. He was wearing a translucent white satin nightgown. He supported his head with one hand and glanced at her sideways, with a half-smile on his face and a lazy look.
Chu Qiao walked up to him, spread out the letter, and asked, "What's going on?"
Zhuge Yue said calmly, “What’s going on? Men should get married when they are old enough and women should get married when they are old enough. This is only natural.”
Chu Qiao frowned, "But my identity is embarrassing after all. With your current status, aren't you afraid of criticism from the court?"
Zhuge Yue smiled faintly and said with disdain, “I, Zhuge Yue, am getting married, so what does it have to do with me what others say?”
It was like a hot water bottle was punctured, and the warm water flowed into her heart, and her smile couldn't help but flow out slowly. She squatted down, rested her head on his legs, and lay there motionless.
Zhuge Yue sat up and embraced her, leaning down to rub her hair with his chin, and whispered: "I have thought about this for so many years, how can I let you enter my house quietly like this? I must announce to the world, tell everyone, that you are mine."
The days that followed suddenly became busy. Chu Qiao had no idea what means and methods Zhuge Yue used to make the entire upper class of Zhenhuang seem to have lost their memories overnight. No one remembered that she had helped Yan Xun escape from Zhenhuang, no one remembered that she had crushed Daxia's Northern Expedition twice, and no one even remembered that she had personally killed Daxia's third prince Zhao Qi.
In recent days, noble ladies from various aristocratic families have come to visit one after another, and various rare gifts have been sent to the Sima Mansion. Even some royal ministers who are not close to Zhuge Yue and Zhao Che have sent gifts to save their faces.
On the third day of the twelfth month, news suddenly came out from Shengjin Palace that the Emperor was critically ill and urgently summoned Zhuge Yue to the palace to attend to him.
It stands to reason that when the emperor is seriously ill, he should not summon any ministers into the palace to attend to him, except for the princes and the crown princes. However, the emperor was dying and no one knew what would happen next. Lord Mu of Lingnan and princes from various regions have submitted petitions to enter the palace. It would be unwise to leave Zhao Che alone in the palace at this time. Given the situation, Zhuge Yue had no choice but to submit a petition. The Emperor was ill so he had no objection. Zhao Yang and the others were also worried about letting Zhuge Yue enjoy himself outside at this time, so Shengjin Palace was bustling with activity for a while, and all the forces of Daxia gathered there.
However, on the very night when the leaders of various parties entered the palace, the Donghu army stationed in the west of the city started a battle with the guards brought by Young Master Mu. No one knows the specific reason, but when Chu Qiao was woken up, the entire western sky was red, and the shouting and killing were deafening. The messengers from all over the country who came to the palace to report the news were all blocked outside the palace gate. It was obvious that someone was deliberately condoning it.