Sun and Moon Shining Together
As the first snow fell, Wu Zetian was in her bedchamber organizing the traces left over the years.
Next to the faded canal transport map is an acupuncture point diagram drawn by Li Zhi himself.
The paint on the boat model used for Taiping's first birthday celebration is already faded, and it is displayed side by side with the "Strategies for Governing the Country" written when Prince Hong began his education.
Her fingertips traced a stack of yellowed pages—the top one being the groundbreaking "Decentralized Solution" from their first encounter at Ganye Temple, and the bottom one being the "Ten-Year Plan for the New Canal Transport Policy" submitted by Prince Hong yesterday.
"Your Majesty," Li Zhi's voice came from behind him as he picked up the canal sketch, "do you know why I kept your memorial all those years ago?"
She turned around and saw him lightly touch a smudged area of ink on the sketch with his fingertip: "Here, there's a tear stain. That day, I was thinking about how to prevent the woman who painted this picture from shedding tears again."
(OS: So he even knew I was secretly crying! Wait... so that's why he took me out of Ganye Temple?)
The snowlight reflected off the newly placed Sun and Moon Seals on the desk. Li Zhi suddenly took out a vermilion brush and inscribed words on the blank space of the Grand Canal map.
His wrist strength remained as steady as ever, but the trembling he displayed on that autumn night in the sixth year of the Yonghui era, when he was ill and could not even hold the medicine bowl steadily, was gone. The eight characters "Sun and Moon Soar in the Sky, Shining Through the Ages" leaped onto the paper, exactly the same as the two characters "Approved" that were written on the first page of the "PPT" back then.
"Your Majesty's handwriting..." Wu Meiniang chuckled, "is even more spirited than when you approved Cheng Wuting's memorial requesting funds three years ago."
He took her hand and together they held the vermilion brush, adding the character "媚" (charming/alluring) next to the character "月" (moon).
This gesture reminded her of the first year of the Xianqing era, when he held her hand in the same way and they signed the "Wind Disease Rehabilitation Program" together.
"History books should record everything: Wu Zetian's reign and Li Zhi's empire."
(OS: Wow, they've directly added the couple's names to the history! This is even more amazing than when I made PowerPoint presentations back in the day!)
The clear, melodious sound of Taiping reciting could be heard from outside the window.
The little princess was teaching the Book of Songs to princes from various countries in a plum grove, when snowflakes fell on the twin plum trees that he had planted himself years ago.
Crown Prince Hong supervised the young Tibetan prince from the corridor, occasionally correcting his pronunciation—just as patiently as Emperor Gaozong had been when he taught him to read the Analects.
"Meiniang," Li Zhi rested his chin gently on the top of her head, "when I took Taiping to the Imperial Academy yesterday, she was able to name three new post stations on the Persian trade route."
His breath brushed against her ear, as warm as the words "Come home with me" he uttered on that rainy night at Ganye Temple.
Wu Meiniang looked at her daughter laughing in the plum grove and suddenly remembered the "Ode to the Sun and Moon Shining Together" that she had seen in the Stele Forest before she traveled through time.
The inscription on the stone tablet reads "Respectfully written by Princess Li Taiping, the Princess of Zhenguo," while the back of the tablet is engraved with the annotations of Crown Prince Hong.
(OS: So did we create history, or was history supposed to be this way?)
On New Year's Eve, while staying up late, Wu Zetian took out her treasured sandalwood box.
The old wooden hairpin from Ganye Temple is placed side by side with the Sun and Moon Seals in the box, with the "Ode to a Prosperous Age" presented by Prince Hong yesterday underneath.
The poem reads: "The father governs the mountains and rivers, the mother manages the warp and weft, the sister is knowledgeable about the past and present, and the brother guards the foundation; this is what is meant by the sun and moon shining together." This reminded her of the way Li Xiangang, when he was just learning to walk, wobbled and handed a rattle drum to his younger sister.
As fireworks lit up the sky above Taiji Palace, Li Zhi draped the same sable fur coat over his wife and daughter.
The lining of the mink coat was embroidered with a peace charm that she had secretly sewed during the worst period of his illness in the third year of Xianqing's reign.
The three figures were reflected on the snow, overlapping with the "Peace and Prosperity Throughout the World" painting hanging inside the hall.
The picture shows a canal boat with sails unfurled, a primary school filled with the sound of students reciting their lessons, and a bustling market on the border—this is the world they created together over ten years.
(OS: From the orphan girl at Ganye Temple to the sun and moon shining together, this path was worthwhile. If I could really travel back in time, I would tell Li Wei, who was crying in front of the PowerPoint presentation—don't be afraid, you will have the whole world.)
As the historian was finishing the final volume of the "Records of the Sun and Moon," he suddenly noticed the paper kite that Princess Zhenguo had placed on the corner of her desk.
The ink on the plain silk was still wet: "Father, Mother, and Brother, may you be safe and sound forever."
He recalled the Crown Prince's words yesterday when he was overseeing the state: "The way to govern the world is to value family ties above all else." Finally, he added a red annotation next to the child's words: "The sun and moon shine together, beginning with the family and the nation."
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
