The rocking chair gradually slowed down, and finally came to a complete stop.
Xiao Che's complaints also stopped.
The afternoon tranquility once again enveloped the entire courtyard. Only the occasional bird calls from afar and the rustling of vegetable leaves in the wind could be heard.
Lin Wanwan turned her head and looked at her side.
Xiao Che leaned back in the rocking chair, his head slightly tilted, his breathing even and long, as if he were truly asleep.
The sunlight was no longer as scorching as it had been at midday. It slowly moved westward, its light becoming softer and softer, tinging the clouds on the horizon with a warm orange hue.
The sun is setting.
The sky gradually darkened. The wind also seemed much cooler than in the afternoon.
Lin Wanwan put down the book in her hand, the words of which were already illegible, and quietly looked at Xiao Che beside her.
The "yesterday's briefing" that he was "pretending" to be reading had somehow slipped from his loose hand and fallen into the grass on the ground.
He slept soundly and peacefully.
Sunlight filtered through the leaves, casting dappled shadows on his face, etched with the lines of time. His full head of silver hair, bathed in the afterglow of the setting sun, seemed to be gilded with a golden halo, radiating a sacred and serene aura.
Lin Wan-wan just watched him quietly.
She didn't wake him.
She knew that at their age, every peaceful sleep was a blessing from heaven.
Her gaze greedily traced his aged sleeping face.
That once smooth and full forehead is now etched with wrinkles that signify wisdom and worry. Those once sharp and angular eyebrows have been smoothed by the vicissitudes of time, leaving only a serene curve. Those once pursed lips are now slightly relaxed, revealing a childlike innocence.
She looked at him, and as she looked, her gaze became somewhat unfocused.
The face before me seemed to slowly overlap with countless faces deep in my memory.
She seemed to see him again, decades ago, the pale-faced, sinister-eyed young emperor she first met. He was clearly terrified, yet he pretended to be a cannibal, like a hedgehog covered in thorns, wary of the whole world.
The scene shifts, and she sees the arrogant emperor again in the Imperial Garden, listening to the Virtuous Consort play the zither, with a GIF of "toes digging out a three-bedroom apartment" floating above his head. He's talking about art criticism, but inside he's frantically crying for help; his tsundere behavior is both cute and funny.
Then, the scene shifts again. On the bloody night of the palace coup, the war god, covered in blood and wielding a long sword, firmly protects her behind him. His back is the most solid and reliable wall she has ever seen in her life.
Then came the clumsy new dad. Holding the soft, cuddly little "dumpling," he was completely at a loss, his face filled with panic, his head covered in frantic emojis that screamed, "What do I do?! Did it pee or is it hungry? Help! .gif!" His regal composure was utterly shattered.
There's also the theoretical farmer in the vegetable garden, "punished" by a hoe; the unfortunate fisherman by the lake, "mocking" by a tiny shrimp; and the "Chess Saint" who finally regained his dignity on the chessboard and proudly showed off to her...
Dark and brooding, arrogant and haughty, powerful and clumsy, childish and affectionate...
One image after another, frame after frame...
The tapestry of his life slowly unfolded under her gaze.
It turns out that, without realizing it, they had already walked such a long, long road together.
Grow old enough to turn a spirited young man into a white-haired old man.
He grew old enough for her to deeply etch every aspect of him into her soul.
Lin Wanwan's eyes were a little moist.
Slowly, very slowly, she reached out her equally wrinkled hand, wanting to touch his cheek, but then stopped in mid-air.
She was afraid she would wake him.
The wind seemed to be getting cooler.
Lin Wanwan glanced at his thin clothes and frowned slightly.
She stood up slowly, shakily, holding onto the armrests of the rocking chair. Her legs were no longer as nimble as they had been in her youth; every movement seemed somewhat slow.
She turned around and picked up the soft wool blanket that she had prepared for the two of them in the afternoon from the small table beside her.
She carried the blanket and returned to Xiao Che's rocking chair.
She bent down, her movements as gentle as if she were handling a rare treasure. She gently and slowly covered him with the thin blanket, warm from the sun, from his shoulders down to his knees.
This was the last, and most ordinary, act of care she gave him.
After doing all this, she straightened up and carefully tucked the blanket around him to make sure there was no cold wind that could disturb his sleep.
A satisfied and gentle smile appeared on her face.
She prepared to sit down again, right beside him, just like countless afternoons before, to keep him company, to watch the sunset and the stars rise together.
However, just as she straightened up, preparing to turn around—
Her eyes suddenly froze!
It was as if they were firmly nailed to the spot by an invisible force!
Her pupils contracted uncontrollably to their maximum size in an instant!
In those eyes that had long since become somewhat yellowish due to presbyopia, an extreme light suddenly burst forth, a mixture of shock, ecstasy, and disbelief!
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