The bronze mirror shines, revealing the girl's pretty face. Her eyes are like autumn water and her eyebrows are like distant mountains. Her thick and long eyelashes tremble slightly, and it is like thousands of rivers surrounding thousands of mountains.
"The painting is very good. But can it enter the palace?" Xie Wangzhi smiled slightly and paused deliberately, "Guess."
Li Qishen didn't care. Xie Wangzhi couldn't possibly stop him from entering the palace. Even if she was really angry, if he stood outside the window with the coal balls for a while, she would surely soften her heart and open the latch to let him in. He didn't respond, but picked among the copper shells that he hadn't put back in time, and picked out an exceptionally tender color that looked like a newly opened peach blossom at first glance.
"Don't move." Li Qishen didn't know that one had to use a stick to apply lip balm, so he just used his hand and gently rubbed it with his fingertips, then applied the light red stain onto Xie Wangzhi's lips.
He applied a small amount and spread it evenly, just enough to cover the area where her upper and lower lips meet. Xie Wangzhi's lips were pale in color, so the area where they met was particularly clear, as if she or someone else had bitten her lips, which made them look so red.
Only then did Li Qishen know why women put on makeup. Her face was still the same, her eyes were bright and clear, and she looked like a woman with a touch of makeup on her lips. But with a touch of makeup on her lips, her whole feeling changed. She suddenly looked unintentionally charming, and she drew people closer. He swallowed and lowered his voice, "This color looks good."
Xie Wangzhi had no idea which one he chose. Just as she was about to turn her head, her jaw was held, making her unable to move.
The next moment, Li Qishen pressed down, holding her pointed chin with one hand and supporting her with the other hand on the dressing table, holding her whole body in his arms and rubbing against her lips that had just been painted with lip balm. Xie Wang was startled, but then she thought it was nothing, although she didn't understand why he suddenly went crazy, she still closed her eyes and let him do whatever he wanted.
She was quite cooperative, so Li Qishen deliberately teased her, and said hoarsely while their lips rubbed against each other: "It's bitter."
Xie Wangzhi was immediately embarrassed and angry, but fortunately Li Qishen did not go too deep, just rubbed back and forth a few times, and finally bit her lips lightly, which was considered to be the complete thought that was aroused by the lip balm just now. He straightened up and wiped the remaining lip balm with his fingertips: "Ask someone to serve breakfast. Are you hungry?"
Xie Wangzhi then remembered that it was time to eat, and her stomach was indeed empty. She nodded: "Do you want some?"
"I've eaten before." Since it was the ten-day holiday, Li Qishen didn't plan to read the memorials on an empty stomach like usual. He licked the corner of his mouth with a smile and said, "I'm full."
This statement could be interpreted in any way. Xie Wangzhi felt as if he was being teased again, but he couldn't use this as an excuse to hit him. After holding it in for a while, he closed his eyes and said, "Then scream."
Li Qishen smiled, pecked her lips again, and then asked someone to serve breakfast.
It was neither too early nor too late to not eat, but if I really wanted to eat, I was afraid that I would fill my stomach too early and would not be able to eat a proper lunch later. The food bureau had considered that the noodles were easy to digest, pulled very thinly, and a small roll was placed in the bowl. There was half a bowl of clear chicken soup. Two or three chopsticks could pick up the noodles cleanly, and two or three more mouthfuls would finish the soup.
Li Qishen waited patiently for Xie Wangzhi to finish eating and rinse his mouth before saying, "By the way, there is one more thing to do today."
"What?"
"My uncle," Li Qishen thought for a moment, fearing that Xie Wangzhi didn't recognize him, "refers to Prince Ning, the current governor of Fengzhou and the commander of the Tiande Army. He previously suppressed a rebellion in the Fanyang area. He faced off against Kang Lie a few days ago and won the battle, so he returned to Chang'an."
Xie Wangzhi probably knew who this person was. From what Li Qishen said, he seemed to be quite close to this uncle, and he had made great contributions in defeating the enemy, so he had a better impression of Li Rongjin: "Should I change my clothes and put on some makeup?"
"No need." Seeing that she was really going to get the white jade hairpin powder, Li Qishen quickly stopped her, "Although my uncle is also good at calligraphy and painting, he always says that he is a rough man. And my aunt passed away early, so he doesn't know anything about this. It's good this way, let him meet his niece-in-law, she is a peerless beauty even without dressing up."
Xie Wangzhi's face was flushed by his praise. He covered his dressing box and changed the subject unintentionally: "You just said that Prince Ning won, so what is the situation now? What about Kang Lie? Did he flee to Fanyang?"
"No, his son is in power now. He has taken the remaining troops to retreat to Fanyang. There is nothing to fear. Pinglu and Hedong are attacking from both sides. Hedong has the support of Liu family. It will probably be pacified before the end of the year." Li Qishen was quite confident. He would still be nervous when playing with Kang Lie, but playing with that unlucky son was like playing cat and mouse. "Even if we play it safe, it should be over before next summer."
"So, Kang Lie is dead?"
Li Qishen hummed, "It's funny. He was a military governor of a town. At his peak, he led the rebels to break through Tongguan and marched straight to Chang'an City. But in the end, he didn't die on the battlefield. He was killed by a snake."
"snake?"
"The news came from there, half true and half false. It will always change as it is passed around, so just treat it as a joke. It is said that Kang Lie failed to capture Chang'an City and fled in a hurry. On the way, he suddenly asked his soldiers to drive away snakes. He dreamed of a snake that could speak human language. It said that it promised to take his life, but it had no grudge against him, so he was given three days to prepare for his death." Li Qishen did not believe this and just thought it was a joke. "How can they stop while fleeing? The rebels are complaining, but there is nothing they can do. Now is the time when snakes come out, and they are walking on a mountain road. It rained heavily and they were delayed in the mountains. It just happened to be bumped into by the Tiande Army."
He ignored the tragic scenes that followed, such as his order that all rebels who refused to surrender would be beheaded on the spot, and picked out something fun to tell Xie Wangzhi, "The rebels were defeated, and when they finally examined the bodies, they really found Kang Lie's body. There were no wounds on his vital parts, only two small tooth marks on the side of his neck. After checking, the military doctor said it was probably a snake bite."
Xie Wangzhi's heart skipped a beat: "Is it really so..."
"There are many snakes in the mountains at this time. If you don't pay attention when you flee in a hurry, you may scare some snakes." Li Qishen didn't believe in gods and Buddhas, and he didn't know what Xie Wangzhi prayed for in Xuanyuan Temple at that time. "As for his dream, if it is true, I guess he was thinking too much when he was escaping, and he scared himself and found an excuse to go crazy."
"Anyway, once he dies, the rebels will be in chaos, and we can breathe a sigh of relief."
"Yes." Li Qishen smiled, "It's almost time, let's go out and wait for my uncle."
Xie Wangzhi also smiled: "Okay."
The army had to be welcomed into the Daming Palace at Danfeng Gate, which was far from the Penglai Palace. Neither of them liked to ride on sedan chairs, so they simply walked slowly towards Danfeng Gate, holding hands, just to kill time. Along the way, Li Qishen talked about a lot of Fengzhou affairs, half of which was caused by Li Rongjin, and the rest was divided in half, half of which was about fighting against the Turks, and the other half was about cleaning up the mess caused by Li Shutan.
He said it with a bit of helplessness and annoyance, but with a smile on his face. Xie Wangzhi knew at a glance that Li Qishen didn't dislike him and that he missed those days. He was not born a passionate person, and the fact that he could miss them sincerely showed that Li Rongjin and Li Shutan must be warm-hearted and good people. Xie Wangzhi also had a little more expectation for his uncle and cousin whom he had never met.
While waiting in front of the Danfeng Gate, she was still a little nervous and couldn't help asking Li Qishen: "Is it really okay for me to look like this? Prince Ning might be easy to deal with, but Jialuo... Calculating her age, she should be fifteen, so she can tell whether she is dressed well or not, I..."
"You've asked me for the third time." Li Qishen felt that Xie Wangzhi was good in every way, so there was no need to care about this. Besides, Li Rongjin and Li Shutan would not judge people by appearance. "Let's not talk about whether they don't care about this or not. Even if they do care, you've already married me, and the edict of the queen's title has been announced to the world. What can they do if they are not satisfied?"
"... You can't say that." That's true, but Xie Wangzhi was a bit nervous as a bride. Li Qishen's mother died early, and his father was worse off than dead. Li Rongjin was the only elder, and she always wanted to leave a good impression on her uncle. "Well, how about this, I'll go back and change my clothes..."
"It's too late." Li Qishen grabbed her hand and smiled, "Look, that's the flag of the Tiande Army."
Xie Wangzhi was startled and looked in the direction Li Qishen said.
Seeing the soldiers marching in formation, she opened her eyes wide in surprise and turned to look at Li Qishen. As she expected, the smile on Li Qishen's face had faded, his lips were tightly pursed, and his eyebrows and eyes were not only cold and beautiful, but also so cold that they were cold and stern.
It was indeed the Tiande Army, with cavalry in front and infantry behind, and the military flags unfurled in the wind, just like the layout when Li Qishen entered Beijing that year. But the leader was not Li Rongjin, but a middle-aged man with a cold face, wearing light armor, and looked like a deputy general in the army.
There was a person sitting on a warhorse parallel to the deputy general. He was wearing a black robe with his hood down, so his figure could not be seen. His hands were slender and small, and he must be a young woman. In her arms, she held a small jar made of green jade. Except for her, everyone in the army had black gauze wrapped around their arms. Along with the military flag, a long white banner was blown by the wind.
This doesn't look like a triumphal army, but more like a funeral procession, and the people who are sending them off are the former commanders.
Li Qishen resisted the urge to ask questions, gritted his teeth, and waited for the Tiande Army to march to the Danfeng Gate. The deputy general dismounted and saluted: "I am Gao Chang, the last general, and I pay my respects to Your Majesty."
The lady holding the jade altar dismounted next. She lifted her hood, revealing her slightly pale face, and knelt down to salute Li Qishen: "Your Majesty, your servant Liang Zhenlian, respectfully wishes you the best of health."
This was obvious, but Li Qishen didn't dare to believe it and asked Gao Chang directly: "Where is Prince Ning?"
"The general led the army to suppress the rebellion. During the battle, he was shot in the ribs by an arrow that was poisoned. Although the military doctor removed the arrow in time to remove the poison, the hidden injury was difficult to treat. The general fell into a coma that night and had a high fever." Gao Chang had followed Li Rongjin for many years. Although he was called his deputy, he was actually a friend of many years. He was as close as a brother. When he talked about it, his eyes were slightly red with pain. He wished he could take his place. "Two days later, the general passed away."
Li Qishen felt a pain in his chest and took a deep breath to recover: "So... what did he say at the end?"
"The general never regained consciousness from the time he fell into a coma until his death. The last thing he said before he fell into a coma was about Your Majesty. The general said," Gao Chang also took a breath, apologized, and looked up at the young emperor, "I'm afraid this is a farewell forever. I won't be able to return to Chang'an alive. I can't help Your Majesty in the future. I hope Your Majesty takes care."
The author has something to say: I wrote about someone dying again, hehe.jpg I expect it to be finished this week_(:3)∠)_