Xiao Heng watched Gu Sui'er close her eyes. At first, her eyes were tightly closed, obviously not sleeping at all. After a while, her body relaxed and her breathing became smooth and even.
With her eyes closed, she was quiet and gentle, and even the strands of black hair were submissive. Her little hands gently grasped the corners of the quilt, and her huge belly made the quilt bulge.
Xiao Heng stared at his belly and remembered the night at the inn.
That night, she was underneath him.
Although he was so miserable that he lost his mind at that time, he could clearly see her face through the moonlight, her fair little face.
That night, he planted a fruit in her belly, and now her belly is so big...
At this moment, Xiao Heng felt a strange emotion rising in his chest.
About the relationship between men and women, about the gestation of blood and the beauty of bed.
The midday light came in through the window lattice, and the well-arranged room was silent.
Xiao Heng stared at the woman lying on the bed. After a long time, he stood up.
"Stay guard outside the door and serve me well." With his stern brows slightly furrowed, he quietly ordered Nanny An outside the door.
"Yes, yes, I know." Aunt An naturally agreed repeatedly.
Xiao Heng looked back behind him again, and then walked to the hall. He saw a few guests who had just arrived, and the owner of the greenhouse was chatting with them.
When Xiao Heng walked out, one of them with sharp eyes happened to see Xiao Heng and came over to say hello.
"Xiao Heng!"
Xiao Heng stopped and looked aside lightly. The person who stopped him was the third prince.
In fact, Xiao Heng's grandfather was originally an orphan without a surname. Later, he was given the surname Guo due to his outstanding military achievements. The surname was Xiao, and the current sage is also surnamed Xiao.
The Holy Emperor has a total of three sons, and Xiao Heng has a good relationship with the third prince. The third prince is Princess Zhaoyang's biological brother.
Not the eldest prince and the second prince, they were born to the concubine, but the third prince was born to the queen.
At this time, the third prince looked at Xiao Heng with a smile.
"Xiao Heng, you are indeed here!"
"Is something wrong?" Xiao Heng raised his eyebrows.
"Can't I come to you if I have nothing to do?"
"I have something to do. Let's go out first."
"Then I'll go with you!"
“…”
The third prince looked at Xiao Heng's reluctant eyes, smiled even more, and joked: "I have heard that you are very angry with Zhao Yang. She has never suffered such a loss in her whole life. Just now He rode back to the palace crying."
Xiao Heng didn't even bother to mention Princess Zhaoyang.
In fact, as Princess Zhaoyang was a royal princess, Xiao Heng originally maintained the most basic courtesy towards her, but who knew that the other party shamelessly kept pestering him and advertised everywhere that she wanted to marry him.
After she made such a fuss, who among all the civil and military officials in Yanjing City would dare to marry their daughter to him
He currently has no intention of marrying, but just because he doesn't want to marry doesn't mean he can let Princess Zhaoyang be so arrogant.
So when facing the third prince, he didn't even bother to say anything.
The third prince sighed: "You are the only one in the world who dares to choke Zhaoyang like this. I admire you! I admire you!"
Xiao Heng: "Is there anything else?"
Third Prince: "Yes!"
As he spoke, he came over with a shy face: "Where did your concubine come from, and how did she become pregnant with your child? You-"
He was a little surprised and looked down at Xiao Heng: "Aren't you not very good at it?"
Xiao Heng's response was to give him a cold glance, a look sharper than a cold arrow.
The third prince trembled in his heart.
When Xiao Heng walked far away, he was still thinking about it.
Isn't it impossible for Xiao Heng? He tried it specially that day, but it just didn't work.
So the question is, how did Xiao Heng, who was not good at all, end up with a concubine with a big belly
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Gu Sui'er rested in the greenhouse for about an hour. When she woke up, it was noon and she was hungry.
As soon as she moved like this, Nanny An got busy to help her get up, and soon Xiao Heng came over, along with Xiao Jin, Xiao Xu, and Lu Qingyi.
Everyone obviously already knew about Princess Zhaoyang, but because Xiao Heng's face was so cold, they didn't dare to mention it.
Went to the restaurant for dinner at noon and entered a private room. After the meal, Xiao Heng went out because of something. Xiao Jin, Lu Qingyi and Xiao Xu all gathered around Gu Sui'er and asked about Princess Zhaoyang.
They had heard it mentioned by others, but it was only second-hand and third-hand information.
Now I caught Gu Sui'er and asked her.
Gu Sui'er told her everything about the situation at that time, and she answered whatever others asked her.
After listening, everyone was stunned.
Xiao Xu was the first to say: "Princess Zhaoyang is the Queen's only daughter. Will she go to the Queen to complain?"
Lu Qingyi frowned and thought: "But hasn't the Emperor always liked Third Brother very much? Will he punish Third Brother for this?"
Xiao Jin thought for a while: "Then I don't know. Let's wait and see. Besides, it's Princess Zhaoyang's fault. She whipped her whip down. If she really hit the sister-in-law, her appearance would be ruined. He said, I am afraid that I may not even be able to save the child in my belly."
Everyone was frightened when they heard the consequences.
Princess Zhaoyang has a high status and is used to being arrogant. It is common for her to bully someone, but to do something like this and almost kill someone is really too much.
When Gu Sui'er listened to everyone talking about this, she lowered her head and said nothing.
She knew that Xiao Heng must have offended Princess Zhaoyang today.
However, I still have tadpoles in my belly.
If Xiao Heng didn't take action and he was injured, Tadpole might also be in danger.
She lowered her head and listened to everyone's heated discussion without saying a word.
When he returned to Ruidinghou's mansion, everyone in the mansion knew about it.
The old lady comforted Gu Sui'er in turn: "That Zhaoyang has never been very sensible. Don't be like her. Aheng is a good child. He will protect you no matter what happens."
As she spoke, she stroked Gu Sui'er's head and looked up and down. Her belly was still big and there was nothing wrong with her whole body, so she was relieved.
"It's good that nothing happened."
Gu Sui'er would come over three times a day. Occasionally when the old lady called, she would come over and accompany her. Gradually, she and the old lady got to know each other.
When the old lady spoke, she understood what she meant as soon as she heard it.
She seemed to be able to understand even the meaning that others couldn't quite understand.
So now when the old lady says this, she knows what it means.
The old lady felt sorry that she almost had an accident, but the other party was Princess Zhaoyang, so even if Princess Zhaoyang did something wrong, it didn't matter. As long as nothing happened, there was no need to worry about it.
Gu Sui'er didn't think about worrying about anything, after all, she was fine.
But she was worried about Xiao Heng: "Old madam, Princess Zhaoyang seems to be very angry. She is angry with the third master."
But the old lady didn't care at all: "It's nothing. Just be angry. The worst is, let her complain in front of the emperor, and let Aheng go to the palace to listen to the lecture. That's it."
Although Princess Zhaoyang was favored, the old lady was even more favored than Princess Zhaoyang back then. The royal affairs were huge in the eyes of others, but they were nothing more than that in her eyes.
The emperor is her natal nephew, so when Princess Zhaoyang came to her, she would still respectfully call her "Auntie Huang."
So the thing that originally worried Gu Sui'er, after she said it, was children fighting and having fun.
After hearing this, Gu Sui'er finally felt relieved.
She said goodbye to the old lady and went back to the yard. Xiao Heng hadn't come back yet. She drank some bird's nest soup, sat outside the yard and looked at the bamboos for a while, then rested.
Now my belly is so big that I can’t lie down on my back, I can only turn it on my side.
Lying on her side, she listened to the rustling of the bamboo forest in the wind outside the window, and suddenly remembered what Xiao Jin once said, saying that Xiao Xu planted bamboo outside the window and loved the dancing bamboo shadows on the window when he was reading late at night.
She looked towards the window through the curtain, trying hard to understand the whirling bamboo shadows he mentioned, but there was nothing there.
Perhaps the scholar's elegance and liking will not be apparent to her for a while.
"Little madam, you can go to sleep. You can't help with the things outside. Worrying about them is in vain. It's better to have a good rest now. The most important thing is to take good care of the fetus."
Nanny An has been with Gu Sui'er for two months and has a good feel for her temperament. Knowing that such a big thing happened today, she must be uneasy.
"Yes, I know, Nanny An."
Gu Sui'er was very calm: "I have also figured it out. I don't understand the princess and the emperor, and there is nothing I can do against them. As an aunt from the countryside, I just want to keep the tadpoles in my belly. , as long as he is well, I don’t care about anything else, no matter what.”
It's just that I miss him after all and am afraid that something bad will happen to him.
After thinking about it, he asked: "Third Master...are you back now?"
"No, but little madam, you don't have to worry. What could happen to the third master? The emperor appreciates our third master very much. At most, he can just say a few words and then punish him."
Aunt An was obviously unsure, but she still tried to comfort Gu Sui'er.
"I'm going to sleep first, Nanny An. Remember to ask the maid to warm the chicken soup with warm water. I don't know if the third young master has eaten out. If not, you might as well let him eat something."
"Don't worry, little madam, you won't forget this."
After hearing this, Gu Sui'er finally felt a little relieved. She lay on the couch, closed her eyes, relaxed her body, and let herself fall asleep slowly.
************************
After Xiao Heng sent Gu Sui'er home, he went to the palace.
Today, he first took Gu Sui'er to the Guiyuan Garden to enjoy flowers and dine in front of all the nobles of Yanjing City, and then offended Princess Zhaoyang because of Gu Sui'er.
Naturally, this matter caused a big fuss.
After Princess Zhaoyang returned, she cried and complained to Queen Xiaoxian. Queen Xiaoxian went directly to the emperor.
When Xiao Heng passed by, Emperor Jingkang had just persuaded Queen Xiaoxian to leave.
"Aheng, what are you doing!" Emperor Jingkang sighed when he saw Xiao Heng kneeling in front of him: "It's not like you don't know Zhaoyang's temperament."
"I know I'm guilty, please punish me." Xiao Heng didn't say much. He knelt down on one knee and lowered his head to plead guilty.
"I have taught you a long time ago that there are a hundred ways to deal with a problem. Why did you choose the most troublesome one?"
Emperor Jing Kang looked unhappy, holding the jade lion paperweight in his hand and looking at Xiao Heng displeased.
"Wei Chen is wrong."
Xiao Heng replied with four simple words.
"You—" Emperor Jing Kang was furious and choked.
Emperor Jingkang said nothing more, and Xiao Heng knelt down.
Because today is a private call, he is not wearing official uniforms. Xiao Heng is wearing purple casual clothes. He is tall and tall, like a cypress. Even if he is kneeling, his back is still straight, his aura is cold and calm, and his face is as ice-like. Jade represents a rare and beautiful man in the world.
Emperor Jingkang stared at Ru Yuerlang kneeling there, and finally sighed quietly after a long while: "Get up."
Xiao Heng listened to the order and stood up: "Yes."
The eunuch on the side came over immediately and handed him a spoon.
Xiao Heng said calmly: "Thank you Eunuch Hu, but Wei Chen should still stand."
Emperor Jingkang: "Sit down."
Xiao Heng sat down.
The eunuch served tea, first poured a cup for Emperor Jingkang, then poured another cup, and handed it to Xiao Heng himself.
In the imperial study room, the monarch and his ministers tasted the tea slowly, the fragrance of tea lingered, and neither of them spoke.
It was not until later that Emperor Jing Kang took a few sips of tea and finally felt better, then he said slowly: "You have always been cold-tempered, and I have never seen you fall in love with anyone. This time it surprised me, but that's okay. It’s just a concubine.”
Xiao Heng put down the tea cup and lowered his head with a respectful and cold expression: "Reporting to the emperor, although she is just a concubine, she has the flesh and blood of the minister in her belly. She is weak and has been treated by tigers and wolves. If this whip goes down, I am afraid that It is a disaster to the flesh and blood of my ministers.”
When he said this, Emperor Jingkang was slightly startled.
Although it was evening, the lights in the imperial study were bright. Emperor Jing Kang stared at Xiao Heng's eyebrows and saw the protective feeling flashing in his usually cold eyes.
For a moment, he smiled and sighed.
"I have said before that it is better to have a family." Emperor Jing Kang thought of the past: "Only when a man has a family can he become stable, know how to look forward and backward, and know how to think carefully. The ancients said that when a country is governed, the family is harmonious and the world is peaceful. I think That’s all bullshit, we must first bring order to the family before we can govern the country.”
Emperor Jingkang was naturally a solemn and majestic emperor in front of outsiders, but in private, he actually spoke very casually.
He always felt that Xiao Heng seemed to have a cold temper in the past, but in fact he was just a runaway horse, which gave him a headache and he didn't know what to do.
Now that he is fine, he has a woman in the house and will have a child, so he can put his mind at ease.
"Your Majesty is absolutely right." Xiao Heng praised expressionlessly.
"Since I'm right, why didn't you listen before?" Emperor Jing Kang raised his eyebrows and asked, "I told you to have a family. Which one did you say you had your eye on?"
"..." Xiao Heng was silent.
"You just don't listen to me. You are respectful in the open but do whatever you want in secret. You are already nineteen years old. You will be almost twenty when the child is born. You are already weak. Look at the eldest prince. He has a child at the age of sixteen. , look at the second prince, who got married at the age of fifteen, and already has two children at the age of seventeen, and then look at the third prince... "
Speaking of the third prince, the emperor remembered that the third prince was eighteen years old and had not yet gotten married, so he had to stop mentioning it.
However, this did not prevent him from continuing to talk about Xiao Heng: "How can a man's family work without a family? Even if he doesn't have a family, he still has to put a few women in the room. You said you were just ignorant before, and I pointed it out to you. There are so many good girls, but you didn’t take your fancy to any of them…”
"Your Majesty." Xiao Heng suddenly spoke, interrupting the Emperor's words.
"What?"
"The girls that the emperor pointed out to Wei Chen before were either too ugly or too stupid." Xiao Heng said lightly: "None of them were good."
"You-" This moment made the emperor very angry.
He pointed out to him that the official wife was either the eldest daughter of the Duke's family, or the princess of a different surname from the Wang family. He didn't even want to marry the daughter of an ordinary Hou family!
He looked around and saw that he didn't like it, so he chose the most beautiful girls in the palace for him to choose, but he didn't like them all. In the end, he had no choice but to send two of them to serve him.
Is there a more dedicated emperor in this world than him
It's a pity that Xiao Heng is ungrateful.
Xiao Heng raised his eyebrows and continued slowly: "What you promised is not good."
Emperor Jingkang was speechless for a long time.
The eunuch next to him lowered his head respectfully.
He's used to it.
Emperor Jingkang, as the majestic emperor, even the queen spoke respectfully in front of him, but this third son of the Ruiding Hou Mansion, it was really... hard to describe.
After a while, Emperor Jingkang recovered on his own.
He coughed: "Aheng, when the baby is born, remember to hold it over and show it to me."
Xiao Heng said respectfully and coldly: "Yes, I will remember it."
Emperor Jingkang took a sip of tea and said, "Hey, I understand now that I'm old and even Ah Heng is going to be a father."
Xiao Heng heard his emotion in his heart, but had no words.
He raised his head and looked at the Nine-Five Master behind the Dragon Case, and found that the lines on his face were indeed very deep.
For a moment, I remembered that I saw him for the first time when he was four years old. At that time, he was in his prime and I picked him up.
Xiao Heng, who was held in his arms, could clearly see the love in the eyes of the emperor.
Xiao Heng lowered his eyes and suddenly wanted to ask Emperor Jing Kang a question.
He raised his head, looked at the old emperor on the case, and asked: "Your Majesty, I have a question for you."
Emperor Jing Kang glanced at him: "Ask."
Xiao Heng was silent for a moment and then asked: "I would like to ask your Majesty, what is it like to be someone's father?"
Emperor Jing Kang was surprised when he heard this.
He looked at the stacks of memorials on the case, thought for a moment, and then said slowly: "Most men will be fathers, emperors will be fathers, and ordinary people will be fathers, but they are all fathers, and ordinary people will be fathers." The father of the family and the father of the royal family are different."
Xiao Heng listened carefully and asked, "What's the difference?"
Emperor Jingkang stared at Xiao Heng with his dragon eyes.
"In ordinary people's families, father and son are father and son, but in this imperial family, father and son are not only father and son, but also king and minister. And there are kings and ministers first, and then father and son."
The candlelight in the imperial study room flickered, and the eunuch waiting next to him still stood with his head bowed respectfully.
Emperor Jingkang's deep and majestic voice even contained an imperceptible vibrato.
"Common people are also human beings, and the Nine-Fifth Emperor is also a human being. But the hearts of all people are made of flesh. Fathers all have the same thoughts, and they all want their children to be well. It can only be lamented that when you are born into an emperor's family, you should bear it in your life. This is the way of human relations in the imperial family!"
Xiao Heng stood there silently and said quietly: "Wei Chen understands."
There was no sound in the room anymore. Xiao Heng finished tasting the tea in his hand and stood up to leave.
Emperor Jing Kang held the case file on the Long Case in his hand and reminded quietly: "Aheng, the child will be born in more than two months. Remember to give the child a name first."
Xiao Heng said: "Yes, Your Majesty."
Emperor Jingkang was silent for a moment, then raised his hand and took out the paper on the case: "Here is what I listed yesterday. You can take a look first."
The chief eunuch stepped forward, took the piece of paper, and handed it to Xiao Heng.
As expected, the imperial paper had the names written by Emperor Jingkang personally. There were about twenty people, some male and some female.
Although Xiao Heng glanced at it briefly, he knew that the names on it were all written with great care. He was stunned for a moment, then lowered his head and said respectfully: "Thank you, Your Majesty."
When Xiao Heng came out of the palace, the palace door was already closed, but as he was the president of the Dragon Cavalry Guard, he could enter and leave the palace at will with his cards.
He didn't bring any guards with him when he entered the palace. When he exited the huge palace gate, he rode alone.
The autumn moon of August had already set in the west, and the fallen leaves that had not been swept in front of the palace gate were blown into the air. Deep in the night, the only sound was his horse's hooves on the bluestone road.
He took the reins and the horse stopped.
He lowered his head and saw the shadow on the bluestone.
One man and one horse were stretched thin.
After staring for a moment, he turned back and looked at the palace gate.
The palace doors were closed, and there was silence within the high courtyard walls.
He remembered what Emperor Jingkang said today. He said that in this imperial family, father and son were not only father and son, but also monarch and minister. And first there are kings and ministers, and then there are fathers and sons.
He also said that people's hearts are made of flesh, and all fathers have the same thoughts.
Holding the reins tightly and frowning, he thought of Gu Sui'er and the fleshy, kicking little fetus in his belly.
There was a hint of warmth in the lonely heart.
**********************
Gu Sui'er was worried about Xiao Heng, and she couldn't sleep at all.
However, Grandma An said that for the sake of the little tadpole, she had to have a good rest, and she thought about it.
She knew that she was frightened today, and the tadpole was also frightened. She had to take a good rest to let the tadpole recover.
So she closed her eyes and tried to sleep.
But even when I fell asleep, the dream was still unsettled.
In the dream, she was sitting by the window. On the windowsill was the white jade vase Xiao Heng had given her before, with two sweet-scented osmanthus in it.
She played with the two sweet-scented osmanthus plants, thinking about Xiao Heng, fearing that he would be implicated in what happened during the day.
When I looked up, I saw that the sky outside was overcast and a cold wind was blowing, causing the bamboos in the courtyard to sway violently.
She was a little scared, thinking about what was going on, why Xiao Heng hadn't come back yet, why Grandma An was missing, and where had the maids gone
For a moment, she almost thought she was back in Gujiazhuang again, but when she looked down, her belly was quite pointed and so big.
This was obviously not the time in Gujiazhuang.
At this time, the little tadpole in her belly started to move. He didn't know what to do, but it kicked up and down in her belly, using his round little buttocks to push her belly. One side of her belly was high and the other was low, like ripples in the water. Just as turbulent.
"Tadpole... what's wrong with you?" She murmured in a low voice.
As soon as she said this, a sudden bright light made her almost unable to open her eyes.
She raised her head in surprise and saw a sun setting from the sky and slowly flying into her window.
She stared at all this with wide eyes, wondering how the sun could set.
The sun fell on her belly, slowly covering her belly, and then seemed to blend into it, and slowly disappeared.
When the sun integrated into her body, bursts of warmth emanated from her body. The warmth was like the sun in winter, making people feel lazy and comfortable. She felt so comfortable that she wished she could curl up her fingers and hit her lightly. Get out.
"Well..." She woke up slowly and heard herself murmuring comfortably, her voice thin.
It took her a while to realize that she seemed to be having a dream.
She woke up in a haze and felt someone standing in front of the bed.
Opening her eyes in surprise, she saw Xiao Heng.
He stood in front of her bed and stared at himself quietly.
While he was sleeping, a man suddenly appeared. Ordinary people should be afraid, but Gu Sui'er was not.
She hoped that Xiao Heng would be fine, so she had no other thoughts and stubbornly hoped that Xiao Heng would be safe and that Xiao Heng would be fine.
This idea was so simple that now that Xiao Heng was standing in front of her, no matter how strange and sudden it was, she felt really good.
"Third Master..." She whispered.
He looked at her without saying a word.
"When did you come back?" As she said this, she struggled to stand up.
She had a big belly and it was difficult to get up.
Xiao Heng stepped forward and held her shoulders, preventing her from getting up. He said in a hoarse voice: "Lie down and don't move."
He came in from outside not long ago, and his hoarse voice still carried the coolness of the autumn night.
Gu Sui'er stopped getting up. She lay there, staring at the man intently, without asking anything.
Xiao Heng looked down at this woman. Her dark hair was scattered on the couch. It was soft and moving, and could remind a man of all the sentimental poems he had ever read.
She was lying down, her little face was fair and white, her wet eyes were wide open, and she was staring at him seriously, as if he was her heaven, her earth, her everything.
He couldn't help but think of that night, when she was held in his arms, she looked as confused as she does now, with her dark and moist eyes open.
He also remembered her body, petite and tender, as white as snow, and incredibly soft and soft.
Maybe he looked too hard and too directly, and his inner thoughts were exposed in his eyes without concealment, so that Gu Sui'er was moved and shy. She moved her head and turned her face away.
That shy look...
The fuse in Xiao Heng's heart was ignited. He took off his clothes, got on the bed, got into the quilt, and wrapped his arms around her.
After leaning against him, she shivered slightly.
He hugged her, put his face on her shoulder, smelled the unique fragrance of her body, and said hoarsely: "Don't be afraid, I'll hug you."
Gu Sui'er was indeed a little scared at first. Even though she had tried hard to forget that night, her body had memory. At this moment, she became scared.
But when he spoke, she suddenly felt an unparalleled loneliness and helplessness. It's like walking on an empty mountain road at night, looking at the mountain that day, everything around you is so magnificent and mysterious, only you are small, so small that you are homeless, so small that you may be swallowed up at any time.
She even felt that the man hanging on her shoulders was not some noble young master from the Ruiding Hou Mansion, but someone just like her.
Walking in vain on the street, eyes blank, not knowing where to go.
So she gritted her teeth and endured the trembling of her body, allowing herself to recover from the distant nightmare.
After that, she turned over with difficulty, leaned her belly against him, and awkwardly raised her arms to try to wrap her arms around him, who was so cool and cold.
She even felt that he was like a helpless child now. When the tadpole was born in the future, she would definitely wrap her arms around her tadpole like this.
He also didn't expect her to hug him like this, soft and fragrant, and incredibly gentle.
He was so pleased by her movements that he couldn't help but raise his head, kiss her chin, and then her face.
Her breath was pure and clean, which made him want to stop.