After their injuries had healed a little, Fu Yuheng decided not to stay in the cave. He led Shen Qingwan along the stream, hoping to find the way home.
"Your Majesty, your injuries have not yet healed, so we can walk slower." Looking at Fu Yuheng's anxious face, she was just worried that his body would not be able to take it.
Hearing this, his tightly furrowed brows slowly relaxed. He smiled at her gently, as if an iceberg had melted, and walked forward to hold her slender jade fingers.
"There are only you and me here, so there is no need to call me emperor. Besides, my injury has recovered, and I don't want you to suffer here." His voice became a little deeper when he said the last sentence, and a gentle light burst out of his dark eyes.
Seeing this, Shen Qingwan lowered her eyes quickly, but couldn't help but raise the corners of her mouth slightly, "Your Majesty..."
"Hmm?" As soon as she spoke, his index finger pressed against her lips, one side was warm, the other side was soft, as if burning her delicate cheek.
"Did you forget what I said?" She had no idea that his usually majestic voice could be so low and gentle, just right and soft, like a feather brushing across the tip of her heart, making her feel itchy.
Shen Qingwan couldn't resist his attack, she just raised her eyes slightly and looked at him, her usually clever mouth began to stutter, "I'll remember that."
Mentioning the title did remind him that if he didn't call the emperor, he would need other titles.
"Why don't you just call me husband or lord?" Ordinarily, this is how ordinary couples address each other, but at this moment he felt that this address was more intimate, and it must have a different flavor coming from her mouth.
My husband, my lord...
These two words were something she had never thought of. She had never dared to hope for them since the moment she stepped into the palace. She was going to serve a king with three thousand beauties in his harem, not an ordinary citizen.
But now he asked me to call him husband...
She was stunned for a moment and didn't know how to react. Her clear eyes showed confusion, "You..."
"Let's go." He didn't make things difficult for her. He knew that this was unexpected for her and gave her time to accept it.
Holding her hand, the two of them said nothing, but they understood each other.
They would follow the stream straight down to find the way, and when it got late they would rest in the cave nearby. In the evening, Fu Yuheng would go to the stream to catch some fish to fill his stomach.
For several days in a row, he went fishing and picking fruits. Shen Qingwan felt a little guilty. After all, he was the emperor, and even if he was stranded on a cliff, it could not change his status.
That day, when he was about to go out, he was stopped by her. She turned around and saw the afterglow of the setting sun shining on his handsome face, and his whole appearance became much softer.
"I'll go with you."
"You are a woman, how can I ask you to go fishing with me?" Fu Yuheng frowned, revealing a look of pity, "I don't want to wrong you."
"If you say that, then you don't regard me as your wife." She raised her eyebrows and looked at him with a smile in her eyes, "Since we are husband and wife, we should share the hardships."
I just didn't expect his suddenness that day, but then I thought about it and it made sense.
Hearing this, the corners of his mouth slowly lifted up, and he grasped her hand tightly and pulled her towards him, "Let's go, my lady."
Although she was a woman, she was born into a family of generals, and as a daughter of a general, she was not without any martial arts skills. Although she knew some boxing and kicking skills, it was enough for a woman to defend herself.
Rolling up their trouser legs, the two of them stepped into the water together. Fu Yuheng was afraid that she would lose stability, so he kept one hand free to support her.
She was a little anxious, "I'm fine, you don't have to worry about me, otherwise I will become a stumbling block."
"How can I feel at ease?" He stared at her with a serious look.
She broke free from his hand, took two steps to the side, and smiled at him, "Look, I'm not a weak woman, this won't be a problem for me!"
If he is really that weak, it will bring disgrace to the Shen family's reputation.
Fu Yuheng frowned unhappily, but seeing her look, he felt relieved. Then he looked at the sky and realized it was getting late. If it got dark, he would not be able to catch any fish.
The tacit understanding between the two of them made it much easier for him to work together than if he were alone.
Fu Yuheng put the caught fish into the basket and was about to turn around to take her ashore, but unexpectedly the woman behind him wanted to play some fun.
Shen Qingwan saw the stream and thought that it would be a good opportunity to cool down in the hot weather.
In a playful mood, she created a wave of water from the bottom of the water and pounced on him. Fu Yuheng was a little dazed by this sudden attack. When he turned around, he saw the woman standing in the water with a sweet smile on her face, her eyes full of pure laughter.
Perhaps she had been suppressed in the deep palace for too long. At this moment, she was no longer willing to care about the so-called monarch and ministers, the harem, and the previous dynasty. She and he were just an ordinary couple.
"What? Are you not convinced?" She raised her head proudly, "Then come and give it a try."
Fu Yuheng's deep eyes darkened, and then he showed joy. He took a step forward and splashed his hands towards her.
Although he was in the mood to play, he still knew his limits and did not splash too much water, nor did he splash all of it on her.
The afterglow faded away little by little, and the pretty girl and the handsome man were playing and fighting in the stream. It was such a discordant scene.
"Are you admitting defeat? If you do, I will forgive you." Fu Yuheng's eyebrows were full of smiles, and his eyes were full of pampering.
But Shen Qingwan was not someone who would give up easily. Even though her face and body were soaked, she still fought back. She stepped back to avoid the water, but unexpectedly she tripped over a stone under her feet, and she lost her balance and fell backwards...
"Ah..." She screamed subconsciously. She thought her whole body would be soaked in water, but she didn't expect that the next moment she felt a gust of wind around her body, and then fell into a wet embrace.
"Are you okay?" He caught her and held her waist. When she opened her eyes, she saw a magnified handsome face and felt a pain in her ankle.
"Ah..." She hissed in pain, and he realized that her ankle was twisted.
"Your ankle..." He was about to lean down to look at the ankle in her hand, but she dodged him.
The voice was as thin as a mosquito, "I haven't admitted defeat yet..." As soon as these words came out, Fu Yuheng gave him a serious warning, but his eyes softened in a moment, "I lost."
Only after getting his answer did she smile shyly. It turned out that this was what it felt like to be held in someone's palm and loved.
It seems... not bad.
When she was picking the fruit, she was unwilling to give up and wanted to try again but she almost fell off the tree again. When Fu Yuheng warned her with his eyes again, she dared not make trouble anymore.
When she was sleeping, she was sleeping on her side, but she didn't expect that Fu Yuheng would pull her back into his arms.
"Emperor...is this inappropriate for us?" Her head was pressed against his warm chest, and her voice sounded a little hesitant.
"We are husband and wife."
Five words, firm and certain, gave her all the answers.