The candle made a soft sputtering sound as it burned to the bottom and went out.
The wax flowed down the candlestick.
Until dawn.
The dripped wax ford various shapes, like a little figure dancing with outstretched limbs and raised legs.
At the ng residence.
Jiang Yu, now elevated to Princess Caiyi, was kicking about with outstretched limbs and raised legs.
With her eyes still closed, she kicked ng Shaoxia's bottom.
"It's all your fault, all your fault, I couldn't even attend my brother's wedding yesterday."
In the past, ng Shaoxia wouldn't have been able to withstand his wife's kicks, but military life had truly transford him. Now he could be called "Big" ng Shaoxia - he had grown both taller and broader, as if going through a second puberty, becoming incredibly robust.
His physique resembled a cooked North Arican prawn, with a thick back, reddish-black face, and muscles all over.
His body carried the aura of the battlefield. Repeated campaigns had tempered both his body and spirit. The current ng Shaoxia strongly resembled Old Master ng in his youth - tall, mighty, and strong, commanding respect rely by his presence.
He had just returned from the battlefield, initially startling Jiang Yu.
But the next mont, he was hugging her and crying like a baby, covering their twins with kisses until their faces were wet with his tears and saliva.
Jiang Yu breathed a sigh of relief.
Growing up in the village, she had seen too many n who beat their wives upon returning ho, often taking out their frustrations after work. In her childhood mories, these n seed incredibly strong. Though when she grew older and saw them again as a young woman, they weren't actually strong at all - they were skinny, with hunched backs and little strength. But in her childhood mind, when she saw them beating others, they had seed like enormous, overwhelmingly powerful beings.
Her own husband had originally been a handso square-faced young man. Though life at ho had improved and his face had beco rounder and he'd gained so weight, he remained handso - after all, in this era, being plump was considered attractive, fitting the aesthetic standards of the ti.
But after returning from war, he had beco dark, stout, and muscular.
It startled her at first sight.
Then ng Shaoxia had hugged her and cried.
That night, they were intimate again.
And since it had been so long since they'd been together, as adults would understand...
As a result, Jiang Yu beca pregnant yet again.
When Old Master ng returned this ti and saw his two great-grandchildren, he was overjoyed, smiling even in his dreams.
At dawn each day, he would watch over the two little ones - having descendants made everything worthwhile.
Especially for the old master who had experienced life and death, each morning felt like a bonus day, and seeing new generations in the family brought joy like fresh sprouts on old wood, happiness impossible to contain.
But before he had stayed ho for even a few months, he learned that his grandson's wife was pregnant again.
Old Master ng's smile reached his eyebrows.
After his father's return, ng Qingshe spent ti reuniting with him, taking quite a while to adjust.
Mainly because he was being disciplined by his father.
Then father and son competed to look after the grandchildren.
Fortunately, there were two, so they could share.
Then their daughter-in-law quickly beca pregnant again.
This ti, the entire ng family was beyond excited.
Who said their lineage was thin? Who said they would have no heirs?
Now their daughter-in-law (granddaughter-in-law) was pregnant again.
These days, Old General ng went everywhere chatting with old friends.
ng Qingshe also went everywhere chatting with old friends.
Soon the entire capital knew that Princess Caiyi was pregnant again.
Who else could say their daughter, after marriage, was praised and cherished by the entire family?
Not only did her father-in-law praise her, but also his father, her mother-in-law, her grandmother-in-law - endless complints.
The Emperor and Empress naturally bestowed countless gifts again.
They had planned to move to the Princess's Palace, but due to the pregnancy, it was advised against moving, so the plan was abandoned.
The ng family had initially worried that their daughter-in-law might change after becoming a princess, perhaps becoming difficult to get along with, but fortunately, she maintained her good nature without becoming arrogant. She remained exactly as before - straightforward and unchanged. All the rumors about her being calculating were unfounded. Moreover, her exceptional cooking skills had made everyone in the family plump, requiring their clothes to be let out by two sizes.
Even Old Madam ng looked more radiant and younger.
With this good news, and Old Master ng returning alive from the battlefield to witness another addition to the family, everything felt joyous.
During this pregnancy, Jiang Yu craved sour foods intensely.
Though Old Master ng usually kept his distance from his granddaughter-in-law out of propriety, he and his son would personally go to the mountains every day to gather rosehips and sour dates, all kinds of sour fruits, which Madam ng would then arrange and send to her.
Jiang Yu ate her als with sour dates, alternating between bites of food and dates, making everyone else's teeth ache just watching.
Mianmian also frequently visited the ng residence.
She hadn't expected her sister to beco pregnant again.
Her sister appeared quite healthy as an expectant mother, apart from craving sour foods, she didn't even experience morning sickness.
Her sister lived very well in the ng family, the atmosphere was harmonious. As part of the family, her sister had beco so accustod that she naturally referred to the ng residence as "ho" when speaking of returning.
Jiang Yu was the least affected by her father becoming Emperor and her mother becoming Empress.
The transition from not having enough to eat to having plenty was stark, but after that, she didn't feel particularly different. Perhaps because her material desires were modest, focusing mainly on having enough to eat, so once that was satisfied, she felt content. As for higher pursuits, she had none.
Now pregnant again, she was very happy. For her, the only difficulty would be during childbirth; she didn't need to worry about raising the child. With several servants, mother-in-law and grandmother, father-in-law and grandfather all taking turns watching the children, after giving birth, she didn't need to care for them herself and could continue enjoying life as usual.
Moreover, during pregnancy, she could rightfully make demands and ask for all sorts of strange foods.
One day she suddenly wanted to eat peacock... just ntioning it casually, but Old Master ng actually got her a peacock...
It wasn't very tasty, the at was a bit tough.
For Jiang Yu, being able to eat was already a wonderful thing.
The only downside was that, being pregnant and in her first trister, she couldn't attend her brother's wedding.
They worried about her being jostled in the crowds.
So thinking about it early in the morning still made her angry, and she kicked her husband several tis.
ng Shaoxia, thick-skinned as he was, didn't mind being kicked.
He even comforted her: "Are you tired from kicking? Take a rest, let massage your feet, then you can continue kicking?"
This made Jiang Yu laugh despite her anger.
"We need to go to the palace today, and it's all your fault we're late again."
"Yes, it's my fault, all my fault."
ng Shaoxia smiled good-naturedly and began carefully massaging his wife's plump, fair feet.
At first, Jiang Yu felt a bit embarrassed, but during her last pregnancy, her husband had always massaged her feet. After becoming physically intimate as husband and wife, they grew very close, always wanting to stay near each other, touching, connecting, feeling secure.
During the days when her husband was away at war, the house had felt very empty, and she had been very afraid, but fortunately, he had returned.
Although her husband had quite a few scars, thankfully none were too serious.
The couple's reunion was like a honeymoon, their relationship even more intimate, flowing naturally.
"Husband, I had a nightmare last night. I dread you were engaged to soone else, and in the dream, my parents and siblings were all gone, and you left too. I didn't want to live anymore, so I found a rope and hanged myself. I kept kicking my legs, kicking, then I woke up and found myself kicking you. Such a frightening dream."
ng Shaoxia paused upon hearing his little Yu'er's words, then continued massaging her feet.
For so reason, when he heard about her dream, he felt as if he had experienced it too, though he couldn't rember clearly. But when she described it, it seed sowhat familiar.
Just hearing about it made his heart cold.
His eyes unconsciously beca wet.
"Your feet are cold, let warm them before you get up," ng Shaoxia held his little Yu'er's feet against his chest.
"Dreams an the opposite, don't overthink it, don't be afraid."
"Mother, Mother, Father, Father!"
"Bang bang bang!"
"Bang bang bang!"
The heavy knocking from outside, presumably from their two little boys eagerly pounding on the door, imdiately dispersed the strange thoughts in the room.
ng Shaoxia quickly got up.
Jiang Yu also got dressed.
The two boys of similar height could now walk, albeit unsteadily. They were sweet-tongued and sturdy, with strong legs and arms like lotus roots. The older brother boldly tried to enter by himself, with the younger brother following closely.
Then the older brother fell, and the younger brother tumbled right after him.
They fell together but didn't cry.
"Co on, co on, stand up!" the younger brother cheered, lying on top of his older brother.
"Co down," the older brother called.
The younger brother rolled off his older brother, allowing him to get up. Then the older brother pulled his brother, who was lying on the ground, to his feet.
The maids and servants watched; seeing there were no injuries, they let them be. The two children weren't delicate - they were quite healthy.
After Jiang Yu finished getting ready, she took her husband and children to the palace together.
Aliali: 6754d302bd5e46c308a67379
They all sat in the carriage.
She sat next to her husband, while the two children were made to sit opposite them, eating snacks, swinging their legs, completely at ease.
The carriage moved slowly with children and a pregnant woman inside.
As they passed by a bookstore, soone was asking, "Shopkeeper, do you still have any copies of 'Princess Caiyi's Guide to House Drama'?"
"Oh, dear custor, you're too late! They sold out in the first two days after release. Why don't you wait for the next batch? You can pay a deposit, and we'll save one for you when they arrive."
Jiang Yu laughed heartily in the carriage.
"Husband, have soone buy a copy later. I want to learn too."
"Buy, buy, buy," ng Shaoxia said indulgently.
The carriage wheels rolled smoothly, the road was wide and open, as they continued forward.
...
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