The husband I snatched halfway through his life is strange.

“I had previously heard that Jia, the advisor to the Fifth Prince, had obtained a lot of silver notes from him and deposited them all in a money shop, as well as several house deeds and land deeds.”

"I didn't take it seriously at the time. After all, when you do something for someone, you always have an ulterior motive."

Until she learned that Ying Fuyan was that advisor.

Ying Fuyan's current forces are funded by Wei Zhao. His daily needs for food, clothing, and lodging are also covered.

What's the point of having so much money and a house?

You can't take anything with you when you're born, and you can't take it all with you when you die; he can't spend it all anyway.

Yao Ru's eyes welled up with tears: "Was it left for me?"

Although she spoke in a questioning tone, she had already anticipated it and didn't need Ying Fuyan to admit it.

"You've arranged everything, made me accept your kindness, and ensured I'll have no worries about food and clothing in the future."

“Brother Keyan, you’re not in the plans you gave me.”

A faint medicinal scent lingered in the room.

"I'm not the indecisive girl I used to be."

After her marriage, she was able to stand on her own and became the mistress of the Second Prince's residence.

"I have my own judgment."

"I don't really want to obey you either."

She was able to maintain this position thanks to the teachings she received from the late Princess Yan, as well as the skills and prestige she accumulated day by day.

She told the man in front of her.

"As long as you live, I will stay with you. Even after you die, I promise I will still live a good life."

"Twin lotus blossoms share only one summer, and intertwined branches stand side by side for a few autumns. It is clear that in this world, it is not worth calculating the seasons."

If the right person is right, what does anything else matter?
"Isn't it good to have me thinking about you?"

Judging from appearance, it was impossible to match the Ying Fuyan in front of me with the one in my memory. But no matter which Ying Fuyan it was, she always put her first.

Yao Ru's eyes were like the misty rain of March.

It clearly hurts.

He endured half a lifetime of hardship, yet he still stubbornly held his head high.

The myriad emotions unspoken remained hidden, condensing into a gentle, obscure look in her eyes.

“I have thoroughly studied the Bible and read the precepts for women, and I know propriety, righteousness, integrity, and a sense of shame. Perhaps these words will be condemned by thousands. But from beginning to end, I have never had anyone else in my heart.”

She said, "I know what I want."

Ying Fuyan's throat tightened: "What do you want?"

"you."

Yao Ru: "I don't want to have any regrets."

She was greedy enough.

"I'm practically offering myself up; do you want me?"

The bowl slipped from Ying Fuyan's grasp and fell heavily to the ground, shattering in two. Milk splattered everywhere, soaking the hems of their clothes, but no one paid any attention.

Ying Fuyan's eyes were deep and somber.

“Aru”.

"Ok?"

"My body is broken, but everything else is fine, and I still have desires for you."

Ying Fuyan restrained himself: "Do you know what you're doing?"

Yao Ru did not reply.

She simply pulled his hand over and let him wrap his arms around her waist.

This is her answer.

Ying Fuyan uttered a few words in a hoarse voice.

"Ask again."

Yao Rushun asked, "Do you want me?"

The taut string snapped suddenly, and Ying Fuyan abruptly closed his five fingers, trapping her waist with a force that, though not strong, seemed capable of crushing her.

A drop of scalding liquid hit Yao Ru's neck, making her shudder.

A loud boom drowned out the choked sob that escaped from the man's throat.

The rare few days of bright spring sunshine in the capital were shattered by thunder.

She finally received Ying Fuyan's reply.

"want."

—Floods have begun to spread across various regions.

The sky was dark and the rain was pouring down.

Water seeped in through the cracks in the door. It dripped softly, like an old woman weeping at night.

Just after the third watch gong sounded, many people were awakened by the coolness under their beds.

They stepped barefoot into a puddle of foul-smelling water. The whole family was terrified.

It was noisy outside, with neighbors talking loudly.

"This damned weather! It rains day and night. I don't know who committed some heinous crime, which angered Heaven, causing the river to swell and overflow its banks. We've been caught in the crossfire and are suffering the consequences!"

"Yes. I thought that being near the riverbank would make it convenient to fetch water and do laundry, but now, I hope the wooden furniture inside won't get ruined by the water."

"Worried about your wooden table and alley? Use your brain, you foolish woman. You should worry about the crops in the fields. The whole family depends on them to keep from going hungry. How will we survive if they're ruined?"

"Oh dear, I wonder what happened to the cellar where we keep the rice and grain. You two have time to talk, why don't you go and take a look?"

This is not considered serious yet.

In areas severely affected by floods, turbid currents surge, and streets and alleys have become waterways.

The water level was up to waist-deep.

The bed floated up, the stove disappeared, the Kitchen God's shrine was submerged in murky water, the incense burner overturned and ashes scattered, and all sorts of things floated on the water.

Some people clung to their ancestral tablets, clinging to the roof beams, refusing to let go.

Some people near the river panicked and tried to escape to higher ground, but they tripped and fell. The copper coins and silver pieces they carried, which were all their possessions, were scattered everywhere by the fall.

"Money, my money!"

The woman got up, bent over and rubbed herself, her long hair falling into the water like water plants, but a huge wave swept her away completely.

A baby cries, an old woman calls for help.

Some families who make a living by fishing travel by boat.

"Go, go to the yamen. The county magistrate won't just ignore us."

"The county magistrate? That beast?"

Someone sneered.

“A few days ago, an urgent imperial edict was issued. County magistrates who cared about the people or were afraid of losing their official positions had already gathered people and gone into the mountains.”

In impoverished areas, where roads are difficult to traverse, it is impossible for an entire family to migrate on foot.

The only way to break this is to go up the mountain.

If they go to the mountains, the county magistrate and constables must make full preparations to share weal and woe with the people.

The people in the county town should be included, and those whose jurisdiction is scattered in various villages should not be left out.

If everyone is willing to leave, will they abandon the elderly, the sick, the disabled, women, and children? The county magistrate also has to convince everyone to take their family's food and belongings, which is no easy task. But there will always be a day when their resources run out. They'll have to open the county granary and send strong men to carry the supplies up the mountain, one after another.

All this was done because a Taoist priest said there would be a flood.

Many people didn't believe it at first, and some even said that the imperial court was really making trouble for people.

But right now...

"Our magistrate finds it troublesome and speaks frankly, spreading alarmist rumors. He's also reluctant to open the granary; it's hardly public property, it's long been his private treasury. He's probably still sleeping with that beautiful concubine he plundered from who-knows-where! How could he care about our lives!"

Suddenly, a loud bang was heard, and the earthen wall of the neighboring house to the east collapsed into the water, stirring up turbid waves several feet high.

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

A few more days passed.

For some reason, Emperor Yingqian was unusually restless.

He had barely sat down at the table with the help of the shadowy figure when hurried footsteps sounded outside.

"Your Majesty!"

Emperor Yingqian's eyelids twitched.

The leader of the Imperial Guard strode in: "Urgent report from Ji Province."

Emperor Yingqian suddenly stood up, his unease growing stronger.

A moment later, another Imperial Guard, holding a courier's urgent report that had traveled 800 li (approximately 400 kilometers) high, knelt outside the palace and shouted.

"Your Majesty, the Governor of Zhuozhou urgently reports that torrential rains for half a month have caused the Grand Canal to overflow—"

The third Imperial Guard stumbled into the hall and fell to the ground beneath the dragon-carved pillar: "The dikes of the four cities of Yuzhou Prefecture have collapsed."

Suddenly, the teacup on the dragon table shattered, and the Biluochun tea mixed with the broken porcelain spread across the landscape map unfolded on the table.

Just like the raging torrent, it submerged the boundaries of the prefecture and city outlined in vermilion ink.

(End of this chapter)