Madam, don't do this!

Chapter 408 A Nighttime Talk Between Husband and Wife (2)

The sun shines brightly, and fluffy clouds drift by.

The grass was lush and green, and when the warm breeze blew, the grass blades swayed and bent over.

The wind carries a faint scent of earth, which brushes against my face, making me feel refreshed. Looking around, I can see some farmers working in the fields. Although it is hard work, their faces are all beaming with smiles.

Luo Tianchu also had a smile on his lips, after all, this was Ningping under his rule, and it was thriving.

After killing a few landlords, the land finally became more abundant. With land, the people had something to look forward to, and with something to look forward to, they wouldn't rebel.

This is the crux of Ningguo's current problems.

Luo Tianchu saw it, but there was nothing he could do to change it.

Even if he were to sit on the dragon throne, he couldn't achieve that; at most, he could only prolong Ning Kingdom's existence for another two years. To change this situation, a decisive and ruthless person must step forward, slaughtering countless people, causing rivers of blood to flow, and forcing the entire world to submit. Luo Tianshu knew he didn't possess such courage; perhaps only one person in the entire Ning Kingdom could accomplish this.

Feeling out of place in this world?
Luo Tianquan was also pondering what his elder brother had said.

Looking back, he could sense a slight sense of distortion every time he faced his brother-in-law, though he wasn't quite sure how to describe it. "Incompatible" would be a fitting description. Some of his brother-in-law's ideas and methods, in this world, could even be considered unorthodox… a kind of unorthodoxy completely different from his mother's.

“Brother-in-law probably isn’t that interested in that position either.” Luo Tianshu’s voice continued, “But he’s a very complicated person. He usually acts like he doesn’t care about anything that’s his business, but when he saw Pingyang after the Jurchen cavalry trampled it, he personally led the Black Armored Warriors to flatten the royal court.”

"I suspect that Emperor Ninghe said something to my brother-in-law at Dongling this time." Luo Tianchu stretched and yawned. "I can't guess exactly what he said, but it's probably related to the throne..."

Luo Tianchu did not use the titles "Father" or "Emperor".

If their mother knew that they called Emperor Ninghe "father," she might get jealous, feel wronged, and then hide away and cry.

Don't let my mother's age fool you; she's the kind of person who's capable of doing something like this.

"Emperor Ninghe's condition may not be good. It's not just the situation in the court, but also Emperor Ninghe's own health. Don't forget, before my brother-in-law went to Pingyang for the first time, an old eunuch came to the Luo family to look for medicine, and we often heard rumors that Emperor Ninghe was not in good health... Emperor Ninghe probably doesn't have enough time to change the current situation in Ning Kingdom, so I'm advising my brother-in-law to do something."

"The day Emperor Ninghe died was the day Ningguo was thrown into chaos."

“If Ningguo falls into chaos, someone will have to step up.”

"Emperor Ninghe chose his brother-in-law."

Luo Tianshu pondered and analyzed. If Song Yan were here, he would probably be astonished. After all, apart from some details, the things Luo Tianshu deduced were almost entirely correct. It was as if Luo Tianshu had been watching and listening the whole time when Song Yan was talking to Emperor Ninghe.

"However, Song Yan doesn't want to sit in that troublesome position, so he wants to push it onto us. With the most powerful army in Ning Kingdom in his hands, it's no exaggeration to say that whoever Song Yan supports is very likely to become the emperor."

"Unfortunately, I have absolutely no interest in being the ruler of a fallen kingdom."

Luo Tianquan chuckled upon hearing this: "Then tell me, will my brother-in-law eventually step up?"

"Yes." Luo Tianchu looked around, his gaze sweeping over the people working in the fields: "Song Yan doesn't care about the life or death of individuals, but he cares about the entire Han Chinese nation."

"Once war breaks out, countless lives will be lost."

Even if he was unwilling, my brother-in-law would still go into battle.

"He's just a somewhat awkward person."

Thinking about what Song Yan had done recently, Luo Tianquan nodded in deep agreement. His brother-in-law seemed to harbor a deep-seated hatred for foreign tribes, especially the Jurchens and Japanese pirates, wishing they could be exterminated. The warm sunlight made him feel languid, but Luo Tianquan didn't care. He simply lay down on the grass. The sunlight was a bit too bright, so he shielded his eyes with his hand: "I wonder how my brother-in-law will treat us remnants of the previous dynasty after he takes that position. He won't be so ruthless as to exterminate us all, will he?"

"Don't worry, he definitely won't." Luo Tianchu also lay down in the same position as his younger brother: "Brother-in-law would never do anything to make Mother sad, especially with Tianxuan and Tianyi watching over him. I've long felt that there's something wrong between Song Yan and Tianyi, and that feeling is even more obvious now that he's back."

"Then, the eldest granddaughter of the Fang family, should we...?"

"Yes, of course I want it. If she's beautiful and has a good figure, why wouldn't I want it when Old Man Fang is practically offering himself up?"

"Pah, filthy."

Mencius said: "Food and sex are human nature!"

"That's what Gaozi said."

……

Unbeknownst to Song Yan, his two brothers-in-law were nagging him from behind, as he was already boarding the carriage back to the city.

Ningping County has been governed very well by Luo Tianshu.

Along the way, they encountered no bandits or robbers who would try to rob them.

Of course, even outside the territory of Ningping County, not many bandits dared to come up and cause trouble. The five thousand Japanese guerrillas were not to be trifled with. Occasionally, a fool would jump out from behind a big tree and say, "This mountain is mine," but when he saw the densely packed Japanese guerrillas behind the convoy, his legs would immediately tremble, and he would kneel down with a thud, unable to speak properly.

This time, Luo Tianchu and Luo Tianquan prepared plenty of carriages in advance. Besides their personal weapons, the heavy armor was transported entirely by carriage, making the journey much faster. The closer they got to the north, the lower the temperature, but fortunately, Luo Tianchu had also prepared winter clothing, so there was no need to worry about them getting cold.

After traveling for several days, you can even see snow on the ground that has not yet melted.

Nahetuya wasn't very interested in the freezing cold scene, having seen it many times on the Haixi Grassland. Fang Wanlin, on the other hand, hadn't left Dongling for many years and was quite amazed to see the snow that hadn't melted in early spring. Whenever she stopped to rest, she would reach out her little hand to try to pick some off... But the snow, having endured a whole winter, had long since frozen solid, often leaving her fingers red from the cold.

When they first met, Fang Wanlin was dressed in a red dress, like a walking flame. But after leaving Dongling, she became very quiet, docile and obedient. Only when she got off the carriage and played could one see a bit of her true nature. Song Yan assumed that she was just unhappy because she was away from home for the first time, and didn't pay too much attention to it.

At dusk, outside the city, camps were set up.

The cook is starting a fire to prepare a meal.

Food is always relatively simple when marching.

Some dried cured meat, boiled in boiling water and sprinkled with coarse salt, becomes a pot of warm meat soup. Served with fried noodles, it is considered a high-quality military ration.

Not far away is a county town.

But if 5,000 people go there, it might cause some disturbance, which is not good.

Song Yan sat alone on a snowless patch of ground, quietly gazing at the vast expanse in the distance, lost in thought.

There were footsteps behind me.

The familiar scent of lilies—it's Luo Tianxuan.

There was a rustling sound, and soon slender, delicate fingers gently landed on Song Yan's shoulder. With a little force, Song Yan's body leaned back, his neck resting on soft thighs. He smelled his wife's unique fragrance, and when he opened his eyes, a beautiful face came into view.

With slender, delicate hands, gently press and knead the shoulders and forehead to relieve stiffness and fatigue.

My gaze shifted, and there was the boundless sky.

Eagles soar in the sky, and below them lies the vast earth, with its mountains and rivers.

On the official road, people were like ants; in the fertile fields, people were as numerous as weaving cloth. They came and went on this land, searching for the meaning of their own lives... Well, that might sound a bit lofty, but they were all just struggling to fill their stomachs.

"What are you thinking about?" Luo Tianxuan's soft voice reached Song Yan's ears. "I'm thinking, for those people, is this kind of life enough?"

Luo Tianxuan also looked over there: "People are all the same."

“I grew up in a wealthy family, but I was also constantly on the verge of death due to tuberculosis. At that time, my only thought was: to live. I think they were the same, working in the fields, hunting in the mountains, traveling north and south, east and west. They were content just to live.”

I'm content just to be alive.

Also.

In this era of low productivity, survival is not an easy thing.

If one encounters a wise and enlightened emperor, one might not starve to death; but if one encounters a foolish, tyrannical, or even mediocre ruler, then the people will suffer greatly.

To live has become a luxury.

Luo Tianxuan smiled gently again, her head lowered, her eyes brimming with autumn water, as if she could see through everything. Her delicate fingers gently caressed Song Yan's cheek: "Actually, husband, sometimes you don't need to think so much. Just do what you want to do."

"What do you want to do?" Song Yan blinked, deep in thought. "I want to wipe out the Xiongnu, I want to slaughter the Jurchens, I want to burn down the islands where the Japanese pirates live..."

There were other things Song Yan didn't say aloud. He wanted the Han people to stand tall in the Central Plains forever, he wanted the world to be free of that damned English, and he wanted to eradicate the bald eagles as soon as possible...

I want all Han people to have enough to eat and warm clothes to wear...

This is the path that Song Yan chose for himself.

But this path was too heavy, so heavy that just thinking about it made Song Yan feel suffocated.

Ultimately, he was just an ordinary person in both his lives. He had the arrogance common to transmigrators, but lacked some of the great talent and ambition.

“Then let’s do it.” Luo Tianxuan nodded without hesitation. She knew what Emperor Ninghe and Song Yan had said, and she understood even better the pressure her husband was under. Her eyes, like autumn water, were filled with tenderness and pity: “I know my husband is an extremely good person, but he always likes to put too heavy a burden on his shoulders. It’s too tiring. I only hope that my husband can live a little easier and happier.”

"Do whatever you wish to do, my lord. If you succeed, that will be wonderful."

"Even if we fail, so what?" Her slender fingers traced along Song Yan's arm and finally landed in his palm, their fingers intertwined: "If my husband becomes emperor, then I will be empress."

"If my husband tills the fields, then I will be a farmer's wife."

"My husband's hair is all white, and my teeth have all fallen out."

"Please remember, my husband..."

"No matter what, I'll always be there for you!"

This may be the most heartfelt confession.

Luo Tianxuan's words didn't solve anything, but Song Yan felt inexplicably happy.

I didn't eat much for dinner, and I wasn't very hungry.

The two figures were on the other side of the camp, leaning against each other, watching the sun set and the moon rise; watching the sunset glow red and the sky full of stars.

The chirping of insects drifted on the wind from afar. Apart from the two patrolling squads, most of the soldiers were asleep, and the night was quiet.

Luo Tianxuan leaned quietly against Song Yan's shoulder, her eyes catching a glimpse of her husband's profile.

very nice.

She was so beautiful that she wished she could hold her husband in her hands and kiss him.

She was so beautiful that she wanted to hug her husband tightly and melt him into her body.

Just watching silently, I felt as if I had returned to that snowy night from before.

At that time, the weather in Ningguo had become abnormal. In the summer, the sun was scorching and droughts were severe. In the winter, the cold was biting. When the wind howled, large snowflakes covered the sky and the cold was extreme, even more uncomfortable than the winter of the previous year.

She curled up in the corner of her room and wailed.

She didn't understand why it had to be her.
That year, she was just a tiny little thing.

But they also understood what tuberculosis represented and what death represented.

Death represents endless darkness, an inescapable despair. She will be unable to move, hear, or see. An invisible barrier, like a small box, will completely isolate her from everything around her.

Everything in the world was no longer relevant to her.

The thought of that feeling sent chills down her spine.

Tuberculosis adds countless sufferings to the process of dying.

She couldn't understand why, out of so many people in the world, tuberculosis had befallen her. She hadn't done anything wrong and shouldn't be suffering such punishment. It was precisely because of her deep-seated fear of death that she fought tuberculosis with all her might, even when she was exhausted and on her last legs, she didn't want to close her eyes... But everyone has their limits.

Human courage and will cannot change everything.

She could feel death drawing ever closer.

Just when she was on the verge of despair and collapse, her husband appeared, like a ray of light that dispelled the cold darkness and gave her life color and a warmth different from the cold despair.

She wouldn't care about her husband's identity, status, strength, or wealth. Luo Tianxuan knew that after this light appeared, he would be the only one in her life. No matter what her husband did, whether he would be remembered in history or be infamous for eternity, she would stay by his side.

She could vaguely sense that even though they had shared the most intimate moments, there was still a slight distance between their hearts.

Now, that distance has been reduced.

For Luo Tianxuan, this is also happiness.

However, such happiness is always interrupted by some untimely people.

Lost in blissful happiness, Luo Tianxuan suddenly frowned, her eyelashes trembling slightly as she looked ahead. In the darkness of night, a chubby figure was moving toward her.

That was a martial artist.

Ninth rank.

As they got closer, they could see in the moonlight that the person was dressed in Taoist attire.

A jade pendant with crane and auspicious cloud patterns hangs from her waist.

Holding an ivory and jade whisk.

(End of this chapter)