Chapter 145: No Flower Stays Red for a Hundred Days

Cang Cheng, Zhangpu Village.

Evening light enters the window, chrysanthemum wind blows through the hall.

Inside the house, a young man sits before the wooden table by the window.

He is about twenty-three or twenty-four, with gentle brows and eyes, his features handsome yet not sharp.

At this moment, his half‑worn blue‑gray soft cloth robe has its sleeves rolled up to his forearms; his right hand holds a carving knife, and he is fully focused on dealing with a palm‑sized piece of pear wood in his left hand.

His movements, however, are really not skilled.

As the blade pushes forward, the force alternates between light and heavy—

Where it should be flattened, he gouges a deep pit; where it should be rounded, he instead carves it into a sharp edge.

He isn't annoyed; he merely tilts his head to examine it for a moment, thinks hard, then lowers his head and continues.

He is working very hard; the index and middle fingers of his left hand are wrapped with two small strips of cloth, showing that the carving knife has already tested the depth there.

The evening light moves inch by inch across the tabletop; the wood carving finally takes shape, and the gentle‑looking youth shakes it happily, wood shavings rustling down to reveal a little figurine that looks not very bright.

The youth, however, is quite pleased and asks the ugly youth who has always been by his side:

"A Chou, A Chou, do you think this little figurine I carved looks good?"

A Chou: "......"

"Master, I think you're asking a pointless question."

"Who's 'good‑looking' little wooden doll has its eyes three li apart!"

"Really strange!"

"Speaking of which, I've heard that the master's own father, the former imperial tutor, was said to be extremely good at scheming—so how did he produce such a straightforward, solid‑filled tangyuan!"

"It can't be that bad bamboo shoots good shoots, can it?!"

A Chou stammered, not daring to reply; just then Ouyang Yan returned home looking for someone, pushed the door open, saw the wood carving in Yu Baobao's hand, and instinctively let out a "Huh!"

"Why are you still carving this kind of ugly‑eyed, bulging‑eyed, fang‑exposing nuo mask figurine? That's too inauspicious."

A Chou: "......"

Yu Baobao: "...... (embarrassed)"

Yu Baobao: "What ugly eyes and bulging eyes, exposed fangs! There's no such thing! This is the Chinu I carved! Chinu!"

He had thought that once he said that, he would receive an expression of sudden enlightenment.

As it turned out, he did get a look of sudden enlightenment, but it wasn't quite right.

Ouyang Yan instinctively replied:

"Then wouldn't that make him even more of a Chinu......."

A Chou's mind felt as if it had been washed with clean water, and he fell completely silent.

Only Yu Baobao, gripping the little figurine angrily, continued to wield the knife and modify it.

Ouyang Yan secretly found it amusing; after searching half a day for his younger brother and not finding him, and feeling a bit tired these days, he simply sat down and began to chat.

"Your Majesty, how did you suddenly think of carving a Chinu figurine?"

"Normally he scares people even at home; now that the person has finally left with difficulty, you still specially carve a little figurine to keep on scaring!"

"Is that right?"

"Is that really right?"

Yu Baobao, striving hard in his practice, upon hearing this didn't even lift his head:

"Of course I'm thinking of him!"

"They've been away for a while this time, so I also carved a Wife Master figurine—look, it's right on the windowsill."

Ouyang Yan followed the sound and, under the thin glow, indeed saw a clumsy, chubby little figurine on the windowsill.

That figurine naturally has nothing to do with its original master, but Yu Baobao's carving emphasizes capturing the spirit first, then the appearance.

Therefore, even if it bears only a hint of resemblance, it is enough to draw sideways glances.

Ouyang Yan felt a brief moment of dazedness; Yu Baobao, with a few strokes, finished modifying the figurine in his hand, then rose and placed it beside the Wife Master figurine.

The two figurines stood side by side; the rosy light shone through their shadows and fell to the ground, making their originally unconnected bodies seem as if they were holding hands, giving a faint sense of intimacy.

Ouyang Yan looked at them a few more times and felt something was off:

"Your Majesty, couldn't you place these two farther apart......"

"How you've placed them makes them look like they're about to elope."

"This time it's truly inauspicious!"

Ouyang Yan's words went in Yu Baobao's left ear and out the right:

"Arranged like this it looks good; seen this way they're harmonious and beautiful, and they'll never quarrel their whole lives."

"I don't know why, but I always feel the Wife Master and Chinu are constantly at odds."

"During the previous flood that besieged the city, when Chinu came to summon people, he looked as if he were bursting with great anger......"

"This isn't right, this isn't good."

"If those two stay on good terms, then I'll feel at ease......"

Yu Baobao sat back down at the table, propping his chin on his hand, gazing at the figurine before the window; the more he looked, the happier he became, and for a moment he narrowed his eyes contentedly.

Ouyang Yan first glanced at the Young Emperor, then at the figurine before the window; after a few breaths he could no longer hold back and, choosing his words carefully, reminded:

"...... Your Majesty, if you keep the Wife Master and Chinu together like this, something will happen."

"Has the Wife Master said when she'll come to fetch you?"

"To be frank, the Wife Master's extraordinariness is obvious to anyone who has eyes."

"Even if she someday fails to gain the world, her distance from that position won't be far."

"Previously, Chinu clearly showed favoritism toward the Wife Master and others, breeding jealousy; his intentions were obviously impure."

In the future......

In the future, those who set their hearts on the Wife Master will surely only increase, not decrease.

If the Young Emperor does not stay by the Wife Master's side, it would instead be letting her wander outside......

How could one possibly keep an eye on someone?

Ouyang Yan felt his 'advice' was no longer subtle, but he couldn't help it—his understanding of Yu Baobao's temperament wasn't as deep as A Chou's, and he was utterly unaware that Yu Baobao never cared about such things.

Saying it like that isn't good; as long as you're not dead, it's not a big deal, right?

Yu Baobao replied without hesitation, then after coming to her senses added:

Actually, even dying isn't a big deal.

My mother once told me, saying a person's death isn't measured by the death of the flesh, but by whether someone remembers them; if they are still remembered, then it isn't death.

As for whether or not to accept me...... that's even less of a matter!

In this world, the truth is not that only constant companionship counts as true feeling.

Just like fish belly, he has thought of it day and day since childhood, never missing a meal.

But after eating the freshness of the past few years, later, upon becoming sensible, he discovered——

Eating it for a long time will get boring.

If eaten every day, even though he loves fish belly the most, it will become tasteless.

If eaten every few days, with other dishes in between, then coming back to fish belly, it will be delicious!

He can certainly follow the Wife Master every day, and the Wife Master probably likes him sticking to her all the time.

However, they are fine today, fine tomorrow, fine the day after......

Doesn't mean the day after that will be just as good.

His temperament, even Taizong says he's habitually lazy.

By the Wife Master's side, he can't be of much help; instead, he dozes off day after day, lags behind, and the Wife Master, busy inside and out, seeing him like this, may well one day find him 'hard to stomach'.

So, why bother?

Nowadays, although there is some distance between them, knowing that the Wife Master thinks of him is enough!

Yu Baobao's brows and eyes are gentle, her speech soft and slow; all who hear cannot help but glance.

A Chou naturally would not offer any opinion on his master's thoughts; Ouyang Yan, being an outsider, after hearing this, remained silent for a long time, and finally only said:

Then let's hope that someday the Wife Master will let you become the principal wife.

If you become the principal wife, you can tolerate others; but if it were... if it were someone else becoming the principal wife, they might not be able to tolerate you.

The word 'outsider' carries a deep meaning; even Yu Baobao sensed something off.

Not waiting for him to ask further, a faint tremor shook the distant ground, a clear, ringing neigh tore through the air.

Everyone inside stared, not yet reacting, when they heard Du Shanü's long-unheard voice:

Yu Baobao!

Come out quickly, we're going into the city to get married.

?? Here it comes, here it comes! ||ヽ(*￣▽￣*)ノミ|Ю