Chapter 213: However, the accident came sooner than the promise

Pei Yan Ting was uneasy all night, her stomach had no diarrhea, and she even felt refreshed, with nothing wrong at all.

It seems everyone's physique differs; some military wives have inherently poor constitutions, so they get diarrhea after eating the fermented raw dish.

Like her, she eats with relish and has an excellent physique.

"Lu Xiu Bai, remember to go to the East Gate tonight, pick up the tickets and exchange them for two portions of fermented raw crab claws."

"Sure, I'll go exchange them tonight."

Lu Xiu Bai rested his head on his wife's shoulder, letting out a contented murmur.

Lately, sleeping beside his wife, he hasn't had any strange dreams!

He sleeps so soundly; to avoid being banished to the guest room by his wife, he obeys whatever she says.

"Get up and make breakfast; stop bothering your brother‑in‑law all the time—mooching off meals isn't good, hurry up."

"Oh."

Lu Xiu Bai pouted, then slowly kissed his wife and her belly before getting dressed and getting out of bed.

After months of humbly seeking advice, he can now cook porridge.

The basics are red‑date porridge, red‑bean porridge, mung‑bean porridge—anyone with hands can do it.

Then boil two eggs; the yolks his wife doesn't eat are his.

The melon seedlings on the wall have sprouted; he plucked one, snapped off a cucumber, and bit into its crisp crunch.

While boiling water, he grabbed a handful of chicken nest.

Ah, it's time to shave his head.

He happened to see his brother‑in‑law brushing his teeth and poked his head over to ask:

"Brother‑in‑law, after lunch let's go get a shave together?"

"Whatever."

Jiang Ye was clearly in a good mood and didn't refuse his elder brother‑in‑law's suggestion.

This made Lu Xiu Bai glance at him a few more times, wondering if his personality had changed.

"Where's my sister?"

"She's sleeping; it's too early, she stayed up late last night, no problem."

"Oh oh, I'm not blaming you, but late at night don't let her keep reading medical texts—staying up late is bad."

"Hmm, got it."

Jiang Ye neither affirmed nor denied, offered little explanation, and simply acquiesced.

Seeing that, Lu Xiu Bai turned suspiciously and continued brushing his teeth—needless to say, the well water feels smoother than tap water.

After rinsing, he secretly swallowed a few mouthfuls of well water.

Refreshing; he felt the well water tasted even better than cooled boiled water.

But he only dared to sneak a drink, then went to cook porridge for his wife.

"Meow."

Tangyuan on the roof saw the owner's older brother's little move, covered its eyes, and refused to look.

The owner's older brother has such a silly mind.

After more than an hour, the porridge was ready; before Lu Xiu Bai could show off, his brother‑in‑law delivered a basket of soup dumplings, crab‑roe flavored!

"I made it in my spare time; Manman asked me to bring a portion over for my sister‑in‑law to try."

Having said that, Jiang Ye left.

Lu Xiu Bai lifted the steamer lid, revealing the crystal‑clear, translucent soup dumplings inside, and his pride vanished instantly.

Crab‑roe soup dumplings

Such skill—he could only stare at the dust in admiration and gladly yield!

"What are you thinking about? Sit down and eat together."

Pei Yan Ting isn't the type to eat alone; seeing her husband's expression shift unpredictably, she couldn't help but chuckle.

"This is what my brother‑in‑law specially brought for you to eat; I won't have it, I'll just drink porridge."

No matter how greedy Lu Xiu Bai is, he wouldn't fight his own wife for food.

After refusing righteously, he tried his best not to look at the soup dumplings.

Pei Yan Ting shrugged, stopped urging, picked up a soup dumpling with her chopsticks, blew on it, popped it in her mouth—indeed delicious!

Just across the wall, Shen Man sat listlessly at the dining table, her whole being as if a fairy had sucked out her vitality, nodding off from exhaustion.

"Eat something, then take a nap; when I leave I'll lock the main gate, so no one needs to open it."

Jiang Ye prepared a dish of dipping sauce and placed it before his wife; his face showed a faint hint of guilt, but it quickly faded.

"Mm‑hm."

Shen Man nodded dazedly; whatever was shoved toward her, she'd open her mouth and chew—she was really sleepy.

After eating her fill, she lay back down in bed, closed her eyes, and snoring began.

Never mind appearances—she just wanted to sleep!

Jiang Ye covered his wife with a blanket, picked up the scattered clothes on the floor, took them outside to soak, planning to wash and dry them before leaving.

The window was cracked open a slit, but not pushed wide.

He left the room lightly, closing the door behind him.

Doing chores and tidying the tabletop, he felt no fatigue—rather, he felt energized, full of vigor everywhere.....

Shen Man dreamed again; in the dream, the marriage‑alliance entourage was ambushed on the road, swords flashing and smoke filling the air.

Several volleys of arrows shot straight at the marriage‑alliance princess's carriage; at the critical moment, it was the Marquis of Wuan who stepped forward, swinging his sword to shatter every arrow.

Shen Man felt like an outsider, viewing the heart‑pounding assassination through the little princess's eyes.

Watching the Marquis of Wu'an rescue her from peril time and again.

Women are especially strong, especially when the other party repeatedly descends like a deity to save her from fire and water.

Naturally, the two fell in love.

On the road back to the capital, they privately pledged lifelong commitment, agreeing that after the Marquis of Wu'an returns to the capital, he will use the military merits he has accumulated over the years to request marriage with the little princess.

However, the accident arrived faster than the promise.

The king of Great Qian, while fearing the Marquis of Wu'an, also coveted the marriage‑alliance princess sent by Great Yong, intending to seize the beauty.

First, he arranged a death warrior to assassinate General Lu Xiao at the wedding banquet of the Marquis of Wu'an's close friend.

Then, with an imperial edict, the sovereign seized his minister's wife.

In the end, the Marquis of Wu'an, in a fit of rage for his beloved, launched a mutiny, purged the king's faction, and stormed the imperial palace.

In the end, he was a step too late; his beloved wife had already been poisoned, and later, after ascending the dragon throne, he was left a lonely widower.

Gazing at the solitary, desolate figure in a dragon robe, Shen Man felt a sudden pain in her heart, unsure whether it was the little princess's lingering feelings or her own.

In an instant, Buddhist chants drifted in from all directions.

She saw the little princess, who should have been interred in the imperial tomb, dressed in a phoenix crown and rosy veil, her complexion vivid as she lay in an ice coffin, surrounded by enlightened monks rhythmically striking wooden fish, the Buddhist chants resonating.

Entering his twilight years, the man with white hair at both temple sides, clad in a black dragon robe, stood with his hands bound.

"I alone am willing to exchange this life's merits to reunite with my beloved wife in the next life, even if we cycle through countless reincarnations, even if kinship is shallow, I will spare nothing…"

As the man's final words faded, the heavens and earth shifted, time and space tore, and everything before his eyes grew dim.

Shen Man closed her eyes, and when she opened them again, the man's status remained unchanged; he was still a noble hereditary prince.

But this time, his kinship was shallow, he grew up alone, his servants held only respect for him, there were no chattering close friends around him, nor any marriage‑alliance princess sent by Great Yong…

In the end, in this life's web of scheming, the man was poisoned with a cold toxin; at only thirty years old, he withered away and died alone…

Shen Man seemed to be accelerating; after witnessing the man's two lives, she formed a conjecture in her heart, which made her ache.