Hibiscus as a Painting

Chapter 100

"Le'er, you..." The Emperor and Empress closed their eyes for a long time before suddenly getting up, quickly opening the door and walking outside.

"Brother, where are you going? You haven't put on your robes yet... and I haven't applied medicine to my face!"

"Wait for me to come back." The Empress's icy voice echoed from the cold air outside the door.

The meditation room in Xiayang Palace was cold, dark, and gloomy, with only a small kerosene lamp emitting a dim light.

"Does Hui'er like it? This snow fox was hunted by my wife herself, and it's flawless. Although the workmanship isn't very good, this is the first garment my wife has ever sewn, so Hui'er, please don't dislike my handiwork." Empress Yanzai sat on the ground and carefully helped Dugu Xihui put on the slightly oversized fur-lined vest.

"Beautiful...so beautiful. This is the best dress Hui'er has ever worn. My wife is so good." Dugu Xi Hui buried her head in Empress Yanzai's arms and said sweetly.

Empress Yanzai smiled, the smile reaching her eyes. She reached out and hugged Dugu Xihui, saying, "Hui'er is just too thin, which is why that scoundrel Sikou bullied her so much."

"My lady... you're not angry with Hui'er anymore?" Dugu Xihui looked timidly at the Empress with her amber eyes.

Empress Yanzai patted Dugu Xihui's thin face affectionately and said softly, "My lady, I'm not angry with you. You're angry with yourself. You can't protect me, and I have to suffer because of your incompetence. Does it still hurt?"

“Hui’er doesn’t hurt anymore, not at all. My wife… Hui’er isn’t wronged, not at all. Actually… Hui’er started it today…” Dugu Xi Hui’s face was pale, her eyelashes trembled, and she buried her head in the Empress’s shoulder, whispering.

"Hmm, then why did Hui'er take action?" Empress Yanzai patted Dugu Xi Hui's back reassuringly.

"He said... Hui'er is an ugly monster, not even half as ugly as him, how can she compare to... how can she compare to his brother, even those eunuchs are a hundred times, a thousand times more handsome than Hui'er... Even if Hui'er stays in Xia Yang Palace, Madam won't even glance at Hui'er." Dugu Xi Hui huddled in the Empress's arms, trembling. "Madam... Madam... Hui'er didn't want to grow up like this, Hui'er wanted to be as handsome as her brother, but no matter how hard she tried, Hui'er just couldn't grow up to be pretty. Madam, please don't despise Hui'er... okay?"

Empress Yanzai gently lifted Dugu Xihui's face and wiped away the tears from the corners of his eyes: "My Hui'er is kind and lovely. In my eyes, she is the most beautiful, and no one can compare to her. ... The Sikou family members are all ruthless and vicious. None of them can compare to my Hui'er."

Dugu Xihui gripped Empress Yanzai's robes tightly, her tear-filled eyes as clear as jade and glass: "Really?"

Empress Yanzai lovingly embraced Dugu Xihui and gently patted her: "Of course it's true, my wife loves Hui'er the most."

"But my wife..."

"Um?"

"Why did you build such a beautiful palace for him, my lady?" Dugu Xihui nestled against the Empress's neck and asked softly.

"My lady grew up in Fengyi Palace. It is your home and also Hui'er's home. How can the Sikou family occupy the home that you and Hui'er share? My lady, please reserve Fengyi Palace for Hui'er and wait for her to grow up. Then she can come back and live with you. Is that alright?" Empress Yanzai gently pinched Dugu Xihui's little nose and said softly.

"My wife is so good." Dugu Xihui smiled and nestled obediently in Empress Yanzai's arms.

The woman lowered her eyes slightly and sighed, "My wife is not good. My wife will make Hui'er suffer many, many more grievances in the future. Is Hui'er afraid?"

Dugu Xihui raised his face, his fox-like eyes filled with determination. He gazed at her and shook his head solemnly: "Hui'er is not afraid. As long as I can be with my wife, I am not afraid of any hardship."

"Hui'er... my Hui'er."

"My lady... are you leaving?"

“I’m not leaving. Tonight, my wife and Hui’er will reflect on their mistakes together in the Repentance Room.”

A gust of cold wind blew in through the crack in the door, and Dugu Xihui, who was nestled in the Empress's arms, shivered violently. The Empress held Dugu Xihui even tighter and wrapped her up more securely.

Outside the door, the Emperor and Empress's faces were deathly pale, devoid of any color. A thin layer of icy mist clung to their long, feather-like eyelashes, their bluish-purple lips were tightly pressed together, and their frail bodies trembled slightly like fallen leaves in a cold wind. Their long, jade-like hands were raw and bleeding from their fingernails, blood trickling down between their fingers. Like a lost soul, they drifted out of the Xia Yang Palace, their once warm, dark eyes now completely bloodshot.

"Brother... Brother is as handsome as a celestial being."

“Brother is wrong. Now that we are married, we are husband and wife. How can there be a distinction between ruler and subject?”

"The old lady said, 'One comb to the end, two combs to a hundred hairs level with eyebrows, three combs to a table level with eyebrows, four combs to a house full of children and grandchildren.' Don't you understand, brother?"

"Why does Brother call Jin'er Your Majesty like everyone else? Now that Brother and Jin'er are married, you will be Jin'er's Empress. From now on, Jin'er will only be good to Brother. Brother, please call Jin'er by her name. It has been so many years since anyone called Jin'er by her name. Jin'er longs to hear Brother call Jin'er by her name."

"My brother is so kind."

“That’s Chang Le Corridor, and across from it is Wei Yang Lake. Brother, do you see that palace? That’s Wei Yang Palace, which Jin’er built for you. May you enjoy happiness and prosperity every year. Do you like it, brother? Brother! Brother…”

"Jin'er is the Emperor, and everything in this world belongs to Jin'er. Jin'er loves Brother and naturally wants to give Brother the best. Even if she doesn't have this beautiful land and the vast country, she hopes that Brother can be happy every day. Brother, please don't blame Jin'er, it will make Jin'er sad."

"Jin'er loves her brother the most."

Jin'er loves her brother the most...

Jin'er loves her brother the most...

Jin'er loves her brother the most...

Early winter of the twelfth year of the reign of Emperor Yaochen (528 AD)

The Emperor and Empress—Sikou Xunxiang—caught a cold again, and this time the illness was severe.

The emperor and empress coughed up blood incessantly, and for a time they could not take any medicine and fell into a coma.

The Empress was heartbroken and shed tears several times. She stayed by his side day and night, and did not discuss state affairs for a whole month.

More than a month later, the emperor and empress were finally able to get out of bed with difficulty.

Empress Yanzai was overjoyed and, in gratitude for the heavenly grace, granted a general amnesty.

A lifetime of love and hate, hard to understand, reincarnation begins again. The bamboo grower is heartless, searching for him among the crowd a thousand times. (Part Six)

Searching for him among the crowd (Part 6) Zi Jin sat in front of the bronze mirror, pinching her bloodless face hard, feeling a slight sourness in her heart: Although she was a bit dark before, she still looked somewhat human. Now she is pale, and she looks really terrible.

From that day on, every three days that old man would draw a bowl of his own blood. He's not a turtle, is his blood really that nourishing?

Xiao Bai hasn't come back for over ten days since he left that day, and I wonder what happened to him. But what if he suddenly comes tonight? Will he be frightened by my appearance?

Zi Jin used a delicate jade hairpin to pick up some water-red rouge, dissolved it in the water in her cup, and lightly patted it onto her pale face. Then she applied a touch of crimson lip rouge to her pale lips, gently blending it out in a thin, translucent, and moist finish.