After clapping twice, Xiao Lin frowned.
"So the general has a taste for this." Xiao Lin opened his folding fan and leaned closer to Yu Tang: "Then wait a moment, I have a surprise for you."
Yu Tang was still wondering what surprise he was expecting.
Half an hour later, a stunningly beautiful "woman" dressed in an elaborate gown, with her long black hair draped over her shoulders and half her face covered by a veil, gracefully walked onto the stage, carrying a guqin.
As soon as he stepped onto the stage, all the guests instantly held their breath and looked over, unable to look away.
"Hahaha, Master, that girl is Xiao Lin!"
Xiao Jin laughed until her stomach hurt: [Sure enough, once you start cross-dressing, you'll do it a million times! He'll do anything to surprise you!]
Yu Tang was drinking tea when he heard this, and he spat out the tea as soon as he heard it.
While coughing, she looked at Xiao Lin, meeting his peach blossom eyes, which passed through the diners and landed solely on Yu Tang, her tenderness seemingly overflowing.
Without saying a word, he simply placed a long, slender, white finger to his lips and made a shushing gesture as the guests, who had recovered from their daze, began to make a fuss.
In an instant, the entire first, second, and third floor stands fell completely silent.
Having achieved the desired effect, Xiao Lin placed the guqin on the long table and slowly sat down on the stool.
He placed his fingers on the strings and began to play the piece he had always wanted to play for Yu Tang—"The Phoenix Seeks Its Mate".
However, he secretly altered the rhythm, turning the originally gentle piece into a soaring and intense one, with ups and downs, just like his and Yu Tang's real experiences.
It was breathtaking.
The second half gradually calmed down, leaving behind joy and tranquility, just like them now.
To hold your hand and grow old together.
When the music ended, Xiao Lin picked up his guqin and left, and the diners finally came to their senses.
They all inquired with the madam about Xiao Lin's background, asking if they could talk to this young lady about poetry, songs, and life ideals.
When the madam saw the silver coins they slipped to her, and then thought of the silver notes Xiao Lin had given her, she rolled her eyes and said, "Young masters, don't even think about it. That person is not someone you can afford to mess with."
In less than half an incense stick's time, Xiao Lin appeared beside Yu Tang, waving a folding fan.
I asked him, "I saw you staring at the girl on stage, completely mesmerized. Did I miss something?"
Yu Tang watched him pretend.
He took a sip of tea to moisten his throat and said.
"You missed a wonderful piece of music."
"A stunningly beautiful woman played a piece called 'The Phoenix Seeks Its Mate,' and it was so beautiful that I almost cried."
If I didn't have Your Majesty, I'm afraid I would be like those diners, vying to chat with him about romance and nature.
"Oh? I'm curious what the general wants to talk to him about?" Xiao Lin asked him, "Could you tell me?"
Yu Tang smiled slightly, and with a deft movement, snatched the folding fan from Xiao Lin's hand, unfolded it with a swish, and whispered in his ear.
"I'd like to ask that peerless and elegant His Majesty of Xiao Kingdom, doesn't such a long skirt trip your feet?"
Xiao Lin's face suddenly turned red.
But he quickly regained his composure and said, "That's perfect. I'll also ask on behalf of His Majesty whether the general liked this surprise."
"Of course I like it." Yu Tang turned her head slightly, almost touching Xiao Lin's lips: "I like it so much, I'll go back and pamper you now."
As night deepened, once they returned to the palace, the bedchamber was once again filled with an ambiguous atmosphere.
Standing in the outer room, Li Haiquan thought to himself, "Tomorrow I must tell His Majesty that someone from the Imperial Household Department came and said that the clothes for the coronation ceremony are ready. Remember to have General Yu try them on."
On New Year's Eve, the ceremony for bestowing the title of emperor was officially held.
Yu Tang donned the same black and red ceremonial robe as Xiao Lin, the beaded hat swaying gently with his steady steps forward.
All the civil and military officials knelt beside them.
He walked towards Xiao Lin step by step.
Her eyes were fixed on the young emperor, the man she deeply loved.
In this serious setting, when he walked up to Xiao Lin, Xiao Lin magically produced a string of candied hawthorns from his wide sleeves.
However, this string of candied hawthorns was not shorter at the front and longer at the bottom. Instead, it was symmetrical at both ends, with eight red candied hawthorns strung in the center, just like the string of candied hawthorns that Yu Tang bought for Xiao Lin for the first time. Under the winter sun, the brown sugar reflected the luster, making the hawthorns appear even more red.
“General…” His smile was just like that of a young man, as if time had turned back to the time when the two first met.
Once Yu Tang grasped one end, he said, "I made this myself. Shall we use it as the red silk for our wedding ceremony and walk into the Mingzheng Hall together?"
Yu Tang also broke free from the serious atmosphere, laughed, and said, "Okay..."
And so, the two of them, each holding one end, walked step by step in unison into the Mingzheng Hall, and sat on the specially modified dragon throne that could accommodate two people sitting together, listening to Li Haiquan outside shouting: "Kneel—"
The ministers all knelt down.
"One kowtow—"
"Kowtowing again—"
"Three kowtows—"
After the ministers finished doing these things, they spoke again.
"bye--"
The sound of this character falls.
Hundreds of ministers shouted in unison, "Long live the two emperors! Long live the emperors!"
The sound echoed outside the Mingzheng Hall, deeply etched into everyone's heart.
Yu Tang and Xiao Lin exchanged a glance, then looked away.
Outside the Mingzheng Hall, there was no cold snow of New Year's Eve, only the bright winter sun and the azure sky.
This time, it is a golden age they have created together.
And they will do the same in the future.
To grow old together, hand in hand.
Chapter 1
The villain is resurrected for the fifth time (01)
Inside the soul space, Yu Tang suddenly opened his eyes, took in his surroundings, and breathed a sigh of relief.
He looked at the golden soul fragment in his hand, and a smile appeared in his eyes as he thought about his experiences with Xiao Lin over the years.
After the coronation ceremony, they stayed in the capital for another fifteen years, making Xiao a truly great power. They also got along well with the surrounding smaller countries, achieving mutual benefit and avoiding war and friction.
It successfully created an era of perpetual prosperity.
After that, they handed everything over to Xiao Lin's younger brother, the tenth prince Xiao Zhuo, who was seventeen years old at the time.
Xiao Zhuo was born after Emperor Xiao Sheng died, and was raised by Xiao Lin's people. After the coronation ceremony, Yu Tang proposed to bring Xiao Zhuo with them, and Xiao Lin agreed.
Yu Tang thus became Xiao Zhuo's martial arts teacher, and Xiao Lin would also teach him the art of governing a country when he had time.
Anyway, with the idea of quickly training a good emperor so they could travel around and enjoy their time together, the two of them devoted themselves to teaching Xiao Zhuo.
Therefore, at the age of seventeen, Xiao Zhuo already possessed the demeanor of Xiao Lin back then, and was capable of shouldering great responsibilities.
With Xiao Lin gone, he naturally succeeded to the throne as the next emperor.
After traveling all over the continent, Yu Tang and Xiao Lin returned to the Northern Territory.
At this time, Qiao Yu and Lu Hanqing were already together, and the four of them gathered together to drink and chat.
They also brought along Zhao Lin's family, Li Wen's family, and Xiao Si's family, making the General's Mansion a lively place.
The two spent the rest of their lives in the Northern Territory, during which time Xiao Lin also discovered that Yu Tang, as a Jade Spirit, would not age.
He knew that Yu Tang had only made herself the same age as him to take care of him.
So sometimes she would feel sad and ask Yu Tang with a pitiful expression, "General, I'm so old now, will you ever stop liking me? Will you ever abandon me?"
Every time Yu Tang heard him say such things, he would flick him on the head and then scold him to put him at ease.
When Xiao Lin sees him angry and anxious, he smiles especially happily.
Because this shows that his general really, really loved him.
Later, when Xiao Lin grew too old to walk, Yu Tang took care of him. In his last moments, he asked, "General, will I be able to see you again in the next life?"
Only after seeing Yu Tang nod did he close his eyes with peace of mind.
Yu Tang, on the other hand, chose to stand atop the towering city wall of Bei Yi City after Xiao Lin's death and cremation, transforming into a jade pendant that fell heavily to the ground.
At the moment the jade shattered, his life in the fourth world truly ended.
I opened my eyes and returned to the soul space.
"Little Jin, you'll be a little devil in the next world." Yu Tang thought for a moment and said, "I wonder what kind of identity Lu Qingyuan will give me."
[Lu Qingyuan represents evil, but you reformed him long ago. I guess after your death, he's probably doing good deeds like Cheng Luo and Xiao Lin, right?]
"Yes, the little devil isn't inherently bad; he would indeed do such a thing."
Yu Tang smiled proudly and told Xiao Jin that they could now jump between worlds.
The moment I opened my eyes, I saw myself grabbing a man by the neck, lifting him up and slamming him against the wall.
With just a little more force, this man would have suffocated to death!
The two were in a stairwell, in a corner that was not covered by security cameras.
Yu Tang could feel a surge of power within him, a power that no ordinary human could possess.
"Help—me—" The man was still wearing a hospital gown, with gauze on his forehead, his face flushed, and he kept slapping Yu Tang's hand.
His eyes were filled with a longing for life and a fear of Yutang.
Yu Tang was also stunned, but still subconsciously let go.
The man scrambled out of the building, shouting that someone was trying to kill him and demanding that the hospital staff arrest Yu Tang.
Then there was a commotion outside. The hospital security guards went to the stairwell, and although Yu Tang was standing there, everyone acted as if they couldn't see him, saying, "Nobody's here?"