CH 109

Extra 6

Everyone knew that the emperor’s requirements were high. Fortunately, although the ministers were impatient, they also knew that the emperor was young. The crown prince was a major event for the country, but one must also look at the emperor’s age. If Rong Ting were in his twenties or thirties, and the harem still had no people or descendants, then the ministers would have rolled up their sleeves and had a long reckoning with him. But the key point was that Rong Ting was only fourteen…it was a bit early for that. When the daughters of the aristocratic families heard that the emperor had high standards, they were not discouraged. On the contrary, they were full of fighting spirit.

Why?

The reason was very simple: the emperor was the ruler of the country, and there was no one in the harem at this age. They heard that the emperor especially missed his Empress Mother, and even if he was not particularly adept at poetry, he wrote many poems in honor of his late mother. Who out there did not know that Empress Rende had been the most precious treasure of the previous emperor’s heart. From the time the adopted daughter of the General’s estate became the empress, and even after, the harem seemed false. The late emperor favored her alone–equivalent to one couple for one lifetime!

Under such influence, perhaps the emperor would also be that sort of lover?

His Majesty excelled in literary and military arts. He was said to be extremely handsome, and he also kept his body pure. So did he demand too much of the empress? Clearly not!

Whoever became empress would be Great Ye’s most outstanding woman. This seemed to be an unspoken fact, so the girls of the aristocratic families roused their fighting spirits. Even if they did not become queen and married into the harem, at least they had promoted their strengths and worked hard for it, right?

Rong Ting was indeed the strongest emperor since Great Ye’s establishment.

If nothing else, he held real power in his hands, and there were no elders who could make decisions for him; he could decide his own marriage. The ministers couldn’t interfere too much. After all, the current emperor’s temperament was not as good as the previous emperor’s. Once, he directly confronted the prime minister and used his eloquence to force him to back down repeatedly…The prime minister was a veteran who had lived through the reign of two emperors, yet he was unexpectedly unable to win against the thirteen-year-old, newly ascended emperor’s veiled scolding–just thinking about it embarrassed him!

One day in court, after routinely discussing major matters and the court was dismissed, Rong Ting distributed a booklet to a few ministers.

“Zhen knows you are all concerned about the matter of selecting an empress and cannot wait to settle the decision for zhen. It is truly moving.” Rong Ting paused. “This is the result of the analysis of a large amount of data. Zhen sent people to visit the common people. This data is absolutely true, and there is no falsification. As you all can see, women who give birth at a young age have a higher probability of dying. There is a saying: no matter what, one must pay attention to the ripeness of the melon1. Young parents are more likely to give birth to children who die prematurely.”

“What Great Ye needs is healthy and strong people. All of you write a memorial on this data. Zhen wants to see your reflection after reading to know if ruler and minister are of one heart.”

The ministers’ expressions changed upon hearing these words: Trouble! The present emperor is indeed worthy of being the child of the previous emperor. Father and son were so alike!

Both were so black-bellied. Want to know if the ruler and minister are of one heart? That was to say, if they didn’t follow his will, they were not of one heart with him? If the minister was not of one heart with the ruler, wasn’t that courting death?

None of the ministers were stupid, and even the upright, ‘clear stream’ ministers2 looked through this data and steadfastly wrote a memorial ‘of one heart with the monarch.’

In this way, in the second year of his reign, Rong Ting accomplished a great feat–he established a new marriageable age, and under the tearing and pulling, he fought for a few more golden years of bachelorhood for himself. After all, the one who brought forward this proposal was him, and shouldn’t he always set a good example for the people? Heh heh.

Rong Ting put a lot of thought into this matter, and of course he couldn’t help but feel a great amount of resentment. In those final two years, Emperor Father had time to sharpen his acting skills, so why didn’t he settle this problem for him? What a pit!

Whenever he felt dissatisfied with Emperor Father, Rong Ting would always go to the secret room. People all over the world said that Emperor Father was unparalleled in painting and calligraphy. He did not inherit this good gene, but he felt that his depictions of turtles and poo were very vivid. So whenever he was upset, he would always come to draw turtles. It was a small, quiet way to express his dissatisfaction.

During Emperor Father’s life in the modern era, if Empress Mother’s fighting power was not enough, Grandfather could scold Emperor Father into submission, right? Thinking about it made him quite happy.

Song Yuan didn’t expect that the author would update the story on her official account again, and even upload 2-3 chapters at once. Amazing!

She read quickly, reading the thousands of characters line by line, almost memorizing them.

In the extras, Gugu was very happy, a wise ruler of his generation. He was diligent in political affairs, promoted economic development, and established many policies that benefited the country and the people. Great Ye’s national strength greatly increased and could be considered to be in its golden age. The people lived happy lives and worked in peace and contentment. Of course, the most important thing was that the emperor’s thinking was very ahead of his time. He advocated postponing the age of marriage and placed great importance on pre- and post-natal care. Of course, he himself led by example.

Song Yuan’s eyes blurred with tears as she read. She was truly happy. Before, she always worried that Gugu was too longly in ancient times, that he couldn’t bear such a big burden, that he wasn’t eating or sleeping well. Now, seeing that Gugu was so happy, she felt relieved, as though a stone hanging in the air had finally fallen to the ground.

That’s really great!

As a mother, it was very good to know that her son was healthy and safe. She didn’t ask for much, just that Gugu could live a long life. If she could be a little more greedy, she hoped that he would smile often.

Rong Heng saw that Song Yuan had become happy again and finally heaved a sigh of relief. Of course, he also felt a bit frustrated. He had talked until his mouth went dry, swearing to heaven countless times, and it was not as good as the author writing two or three extras. He really wasn’t an unscrupulous father, and Rong Ting was also his child. If he had not been absolutely certain that Rong Ting could be left on his own, and if all the obstacles in his way had not been cleared, he would not have been rest assured and run away like this. In her heart, Rong Ting would always be a child who needed to be cared for and protected. In other words, in the mother’s heart, even if her child had already grown up, they would always be a child, right?

Song Yuan cheered up. She didn’t need to stay abroad for long. After all, she’d promised Song Haiping that she would report to the B City branch after having her fun.

It had been a long vacation, and it was time to start a new life.

Rong Heng was very reluctant, but he knew he couldn’t make her stay, not to mention that he also had his own matters to handle.

On the day of her departure, he drove her to the airport. Since there was a lot of time left before boarding, the two chatted in an airport cafe.

“I have to stay here for another year.” Rong Heng smiled. “I need to learn everything from the beginning and get used to things again.”

Song Yuan gave an ‘en.’ “As you should. The Xie family is a big family with a huge enterprise.”

Thinking about it now, Rong Heng’s return was an unexpected joy for her.

The person she thought she would never see again, once again reappeared in her life. She should cherish this blessing.

After experiencing so many things, she suddenly realized: people’s lives were very short. Let go when you should let go, but don’t miss what you should cherish.

“Will you return to China often?” Song Yuan took the initiative to ask.

“Yes.” Rong Heng’s gaze fell on her. “I will go back when I have time. One year will fly by.”

As Song Yuan prepared to go through the security check and board the plane, Rong Heng suddenly grabbed her, and before she could react, he pulled her into a hug.

Similar scenes played out at the airport every day.

Neither of them were outstanding enough to attract much attention.

Song Yuan’s nose was filled with his scent, making her feel at ease, but also making her heart race.

Rong Heng closed his eyes. It felt good to hug her like this. Those ten years he spent waiting suddenly seemed like nothing.

“I won’t force you this time. Actually, I also want to see if, in this world where you can freely choose, the person you choose in the end will be me.” Rong Heng murmured into her ear, “I came back because I thought, even if I was alone my entire life in ancient times, you wouldn’t be there to see it. At least here, you can see my determination, what I’m like when I’m not the emperor anymore.”

“Rong Heng is dead, and Ziheng doesn’t exist. From now on, I’m just Xie Heng. I hope you will like Xie Heng.”

Song Yuan had to admit, she was touched hearing these words.

Yes, there was no emperor, no Ziheng. Perhaps from beginning to end, Ziheng had been one of his disguises. He wanted her to see him as an ordinary person, so… wait and see?

Even after boarding the plane, Song Yuan was still thinking about Rong Heng’s words.

When she was taking her phone out from her pocket, she found a card inside. She realized–it must have been Rong Heng’s doing. Then, before the plane took off, she received a WeChat message from him.

【It’s my own card. There’s not much inside, but I earned it all myself. You said before that you wanted a house that belonged to us, so I’ve been saving money bit by bit. When I save enough for a down payment, may I sincerely invite you to accompany me to the Civil Affairs Bureau?】

Song Yuan used all her strength to stifle her smile.

It seems His Majesty still didn’t understand his situation.

He must not have gone out incognito to research current housing prices, right? At the rate he was making money–well, she’s not targeting him, but would she be destined to be unmarried her whole life? Was he also destined to be a bachelor all his life?

Ay! Housing prices kill love!

What to do? Song Yuan gave it some thought and simply transferred 100,000 yuan into the card. Alright, she was cheating. She would also slowly earn money and put it into the card. Make money together~

[1] 瓜熟蒂落: when the melon is ripe, it falls

[2] 清流: lit. clear stream, referring to noble and virtuous scholar-bureaucrats, as opposed to corrupt or slick(?) ministers

Cheese: when you’re trying to romance your wife-in-another-era but didn’t do your research