On the tenth day after Xiao Langyan left Beijing, a fast horse galloped to Shen's mansion with a letter sealed in red paint.
"Your Majesty, your Majesty asked me to send you this letter from my humble position." The guard who delivered the letter was still Zhui Feng. He had traveled to Mobei many times back then, following Xiao Langyan's orders to support Shen Dingzhu's family.
Shen Dingzhu recognized him and quickly asked someone to serve him tea.
Shen Bi came over to deliver the tea and said, "Guard Zhui Feng will wait for now. After the queen has finished reading, she will reply."
Zhui Feng held up his hands and said respectfully: "I know that the emperor has already expected it and has given instructions in advance. If the empress wants to write something back, please order me to wait."
Shen Dingzhu returned to the house, with a warm light shining in her bright black eyes. She couldn't wait to open the letter, and all she could see were Xiao Langyan's strong handwriting.
"My wife Zhan Xinjia, it rained heavily all the way here, and I'm afraid it won't be sunny when we get to Jizhou. I hope this letter will not get wet when it reaches your hands..."
In the letter, Xiao Langyan told what he had seen along the way. He was patrolling privately incognito, but some officials still knew the news in advance and secretly prepared to receive him. Xiao Langyan expressed dissatisfaction with this.
He also told her to take medicine on time and have the ghost doctor check her pulse regularly. If she felt unwell, she needed to tell her in time. He also asked Shen Dingzhu to tell Chengcheng and Xingche that when he came back from Jizhou, he would bring gifts to the two children.
At the end, he wrote:
"When I wrote to you, I had just passed Jizhou and it was already late summer. The spring peach blossoms were still blooming here. The first time I saw it, I wanted you to see it too, so I folded it and attached it to the letter. I hope you like it. "
Shen Dingzhu hurriedly took it from the letter pocket and took out a pink peach that was slightly crushed.
She sniffed it gently, and it seemed that there was still a little fragrance, and the ink rhyme on Xiao Langyan's fingertips.
Countless sweet smiles filled Shen Dingzhu's beautiful and bright face.
She picked up the wolf brush and started writing a reply. She was afraid that Zhui Feng would have to wait, so she didn't dare to write more. She only told him to take good care of his body no matter what, and wait for him to come back. She had something to tell him.
After giving the letter to Zhui Feng, he hurried away.
Shen Dingzhu went back to the house and read Xiao Langyan's letter two or three times until Xiao Xincheng was led by the wet nurse and came in with Shen's mother and Xiao Xingche.
"Mother, is this a letter from my father? Wow, it's a pink peach blossom~" The little girl's bright eyes widened when she saw the flower branch in Shen Dingzhu's hand.
Shen Dingzhu chuckled and picked up her daughter: "It was written by your father. He also said that when he comes back from Jizhou, he will bring you gifts."
"Father is so kind! I miss him so much!" Xiao Xincheng was very happy. She looked at the pink peach in Shen Dingzhu's hand, "Mother, can you give me this flower? I will definitely raise it well."
Everyone else laughed, and Shen Dingzhu tapped the tip of her nose, his eyebrows curved: "This flower cannot survive without the branch."
"Then I will put it in a bottle too, and let my father see it when he comes back. He will definitely be happy."
Shen Dingzhu smiled and handed the pink peach blossom to her daughter. Seeing that she turned around and ran away impatiently, she wanted to go back to the room to insert it immediately.
"Slow down." Shen Dingzhu said, and Shen Bi and several servants took the initiative to chase after him.
Xiao Xingche was in Mother Shen's arms, stretching out his little hand towards Shen Dingzhu: "Mother, hug, hug..."
I just hugged my sister, so I should give him a hug too.
Shen Dingzhu smiled and took the child over. Seeing Xiao Xingche staring curiously at the letter written by Xiao Langyan, she picked it up and asked him, "Does Cheer know who wrote this?"
Xiao Xingche blinked his dark eyes, looked up at her, and then at the letter.
"Father..." he said in a milky voice, "Father."
Shen Dingzhu's heart felt warm and she kissed his sweet-smelling little face: "Yes, your father sent it back. Can Che'er and mother wait for him to come back?"
Xiao Xingche nodded decisively.
During these days, Shen Dingzhu looked at her children and their current stability, and her heart became more peaceful and happy.
So on the Youshen Festival at the end of August, Shen Dingzhu accompanied his family and went to the temple to offer incense under the protection of the Xuanjia Army.
She made only one wish before the Buddha.
"I wish I could live with Xiao Langyan for a long time and grow old together."
"May Xiao Langyan live a long life."
"May we never leave."
Shen Dingzhu knelt on the futon, folded his hands devoutly, kowtowed and made a wish.
At this moment, the ancient bell of the temple outside the Buddhist hall rang. The ancient bell sounded longer than the other, as if it could cleanse the soul and float in the early autumn air.
She made a wish and stood up, holding three sticks of incense and about to insert them into the incense altar in front of the Buddha.
Sudden!
A trace of incense ash fell on the back of her hand, Shen Dingzhu hissed, and suddenly retracted his hand.
The Shen family and servants hurriedly gathered around. Her sister-in-law held Shen Dingzhu's hand and said, "Ah! Why is it burned?"
On the fair and smooth skin, a little red circle is very obvious.
Shen Dingzhu was helpless: "Maybe I just held the incense and made a wish for too long, so the ashes fell off. It doesn't matter."
Mother Shen thought about it worriedly, then asked the maid to get some ointment from the abbot and apply it on Shen Dingzhu.
In the afternoon, when Shen Dingzhu and her sister-in-law accompanied Shen's mother to attend a Buddhist class, it started to rain and the sky became dark.
The Xuanjia Army prepared three Zen rooms for them to rest temporarily.
Shen Bi held an umbrella and protected Shen Dingzhu as she walked through the temple corridor. Suddenly she saw a statue of Bodhisattva in the small red door hall not far away. The red robe on the shoulders of the Bodhisattva had fallen to her waist.
Compared with other Buddhist halls, this Bodhisattva hall is narrow and there are no pilgrims at this time.
Shen Dingzhu stopped for a moment, thought about it, and walked over.
She helped put the red robe back on for the Bodhisattva. When she looked up, she saw that it was the Empress's Hall.
A young novice monk came over in a hurry, and Shen Bi reprimanded: "Why is this Bodhisattva statue unattended? What if our master hadn't happened to see it and help tie the red silk, and the gods and Buddhas would be angry and it wouldn't work."
The young novice apologized quickly: "Thank you, noble man. Thank you, noble man."
Shen Dingzhu waved his hand, indicating that Shen Bi did not need to blame.
It was also a chance that she could see it.
Thinking of Xiao Langyan saying that he still wanted a child, her cheeks turned red. After thinking about it, Shen Dingzhu lifted her skirt and knelt on the futon.
She clasped her hands together, moved her red lips lightly, and murmured her wishes in a low voice.
"One or two more are enough. If there are too many, we have to think about it again..."
If there is one sign that a woman loves a man the most, it is probably that she is willing to bear the pain of giving birth to a child for him. Thinking of Xiao Langyan's kindness to her, Shen Dingzhu is so willing to bear the pain.
What's more, he is a good father and his children will not suffer hardship when they are born.
The young novice saw that this noble man was very impressive, his eyebrows were dignified and elegant, and his beauty was divine. He couldn't help but said: "If you are looking for a child, you have come to the right place. Our mother-in-law is very effective and will respond to your requests." …”
Shen Dingzhu felt happy and asked Shen Bi to give her more money for the sesame oil.
She turned and walked to the door. As soon as she crossed the threshold, she felt dizzy. Shen Bi was putting money into the merit box when she heard the screams of the maids and servants coming from behind.
"The queen fell down!"
Shen Dingzhu didn't know how she fell. She had a severe headache. The moment she fell to the ground, she saw that the world seemed to be upside down. The heavy rain fell like a tear in the dim sky.
From the corner of his eye, he saw Xuan Jiajun coming one after another from nearby. Shen Bi rushed over to help her in panic, and Shen Dingzhu closed his eyes tiredly.
This time, she actually dreamed about her past life and what happened after her death.
