Ahem, another... rigorous night had passed.
Xu Yanxia still hadn't been able to get a full, good night's sleep.
But fortunately, she didn't have to wake up early today.
She finally slept until broad daylight, only opening her eyes when her friends sent messages in the group chat making plans to go out.
Just as she was reaching for her phone, Lu Jingming's voice sounded by her ear, asking gently, "Is my baby awake?"
Hmm?
Only then did she realize that he was sitting right next to her, leaning against the headboard. However, he had already changed his clothes, obviously having been up for quite a while.
Xu Yanxia asked him lazily, "What time is it?"
"It's only nine. You can sleep a little longer."
Lu Jingming said with a smile, "What do you want to eat this morning? Should we order room service or go to the restaurant?"
"Let's go to the restaurant. Aren't we going out to play today?"
Xu Yanxia planned to get up, then pouted and said to him, "Help me get my pajamas."
It was all his fault; her waist and legs were still a bit sore.
"No problem."
Wearing a face full of smiles, he very attentively brought her clothes and even took the initiative to drape them over her shoulders.
Then he added shamelessly, "Helping my wife get dressed is my favorite thing to do."
"So annoying,"
Xu Yanxia lightly swatted him, cleared her throat, and said, "We need to have some moderation with that. Too much... is bad for the body."
"How is it too much?"
He shamelessly leaned in close to her ear and said, "You went on a business trip right after we got our marriage certificate, and we were apart for several days. These past two days are just making up for it. If you average it out, it's only about once a day."
What? Average it out?
Xu Yanxia didn't know whether to laugh or cry.
She then heard him say, "Don't worry, your husband is in great shape. After being single for so many years, I have plenty in stock..."
Before he could finish his sentence, Xu Yanxia reached out and covered his mouth.
"You're so annoying, always so improper."
After saying this with a blushing face, she hurried into the bathroom.
After washing up, changing clothes, and doing some simple makeup, the two left the room to eat breakfast at the restaurant.
Then they met up with their friends and headed out for the day.
Their destination today was the over six-hundred-year-old imperial palace.
This was probably one of the most famous attractions in Jingbei, bustling with tourists all year round.
The team members had planned today's itinerary together during their last competition in Xijing, and they had all made reservations a week in advance to make this team-building trip possible.
Fortunately, although their local teammate Bajin, who only joined the team yesterday, hadn't made a reservation with them, he was an annual pass holder. He only needed to register on the official website yesterday, so he smoothly joined everyone today.
Then, he naturally took on the duty of being everyone's tour guide—
"Today isn't too bad, there aren't many people. Normally, just the security check would take us half an hour."
Seeing that they had passed the security checkpoint, Bajin began to introduce things to everyone in an authentic Jingbei accent, "See these five archways? The emperor walked through the middle one, the princes and ministers walked through the two on the sides, and the outermost ones were exclusively for foreign envoys."
"The doornails on the main gate also have a special meaning. Nine rows horizontally, nine columns vertically, a total of eighty-one doornails, symbolizing the supreme authority of the emperor. By the way, everyone can touch the doornails. It's said to be an old Jingbei folk custom; touching them brings good luck. I used to come and touch them a lot when I was a kid."
"Really?"
As soon as he said this, the friends all stepped forward to touch them. Suisui even asked him curiously, "What specific kind of good luck? Promotions and wealth, good health, or academic success?"
"It definitely includes all of them!"
Bajin immediately smiled and added, "Oh, right, the most effective one is supposed to be luck with descendants. After all, the word for 'nail' sounds the same as the word for 'offspring', as in adding a new member to the family!"
"Adding a new member to the family?"
As soon as he finished speaking, everyone immediately turned to look at Xu Yanxia and Lu Jingming, who were walking hand in hand at the back of the group. They smilingly waved at them and said, "Come, come, come, this is perfect for newlyweds. You two should hurry up and touch it a few more times. You'll definitely have a thriving family!"
Xu Yanxia was simply amused to laughter.
She wanted to ask where they had heard such a strange legend, but who knew that Lu Jingming would immediately reach out and start touching the nails. "This symbolism is indeed good. I really need to touch it a few more times."
As he spoke, he even took her hand and placed it on the smooth doornails with his. "Come on, Mrs. Lu, you should touch it a few more times too. I'll have to rely heavily on you for this matter of expanding our family!"
"What are you saying?"
Xu Yanxia didn't know whether to laugh or cry.
Their friends, however, excitedly took photos for them.
...
After touching the doornails and walking further inside, past the Golden Water Bridge and the Gate of Supreme Harmony, the three gleaming great halls finally appeared before their eyes.
"Wow! This is so imposing!!!"
"So majestic!!!"
Everyone was infected by the magnificent aura of the buildings and took out their phones to take pictures.
Volunteer tour guide Bajin dutifully introduced to everyone, "The one at the very front is the legendary Throne Room, now called the Hall of Supreme Harmony. In the past, major events like the emperor's enthronement and wedding were held here, but it wasn't used normally. He didn't work here."
"This is also the largest hall in the entire palace, eleven bays wide, and there are ten mythical beasts on the roof ridge alone. However, because it's the biggest, it used to get struck by lightning and catch fire frequently. The most serious time, it took thirty-four years just to rebuild it."
As he finished speaking, Xiaoxian asked him curiously, "Bajin, were you a tour guide before? How do you know so much?"
Bajin smiled modestly and said, "I'm strictly amateur. I listened to the elders in my family since I was little, and when I grew up and had nothing to do, I often came here to play, so I gradually learned it all. Please forgive me if I've said anything incorrect!"
"Not at all,"
The friends all smiled and said, "Most of us are here for the first time, so just feel free to talk."
"That's good,"
Bajin continued his introduction, "It's said that the dragon throne in the hall wasn't this far forward in the past. It was because the little emperor couldn't see the hundreds of officials kneeling outside when he sat on it that he had people move it forward..."
...
The vastness of the imperial palace could only be described as tough on the feet.
After more than half a day had passed, there were still attractions left to see, but the friends could barely walk anymore.
After a quick discussion, everyone found a teahouse to take a short break.
Lu Jingming went to buy drinks for everyone. When he returned to Xu Yanxia's side, he found her staring blankly at a photo on her phone.
In the photo, she was smiling sweetly, and behind her was a courtyard that wasn't open to the public. He remembered Bajin introducing it to everyone at the time, saying that it used to be the ancient imperial kitchen.
Speaking of which, he was the one who took this photo for her. Seeing her looking at it so intently now, he couldn't help but get curious and quickly asked her, "Did I take it too well, or poorly? Why are you looking at it so seriously?"
Xu Yanxia snapped back to reality and said, "You took it very well. I like it a lot."
She paused for a moment and then told him, "I once had a dream that I was a palace maid here, specifically cooking for people. And I did it for ten whole years. It was like being in prison, with absolutely no freedom."
"Then it's a good thing it was just a dream,"
Lu Jingming handed her the warm coffee and said with a smile, "Actually, I think I've had a dream like that too. I dreamed that in my past life, I was a top imperial scholar and even attended a grand banquet in the palace."
"Are you serious?" Xu Yanxia looked at him, smiling.
"I am," he nodded. "I even remember there was a dish at that banquet that was absolutely delicious. I wanted to memorize the recipe so I could try making it myself when I got home."
Is that so? Xu Yanxia grew a little serious.
After a moment of thought, she probed, "Do you still remember what dish it was?"
Speaking of which, back in her time, she had actually prepared the Chuanlu Banquet—the special feast bestowed by the emperor to the high-ranking scholars right after the palace examination results were announced.
...Could it be that she and Lu Jingming actually had a connection in their past lives?
However, after trying hard to remember, Lu Jingming shook his head. "I can't remember. I think I had that dream back when I was taking my college entrance exams. I really can't recall it now."
He then added with a smile, "But I do seem to remember hearing someone in the dream mention that the head chef was a girl, and that she was incredibly beautiful."
"As beautiful as you."
"..."
Xu Yanxia figured he was probably just teasing her with all that.
But it didn't matter.
Her past life had already faded away like distant smoke and clouds. Being able to meet him in this life was already more than enough.
