Chapter 341: Chapter 341: Space Exposed (8)
Dugu Chen lay on the bed, eyes slightly narrowed in feigned sleep. In truth, he had detected Feng Xuxu’s sudden disappearance the moment she vanished. He had not expected his little wife to have so many secrets yet to tell him.
After having rested enough in her space, Feng Xuxu emerged to find Dugu Chen still deep in sleep. She slowly returned to his side.
"Where did you go?" A voice tinged with mild exasperation echoed in the quiet room.
Feng Xuxu stiffened, turning her head robotically to look at Dugu Chen: "I...?"
"It’s alright. Whenever you’re ready to talk, we can talk." He reached out to touch her parted lips, gently enveloping her in his embrace.
In the dark room, Feng Xuxu’s bright eyes, unblinking, gazed at him. Remembering all the little moments they shared, she suddenly laughed. What was she hesitating for? Closing her eyes, she took Dugu Chen’s hand, and with a thought, they were both inside the space.
Dugu Chen felt a sudden jolt, and before he knew it, they were in a completely different place.
"My lady, you didn’t just come up here, did you?" He marveled at the beautiful paradise before him, a tranquil space of constant temperature, neither too hot nor too cold. In the distance, rolling hills stretched out, and streams of water flowed endlessly. Even the grapevines in the courtyard were laden with fruits that did not rot but sparkled translucently, each berry beaded with tiny dewdrops.
In the distance, a vast expanse of ground was covered with beautiful flowers. It was truly a fairyland on earth.
"Yes, I sneak in here every day, but I don’t stay long before leaving," she said, gazing up at him playfully.
Dugu Chen spotted an egg yolk fruit hanging from a nearby tree. Concentrating his Inner Strength, he summoned a breeze to bring the fruit to him. "That’s where you got the fruit for me that time!" he said, stating rather than asking with certainty.
Feng Xuxu chuckled, feeling a bit sheepish: "Yes, at that time, you always tricked me. It was only fair that I gave you something from here." Recalling how he used to fool her, she stared at him with her phoenix eyes and stretched out her ’Magic Claw,’ twisting it viciously around his waist.
"Are you venting your frustrations? If not, go for another round. Your husband is thick-skinned; it’s fine, come at me all you want," he invited, wrapping his arms around his lady’s waist and grinning. Recollecting those times he enjoyed teasing her, the way her eyes bulged and the inexplicable joy it brought him, he found the memories amusing now.
Feng Xuxu pursed her lips and muttered softly, "Pervert."
Dugu Chen twitched his ears, raised an eyebrow, and whispered in her ear, "Little pervert."
She shot him a glance, puffed her cheeks, rolled her eyes, and turned to walk into the house. She came back with a bowl, filled it with half a bowl of Spiritual Spring Water, and handed it to Dugu Chen.
Without a word, Dugu Chen took the bowl and gulped down the water in one go.
Feng Xuxu playfully scolded him, "You don’t even ask what kind of water it is before you drink it. Aren’t you afraid I might poison you?"
"Would you have the heart?" he replied with a mischievous grin, countering her implied question.
Seeing the roguish smile on his face, she became indignant: "Hmph, I only put some laxatives in there, enough to keep you running all night."
"...," Dugu Chen fell silent this time, looking up at the sky without a word.
Feng Xuxu saw that Dugu Chen didn’t ask why she had that thing, and after pondering for a while, she decided to tell him the truth.
"Chen, actually, I am not the original Feng Xuxu." She looked at the motionless Dugu Chen and slowly recounted her origins.
After Dugu Chen heard her story, his stiff body suddenly embraced Feng Xuxu tightly, smelling the person in his arms with an excited expression, "You won’t disappear again, will you?"
Inside his embrace, she shook her head firmly. Since she knew her master had also stayed here and had never been able to return, she likely wouldn’t either.
Seeing Feng Xuxu shaking her head, Dugu Chen let go of the anxiety he had been holding onto.
The two silently embraced for a while. Dugu Chen had no mood to continue looking at the space, so he and his lady left the space.
On this day, Dugu Chen and Feng Xuxu got up early, finished breakfast, and together they rode in a carriage heading for the Summer Garden.
Zongzheng Zehang and Beitang Xuan were talking in the courtyard when they saw a team of guards enter, followed closely by the carriage. Jueqing and Feng Xi hurried over from the fields as well.
"Commoners pay respects to the Enchanting Prince, Enchanting Princess, may the Prince be safe and the Princess be blessed with good fortune." The four of them, along with their respective followers, all knelt down on the ground, waiting, while the peasants who were about to work the land trembled at the mention of the Prince and Princess and also knelt down.
"You may dispense with the formalities, please rise," he said with a dignified gaze sweeping over everyone.
Upon hearing this, the peasants helped each other up, finally managing to stand.
Feng Xuxu signaled Dugu Chen with her eyes upon seeing this, and then he went into the newly built tavern all by himself.
Yingsu took several bags of seeds from the back of the carriage, which was slowly filled with a cart of flower seedlings, each budding.
Feng Ba opened the bags and found that the seeds inside were neatly packed, each with the name of the flower written in small characters.
"Big brother, have you seen the flower seedlings on the carriage? These are the Yimi Flowers; you must plant them carefully." Feng Xuxu looked seriously at her brother, as among these people, only he regularly worked the land, and entrusting this task to him was undoubtedly the best choice.
"The rest are seeds. You guys take them and distribute them, and tell the farming peasants that they only need to place one seed in each hole. The spacing between each plant should not be too dense nor too sparse, just like how we usually plant flowers. If there is anything you don’t understand, come and ask me," Feng Xuxu instructed, pointing at the several bags of seeds in front of her, speaking to Zongzheng Zehang, Beitang Xuan, and Jueqing.
"Yes, Princess," the two men replied. After listening, they each took the seeds, handed them to their subordinates, and instructed the peasants in every detail.
Feng Ba occasionally walked back and forth in the field, watching the peasants skillfully dig holes, place seeds, and cultivate the soil. They all worked diligently and in an orderly manner, without any slacking, then turned to check another plot of land.
Liang Shisi followed the young master around, instructing the peasants on how to plant the Yimi Flowers. As the Yimi Flowers were too delicate, Liang Shisi checked on them back and forth, concerned that they would damage any of them.
Feng Xuxu saw that they had begun planting, so she sent someone to call Dugu Chen. The two of them boarded the carriage and returned to their residence.
