They were in charge of being beautiful, and she was in charge of taking the hits.

Chapter 343 Stars

She hadn't noticed her bowl at all, but when she came to her senses, the bowl was covered with meat. It turned out that Situ Hongyu had been secretly serving her food.

After Wu Ziyan saw her, she awkwardly turned her face to the side. It turns out that the whole family has this kind of personality.

"Thank you, Mother-in-law."

Wu Ziyan picked up all the meat in one go and stuffed it into his mouth. The people below were also drinking and eating happily, and no one knew who was making a fuss in the middle.

"Congratulations on your marriage, Fourth Prince and General Chu Qiu!"

Upon hearing this, everyone echoed, their voices deafening, with "Congratulations!" ringing out incessantly.

But they got together without any ceremony. It was so ordinary, sudden, and without any sense of ceremony. Could Chu Qiu accept that?

"Let's have everyone witness today how beautiful Qiyang is, with its silvery light shining on the snow and its overlapping mountains..."

She talked so much, she was practically a drunkard, she even wondered if she used to be a master of ceremonies.

Situ Hongyu stood up and pressed his hands down. People from the border region don't care about formalities. As long as two hearts are together, they will know each other no matter where they are!

"Wu Ziyan, Situ Chuqiu, you must answer my questions truthfully."

Wu Ziyan was a little unaccustomed to being called by her full name so formally, but she still nodded very seriously.

"Wu Ziyan, regardless of life or death, regardless of beauty or ugliness, regardless of political opposition, are you willing to stay with your master and disciple Chu Qiu?"

"I am willing."

“Situ Chuqiu, regardless of whether you have a formal title, whether you are the legal husband or not, regardless of how many husbands he will have in the future, regardless of whether he treats you coldly or passionately, regardless of political opposition, are you still willing to be with her?”

"My son agrees!"

"Then you should perform the marriage ceremony here. With these mountains and rivers as matchmakers, the stars and moon as betrothal gifts, and heaven and earth as witnesses."

The two stood hand in hand in the middle, caught up in the atmosphere, and everyone's eyes sparkled as they stared at them, all with expressions of blessing.

Chu Qiu and Wu Ziyan looked at each other, their eyes seeing only each other, as if everything behind them had turned into a phantom. They could only hear the first bow to the mountains and rivers, the second bow to the sun, moon and stars, the third bow to their ancestors, and the fourth bow to the harmony of the zither and lute.

There were no formal wedding attire, no flower girl ceremony, not even any tokens of love exchanged between them, but at that moment, their hearts were together.

Soldiers are bold, but none are as bold as Qi Zexuan, who shouted, "Kiss! Kiss!"

So no one could cause a commotion in the middle. After exchanging glances, the others chimed in. Chu Qiu blushed, his palms were sweaty, and his whole body trembled uncontrollably. It had finally come to this.

Wu Ziyan winked at him, then they held hands, seemingly in sync. Just as everyone was expecting the two of them to kiss, Chu Qiu pulled Wu Ziyan and ran towards the stable.

Before anyone could react, Wu Ziyan and Chu Qiu had already reached the stable, untied Ta Xue's reins, and taken out candy from their pockets, feeding it to Ta Xue.

With a neighing sound, the horse emerged from the stable and obediently stopped there. Chu Qiu lifted Wu Ziyan onto the horse, then pushed off with his own feet and sat behind Wu Ziyan.

Recalling their last ride together, his feelings were completely different this time; he was now filled with uncontrollable excitement and happiness.

The crowd continued to jeer: "We didn't expect General Chu Qiu to run away in embarrassment. You'd better run far away so we don't see you!"

Chu Qiu is now riding high on his success, riding his untamed steed and holding the woman he loves most in his arms. He has two of the most fortunate things in life.

However, he also felt that the wind blowing in his face was too cold, and Wu Ziyan's body was too weak. He also felt that he had acted too suddenly and had not considered her physical condition and feelings.

Wu Ziyan felt the wind whistling past her ears. Chu Qiu held her with one arm and pulled on the reins with the other, his cloak tightly wrapped around her: "Your Highness, are you cold?"

"What? What did you say! The wind is too strong, I can't hear you clearly."

"Does Your Highness feel cold?"

"Oh! It's not cold. But why do you still refer to yourself as 'your subject' and address me as 'Your Highness'?"

"Today, in front of everyone, we have acknowledged our relationship, and I am already overjoyed. However, since our relationship has not been approved by the Empress, I will remain her subject, and I am willing to be her subject for the rest of my life."

Yes, whether it's him or Han Yuxiu, this relationship was decided by her on her own. But she is, after all, royalty, and it's impossible for her to marry freely. But they are both willing to wait. What an amazing man!

"Chu Qiu, it is my good fortune to have met you in this mortal world, to know you and to stay together. But I am sorry to you and to everyone else."

"I understand you now. All I wanted was for you to acknowledge me. Now, I have no regrets, I am willing."

Wu Ziyan buried herself in her cloak, unsure whether the cold night wind was stinging her eyes or if she was moved to tears by these heartfelt words.

Ta Xue was quite sensible, as if she knew when to slow down and when to speed up. Just as she was feeling touched, Ta Xue suddenly sped up. Wu Ziyan hadn't leaned against Chu Qiu yet, but with this speed, her back arched backward and she fell into Chu Qiu's arms.

In this freezing weather, even the slightest warmth would be felt by both of them. After saying so many shy things, their bodies were naturally hot and burning. In addition, with the cold wind blowing and stopping, their faces and hands were burning hot.

"Chu Qiu, where are we going?"

Chu Qiu looked up at the sky. The wind seemed to be helping them to make this a good match, blowing away the dark clouds to reveal the Milky Way in the low sky. The moon was bright and the wind was gentle. Ta Xue slowed down and turned her head as if admiring the starry sky.

They weren't far from the camp, where they could see bonfires burning. Midway through their journey, they dismounted, and Chu Qiu, holding her hand, became bolder in his actions.

Perhaps because the wind was too fierce on horseback, the breeze felt gentle after dismounting. Perhaps because he had not fully recovered today, Wu Ziyan felt weak in the legs after taking only a few steps and leaned on Chu Qiu.

Chu Qiu put his arm around her shoulder, and Wu Ziyan reached her hand to his neck. Normally, she should have been startled by Chu Qiu's coldness, but Chu Qiu instead grabbed her hand with his other hand.

He looked down at her eyes, which were filled with stars, and in the very center of those stars was his face. His heart was pounding, as if a thousand words were weighing on his mind, but seeing her frostbitten face, he couldn't utter a word.

He cupped her face in his hands, traced her cheek with his thumb, and his eyes were full of adoration: "Your Highness!"

"Ok?"

He gently kissed her forehead, unable to suppress his longing any longer. His hands were around her waist, holding her tightly as if he wanted to meld her into his own body. At this moment, the world seemed to consist only of the two of them, entwined in each other's embrace.

Wu Ziyan also wrapped her arms around him, pressing close to feel his warmth. He wrapped her tightly in his cloak, and they gazed at each other for a long while.

"Shall we sleep together tonight?"

Wu Ziyan winked playfully and asked him, though it wasn't like they hadn't slept together before, this time the question had a different meaning.

His voice was very deep, and he uttered a single word from his throat: "Okay."

This was still a mistake. It was the first time I had answered her request directly. In the past, I always seemed to be hesitant, or I would not answer at all, or I would refuse outright.

Wu Ziyan hugged Chu Qiu's neck and jumped on tiptoe, wrapping her legs around his waist. Her eyes were already smiling and curved into crescent shapes. The wind blew her hair around, brushing against Chu Qiu's nose, making his nose itchy and his heart itchy too.

"Your Highness, it's windy, let's go back."

"Go back where? Back to camp, but I'm afraid they'll eavesdrop. You know how formidable I am, huh?"

"Naturally, we will take His Highness back to the Situ residence."

"Shouldn't we tell them that Chu Yu and the others are going back tonight too?"

"No need, I don't think any of them will come back tonight."

The meaning of this statement is somewhat reminiscent of their pre-arranged testimony. However, given the current situation and the harmony between heaven, earth, and humanity, who cares about their scheming or intrigue?

Riding horses freely, I've never felt so happy before. Perhaps it's a way of putting an end to something for both of us.

"Chu Qiu as a concubine? Now you're satisfied with the second-in-command of the household?"

"I am satisfied."

"Alright, faster, faster! I can't wait to get back to the Situ residence. Can I take a hot bath when we get back? After all, I smelled like hot pot, and with all the wind and snow along the way, I really feel a bit rotten."

"it is good."

With her back to him, Chu Qiu's face was not visible. At this moment, Chu Qiu's mouth was dry, she was swallowing, and her ears were red. It was unclear what she was thinking.

Meanwhile, the people who remained in the same spot seemed to understand each other implicitly, chatting and joking casually.

"Chu Qiu is just beginning to experience love, but I never expected that he would end up with the Fourth Prince."

"Isn't that right? I heard that the Fourth Prince saved his life."

"Do you think it's possible that the Fourth Prince used the excuse of saving Chu Qiu's life to coerce him into being with him?"

"I didn't see Chu Qiu protecting the Fourth Prince; I think he's already fallen for him."

Chu Yu and the others sat around the campfire. Situ Hongyu looked at the stars in the sky without saying a word, thinking to himself that youth is wonderful. He and his master had also had a passionate love affair when they were young, but now...

"Let's stay at the camp tonight, don't go back."

"It's mother."

They really do know everything!

There weren't many servants in the mansion. After all, it wasn't a time for soldiers to enjoy themselves while on the march. Some wounded soldiers were simply unable to patrol the border anymore, so they stayed in the mansion to do odd jobs.

During the days Chu Qiu was away, the elders in the manor missed him quite a bit, since he had been staying at the camp since returning and hadn't been back to the manor at all.

As they reached the door, Chu Qiu led the horse with one hand and Wu Ziyan with the other, his face beaming with happiness.

The old people at the gate were also very surprised to see him return, as no one had informed them that he would be coming back today.

"Young Master Chu Qiu, it's been a long time. And who is this?"

That person was probably looking Wu Ziyan up and down, but my gaze fell on her tightly clenched hands. However, her face did look like a man's. I wondered if her young master had turned into that kind of person.

"This is the Fourth Prince."

Before they could even process the words "Your Highness Xiao Shi," they quickly knelt down to pay their respects after the initial shock in their eyes.

"Don't worry about me, don't go through this formality. Treat me the same way you would treat Chu Qiu. This formality makes me uncomfortable."

"Yes, Fourth Prince!"

Wu Ziyan said this to tell them not to make her so reserved, but their hierarchy was still quite clear, unlike Situ Hongyu who called her "little pumpkin" all the time.

Upon arriving at the mansion, Wu Ziyan tied her horse to the stable. She stretched and loosened her body. When Chu Qiu came out of the stable, she took two steps forward and clung to him. Chu Qiu held her affectionately and swayed back and forth.

"Have you ordered someone to boil water?"

"There should be hot water available."

The others in the courtyard who witnessed this scene were too ashamed to look at; their faces flushed red with embarrassment, and they still couldn't understand why Chu Qiu would take a liking to her.

However, after taking a few more glances in the dark, she seemed to grow to like her. But she just quietly went to the kitchen to boil water, carrying bucket after bucket of water into the bathhouse, where a stove was still burning. She never received such treatment normally. It was only because she was rumored to be the Fourth Prince!

Chu Qiu barely recognized his own bathroom. They were usually too rough around the edges; in winter, they didn't have a stove in the bathroom, and they never used so many buckets of water to bathe.

"It's warm in here, they've put their heart into it."

Chu Qiu pulled himself out of those chaotic thoughts and stared intently at Wu Ziyan. Now, in the steamy bathroom, her vision was blurred as if a soft-focus filter had been applied.

Her little face was rosy, a strand of hair stuck to her face, and her lips had a reddish sheen. Wu Ziyan opened her hands: "Chu Qiu, do you still remember what I told you back then?"

He recalled in his mind that Wu Ziyan had said many things to him, and he could accurately recall the sentence, "You must serve me well!"

His ears were bright red, and he could feel them burning hot, but his hands were still on Wu Ziyan's coat. He gently took off the coat and draped it over the hanger next to him.

Seeing how gentle his movements were, Wu Ziyan felt extremely dawdled. Seeing how slow he was, she even unbuckled her belt herself, and her dress fell to the ground. She thought she would be completely naked, but she was still wearing cotton-padded trousers under her apple.

Chu Qiu stepped forward, put his arms around her waist, buried his head in the crook of her neck, and simply held her without saying a word. Then, inexplicably, his clothes were stripped off.

Then she was picked up and placed in the bathtub: "Your subject serves Your Highness."

"No, I don't need you to serve me. Hurry up and take off your clothes so we can have a romantic swim together!"

Chu Qiu's face was so red it looked like it was about to bleed, and she didn't dare to glance at Wu Ziyan. Her breasts rippled in the water, a sight that dazzled onlookers.

Wu Ziyan stretched out her snow-white jade arm from the water and placed her hand on Chu Qiu's waist. He did not resist. His belt slipped off and his clothes were completely undone.

He also entered the water. Actually, both of them were still wrapped in bath towels. Wu Ziyan's eyes fell on his abs. Now he could finally touch and look at them openly. Anyway, he had agreed.

Chu Qiu intentionally or unintentionally avoided Wu Ziyan's wolfish gaze, which was now causing his veins to bulge as he tried to control himself.