Chapter Sixteen: Buddha’s Curse (IV)

A woman’s heart is like a hidden needle beneath the sea—now Li Kuo truly understood the meaning of these words. Often, a casual gesture of yours could make them furious, while a few kind words could make them willingly forgive all your mistakes. Just moments ago, A Tian swore she would ignore him, yet now she cheerfully put on an apron and cooked eggs for him herself. The speed of this change in her attitude truly amazed the young man.
A smile in the darkness, making up for missed moments in daylight—this is what life is really like!
Sitting alone in the pavilion of the inner courtyard, letting the summer evening breeze pass by, he felt a peculiar sense of pleasure. Though there were no green bamboos or summer flowers to surround him, the feeling was still very soothing.
Hadn’t he worked tirelessly all these years just for such a life?
The young man closed his eyes slightly, quietly enjoying this moment of peace.
“You silly Qiu, come eat the eggs! Du’s delicious fried eggs—eat one and you’ll want two, eat two and you’ll want a dozen!”
Du Jingtian had somehow entered the pavilion and sat down next to Li Kuo, lifting the hem of her skirt.
“Here!”
As soon as Li Kuo opened his eyes, he saw A Tian’s bright eyes. He raised the corners of his mouth slightly and said, “So much more care from my wife!” Without hesitation, he snatched the porcelain plate from Du Jingtian’s hands, picked up a piece of fried egg with his chopsticks, and put it in his mouth. The egg was only seven-tenths cooked, and as soon as he picked it up, yellow yolk spilled out, covering the whole plate.
“Ugh, it’s so hot!”
Li Kuo frowned in pain from the heat of the egg, almost throwing the plate away.
“Look at you, still the same as before—unchanged at all!”
Du Jingtian glared at her husband irritably and complained. Over the years, although he had become more skilled in handling government affairs and interacting with people, his ability to manage his own life hadn’t improved at all. He still forgot where he had thrown the stockings he took off the night before, just like when he was sixteen or seventeen. He still choked on alcohol and laughed until tears streamed down, and he still couldn’t remember the faces of the servants in the mansion. But so what? This was the young man she, Du Jingtian, loved—loving someone meant loving them in their entirety, right?
In her heart, he would always be that silly, cheerful young man, forever young…
Li Kuo, however, had no idea that his wife had thought so much about this incident. He just smiled and said, “With my wife taking care of everything in the mansion, I can rest easy. As for me, with her by my side, I might as well be a bit weaker.”
“Ah, you silly Qiu, you really deserve to be scolded!”

Seeing Li Kuo making fun of her, Du Jingtian rolled up her sleeves, ready to punch him, but fortunately Li Kuo dodged in time, preventing a “tragedy” from happening.
After Du Jingtian grew tired from her outburst, Li Kuo sat back down, pulling his wife into his arms to enjoy this rare moment together.
“A Tian, I’ve been thinking about what kind of life would be best for us,” Li Kuo said softly, gently stroking his wife’s face. Over the years, he had had many women who captured his heart, but it seemed only A Tian could truly earn his lifelong love.
Once one gains status and wealth, they grow tired of endless scheming and simply want to live peacefully with their family. Li Kuo was no exception.
Whether it was the crown prince or the Prince of Yong, who rose to power and who fell—what did it matter to him? He had people who needed his care and protection, people he was willing to defend with his life. As for fame, wealth, and power, they were but fleeting things.
It wasn’t that he was naturally indifferent as a young man; it was the sheer number of schemes he had witnessed over the years that had filled him with weariness and disgust.
“Now that I think about it, I really did devote too much energy to state affairs and neglected your feelings,” Li Kuo sighed. “If possible, after finishing organizing the troops in Jianghuai, I’ll ask the emperor to relieve me of my duties in the border forces and take a nominal position in the Ministry of War, so I can spend more time with you.”
He spoke calmly, his peaceful heart showing not the slightest ripple.
Yet Du Jingtian understood his feelings and said, “You don’t need to put yourself through such hardship. Over the years, I’ve gotten used to it. The Tang Dynasty always needs someone to protect it. If you don’t do it, someone else will. I’m proud of you for keeping the Tang Dynasty peaceful.”
“Really?” Li Kuo looked at his wife in disbelief. In his eyes, she had always been someone with strong selfish desires and possessiveness. Even when he took Li Niang into his home, she caused chaos throughout the estate. And now she was actually pushing him away?
“Mm,” Du Jingtian nodded, leaning closer into Li Kuo’s arms. “As long as you promise not to hang around places like brothels, I have no objections. If you’re busy with state affairs, I won’t blame you.”
Li Kuo let out a long sigh and patted his wife’s back. “I’m sorry for troubling you!”
As the moon shone brightly, the two lovers stayed close together, enjoying the beautiful silence…
The night passed in silence. When the first rays of sunlight streamed through the paper windows, Du Jingtian instinctively turned over.

“Shichiro, Shichiro!”
She groggily rubbed her eyes and sat up, only to find that her husband was no longer by the bed.
“Shichiro! Where are you?”
She hurriedly put on her cloth shoes, not bothering to change clothes, and threw on a jacket before rushing toward the door. Just then, the housemaid came to bring her washing water, and she almost collided with her.
“Ouch, Aunt Wu, you scared me to death!”
Seeing the large wet spot on her undergarment, Du Jingtian couldn’t help but complain.
The housemaid, knowing her mistress was such an impatient person, didn’t dare argue with her and said, “I was in a hurry and bumped into the young mistress. I’m truly sorry.”
Du Jingtian didn’t intend to be upset with her anyway, and seeing her polite attitude, she waved her hand and said, “It’s fine. It’s good we didn’t collide. Have you seen the young master?”
“The young master?”
The housemaid immediately became excited: “The young master sent Er Gou to get the horse before dawn, making quite a noise. Didn’t you hear it?”
The housemaid stared at Du Jingtian in astonishment, as if looking at some rare animal.
“What? He’s already gone?”
Du Jingtian was extremely disappointed and angrily shook her fist.
“Yes, the young master has been gone for almost half an hour. He was afraid of disturbing you, so he went to the back yard to get ready.”
The housemaid nodded and spoke slowly.
Sigh, she had said those things last night just to reassure him. He actually thought she didn’t care.
That fool! What should she say to him?
Du Jingtian bit her lip tightly, wishing she could make a dozen fried eggs right now and throw them all at that annoying fool’s face!