Transforming into a stunningly beautiful fox spirit, leaving a scar on the heart of a prodigy.

The grand wedding was completed, and the congratulatory cheers in Zuixianju did not gradually dissipate until late at night.

Gu Xiang led Su Qing around the front hall and back to the backyard. The old stone table was still under the grape trellis, a piece missing from one corner. The lanterns hanging under the eaves were crooked, swaying gently in the night breeze. The kitchen on the east side was unchanged, the window paper yellowed, and an old mark made by a woodcutter's knife remained on the threshold.

Su Qing stood in front of the courtyard gate, her steps slowing down.

Three years ago, she also sat here, waiting for Gu Xiang to bring back a roast chicken. Later, the wind and snow raged on Luofeng Slope, and the chains of the Cold Abyss pierced her bones. Three thousand years of old stories were layered upon layer, but none of them were as real as the crooked lamp in front of her.

Gu Xiang didn't urge her, but simply tightened his grip on her hand.

"Do you still recognize the way?"

Su Qing snapped out of her daze and glanced at him.

"I recognize it. If you dare say you've come to the wrong yard, I'll make you sleep in the kitchen."

Gu Xiang responded softly, "Okay."

He didn't return to the new house, nor did he mention the court or the northern border. Instead, he rolled up the sleeves of his old scarlet robe and went straight into the kitchen.

Su Qing leaned against the door frame with her arms crossed.

"What is Prime Minister Gu planning to do on his wedding night if he doesn't consummate the marriage?"

Gu Xiang took out a three-yellow chicken, and then arranged spirit mushrooms, ginger slices and several porcelain jars from his storage artifact. His expression was even more solemn than when he was performing the wedding ceremony.

"Make chicken soup for the lady."

Su Qing's eyelids twitched.

"Do you remember that pot of soup from back then? It was so salty it could kill you."

Gu Xiang's ears turned slightly red, but she remained composed on the surface.

"I have consulted the imperial chefs."

"Does the imperial chef know that you slice ginger like you're reciting imperial edicts?"

Gu Xiang did not answer. He placed the ginger on the cutting board, lowered his wrist, and brought the knife down.

Click!

A deep crack appeared in the cutting board, and a slice of ginger flew out and stuck to the wall.

Su Qing stared at the piece of ginger, held back for a moment, but still burst out laughing.

Gu Xiang silently changed the cutting board.

After finally managing to put the chicken and spirit mushrooms into the casserole, he complained that the fire in the stove was not enough, so he added several pieces of spirit wood. Phoenix True Fire suddenly leaped up from the stove, the flames licking the roof beams, and the pot lid bounced wildly as the boiling soup hit it.

boom! boom! boom!

Suddenly, the sound of armor clashing rang out outside the back gate.

"Protect the Emperor!"

Several imperial guards and staff from Zuixianju broke down the door and rushed in, swords drawn, exuding a murderous aura.

Then everyone froze.

Before the stove, the dignified Prime Minister of the Great Zhou Dynasty held the pot lid firmly with one hand and gripped the spatula with the other. His old scarlet robe was covered in flour clinging to the cuffs, and there was a streak of ash on the side of his face. Steam billowed from the pot, and the Phoenix True Fire beneath the stove almost burned through half the wall.

Gu Xiang slowly turned her head, her face expressionless.

"go out."

The group sheathed their swords and left, not daring to even glance at the door.

Su Qing leaned against the door frame, her shoulders trembling.

"Prime Minister Gu, are you making chicken soup, or are you planning to fry up Zuixianju as a wedding gift?"

Gu Xiang's ears turned bright red, but her hand remained pressed against the pot lid.

"The cooking time is acceptable."

As soon as he finished speaking, a crack appeared at the bottom of the casserole, and chicken soup spilled all over the floor.

Gu Xiang remained silent for a moment, then extinguished the Phoenix True Fire.

He didn't use his righteous energy to fix the pot, nor did he try to be strong again. He bent down to clean up the mess and washed the pot again, adding water. This time, he added each piece of firewood very slowly, and although the lingzhi mushrooms were cut messily, they were roughly the same size.

Su Qing had originally just wanted to watch the fun, but gradually she stopped laughing.

Gu Xiang knew the chicken legs needed to be stewed a little longer, knew she disliked oily soup, and knew the shiitake mushrooms shouldn't be added too early. He skimmed off the foam with a spoon, his movements clumsy, but he remembered everything.

Su Qing walked to the corner to find a bowl, but her toes bumped into a clay pot.

She bent down and pulled open the old wooden cabinet.

Inside, several charred earthenware pots were neatly arranged, some with their bottoms burned through, others with only half remaining. The bottoms of the pots were engraved with crooked dates, the earliest one being the seventh day after her "death" at Luofeng Slope.

Su Qing picked one up and ran her fingertip across the line of text.

"What are these?"

Gu Xiangtian stopped adding firewood.

The firelight illuminated the white hair at his temples, and after a long while, he finally spoke.

"When I think of you, I try to stew it once."

"You dare keep it after it's been stewed like this?"

"The taste is all wrong."

Gu Xiang lowered his eyes to look at the tiny bubbles rising in the pot.

"I only realized later that it wasn't because there was too much salt or the cooking was too poor. It was just that there was no one sitting by the stove complaining about me."

The pot lid in Su Qing's hand stopped in mid-air.

She looked at him for a while, but didn't continue the conversation. She simply put the burnt pot back into the cupboard, walked up to him, and wiped away the soot from the side of his face.

As his fingertips brushed against her cheekbone, Gu Xiang's breathing quickened for a moment.

Su Qing withdrew her hand and took the salt jar.

"Get out of the way. You still don't know how much salt to use."

"I only put in half a spoonful."

"Is there a difference between your half-spoon and someone else's full spoonful?"

The two huddled together in front of the small stove. Su Qing bent over, seasoning the food, while Gu Xiang handed her bowls and added firewood, their shoulders occasionally brushing together. The firelight reflected off the window paper, and steam from the chicken soup rose from the pot, finally bringing back the lively atmosphere of the old Zuixianju backyard to the world.

When the chicken soup was ready, Gu Xiang personally carried the clay pot to the stone table.

He sat upright, his gaze fixed on the porcelain spoon in Su Qing's hand, even more tense than when he was deciding life and death in the imperial palace.

Su Qing first smelled it, then picked up a piece of lingzhi mushroom.

"The color is wrong."

Gu Xiang's fingers tightened slightly.

"Even the king oyster mushrooms were cut ugly."

"I can redo it."

"The chicken was overcooked."

Gu Xiang had already gotten up.

Su Qing picked up the bowl, lowered her head, and took a sip.

One bite after another.

She didn't put the empty bowl back on the table until the soup was completely gone, with not even a piece of chicken leg left at the bottom.

"This time it's barely edible."

Gu Xiang stared at the empty bowl, his usually sharp and perceptive heart suddenly burning with emotion. He stood there, speechless for a long time, even more lost in thought than during the wedding ceremony.

Su Qing looked up at him.

"From now on, you will continue to serve as prime minister, guard the capital, and protect those who have finally managed to settle down."

"it is good."

"I will not be a holy empress enshrined in the Imperial Ancestral Temple. I can attend court whenever I want, go shopping whenever I want, and come back for chicken soup whenever I want—no one is allowed to stop me."

Gu Xiang sat back down beside her and answered solemnly.

"Whatever you say."

He took out a blank memorial from his sleeve and wrote five characters at the top.

The rules of the Prime Minister's residence.

The first rule is that one should not rush to one's death without authorization.

Article Two: Su Qing has the right to interrupt Gu Xiang's court session at any time.

When writing the third point, Gu Xiang paused for a moment and wrote: Gu Xiang must learn to cook a new dish every month.

After reading it, Su Qing laughed and scolded, "Prime Minister Gu, you're using a memorial to write this; you're neglecting your duties."

"Family matters are also important."

Su Qing took the pen and added a sentence at the end.

Anyone who dares to die for someone else is the biggest fool in the world.

Gu Xiang stared at the line of words and said softly, "Okay."

Night fell over the backyard.

Gu Xiang fetched some ink and stood under the lamp to draw Su Qing's eyebrows. His strokes were steadyer than when he was slicing ginger, yet his fingertips were still stiff with nervousness. Su Qing leaned against the stone table, letting him do as he pleased, still clutching the last piece of roast chicken in her hand.

"Is it drawn crooked?"

"no."

"You'd better not have it."

The two shadows fell beside the old stone table, their shoulders touching.

No one brought up the past again.

The lanterns swayed gently, and the chicken soup was still warm. In this small courtyard, they quietly settled down to live out their days together.