"I used to think about where I would be and what kind of life I would have lived if I hadn't been born into the royal family."

Xie Ning turned his head to look at him, and he couldn't see the emperor's expression clearly in the night.

"Have you thought about that?"

Xie Ning said frankly: "I thought about it." ”

She wondered what would happen if she hadn't entered the palace? What kind of life will you live?

At this moment, Shainin thought of the same place as the man next to him.

Even if she didn't enter the palace, she would probably be married.

Who will she marry? What kind of life will you live?

Firewood, rice, oil and salt, short in the family.

It's definitely different from life now.

If the emperor is not the emperor, what kind of person will he be?

Scholar? Do business? Maybe you will become a soldier and join the army?

thinks like this, it must be because his current life makes him unsatisfactory. It was precisely because Shainin had that kind of hypothesis that she understood it very well.

It's a knee-jerk escape from reality.

If it is so good, it means that he himself understands that this is an illusion, and it is all false and cannot be true.

I still have to think about it even if I know it's fake, just to temporarily allow myself to break free from reality and breathe a sigh of relief.

If you want to say that the emperor will also have unsatisfactory things, maybe no one will believe it.

But the emperor is also a human being, and he eats whole grains, and he also has things he likes to do and things he doesn't like to do.

He must have had a lot of troubles lately.

"In fact, no matter which path you take, there will always be times when things go well and things don't. The people in the palace have their own troubles, and the people outside the palace will not be much easier than them. Those who farm are afraid of bad years, and those who do business are afraid of losing money. Older people are afraid that their children and grandchildren will not grow up, and young people are afraid that the future is unpredictable......"

"And what are you afraid of?"

Xie Ning was not too surprised that the emperor would ask her this.

"Concubines are afraid of getting old."

The emperor laughed, and Xie Ning laughed too.

No, everyone is afraid of getting old.

The emperor hugged her, and his lips gently brushed her forehead: "Slippery head." ”

"It's the first time someone has said that a concubine has a slippery head." Xie Ning leaned in his arms and looked at the glimmer of stars in the distance: "The concubine has been an honest person since she was a child. ”

"Really?"

"Of course it's true. I remember when I was young, my grandmother asked us to accompany her to pick up Buddha rice, the child couldn't kneel, my cousin ran away under the pretext of having a pretext, and my sister fell asleep on the side. ”

"What about you?"

"I told my grandmother that my legs were numb, so she told me to get up and go for a walk. I'll go to the kitchen to find snacks to eat, and I'll go back and pick them up when I'm done. ”

The emperor listened very carefully.

"One year, on the fifteenth day of the first lunar month, we wanted to sneak out to see the lights without telling the adults. Later, I thought about it again and again, and I still felt that I shouldn't hide such a thing from my family, and I should still tell my parents and elders. My sister and brother were not happy and didn't step on me for several days. But on the fifteenth, my grandmother sent a message to invite my uncle to come and take us out to see the lights. My uncle also bought us dumplings to eat at the lantern set. Because there were so many people, there weren't enough bowls to sell the dumplings, so we bought ten dumplings and divided them into two. At that time, it was strange, but I thought that the food sold outside was better than the food made at home. ”

The emperor listened to her quietly, smiled and said, "Then when the Shangyuan Festival comes, I will also take you to see the lanterns." ”

Xie Ning responded with a smile.

The Shangyuan Festival is too far away, and I don't know if anyone remembers this promise at that time.

Now he'd shown her the lights.

What can make the emperor worry is a big thing, and Xie Ning can't help.

I slept quietly all night.

There was no upside down, and the two were wrapped in a brocade quilt. The emperor fell asleep as soon as he touched his head on the pillow, but Xie Ning did not fall asleep for a long time.

Maybe it's because you wake up late during the daytime and don't feel so sleepy at night.

The light outside the tent came in, and I heard in a trance that it seemed to be winding outside.

The emperor slept very deeply, and a short stubble appeared on his chin.

She didn't dare to move, she looked at him sideways, and then she fell asleep with her.

The second day should not be early, the emperor got up later than usual, Xie Ning also woke up with him, the emperor was interested in the palace attendant to serve her to comb her hair, and sat next to her, asking her what the bottles and cans were for.

When he found Meidai, he hesitated: "Why don't I help you draw a picture?" ”

Xie Ning also hesitated for a moment before asking, "Your Majesty, will you?" ”

"It's not hard to think about."

Seeing him so excited, it's really hard to spoil his interest.

The emperor picked up a snail in his hand, gently lifted her face, carefully traced it, and then again.

Shainin shrank back.

"Does it hurt?" He asked, a little nervously.

Shainin whispered, "Itchy." ”

Her eyebrows are good, but she doesn't need to be drawn in detail. Sometimes Shainin doesn't want to bother, so he doesn't paint it at all.

Drawing this eyebrow, the emperor raised his arms high, Xie Ning tensed and motionless, and both of them were about to sweat.

At the end of the painting, it looks as if the left side is longer than the right side, and after a few more strokes, I feel that the right side is thicker than the left side.

The emperor really didn't know how to add or subtract any more, put down his eyebrows, and said with some self-deprecation: "I still need to practice." ”

Xie Ning took a self-portrait in the mirror, and it felt darker than usual, and it was not ugly.

"It's the first time it's like this."

She didn't wash her face and repaint, just accompanied the emperor to breakfast, a courtier handed a sign to ask to see, the emperor drove away from Changning Palace, and Xie Ning also returned to the Lingering Fragrance Pavilion.

Liang Meiren came to the door, and Xie Ning had to open the door and invite her to come in for tea.

Liang Meiren is two years older than her, but she has been out of favor for a long time, her eyebrows and eyes always look like a sense of resentment and self-pity, and her words also have a sour taste. Xie Ning didn't talk to her, and after drinking a cup of tea, Liang Meiren said goodbye with interest.

Two days later, Qinghe told her something new when she was serving her to make up: "I heard that many people have drawn their eyebrows thick and black in the past two days. ”

Qingmei couldn't help but add: "It's still burnt." ”

Xie Ning took a long time to figure out what was going on, and couldn't help but laugh.

Those people thought that she came back from bed and painted such a pair of eyebrows, so they thought that the emperor's preferences had changed recently, and he liked thick and thick eyebrows?

That's not because he likes it, it's because he's clumsy.

Qinghe didn't know what she was laughing at, and stood a little helpless on the sidelines.

She still didn't give up persuading Shain, saying that she should make one or two needles and threads for the emperor.

"Actually, you're not stupid at all, you didn't do well in the past because you didn't care." Qinghe's attitude is very sincere: "As long as you want to do it, you must be able to do it well." ”

Maybe she has a point.

Xie Ning also felt that he could help the emperor make something.

Since she is willing to do it, what to do and how to do it, these things don't have to worry about her. Qinghe was arranged from beginning to end.

"Start simple. Make a sachet, you can do it in a day, and with the embroidery and tie the work, it will only take two days. ”

That's not Shainin's level and speed.

Qinghe also understood very well, and then said: "Master, you do it slowly, and it will be almost the same if you do it for half a month." ”

She has to do what others can do in a day for half a month, and Qinghe's assessment of her level is really ......

You're welcome.

There are only so many styles and colors of men's sachets, which come and go, and are far less diverse than those used by women.

The fabric Xie Ning chose was an indigo material, and the color of the coil and tether was matched with a circle, and then jujube red was chosen.

At first, Qinghe disagreed, she felt that since it was for the emperor, it should be more appropriate to use golden yellow or black. As for Xie Ning, I think this jujube is good-looking, and it is pleasing to the eye when you look at it together, so I just want to use this.

Of course, Qinghe's little arm can't twist Xie Ning's thick thighs, in the final analysis, this is Xie Ning's doing, whether she did it or not, naturally she has to put the master's will first.

The pattern embroidered on the head is also relatively simple, and Shainin can't do it if it's too complicated.

Xie Ning felt that what Qinghe said that day made sense.

I didn't do well before, probably because she didn't care.

Xie Ning specially invited Qi Shanggong to guide her, Qi Shanggong is worthy of being an expert, even if it is paired with rotten wood, she can carve flowers under her hands. Shainin's stitches have now become much more uniform and tight under her guidance, and there are no longer those crooked centipede feet. The embroidery is a little more difficult, but the mat is drawn first, and the stitches are pierced according to the pattern, and the embroidered things look quite decent.

It's just that doing needlework is too eye-consuming, and after doing work for a while, I feel that my neck is sore.

She only felt that it was so difficult to do it once in a while, and the loss of physical and mental strength must have been huge for those who relied on their eyesight and craftsmanship to eat. No wonder there is no old Shang Gong in the Needlework Bureau, Qi Shang Palace can already be an old senior at such an age. Because after thirty, the body and skills can no longer withstand such wear and tear, and even if they are reluctant, they cannot resist the deterioration of reality.

It didn't take ten days and half a month to make this sachet, and it took five or six days to do it. Xie Ning usually doesn't smoke incense, but this is a sachet, so it can't be sent over so empty.

She found some tansy and mint leaves to fill in, and it smelled faint and bitter.

Now that it's done, the rest of the steps is how to send it out.

Xie Ning plans to give it to the emperor when he goes to accompany him again.

It's just a little annoying, what will you say when the time comes?

I always feel weird and embarrassed.

It would be even more embarrassing to ask someone to send it over.

Qinghe is more confident than Xie Ning himself, thinking that as long as it is made by Xie Meiren himself, no matter what it is, the emperor will definitely like it.