Hua Manman wasn’t very sleepy to begin with. With Li Ji about to leave on a long journey, her thoughts were a jumble, and she felt even less like sleeping.
Li Ji didn’t want to sleep, either.
He picked up the little tiger doll and started to embroider by the candlelight.
He had to finish embroidering the character for "king" on the little tiger’s forehead before he left.
That way, when the baby was born, the first thing they would see would be this little tiger.
Hua Manman propped her chin on her hands and watched him without blinking, her gaze tracing his features over and over.
Although Li Ji was a valiant and formidable warrior, blades on a battlefield have no eyes.
’What if something happens to him?’
Hua Manman couldn’t help but murmur.
"You will come back, won’t you?"
Without looking up, Li Ji replied, "Of course."
Hua Manman threatened, "If you don’t come back, I’ll take your child and remarry. I’ll make our child call another man ’Father’."
Li Ji stopped his work, looked up, and stared at her darkly.
"You dare remarry, and I’ll break your legs."
His ferocious expression might have scared an outsider.
But Hua Manman wasn’t the least bit afraid.
She deliberately lifted her right leg, propped it on his knee, and said triumphantly.
"Go on. I dare you to try."
Li Ji decided he had to teach this woman a lesson so she’d know who she was dealing with.
He immediately tossed aside his needle and thread, grabbed her ankle with one hand, and pulled off her shoe and sock with the other. Then, he started tickling her small, fair foot.
An electrifying, ticklish sensation shot straight to the crown of her head.
Hua Manman’s body started to tremble, and she laughed until she was out of breath.
"Stop it! Stop it, you jerk!"
Only when she had laughed so hard she cried did Li Ji leisurely let go, asking with a theatrical air.
"Now you know who you’re dealing with, don’t you?"
Hua Manman quickly put her shoe and sock back on, then lunged forward and nipped him on the cheek, cursing.
"So shameless!"
After scolding him, she scurried away, deftly scrambling onto the bed and pulling the quilt over to wrap herself up.
Li Ji just smiled, not giving chase.
He picked up his needle, thread, and the doll again, and continued to embroider.
The quiet didn’t last long before Hua Manman couldn’t stand the silence and started chattering again.
"Keep up the good work. Once you’ve perfected your craft, you can use it to earn some money for the family."
Li Ji replied humbly, "Don’t you know how to give massages? The money from your blind massage parlor will be enough. I won’t embarrass myself with my shoddy work."
Hua Manman was surprised he still remembered the blind massage parlor.
"Are you actually expecting me to be the breadwinner? Wouldn’t that make you a pretty boy living off his wife?"
Li Ji was very composed. "I’d quite like to try what it’s like to be a kept man."
Hua Manman said indignantly.
"We don’t support freeloaders in this house!"
Li Ji said, "I’m not a freeloader. I’m your husband."
As they chatted, sleepiness gradually crept up on Hua Manman, and before she knew it, she had fallen asleep.
Li Ji set down his needle and thread, walked over, and tucked her in.
He embroidered, then unpicked his stitches, then embroidered again.
After much trial and error, just as dawn was about to break, Li Ji finally embroidered a character for "king" that was just about presentable.
He let out a breath. It was finally done.
Li Ji put away his sewing kit, placed the little tiger doll by the headboard, and then took his clothes to the outer chamber.
As he changed, he spoke in a low voice to Gao Shan, giving him instructions about matters at the residence.
He gave a long list of miscellaneous instructions, but they all boiled down to one thing—
Take good care of the Princess Consort!
Chen Wangbei came to remind him that the carriage and horses were ready.
Gao Shan shook out a cloak and draped it over Prince Zhao’s shoulders.
Li Ji returned to the inner chamber. Manman was still sound asleep. He watched her quietly for a moment, then gently placed a kiss on her forehead.
"Wait for me."
...
Hua Manman, who had been sleeping soundly, suddenly awoke.
She glanced around and found the room empty. There was no sign of Li Ji.
Her heart skipped a beat.
’Has Li Ji already left?’
Hua Manman quickly threw off the covers and sat up.
Si Yun and Qing Huan, who were waiting in the outer chamber, heard the noise and immediately pushed open the door to enter.
Si Yun tried to persuade her, "It’s still early, Your Highness. Would you like to sleep a little longer?"
Before Prince Zhao left, he had specifically instructed them that the Princess Consort had gone to bed late and that they should let her sleep in.
But Hua Manman had no desire to sleep now.
She asked urgently, "Where is the Prince?"
Si Yun replied, "He left at first light."
Hua Manman glanced outside. It was already broad daylight.
’If I chase after him now,’ she calculated, ’I might still be able to catch up.’
So, Hua Manman dressed in a flash. After finding out which direction the Prince had gone, she took a carriage and headed straight for the South City Gate.
Worried that something might happen to the Princess Consort, Gao Shan quickly arranged for a squad of trusted aides to accompany her.
The carriage sped onward, with the trusted aides following closely on horseback.
Perhaps it was due to her emotional state, but Hua Manman suddenly felt the baby in her womb move!
At first, she thought she was imagining it.
But then she placed a hand on her belly and felt carefully. The baby was definitely moving.
The movements were still faint and difficult to perceive.
Hua Manman was overjoyed.
She gently stroked her belly. "Just wait a little longer. You’ll be able to see your father soon."
’If Li Ji knew the baby could move, he would be so happy.’
The carriage raced along, reaching the South City Gate at top speed.
Li Ji had only brought two hundred trusted aides on this trip, leaving the majority behind at the residence to protect Manman.
He rode through the South City Gate and was just about to pick up the pace when he suddenly heard a clear shout from behind.
"Prince!"
The voice was all too familiar.
Li Ji’s heart jolted.
He pulled the reins tight and whipped his head around, just in time to see Manman jump down from her carriage.
Pregnant belly and all, she just leaped to the ground, scaring the daylights out of everyone around.
Li Ji was badly frightened as well.
He swung himself off his horse and ran toward Hua Manman.
The cold wind, carrying snowflakes with it, sent his cloak billowing.
He pulled her hood up over her head to keep her from freezing.
"What are you doing here?"
Hua Manman looked up, her eyes sparkling. "The baby and I came to see you off."
Li Ji scolded her.
"This is reckless! It’s so cold and the ground is slippery—what if you’d fallen? Where was everyone else at the residence? How could not a single person stop you? Have they started disobeying my orders the moment I’m gone?!"
By the end, his tone had turned chilling, as if he were ready to kill.
Hua Manman quickly said, "It has nothing to do with anyone else! I was the one who insisted on coming. Oh, and I have something to tell you—our baby is moving!"
Li Ji was stunned.
In an instant, all his displeasure and anger vanished, replaced by excitement as he pressed for details.
"Really? When did it move? What did it feel like? How many times did it move?"
As he spoke, he placed a hand over Manman’s belly.
But he couldn’t feel anything.
Hua Manman frowned. "Why isn’t the baby moving now? He was just moving a moment ago. He moved several times."