Duan Changchuan and Yun Xie walked outside for a while and breathed in the fresh air before finally feeling much better.

Yun Xie worried that Duan Changchuan would be lonely in the carriage, so he spoke to Feng Yao and joined Duan Changchuan’s carriage.

The carriage was filled with piles of lotus seeds and lotus flowers. Along with the freshly picked lotus leaves which instantly filled the space with the fresh fragrance of water vapor.

Yun Xie peeled a lotus seed and threw it into his mouth, “When we get to the temple, how about we make lotus leaf chicken with these lotus leaves?”

Duan Changchuan, “…”

Eating lotus leaf chicken in the temple … Only he could think of that.

He rolled his eyes at him, “Even if I’m the emperor, I can’t eat chicken in the temple.”

Yun Xie choked, “Oh, right … Then I’ll be like you tonight.”

Duan Zhangchuan, “Like me how?”

“Alone in an empty room. Aunt is going to worship Buddha, so she definitely won’t sleep with me.”

Duan Changchuan, “…”

This person originally couldn’t stop talking about his aunt all the time. Ever since their relationship turned intimate, his conversations inevitably included lewd remarks about her.

“Hey, let me ask you a question.”

This person suddenly leaned close to his ear …

Duan Changchuan was alarmed, “What … question?”

Yun Xie, “Have you touched her?”

Duan Changchuan:???

He didn’t understand, “Touched her where?”

However, a certain shameless person puffed out his chest, “Of course here.”

Duan Changchuan: …!!

Now he realized that he had never thought about it before.

In this world, he had always considered himself a gentleman. After inheriting the throne as a child, he focused on state affairs. Later, his “marriage” was because of the regent humiliation instead of romantic desire. Of course, he had never thought about it.

In the other world, he had always been an Omega. He was born to be submissive to Alpha. Even during heats, he yearned to be touched rather than thinking to touch her.

The young man widened his eyes …

It was obvious he had never thought about it before.

Yun Xie sighed helplessly, “You really never thought about it … Hah, I really want to touch her … But she won’t let me. She doesn’t even allow me to touch the important parts. Is it the same for yours? Why? I’ve already let her do that to me … Can’t she let me touch her? After all, I’m still a man …”

Duan Changchuan, “It has nothing to do with men. You’re just a pervert.”

Yun Xie, “… What’s wrong with being perverted? Men were lustful, to begin with. I don’t believe you aren’t lustful to your empress at all.”

Duan Changchuan’s body stiffened.

He was an Omega. Although he did harbor some lustful thoughts towards his Alpha, it was more about wanting to be lusted by her.

Of course, he couldn’t say these things.

Thus, the young man coughed awkwardly, looking away with embarrassment.

“Of course, I won’t lust after her.”

–

That night, they stayed as planned at a temple which was about half the distance from the villa.

They had vegetarian food for dinner. It tasted pretty good, but ultimately just vegetables. Duan Changchuan, who was pregnant, began to feel hungry not long after night fell.

His mind kept circling back to the lotus leaf chicken Yun Xie mentioned earlier. Especially, the room was filled with the lotus leaves fragrance they picked during the day, making him crave it even more.

Just as he was tossing around, unable to sleep, Chang Le’s voice suddenly sounded from outside, whispering, “Lord Yun, why have you come?”

“Where is His Majesty? I’m here to take him to eat something good.”

“What good food … But His Majesty has already fallen asleep. We have to wake His Majesty up. His Majesty hasn’t been sleeping well recently. It’s not easy for him to fall asleep.”

“Ah, I see … Aunt worried His Majesty eat too light during dinner, so she asked me to take him out to eat something.”

“Thank you for Aunt’s concern … I’ll tell His Majesty tomorrow.”

Hearing this, Duan Changchuan got up from the bed and stood by the door, listening. When he heard Yun Xie was about to leave, he immediately opened the door.

“I’m not asleep …” He said.

Realizing he might have sounded too eager, he quickly added, “I am hungry just now and was about to ask Chang Le for something to eat when I heard you talking.”

Yun Xie didn’t suspect anything, immediately smiled, and came over to take his hand, “It’s good you haven’t slept yet! Your wife is very thoughtful. When she heard we were going to sleep in the temple, she specifically asked Aunt to prepare something for you.”

Hearing that it was Bai Su’s order, the young man immediately stopped being shy and followed him out of the courtyard.

“Bai Su … cough, what did Aunt prepare for me?”

“Aunt specially asked people to set up a tent outside the temple for our chefs to cook inside. Didn’t we pass by a farmer’s house on our way here? They were butchering rabbits when I looked inside. I bought a few and asked our chefs to roast them for you. They should be done by now! And they made a lotus leaf rabbit with the leaves we picked. It smells really good! Come on, you’ll love it.”

The mention of meat made Duan Changchuan’s mouth water.

In the past, what didn’t the imperial kitchen have? He had never craved for anything. But ever since getting pregnant, he didn’t expect he would develop a strong desire for food …

Thus, Omega, who was more than four months pregnant, walked briskly down the mountain steps, keeping pace with Yun Xie.

The tent that Feng Yao arranged was not far from the temple. They arrived shortly while talking. The aroma of roasted meat drifted out from inside.

Inside the tent, skewered roasted rabbits were sizzling, their skins turning golden and crispy.

Due to Duan Changchuan’s noticeable belly, only two chefs were arranged in the camp.

Seeing the young man dressed in bright yellow, they immediately knelt, “This servant pays respect to Your Majesty. Your Majesty, long live Your Majesty.”

“Rise.” Duan Changchuan spoke while slowly walking to the roasted rabbit.

Just as he was about to speak, he suddenly caught a faint scent of peony among the meat fragrance.

He was stunned.

This was … the smell of a pheromone.

He immediately turned around and lifted the tent flap, hurriedly walked out.

She was here …

She was here, right?

[Sister …]

Yun Xie not knowing what was happening, quickly followed, “Hey! Your Majesty, where are you going? What about the meat!”

Duan Changchuan followed the scent of the pheromone and walked down the mountain. At first, Yun Xie was still calling out to him. Later, Yun Xie realized and fell silent for a while before hurriedly following the young emperor. He kept holding Duan Changchuan’s arm to prevent him from tripping.

Duan Changchuan only stopped when he was about ten steps away from the main road.

Under the clear moonlight, he stood quietly in a place partly hidden by branches, quietly gazing at the nearby pebble path.  

The sound of hooves grew louder and approaching.

Soon, a familiar figure in bright red slowly passed by on the roadside.

The woman sat on a tall horse, her face covered with a long veil that concealed her mouth and nose, adding a touch of elusive mystery to her dignified appearance.

In the blink of an eye, she disappeared at the intersection where the two stood.

The young man remained standing quietly, his eyes looking straight in the direction that the man had disappeared.

Her eyelashes trembled slightly, small sparkling teardrops stuck in his eyes.

Yun Xie said she was the one who instructed aunt to prepare food for him. She was worried that he and the baby might go hungry.

[Look, she’s quietly keeping you company …]

[Duan Changchuan, don’t be so pathetic.]

However, the sound of hooves that had faded away returned.

Moments later, the bright red figure reappeared at the crossroads where they stood.

A breeze lifted the woman’s veil, revealing her helpless smile.

She asked, “Why are you standing here?”

Seeing the half rabbit leg in Yun Xie’s hand, she laughed softly, “Eating roast meat? Why did you come out without finishing your meal? Are you hungry?”

The young man put his hands on his lower abdomen and said softly, “A little hungry …”

“If you’re hungry, you should eat properly … Feng Yao said you had morning sickness again today? Eat more when you feel like eating, okay?”

“Yes … I know.”

“Remember to wash your hands before eating, and pay attention to hygiene outside. Your digestion is delicate now, and you need to avoid getting sick from unclean food.”

“Okay … I’ll pay attention.”

“Good …”

His Alpha’s voice was gentle, and every word was soft and pleasant to the ear.

Peony’s scent had disappeared without a trace the moment she returned. She probably sensed his arrival, so she hid it.

Duan Changchuan sniffed the air gently and lowered his eyes in disappointment.

His Alpha obviously noticed his movements and chuckled, “No pheromones, I can’t give you now.”

The young man blushed, and responded with embarrassment, “Oh.”

“I’ll give it to you later. I’m in my susceptibility period now, baby~”

!!!

She was in her susceptibility period too?

He suddenly felt even more embarrassed and whispered, “I … I think I’m going to enter mine … too.”

“That’s quite a coincidence.”

“Y-yes …”

They talked in riddles for a long time. On the way back, Yun Xie was still puzzled.

“We weren’t that close to the main road when we came out. How did you know she was coming? And so accurately? Did you hear her? You couldn’t have seen her, right?!”

“We didn’t make any sound at the time. She didn’t even look over us when she passed by. How did she notice us?”

“Could it be some sort of telepathy?”

Duan Changchuan was annoyed and could only choose a simple explanation, “… I smelled her pheromone. Pheromone can travel far, and she’s in her susceptible period. Her pheromone is a bit out of control, so I caught the scent.”

“Pheromone is the smell of peony you mentioned before, right? What is the Susceptibility Period? Did you say you are also in the Susceptibility Period? Are you releasing pheromones now?”

“The susceptibility period is … a condition that Alpha will have every few months, requiring Omega’s comfort. Married Alpha will fall into madness if they don’t get Omega’s comfort for a long time. They may even suffer mating deficiency syndrome and die.”

Yun Xie:???

“Then if you abandon her, won’t she be miserable? No wonder she treats you so well …”

Duan Changchuan, “It’s true that she can’t live without me, but Omega will be more serious without Alpha’s comfort. Alpha can still hold on for three to five years, but a married Omega may go insane within a year. For a pregnant Omega like me, being without an Alpha for a few months could lead to severe mental problems, potentially resulting in death for both me and the baby.”

Yun Xie:!!!

He was so scared that he couldn’t even continue eating the rabbit leg.

“Y-y-you, don’t scare me … You two haven’t seen each other for a month! Are you alright now?”

He hurriedly grabbed Duan Changchuan’s sleeve and checked carefully.

The young man sighed softly, “I’m fine for now … She has returned, hasn’t she?”

“You two … Given your circumstances, she still wants to go to Huainan? And you still let her go? Aren’t you gambling with your life?! Not to mention how dangerous Huainan is, she could die there at any time. What if she can’t come back after a month? Can’t you think about yourself? And she too … doesn’t she consider you at all?”

The youth spoke angrily, and Duan Changchuan listened in silence …

Until Yun Xie said, “She doesn’t consider about you.”

Duan Changchuan suddenly realized that all this time, Bai Su had done a lot for him, but she never told anyone about it.

He suddenly realized, that no matter how much he relied on Bai Su, or how meticulously she took care of him, to his most trusted friends, she was still an outsider … An outsider that he only met after the wedding.

Because Duan Changchuan was too shy and reserved, he never shared those intimate, even sacrificial acts with Yun Xie and the others.

He hurriedly retorted, “No, she’s already very considerate of me. Bai Su has always been very good to me.”

Yun Xie rubbed his chin thoughtfully, “Well … How do I put it? If you say that she’s good to you, she certainly is … Even Auntie isn’t so meticulous to me. But you’re more delicate, and you’re the Emperor, so of course she has to be more meticulous.”

“No … I don’t mean that …” The young man was so anxious that his eyes turned red, “I mean, she considered me a lot when she went to Huainan … She … knowing I couldn’t be without her while pregnant, so before she left, she secretly found Senior Huang and took three big bowls of blood, divided it into one month’s supply and added to my medicine … So, I’ve been feeling well for the past month. The recent severe morning sickness is because her blood ran out.”

“She truly cares for me, very much …”

Duan Changchuan spoke one sentence after another.

The words that had been suppressed at the bottom of his heart for many days seemed to have finally found an outlet, and they poured out like a flood.

“After drawing her blood, Elder Huang forced her to stay and recover for a few days before leaving for Huainan … Even until the day she left for Huainan, she wasn’t in good condition.”

“She didn’t ignore me, she’s always been very good to me … It’s me who has been bad to her. On the day she drew blood, I was still quarreling with her, but she was coaxing me …”

By the time he finished speaking, his eyes were red.

Yun Xie was dumbfounded.

After a long pause, he stammered, “She … she probably didn’t tell you because she didn’t want you to worry. Besides, you didn’t know she lost so much blood when you were quarreled with her …”

Duan Changchuan sniffled, “Hmm, I know … I just feel very guilty … She’s done so many things for me, and I’ve always misunderstood her. When we first got married, I even doubted her for a long time. I… I feel very regretful.”

Yun Xie hurriedly handed him a handkerchief, “Aiya, what’s done is done … Besides, given the situation when you first got married. She had a former lover she would have died for, and you were forced to make her Empress … Hmm, speaking of which, it’s really not easy for you two to come this far.”

After that, he tore a piece of rabbit meat for him, “Come on, eat! Your sister asked you to eat properly. If you think you didn’t do well before, then start doing it properly from now on. You’re only eighteen, and you’ve only known each other for four months. In the future, When you both live to eighty or ninety or even a hundred, you’ll definitely think these four months are nothing. It’ll be over in the blink of an eye.”

Only then did the young man nod in relief, “Mm, I want to live with her until we’re eighty years old … no, a hundred years old.”

Live to a hundred years old, spend eighty years together.

The mountains and rivers remain, and the moon and wind remain … The stars wouldn’t change.

And so do they.