After The Soft And Cute Beauty Marries The Wolf King - Chapter 43

Lang Sa’s expression was as usual, but Xie Zhiqing sensed something was off.

 

He touched the back of Lang Sa’s hand and asked, “What’s wrong? Are you in a bad mood?”

 

Lang Sa said, “No.” He pulled Xie Zhiqing to sit down but found there was no cushion or mat in the cave. So, he simply took off his cloak, folded it, and placed it on the ground for Xie Zhiqing to sit on. He then sat beside him and continued polishing the hairpin.

 

Xie Zhiqing watched quietly for a while and wondered if he was overthinking. He poked Lang Sa’s waist and whispered, “Lang Sa, you wouldn’t be…”

 

Lang Sa turned to look at him.

 

“…upset again, would you?” Xie Zhiqing swallowed hard.

 

Lang Sa couldn’t help but laugh.

 

He put down the hairpin, grabbed the little prince’s cheeks with both hands, and pulled them sideways, saying, “Yes, yes, hurry up and take off your clothes!”

 

“Help, help!” Xie Zhiqing laughed while wriggling to avoid him, still teasing him, “Your bad mood phase never ends!”

 

Lang Sa said viciously, “Of course, because I’m waiting for you to give me a second child!”

 

After some playful banter, Lang Sa seemed to return to normal. Xie Zhiqing didn’t think too much about it—he knew Lang Sa was going to meet Lang Xiaoxiao today, and his earlier unhappiness was probably due to that. The naive little prince didn’t realize the siblings would have such a serious argument; he just thought Lang Xiaoxiao would reconsider the marriage, and Lang Sa was sulking because Xiao Qi was unreliable.

 

The optimistic Xie Zhiqing even thought of persuading Lang Xiaoxiao himself the next day. He had a sister and understood a girl’s feelings—there were always things she didn’t want to tell her brother.

 

He made up his mind and leaned his head on Lang Sa’s shoulder, chatting about the day’s events.

 

After a while, Lang Sa suddenly said, “By the way, your letter has arrived.”

 

Xie Zhiqing asked, “What letter?”

 

Then he realized Lang Sa was talking about the family letter he had sent to Anyu.

 

The contents of the letter were simple. He told his father and brother that he was expecting a baby with Lang Sa.

 

Thinking about this made Xie Zhiqing blush. He rubbed his hands together and said, “Got it.”

 

Lang Sa briefly described the scene as the servant had reported it, “They were all very happy. Your sister was the happiest, always shouting that she was going to be an aunt.”

 

Xie Zhiqing smiled with his lips pressed together. He rubbed his face and said, “There are no younger children than Xiaoyue’er in the palace… she should be happy.”

 

He sat up straight, excitedly saying, “She might not fully understand what this means, but she’ll be happy just to become an elder! Kids are like that.”

 

Lang Sa smiled and wrapped his arm around Xie Zhiqing’s shoulder, letting him lean on him again. He said, “Yes. Although the round trip took several days without delay; our wolf clan doesn’t have these customs, so I forgot—this year’s New Year’s Eve passed just like that, without any celebration for you.”

 

Lang Sa’s voice was low, with a hint of guilt. “I’m sorry, Qing’er, I forgot.”

 

Mentioning this, Xie Zhiqing also realized. He suddenly understood, “Oh! I forgot too!”

 

Since finding out about his pregnancy, Xie Zhiqing had been mentally busy every day—thinking about things like how tall the baby would grow, whether it would fully inherit Lang Sa’s intelligence, and if it would have fluffy ears or a tail…

 

His mind was entirely occupied with these thoughts, leaving no room for anything else, including forgetting about New Year’s Eve.

 

He looked up at Lang Sa’s face—the wolf king genuinely felt guilty.

 

Xie Zhiqing laughed and said, “It’s okay, it’s in the past. At worst, we can celebrate later! After all, it’s just me celebrating the Spring Festival. I can decide when to celebrate it.”

 

Lang Sa naturally wouldn’t refuse. “Alright, whenever you want to celebrate, we’ll celebrate. This afternoon, I had a few chefs plan the menu, and they’ll show it to you once they decide.”

 

He pinched Xie Zhiqing’s nose and said, “We’ll make the dishes you like.”

 

Later, Xie Zhiqing counted on his fingers and said, “Lang Sa, I think we don’t need a very rich menu… How about we celebrate New Year’s Eve tomorrow?”

 

Xie Zhiqing’s eyes were brighter than the moon in the sky. He said, “Tomorrow is the fifteenth day of the first lunar month. According to Anyu’s customs, ‘it’s still the New Year until the fifteenth,’ so we can catch the last day.”

 

Lang Sa put his arm around his shoulder and pressed his face against Xie Zhiqing’s, saying, “Whatever you say.”

 

When they got home, it was already late. Xie Zhiqing wanted to ask Lang Sa about his conversation with Lang Xiaoxiao today but was interrupted.

 

“It’s too late. Let’s sleep first.” Lang Sa said with a stern face, “Early to bed, early to rise.”

 

Xie Zhiqing was lying under the blanket, looking at him with hopeful eyes, and said, “Alright then.”

 

He quickly fell asleep.

 

The next morning, when Xie Zhiqing opened his eyes, Lang Sa was already awake.

 

He was at the door, talking to the chef.

 

He’s probably discussing today’s meals, Xie Zhiqing thought. He rubbed his eyes, got up, and said to the two at the door, “I don’t have any special requests, as long as there’s tangyuan, I’m happy.”

 

The chef nodded with a smile and said, “Don’t worry, Princess Consort.”

 

After washing up, Xie Zhiqing started talking about the origins and customs of the Lantern Festival. He concluded, “In short, it’s a family reunion holiday! No matter how busy Father Emperor was in the past, he would always join us in the harem for a meal on this day.”

 

He linked arms with Lang Sa, leaned on his shoulder, and said, “It’s a pity that the old Wolf King and Queen aren’t here. But it’s nice that Xiaoxiao is, so we should invite her to join us, right? And also that Prince Xiao…”

 

Xie Zhiqing still didn’t like him much, but he thought that soon they would be family, so he should put aside his prejudice. Maybe today they could discuss the marriage.

 

But before he could finish speaking, Lang Sa interrupted him.

 

“Lang Xiaoxiao isn’t here,” Lang Sa said indifferently.

 

“Not here? Did she go out to play again?” Xie Zhiqing didn’t react at first, “Where did she go?”

 

“…” Lang Sa’s mouth twitched, and his tone was a bit stiff, “She left, I don’t know where she went.”

 

Xie Zhiqing then realized something was wrong.

 

He furrowed his brows slightly and asked nervously, “Did you two have a fight?”

 

He only realized now, “Yesterday… yesterday was because, because you two fought, so you were in a bad mood?”

 

Lang Sa didn’t want to say more, he just reached out and patted his head, comforting him, “No, don’t worry, she’s just like that…”

 

But Xie Zhiqing pulled his hand down and said seriously, “Tell me first, what exactly happened?”

 

What exactly happened… Lang Sa pondered this question repeatedly in his mind but found himself unable to explain it in a single sentence.

 

Indeed, how did it come to this?

 

Lang Sa was at a loss.

 

To be honest, he didn’t want Lang Xiaoxiao to marry that prince. His concerns were genuine; he didn’t want his sister to marry a man who wasn’t honest or well-understood.

 

But…

 

He also hadn’t expected that, in this matter, his actions were no different from Xiao Qizhen’s.

 

Lang Xiaoxiao was right; he couldn’t refute a single word she said.

 

Perhaps Lang Sa’s expression was too grim, so Xie Zhiqing worriedly touched the back of his hand and asked softly, “What… happened?”

 

Lang Sa turned to look at him.

 

Xie Zhiqing’s eyes and mouth drooped, looking at him pitifully.

 

He recalled the little prince’s talk about the customs of the Lantern Festival, and how he said he used to spend this holiday with his family.

 

His family far away in Anyu.

 

Lang Sa reached out to caress his face, gazing deeply at him.

 

Xie Zhiqing’s skin was soft and delicate, just like his pure heart.

 

“Xiao Qing’er,” Lang Sa rubbed his earlobe and asked abruptly, “Do you… hate me?”

 

Xie Zhiqing was startled, completely unable to comprehend this sudden question. He immediately retorted, “Lang Sa, what are you talking about?”

 

Then he remembered this question seemed familiar.

 

Wasn’t this what Lang Xiaoxiao had once asked him?

 

Xie Zhiqing, being very clever, quickly connected the dots and roughly guessed what had happened.

 

He held Lang Sa’s hand in return and said, “Did Xiaoxiao ask you something? Well, she asked me this before, at that time…”

 

Xie Zhiqing tried to recall the scene. It had been so long that he could barely remember.

 

However, Lang Sa shook his head and said, “It’s not related to her, it’s just that… I’ve always wanted to ask you.”

 

He still looked at Xie Zhiqing, his face full of deep sorrow.

 

He said, “You came so far with me, can’t see your family, have no friends, and even for such an important holiday, it’s just you and me—this is all because, because I wanted to marry you.”

 

“That’s true, but…” Xie Zhiqing was confused by his words, “Why are you saying this all of a sudden?”

 

Lang Sa pulled him into his arms, pressing his chin tightly against the top of his head.

 

“If you hadn’t married me, hadn’t come to the grasslands with me, then none of this would have happened.” Lang Sa said slowly, his voice calm and even, but his arms tightened more and more, almost making it hard for Xie Zhiqing to breathe, “But, but…”

 

The Wolf King’s tone suddenly became fierce, “You must stay by my side! Even if I have to bind you, I’ll keep you by my side for a lifetime!”