Chapter Summaries

After two years as regent, Qi Ling became emperor when Qi Xiao abdicated, and he named Qi Yu Prince Yu. Qi Yu stayed with the retired emperor at Changchun Hall, where their familiar life continued.

• Qi Xiao issued an edict passing the throne to Crown Prince Qi Ling, who accepted it and became emperor three days later, proclaiming the Cheng'an era.
• Emperor Cheng'an's first decree invested Qi Yu as Prince Yu, granting him Nanyang as his fief and a hereditary title.
• Emperor Cheng'an told Qi Yu he hoped he would be cherished and sheltered all his life, and Qi Yu gratefully accepted the title.
• Qi Yu hurried to Xuanzheng Hall to show Qi Xiao the decree and said he would use it to argue if his brother ever bullied him.
• Qi Yu told Qi Xiao he would not move to Nanyang and would continue living with him at Changchun Hall.

Qi Xiao and Qi Yu settled into a quiet life together at Qingliang Terrace after leaving the affairs of court behind. As they planned ordinary days in the mountain courtyard, Qi Xiao realized this shared life was what he had wanted most.

• Qi Xiao and Qi Yu arrived at Qingliang Terrace, where the courtyard had been refreshed for their return.
• Qi Yu and Qi Xiao agreed to set aside their palace titles at Qingliang Terrace and call each other husband and husband.
• Qi Xiao spent the afternoon brewing tea while Qi Yu rested beneath a persimmon tree with Gray Rabbit and Light Gray Rabbit.
• De'an brought memorials for Qi Xiao to review, but Qi Xiao made no reply because Emperor Cheng'an had already handled them.
• Qi Yu pulled Qi Xiao outside to watch the sunset, chatting about food and the courtyard as they walked.

Qi Yu and Qi Xiao spent a playful afternoon together before Xie Chen brought news that the court wanted the emperor to appoint an empress. Qi Xiao and Qi Yu chose Gu Lingxi, and Xie Chen returned to tell the emperor to add her to the candidates.

• Qi Yu teased Qi Xiao over grapes and white hair while De'an and the attendants watched from the veranda.
• Xie Chen arrived with the court's memorial urging the emperor to appoint an empress and a list of proposed candidates.
• Qi Xiao explained why Gu Lingxi, General Gu Zheng's daughter, was a suitable choice despite likely resistance from court officials.
• Qi Yu told Xie Chen to have the Ministry of Rites add Gu Lingxi to the list, and Qi Xiao approved.
• After Xie Chen left, Qi Yu and Qi Xiao discussed why Gu Lingxi would suit the emperor, and Qi Xiao covered the sleeping Qi Yu with a blanket.

Qi Ling and Gu Lingxi were formally married in Taihe Hall, while Qi Yu and Qi Xiao celebrated their own bond at Qingliang Terrace with nuptial wine and a hair-binding ritual. The chapter ended with both couples beneath the same moon, beginning married life in very different places.

• Qi Yu dressed carefully for Qi Ling and Gu Lingxi’s wedding and joined Qi Xiao at the ceremony in Taihe Hall.
• Gu Lingxi entered in her empress’s robes, and Qi Ling led her up the throne steps as the officials paid homage.
• Qi Yu told Qi Xiao that Qi Ling had smiled, and Qi Xiao confirmed that he had seen it.
• At Qingliang Terrace, Qi Xiao and Qi Yu wore matching red robes, drank Osmanthus Wine, and bound locks of their hair together in a brocade box.
• Qi Yu imagined celebrating future anniversaries with Qi Xiao by burying wine jars and renewing their vows beneath the persimmon tree.
• Qi Ling massaged Gu Lingxi’s temples and told her he had learned the skill while caring for someone dear to him; Gu Lingxi responded with gentle understanding.

At Qingliang Terrace, Qi Yu spent a quiet day with Qi Xiao, tending the courtyard, choosing tribute sweets, picking persimmons, and writing to the little Crown Prince. The chapter ended with Qi Yu falling asleep beside Qi Xiao after insisting they would sweep the courtyard together the next day.

• The gray rabbit woke Qi Yu, and Qi Xiao comforted him after he hit his head on the bedpost.
• Qi Xiao told Qi Yu to sweep the courtyard, and Qi Yu struggled to gather the fallen leaves while Qi Xiao watched.
• Qi Yu joined Qi Xiao in pulling weeds, then objected when Qi Xiao removed a rose stem that was not fully withered.
• Qi Yu selected tribute sweets for Qi Xiao's tea, and the two picked persimmons together, with Qi Yu offering Qi Xiao the reddest one.
• Qi Yu wrote to the little Crown Prince, inviting him to visit Qingliang Terrace and describing the rabbits.
• Qi Yu asked Qi Xiao to share the courtyard sweeping the next day, then fell asleep beside him.

Qi Yu and Qi Xiao traveled to Nanyang to visit Qi Yu’s fief and settled into a leisurely life at the Prince Yu Residence. They planned to return to the Capital City for New Year and continue spending their autumns in Nanyang together.

• Qi Yu asked to visit his fief, and he and Qi Xiao set out for Nanyang with a heavily packed carriage.
• Prefect Shen welcomed Qi Yu at the city gates and led the couple to the Prince Yu Residence, where Qi Yu toured the rooms and complained that the bed was too small.
• Qi Yu and Qi Xiao spent their days at the residence, while Qi Xiao reviewed reports from Prefect Shen and offered comments on local affairs.
• Qi Yu and Qi Xiao shared soy milk from a street vendor and later drank Osmanthus Wine together beneath the osmanthus tree.
• Qi Yu and Qi Xiao planned to return to Qingliang Terrace in spring and come back to Nanyang the following autumn.

Qi Yu and Qi Xiao spent the changing seasons together in Nanyang, sharing quiet routines and remembering the year since their arrival. The chapter ended with Qi Xiao kissing Qi Yu between the brows as they marked their first anniversary in Nanyang.

• Qi Yu gave Qi Xiao a copper bell engraved with “One year” and asked him to help hang it on the apricot tree.
• Qi Xiao pulled down the highest branch so Qi Yu could tie on the bell, and they watched it ring among the sparrows.
• Qi Yu picked ripe apricots while Qi Xiao caught them, then the two shared the fruit in the courtyard.
• During the summer heat, Qi Yu brought Qi Xiao peeled iced grapes and tried to persuade him to let them sleep outdoors.
• After the rain, Qi Yu rested against Qi Xiao and reminded him that it was the anniversary of their arrival in Nanyang; Qi Xiao kissed his brow.

Qi Yu told Qi Xiao about a dream in which they died and argued over who would be reincarnated first. He recalled choosing to be Qi Xiao’s son again, and the story left them asleep together, planning to visit Nanshi Market the next morning.

• Qi Yu woke from a dream and told Qi Xiao they had both died and argued in the Hall of the King of Hell over who would reincarnate first.
• In Qi Yu’s dream, the King of Hell and the Judge struggled to settle the dispute, and the Judge suggested Qi Yu could choose another household.
• Qi Yu remembered Qi Xiao’s gifts and decided he would be Qi Xiao’s son again in his next life.
• The Judge recorded that Qi Yu and Qi Xiao would reincarnate together, and Qi Yu said he would keep tormenting Qi Xiao in their next life.
• Qi Xiao pulled Qi Yu close, and they joked about his authority before settling down to sleep ahead of their trip to Nanshi Market.

In their third year in Nanyang, Qi Yu and Qi Xiao share an ordinary day of kite-flying before Qi Yu insists that he wants to be Qi Xiao’s father in their next life. After playfully chasing and reconciling, they promise to stay together in every life and walk home hand in hand.

• Qi Yu persuades Qi Xiao to fly a kite with him, and Qi Xiao teaches him how to keep it aloft.
• Walking by the river, Qi Yu asks whether they will remember each other in another life, and Qi Xiao promises he will not forget him.
• Qi Yu tells Qi Xiao he wants to be the father in their next life, then runs through the courtyard as Qi Xiao chases him.
• Qi Xiao catches Qi Yu beneath the apricot tree, and they agree that they must be together in their next life, regardless of who is the father.
• Qi Xiao kisses Qi Yu, then leads him home with their fingers interlaced as they joke about the King of Hell.