Inside the brocade curtains, Shen Yuanwei witnessed with great shyness that certain people were indeed skilled at untying complicated things.
The silk ribbon around her waist had been tied into an intricate knot by her maid, and she herself didn’t know where to begin untying it. Yet the man’s fingers quickly loosened it.
As the silk ribbon fell loose, her garments came undone.
The man leaned over her, slowly opening the exquisite outer robe, and then…
His gaze intensified, and suddenly, everything began to spiral out of control.
The pearls and jade ornaments in her hair scattered chaotically across the pillow.
Her neatly tied-up hair came loose and cascaded down, spreading over the Wedding Quilt.
Although the brocade curtains were breathable, she felt nearly suffocated.
She clutched the arm of the handsome Young General, watching as he casually gathered her long hair, winding it around his fingers, growing increasingly infatuated within her fragrance.
She heard the Young General tell her—
“I’ve truly wasted my life until now.”
“I thought marriage was a troublesome and headache-inducing affair. It turns out I was foolish—I never knew its pleasures. Marriage is actually such a joyful thing.”
She gazed into those bright black eyes that seemed to have discovered a new world.
She replied to him, “Perhaps you’re only this happy because you married me. With someone else, it might be different?”
Her confidence made Xiao Lingzhao chuckle involuntarily.
Yet, Xiao Lingzhao felt her words weren’t wrong.
He whispered, “Yes, only you. In all of heaven and earth, only you could make me so obsessed…”
He regretted not meeting his Yuan Wei earlier, having pointlessly missed so much precious time.
Fortunately, it wasn’t too late now.
They were still young, with plenty of time to lean on each other.
Like tonight—the night had just begun, and dawn was still far, far away.
…
The Imperial Palace.
By the time Xie Junlin arrived at the imperial chambers, the sky had already darkened.
The eunuchs lit the candles in the imperial chamber one by one, making it as bright as day.
Xie Junlin sat before the dragon desk, opening a memorial, yet the vermilion brush in his hand remained unmoving.
He lowered his gaze to the words on the memorial. Though his eyes clearly saw what was written, his mind refused to function. He stared at a single line for a long time, his thoughts completely blank.
Only when a drop of cinnabar ink dripped from the brush tip onto the memorial did the glaring red snap Xie Junlin back to reality.
Frowning, he set the brush down.
Seeing this, Chen Hai immediately stepped forward to inquire, “Your Majesty, are you tired?”
Xie Junlin leaned back in his chair.
He said, “It’s not exactly fatigue, just…”
He trailed off, unsure how to continue.
Hearing this half-finished sentence, Chen Hai stole a glance at him, privately pondering what was troubling the Emperor.
Having risen to the position of Head Eunuch, he prided himself on being quite adept at interpreting the Emperor’s heart. After a moment’s thought, a sudden inspiration struck him.
The Emperor had attended General Xiao’s wedding and returned distracted, unable to focus even on reviewing memorials. The Emperor must be feeling somewhat desolate and lonely after seeing others marry!
The Emperor was longing for a woman!
All he needed was to summon an Imperial Concubine to keep him company for the night!
Chen Hai quietly turned and left.
A short while later, he returned to Xie Junlin’s side carrying a lacquered tray.He knelt down, holding the tray above his head, and called out with a smile, “Your Majesty, please choose a consort! The Imperial Concubines have missed you dearly during your absence from the rear palace!”
“…”
Xie Junlin’s fingers, which had been massaging his temples, paused.
Choose a consort?
It had been five months since he last visited the rear palace. Why would they suddenly come asking him to choose a consort now?
Xie Junlin looked down at this presumptuous person.
Meeting Chen Hai’s expression that seemed to beg for praise, Xie Junlin felt both amused and annoyed. “Where did you get the idea that We wish to visit the rear palace tonight?”
Chen Hai was stunned.
He blinked at Xie Junlin and cautiously said, “Your Majesty, you’ve been in low spirits and distracted ever since your return, not even wanting to review memorials. Isn’t it because seeing General Xiao’s wedding and the Xiao family’s joyous atmosphere made you feel lost, so you want to find a consort to keep you company?”
Xie Junlin laughed in exasperation.
He gazed quietly at Chen Hai. “When We wish to favor a concubine, do We need you to speculate? Do We not have a mouth?”
Chen Hai looked embarrassed. “This old servant thought… Your Majesty is reserved and might feel embarrassed to speak up.”
Xie Junlin clicked his tongue. “Take that tray and get out.”
Chen Hai sighed in response, promptly kowtowed, and scrambled away.
Watching his retreating figure and recalling his earlier words, Xie Junlin let out a soft sigh.
His low spirits and distraction were indeed because of Xiao Lingzhao’s wedding.
But it wasn’t because seeing someone else get married made him want a wife too—it was because of Xiao Lingzhao’s wife, that Lady Yuan Wei…
His mind was filled with the child he had seen in the earlier illusion. How could he possibly focus on reviewing memorials?
Rubbing his temples again, Xie Junlin stood up.
Enough.
Since sitting here wasn’t helping him concentrate, he might as well retire early.
Whether he was so desperate for a child that he was hallucinating, or whether heaven was guiding him and his ancestors were showing their spirit—he would know when he woke up.
Two quarters of an hour later, Xie Junlin was resting in his spacious Dragon Bed, completely ignoring the eagerly waiting Imperial Concubines in the rear palace.
At midnight, Xie Junlin began to dream.
In the dream, he was sitting in the Hall of Supreme Harmony discussing important state affairs with his ministers when suddenly, a small child pushed the vermilion door open a crack and peeked inside, looking toward him.
Sensing something, he lifted his gaze.
The little head immediately hid outside the door as soon as it saw him looking, quickly closing the door again—but a corner of clothing got caught in the crack. The little one cried out anxiously, repeatedly scratching at the door and tugging at the clothing, making the corner swing back and forth.
Watching that corner of clothing, he laughed aloud.
Leaving his ministers waiting, he stood up and walked to the door, reaching out to grab the corner of clothing from inside.
The child outside had nearly managed to pull the clothing free, but now that he was holding it from inside, the child outside couldn’t budge it no matter how hard they pulled. Growing both anxious and wronged, the child couldn’t help complaining to someone outside.
“Mother! Mother! It must be Imperial Father pulling my robe from inside! Imperial Father is bad! Wuwu Imperial Father is bad!”
A woman’s gentle voice came from outside.
“Who’s really being bad here—Imperial Father or you, hmm? Weren’t you the one who deliberately got your robe caught in the door crack and then shook it back and forth to attract Imperial Father’s attention? You’re the one who wants Imperial Father to play with you, aren’t you?”
The child fell silent.A few moments later, the child whispered guiltily, “No, I’m a big boy. How could I want Imperial Father to play with me? I don’t want that at all…”
Inside the room, Xie Junlin listened to the child’s milky voice, feeling his heart melt with affection.
Was this his son?
He had to see what his son looked like!
Unable to contain his paternal love, Xie Junlin smiled and released his robe, then opened the door again.
As the door gradually opened, the outside light streamed in, illuminating the mother and child standing in the glow. The small child’s features were unclear, but he wore exquisitely crafted crown prince’s robes. Upon seeing Xie Junlin, the child happily rushed over and hugged his leg, repeatedly calling out “Imperial Father” like the stickiest malt candy.
The slender, stunningly beautiful woman wore red garments adorned with jeweled hairpieces, holding a fan that half-covered her face as she lifted her gaze to smile at him.
Just as he was about to smile back at the woman, her smiling face suddenly turned ice-cold, her eyes filled with boundless disgust toward him!
He heard her say coldly, “I’ve already borne your child. When will you honor your promise to release my husband? Xie Junlin, you stole another man’s wife—you’re despicable and shameless, you’re vile! How dare you deceive me like this? What kind of monarch are you? What kind of Son of Heaven!”