As soon as she opened her eyes, she was forcibly carried back to the East Palace by the paranoid pri

It was still a little chilly in early spring, and since the ministers were all relatively old, they still lit a charcoal fire in the study in the side hall.

The ministers sat on both sides, and Xiao Ye served them tea.

Of course they knew the news of His Majesty and the Queen's return in advance, otherwise they would not be waiting here.

The originally anxious heart has now returned to its normal place. The Queen is carrying the only heir of the dragon in her belly, and there can't be any mistakes!

Moreover, everyone has witnessed that His Majesty loves the Empress very much. If anything happens to the Empress, His Majesty will probably have to repeat what happened three years ago, and their peaceful days, which they have finally managed to enjoy, will be gone again.

The palace door opened, and Ning Rushong sat directly on the throne. Some differences could be seen at a glance. He was wearing a dark blue uniform with dark patterns, and an exquisite black jade pendant with dragon pattern hung around his waist. In comparison, the plum blossom bracelet he tied looked too crude.

The ministers stood up and bowed, "Your Majesty, may your Majesty be well!"

Ning Rushong looked lazy and relaxed, without his usual stern and majestic look. He put his hand down and motioned for them to sit down.

The ministers mentioned some important decisions regarding state affairs, which were beyond the control of the Southern King.

An hour later, they finally stopped talking. When they were about to leave, Minister of Rites Lin stood up suddenly and said, "I beg you to reopen this year's talent show!"

Ning Rushong cast a gloomy gaze over him, and the other ministers also looked at him in shock and admiration. Old Lin had a noble spirit of not fearing death at his age!

Elder Lin knew that everyone had misunderstood his meaning, and quickly made amends, "The purpose of holding this year's selection is not to fill your majesty's harem, but for the marriages of the princes!"

The princes here are certainly not your Majesty's descendants, but your Majesty's half-brothers.

Although Emperor Jingmu had fewer descendants than previous dynasties, there were still more than a dozen of them, but only a few of them got married.

They had no say in their own marriages, and neither did the concubines. Their marriages could only be arranged by His Majesty, and according to past tradition, the marriages were arranged through a beauty pageant.

But Your Majesty has never held a beauty contest since he ascended the throne, so this matter is a bit difficult.

After a while, Ning Rusong raised her eyes and tapped the imperial desk with her fingers. "The selection cannot be reopened. In the name of the queen, we can hold a spring banquet in Ruihe Garden outside the palace. We can invite the outstanding children of various families. The imperial sisters and brothers will attend the banquet together and let them choose for themselves."

No matter what the purpose of the selection is, a precedent cannot be set, otherwise the court officials will become more demanding the next year.

Elder Lin decided to stop when he saw that things were going well. "I will follow your majesty's orders!"

"Step back." Ning Rushong said calmly.

The ministers bowed and left.

Elder Lin was walking beside Taoist Gong, and his friend Elder Fang walked up to him and said jokingly, "I thought I was going to lose a friend."

Elder Lin pointed at him and said, "When something bad happens to you, I am still alive and well."

"Hey." Elder Fang patted his shoulder and whispered, "Did you see the plum blossom string hanging on His Majesty's head?"

Glancing at Mr. Fang, Mr. Lin said with pride, "I hold a higher position than you, and I am better at reading people's expressions than you. There is a 90% chance that the plum blossom bracelet was made by the Empress."

"When Your Majesty was still the Crown Prince, he also wore a similar bizarre waistband."

Mr. Fang pondered the word "extraordinary" and shook his head repeatedly, "As expected of you, Minister Lin. I admire you."

…………

The gilded incense burner with cloud and dragon patterns was lit with the soothing incense prepared by the imperial physician. Ning Rushong frowned, turned his face away and lowered his head, looking unsightly.

Xiao Guanzi quickly brought the spittoon to the emperor, while Xiao Yezi stood beside him holding tea for rinsing the mouth.

But Ning Rushong just retched a few times and then raised his hand to take the tea to rinse his mouth.

Then he took the handkerchief and covered his mouth. He remained calm and raised his eyelids, "Send someone to change the incense in the hall. I want something with a lighter scent."

"Yes, Your Majesty!" Xiao Ye responded immediately, and following the hint from his master's eyes, he quickly left the hall.

Under such circumstances, the emperor was still dignified and awe-inspiring, but Xiao Guanzi was extremely anxious. He came closer and lowered his voice, "Your Majesty, the queen is only four months old now, and she still has five months to go."

"Do you want me to ask Cha Yi secretly to see if there is any way to alleviate the situation?" Xiao Guanzi asked anxiously.

Cha Yi and other Gu Masters were placed in a secret place. Apart from His Majesty, only Xiao Guanzi and Guard Zhang knew about that place.

Ning Rusong leaned on the throne, still covering his face with a handkerchief. The white handkerchief made his face look even paler. He glanced at Xiao Guanzi and said, "No need. The current situation is already very good. If you are greedy again, something unexpected may happen."

The voice sounded a little muffled through the handkerchief, and the fingers pressing on the handkerchief were pale and conspicuous.

Xiao Guanzi was silent. The pain of a woman's pregnancy lasts for eight or nine months, and yet Your Majesty, such a noble person, has to suffer for the Empress!

But then he thought again, the Empress had been bedridden for most of the past three years, unable to express her sufferings, and Your Majesty had been accompanying her with great pain, and had not felt any relief at all.

Although His Majesty is often unwell now, he feels relaxed and natural in his heart. Xiao Guanzi sighed in confusion, the pros and cons of which have long been tangled into a tangled mess, and it is impossible to tell them apart.

In the evening, after taking a bath, His Majesty went to the warm room in the main hall.

The Queen should be having dinner during this period, and Your Majesty would happen to go there with her.

The washed clothes were sorted out by the palace servants, except for the plum blossom corduroy, which was carefully kept by Xiao Ye, the apprentice of the chief eunuch.

Old Lin's guess was correct. This plum blossom cord was woven by the Empress herself, and His Majesty has been unable to put it down in recent days.

The journey back to the palace was long, and the Empress had to kill time. Even the most stable carriage was bound to be bumpy. Unable to finish embroidering, the Empress started making lace. Although it didn't look very exquisite, at least she could wear it outside.

Xiao Ye put the plum blossom necklace into a brocade box that was a hundred times more precious than the necklace, while he was relaxing his mind. In fact, he felt that even if the necklace made by the Queen was disgraceful, His Majesty would still wear it, and no one would dare to criticize the Emperor anyway.