Peach Blossom.

"What is she doing here?" Si Yao muttered to himself dejectedly.

Meng Xue just smiled.

The guard at the gate of the Dejiao Hall saw Si Yao and reported inside: "The Concubine Shu has arrived."

Si Yao and Meng Xue walked forward together, and when they crossed the threshold, they saw Zhang Xiaowan and Chen Sheng also walking out.

Xiao Wan put her hands together at her waist and bowed slightly: "I am Zhang, respectfully welcoming the Concubine Shu."

Chen Sheng stood aside and also bowed, but kept his head down and said nothing.

Behind Chen Sheng was his wet nurse since childhood.

Si Yao had never liked Zhang Xiaowan, so he asked, "Why are you here?"

Xiao Wan smiled and replied, "Your Majesty, you don't know that I come to visit the eldest prince every day."

Si Yao was even more confused.

Meng Xue smiled widely, walked to Chen Sheng, and asked gently, "Prince, why didn't you say anything when you saw your mother? Are you too happy and forgot about it?"

Chen Sheng then nodded in agreement and said, "Greetings to my mother."

Si Yao suddenly remembered that she was here to see Chen Sheng, and there was someone watching from behind. She hurriedly pretended to be concerned and helped Chen Sheng up: "Good boy, come and let your mother see you!"

Si Yao, who had never been a mother, had no idea how to get close to a child. Her words and actions seemed very inappropriate.

Chen Sheng had no intention of getting close to her, and even felt a little resistant when Si Yao pulled him back.

Zhang Xiaowan couldn't help but chuckle: "It seems that the eldest prince is not very familiar with his mother?"

Meng Xue looked at Zhang Xiaowan and smiled coldly: "Everyone knows that the eldest prince was separated from his parents when he was young and was recently brought back to the palace. It is inevitable that he and Concubine Shu are somewhat estranged. They are different from ordinary mothers and sons. Why do you have to make fun of me, Concubine Zhang?"

"How dare I make fun of you? I just thought that the queen was afraid of scaring the child, so she didn't dare to visit often, so she was unfamiliar with me." Xiaowan also sneered, with a sarcastic look on her face.

Si Yao was provoked by this and asked angrily: "What do you mean by this?"

Xiao Wan glanced at Si Yao's face and sighed with regret: "Your Majesty, please calm down. I just feel sorry for you. Your Majesty is naturally beautiful, and she has become much slimmer in the past two years. She should have been even more beautiful, but unfortunately..."

"Noble Lady Zhang, please don't say anything you shouldn't. You say that you feel sorry for the Empress, but people who don't know you might think you are making fun of the Empress." Meng Xue interrupted Xiao Wan with a cold tone.

Xiao Wan quickly responded with a smile: "Mrs. Meng Xue is right. I really am bringing up something that is not relevant to the topic!"

Although her words were interrupted, Si Yao's inferiority complex had already surrounded her, almost suffocating her.

Ever since Wang Jing stabbed her with a sword and she was covered in wounds, Si Yao didn't dare to look in the mirror, not even when combing her hair. She was afraid to face herself with a face full of scars... She really wanted to forget...

Si Yao couldn't hold back her inner restlessness, she suddenly asked Chen Sheng: "Are you afraid of seeing me?"

The timid Chen Sheng was frightened by the tone and expression and could not help but take two steps back.

Si Yao looked at Chen Sheng and felt even more frightened. She slowly raised her hand and touched her face, falling into deep self-doubt.

Meng Xue held Si Yao's hand and comforted him softly, "Don't think too much, Madam. He is not afraid of you. Mother and son have been separated for so many years. It takes time to cultivate feelings."

Xiao Wan also quickly agreed: "Yes, Madam, as the saying goes, a son will never dislike his mother's ugliness. How could the eldest prince be afraid of you, his biological mother?"

Meng Xue looked up and stared at Xiaowan, and Xiaowan immediately shut up.

"I have never been good at speaking... I really shouldn't appear in front of the queen..." Xiao Wan smiled awkwardly and bowed to Si Yao again: "I'll take my leave..."

Neither Si Yao nor Meng Xue paid any attention to Xiao Wan.

Xiao Wan took the maid's hand and walked out, asking as she walked: "Who said that they saw Sister Tao go to Hualin Garden? The emperor usually doesn't allow me to go to Xuanji Palace, so it's difficult for me to see Sister Tao. I have long wanted to see her and the baby in her belly..."

After hearing the three words "Sister Tao", Meng Xue finally understood why Zhang Xiaowan kept saying those words in front of Si Yao. She was probably keeping an eye on what was going on in Xuanji Palace all the time. As for what her intentions were, that was hard to say.

As expected, Si Yao took the bait and turned around to leave the Dejiao Hall.

Meng Xue quickly grabbed Si Yao's arm and said, "Yao'er, where are you going?"

"I'm going to settle the score with that bitch!" Si Yao was furious.

Meng Xue shook her head calmly, as if mocking and reminding: "She is the emperor's favorite person, who are you? Settling accounts? Can you afford it?"

Si Yao instantly turned into a frost-bitten eggplant again. She could of course imagine that if she dared to touch Tao Ye, Chen Ji could strangle her to death at any time.

"All the scars on my body are caused by her! My mother's death is also related to her! And the sword she stabbed me with... almost killed me. My chest hurts so much when it rains... Do you know how it feels..." Si Yao poured out his bitterness and couldn't help crying: "Why is her life so good? How can she still be so precious when she has a little bastard in her belly?"

Meng Xue chuckled, thinking of Chen Ji's narrow-mindedness, how could he accept that Tao Ye was pregnant with Wang Jing's son? It was indeed unreasonable!

She glanced at Tian Le behind her with the corner of her eyes, and sure enough, Tian Le was watching them.

Meng Xue pondered secretly that since Tian Le was the spy sent by Chen Ji, he was naturally someone Chen Ji could trust. If Si Yao had rushed to Hualin Garden and hurt Tao Ye on impulse today, Tian Le would definitely tell Chen Ji everything and everyone that happened today, including the part about Zhang Xiaowan angering Si Yao... Zhang Xiaowan probably had never seen Tian Le, so she probably thought of her as an ordinary palace maid.

"A person's fate is determined by heaven." Meng Xue curled her lips and smiled strangely: "But... I really want to know, has Concubine Zhang gone to see her sister Tao?"

Si Yao was a little confused.

Meng Xue took Si Yao's hand and went to Hualin Garden.

The maids and Tianle still followed.

The huge Hualin Garden was very empty. Meng Xue took Si Yao for a stroll. After walking around for a long time, they didn't see Zhang Xiaowan, but they did see Tao Ye.

Tao Ye was squatting under an old peach tree, touching the ground in a daze.

She listened to Tian Le's advice and walked out of the room.

Because she hadn't been exposed to sunlight for a long time, Tao Ye felt a little dizzy as soon as she walked out of the room.

She had been lying in bed too much and eating too little these days, and she felt much weaker, even walking with a light step.

Tao Ye wandered around aimlessly, hoping that walking would help her eat.

However, in this palace that has changed its name to Chen, there are people watching Tao Ye's actions at all times. Every place she goes and every move she makes will be remembered by someone with a keen eye.

There are two people following Taoye, one is Zhang Xiaowan's spy, and the other is Cailing who is responsible for taking care of Taoye's daily life.

Finally, Tao Ye walked into Hualin Garden, turned left and right in the empty Hualin Garden, passed through one forest after another, looking for the relics of the past, and finally saw the old peach tree.

"one two three……"

"Four, five, six..."

"Seven, eight, nine..."

She seemed to see herself again walking towards the old peach tree, and in front of Wang Jing, she made the decision to return to her own era.

"How could I bear to let you go? Although the rest of my life is short, if I lose you, living one more day will seem long."

She seemed to see Wang Jing again, throwing away his crutches, running towards her, and hugging her from behind. At one point he cried like a child and put aside his self-esteem to keep her.

Thinking of the warmth of the hug at that moment, Tao Ye felt as if Wang Jing was still by her side.

She approached the ancient tree again.

"One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine..."

When he was only one step away from the old peach tree, Tao Ye stopped and asked infatuatedly: "Second brother, aren't you coming?"

No reply.

"If you don't come, I'll leave."

Still no reply.

"Ten..." Tao Ye took another step forward and finally arrived under the old peach tree.

The breeze blew, and Tao Ye was alone, laughing foolishly.

Cai Ling had been hiding behind a tree far away and watching quietly, but she couldn't understand what Tao Ye was doing.

Tao Ye squatted down and placed his hands on the ground under the tree.

After a moment, she heard herself sigh.

No little ghost would come to deliver food anymore, and the passage back to the original era had been closed. She herself gave up her last chance.

Tao Ye caressed the land in a trance. She knew that she could never go back, never...

At this moment, Tao Ye's figure entered the sight of Meng Xue, Si Yao and others, dozens of steps away.

As soon as Si Yao saw Tao Ye, he felt uncomfortable all over.

Meng Xue was afraid that Si Yao might do something inappropriate, so she quickly grabbed Si Yao's hand and walked to the nearby river, which was a stream that flowed into Hualin Garden from outside the palace wall.

"What are you going to do?" Si Yao was impatient and panted heavily as he looked in the direction where Tao Ye was squatting.

Meng Xue held Si Yao's hand and said with a smile: "Don't talk about you. Even if she is your niece, she would not dare to touch this person easily."

Si Yao glanced at the river and saw the scars on his face. He angrily kicked a stone into the water.

"But... except for her and your niece, everyone in the palace is insignificant in the emperor's heart." Meng Xue gently lifted her cloak with her hand and smiled casually: "So, when you are in a bad mood, just find someone under you to vent your anger. That's what I do."

After saying that, Meng Xue turned her head and said, "Doctor Tian."

Tian Le had been listening attentively to the conversations of Meng Xue and Si Yao, wondering whether it was necessary to relay these words to Chen Ji. She did not expect Meng Xue to suddenly call her at this time, which made her feel uneasy.

However, Tian Le did not dare to hesitate, and hurried to Meng Xue's side, and asked nervously: "What do you want, Madam?"

Meng Xue looked at Tian Le, her lips slightly raised, as if she was smiling, "Doctor Tian is here to help me with my pregnancy. Do you know what I like? And what I dislike?"

Tian Le smiled awkwardly and had to answer honestly: "This... This is the first time that the minister and the madam have met, so I really don't know..."

"This is because Doctor Tian didn't do enough homework. Even Emperor Xiaozong and Emperor Chengzong know that I like freedom the most and hate being monitored the most." Meng Xue's tone became heavier and her face looked more and more gloomy and terrifying.

Tian Le's heart was pounding. Before he could figure out how to respond, Meng Xue pushed him hard, causing his feet to slip.

"Help!" Tian Le screamed in horror and fell backwards into the river.