Ping Zhao Lu

After a while, Xu Zhouye held a tray with a bowl of steaming medicine on it steadily in his hands, and walked towards the emperor with slow steps.

Seeing this, Chu Yunxiao quickly stood up and took a step forward, reaching out his hand to take the medicine bowl from Xu Zhouye's hand, but unexpectedly Xu Zhouye slightly turned his body and easily dodged Chu Yunxiao's outstretched hand.

Xu Zhouye raised the corner of his mouth, put the tray aside, then picked up the medicine bowl, walked leisurely to Chu Yunxiao and sat down.

He carefully picked up the spoon, scooped up a small spoonful of boiling hot medicine, and gently blew away the heat on the surface. Then he slowly handed the spoonful of medicine to Chu Yunxiao's mouth, his eyes full of expectation, and said softly: "Good medicine tastes bitter, drink it."

Chu Yunxiao couldn't help but find Xu Zhouye's expression amusing, and jokingly said, "Do you think I'm a child?" Even so, he still lowered his head obediently and drank the spoonful of medicine Xu Zhouye handed him. He then frowned and said, "If I drink it slowly, spoonful by spoonful like this, it will only make it more bitter."

After saying that, Chu Yunxiao raised his head and his gaze fell directly on the bowl of medicine in Xu Zhouye's hand, with a hint of inquiry in his eyes.

Xu Zhouye naturally understood what Chu Yunxiao meant. He first followed Chu Yunxiao's gaze and glanced down at the medicine in his hand. Then, the corners of his mouth curled up slightly. After a brief pause, he handed the entire bowl of medicine to Chu Yunxiao without hesitation and said kindly, "Your Majesty, be careful. This medicine is still very hot."

Chu Yunxiao reached out to take the medicine bowl, and first stirred it gently a few times with a spoon, as if this would make the medicine less hot.

Then, as if he had long been accustomed to the taste, he tilted his head back and drank the entire bowl of medicine in one breath without any hesitation.

In the blink of an eye, the bowl of medicine that was originally full was gone. Chu Yunxiao casually placed the empty bowl on the table beside him, making a crisp sound.

Xu Zhouye couldn't help but admire him, "Would you like some candied fruit?"

Chu Yunxiao frowned, "I'm not a child."

"This has nothing to do with whether or not you're a child." Xu Zhouye said seriously, "Just like me, I can't drink this bitter thing without candied fruit."

Chu Yunxiao smiled when he heard this, "The Queen is afraid of suffering."

"I'm also afraid of jealousy." Xu Zhouye added.

Chu Yunxiao was stunned. Was there something else behind these words?

Before he could figure out how to respond, Xu Zhouye raised his eyebrows and said, "Since Your Majesty has already drunk the medicine, I will be leaving. I won't disturb you from flipping the cards next."

Hearing these words, Chu Yunxiao instantly understood the deeper meaning and hurriedly reached out, pulling Xu Zhouye into his arms. At the same time, he raised his other hand and gently tilted his chin, his eyes full of amusement as he asked teasingly, "Oh? So this is what the Queen meant by jealousy."

Xu Zhouye pushed his hand away. "I dare not. As the Queen of a country, I must be tolerant and generous. I will do my best to urge Your Majesty to show his grace to the concubines in the harem to ensure the prosperity of the royal family."

Chu Yunxiao couldn't help but chuckle when he heard his insincere words, then he said softly, "If I agree to your words, I'm afraid it will be difficult for me to even see the Queen in the future."

He didn't want to upset his queen again.

Then he lived the same neglected life as before.

Xu Zhouye laughed: "How difficult is that? You are the Son of Heaven. Whatever the Emperor asks, he will grant it."

Chu Yunxiao slowly lowered his head upon hearing this, and gently touched his forehead with Xu Zhouye's. They were so close that they could feel each other's warm breath.

He gazed at Xu Zhouye affectionately and said softly, "I am not only the Son of Heaven, but also your husband. As your husband, I should obey your wife's wishes."

Xu Zhouye's eyes trembled slightly when he heard this. He had obviously not expected Chu Yunxiao to say such a thing. In an instant, a warm feeling surged up his cheeks like a tide, quickly spreading behind his ears.

In Chu Yunxiao's eyes, it was a light pink, spreading across Xu Zhouye's cheeks, which was beautiful beyond words.

"What?" Chu Yunxiao was secretly delighted. Taking this opportunity, he quietly leaned close to Xu Zhouye's ears, which had turned red with shyness, and whispered softly in an almost gentle and lingering tone, "But was I wrong?"

Xu Zhouye felt that his heart was beating wildly like a wild horse, almost jumping out of his throat.

He tried hard to calm his inner panic, but the out-of-beat throbbing made it difficult for him to control himself.

Then, his body involuntarily leaned back slightly, and he pretended to be angry and said, "Then is this husband just for me, or does he have other concubines as well?"

Chu Yunxiao just heard Xu Zhouye mention the word "husband" and suddenly felt like a string in his mind broke with a "snap".

No longer caring about maintaining his dignity as an emperor, he suddenly leaned down, desperately chasing after the lips that made his heart beat fast, and placed a kiss on them.

"The Queen wants me to disband the harem, just say so." Chu Yunxiao raised his hand and pinched Xu Zhouye's lips as he spoke. "This is not impossible, but it will take some time to prepare and arrange, so I have to inconvenience the Queen for a while."

Xu Zhouye understood what he meant, but he couldn't help but tease the emperor, "You can't complain about your grievances. I'm not here to suffer any injustice."

Chu Yunxiao smiled helplessly, "How could I let you really be wronged? Never mind, I can't argue with you. The Queen has always been eloquent."

"No way?" Xu Zhouye said with a joking smile, "Your Majesty hasn't tried it, so how can you know that I'm so good at talking?"

As soon as these words were spoken, Chu Yunxiao's heart was moved, his blood was boiling, and his breathing became heavier.

His Adam's apple rolled, and he lowered his eyes to stare at the person in his arms, his eyes surging with dark colors. However, despite the fire of desire burning in his body, he still suppressed the impulse and said softly: "You are amazing, but I can't bear to let you go."

*

Cining Palace

"What's wrong?" Queen Mother Jiang leaned lazily on the couch, her eyes slightly narrowed, her expression looking a little distracted.

Beside her, a clever palace maid was carefully massaging her shoulders with gentle and skillful movements.

"Her Majesty, he's dead." The kneeling eunuch below reported respectfully in a slightly low voice, "However, our men encountered some obstacles when they were moving. Another group of people risked their lives to protect Yang Cong..."

"Hmph! This is also to be expected." Queen Mother Jiang's expression was calm, but a hint of disdain flashed in her eyes. "Although I released him from the palace, I didn't ask for his life. How could the emperor not think of what I thought of?"

"Your Majesty is truly wise and shrewd, foresighted!" the eunuch said flatteringly, a fawning smile plastered across his face. "Thankfully, Your Majesty arranged an ambush. Even though the enemy outnumbered them, they would have been unable to challenge the King of Hell over his power of life and death. Now that this man has perished outside the palace, no one can pin this crime on you, Your Majesty."

Hearing these compliments, Queen Mother Jiang's brows gradually relaxed, and the corners of her mouth curled up slightly, revealing a subtle sense of pride. "Well, you've done a great job. By the way, autumn will be here soon, right? Have you sent anyone to send some nourishing food to the King of Yue? He's always so weak in the autumn and winter, and he's always been plagued by illness. It's really worrying."

The eunuch understood and quickly replied, "Don't worry, Your Majesty. Every year at this time, we servants always keep it in mind and send people to deliver all kinds of precious supplements to the King of Yue early."

Queen Mother Jiang nodded slightly, expressing satisfaction. Then she paused for a moment, as if suddenly remembering something important. Her face darkened and her voice deepened. "Go quickly and return the Phoenix Seal the Queen sent yesterday intact. I simply can't be bothered to meddle with these trivial matters."

Hearing this, the eunuch couldn't help but look puzzled and asked cautiously, "Empress Dowager, wouldn't it be more appropriate for you to keep this Phoenix Seal?"

Upon hearing this, Queen Mother Jiang sneered contemptuously, "Hmph! What's Xu Jin up to? Can't I see it? Didn't he offend Fu Chuoren a while ago? It's not that I don't want to pay attention to this matter, but compared to these trivial matters, the big thing I'm carefully planning is more crucial! This time, I'm returning the Phoenix Seal to him to show him that I'm no pushover."

After hearing the Queen Mother's explanation, the eunuch suddenly understood and quickly replied, "I understand."

At this moment, Queen Mother Jiang seemed to have thought of something else and continued to instruct, "Oh, and Wei Fu, you must comfort her. Don't let her talk nonsense, otherwise if something goes wrong, I'm afraid I can't guarantee that she will continue to talk. Sigh... It's such a pity. I gave her such a good opportunity to overthrow the Queen before, but who would have thought she would be so useless, a piece of mud that can't be helped!"

Having said that, Queen Mother Jiang couldn't help but shook her head, her face full of regret and disappointment.