Remarrying Chun Yuan

Yuan Cuo and the old man did not say anything more and returned to the Duke of Baoguo's mansion.

The Duke of Baoguo's residence is preparing a separate side courtyard for visiting guests to stay in, facilitating discussions on cooperation. Meanwhile, the envoy from Yan is scheduled to meet with Liu Yuechu tomorrow to discuss trade in furs and various exquisite goods from Daqi.

Logically, this matter should be handled by the Court of State Ceremonies and the Imperial Household Department, but the Minister of the Court of State Ceremonies is Yuan Cuo, and among the officials and merchants of the Imperial Household Department, the Liu family is the most powerful.

Fortunately, the Yan envoys didn't bother with the formalities and came directly to the Duke of Baoguo's residence to discuss the matter.

Besides, whatever the Yan state does is ultimately up to Yuan Cuo's word...

Meanwhile, Emperor Qi Xiao was also unable to sleep peacefully, remaining in his study, lost in thought.

"Your Majesty, it's time. You promised Consort Liang you'd go and take a look." Cheng Hai was speechless.

Consort Liang was already ill, and when Emperor Qi Xiao learned of this, he declared that he would visit her that day to offer his condolences. But it was already past midnight, and Consort Liang dared not sleep until the Emperor arrived.

They were clearly sick, yet they had to endure it and wait for the emperor's arrival.

Whether you're going or not, at least give me an answer...

"Do you think he really had no dealings with the State of Chu?" Emperor Qi Xiao didn't even think about Consort Liang; all he could think about was Yuan Cuo.

The Yan state lost two ships, and its borders were invaded. After Yuan Cuo left, he privately met with Feng Yaohou, who deduced from the terrain that someone must have deliberately sold the information to the Chu state.

Otherwise, only the people of Qi would know the route that Chu secretly took to infiltrate Qi.

Moreover, that road was discovered two years ago when Marquis Fengyao personally led a survey team. The fact that the State of Chu was able to bypass three roads and sneak into the winding mountains clearly indicates that the information had been leaked.

Cheng Hai silently prayed, "May Consort Liang have good fortune," but he had no choice but to answer Emperor Qi Xiao's question, "This old servant doesn't know either. This old servant only feels that the Duke of Baoguo harbors deeper resentment towards the State of Chu."

“The deeper the resentment, the deeper the love. I’m afraid that if they offer enough conditions, even benefits that I can’t provide, he will immediately lean towards them.” Emperor Qi Xiao sighed. “After all, she is his birth mother.”

“After Lady Keru gave birth to him, she left him. As the saying goes, the kindness of raising is greater than the kindness of giving birth. Since the Duke of Baoguo learned that he was not the biological son of the Minister of Works and his wife, he has been going to pay respects to his adoptive parents every year.” Cheng Hai chimed in from the side.

"So he is sentimental, and how could he not care about his birth mother?" Emperor Qi Xiao still didn't believe it.

Cheng Hai: "..." So what exactly do you want? So nothing I say works?

Emperor Qi Xiao did not wait for Yuan Cuo's answer. After pondering alone for a while, he got up and ordered the carriage to be prepared.

Cheng Hai was relieved that he hadn't taken it upon himself to send someone to inform Consort Liang that she should rest first and there was no need to wait any longer.

But just as he finished thinking about it, Emperor Qi Xiao suddenly ordered the carriage to be moved to Fukang Palace.

Cheng Hai: "???"

"Your Majesty, Consort Liang is still waiting for you."

"Go and deliver an old ginseng to her to help her recover. There's no need to wait for me. Go to bed early. I'll visit her after she's better." Emperor Qi Xiao had something on his mind and naturally wouldn't change his mind because of a woman.

Cheng Hai had no choice but to obey.

After sending Emperor Qi Xiao to Fukang Palace, he personally went to see Consort Liang.

The Empress had not expected Emperor Qi Xiao to come so suddenly tonight. She had already retired for the night, but she got up again, dressed, and went to greet the Emperor.

"Your Majesty went to visit Consort Liang? It should have been me who went, but she specifically sent someone to stop me, afraid that she would catch up with her illness. She only said that she would come to let me know she was alright after she recovered." The Empress thought that Emperor Qi Xiao was upset about Consort Liang, so she explained.

Emperor Qi Xiao simply responded and then changed the subject, "The weather is warmer now, why don't you summon Liu Yuechu and the children to come to the palace for a visit?"

"Although Physician Sun said that the two children are good-looking and there is nothing seriously wrong with them, there are no female elders in their family to give them instructions, so Your Majesty should pay more attention to them."

The Empress was stunned, not expecting His Majesty to mention Liu Yuechu.

But upon closer reflection, I'm worried about letting her come to the palace for no reason.

"Your Majesty is right. It was my oversight. I thought that with Princess Chen here, she would give me careful instructions. I was afraid that if I said too much, Princess Chen and Liu Yuechu would take offense." The Empress added this sentence deliberately, wanting to test what Emperor Qi Xiao really meant.

Does he truly love his grandchildren?

Or is he still worried about Yuan Cuo?

It's no wonder the Empress was so suspicious, because Emperor Qi Xiao didn't even trust his own son.

Otherwise, the Crown Prince wouldn't have ended up like this, and the Third Prince would have been banished from the capital and forced to mourn for a prince in a cowardly manner.

Emperor Qi Xiao scoffed, "She only gave birth to one stubborn son, Chen Zhongyao. How could she possibly know how to take care of a child? It's just that she's born lucky; she's managed to live a life of luxury despite her lack of understanding."

One is Governor-General Chen, and the other is the most argumentative person in the Inspectorate.

With these two protecting her, Princess Chen was virtually untouchable in the capital.

The Empress couldn't help but smile. "Your Majesty is right. I will send an invitation to the Duke of Baoguo's residence tomorrow."

"And that daughter of the Huang family, now that she's the eldest daughter-in-law of the Liu family, you should help her out more, since Liu Zhong is also by my side."

He couldn't be completely at ease just because he had one weakness against Liu Zhong.

The empress agreed verbally, but her heart was cold.

Almost half a year has passed, and Emperor Qi Xiao has not mentioned the Crown Prince at all.

There was no comforting, no asking, not even a few words of scolding, as if this son didn't exist at all.

But in order to maintain the dignity of the Eastern Palace, the Empress could only force a smile.

After Emperor Qi Xiao gave no further instructions, she helped him to rest.

The next day, after seeing Emperor Qi Xiao off to court, the Empress closed her eyes to rest, feeling a slight ache in her eyes from the night's company.

"Your Highness, are we going to send a message to the Duke of Baoguo's residence?" Granny Chang asked from the side.

She had heard Emperor Qi Xiao's instructions last night, and she was reminding the Empress now in case she was confused and lost her way.

"Granny, why do you think I'm so tired?" The Empress was momentarily at a loss; she had been thinking about this question since last night.

Granny Chang froze for a moment, unable to answer.

Why do people live? This is a question that perhaps no one can understand.

"If you feel tired, you can rest for a few days, but you might as well send the invitation to the Duke of Baoguo's residence first, so that His Majesty will not send someone to inquire."

The Empress gave a bitter smile and could only nod.

Not knowing why I'm alive, I can only eke out an existence.

To outsiders, she is already the mother of the nation, the empress of the Great Qi, but who can truly know the unbearable suffering she endures?

After receiving the order, Granny Chang immediately sent people to the Duke of Baoguo's mansion and the Liu mansion.

Liu Yuechu had just woken up and found Yuan Cuo still lounging around at home in his loose clothes. "Is there no need to go to the palace today?"