Marrying the Crown Prince

There was no other way; one was the Crown Prince, and the other was the Crown Princess. They both had their own affairs to handle.

Of course, compared to the other, Zhou Zhou's situation was much easier, because she only needed to manage the affairs of the Eastern Palace and visit Empress Chu; while Li Ziyan, since his marriage, Emperor Chenze had assigned him more and more political affairs, and there was a tendency for him to be completely handed over to him.

So they both got up very early.

Fortunately, Zhou Zhou was already used to waking up early when she was at home, so she didn't feel any discomfort at first.

After washing up and having a simple breakfast, Li Ziyan was about to leave because he had to go to court early.

Zhou Zhou took the belt from Chang Yi and helped Li Ziyan put it on quickly and efficiently.

Li Ziyan lowered his eyes to look at Zhou Zhou beside him, his gaze gentle and refined, like a gentleman, exuding a scholarly air. "I'm afraid my Crown Princess will have to work hard today."

Li Ziyan rarely addressed Zhou Zhou in this way, and it was the first time Zhou Zhou had heard the words "Crown Princess" from him, so she found it quite novel.

Zhou Zhou raised her eyebrows and straightened his collar, saying, "Your Highness has been busy with official duties these past few days. Please don't work too hard. If you're tired, put things aside for a while. You still need to rest when you need to."

“Okay,” Li Ziyan replied, “Wait for me to come back.”

“Okay.” Zhou Zhou nodded and watched him leave.

After Li Ziyan left, Zhouzhou took the account book from Donghe and recorded the duty roster of the Eastern Palace maids and eunuchs yesterday.

Indeed, recently, in addition to working for Empress Chu, Zhou Zhou also created a duty roster for the palace maids and eunuchs of the Eastern Palace. He rearranged the original roster, no longer pairing newcomers with newcomers and old people with old people, but instead creating a mixed group.

At the same time, many new regulations were introduced.

For example, there were three palace maids or eunuchs guarding the gate at a time, so someone had to be there to guard the gate at all times; while palace maids and eunuchs who came and went in large numbers had to go in pairs, sign their names and press their fingerprints on the travel log before they could go out.

Similarly, after leaving the East Palace and returning, one must sign their name again at the gate to record the time they left the East Palace.

When this regulation was first implemented, there were some complaints from the palace servants, but as Zhou Zhou poured money into it, the opposition gradually decreased.

Zhou Zhou flipped through the records but didn't see anything wrong. He closed the file and instructed Ju Fang, "Thank you for your hard work. Make a copy and register it."

In this way, if this travel log is ever tampered with, a comparison will reveal the clues.

"Yes." Jufang withdrew.

Donghe followed along. For the past few days, Jufang had been copying, while Donghe watched from the side, as if to ensure that Jufang didn't miss anything or make a mistake.

Seeing that it was still early, Zhou Zhou rubbed his neck and decided to go for a walk elsewhere before going to Fengyi Palace to pay his respects when it was almost time.

If you were to ask Zhou Zhou where she was most interested, it would be the Empress Dowager's Shou Kang Palace, but unfortunately, the gates of the Shou Kang Palace were not open to her.

Since we can't go inside Shou Kang Palace, we can at least take a walk around the area next to it, right?

Although it's said to be next to it, it's actually separated by several alleys.

There is a lotus pond here. It is early summer now, and the lotus flowers are about to bloom. The lotus leaves are pointed. A dragonfly flies over the lotus pond and then lands on the tip of a lotus leaf.

This scene is just like the one described in the poem: "A small lotus bud has just emerged, and a dragonfly has already landed on it."

Zhou Zhou stood by the lotus pond, inhaling the faint fragrance of the lotus flowers, and his heart became increasingly calm.

Dong He, being perceptive, immediately noticed the change in Zhou Zhou's aura and quietly retreated, not daring to make a sound to disturb him.

Good heavens, the Crown Princess looks just like His Highness the Crown Prince. She's smiling, but it instills a sense of dread and makes one afraid to say a word.

Zhou Zhou looked at the sky in the distance. The sky was a clear, deep blue, without a single cloud in sight. It was very clean and beautiful.

"Let's go," she said, walking towards the Phoenix Palace.

Zhou Zhou arrived at the perfect time; the main hall of Fengyi Palace was already occupied by concubines.

Of course, Zhou Zhou didn't need to wait here. Ruosong led her to the inner palace of Fengyi Palace, where she met Empress Chu, who was having a meal.

"Your subject greets Your Majesty." Zhou Zhou bowed deeply.

Empress Chu nodded, gesturing for her to rise. She slowly chewed and swallowed what was in her mouth before asking, "Have you had breakfast yet?"

"To be honest, Your Majesty, I did eat some to fill my stomach," Zhou Zhou asked with a smile. "Now that I see Your Majesty eating, I realize I'm hungry. Would Your Majesty do me the honor of giving me some?"

She spoke less formally than she had a few days ago, but she was far from being unrestrained; in fact, it was more like an intimate conversation.

After hearing her words, Empress Chu didn't know whether to call her shameless or honest.

"Ruosong, bring another set of bowls and chopsticks." Empress Chu had already planned to invite Zhou Zhou to dine with her, so despite her inner complaints, she still asked her to sit down and eat together.

"Thank you, mother."

No words are spoken when eating, and no words are spoken when sleeping.

The two of them ate breakfast in silence, with only the occasional soft clinking of bowls and chopsticks.

After breakfast, all the concubines in the harem had arrived. Of course, only those of the fifth rank or above were allowed to come and pay their respects. Those of lower rank were not qualified to enter the palace to pay their respects. They would usually just kowtow at the entrance of the Phoenix Palace, which was considered their way of paying their respects.

"Let's go see what they'll be arguing about today," Empress Chu said with a hint of disdain.

Zhou Zhou did not answer, but quietly followed behind Empress Chu to the main hall.

When the Empress arrived, the concubines sitting in the main hall all stood up and said, "Your Majesty, we pay our respects. May Your Majesty enjoy boundless blessings and peace."

"Rise," Empress Chu said to the concubines after taking her seat in the main seat.

As the daughter-in-law, Zhou Zhou looked at the four concubines in the hall, bowed and greeted them.

"Alright, stop busying yourself and sit down quickly," Empress Chu said to Zhou Zhou, her eyes slightly narrowed.

The Empress Chu's appearance reminded Zhou Zhou of the dog Zhou Heng kept. It was incredibly jealous; once Zhou Heng got the dog, it wouldn't allow her to touch any other pets, or it would whine and whimper.

Unfortunately, the puppy didn't grow up. It got sick and couldn't be cured, so it was buried under the persimmon tree in Zhou Heng's yard.

Zhou Heng, from then on, sealed her heart and locked away her love, never keeping any pets again.