Holding the script, I want to give up.

"Can you please stop hating me so much?"

"I just like you, is that wrong?"

"I knew you were the one the moment you led me out of the dark alley."

"The die is cast, can't you just accept me for once?"

Huangfu Hongxi said softly.

"Ha! What is Song Yao then?"

"Now that you have a child with her, you should treat her well. How can you be so irresponsible?"

"Wildflowers by the roadside don't smell as good as cultivated flowers. That's all the advice I can give you. You'd better think about what's best for you."

"Huangfu Hongxi, you'd better stay away from me, or I'll perform a suicide attempt for you."

"I'm going to die either way, so you'd better not push me."

"When I go crazy, even I'm scared of myself."

Shangguan Zitong quickly walked to the vase, smashed it, and picked up a piece, placing it around her neck.

"Don't get agitated, I'll leave, I'll leave, okay?"

"I won't come here again, okay?"

"Could you please put the broken pieces of porcelain down first?"

Huangfu Hongxi looked at her with concern.

"Then get out of here!"

Shangguan Zitong said impatiently.

"Song Yao and I have only ever had a working relationship. You are the only one in my heart."

“She gave me the power behind her, and I helped her ascend to the throne as empress.”

"Things are really not what you think."

Huangfu Hongxi explained anxiously.

"Ha! Enough said, I have my own judgment."

"From the moment you failed to grasp the truth—you jumped out and tried to stab me at the General's Mansion. At the Crown Prince's Mansion, you saved Song Yao from drowning first..."

"There are too many things to explain, you don't need to make any excuses."

"Go away, your explanation is weak and unconvincing."

Shangguan Zitong scratched her neck.

"I really had no choice, and I also had my own unspeakable difficulties."

Huangfu Hongxi covered his face and laughed loudly.

"Your smile is so lewd, it scares me."

"From the moment you made your choice, you already had a decision in your heart. Go now."

"Don't come to Cining Palace again. If I see you there again, I will hang myself in front of you."

"Cough...cough...I mean what I say, so please leave."

Shangguan Zitong coughed, clutching her chest.

"Alright, you can stay in the palace if you want."

"I'm leaving now."

After finishing his sentence, Huangfu Hongxi left without hesitation.

"He's really sick."

She placed the porcelain shards on the table.

Here, take this medicine and apply it yourself.

I need to recharge for a while before I can take human form.

"Okay. Try to fill up before nightfall, and you can transform into a fox to sleep with me."

A bottle of wound medicine appeared in Shangguan Zitong's hand. She opened the medicine and applied it to her neck in front of the mirror.

【Um. 】

"Someone come here!"

Shangguan Zitong called out to the maids outside the palace.

"Your Highness, what's wrong?"

The maidservant who was guarding outside the hall entered the hall, bowed, and asked.

"Please change my bedding, thank you."

She pointed to the location of the bed.

"Yes, I will change it right away."

When the maid removed all the bedding from the bed, she caught a glimpse of a conspicuous patch of blood, blushed, glanced at Shangguan Zitong, and left.

Seeing her behavior, Shangguan Zitong was completely baffled and stared at the maid's departing figure with a question mark on her face.

Inside Yikun Palace.

"Your Majesty, you must listen to this old servant this time and get rid of that person in Cining Palace, otherwise there will be endless troubles."

"The maids outside Cining Palace all heard and saw that His Majesty favored that one."

"Given how much His Majesty favors that woman, it's impossible for him to let her drink contraceptive soup. If she were to become pregnant with the imperial child, Your Majesty's position would be in grave danger."

The old woman knelt before Song Yao and offered her advice.

"Alright, I will make my own judgment on the truth of the matter."

"Get out of here, you're giving me a headache."

Song Yao rubbed her temples.

"Yes, Your Majesty, you must listen to what I say and take it to heart."

The old woman bowed and withdrew.

After the old woman left, Song Yao was so angry that she smashed everything she could in the hall. She finally vented her anger.

"Your Majesty, what's wrong with you?"

As soon as Huangfu Hongxi entered the hall, he saw that the hall was in a mess.

"Ha! Me, crazy? You're the one who's crazy."

"I'm here struggling to have my baby, and you're having an affair with another woman. Do you think I don't exist?"

"You're really desperate! Do you need me to hold a talent show for you? To help you relieve some stress?"

Song Yao stared at him and said coldly.

"Empress, you are the head of the inner palace, watch your words. What do you mean by 'illicit relations'?"

"It was Shangguan Zitong who seduced me, and I couldn't resist... so..."

"Alright, alright, Your Majesty, please don't be angry. I promise it won't happen again."

"You have always been the person I love most."

Huangfu Hongxi hugged her from behind.

"Very well, Your Majesty, I will believe what you say."

Song Yao didn't intend to argue with her; she had already seen through him. Disappointment and sorrow flashed in her eyes, and a desire to drag Huangfu Hongxi down with her rose within her.

Disappointment accumulates little by little, until it's enough to turn around and leave gracefully. Song Yao had her own plans; she no longer wanted to scheme for Huangfu Hongxi. It wasn't worth it to plot against someone like him.

......

On New Year's Eve, the palace was brightly lit, and outside, there was a festive atmosphere. Both inside and outside the palace were decorated with lanterns and colorful streamers, creating a lively scene. Only the Cining Palace remained quiet and deserted. Leqi brought a food box to visit Shangguan Zitong.

"I don't want to see you, and I don't want to eat your food."

Shangguan Zitong said coldly.

"I saw that you were all alone in Cining Palace, so I wanted to come and keep you company."

"This pastry doesn't contain any harmful drugs. Please try a piece. It's just a small token of my appreciation."

Leqi looked at her sincerely and said.

"I told you, I won't eat it, didn't you hear me?"

"Even if you didn't put it in, I still don't want to eat what you made."

"You can go. I don't need your company. I'm fine on my own."

Shangguan Zitong took a few steps back to distance herself from her.

"Okay, I'm leaving. I've left the food box here. You can throw it away if you don't want to eat it."

Seeing the annoyed look on her face, Leqi left.

No sooner had Leqi left than Song Yao arrived.

"I've come to talk to you."

Song Yao was helped into the hall by a maid and sat down in front of the soft couch.

"She's about to give birth, isn't she?"

Shangguan Zitong sat down and touched her belly.

"Yes, it'll be soon, probably around the Lantern Festival."

Looking at her belly, Song Yao's eyes unconsciously revealed tenderness.

Aren't you going to ask me about what's between him and me?

Shangguan Zitong looked at her curiously.

"Since I haven't made things difficult for you, I've already made peace with myself."

"We both know what kind of person he is, so why make things unpleasant over someone like that?"

"I came to spend the holiday with you, since you must be quite lonely by yourself."

"We are all people who have left our hometowns, let's stick together and keep warm."

Song Yao reached out her hand.

"Cough...cough...I won't live much longer."

"Let's talk. We haven't had a proper chat yet."

Even on New Year's Eve, Shangguan Zitong wore thick clothes, as her health had been deteriorating ever since she stopped taking her medication.

"You didn't take your medicine, and you collapsed?"

"Yeah, I don't want to live anymore."

"Why?"

"Hmm...maybe it's because life is too repressive."

"Do you want to leave the palace? I can help you."

"No need, I really don't have much time left."

"you..."

"Let's not talk about me, a dying man. Why would you be so foolish as to choose Huangfu Hongxi instead of Mu Rongyi?"

"I don't know why, but he saw through my scheme."

"...Fine, I had no choice but to choose Huangfu Hongxi. But how did you know he would become emperor?"

"Strategic planning."

"Forget it, this conversation is completely unproductive, it makes me look stupid."

Shangguan Zitong ended the chat. The two of them stood silently, gazing at the snow scene outside the palace.

"I really want to go out and have a snowball fight and build a snowman."

Shangguan Zitong sighed.

"There will be a day when you see the light again, I believe in you."

"Is there anything you want? I can bring it to you."

Song Yao looked at her sincerely and said.

"Bring me a good violin."

Shangguan Zitong said calmly.

"You can play the zither?"

Song Yao asked in surprise.

"I learned it to kill time when I was bored. It's not as good as you imagine; I only know the basics."

Shangguan Zitong did indeed play the zither in her original world, but only to have a skill. Her parents enrolled her in extracurricular classes from a young age until university; in her original world, everyone was a master of all trades, a true all-rounder.

However, having not played the piano for so long, he must be rusty.

"Okay, I understand. I'll send someone to deliver it. Just wait patiently."

"I have to go now."

After Song Yao finished speaking, she left. Shangguan Zitong did not try to stop her, presumably because Huangfu Hongxi was keeping an eye on things.

After Song Yao left, she closed the palace door and lay down on the free fox-shaped body pillow provided by the system to watch her favorite drama.

"The Lantern Festival is almost here. Ah Li, let's run away the day Song Yao gives birth. Okay?"

[Okay, I'll listen to you.]

"You won't mess things up, will you?"

Shangguan Zitong asked doubtfully.

No, just enjoy watching the show.

"All right."

The two, one human and one fox, watched the play on the ceiling in silence, speechless.

......