The Emperor, with more men than women, made me his mistress.

After celebrating Jia Tian and Jia Ye's first birthday at the Sheng family's ancestral home in Nanjun Prefecture, and spending a few more days with them, Yue Li and her group finally left and returned to Nanguo.

Upon returning to the Southern Kingdom, they moved directly into the Southern Kingdom's royal palace.

Jin Chenyuan and the others knew that Yue Li was about to give birth, so they stayed by her side for almost a month until she gave birth safely.

On November 13th, Yue Li gave birth to twins, a boy and a girl, in the Southern Kingdom's palace. The older sister was named Leng Yuanning: Yuan means source, origin, or origin. Ning means tranquility or peace. The name implies both the vibrant life force of a flowing spring and the calm, composed nature of tranquility, achieving a balance between movement and stillness.

The younger brother was named Leng Yuanhong: Hong means brilliant and grand, symbolizing a broad mind and lofty aspirations. It has profound meaning and is full of hope.

The moment the siblings were born, the emperor of the Southern Kingdom bestowed upon Leng Yuanhong the title of Crown Prince, and immediately declared that he would personally raise the Crown Prince.

As for her twin sister, Leng Yuanning, the emperor directly bestowed upon her the title of Princess Yu Ning. "Yu" means to rule or govern.

This shows how much the Emperor valued his twin grandchildren, even giving them titles that were more prestigious than those of his two biological daughters, Princess Chang Le and Princess Ping An.

Leng Xuanling didn't care who raised the child. It was his responsibility to have a child to inherit the throne of the Southern Kingdom. Now that his responsibility was fulfilled, all he wanted to do was stay by Yue Li's side.

As for his newborn, soft, and rosy-cheeked daughter whom he was currently holding in his arms, Leng Xuanling was filled with affection for her. However, his father and mother were still young, and he felt quite at ease entrusting the child to them for upbringing. Didn't he see how well they had raised the three siblings?

He also believed that his mother, who had nothing to do all day, would definitely be willing to raise her beloved granddaughter by her side.

Soon it was time for the baby's third-day celebration. The Emperor held a grand celebration for the twins. Unlike the Qian Yuan Kingdom, the celebration in the Southern Kingdom was not limited to people from the same clan. Anyone who was on good terms with the twins could be invited to attend.

Although it was bitterly cold outside and the entire palace was covered in snow, the palace where the baby's third-day celebration was being held was warmer than springtime.

After the baby's third-day celebration, Jin Chenyuan and Shao Qi took Jin Rui, Jin Yu, and Xu Yan to the palace to see Yue Li and the twins.

Jinrui and Jinyu are already five and a half years old. When they are out, they already have the air of a royal prince and princess, but in front of familiar people, they are still children.

Even though Xuyan is three and a half years old, she always has a sweet smile on her face, and she looks extremely cute with her soft, round face.

The three of them curiously peered at the two swaddled babies placed next to Yue Li. Looking at the two sleeping babies inside, Jin Yu couldn't help but whisper, "Why are the little brother and sister so small?"

Jinrui nodded seriously, "It really is so small!"

Seeing the three of them looking curious yet hesitant to touch it, Yue Li patted their heads and said with a smile, "Yes, you three were just this small when you were born. It took you several years to grow up to this size."

Thinking back to when Jinrui and Jinyu were first born, Yue Li thought they were ugly, and a wave of emotion washed over her.

Upon hearing their mother's words, Jinrui and Jinyu exchanged bewildered glances, scrutinizing each other. They were certain that they hadn't been this ugly as babies. Looking at the two wrinkled, red little figures wrapped in swaddling clothes, and then at their fair skin, they became even more certain.

When she turned to look at her younger brother and sister, who were still unaware of what was happening in their swaddling clothes, her eyes were full of pity. It seemed that her younger brother and sister had not inherited any of their uncle's or mother's looks, otherwise they wouldn't be so ugly.

However, the two of them silently decided that since they were their younger brother and sister, even if they grew up to be ugly, they, as the older brother and sister, would not dislike them. At worst, they would ask Yan Yan's father to make more rouge, like the kind used for their mother, to dress them up nicely.

The two then turned their attention to Xuyan, who was standing to the side, also peeking out at the swaddling clothes.

Looking at the knowing expressions on his son and daughter's faces, Jin Chenyuan knew without a doubt what they were thinking. He recalled that when the two were first born, Yue Li's first words to him were "ugly." His deep eyes filled with amusement, and the corners of his mouth lifted slightly.

Of Yue Li's children, only Jin Rui, Jin Yu, and Xu Yan came. Since Jin Chenyuan and Shao Qi decided to spend the New Year with Yue Li in the Southern Kingdom this year, they simply brought the children along.

After the New Year, Jin Chenyuan and Shao Qi took the children back home. They needed to keep an eye on the craftsmen and continue building the ship.

Jin Moyu and Gong Hanmo did not stay for long. Since Marquis Ruyang was in charge of the naval forces of Linjiang City and had more experience with ships at sea, Jin Chenyuan assigned them the task of building two sturdy ships in the next few years.

As the weather gradually warmed up and she no longer needed to take care of the children, Yue Li was planning to take Leng Xuanling and Sheng Yifan to the border closest to the Southern Kingdom to see the sea there when the gyrfalcon raised by the Sheng family brought news that Fengyin Kingdom had suffered a sudden drought, resulting in a large-scale reduction in grain production. The Empress of Fengyin Kingdom hoped to make a deal with the Sheng family, requiring them to transport a large amount of grain to Fengyin Kingdom.

When Sheng Yifan saw the note brought by Hai Dongqing, Yue Li, who was sitting next to him, also saw it. Seeing Sheng Yifan's frown, she asked, "What's wrong? Is this difficult to handle?"

"No."

Sheng Yifan tossed the note in his hand onto the low table beside him, his brows relaxed, and he looked at Yue Li with a smile, saying, "I just felt that if I were to deal with this matter, I wouldn't be able to stay with A-Li."

Last year, because Jia Tian and Jia Ye were just born, he stayed by their side to take care of them. Now that they are one year old, his father can take care of them. So Sheng Yifan wanted to stay with Yue Li for a while, but unexpectedly, this happened.

This disrupted his plans, which made him somewhat unhappy.

"It's alright, go ahead. With your storage bag and current flying speed, you should be able to resolve this in less than a day. Once it's resolved, you can come find us again." Yue Li wrapped her arms around Sheng Yifan's neck and kissed the corner of his lips.

Looking at the increasingly beautiful and radiant face so close to his lips, and feeling the lingering warmth on his lips, Sheng Yifan tightly embraced Yue Li's slender waist and directly lowered his head to kiss those red lips.

Yue Li responded to him warmly.

When Leng Xuanling finished arranging everything and entered the room, he saw the two of them kissing passionately. He paused as he entered the room, looking at Yue Li's torn collar, which revealed a large expanse of snow-white skin and delicate collarbone. A dark glint flashed in Leng Xuanling's affectionate peach blossom eyes, but he still turned around and left.