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

However, remembering that his mother had sent someone early that morning to tell him to bring Yue Li into the palace, Jin Chenyuan could only personally dress and wash the sleeping Yue Li.

After all, the messenger had said that his mother said if she didn't see Yue Li today, she would come to Prince Chen's residence in person.

That's when the people we brought back from the palace yesterday came in handy.

Although Jin Chenyuan wouldn't let them do anything too intimate, bringing a basin of warm water into the room was acceptable.

You should know that even You Yun and his companions didn't receive the kind of treatment of having water brought into their rooms.

After changing Yue Li's clothes and washing her face, Jin Chenyuan carried the still-sleeping Yue Li out of the room.

Also, have Feng Chuan, who was assigned to serve Yue Li yesterday, bring the jewelry that Yue Li will be wearing later.

Yesterday, Jin Chenyuan selected four people from the palace to serve Yue Li. Their names were Feng Chuan, Feng Luo, Feng Yan, and Feng Ting. These people entered the palace at the same time and were trained in advance. They learned the rules and how to serve others very well.

Moreover, Jin Chenyuan knew that Yue Li valued appearance highly, so he specially selected four handsome men to serve her.

There were seven people left. Jin Chenyuan had the steward choose a courtyard in the palace for them to stay in, and he would make clothes for Yue Li in the future.

The carriage soon arrived at the palace gate. Outside carriages were not allowed to enter the palace, so they had to get off and walk in.

At this moment, Qingyun, who was driving the carriage, and Fengchuan, who was sitting on the other side of the carriage shaft, had already gotten off the carriage.

Seeing that there was still no movement inside the carriage, Feng Chuan cautiously asked from outside, "Your Highness, would you like me to go in and style the Princess's hair?"

"No need, I can do it myself." At this moment, Jin Chenyuan was tidying up Yue Li's hair, whom he had finally managed to wake up, when he heard Feng Chuan's voice and immediately refused.

As Jin Chenyuan fed her the last mouthful of bird's nest in her bowl, Yue Li couldn't resist yawning again and said, "Do we really have to go to the palace today? You know exactly when I went to bed last night. I have absolutely no energy right now."

"I didn't know it was such a coincidence. My mother sent someone to say she wanted to see you so early in the morning." Jin Chenyuan said, feeling a little guilty. Last night, he had overheard the others talking about children, and he had been thinking about having Yue Li give him a daughter. So last night, he had been a bit too forceful, and the two of them had been making love until almost dawn.

Who knew that early in the morning, the Empress Dowager sent someone to say she wanted to see Yue Li. Yue Li was always a late sleeper when she had nothing to do, and she had only slept this morning, which led to the current situation.

After arranging Yue Li's hair, I placed two red agate hairpins in her bun. Looking at it, I felt that bringing only two hairpins to the palace was a bit plain, so I took a jade hairpin inlaid with rubies from the jewelry box and put it behind her bun. Only then was I satisfied.

Looking back at Yue Li, who was becoming drowsy again, Jin Chenyuan kissed the corner of her lips and coaxed her softly, "Li Bao, don't sleep. We should go in now, or Mother will have to send someone out to urge us if we wait too long."

Just as Yue Li was about to drift off to sleep, she heard a buzzing sound in her ear. After understanding what was being said, Yue Li waved her hand impatiently and said, "I know, I know. If you do this again next time, I won't cooperate with you."

As she spoke, she stood up, poured out a healing pill from the jade bottle Jin Chenyuan had brought, swallowed it, and then used her spiritual power to dissolve the medicinal effects. Instantly, Jin Chenyuan saw that the few red marks on Yue Li's neck, which he hadn't been able to cover with powder, had disappeared, and Yue Li's spirits had improved considerably.

Seeing this, Jin Chenyuan narrowed his eyes, finally finding the reason why the marks on Yue Li's body had disappeared.

If he hadn't been with her since he woke up this morning, he probably wouldn't have been able to see this with his own eyes for a long time.

However, Yue Li wasn't worried about Jin Chenyuan seeing it. After all, the two of them lived together, and she couldn't possibly not use anything. Besides, although Jin Chenyuan hadn't looked through her things, he probably knew what they were.

So the bundle she took from the inn to Prince Chen's mansion contained quite a few of these low-grade pills, and even if she used them all up, she could secretly put some more in.

However, seeing that Jin Chenyuan didn't ask any questions after seeing the effects of the repair pill, Yue Li didn't explain further.

When it's his turn to know, Yue Li will naturally explain it to him, but that all depends on how their relationship develops in the future.

If they have a good relationship, she will naturally let Jin Chenyuan know more about her.

If the relationship isn't good, then he doesn't need to know anything.

When Yue Li and Jin Chenyuan arrived at Shou Kang Palace, where the Empress Dowager resided, the head eunuch who served the Empress Dowager was already waiting at the door. Upon seeing their arrival, the head eunuch Zhu Xi immediately came forward and bowed to Jin Chenyuan and Yue Li, saying, "This servant greets Prince Chen and Princess Chen. The Empress Dowager has been waiting for you two for quite some time. She said that once Prince Chen and Princess Chen arrived, she would have this servant lead them directly into the room."

After walking around and visiting the luxurious buildings in the palace and the scenery along the way, Yue Li's spirits have returned.

However, on her first visit to the palace, she listened to Jin Chenyuan in everything.

So she didn't say anything, but simply smiled and nodded when Zhu Xi greeted her.

"Since Mother is already waiting, let's go in." As he spoke, fearing that Yue Li might be nervous, he turned his head and saw that Yue Li nodded before leading her into Shou Kang Palace.

Yue Li was indeed a little nervous, but not because she was afraid of seeing the Empress Dowager. She was excited; the Empress Dowager was no ordinary person! In the novels she read, who had ever become Empress Dowager? Weren't they all champions of palace intrigue?

In the novel, the Empress Dowager is practically the epitome of cunning and scheming!

With excitement in their hearts, Yue Li and Jin Chenyuan stepped into the main hall of Shou Kang Palace.

The Shou Kang Palace was lavishly decorated, every corner showcasing the majesty and grandeur of the imperial family, while the details revealed the taste of the people who lived there. Looking up, one could see an elderly woman sitting directly in front of the main hall, her white hair styled in an elaborate bun, adorned with a pomegranate-red jade hairpin carved with peonies and an intricately crafted phoenix hairpin, the phoenix holding a smooth, round pearl the size of a longan in its mouth. She wore a dark blue silk dress trimmed with gold thread, embroidered with longevity patterns in intricate stitches. Her face was kind, and her eyes were smiling.

Yue Li thought: This must be Jin Chenyuan's mother, the Empress Dowager of this dynasty.

Sure enough, the old lady sitting above them saw them enter the main hall, and the smile lines at the corners of her eyes deepened. However, Yue Li noticed that her gaze did not linger on Jin Chenyuan, but instead fell on her.

Jin Chenyuan led Yue Li forward, and only when they reached a position not far from the Empress Dowager did he release Yue Li's hand and greet her, saying, "Your subject greets Your Majesty."

Yue Li was about to bow and pay her respects when the Empress Dowager, who was walking down from the head of the table, grabbed her hand.

"This must be Yue Li. You don't need to be so polite like him. Come, Yue Li, sit next to me."