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

With Jin Chenyuan and Yue Li helping her into the inner room, the Empress Dowager sat on the bed and, still worried, instructed, "It's still early, so don't rush to leave the palace. Chenyuan, take Yue Li for a stroll in the Imperial Garden. At this time of year, the flowers in the Imperial Garden are in full bloom."

"Mother, please rest assured. I will take A-Li for a walk around the palace later so that she can get used to the environment." Jin Chenyuan said as he helped the Empress Dowager lie down on the bed.

After the Empress Dowager fell asleep, Jin Chenyuan instructed Zhu Xi to take good care of her before the two left Shou Kang Palace.

After leaving Shou Kang Palace, Jin Chenyuan led Yue Li on a leisurely stroll through the palace, introducing her to the sights along the way. They stopped at a pavilion in the Imperial Garden to rest.

The pavilions in the Imperial Garden were built on high ground, offering a breathtaking view of the garden's exotic flowers and plants. A gentle breeze occasionally blew by, carrying the sweet fragrance of the blossoms. Yue Li felt as if her clothes were now imbued with the scent of flowers.

Natural floral scents are not like spices; even with complex aromas, they are not overpowering.

With her eyes slightly narrowed, Yue Li took a deep breath of the floral fragrance in the air, feeling refreshed and relaxed as she faced the gentle breeze.

Turning her head, Yue Li saw Jin Chenyuan standing at the edge of the pavilion looking at her. She smiled brighter than the sun and said, "The imperial garden in this palace is really big. And look at the flowers in this imperial garden, there must be hundreds of kinds, right?"

"Yes, there are several hundred varieties. Whenever new varieties come from somewhere, they are brought as tribute. Over time, the number of flowers in the Imperial Garden has increased. However, there are also quite a few flowers in the Prince Chen's Mansion Garden. I'll take you to see them sometime."

"The garden in the manor is quite far from your residence. It's not worth traveling that far just to see flowers. Besides, the flowers in the small garden of Chenxi Courtyard are enough for me to enjoy." Yue Li wasn't actually a person who particularly loved flowers and plants; she only brought up the topic today because she had come here.

"You!" Jin Chenyuan knew exactly what Yue Li meant. He just helplessly raised his hand and pinched the tip of Yue Li's nose, then pulled her into his arms.

The two were enjoying their time together, all lovey-dovey. Not far from the pavilion, behind a rockery, the emperor, dressed in a dragon robe, stood with his personal eunuch, Fuquan, looking in their direction.

Looking at the beautiful woman in his uncle's arms, whose smile was so bright and unrestrained, shining into his heart like a little sun, the emperor suddenly felt an impulse to snatch the woman from his uncle's arms, to hold her in his own arms, and to make her show him that same bright and radiant smile.

The Emperor was surprised to hear from Fuquan that after his grandmother summoned his uncle and Princess Consort Chen to the palace, she only spent time dealing with a few more memorials before leaving Xuanzheng Hall. She planned to go to his grandmother's Shou Kang Palace to pay her respects and also to meet Princess Consort Chen, his future aunt.

He never expected to see the two of them admiring the flowers in the Imperial Garden, and even more unexpectedly, he would develop such feelings for Princess Consort Chen, his future imperial aunt, whom he was meeting for the first time.

She raised her hand to cover her heart, trying to calm her racing heart and pretend nothing had happened.

However, his gaze would always unconsciously fall on his aunt, who was being embraced by his uncle. When he saw his uncle lower his head to kiss her beautiful face, the emperor had an urge to rush up and pull his uncle away.

The emperor knew that his idea was wrong. Although he was the emperor and the ruler of the country, that was his uncle who had raised him and whom he respected the most.

And so, as if hypnotizing himself, the emperor kept repeating this sentence, and his emotions finally calmed down temporarily.

Standing behind the Emperor, Fuquan was unaware of the Emperor's torment. Seeing that the Emperor remained standing behind the artificial hill without going out, he asked in confusion, "Your Majesty, won't you go out and see Prince Chen?"

Why is the Emperor in such a hurry to go to the Empress Dowager's place? Isn't it to see Prince Chen and his wife?

The Emperor's expression had returned to calm. Hearing Fuquan's words behind him, he straightened his sleeves and said, "Yes, let's go see Princess Consort Chen."

As he spoke, he walked around the artificial hill in front of him and came into Qingyun and Fengchuan's line of sight.

Qingyun and Fengchuan stood outside the pavilion, keeping an eye on their surroundings. The Emperor's position was so clever that neither of them noticed his arrival.

At this moment, the Emperor walked around the artificial hill, and the two saw him. They immediately knelt down and bowed loudly, saying, "Greetings to Your Majesty, long live the Emperor!"

Yue Li and Jin Chenyuan, who were talking in the pavilion, turned around immediately when they heard the greeting. They saw the Emperor waving his hand to let Qingyun and Fengchuan stand up.

"Get up," the Emperor said as he walked steadily toward the pavilion.

"Thank you, Your Majesty."

In the blink of an eye, the Emperor had entered the pavilion and walked to Yue Li and Jin Chenyuan. If someone were to look closely, they would notice that the Emperor was standing closer to Yue Li's side.

"Your Majesty, I pay my respects." Jin Chenyuan immediately bowed.

Yue Li: ……

All of this happened so fast that it caught her off guard.

Seeing Jin Chenyuan bow, she was about to curtsy to the Emperor as well. After all, she had entered the palace suddenly and had not learned the etiquette of this dynasty. The only time she could curtsy was after seeing Lian Xinran and Yin Xiyue curtsy to Jin Chenyuan.

But before she could bow, the Emperor stopped her by holding her arm, saying, "Uncle, Aunt, there's no need to be so polite."

As they got closer, Yue Li's beautiful and radiant face became even more alluring to the Emperor. Especially when she saw him, her fox-like eyes, gleaming with surprise, almost stole away all his self-control.

Upon noticing the support on her arm, Yue Li immediately straightened her knees, which she had just bent.

At this moment, Yue Li felt a bit more favorably disposed towards the emperor who had suddenly appeared, since no one wants to bow to others all the time.

The emperor also withdrew his outstretched hand at the opportune moment and put it back behind his back.

However, the lingering warmth in his palm made the Emperor's heart startle again. Suppressing the urge to look at the person beside him, he looked at Jin Chenyuan and said, "Uncle, why did you leave Grandmother's place so early? I was originally going to pay my respects to Grandmother and also check on you all."

The Emperor acted too quickly, and his time with Yue Li was too short, so Jin Chenyuan didn't take the Emperor's actions to heart. Moreover, how could he have imagined that the Emperor would have such different thoughts after only seeing Yue Li once?

Seeing that the Emperor had already sat down at the round table in the pavilion, he took Yue Li's hand and made her sit opposite the Emperor, while he himself sat down next to her. "Your grandmother was tired, so I brought the Princess Consort out. After coming out, we found the scenery of the Imperial Garden to be quite nice, so we decided to stay here for a while."

Looking at the fair and delicate little hand being held by the Imperial Uncle, the Emperor stroked the hand that had just touched Yue Li's. He wished that hand was now in his own.