Five years after her death, she awoke on the dragon bed.

Chapter 281 Give Me Another Child...

Lou Suyi mentally berated Murong, but on the surface she pretended to be virtuous and gentle: "I was worried that Your Majesty was too tired from coming here after being so busy. If it is too late, Your Majesty can stay in Qianqing Palace. Your mother will not say anything bad about Your Majesty. There is no need to come to Xianfu Palace to accompany me."

It's just a change of sleeping place, why make a special trip and complicate a simple matter?

"These are the rules, and they cannot be broken. If I were to break my word, how could I set an example for the people of the world?" Murong said calmly.

Lou Suyi gave him a fake smile: "Your Majesty is right, I was shortsighted."

Anyway, she only saw it as a minor issue of changing where to sleep, while the young emperor could bring up the important matter of setting an example for the world, implying that she, a mere woman, lacked vision.

Murong went to the bedside to look at the sleeping child, and it took her a while to look away.

Lou Suyi also went over to look at her son and couldn't help but exclaim, "Chen'er is so handsome."

Murong glanced at her upon hearing the sound, and the meaning behind that look was unclear, making Murong feel uneasy.

As they slept, Murong kissed her and whispered on her lips, "The Empress's children are beautiful. Have another one for me..."

Lou Suyi then realized.

It turns out that he felt he had too few offspring, which is why he had to stay overnight at Xianfu Palace.

However, this important matter of giving birth also depends on whether her womb is cooperative.

The next day, when she got up, Murong had already left. She sat on the bed staring blankly at her stomach and suddenly felt that she was having a hard time.

I don't know why she got pregnant so easily last time; she conceived without any warning.

Since she became empress, Murong has often stayed overnight at Xianfu Palace, so why is there no sign of pregnancy in her belly?
After spending the morning lost in thought, she finally went back to her own business.

The affairs of the inner palace are complicated, and Empress Dowager Chen has now entrusted many things to her. Only now does she realize that Murong's busyness is not without reason.

Murong was busy with matters of national importance, while she was busy with all the affairs of the women in his harem, so she was also extremely busy.

Before they knew it, it was early December, the day of Chen Xing's birthday.

The Chen family submitted their petitions to the palace early in the morning to reunite with Chen Xing.

Concubines from the inner palace also arrived one after another; Lou Suyi accompanied Empress Dowager Chen.

When everyone saw Empress Dowager Chen and Lou Suyi, they all stood up and bowed to them.

Empress Dowager Chen, supported by Lou Suyi, took her seat first, followed by Lou Suyi, who then presented her with a birthday gift.

This time, Lady Chu behaved herself, trying to minimize her presence, for fear that Lou Suying would hold a grudge from last time and make things difficult for Chen Xing in the palace.

Just then, Lou Suyi took out another birthday gift: "This is a birthday gift that Consort Li asked me to give to Consort An."

Chen Xing's close attendant, Yue Xue, respectfully accepted the birthday gift and stepped aside.

Chen Xing was surprised that Consort Li had prepared a gift for her. She asked with concern, "Sister, are you feeling better?"

Not only was she curious about why Lou Suying would pass on the birthday gift to Consort Li, but the other concubines were also curious about when Consort Li and Lou Suying had become so close. "Consort Li is in good health and everything is fine, but she doesn't want to go out, so she asked me to pass on the birthday gift," Lou Suying replied calmly.

Consort Li used to pay her respects to Empress Dowager Chen frequently. Apart from being a bit arrogant, Empress Dowager Chen felt that Consort Li was not bad.

She also knew that the way the Duke of Fuguo's mansion behaved chilled Consort Li's heart, and that the child was probably heartbroken.

"Now that she is much better, she should go out for walks more often, especially on big days like the New Year and other festivals. If she doesn't want to go out, Suyi, you should try to persuade her," Empress Dowager Chen said in public.

Her attitude naturally represented Murong's attitude, and for a moment everyone was pondering the deeper meaning of her words: whether both Chen family girls had a chance to gain the emperor's favor.
If Consort Li and Consort An were to join forces, they would be a formidable force in the harem.
But will Empress Lou Suyi just stand by and watch Consort Li and Consort An join forces?

Currently, it seems that Consort Li is getting close to Lou Suyi. Does that mean that the person Consort Li and Lou Suyi will have to deal with in the future is Chen Xing?
However, since Chen Xing entered the harem, this woman has not received the emperor's favor and has never had the opportunity to serve him in bed.

Everyone is here now, except for Murong, who is not here. I don't know if he's not coming.

Only Lou Suyi knew that Murong was a person of great importance. Even if Murong had no particular feelings for Chen Xing, Murong would definitely have to show his face because Chen Xing's surname was Chen.

Sure enough, just when some people were waiting to see Chen Xing make a fool of himself, Murong appeared.

He was tall and slender, with an imposing presence and an aura that immediately drew the attention of many.

Consort De, being love-struck, practically had her eyes glued to Murong's face. If it weren't for the ancients' preference for modesty and restraint, she would have pounced on him long ago.

Liang Wanying, however, was not polite at all. She rushed to the front and bowed gracefully before Murong, saying, "Your Majesty, I have been waiting for you for a long time. Your Majesty has only just arrived."

Her words silenced the entire room.

Liang Wanying's words make it sound like she's the main character today. It's clearly Chen Xing's birthday, what does it have to do with Liang's family?
Shouldn't the act of a guest overshadowing the host be considered in the context of the occasion?

"I was busy with official duties, so I'm late." Murong walked past Liang Wanying and sat down next to Lou Suying.

Seeing that his hands were empty, Lou Suyi asked softly, "Didn't Your Majesty prepare a birthday gift for Consort An?"

Murong was taken aback, realizing he had forgotten about that.

Lou Suyi was truly speechless. He came empty-handed; it would have been better if he hadn't come at all. She wondered what the people in the harem would think of Chen Xing.

She called Jiqing over, whispered a few instructions to him, and Jiqing accepted the order and left.

Everyone was indeed waiting to see what kind of birthday gift Murong would give Chen Xing, but seeing that Murong hadn't made a move, they were starting to wonder if Murong wasn't planning on giving a gift at all.
Deliberately trying to embarrass Chen Xing, Liang Wanying raised her voice and asked, "I wonder what birthday gift His Majesty has prepared for Consort An, so that all the sisters can broaden their horizons?"

As soon as she opened her mouth, Empress Dowager Chen couldn't wait to scold her: "Consort Hui, can't all this delicious food shut you up?!"
Leung Wan-ying was so angry she almost laughed.

She knew that Empress Dowager Chen also had the surname Chen, but was it really necessary to do something like this, which would only make things worse?
This was probably to avoid embarrassing Chen Xing and implicating Empress Dowager Chen herself.

Empress Dowager Chen reprimanded Liang Wanying, and no one else dared to discuss the matter further. Chen Xing herself was inevitably disappointed. She knew that Murong did not value her, and although she hadn't dared to have too much hope, she hadn't expected that even her birthday gift would be skipped.

Because Empress Dowager Chen and Murong were present, no one dared to say anything, but the way they looked at Chen Xing clearly showed their contempt.

Only after Ji Qing quietly returned behind Murong did Murong say, "Consort An, this is the birthday gift I prepared for you. See if you like it."

Chen Xing, who was originally disheartened, suddenly brightened up and stood up to accept the birthday gift: "I like anything that His Majesty gives me."