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

Chapter 297 He Loves the Country More Than the Beauty

"Perhaps His Majesty only gives the Empress the respect due to the Empress because she is the principal wife. Moreover, the Empress Dowager speaks up for the Empress. His Majesty's feelings for the Empress are not romantic. Your Majesty need not boost others' morale and diminish your own. In my opinion, any normal man would prefer Your Majesty, not the Empress," Yulan comforted, unable to bear seeing her mistress upset.

She thought, how could a man as unromantic as His Majesty possibly fall in love with a woman?

If even a beauty as charming as Consort Hui couldn't win His Majesty's heart, then someone like the Empress would certainly never be able to capture His Majesty's heart.

She simply didn't believe His Majesty's feelings for the Empress were genuine, so Consort Hui didn't need to lose faith.

She gave Mo Lan a wink, and Mo Lan understood, echoing, "His Majesty is just that kind of person who doesn't understand romance; he treats everyone the same. If Her Majesty hadn't saved His Majesty and the Empress Dowager's lives, His Majesty wouldn't have thought much of Her Majesty."

Liang Wanying was initially in despair, but after listening to the words of the two palace maids beside her, and with their psychological support, she suddenly felt that they were right.

Murong is a blockhead; he loves no one but his empire.

Not every emperor is fond of women; the current Murong is someone who loves his country more than women.

As long as he sees all women the same, she still has a chance to turn things around.

She's so young, she can't give up so quickly.

At the very least, she must wait until she becomes pregnant with the imperial heir before she can afford to relax.

There has been no news from the Liang family recently. Does this mean that Grandfather will no longer send Liang Xiaoying to the palace?

Furthermore, the imperial concubine selection only takes place once every three years. Even if Grandfather wanted to send Liang Xiaoying to the palace, he would still have to wait for more than a year.

If she were to conceive a royal heir during this period, her grandfather would have no reason to send Liang Xiaoying to the palace again.

After figuring things out, Liang Wanying shook off her previous dejection and was full of fighting spirit.

On the 29th day of the Lunar New Year, Murong also stayed at Xianfu Palace to accompany Lou Suyi and her son.

Lou Suyi recalled what Empress Dowager Chen had discussed with her yesterday and felt that it might not be too late to discuss it with Murong today.

"Is this the Empress Dowager's or the Empress's?" Murong asked calmly, her gaze never leaving Xiao Muchen's face.

Lou Suyi thought he was just asking casually, so she answered truthfully: "Yesterday, the Empress Dowager mentioned that none of the concubines in the harem have been promoted since they entered the palace, and His Majesty has been on the throne for almost two years. We should treat the concubines in the harem better. This is both the Empress Dowager's idea and my idea."

Upon hearing this, Murong looked at Lou Suying and asked, "Then, does the Empress think it's better to promote whose rank? Or should everyone be promoted?"

After hearing this, Lou Suying took out a list: "These are the concubines who did not cause any trouble this year. Because the Empress Dowager was pushed into the lake on the Dragon Boat Festival, and it is still unknown which of the ten concubines is the real culprit, they are not on the list of those to be promoted. Of course, this is just my opinion, and His Majesty will have to make the final decision."

After carefully reviewing the list, Murong said cryptically, "The Empress is quite capable in her work."

Lou Suyi felt that his words sounded like a compliment, but his tone was also sarcastic.

What's wrong with the emperor?
Was he annoyed that she was meddling, or that she was only now thinking of elevating the ranks of the concubines in the harem?
She took Murong's words as a compliment and replied with a smile, "Your Majesty is concerned about the affairs of the state, so as the Empress, I must naturally manage Your Majesty's harem well, so that Your Majesty has no worries."

Murong glanced at Lou Suyi and tossed the roster back to her: "The Empress can decide this matter. I will listen to the Empress." Lou Suyi thought Murong would elevate the rank of Liang Wanying or Consort De, but to her surprise, he had no objection.

"Will Consort Hui and Consort De also follow my instructions and not be promoted for the time being?" Lou Suyi wanted to confirm again, lest Murong Qiu hold her accountable if she didn't handle this matter well.

Everyone else was fine, but Consort De and Consort Hui were both favored by Murong, so she needed to know Murong's true intentions.

"I told you to handle it yourself. When did the Empress become so long-winded?" Murong said, picking up little Muchen and moving away from Lou Suyi.

Lou Suyi really didn't understand what she had said wrong that displeased the emperor.

Seeing Jiqing standing there dumbfounded, she said to him with sympathy, "Jiqing, it must be very tiring for you to have served His Majesty for so many years."

It's not just physical exhaustion, but mental exhaustion too; this master's intentions are too unpredictable.

Ji Qing's heart skipped a beat, and she hurriedly replied, "Although His Majesty is not one to smile easily, he is very easy to serve and a very good master. This servant will go and serve His Majesty first!"

After saying that, he hurriedly followed.

Lou Suyi watched the departing figures of Murong and his servant, and thought to herself that Jiqing was an absolutely loyal servant. Perhaps even Murong's farts smelled good to Jiqing.

Since Murong had no objections to the list in her hands, she took a responsible attitude and carefully compared all the names of the concubines to make sure that nothing was missing before she felt relieved.

She wasn't sure if it was just her imagination, but she felt that Murong was secretly holding a grudge against her again.

When she spoke to him, he always used words like "um," "oh," and "okay" instead, and was unwilling to say a single extra word to her.

As evening approached, she couldn't help but advise Murong, "Your Majesty, it's the New Year, so please open your heart and think about the good things. If there's anything that makes you unhappy, don't keep it to yourself; you can tell me."

He didn't say anything, so she really couldn't guess what was making him unhappy.

"Does the Empress think that I am not broad-minded enough?" Murong finally spoke a complete sentence, but it was a question directed at Lou Suyi.

Lou Suying thought to herself that this was absolutely true, but she couldn't tell the truth. So she said indirectly, "What I mean is that Your Majesty should not think about troublesome things, but about happy things. Just think about it, Your Majesty is the ruler of the world, possessing the country, countless wealth, and countless beauties. No one in the world combined is as successful as Your Majesty. Others can only envy Your Majesty!"

So now that he's become emperor, why should he bother arguing with a mere woman?

"What the Empress says makes sense, and I can't refute it." Murong said, handing Xiao Muchen to Jiqing. "Without my order, do not disturb me and the Empress."

Ji Qing quickly agreed.

Lou Suyi was completely bewildered, not understanding what kind of trouble Murong was up to now.

It wasn't until Murong pulled her into the bedroom and led her to the bed that she was stunned: "Your Majesty, we're about to have dinner..."

There's no need to be in such a hurry. Shouldn't we have her serve us in bed at this hour?
"It was the Empress who said that I possess the empire and have countless beauties. At this moment, I only have the Empress by my side. Wouldn't it be a waste not to enjoy this precious New Year's holiday?" Murong said, opening his arms and looking intently at Lou Suyi. "Empress, please help me undress."

(End of this chapter)