So what if she's my sister-in-law? You seduced me first.

A man's voice quickly came from inside, "I understand, you can go now."

The imperial physician never dared to raise his head, and upon hearing this voice, he retreated as if granted a pardon.

Xie Xun glanced at the scenery outside the window. Changxin Palace was very close to the Imperial Study, separated only by a few palace gates. Under the majestic lights, the brightly lit palace gardens could be vaguely seen.

He slammed the teacup down and stepped onto the couch.

The day to leave the palace is fast approaching, but Ning Yu is still locked in Changxin Palace and cannot leave. Yun Shu tells her that there are even more sentries in Changxin Palace now, and they can't even find time to change shifts.

The people from the Ministry of Rites came in the morning and had her try on the court robes and crown. They said that the auspicious day calculated by the Imperial Astronomical Bureau was in April, and the clothes should be made loose. They came over to measure her again.

Ning Yu waited for them to finish their work before being locked back in this magnificent cage.

At noon, she handed the sachet she had sewn to the head aunt.

"Don't worry, Madam, this old servant will personally deliver it and make sure to take care of the arrangements before it reaches His Majesty."

Ning Yu felt embarrassed, but she nodded and stuffed a handful of gold coins into her hand, saying, "Thank you for your trouble, Aunt."

This lady is so generous! Each reward is enough for her to live on for half a year. The head maid was overjoyed. It was such a blessing to have such a kind and generous mistress in the palace. She was most willing to serve such a mistress.

After some arrangements, the sachet was delivered to the imperial table in the Hall of State Affairs. Xie Xun saw the sachet on the folding tablet after the meeting.

He sat back in his chair, picked it up and glanced at it. Qingfeng, who was next to him, immediately said, "It was sent by the madam. She probably wants to make peace with the master."

Xie Xun looked at the poorly embroidered sachet, opened it, and a very faint fragrance wafted out—the fragrance of moonlight and incense.

He sneered, and just as he put the sachet back into his palm, he suddenly noticed a piece of paper inside. He opened it and read it.

"miss you."

Ning Yu waited anxiously in the palace for most of the day, but Xie Xun, that dog of an emperor, still didn't appear. It seemed he was determined to lock her up here until she died.

She was so angry that her heart ached. She couldn't comfort him at all because she couldn't see him. He wouldn't give in, and she didn't even have the right to freely enter and leave his bedchamber.

This is the emperor's favor; he never treated her like a human being from beginning to end. He was capricious, ruthless, and her life or death depended entirely on his mood.

"Madam, please don't be angry. His Majesty is the ruler of the world, holding a high position and wielding great power. He is naturally used to being high above and would never bow down. If you persist a few more times, His Majesty will spoil you so much that the matter from that day will be forgotten."

If he truly loved her, he wouldn't have locked her up here while she was pregnant; it was clearly a punishment. In his eyes, her joys and sorrows were unimportant; what mattered was that she couldn't have any disloyal thoughts, couldn't think of deceiving him, and had to obediently submit to him.

But what did he do? He either chained her up, forced her to beg for mercy by threatening her with the lives of others, or used his power to oppress her. He was never kind to her.

Ning Yu was eager to leave this suffocating palace and to leave him.

Fortunately, after moving back to Changxin Palace, the baby in her womb didn't cause much trouble, and her health recovered quite well.

The nanny brought over the medicinal soup, which Ning Yu quickly drank down in one gulp. She rinsed her mouth to get rid of the bitter taste of the medicine, then got dressed and got out of bed.

The weather was nice outside today. When the palace servants guarding the palace gate saw that she was about to go out, they rushed over with hand warmers and cloaks.

"Where does Madam wish to go? His Majesty has ordered that Madam remain in the palace to rest and recuperate."

They didn't want to get punished again, so they had to keep a close eye on the person.

Ning Yu pushed aside the palace servants surrounding her, her long black hair loose, and walked into the corridor while lifting her skirt. They hurriedly followed behind, calling out to her.

"Madam, Madam---"

A gust of wind blew through the long corridor, and the palace servants following behind her dared not pull her. The wind gently brushed against her long gauze dress, revealing her slender white wrists.

Ning Yu glanced at the guards at the palace gate, took the red-gold phoenix hairpin from the tray in the hands of the head maid, casually tied up her long black hair, and looked graceful and beautiful without any makeup.

"Get out of the way."

The guards at the gate seemed to have received some kind of signal, symbolically stopping her for a moment before continuing their patrol as usual.

The palace servants behind him were stunned for a moment, then hurriedly grabbed their cloaks and chased after him.

Ning Yu was surprised that she could get out of Changxin Palace so easily. She glanced at the patrolling soldiers around her and wondered if she didn't need to go find that bastard Xie Xun anymore.

But then she thought, what if she realized she wasn't sincere and locked her up again? There were only two days left, and she didn't want anything to go wrong.

"Madam, please put on your cloak so you don't get cold."

The clothes she was wearing weren't cold. Ning Yu touched her warm hands and face, but didn't take the cloak. Instead, she turned and headed towards the Hall of State Affairs.

Unexpectedly, they ran into a familiar person on the road, and they both saw each other.

They exchanged a glance, and Xiao Yunnuan walked over with a smile, "Sister Ning, we meet again."

"Miss Xiao."

"Why aren't you wearing more clothes? You'll catch a cold," she said with concern.

Ning Yu smiled faintly, "It's not cold. What are you doing here, Miss Xiao?"

Xiao Yunnuan said, "I just came from the Empress Dowager's palace. The Empress Dowager is kind and wants me to stay in the palace for a while longer so that I can develop a relationship with His Majesty."

"His Majesty has been on the throne for a long time, but his offspring are few. The Empress Dowager has selected several daughters from prominent families to come to the palace for a consultation. I just came out myself."

"I heard that Sister Ning is pregnant. She should take care of herself in this cold weather."

Ning Yu couldn't tell she meant any harm. "Thank you for your concern."

Xiao Yunnuan grasped her hand familiarly, "Where are you going, Sister Ning? Are you looking for His Majesty?"

Before she could speak, the man continued, "I went to deliver tea to His Majesty last night. His Majesty went to bed very late and is probably still busy. We women are not familiar with the affairs of the court and are ashamed that we cannot share His Majesty's burdens."

This places them all in the position of imperial concubines. But then again, the Xiao family girls and the Lin family girls are already designated as concubines, just waiting for the formalities to be completed.

Xie Xun is so lucky to have so many beautiful women.

She couldn't help but think of Princess Huayang and the Wei family girl who had disappeared without a trace. They had all become stepping stones for others. If she stayed in the palace for too long, perhaps one day she would also become a stepping stone for others to climb up.

"Miss Xiao, please take your time browsing. I'll be going now."

"Hey, Sister Ning, wait for me! Let's take a walk together. You've been in the palace for a long time, and I'll have to rely on you a lot in the future."

Ning Yu paused, feeling a little uncomfortable as her arm was held by hers, and tried to pull away.

Xiao Yunnuan chuckled and patted the back of her hand. "Sister Ning, you have to get used to life in the palace. We'll be sisters from now on, and we'll have a long time to spend together."