My brother entrusted his child to me, and I livestreamed raising the baby, making the Empress cry wi

Yao Jingyuan's face turned pale instantly.

It felt like being pressed into an ice cave, all the blood in my body instantly flowing back to my heart, leaving only a pale, almost transparent white on my face.

His knees buckled, and he knelt down with a thud.

The sound of his knee hitting the gold brick was dull and heavy, like a piece of frozen meat being slammed onto a stone slab.

But he couldn't care less about the pain.

"Your Majesty, please calm down! Your Majesty, please calm down!"

He lay prone on the ground, his forehead pressed against the cold earth.

The chill of the imperial kiln bricks seeped through the skin, spreading along the skull to the back of the head.

His voice trembled, filled with grievance and a sense of being wronged with nowhere to turn.

"Your Majesty... Your Majesty, I am innocent!"

Yao Jingyuan looked up, his eyes already red.

Those eyes, always gentle and affectionate, were now brimming with tears, glistening in the dim light of the hall, like two shallow pools filled with rainwater, brimming as if they might overflow at any moment.

"Ever since Lady Ye and the First Princess were moved to Zhaohua Palace, I have sent people to deliver silver and supplies every month, according to the allotted amount, without the slightest mistreatment, Your Majesty—"

His voice choked with emotion.

His Adam's apple bobbed up and down several times, producing a series of suppressed, muffled breathy sounds.

"After Lady Ye went missing, I specially allocated extra silver each month and instructed the palace servants to take good care of the eldest princess and not allow any mishaps!"

He became more and more agitated as he spoke, his voice growing louder and louder, and the veins on his forehead bulged, throbbing beneath his pale skin like two earthworms wriggling.

"You said you sent someone to deliver silver every month?"

Shu Jingwei's voice came down from above, not loud, but like a millstone, grinding heavily on one's body.

"Just send someone to deliver it? Why don't you go and supervise it yourself? Those servants take the money and do nothing, don't you notice at all?"

Yao Jingyuan shrugged.

"Your Majesty, I have devoted myself entirely to Rou'er and Your Majesty! As for the Cold Palace, I truly haven't personally overseen its affairs..."

His voice grew softer and softer until it was almost a whisper.

Go and supervise in person? He pondered this question over and over in his mind, almost rolling his eyes.

What am I supposed to check? Check if that little bastard is dead? Check how much of a breath she has left?

If you really want to know, go find out for yourself.

You are the emperor, the entire palace is yours, you can go wherever you want, who dares to stop you?

But you didn't go.

It's been two years.

For two years, you haven't stepped into Zhaohua Palace, nor have you asked that little bastard a single question.

Now that people are talking behind your back, you suddenly remember you have a daughter? Who are you trying to fool with this pretense?

Yao Jingyuan thought sarcastically to himself, but showed no sign of it on his face.

He kowtowed heavily.

His forehead hit the gold brick with a dull thud.

The sound was like a stone hitting hardwood, heavy and dull.

When he looked up again, his brow was red, with a tiny bead of blood seeping out and slowly trickling down the curve of his nose.

"I never expected this! Those damned lackeys, those despicable lackeys—they took the money and did nothing! They were two-faced! They dared to cut the Crown Princess's expenses, they dared... they dared to beat and scold the Crown Princess!"

"It was my negligence! It was my fault! I humbly beg Your Majesty to punish me!"

His voice suddenly rose to an almost roaring pitch, filled with a heart-wrenching remorse.

The pain and remorse were so intense they seemed tangible, seeping from every pore of his body and permeating the surrounding air, making one unable to help but believe that he was truly in pain, regretting, and feeling as if his heart was being torn apart.

Tears that had been welling up in Yao Jingyuan's eyes finally rolled down.

One, two, three—the tears streamed down her cheeks, each drop landing on the gold brick.

He lay on the ground, his shoulders trembling.

The sobs were suppressed and restrained, like a wounded beast curled up in a corner licking its wounds.

They looked so pitiful.

Be as sincere as you can be.

The hall was quiet. Only his sobbing and the soft "snap" of incense ash falling from the bronze incense burner.

Shu Jingwei stood in front of him, looking down at him.

She watched as the man knelt on the ground, crying like a child, his forehead red from kowtowing, his shoulders trembling uncontrollably.

The once neat official robes were crumpled into a ball because of the kneeling posture, and the hem of the robe was scattered on the ground, like a withered flower.

What he said...makes a valid point.

He did indeed handle Rou'er's affairs personally.

Every day before dawn, I would go to the small kitchen to keep an eye on everything, from breakfast to midnight snacks, and I would personally inspect every dish.

Dressing, grooming, scenting—she did everything with utmost care. And then there was her…

He always stayed with her when she was reviewing papers late at night.

He poured tea and water, ground ink and laid out paper, never complaining.

Sometimes, when she was grading papers late into the night, she would look up and see him sitting quietly on the embroidered stool next to her, watching her.

Seeing her look up, he smiled gently and asked, "Is Your Majesty going to rest?"—his voice was gentle yet contained a hint of worry.

He sent someone to deliver silver to Zhaohua Palace and gave them instructions...

Those palace servants deserve to die! They took the money but did nothing, and even deceived their master behind his back.

Thinking of this, she closed her eyes.

When she opened her eyes again, most of her anger towards the person in front of her had subsided.

"That's enough."

Her voice was very low, like a withered leaf blown from a branch by the wind, drifting and falling to the ground without a sound.

"In the end... I haven't even gone to see it once."

She turned around, her back to Yao Jingyuan.

His voice carried an indescribable, bittersweet quality.

Yao Jingyuan knelt on the ground, his shoulders still trembling.

The crying had subsided, turning into intermittent sobs.

His forehead was still pressed against the cold floor tiles.

The red mark between his eyebrows rubbed onto the brick surface, leaving a faint bloodstain.

But beneath that tear-streaked face, the corner of her mouth twitched up very quickly and subtly.

The arc is so small that it would be completely unnoticeable unless you looked closely.

It was like a snake flicking its tongue in the grass, so fast that you thought you were seeing things.

"but--"

Shu Jingwei's voice suddenly turned cold and sharp.

"Those lackeys dare to beat and scold my daughter! They're tired of living!"

Each word of that sentence seemed to explode from the chest, carrying a shockwave that made people's ears ring.

The light and shadow danced on her face, making it appear half-lit and half-shadowed.

"By imperial decree! All palace servants who previously served the Crown Princess at Zhaohua Palace shall be beaten to death!"

She turned around abruptly.

The wind stirred up by the dragon robe swept across the corner of the desk, knocking several of the stack of folded books off and onto the floor with a "thud, thud, thud".

The candle on the table was blown violently by the wind and almost went out.

"As for you..."

Shu Jingwei's voice still carried lingering anger.

Yao Jingyuan felt a chill run down his spine. Could it be that he had overlooked something?

He began frantically recalling what he had said and done, searching for any way to make amends.

There was a noise in front of me.

First came the sound of fabric rubbing together, very soft and subtle, like a snake slithering through the grass.

Then came the sound of footsteps.

Getting closer.

He could hear his own heartbeat.

Faster and faster—

Boom, boom, boom...