The empress is both charming and seductive, rising through the ranks of palace intrigue.

Xiao Yu moved closer to her, but Ning Shuyan moved further away, pouting and looking down, sulking.

Looking at her, Xiao Yu felt a mixture of annoyance and novelty. Usually, women would coax him with sweet words and fawn over him. No one had ever dared to give him the cold shoulder before.

Xiao Yu sat down next to her, took her hand and held it in his palm.

Ning Shuyan didn't struggle any further. After all, he was the emperor, and even his willfulness had to be within limits.

"When have I ever said I didn't like you? You always overthink things."

Ning Shuyan let his somewhat rough hands caress her palms, then looked up with a hint of joy: "Really? Your Majesty didn't lie to me?"

Xiao Yu chuckled: "I am the emperor, why would I deceive you?"

He didn't continue talking about forever or ever, and Ning Shuyan knew when to stop. She took his arm, raised her smiling face, and said sweetly, "I am already very satisfied to know that Your Majesty has me in your heart. I will not worry about the future, because I believe that time will tell. As long as I am willing to put in the effort, Your Majesty will always love me."

Her stunningly beautiful face radiated absolute confidence, a quality that Xiao Yu found unmatched among the women of the harem.

Xiao Yu's slightly upturned lips and gentle eyes said, "If, as Yan'er says, you treat me sincerely from now on, I will not let you down."

To win over a man, you must win his heart.

You have to make him feel that you love him deeply and can't live without him. No man would be willing to reject a woman who loves him deeply.

As they were talking, Ning Shuyan felt Xiao Yu's hand getting restless again.

Ning Shuyan thought to herself, "Wow, sure enough, he can't stay serious for more than three seconds."

Xiao Yu didn't want to be in such a hurry, mainly because when he looked down he saw the woman's beautiful collarbone and the curves of her chest.

"To be honest, one of the reasons I deliberately pushed Green Bud out was for Yan'er's sake. Yan'er should reward me well."

Ning Shuyan touched his ear, her hand tracing circles on his chest: "Then... Your Majesty, I will serve you well tonight."

Even through her clothes, Xiao Yu could still feel a tingling, itchy sensation. She grabbed Ning Shuyan's slender, soft hand and pressed her down.

His kiss was not as gentle as usual...

Ning Shuyan had thought she could finally get some rest tonight, but things didn't turn out that way.

****

Xiao Yu: "Continue."

I thought it was just the beginning, but it turned out to be **

Ning Shuyan called out in a daze, "Your Majesty..."

Her eyes shone as if they could speak, she was greatly surprised and incredulous.

Logically speaking, His Majesty is in the prime of his life; he shouldn't be acting like this!

He looked at Ning Shuyan's stunned expression, his brows furrowing coldly, and his tone grew harsher: "Why are you looking at me like that?"

Ning Shuyan was at a loss for words.

She lowered her alluring eyes and whispered, "Your Majesty... I would like to wash up."

"Hmm..." Xiao Yu's face was blank. He had never lost his composure like this in his life. The main reason was what kind of look was that from her eyes just now.

Lost in thought, he waited until Ning Shuyan returned before closing his eyes and falling asleep.

The next day, good news arrived. The war with Rongguo, which had lasted for nearly five months, finally came to a perfect end before the end of the year.

The Rong Kingdom was defeated and surrendered, sending envoys to sue for peace.

Xiao Yu was overjoyed and exclaimed "Good!" three times in a row! He had been extremely busy with the war recently, and now he could finally relax.

The eunuch Xi also came in with a smile to announce, "Your Majesty, Consort Zhuang has come to invite Your Majesty to have dinner."

The smile on Xiao Yu's face gradually disappeared, and he said coldly, "Say I'm too busy."

Yang An glanced furtively at the Emperor. In the past, if General Nangong won a battle, the Emperor would gladly go himself, let alone Consort Zhuang inviting him. It seemed this incident had thoroughly enraged the Emperor!

"Go and inform Lan Yue Pavilion that I will be having dinner there."

Yang An bowed and replied, "Yes, sir."

Meanwhile, at Lan Yue Pavilion, Ning Shuyan was also quite surprised to hear the news. It seemed the Emperor was preparing to neglect Consort Zhuang for a while. But in her memory, Xiao Yu was not a willful person, so why did he show no respect to the Nangong family this time?

When Xiao Yu arrived, it was clear that he was in a good mood, with delicate features and a faint smile on his face.

Ning Shuyan poured Xiao Yu a glass of wine and said with a smile, "I thought that on such a wonderful day, we should celebrate, so I brought out the wine and will have a couple of drinks with Your Majesty."

As she spoke, she raised her wine glass, lightly clinked it with Xiao Yu's, and downed it in one gulp.

"Yan'er can actually drink alcohol?"

He watched as Ning Shuyan downed a cup of wine without even frowning. He knew that among the concubines in the harem, only Consort Zhuang and Consort Xi would drink alcohol, and even they wouldn't drink it all in one gulp without any change in expression. Looking at her, she seemed completely at ease, as if she were just drinking tea.

Ning Shuyan smiled brightly, her expression lively and playful: "I dare say that my alcohol tolerance is comparable to that of a man."

"Oh?" He raised an eyelid, intrigued. "Then I'd like to see for myself."

As he spoke, Xiao Yu picked up the wine pot and filled the wine cup to the brim. A mischievous smile appeared on his lips. This wine was called Peach Dew. It tasted somewhat sweet with a hint of peach, but its potency was much stronger than that of ordinary wine. You might not feel much of a reaction when you first drank it, but the aftereffects were extremely strong.

Ning Shuyan was completely unaware of the situation and enthusiastically clinked glasses with Xiao Yu one cup after another.

Seeing that her expression remained unchanged and that she was full of energy, Xiao Yu finally believed that her alcohol tolerance was indeed different from that of ordinary women.

Ning Shuyan was already feeling a little dizzy, but she didn't show it and didn't feel much of a sensation.

She placed a piece of chicken into Xiao Yu's bowl and said, "Your Majesty, please don't drink too much on an empty stomach. It's bad for your stomach."

Xiao Yu picked up some food and ate while asking, "Your alcohol tolerance is quite good. I remember you once said that your aunt was very strict with you. How could she let you drink alcohol?"

Ning Shuyan smiled and said, "My aunt is only strict with my studies and etiquette, but she lets me eat whatever I want. She says that being able to eat is a blessing."

Xiao Yu laughed loudly; he certainly had a big appetite.

After drinking two more cups, Ning Shuyan ladled half a bowl of mutton soup in front of Xiao Yu and said softly, "Your Majesty has lost some weight recently. Drink some mutton soup to replenish your strength."

Xiao Yu looked at the white, fragrant soup in the bowl, with one or two goji berries floating on top. He frowned and asked in a deep voice, "Why do I need tonics?"