He looked at Long Jingwei: "Go find two maids and bring them up to her."

Long Jingwei stepped forward and looked at Sang Jiang for a moment: "Brother, how about I just carry her upstairs?"

Long Jingchen glared at him directly: "You try?"

Long Jingwei pursed his lips, made a face, and awkwardly turned around to call two maids over to carry Sang Jiang up.

Long Jingchen looked at Sang Jiang and chuckled.

Long Jingwei pouted: "You can still laugh? Looks like you're not seriously injured."

Long Jingchen glared at him but ignored him, though his eyes kept telling him: Get out.

Long Jingwei touched his nose: "You're killing me after I've served my purpose! Uh, no, I mean, you're kicking me after I've served my purpose!"

After saying that, he turned and left.

...

News of Long Jingchen's overnight stay at the Fourteenth Prince's residence quickly spread throughout the palace.

The Empress summoned Nian Shihua and looked at him with slightly narrowed eyes: "Is it true that His Majesty was only drunk and that's why he stayed overnight at the Fourteenth Prince's residence?"

Nian Shihua hesitated for two seconds and then nodded.

He shouldn't have lied to the Empress, but he knew about the relationship between Sang Jiang and Sang Ruo. Since he couldn't be with her, he wanted to do something for her; he didn't want to see her sad.

The Empress chuckled and changed the subject: "Shihua, how long have you been with me?"

Nian Shihua lowered her eyes and said, "It has been three years since Your Majesty the Empress."

The Empress nodded, her expression turning cold and stern: "Do you think you can escape my eyes when you lie?"

Nian Shihua knelt down with a thud: "Your Majesty, I know I was wrong."

"So, what exactly did they do?" The Empress finished speaking and stared intently at Nian Shihua.

This time, Nian Shihua didn't hesitate at all and blurted out: "When I heard the Imperial Noble Consort say that she didn't want to return to the palace, the Emperor couldn't resist her pleading and took her to the Fourteenth Prince's residence."

He knew the Empress's personality; if he had said it like that from the beginning, she definitely wouldn't have believed him. That's why he pretended to hesitate just now.

Upon hearing this, the Empress's hand, which had been resting on the edge of the chair, slowly tightened. She gripped the chair tightly and cursed, "That little vixen! All she knows is how to fool the Emperor, and yet he's been fooled by her and hasn't even attended the morning court session!"

Nian Shihua: ...

After cursing a few times, the Empress looked at Nian Shihua suspiciously: "You're not lying to me, are you?"

Nian Shihua immediately lowered his head: "This subordinate dares not, please Your Majesty the Empress to see the truth."

The Empress looked at him for a long time to make sure there was no problem before squinting and saying, "I knew you wouldn't dare. Go and accept your punishment!"

"Your subordinate obeys." Nian Shihua nodded and turned to walk towards the tunnel.

...

When Sang Jiang woke up again, it was already afternoon. As soon as she opened her eyes, she saw Long Jingchen looking at her from the side.

Sang Jiang was taken aback at first, then reached out and hugged Long Jingchen's neck tightly, carefully nestling her head in his arms.

Long Jingchen looked down at Sang Jiang, who had her head buried tightly in his chest, and couldn't help but touch her head: "What's wrong?"

After a long while, Sang Jiang finally looked up at her with red eyes: "Long Jingchen, aren't you afraid?"

Long Jingchen looked at her and chuckled softly: "Afraid."

Sang Jiang blinked at him and said with a wronged expression, "If you're afraid, why did you do this?"

Long Jingchen lowered his head and kissed her forehead twice before speaking gently, "But I'm even more afraid of losing you."

Upon hearing these words, Sang Jiang felt her heart skip a beat...