Qin Sheng's face turned pale instantly.

She stared at Song Jin in shock, at those eyes that were once gentle but now held a hint of madness.

It made her feel somewhat unfamiliar.

A sudden draft swept through, causing the candlelight to flicker violently. "You... what did you say?" Qin Sheng's voice trembled; she couldn't believe her ears.

At that moment, all reason seemed to have left her, leaving only the turbulent waves deep in her heart.

She knew perfectly well how Zhao Yi treated those concubines who betrayed him a few months ago!

Seeing this, Song Jin felt a mix of emotions. He let go of her hand, but his gaze remained fixed on Qin Sheng, afraid of missing any expression on her face.

"Sheng'er, I know this is too sudden for you, but I can't keep it a secret any longer. The child in your womb is mine. Our Emperor is infertile."

Qin Sheng took a few steps back, leaned against a pillar, and clasped her hands tightly in front of her chest, as if trying to steady her shaky mind.

"This...how is this possible..." she murmured to herself, countless fragments flashing through her mind, but she couldn't piece together a reasonable explanation.

She recalled that rainy night more than a month ago.

She and Zhao Yi had a dispute over the matter of Princess Zhao Chunhua.

Qin Sheng discovered that while Zhao Yi was using Princess Zhao Chunhua, he also had plans to pass the throne to her.

She suggested that Zhao Yi adopt a child from the imperial clan and pass the throne to him in the future.

But Zhao Yi did not accept her advice. Instead, he rebuked her, asking if she was tired of being empress and wanted to rule from behind the curtain.

Qin Sheng felt extremely wronged; she clearly had no such intention.

On a torrential rainy night, she drank a lot of wine and felt extremely unwell, so she sent someone to fetch Physician Song.

The rain pattered softly on the night, and strings of water droplets formed under the palace eaves.

Song Jin, holding an umbrella, rushed anxiously from the Imperial Hospital to Qin Sheng's bedchamber.

When he arrived, Qin Sheng was sitting blankly in front of the bronze mirror in her bedroom. Her face looked haggard, but her eyes were filled with unprecedentedly complex emotions.

Upon seeing Song Jin arrive, Qin Sheng waved to dismiss the maids in the hall.

Seeing that no one was around, Song Jin asked anxiously, "Sheng'er, how are you? Are you feeling unwell?"

He spoke softly as he stepped forward to help her up, intending to have her lie on the couch so that he could examine her more easily.

Qin Sheng looked up and met Song Jin's gaze. At that moment, it seemed that all her grievances and resentment had found an outlet.

She suddenly stood up, staggered a few steps, and approached Song Jin. She gently placed one hand on his shoulder and pounded her chest heavily with the other. "Song Jin, it hurts here! It hurts so much here!"

"Jin, do you know? I never wanted to rule from behind the curtain. I only hoped he could understand me and respect me. But he..."

Qin Sheng's voice was choked with sobs, and tears welled up in her eyes, but she stubbornly refused to let them fall.

Upon seeing this, Song Jin felt a pang of anxiety. He slowly reached out, wanting to wipe away the tears from the corners of her eyes, but Qin Sheng grabbed his wrist and pulled him closer.

“Jin, you’ve understood me since we were little, haven’t you? You know I’ve never had that kind of ambition.”

Qin Sheng's voice was deep and alluring.

Song Jin felt a sudden jolt when he saw the provocation and desire in her eyes.

He never imagined he would be so close to Qin Sheng under such circumstances. Nor did he ever imagine that he could have anything happen with Qin Sheng, who was already the mistress of the harem.

Song Jin's rationality told him he should back down, but his emotions made him unable to resist this sudden temptation.

"Sheng'er, you've had too much to drink..." he tried to remind her, but his words carried a hint of helplessness.

Qin Sheng ignored her and continued to approach until their breaths mingled.

She gently kissed Song Jin's lips.

Song Jin struggled to pull Qin Sheng off him. "Sheng'er, look carefully, who am I?!"

"You are Song Jin, the Song Jin I loved to the core when I was young! I regret so much, why didn't I rebel against Father and instead came to this cage! Song Jin, I regret it—"

Qin Sheng cried as she kissed Song Jin's lips again.

At this moment, Song Jin's rationality completely collapsed. He responded to her kiss, and the two of them poured out their feelings of many years under the cover of the rainy night.

Outside the window, the rain was pouring down and the wind was howling through the trees.

Inside the palace, the brocade quilt billowed, and emotions seeped through the silk robes.

After an unknown amount of time, Qin Sheng fell into a deep sleep.

Song Jin dressed neatly, wrote out a prescription to strengthen the body and protect the vital energy for the palace maids guarding outside, and then stepped back into the night as the rain gradually subsided.