"Shuo'er, did you have a nightmare?" Wei Shuyu asked hurriedly as she sat by the bed.

"When did Mother arrive?" Qi Chengshuo asked with a smile.

“It’s been almost half an hour. Seeing that you were sleeping soundly, I didn’t disturb you. But just now I saw that you looked like you were in pain, and I thought you were probably having a nightmare, so I called your name a few times,” Wei Shuyu said with a worried expression.

Qi Chengshuo nodded upon hearing this. The voice he heard in his sleep must have been his mother calling him.

As for that dream just now?

It was just a dream!

"Shuo'er, have some water to calm your nerves." Wei Shuyu took the water from the maid and handed it to Qi Chengshuo.

"Thank you, Mother!" Qi Chengshuo took the drink and drank it all in one gulp.

"Are you feeling any better?" Wei Shuyu asked softly, looking at her son.

"I'm all better now, and I feel no discomfort at all." Qi Chengshuo nodded slightly.

Wei Shuyu breathed a sigh of relief after hearing his words: "That's good. I heard that it was Miss Ye who sent someone to deliver the medicine."

"Yes." Qi Chengshuo nodded, got off the bed and poured himself a glass of water. He had just taken a sip and hadn't even swallowed it when he heard his mother say, "Next March, Miss Ye will come of age. I will send someone to propose marriage then."

"Cough cough cough..." Qi Chengshuo choked quite badly.

"Why are you so agitated, child?" Wei Shuyu quickly stepped forward and gently patted her son's back.

Qi Chengshuo: "..."

Is he excited?

He was clearly terrified!

After recovering, Qi Chengshuo helped Wei Shuyu sit down in a chair: "Mother, Xianya is different from ordinary girls. Her marriage is a major event that no one else can decide for her. You must not let anyone propose marriage, otherwise she will definitely refuse."

Upon hearing this, Wei Shuyu sighed and said, "Fine, fine, whatever you want. When you feel ready to propose, send someone to tell your mother, and I will prepare the betrothal gifts. But I can tell you, the Emperor will abdicate next year, and after your Ninth Uncle ascends the throne, he will probably bestow the title of Princess upon Miss Ye. At that time, it will be even more difficult for you to marry her."

Qi Chengshuo couldn't help but laugh upon hearing this: "Is Mother worried that I won't be able to find a wife?"

“Now that you’re a prince, finding a wife is easy. There are plenty of girls in the capital who would love to marry you. But… if you want to marry the one you truly desire, that will be much more difficult,” Wei Shuyu said with a smile.

"Don't worry, Mother, I know what I'm doing. Please don't interfere, Grandfather." Ye Xianya was no ordinary girl, and Qi Chengshuo was worried that they would only make things worse.

"Alright, alright, Mother won't say or do anything, she'll just wait for you to bring your wife home yourself." Wei Shuyu nodded quickly.

“If it were before, I wouldn’t be so sure either, but now? There’s a possibility!” Qi Chengshuo said as he stood up. “It’s getting late, you should go back and rest. Your son has gone to have his meal.”

It was already dark, and Qi Chengshuo was hungry.

Although he was highly skilled in martial arts and had a noble status, Qi Chengshuo could tell that Ye Xianya didn't care about these things.

Even if he were highly skilled in martial arts, he would still be no match for those powerful cultivators.

Qi Chengshuo had also experienced some setbacks, always feeling that there was a big gap between him and her, but he did not give up.

A few days ago, although he shamelessly followed behind the girl, he knew that Ye Xianya would not marry him just because she was the closest to him.

Ultimately, it all comes down to ability.

Since his body underwent a strange change, his strength has been increasing. After experiencing a burning sensation in his chest for two days, his strength has made a qualitative leap compared to before.

At that moment, he felt his whole body was full of power and he was very strong.

Only by being strong enough can I stand by Ye Xianya's side to protect her and have a chance to win her heart.

Otherwise, the gap between them will only widen, and they will drift further and further apart.

...

Before dawn the next day, Ye Miaoyun got up. She had prepared dough before going to bed the night before, intending to steam some buns for her daughter to take on the road.

My daughter goes out before dawn every day to practice her spiritual cultivation; it's truly hard work for her.

Although the girl told her that she would take dry rations with her and absorb spiritual energy from heaven and earth so she wouldn't go hungry, Ye Miaoyun still felt uneasy.

Tomorrow, she will be going to the palace with Qi Jiu. There are many rules in the palace, and she will probably have a hard time cooking for herself in the future.

Taking advantage of the free time she had today, she wanted to make breakfast for her daughter.

However, to Ye Miaoyun's surprise, as soon as she pushed open the door, she found her daughter and Zhengzheng already in the yard.

"Xianya, are you leaving so early?" Ye Miaoyun quickly walked over.

"Yes, I need to go there to cultivate as soon as possible." Ye Xianya nodded gently.

"This is too much work," Ye Miaoyun said, holding her hand with a look of concern.

"Mother, don't worry. I'm not an ordinary person. It's okay for me to sleep a little less. You should get more rest, Mother."

"But..." Ye Miaoyun wanted to persuade her daughter not to get up so early.

“Even if Father becomes emperor, dealing with the affairs of the Ten Great Daoist Sects will be very difficult. Zhengzheng and I need to improve our strength as soon as possible, otherwise Father may be at the mercy of others,” Ye Xianya said softly.

The current Ten Great Taoist Schools are not the same as the Ten Great Taoist Schools of the past.

If royalty is not careful, they will end up shooting themselves in the foot.

We mustn't have just driven away Consort Yi and her son, those two wolves, only to attract tigers and leopards in the process.

Most importantly, she had just killed Fang Qingzhu and Ye Fu'er, and the abbot of Biyun Temple hated her to the bone. Once that woman found out the truth, there would definitely be a big battle between them.

Of course, the leaf buds need to be prepared in advance.

She didn't want to get beaten up.

After watching her daughter and Zhengzheng leave, Ye Miaoyun sighed and went back inside.

Qi Jiu was half asleep when he reached out and pulled her into his arms, kissed her on the cheek, and then closed his eyes and fell asleep again.

Ye Miaoyun was somewhat amused and exasperated. After lying on the bed until dawn, she quietly got up to prepare breakfast.

Once breakfast was ready, she quickly asked Shen Furong to knock on the door and invite everyone to get up and have breakfast.

Shen Furong had only been gone for a short while when she hurriedly ran back to the kitchen.

"Madam, the eunuch guarding outside has come to report that Lady Lan requests an audience with the Crown Prince," Shen Furong announced loudly.

Ye Miaoyun was taken aback upon hearing this: "Which Madam Lan?"

"Replying to Madam, this servant doesn't know either; the eunuch didn't say!" Shen Furong shook her head.

"Since you're requesting an audience with the Crown Prince, then go and inform our Ninth Master. Whether he sees you or not is up to him." After saying this, Ye Miaoyun took a bowl and ladled out some porridge.

Having just finished washing up and coming out of the bathroom, Qi Jiu couldn't help but roll his eyes when he heard that a Madam Lan was requesting an audience with him. He said in a deep voice, "Tell her to get lost. Tell that shameless woman to keep her tail between her legs and behave herself from now on. If she dares to appear in front of me again, I will wipe out her entire family and exterminate her nine generations!"