Chapter 65: Staying Up All Years Old Xuanye had learned this from childhood...

Xuanye had been ingrained with the art of balance since childhood. Of course, this "art" of his applied primarily to his previous reign. Before meeting Xiu Yu, he prided himself on being able to treat everyone equally, treating them all with kindness. Of course, Tong Jia and Zi Fu, because they were cousins, had a different way of interacting with each other than with others.

After meeting Xiu Yu, he tried to remember the Imperial Madam's teachings: 'Grace without honoring' was the way to long-term success. However, when he truly loved her, he couldn't help himself, and he found it difficult to control himself.

But tonight was different after all. The queen had just been appointed and it was New Year's Eve. From any perspective, Xuanye should stay with Nianhulu Yanlan to celebrate the New Year. This not only followed the ancestral rules but also gave face to the queen. No one in the harem could say anything.

At first, Xuanye naturally did the same thing. He stood with Niuhulu Yanlan while watching the fireworks, and when the fireworks ended, he returned to Kunning Palace with Niuhulu Yanlan. But to be honest, whether he felt uncomfortable or not, only he knew.

Fortunately, Nianhulu Yanlan was not good at drinking. During the family banquet, Xuanye's women forced her to drink a lot of wine. After returning to Kunning Palace, Xuanye continued to coax her to drink. Before midnight, she fell dizzy on the bed.

Xuanye achieved his goal and stood up and said to Liang Jiugong, "Is there any military report left to read in the Palace of Heavenly Purity?"

Liang Jiugong was stunned at first, then he reacted: "It was delivered early this morning. You have been busy all day and haven't finished reading it yet." As he spoke, he put a fox fur coat on Xuanye.

Xuanye nodded, and then instructed the maidservant serving Niuhulu Yanlan: "Take good care of the Empress. Go and make some hangover soup. When Yanlan wakes up, give it to her."

"Yes." The palace maid bowed and saw Xuanye off.

After leaving Kunning Palace, the bright yellow boots made a crunching sound as they stepped into the snow. As Xuanye walked towards Yikun Palace, he praised Liang Jiugong: "Your ability to make up lies is getting better and better. When I say something, you can come up with the next sentence without even thinking."

Liang Jiugong quickly followed Xuanye and said, "I have been with the master for a long time, so I can understand what the master means by what he does."

Xuanye was in a good mood at the moment, so he didn't think about "how dare you guess my thoughts" and just said, "Yu'er is pregnant. That family dinner just now lasted a bit too long. I don't know how she is now. I should go and check on her, don't you think?"

It was rare that the master actually asked him, "Isn't that right?" Liang Jiugong immediately replied, "Master Yi is the most understanding of the emperor's helplessness, but today is a special day. If you don't go, Xiao Tao will probably be the only one to accompany Master Yi to celebrate the New Year."

"If I go over now, you can spend the New Year's Eve with Xiao Tao?" Xuanye glanced at Liang Jiugong: "Is that why you were so clever just now?"

"Your Majesty has wronged me." Liang Jiugong hastened to clear himself: "I have only cared about the happiness of my masters, but never thought about myself at all."

Xuanye snorted, "It's okay to think about it. Xiao Tao is a smart girl. If you help her a little, she might be able to help you someday. It's not a bad thing."

Liang Jiugong naturally knew what the emperor meant by "helping" and replied, "Xiao Tao is wholeheartedly protecting Master Yi. I think that if I treat Xiao Tao well, it means that the emperor will treat Master Yi well."

"Wow!" After hearing this, Xuanye actually looked at Liang Jiugong with a different eye: "I didn't notice that you have become so good at speaking."

"Your Majesty, you are so kind." Liang Jiugong said, "I have been with Your Majesty for a long time. Your Majesty is eloquent, and I have learned from him."

Xuanye raised his hand and patted Liang Jiugong on the forehead: "Just because I praise you, don't you think you don't know how high the sky is and how thick the earth is? Just follow me and do your job honestly. Don't think of taking shortcuts."

Liang Jiugong immediately said, "How dare I? Besides, my master is very clear-headed and has a sharp eye. Nothing in this world can escape your eyes."

Xuanye hummed, but his mood became cheerful and his steps became lighter. The crunching sound of the snow sounded like the music of nature to his ears.

In the Yikun Palace, Xiu Yu was busy in the small kitchen with Xiao Tao. The other servants who served Xiu Yu were "driven" away by her master to play elsewhere. Xiao Tao was kneading dough under Xiu Yu's guidance.

"Master, I said something inappropriate, please don't scold me." Xiao Tao bent his right arm and rubbed his forehead with his right hand. A layer of flour soon stuck to his forehead.

Xiu Yu wiped her hair with a handkerchief and said with a smile, "Just say it. Today is New Year's Eve, so there are no taboos."

Xiao Tao said, "I think the Queen is a little silly."

"Huh?" Xiu Yu thought Xiao Tao was going to say something, but when she heard her evaluation of the Queen, she was a little surprised: "How do you say that?"

Xiao Tao had sharp ears and could tell it was indeed very quiet outside, so he continued, "You know, she can't hold her liquor. The ladies in the harem all know that, and the Emperor knows it too. Her family sent her gifts, so why would they send her alcohol? It's obvious they're contradicting themselves and testing you."

Xiu Yu was amused by Xiao Tao's joke: "You, when it's just you and me, you can still talk nonsense, but when you go out, you can't talk about this anymore."

"Of course, I only dare to complain when it's just you and me." Xiao Tao took the prepared noodles out of the basin: "In fact, now that she's the queen, in the Forbidden City harem, besides the Grand Empress Dowager and the Empress Dowager, only the Empress is the most powerful. If I were her..."

Xiu Yu used chopsticks in her right hand to stir the chive and egg filling clockwise, rubbed her lower back with her left hand, and asked curiously, "If you were her, what would you do?"

"Just sit back and watch the show." Xiao Tao replied swiftly, "Let them fight and argue as they please. I'll remain unmoved. My position is already there, and no one can surpass it."

Seeing that the dumpling filling was almost cooked, Xiu Yu stood up and poured himself a glass of warm water. "People are always greedy, and they always want more. I'm afraid everyone is like that."

"I thought, Master, you weren't that kind of person." Xiao Tao said sincerely, "Your heart is filled with the stars and the ocean."

Xiu Yu smiled and shook his head: "The sea of stars? Your master's shop is barely making ends meet."

"There has to be a process." Xiao Tao skillfully rolled out the dumpling wrappers: "I believe in Master, whatever you want to do, you can always accomplish it."

"As for me," Xiu Yu smiled mysteriously. "Now I really want to make some money. Being the emperor's concubine is really tight." She sighed, touching her bulging belly and sighing, "When I was the chief engineer, I didn't feel short of money, so I gradually forgot about those early days. Now that I'm starting to earn money again, I remember the difficulties of making money."

Xiao Tao wanted to chat with his master again, but when he heard a sound coming from outside the small kitchen, he winked at Xiu Yu.

Xiu Yu understood immediately, but pretended nothing happened. She picked up the dumpling wrapper that Xiao Tao had just rolled out with her right hand and made a small dumpling.

Xuanye quietly entered the room, walked to Xiuyu's side, and said, "Haven't you prepared anything for me?"

Xiu Yu's acting skills weren't great, and of course she didn't want to act either. She just said, "I thought you wouldn't come."

"I can't bear to leave." Xuanye gestured for Xiao Tao and Liang Jiugong to leave together. He put his arm around Xiu Yu and said, "I came to you to admit my mistake."

"What mistake are you admitting?" Xiu Yu asked knowingly.

Xuanye replied, "I told everyone about the child without your consent. Am I right?"

Xiu Yu turned around and looked up at Xuan Ye, saying, "Alright, they've all guessed it, and we can't hide it any longer. Now that we've spoken out, we'll have to deal with it head-on."

"Where there are soldiers, there is water." Xuanye still believed that he could protect Xiuyu well: "You, just stay in Yikun Palace with peace of mind. The child will be born safely."

Xiu Yu nodded and said, "Let it go. If you don't wrap it up, it will be past midnight."

"Didn't you see Liang Jiugong brought in a food box?" Xuanye hugged her tighter. "The dumplings are in the food box, still warm. If you want to eat them, you can eat them anytime. But I ate too much just now, so I don't feel like eating anymore."

"Then let go. It's uncomfortable like this." Xiu Yu gently held Xuanye's big hands on her lower abdomen. "I'm afraid the baby can't bear it."

This time, Xuanye didn't dare to act rashly. He helped Xiu Yu sit down and said, "When I came here, I was still wondering if the family dinner was too long and whether you would get hurt."

"Of course not." Xiu Yu opened the lunch box, and there were indeed cooked dumplings inside. "I'm also a martial artist, so even if I sit for another two hours, it won't be a problem."

Xuanye also sat down, picked up the chopsticks, and handed a pair to Xiuyu: "The imperial chef's cooking skills are not bad, try it."

Xiu Yu poured Xuanye half a bowl of water and said, "It's cold outside, drink some hot water before eating."

Outside the small kitchen, Liang Jiugong and Xiao Tao were also sitting at a table with a plate of dumplings in the middle.

"The master specifically ordered that we stay up together to celebrate the New Year." Liang Jiugong said as he picked up a dumpling for Xiao Tao: "It's made with zucchini and shrimp, the imperial chef's specialty."

As Xiao Tao ate, he sighed, "My master's dumplings are still the best."

"Your Majesty is just afraid of tiring your master." Liang Jiugong said bluntly: "He deliberately went around to the imperial kitchen and almost scared the cook."

Xiao Tao was amused: "The Emperor even went to the imperial kitchen?"

"Of course." Liang Jiugong said to Xiao Tao while eating dumplings, "I was afraid that we would miss the time, so I walked too fast. I, your brother, rushed to catch up with you and I'm still a little out of breath."

"Tsk." Xiao Tao looked down on him. "Brother, you still need to practice more to improve your physique."

"That's not necessary." Liang Jiugong nodded towards the inner room and said, "The Emperor is usually very calm, except when it comes to matters related to your master."