She was terrified!

If she could find a subordinate of the Crown Prince to be her principal wife, then any children she had would be legitimate sons and daughters.

They won't be looked down upon like they were. Her children will be able to hold their heads high in the future.

Mengqing hesitated for a moment; she didn't want to live the same life as her aunt.

"I need to get down to business."

"That's right." Mengyao smiled with satisfaction.

"I'll take you to see the Crown Prince in a bit. You can also take a look at the people there, and there will be an older sister who will help you make a decision."

Mengqing was extremely grateful. She never expected that her eldest sister, who was always aloof and looked down on them, the illegitimate children, actually had feelings for her.

"Then I'll have to trouble you with Qing'er's matter, elder sister."

"Qing'er, we're sisters, if I don't think about you, who else should I think about?"

Mengyao's eyes were gentle, and Mengqing was overjoyed, but she didn't notice the unspeakable ruthlessness in Mengyao's eyes.

The legal wife? You're a lowly wretch born of a concubine, do you even deserve to be called her?

Unfortunately, Meng Qing was so overwhelmed by happiness that she never imagined that what awaited her was a road of no return.

...

"Your Majesty." Chu Xia looked at Meng Yao, who looked dejected, and felt a pang of heartache.

She stood in the courtyard, a huge courtyard where only the two of them were present.

From a room not far away, one could still hear a man's low growls and a woman's soft moans of pleas for mercy.

Tender and poignant, melodious and low-pitched.

Mengyao stood there in the courtyard, listening silently.

She looked up at the sky.

The stars are shining brightly, but there is no moon tonight.

"Your Majesty, please rest."

Chu Xia felt a pang of pity, but Meng Yao sighed softly:

Why rest?

"Your Majesty..."

How could the Empress feel comfortable listening to her man making love with another woman?

"Wait a minute."

She still needed to go in later, since she should be the one with the Crown Prince today.

Mengyao clenched her fists tightly.

Her long fingernails had already dug into her palms, but she felt no pain at all.

Sometimes she thought, how wonderful it would have been if Prince Zhen hadn't gotten into trouble. Such a cold and aloof person, surely he wouldn't have thought about other women?

"Your Majesty..."

Chu Xia's eyes were red with grievance; she felt wronged for their empress.

"Alright, we should be inside soon. Remember to take her away and hide her well later."

...

Although it's only the beginning of spring, the people of Hutouya Village have already started getting busy.

The roof of the farm has been repaired, and it has been cleaned inside and out.

The land outside the farm is also being turned over; the area has been abandoned for a year, so everyone is not moving very fast.

"Ah, if only it would rain."

Will it rain this year?

Everyone chatted casually as they worked.

"If it doesn't rain soon, we won't even have enough water to drink."

Fortunately, the wells in their village are quite deep. I heard that in some villages, not a single well with water has been found.

"That's true, but didn't Xue say that this year's harvest is pretty good?"

Some people blindly believe Han Luoxue.

"By the way, when are Han Feng and the others leaving?"

Where there are many people, there is much gossip.

How would I know?

That day, Han Luoxue went to settle accounts with Lu Xiaonan, and the two old men were also looking for someone in the village.

As expected, both families also received grain.

Although there aren't many, wolfhounds have a very keen sense of smell.

They have no choice but to admit it.

When Han Qiang found out, he was furious and told them to leave Hutouya Village after the New Year.

However, they haven't left yet.

They probably want to stay put, since nowhere is better off than their village.

"Hmph, we have no choice but to leave this time, and we're not happy about it either."

When someone in the village commits dishonest acts, everyone feels disgusted.

"Have Han Qiang urge him in a few days."

Everyone nodded.

"Speaking of which, Xue's red-skinned sweet potato tastes really good."

"It tastes better than regular sweet potatoes, but it's a bit dry."

Everyone burst into laughter, excited at the thought of turning that stuff into money. They couldn't wait to start planting it right now.

"What does Tingxue mean by planting all of these plants?"

"Shall we plant some too?"

They realized after six months that following Han Luoxue was the right thing to do.

"sure."

Hearing everyone's excited voices, Han Luoxue was also very happy. It's good to have something to look forward to.

"Sister Xue, someone at home is looking for you."

Hearing Han Yuze's shout from afar, Han Luoxue said in surprise:

"People outside?"

"Yes, it's a woman, not very old."

This made Han Luoxue even more curious. She told Yunniang and hurried back.

How did you find this place?

Han Luoxue was still extremely surprised when she saw who had arrived.

If Zhou Jie came here at this time, she must have just come out after the New Year.

"Ugh, stop talking. My heartless older brother didn't even tell me he was coming out." Zhou Jie pouted unhappily, her face full of dissatisfaction.

"He had something to do when he came last time."

It's likely that Zhou Yuan was also conscripted. The old general forced him to come.

“But he could have brought me with him, Xue’er. You don’t know how boring it is in the capital without you.”

"Where's Doubao?" Zhou Jie was also missing the little tiger; she hadn't seen it last time.

"It's inconvenient for them to be released. I haven't even visited their mother since I came back this time."

Han Luoxue kept saying she would go, but she never had the time.

My dear reader, there's more to this chapter! Please click the next page to continue reading—even more exciting content awaits!