"So today is New Year's Eve! I never imagined that we would still be adrift at sea in the dead of winter, celebrating the New Year along the way. I'll be almost old on my deathbed soon. Could it be that I'll still be at sea on my deathbed?" Xingxing let out a miserable cry. What should she do?

"I will try my best to bring you back as soon as possible." Zhu Lin didn't dare to make any promises too confidently, after all, human strength is limited and cannot contend with the will of Heaven.

Xingxing sighed for a while, but quickly calmed down and helped with the cooking. "It's good that you're with me, so I don't feel so unlucky."

"Don't worry, my senior brothers will definitely find a way to contact me. There is a kind of bird on Immortal Mist Island that can fly freely at sea and can find me by following my scent. As long as that bird finds me, my senior brothers will be able to find us quickly," Zhu Lin revealed casually.

Suddenly, Xingxing's eyes lit up. "What kind of bird is it? Is it an eagle?"

Looking into her sparkling eyes, Zhu Lin chuckled and explained, "It's not an eagle, but a very small snow hummingbird, only about the size of an adult's thumb. It's pure white and can travel 100,000 miles a day. Its sense of smell and speed are impeccable."

"It's only the size of a thumb, so will it eat bugs?" Xingxing was very curious.

"Hummingbirds naturally eat honey."

"How cute! It doesn't eat insects but loves to eat bees. Hummingbirds are like little fairies." Xingxing's eyes started to sparkle, her face full of longing. She wished that the hummingbirds raised on Fairy Mist Island could come to her right away so she could see their snow-white, fluffy fur.

The Imperial Palace in the capital.

The Empress had not received any letters from Xingxing for more than half a year and was very anxious. She would ask the Emperor for news from time to time. The Emperor kept it a secret, but after a while, he was getting very tired of dealing with it.

Later, he simply avoided seeing her, saying that he was too busy with state affairs to see the Empress. In the past two years, due to his poor health, he had not stayed overnight in the inner palace for a long time, so he simply slept in the Qin Zheng Hall.

Without the emperor's permission, no concubine dared to step into the Hall of Diligent Governance, a crucial place where the emperor and his ministers discussed state affairs. The consequences of trespassing would be unimaginable.

The Empress was helpless and could only wander around outside the Hall of Diligent Governance from time to time. In the past, the Emperor would have definitely summoned her in, but in the past six months, he had been adamant and had not summoned her even once.

It wasn't until the 28th day of the twelfth lunar month, almost New Year's Eve, that he had dinner with the Empress at Huayun Palace. He only gave instructions about the New Year's Eve banquet and left after sitting for a short while.

"Why does the Emperor always avoid me, Granny Chen? Has something happened to Long'er?" The Empress asked, wiping away her tears with a worried expression.

"Your Majesty, please don't overthink it. His Majesty is just overworked. He has finally recovered, but there are so many matters in the court that await his attention. His Majesty has had a hard time. In the past two years, he has not stayed overnight in any of the concubines' palaces. Even when Consort Duan wanted to see His Majesty, she was left waiting outside the Hall of Diligent Governance. His Majesty has absolutely no intention of avoiding you."

Granny Chen spoke with certainty, as if she could read the Emperor's mind.

"Ah? Now that you hear what the old lady says, it seems that's true," the Empress said, her mind somewhat dazed. She rubbed her forehead and stood up, saying, "I'm tired, help me to rest."

Granny Chen and several senior palace maids helped the Empress to bed. Only after the sound of even breathing came from inside the tent did they breathe a sigh of relief and slowly retreat.

Grandma Chen was too old, so the Empress didn't need her to keep watch at night; instead, several senior palace maids took turns doing so.

After leaving Huayun Palace, Granny Chen hurried to Qinzheng Hall. After explaining her purpose to the eunuch outside, the eunuch went into the hall to report, and soon the emperor summoned her in to give a reply.

"This old servant greets Your Majesty, long live the Emperor!" Granny Chen knelt respectfully on the ground.

"Rise, Granny Chen. Has the Empress suspected anything?" The Emperor usually spoke with an air of authority that came from long-standing high positions, but now his tone was tinged with helplessness.

"Your Majesty, the Empress did indeed ask about this matter today..." Chen Mama reported everything the Empress had said to the Emperor.

"You did a good job. Go back and continue to comfort the Empress. Under no circumstances should she know about the princess's disappearance." The Empress has always been in poor health. If she suffers another blow, she may fall seriously ill again.

The emperor was also very worried about the empress. A few days ago, when the empress couldn't see him, she actually summoned Zhu Chumo, hoping to find out something from him.

Fortunately, Zhu Chumo was tight-lipped and very composed. No matter how the Empress asked, he dodged the questions with evasive skill. The Empress tried to use her status to put pressure on him, but Zhu Chumo was completely unafraid and remained indifferent from beginning to end. No one could get a single word out of him.

To be honest, the Emperor wanted to cancel the palace banquet this year, but he decided to hold it to appease the Empress and prevent her from becoming suspicious. Of course, it was also to appease Consort Duan, since Prince Cheng had such a big incident, and Consort Duan was still being kept in the dark.

Imperial Censor Zheng probably knew what had happened in Anyang Prefecture, but the emperor was forbidding him from making it public. Even though Imperial Censor Zheng was worried about his grandson, he dared not pass on the news of Prince Cheng to his daughter without authorization.

The emperor is not easily fooled. Emperor Taikang has always been ruthless and decisive. Otherwise, why hasn't the country descended into chaos and the Jin Dynasty changed hands despite the years of natural disasters after his ascension to the throne?

Naturally, the emperor's power is sufficient to suppress the restlessness of his subordinates. If the emperor were to truly become angry, the consequences would be far beyond what these ministers could bear.

Of course, it was also Prince Cheng who wrote a personal letter to Imperial Censor Zheng, instructing him not to tell the Consort about what happened in Anyang Prefecture. He said that once he had recovered from his injuries, he would ask the Emperor to allow him to return to the capital to see the Consort.

Imperial Censor Zheng had vaguely mentioned that the Emperor had indicated he would issue an edict summoning Prince Cheng back to the capital so that he and his mother could meet.

In the warm spring of March, when flowers were in bloom, Zhu Chumo prescribed more than a dozen doses of medicine for the emperor, along with an additional prescription. "These medicines should be decocted and drunk once every three days. After you finish them, have the imperial physician prescribe more medicine for you according to this prescription. The emperor's health is now fine, and I, Zhu, am about to leave the capital and return to Xianwu Island."

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