"Do you know what your behavior means?" Zuan turned around, his voice a little hoarse.

"I know." Sensing the aggression in the other person's eyes, Meng Chan's voice trembled slightly.

Zuan didn't say anything more, but turned her around and pressed her against the wall.

Meng Chan's heart pounded wildly. Although she had come to find the other party with some mental preparation, she was still caught off guard by being here like this.

However, this novel experience filled her with both fear and a hint of anticipation. Her body displayed amazing flexibility, with her upper body pressed tightly against the wall and her waist almost parallel to the ground.

...

The next day, Zuan returned to Dong'e Fish Peak, feeling refreshed and invigorated. The ferocity he had felt from his previous bloody battle with the demons had been completely released, and he had also fully mastered the cultivation of the War Priest.

Previously, when I was with Bi Linglong, I always felt too much pity for her, which made it difficult to achieve this effect.

Meanwhile, back at the Prince of Dai's residence, Meng Chan dragged her weary body home, where the Prince of Dai, in his wheelchair, was already waiting for her in the courtyard.

"Weren't we supposed to be chatting at your best friend's house? Why are you back so late?" Dai Wang glanced at the sunset in the distance and fell silent.

"We chatted too late yesterday and I was quite tired, so I took a nap during the day." Meng Chan's expression was a little unnatural.

The Prince tightened his grip on the wheelchair, then relaxed it again: "Which best friend is it that's willing to befriend you at a time like this? It truly shows that true friendship is revealed in times of trouble."

"She's the wife of the Wang family. We've been friends since childhood. Sigh, you wouldn't know even if I told you," Meng Chan said casually before hurrying away.

Suddenly, the king called out to her, "What happened to your neck? Why are you turning your collar up to cover it? Are you injured?"

"It's too cold outside, this is warmer." Meng Chan said hastily, leaving him no chance to ask any more questions, and walked away quickly.

"No matter what, you must take care of yourself," the Prince of Dai called out to her retreating figure.

Meng Chan stumbled and almost fell, unsure whether her legs were weak or she was frightened by his words.

...

A few days later, Crown Prince Zhao Ruizhi officially ascended the throne as the new emperor, adopting the reign title Yongping, which meant eternal peace throughout the land.

Crown Princess Bi Linglong naturally became the new Empress, while the original Empress Liu Ning became the Empress Dowager.

Normally, Bi Linglong would move into Kunning Palace, which symbolizes the Empress, while Liu Ning would move into Cining Palace, which symbolizes the Empress Dowager.

However, Liu Ning was used to living in Kunning Palace and did not want to move.

Bi Linglong also didn't want to move into the palace where she had lived for so many years. Moreover, the East Palace held too many wonderful memories, and the tunnels inside had witnessed her love with her lover. She didn't want to move either.

This greatly worried the officials at all levels in the palace. In the end, Zu'an came up with a solution that would satisfy both sides.

Both of them lived in the original palace. The plaque of Cining Palace was placed at Liu Ning's place, and the plaque of Kunning Palace was placed at the East Palace. The East Palace was then transformed into the new Kunning Palace.

Since Zhao Ruizhi doesn't have a crown prince yet, the Eastern Palace won't be needed for the time being, so the two women reluctantly accepted.

Next, led by Zu'an, the court officials held a grand enthronement ceremony and granted a general amnesty.

The hope was that this would alleviate the unease among the people caused by Zhao Hao's sudden death, and at the same time, quickly unite the entire court to face the upcoming crisis.

However, another problem arose during the ceremony: during the part where all the officials were supposed to kneel before the new emperor, Zu'an stood there alone without kneeling.

All eyes fell on him, and the entire room fell into an eerie silence.