The following day, Hongli took advantage of Hongzhou's stay in the palace to spend more time with him.

Although Hongli and Hongzhou had always had a harmonious relationship, because Hongzhou did not have much ambition for the throne, and there was no open or covert struggle between them, even with such a harmonious relationship, they could not help but harbor some resentment towards each other, since they both knew that the other was not their biological brother.

Hongli is in this situation now. Ever since he learned that they were twins born of the same mother, he has wanted to get closer to Hongzhou.

Hongli had never understood why his mother cared so much about Hongzhou, but now he understood. He also saw Lanqin's deep guilt towards Hongzhou. Since Lanqin couldn't make up for it directly, Hongli wanted to help Lanqin make it up to Hongzhou.

More importantly, Hongli first wanted to fulfill Lanqin's regret. Although Lanqin and the others did not tell Hongli that they would move out of the palace after Hongli ascended the throne, Hongli knew that Lanqin and the Fourth Prince did not want to stay in the Forbidden City anymore. Therefore, Hongli wanted to let Lanqin know that he would treat Hongzhou well while Lanqin was in the palace.

Therefore, Hongli held a banquet at Chonghua Palace and sent someone to Xianfu Palace to invite Hongzhou and his wife over.

Meanwhile, Lanqin, who was in Changchun Palace, learned that Hongli had hosted a banquet for Hongzhou, so she went to Xianfu Palace. Lanqin knew it was time to talk to Geng Shi and dispel her worries.

Geng Shi did not expect Lan Qin to come to Xianfu Palace, but judging from Lan Qin's appearance, she knew that Lan Qin had something to say to her. She waved her hand to signal the servants around her to leave. Qiu Yun was the last to leave. After she closed the door, she left the two of them alone in the hall to talk.

After the palace maids had all left, Lanqin slowly said, "Now that Hongli is the emperor, he will naturally not mistreat Hongzhou, so you don't need to worry, sister."

Upon hearing Lanqin's words, Geng's pupils dilated slightly. She never expected Lanqin to directly thwart her purpose for coming, and her expression turned somewhat unpleasant. However, she was still very happy to hear Lanqin's words; obtaining Lanqin's promise was actually more effective than obtaining the Fourth Master's protection.

Over the years, although Madam Geng had never wanted to admit it, the fact was that whenever Lanqin asked, Fourth Master had never refused.

Geng sighed softly, looked out the empty window and said slowly, "I did it all for Hongzhou. I want him to live out his life in peace."

She didn't use the title "this Empress," but rather "I." No matter how high Geng's status was, she was still just a mother.

Lanqin knew all too well the good intentions Geng had for Hongzhou, and she was very grateful to Geng. Lanqin nodded and said, "Hongzhou has been raised by my sister until now, and she has raised him very well."

Geng said, "Then tomorrow the Imperial Palace will leave the palace with Hongzhou and return to the residence."

Geng was truly exhausted. She had sacrificed so much in the first half of her life, but now all she wanted was for Hongzhou to be well. She didn't want to live in the Forbidden City any longer. No matter how good the palace was, it wasn't as comfortable as living in Rongyi Courtyard in Prince He's residence.

Seeing the weariness in Geng's eyes, Lanqin nodded and continued, "Sister, please come to Changchun Palace again tomorrow."

Lanqin still wanted to see Hongzhou more often, because she didn't know when they would meet again.

Geng nodded in agreement.