Meanwhile, deep within the many palaces, lies the Eastern Palace.

Crown Prince Xiao Chengjing is trapped in a bizarre and fantastical dream.

There was no cold poison, no pain and hatred in Shen Yuewei's eyes as she died. The scene in the dream was warm to the point of being unreal, yet it carried a chilling sense of reality.

He found himself in an elegantly furnished, warm room, not the extravagant palace of the Eastern Palace, but more like the home of an ordinary wealthy family. Fine snow seemed to be falling outside the window, but the room was cozy and warm, with a soft crackling sound coming from the charcoal brazier. A faint milky aroma and a sweet floral and fruity scent filled the air.

In his arms, he was holding a tiny, incredibly soft swaddled baby.

It was a beautifully sculpted baby girl, no more than a few months old. She slept soundly, her eyes closed, her thick, curled eyelashes like two tiny fans casting soft shadows on her rosy cheeks. Her tiny nostrils twitched gently with her breath, and her delicate, petal-like lips unconsciously sucked, making soft smacking sounds. She was wrapped in a brocade swaddle blanket embroidered with exquisite lotus patterns, which made her little face appear even more adorable and fair.

An unprecedented, surging warmth instantly struck Xiao Chengjing's heart. The feeling was so unfamiliar, yet so comforting, as if a long-standing, cold, hard corner in his chest had been completely melted and filled by this tiny life. He held her carefully, his arms stiff, afraid that the slightest bit of force would disturb her slumber, yet also afraid that he wouldn't hold her tight enough and she would slip away. A clumsy, almost reverent joy welled up from the deepest part of his heart, washing over his entire body.

“Your Highness…” A gentle, familiar female voice sounded beside her.

Xiao Chengjing suddenly turned his head. It was Shen Yuewei! Not the Crown Princess who had become calm amidst the power struggles, whose eyes always held a hint of unfathomable glint, but a younger, more vibrant woman, her eyes radiating the gentle glow of a new mother, her cheeks flushed with a healthy blush, smiling as she looked at the child in his arms, her eyes overflowing with love.

“Look at her, sleeping so soundly.” Shen Yuewei’s voice was as soft as a feather. She reached out her finger and touched the baby girl’s soft cheek with utmost care, her fingertip filled with endless affection. “Her eyebrows and eyes are like His Highness’s, and her nose and mouth are like mine.”

Xiao Chengjing lowered his head, his gaze lingering greedily on his daughter's little face. The contours of her eyebrows and eyes did indeed vaguely resemble his own, while her small lips were strikingly similar to Wei'er's. A strange sense of satisfaction and immense pride, a feeling of blood ties connecting them, almost overwhelmed him. He couldn't help but lean down and gently rub his nose against his daughter's milky-scented cheek. The little one seemed startled, her little mouth pouting slightly in dissatisfaction, her tiny fist waving unconsciously, lightly brushing against his chin. That small, warm touch melted his heart into a pool of spring water.

"My daughter..." he whispered, his voice trembling with a joy he himself was unaware of. An unprecedented sense of happiness enveloped him like a warm tide. He looked up at Shen Yuewei, wanting to say something, wanting to tell her the tenderness that overflowed in his heart, a tenderness that almost burst forth from his chest.

However, the moment he looked up, the gentle smile on Shen Yuewei's face froze and faded. She looked at him, and the love in her clear almond-shaped eyes vanished instantly like mist blown away by a storm, replaced by endless coldness, deep-seated hatred, and... a bottomless despair.

“Your Highness…” Her voice changed, no longer the softness of a feather, but the sharpness of an icy blade, each word cutting into his heart, “Our child… she won’t survive… have you forgotten?”

Can't survive?

Xiao Chengjing's heart sank! The soft, warm touch in his arms instantly turned cold and stiff! He looked down in horror—

The baby girl in his swaddling clothes had stopped breathing sometime during the night! Her delicate pink face had turned ashen, with a deathly stillness. Those eyes, which should have been clear and innocent, were now eerily open, staring blankly at him, devoid of any life, only a deathly gray-white! Her tiny body, in his arms, was visibly growing cold and stiff!

"No—!!!" Xiao Chengjing let out a heart-wrenching scream, as if his heart had been squeezed and crushed by an invisible hand! Immense fear and overwhelming despair instantly engulfed him!

**(The Crown Prince wakes up in shock)**