As darkness fell, Su Youchen hurriedly arrived at the Yun residence.

He found You Ran and exclaimed in shock, "You Ran, why is it a decree of investiture? It's not a marriage decree, nor an imperial edict for her to enter the palace to treat the Empress Dowager's illness?"

You Ran first explained the matter concerning the Crown Princess, then asked in surprise, "Why would it be an imperial decree to enter the palace to treat the Empress Dowager's health?"

Su Youchen smiled wryly, "That day, when I sent Qianqian and Wanwan's names to the palace, the Emperor asked me what my plan was. I knew you didn't really want to go to the palace, but I also didn't want you to be separated from your children, so I hinted to the Emperor that I could summon you to the palace in the name of the Empress Dowager. That way, you could be with Qianqian and Wanwan, and also..."

He touched his nose and didn't continue.

You Ran suddenly realized why Chu Heng kept saying he wouldn't force her, but then he had the Empress Dowager issue an imperial edict, which was a formal investiture edict.

Su Youchen continued, "Unexpectedly, he misunderstood; the imperial edict to enter the palace became an imperial edict of investiture."

You Ran stared at her brother with a forced smile, "Since it's a misunderstanding, why don't you go to the palace again and return the imperial decree to him for me?"

Su Youchen shook his head frantically, "How can that be? Disobeying an imperial decree means the execution of the entire family!"

You Ran chuckled, "Then perhaps, brother, you could go to the palace in my place?"

"This is getting more and more absurd! My brother can go to the palace in your place, and he can even make you fall in love with the Emperor over time?"

You Ran suddenly sprang up, gritting her teeth as she hurled the bright yellow scroll at her brother, "Anyway, whoever came up with the bad idea should take responsibility!"

Su Youchen raised his arm, and the scroll flew towards the door.

A slender hand reached out and steadily received the imperial edict.

Upon seeing this, Su Youchen coughed twice and quickly fled.

You Ran gave a cold snort, clearly annoyed, and sat back down at the table.

Chu Heng walked in, rolled up the imperial edict, placed it on the table, and hesitated for a long time before saying, "So... it turns out that I misunderstood my brother-in-law's meaning."

"Now that you know it's a misunderstanding, Your Majesty should withdraw your order," she said coldly.

Chu Heng was taken aback, then shook his head. "You know that's impossible. Besides... this might be my only chance to marry you."

"So, you knew your brother's intentions, yet you still deliberately requested the imperial decree for the investiture?"

You raised his head leisurely, his expression even colder. "If it's for the sake of the children, Your Majesty need not do so. I can see them often even when I'm outside the palace. Besides, I know a little about the rules in the Great Zhou Palace. Children begin their education at the age of four. The two children have reached that age, so even if we were both in the palace, I might not see them often."

Chu Heng was filled with pain. "You Ran, why? Why don't you want to enter the palace? Just pretend you're marrying Senior Brother Yuan Bai, is that not enough?"

She took a deep breath. "Five years ago, the moment I removed your mask, Senior Brother Yuan Bai died in my heart. Besides, I originally planned to marry him because he was already dying. So, Your Majesty, please don't lower yourself. You can play Yuan Bai once, but can you play Yuan Bai for a lifetime?"

Chu Heng remained silent for a long time before speaking in a hoarse voice, "If this is the only reason you are willing to stay by my side, I am willing to play the role of Yuan Bai in front of you for the rest of my life."

You Ran's heart clenched uncontrollably. This man, this supreme ruler of the world, why...?

She really wanted to ask herself why.

On the way back to Beijing, during the nights when they rested, she always spent time with the children, and he always spent time with her.

The two slept in the same bed and ate at the same table. With their child by their side as a bridge, their relationship seemed to have eased and become much closer.

But she knew in her heart that if he were an ordinary person, they could live together peacefully for the rest of their lives.

But he isn't!

She found it difficult to articulate this reason.

Chu Heng was delighted by the journey back to Beijing.

He always felt that if she accepted him by her side, it meant she cared about him.

As for Su Youchen's idea of ​​achieving mutual affection through daily interaction, he felt it wasn't difficult.

Adding to Su Youchen's words that day, it basically meant that the Yun family had agreed to You Ran's marriage.

He then went to request the Empress Dowager's decree.

Today, Changfu came to deliver an imperial decree, and he missed her even more, so he went out of the palace to see her.

Unexpectedly, she still resisted.

The two remained silent for a moment.

After a long pause, a ridiculous thought suddenly popped into his head, and he asked, "Is there someone else in your heart?"

Contrary to what she had previously thought, she liked Yuan Bai, but couldn't accept that Yuan Bai and he were the same person.

A woman is willing to give birth to her own child, but unwilling to accept him, a dignified emperor?

It doesn't make sense no matter how you look at it.

He was determined to get to the bottom of it.

You Ran felt her heart clench again.

She shook her head instinctively, "No."

He stared intently into her eyes. "Look at me, look at me. Is it really nothing?"

She looked up into his eyes and shook her head, but for some reason, she couldn't bring herself to say the words.

Chu Heng felt utterly despondent for a moment.

So that's the truth!

She has someone else in her heart!

No wonder, even his noble status as the emperor and empress could not move her!

They even have a child together, but she still refuses to marry him!

A sudden surge of rage welled up in his eyes. "Who is he?!"

You Ran stared at him in astonishment.

He had never shown such an expression in front of her before.

Chu Heng suddenly stood up and slammed his palm on the table, shattering the small table into pieces.

The imperial edict fell to the ground.

He clenched his fists tightly, afraid that he might hurt her in his anger, and quickly left the courtyard.

She sat there without moving, wondering blankly if there was someone in her heart.

Who is that person?

The image of the person from her previous life who would always hug her from behind in the dark, comforting her like a child, flashed through her mind.

In two weeks, it will be her birthday.

That person should appear in that dilapidated temple by now, right?

Perhaps he is now living in a dilapidated temple!

Thinking of this, she summoned Suyue and asked her to arrange for a servant to guard the dilapidated temple.

...

The next day, as expected, the head maid of the Imperial Clothing Bureau led a group of palace maids to respectfully carry a box of clothes over for You Ran to try on.

Although You Ran was a little impatient, she had been living a very down-to-earth life over the years and knew that everyone had their own responsibilities and difficulties. She did not make things difficult for them and tried them one by one, letting them decide.

There were more than a dozen sets of clothes, from nightgowns to phoenix crowns, all made of the finest materials and with exquisite craftsmanship. The sizes varied slightly, but not excessively, and it was unclear whose measurements they had taken.

Out of curiosity, she asked, "Why are the sizes so similar? Whose measurements did you use to make them?"

The head maid respectfully replied, "After His Majesty ascended the throne, he ordered the Imperial Wardrobe to begin preparing the Empress's clothes. We've made several in various sizes. This box contains the sizes His Majesty personally selected yesterday."