Su Yushan didn't dare to reveal her true intentions, and tentatively asked, "What do you mean by that? What would be considered illogical?"

Hongli thought about it all day long, even considering the most outrageous possibilities, "For example... you're not human, but a demon in disguise?"

"A fairy?" Su Yushan, who was originally feeling sad, was both amused and exasperated upon hearing this, and she was quite impressed by his imagination. "Who told you I'm a fairy?"

Today, Yu Shan seemed hesitant to speak, as if she had something difficult to say. Hongli couldn't help but think of that play.

"In the Legend of the White Snake, Bai Suzhen was a demon in disguise. Although Xu Xian was surprised, he eventually accepted her. If you were also a demon, I could accept you too."

"..." His imagination was far too vivid, completely exceeding her expectations. Su Yushan was utterly bewildered, unsure whether to laugh or be touched, and gave a soft, dissatisfied snort:

"Why do you think I'm a demon? Can't I be a celestial fairy?"

After careful consideration, Hongli stared intently at her and said very seriously:

"Did you descend to the mortal realm to undergo tribulation? After you complete your tribulation, you must return. That ring is the magic weapon for your return, which is why you suddenly entrusted me with taking good care of the child?"

If she were truly a fairy, able to freely choose between going to Heaven and descending to the mortal realm, that would be wonderful. Unfortunately, she is a time traveler, a situation seemingly more terrifying than that of gods or ghosts, and her complete inability to control the shifts in time and space is what truly causes her distress.

However, Hongli's guess coincidentally hit the nail on the head regarding her current situation. That ring might be the key to her return, but she couldn't be sure at the moment, nor did she dare to verify it; it was just a guess.

With a soft sigh, Su Yushan looked back at him and said seriously, "There are no ghosts or gods. I am just an ordinary person, and I have no intention of leaving you. We have been together for so many years, and I have gotten used to having you by my side. I can't bear to leave either you or the children."

That one sentence was enough. Hongli suddenly didn't want to investigate her background anymore. As long as she cared about him, he didn't care if she was hiding something from him.

Pressuring him too much will only make everyone unhappy, so let's just consider it a white lie! But he still has to take that ring, just in case.

Let him take it! Out of sight, out of mind. She could pretend she'd never seen the ring and continue living with him as before.

After experiencing a nightmare, the two stopped their cold war, reconciled, and never mentioned the ring again.

The following days were relatively peaceful. Without the Empress Dowager's control, Hongli felt much more at ease.

The Empress Dowager thought that her son would regret it soon and bring her back to the palace. However, a month and a half had passed, and Hongli had only written two letters of greeting, but neither of them mentioned bringing her back.

The Empress Dowager was getting restless, so she sent a message to Qi Lu and then had Gao Xiuwen report to her on the situation in the palace.

Since the Empress Dowager had asked, Gao Xiuwen couldn't ignore it, but she felt a little guilty if she replied to the Empress Dowager directly.

After much deliberation, she wrote a letter in her own hand and then ordered a eunuch from Zhongcui Palace to take the letter to the Emperor.

Li Yu led him to the Hall of Mental Cultivation, where the young eunuch bowed and said, "This servant greets Your Majesty. This is what Her Majesty instructed me to give you."

After speaking, he handed the letter to Li Yu, who then passed it on to the Emperor.

Hongli took the letter, opened it, and found that it was a letter from Gao Xiuwen to the Empress Dowager.

After the emperor finished reading, the young eunuch continued, "The Empress Dowager has asked a question, and Her Highness dares not refuse to answer. Her Highness wishes to have the Emperor review it to see if it is appropriate. If there are no problems, she will then have it sent to Changchun Garden."

The implication is that this was the Empress Dowager's order, and she was only forced to reply. Even after replying, she made sure the Emperor reviewed the letter first to demonstrate her loyalty.

Gao Xiuwen was always cautious in her work and would not leave any handles to be used against her. Moreover, she was very intelligent. Although she received the Empress Dowager's favor, she did not truly rely on the Empress Dowager. Hongli admired such an intelligent woman, but that was all he admired.

After all, he had seen too many cunning and shrewd people in the imperial court, and he was always wary of such people and would not confide in them.

After glancing at it briefly, Hongli closed the paper. "Since it's to pay respects to the Empress Dowager, then send it over!"

Having received permission, the young eunuch immediately returned to the palace to report back, and Gao Xiuwen was relieved to send the letter out.

She didn't speak ill of Su Yushan; the matter she reported was utterly ordinary. After reading it, the Empress Dowager sighed and rubbed her forehead.

“When I’m not in the palace, Hongli doesn’t miss me at all. I’ve raised this son for nothing! All my efforts in carrying him for ten months, giving birth to him and raising him have been in vain.”

Granny Mei thought to herself: The emperor is young and impetuous, and he is unwilling to compromise easily. The empress dowager should have gone along with the emperor's wishes and cooperated with the imperial physicians to treat her in the palace. Then the emperor would have had no reason to send her out of the palace.

But the Empress Dowager couldn't swallow her anger and insisted on leaving the palace in a huff. Now, the Emperor hadn't even offered to take her back, creating an extremely awkward situation. Granny Mei didn't know what to do and could only offer the Empress Dowager a hopeful promise.

"Your Majesty, do not worry. The end of the year is approaching, and your birthday is coming soon. The Emperor will surely come to fetch you back to the palace."

Yes! These two dates are very close together, it would be unreasonable for Hongli not to bring her back.

With this in mind, the Empress Dowager was no longer in a hurry and waited patiently for the end of winter.

The Empress Dowager was still making her own plans, but Hongli had no such intentions at all.

Autumn passed and winter solstice arrived. It was already mid-winter, but the emperor still hadn't issued an edict to bring the Empress Dowager back to the palace.

After several days of snow, the sky finally cleared, and the snow has been melting these past two days. It's exceptionally cold outside, but inside Changchun Palace, the underfloor heating keeps it warm as spring. Yuying is practicing calligraphy when Dongling pours her a cup of tea and casually remarks...

"Your Majesty, the Empress Dowager's birthday is approaching. According to custom, the Emperor should welcome the Empress Dowager back to the palace."

Yu Ying did not stop writing, but continued writing with an indifferent expression. "That's the Emperor's business. If the Emperor is unwilling to take it on, why should I go and run into a brick wall?"

"Your Majesty, although the Emperor's decree is difficult to disobey, if the Emperor does not bring the Empress Dowager back to the palace, he will be criticized by the people. Besides, the Emperor can no longer be relied upon, but the Empress Dowager still protects you. In the future, if anything happens, the Empress Dowager can also support you. You still have to please the Empress Dowager."

Dongling advised her to plan for the future. Yuying thought about it for a moment and felt that this made sense. In the end, she still went to the Hall of Mental Cultivation to see Hongli and bring up the matter of asking the Empress Dowager to return to the palace.

"Your Majesty is busy with state affairs. If you are unable to attend, I would like to go to Changchun Garden to ask the Empress Dowager to return to the palace."