After dinner, Guan Zhiyue and her family went back to their respective courtyards to rest.

"Your Majesty, the food tonight is delicious. I wish you hadn't gotten married." Bilian looked at Guan Zhiyue, who was taking off her headdress in front of the dressing table.

Guan Zhiyue paused in disassembling the headdress after hearing Bilian's words, and smiled.

"Yes, if only the original owner hadn't gotten married, she probably wouldn't have died."

"Is the hot water ready? I'm going to take a shower now." Guan Zhiyue stood up from the dressing table and looked at Bilian, who was busy making the bed.

"It's all ready, Your Highness may now take a bath."

Guan Zhiyue walked towards the quiet room without looking back. She looked at a large wooden tub inside, which was the one she used before her marriage and had been preserved. It seemed that the original owner's father really loved her.

"Alright, you can leave now! You don't need to serve us here."

The four young maids standing in the room looked at each other, not knowing what to do.

"Your Highness, this servant can give you a bath," one of the maids said.

Guan Zhiyue waved her hand, signaling them to leave. Seeing Guan Zhiyue's attitude, the four maids agreed and went out together.

After everyone left, Guan Zhiyue took off her clothes and went into the bathtub. She was very confused and tired, and didn't know if what she was doing was right or wrong.

As Guan Zhiyue thought about it, she leaned against the edge of the bathtub. She recalled that when she had a fever in the Cold Palace, someone had given her medicine, but she couldn't lift her eyelids. She wondered who had given her the medicine.

"Is that the Emperor?"

"Heh, how could the Emperor have disliked the original owner from the beginning? Otherwise, why would he have let her fend for herself in the Cold Palace?"

Guan Zhiyue shook her head. Her head, which had been feeling a little swollen, became even more dizzy after soaking in the bathtub.

Guan Zhiyue stumbled out of the bathtub. Since she had already dismissed Bilian, she fumbled for a dry towel and started drying her hair. Feeling a bit dizzy, she ended up lying on the bed before she could even dry her hair.

In the early hours of the morning, Li Qiji, who was reviewing memorials in Chengqian Palace, looked up impatiently at the sky outside and asked, "What time is it?"

Hua Quan looked up at the night outside the window and whispered a reminder: "It's past 1-3 AM."

Li Qiji put down the memorial in his hand, stood up from his chair, walked to the window, looked at the bright and round moon, and chuckled.

"Has the Empress not yet considered returning to the palace?"

"Your Majesty, the Empress has only been back at her residence for two days."

Li Qiji stood by the window with his hands behind his back, muttering to himself, "I thought it had been two years, but it's only been two days."

"I heard the Empress was injured yesterday?"

"The Empress is unharmed, but I heard that the Prince of Xiaoyao injured his arm."

Upon hearing his younger brother's name, Li Qiji frowned in displeasure and looked at Hua Quan with a puzzled expression.

"Why would he go with the Empress when she goes back to her parents' home?"

Hua Quan was already somewhat bewildered. He had no idea why the prince had come with the empress, but he still cautiously said, "I suppose he's worried about the empress returning home alone, after all..."

Li Qiji became interested upon hearing this and looked at Hua Quan, asking, "After all what?"

Hua Quan stammered, looking somewhat embarrassed: "After all, Your Majesty, you've banished the Empress to the Cold Palace for over a month, and that was right on the eve of your wedding, so..."

Upon hearing Hua Quan's words, Li Qiji thought of the disgusting things Guan Zhiyue had done on their wedding day, yet he had changed his opinion of her because of the Imperial Advisor's words.

Guan Mansion.

"Your Majesty, is this really the right thing to do?"

"There are quite a few guards at the Guan residence. Why don't you just come directly to their door? Is it really okay to sneak in like this in the middle of the night?" Ji Wu kept nagging from behind. Ji Shang wanted to stab him to death when he heard it, let alone Li Qiji.

In fact, Li Qiji didn't know why he came to the Guan residence. His mind was in turmoil, so he didn't know what to say.

He originally intended to take a walk outside Chengqian Palace to get some fresh air, but somehow he ended up outside the palace.

None of that is the key point. The key point is how we ended up at the Guan family's residence, and not in a proper way, but by sneaking around like thieves.

The two men were in the open, while the others, in the shadows, arrived at the rooftop of the Guan Mansion.

"Sir, shall we go to the kitchen? I heard the Guan family had some delicious hot pot tonight."

Ji Wu glanced at Li Qiji, who was squatting beside him, and swallowed hard as he looked at Li Qiji.

Li Qiji rolled his eyes, but still didn't refuse. So the two of them went to the Guan family's kitchen. As soon as they entered the kitchen, they smelled the rich aroma of braising sauce. Ji Wu sniffed around like a puppy.

"Phew...Grandpa, it smells so good from this pot!"

Before Li Qiji could speak, Ji Wu lifted the lid of the pot, revealing a large pot of braised meat in front of the two of them. Ji Wu was a martial artist, and seeing meat was like seeing his own father—no, it should be even closer than his own father. He immediately scooped up a piece of beef from the pot and began to gnaw on it without any regard for appearances.

"Mmm! Grandpa, this is so delicious! You have to try some!"

Ji Wu's mouth was covered in oil as he ate, his eyes squinting with delight at how delicious it was. He grabbed the meat and gnawed on it bite by bite.

Li Qiji, standing to the side, swallowed hard and scooped a piece of fatty intestine from the pot. Not knowing what it was, he started eating it. The moment it entered his mouth, the aroma of the braising sauce filled his entire being. With each chew, he found the intestine chewy and flavorful, making him feel incredibly satisfied—a taste experience he had never had before…

"Master..."

Several guards in the shadows began calling out to Li Qiji, because they were watching the two of them eat with such gusto that they were practically drooling; the aroma was simply irresistible!

Li Qiji saw several people in the shadows looking at him with expectant eyes. He stood up, looked at the contents of the pot, and nodded when he saw there was still plenty left.

In no time, the kitchen was filled with seven grown men, who began to fight over the food around the pot.

The others also looked through the other dishes in the kitchen and found that there was still some stinky tofu that the Guan family staff hadn't finished eating that night in the cupboard. The group then ate it with gusto. Li Qiji looked at the stove that was steaming and found that there was ginseng and black chicken medicinal soup simmering on it. He didn't stand on ceremony and picked up a bowl from the side and drank a big bowl of the medicinal soup by himself.

"Where did this ginseng come from? It tastes really good!"

Everyone was engrossed in eating meat, and no one answered him. He looked around and then stopped talking. He put down his chopsticks and left the kitchen, groping his way towards Guan Zhiyue's room.

Upon entering, I saw Guan Zhiyue asleep with her hair still wet. As if possessed, I picked up a dry towel and started drying Guan Zhiyue's hair without any hesitation, and I was very gentle and virtuous.

Looking at Guan Zhiyue's fair and radiant face, and her naturally red lips, he recalled the drug-infused kiss. Just as he was about to lower his head and kiss her, he heard a commotion outside.

"Thief! Thief! Thief!"

The guards of the Guan residence began to stir, and everyone started to wake up. The Guan family father and son in the backyard also got up. Seeing that Guan Zhiyue was about to wake up, Li Qiji jumped out of the window.

Guan Zhiyue woke up groggily, noticing that her hair was dry, and then looked at the towel lying beside her, somewhat confused...