Su Wanwan returned to the palace through the Shenwu Gate as usual.

Just as they arrived at the foot of Wansui Mountain, someone came and asked, "Your Majesty, please move a little further."

Su Wanwan's heart was pounding.

Xiao Bin is here?

So fast?

There used to be a Shouchun Pavilion on Wansui Mountain.

It was built a year before Emperor Xianzong passed away to celebrate the Christmas Day of his mother, Lady Zhou.

After Emperor Xianzong passed away, Lady Zhou often came here to sit, gaze at the palace to the south, and mourn her son with many thoughts.

Su Wanwan had also come here with Zhou Shi when she was a child.

However, the Shouchun Pavilion has now disappeared, leaving only a stone foundation.

"When was Shouchun Pavilion demolished?" Su Wanwan asked.

"Shortly after Empress Dowager Xiaosu passed away, the late emperor ordered the pavilion to be demolished."

The steward of Wansui Mountain replied respectfully.

Su Wanwan felt a pang of pain in her heart.

The Zhou family raised the late emperor and helped him ascend the throne.

The kindness of raising children cannot overcome the hatred that accumulates over time.

It can only be said that all the affection between grandparents and grandchildren, and the blood ties, are nothing but fleeting clouds in the face of self-interest.

At this very moment, in the sweltering heat of summer, with the sun scorching her skin, she felt utterly desolate and lonely.

Standing on the platform of Shouchun Pavilion and looking south, the magnificent imperial palace comes into view.

It is both awe-inspiring and sacred.

They gained a new understanding of power and royal authority.

This is probably the feeling of "looking down on the world" that only emperors can have.

The towering gate tower of Shenwu Gate blocked out the view of Kunning Palace, where she resided, making it impossible to see even a single eave.

When I came to my senses, everyone around me had already retreated to a distance.

A tall and handsome man gradually approached.

Su Wanwan's body stiffened slightly.

The man wore a black gauze hat, a scarlet narrow-sleeved round-necked official robe, with tigers and leopards embroidered on his chest, and a plain gold belt around his waist.

It was Xiao Bin.

His facial expression could be described as indifferent, showing no trace of the joy of a long-awaited reunion.

After he finished bowing, his gaze towards Su Wanwan was somewhat profound.

Su Wanwan thought to herself that he probably harbored resentment and disappointment towards her.

After all, it was she who decisively abandoned him and chose to sever all ties.

To become the most esteemed empress, second only to the emperor.

The two had been separated for half a year.

Yet it seemed as if the world had changed drastically.

Their status and position are incomparable.

She pulled herself out of her thoughts, and after thinking for a while, she finally spoke in greeting:

"Has Lord Xiao ever gazed upon the scenery here?"

Xiao Bin's expression was distant.

I glanced briefly at the golden glazed roof of the palace.

He said politely, without taking it to heart:

"Your Majesty, I am deeply grateful for your kindness in donating my official position."

Su Wanwan then remembered that she had arranged for someone to donate a fourth-rank official position as the Vice Commander of the Weizhou Guard to Xiao Bin.

However.

Xiao Bin's expression of distancing himself from her still stung her.

Although she insisted on seeing Xiao Bin, it wasn't to rekindle their old relationship.

The pain and hysteria that followed the fire at the Su family home surged up from the bottom of his heart.

It rushed towards her like a tidal wave.

It instantly engulfed her.

They could no longer maintain their dignity.

Her face remained calm, but her voice trembled uncontrollably:

Where are the children?

The words were spoken so softly that they vanished without a trace when the wind blew them away.

But it seemed as if all her strength had been exhausted.

All our hopes are pinned on this sentence.

Xiao Bin was silent for a moment, then said, "Not good."

Su Wanwan felt as if she had been struck by lightning; her body swayed and she could barely stand.

She knew it, she knew it!

A mother knows her child best.

Even if the corpse was burned black and unrecognizable.

Clinging to a sliver of hope amidst her despair, she could still discern that the child was not hers.

Xiao Bin stood far away from her.

They didn't rush to help her as they usually do.

Unable to hold on any longer, Su Wanwan squatted down and covered her face with her hands.

Tears spilled from between his fingers, dripping onto the ground and splashing everywhere.

An ant carrying small berries on the ground was hit by a tear, and it was so frightened that it dropped the berries and ran away.

After a long while, Su Wanwan finally calmed down, wiped away her tears, stood up, and looked at Xiao Bin with red eyes.

What does "not very good" mean?

Xiao Bin did not answer her question; his voice was hoarse, and his eyes were deep and sharp.

"If you want to see him, come with me."

Su Wanwan was stunned.

It was a perfectly clear statement, yet she couldn't help but think about it a little more deeply.

She thought he was forcing her to choose between her child and the position of empress.

If you want to be an empress, don't see your children.

If you want to see your child, drop everything and go with him.

She guessed that was what he meant.

There's really not much to choose from.

According to her own wishes, she would definitely choose the child.

But.

In this situation, whether or not we can leave is a big question.

Su Wanwan hadn't thought of how to answer, so she changed the subject first:

"What's wrong?"

Xiao Bin said in a deep voice, "I want my mother."

He took a small object out of his pocket and handed it to Su Wanwan.

Su Wanwan's eyes instantly focused when she saw the little thing.

This is a doll carved from rosewood. It is adorable, but it is pitted and covered with teeth marks.

It was a small toy that she searched for a long time before finally finding when Yan Ge'er was teething.

It needs to satisfy his chewing needs, be easy to clean, have a hard texture, be of a suitable size, and have rounded edges so as not to hurt the child.

She once had the wild idea of ​​trying to carve one herself.

The result was that he cut his own hand.

My dear reader, there's more to this chapter! Please click the next page to continue reading—even more exciting content awaits!