His warm breath touched her face, and their breaths mingled, making Su Wanwan even more frightened.

She buried her face in her knees and curled up into a ball.

Lu Xingjian let her curl up, like an eggshell surrounding her, warming her, but he didn't let go.

Su Wanwan had been trembling, which showed that he did not make any further moves, nor did anything worse happen, and she did not struggle or try to escape.

She was so tired that she quickly fell asleep.

The next morning, when Su Wanwan woke up, her face was buried in the man's chest.

She instinctively wanted to escape.

Lu Xingjian held her tightly, refusing to let go, and chuckled softly, "Good morning, Wanwan."

"Do you remember me? I am your husband, Ashou."

Su Wanwan's eyes remained wary, her body tense, watching him defensively.

However, her nostrils were filled with the man's ambergris, and after smelling it all night, she didn't find it too repulsive.

The man pressed his forehead against hers, his nose against hers, and occasionally gently pecked her lips.

"Wanwan, don't be afraid. I am your husband, and the one who loves you the most. Trust me, don't be afraid, okay?"

His face was handsome yet gentle, tender and without any aggression.

His body heat enveloped her, making her feel warm and safe.

Her body gradually relaxed, no longer as tense as a bow.

Lu Xingjian noticed her relaxation and a smile appeared on his face.

The situation was better than he had imagined.

He reached out and took her soft, boneless hand in his, his long fingers threading through hers, intertwining them, and pulled her hand to his lips to kiss it. "Wanwan, your hands are beautiful, aren't they?"

Su Wanwan tried to pull her hand back, but he didn't force her and let her do so.

His expression became even more serene and gentle: "Shall we sleep a little longer? After you've had enough sleep, we'll dress you up and make Wanwan look beautiful."

Su Wanwan blinked, reacting to the word "pretty".

Lu Xingjian held her close and whispered, "Close your eyes and sleep a little longer."

He remembered that Wanwan loved to look pretty when she was little.

Zhou also liked to dress up her young girls. She would make many new clothes and jewelry for the girls she raised during festivals.

Every time she dresses up neatly, Wanwan's eyes sparkle like stars in the sky, hoping for praise from others.

He was always the first to praise loudly.

"Wanwan, you look so beautiful! Your dress is gorgeous, you look like a fairy!"

Wanwan smiled, revealing her little tiger teeth, looking a bit shy. When reminded by her nanny, she quickly covered her mouth, trying her best to maintain her ladylike image.

He didn't care about anything else, grabbed Wanwan's hand and ran outside. When he got to Zhou Shi, he exclaimed, "Grandmother, look how beautiful Wanwan is!"

Mrs. Zhou smiled and playfully scolded, "When has Wanwan ever not been pretty? You're making a big fuss over nothing."

"When you meet an even prettier girl in the future, let's see how embarrassed you are then!"

He immediately denied it: "There's no girl prettier than Wanwan!"

Zhou was unusually happy to banter with him, saying, "You didn't see much back then. You'll understand when you see more."

The old nanny chimed in with a smile, "Once the Crown Prince gets married, he won't only have eyes for our Wanwan anymore."

He blinked and immediately replied, "I'm going to marry Wanwan!"

Instead of responding to his words, Zhou scoffed, "You child, you're so tiny, how would you know what marriage is?"

How could he not know?

The Emperor married the Empress, and they had a daughter named Xiuyi. The whole family ate and lived together happily every day.

He also wanted to eat happily with Wanwan every day and live together.

...

Empress Dowager Zhang in Cikang Palace frowned deeply: "Is this true?"

It has been more than a year since the emperor deposed the empress, and there is not a single woman with a rank in the palace. As the empress dowager, she should play her due role and select concubines for the emperor to fill the harem.

She was busy with this matter with great enthusiasm, and even specially selected several women who looked like Su Wanwan to keep in the palace, hoping to be favored by the emperor.

Who could have predicted that news would spread that Su Wanwan had returned to the palace and was being housed in Qingning Palace.

The Emperor stayed in Qingning Palace all night and did not leave.

That bitch Su Wanwan, is she really coming back?!

How can this be allowed?

With her attracting the emperor's attention and dominating his mind, how could other women possibly gain his favor and give birth to princes?

Su Wanwan is really lucky to be alive!

Madam Jin's temples were already white, and she looked rather old. Her voice was frail: "Isn't that right?"

"We can't wait any longer. If we have a prince in our hands, will we still have to worry about the future?"

That statement is quite meaningful.

Madam Jin lowered her voice: "In recent years, the prominent families in Jiangnan and Jiangxi have gradually established connections with our family."

"They are hoping that we can have a prince in our hands, so that we can gain merit in supporting the emperor in the future."

Empress Dowager Zhang hesitated for a moment.

Over the years, she has never gained any advantage in dealing with Lu Xingjian and Su Wanwan.

However, because she is relatively low-key, her two brothers are doing quite well.

Unlike the Empress Dowager Wang's maternal family, which was too hasty and ruthless, their descendants are now almost extinct, and there is little hope for the next generation.

After pondering for a long time, Empress Dowager Zhang still said, "Let's have a few memorials submitted to the court requesting the establishment of an empress, and test the emperor's attitude."

...

Su Wanwan was not asleep.

She nestled in his arms like a frightened little bird, her eyelashes blinking incessantly.

"Wanwan's eyes are so beautiful, and her eyelashes are so long."

His voice was already pleasant to listen to, but now it was deep and melodious in her ear, full of alluring power.

What woman doesn't love to hear compliments?

From his facial expressions to every gesture, he was radiating praise and love for her.

Although she still resisted to some extent, she was no longer as averse to his intimate contact.

When she got up, Lu Xingjian picked out a set of clothes for her.

A light pink, double-breasted brocade jacket with a white fur trim, paired with a dark green horse-face skirt, is a perfect outfit for a young girl.

In fact, this was the outfit Wanwan wore when she went out to admire the lanterns with Prince Rong that year.

At that time, Wanwan was like a flower bud about to bloom on a branch, extremely beautiful.

However, she was standing next to someone else.

It almost shattered him.

Now, Wanwan has lost the indifference and rationality she had after getting married; she's like a blank sheet of paper.

He wanted to write his most beautiful love on this blank sheet of paper.

"Shall I help you change your clothes? Look how pretty these clothes are? You'll be the most beautiful girl in them."

Su Wanwan nervously clutched her collar.

But seeing those beautiful, almost glowing clothes, she was still a little tempted.

Her hair was still a little messy because she had just woken up.

Lu Xingjian wasn't in a hurry. "Shall we sit down at the dressing table and I'll comb your hair?"