Especially since Qin Meizhi was holding Ruyang, they looked like a pair of ghost mother and daughter.

Queen Mother Yao was not afraid, but smiled, "Are you here to pick me up?"

"Sister..." Qin Meizhi cried even more sadly, "How could you think like that..."

"What else can I think..." Queen Mother Yao sighed, "In this palace, you are probably the only one who is sincere to me. Now that you are gone, I didn't take good care of Ruyang. I am old and useless, so I might as well follow you..."

"Sister!" Qin Meizhi held her hand, "Don't say that. You are the queen mother now. You can get whatever you want without having to worry about other people's faces. You have to live well!"

"Being alive... is no different from being dead?" Queen Mother Yao sighed. "You don't know. In my Cining Palace, besides the palace maids and eunuchs, there are two birds outside the window. My cat ran away in spring and never came back. Birds and cats are always in pairs. When you were alive, you had Gu Rui to accompany you. After you passed away, you had Ru Yang to follow you. I am the only one who was alone when I was alive. I will probably be the same after I pass away..."

Su Bei quietly stepped back a few steps and guarded the door.

It seems that Queen Mother Yao intends to let the dying man speak kindly, so she has to keep an eye on the door.

Qin Meizhi held her hand and said, "Sister, don't say that. I asked Gu Rui to calculate for you. She said that you have eighty years to live, and you are only halfway through. You still have a long time to live."

Queen Mother Yao still shook her head and sighed, but she did not reveal her big secret. Instead, she asked, "Meizhi, are you okay over there?"

"I... have Gu Rui taking care of me, everything is fine." Qin Meizhi said in a low voice.

Queen Mother Yao still shook her head, "Look, even if you go there, you are still in pairs, but I am different..."

As she spoke, she slowly closed her eyes.

Qin Meizhi was frightened and hurriedly called Su Bei. Fortunately, Su Bei found that Queen Mother Yao was not dead, but was asleep.

"Let's go, Mei Niang..." Su Bei sighed.

There were so many people here that Qin Meizhi didn't dare to stay for long. She explained things to Su Bei for a long time before she left reluctantly.

The one who drove her was Gu Rui. He was no longer as unruly as before. He wore neatly and was very skilled in holding a child.

Seeing Su Bei, Gu Rui hurriedly said: "Did Mei Niang tell you that I have seen the stars and Queen Mother Yao should have..."

Before he could finish his words, Qin Meizhi covered his mouth and said, "I told you, you should have a lifespan of 80 years. If you reveal the secret, you will shorten your lifespan. Don't tell me!"

"I'll shorten my lifespan so that I can share the same coffin with you..."

Before Gu Rui could finish his words, Qin Meizhi glared at him fiercely.

This time, Gu Rui finally shut up.

Su Bei was very pleased. It seemed that the relationship between the two was really good. It turned out that love really had nothing to do with age.

After seeing the two off, Su Bei returned to take care of Queen Mother Yao, and happened to meet Chu Younan there too.

After all, they were a loving mother and son. Chu Younan could hardly hide his worry. "What did they say?"

"Mother...she mistakenly thought Mei Niang was...a ghost..." Su Bei sighed. It seemed that Queen Mother Yao was really dying.

Chu Younan was silent for a long time before he said, "My mother used to love reading, but now she can't read anymore. I want to find someone to read to her."

"Uh...what book are you reading? This one? How about I do it?" Su Bei picked up a book beside the pillow.

Chu Younan seemed to be hesitating about something and did not speak for a long time. Seeing that Su Bei was still looking at him eagerly, he finally spoke: "I want to... find Chi Yu..."

So he knew?

Su Bei was puzzled for a moment, then figured it out. Chu Younan said so, so Queen Mother Yao must have thought about this in her mind. It turned out that her guess was true.

"I'll send someone to look for him!" Su Bei volunteered.

Chu Younan didn't know how much courage he mustered when he said he wanted to find Chi Yu. You have to know that in his cognition, he shouldn't even think about such a thing, and he might even be thrown into a pig cage. He was afraid that Su Bei would laugh at Queen Mother Yao.

Unexpectedly, Su Bei not only agreed promptly, but also did the job efficiently. Within three days, Chi Yu was brought here.

It was not easy for Chi Yu to come here. When Yun Rou arrived at the Huguo Temple, Chi Yu was not there. When she went to the Chi family, she found out that the Chi family was having a happy event.

Chi Yu was determined to take the imperial examination, but the master of the Chi family wanted him to get married first and then build a career, so he arranged a marriage for him on his own initiative.

The fiancée was none other than Chi Yu's cousin Jiang Xiaochun.

The day Yunrou went to the Chi family was the day the Chi family was going to propose marriage.

When Yun Rou saw Chi Yu and told her the purpose of her visit, Chi Yu immediately stood up and wanted to go with her. Needless to say, everyone knew Chi Yu's feelings for Queen Mother Yao.

However, Chi Yu was not happy about this marriage before. In order to make him submit, Master Chi ordered his men to tie him back from the Huguo Temple and also found many people to watch him.

Although Yun Rou was highly skilled in martial arts, she still alarmed the guards. After a fight, she took Chi Yu away.

No one knows what the situation of the Chi family is, but Chi Yu is here.

Today, Queen Mother Yao is terminally ill and no longer looks the same as before, but Chi Yu always remembers that he had caught a glimpse of her figure several times when he was helping her bathe.

He knelt down, picked up the scroll beside Empress Dowager Yao's pillow, and read it slowly word by word, as if pearls fell on a jade plate.

Su Bei quietly retreated, his eyes becoming moist.

Women in ancient times were so pitiful. They obeyed their fathers at home, their husbands after marriage, and their sons after their husbands’ death. They never had the chance to be themselves in their entire lives.

In comparison, she is much luckier.

Inside the room, Chi Yu stopped reading, wiped his eyes, and continued reading.

He didn't know how long he had been reading, but the light had become too dim to make out the words clearly. He was just about to get up and light the candle when he heard movement on the bed.

"Don't stop, keep reading..."

Although he couldn't see the words clearly, Chi Yu had already memorized the Book of Songs, so he recited it aloud in the dark.

After a long while, during his recitation, Queen Mother Yao sighed softly and said, "It seems that I am really dying. I actually dreamed of your voice."

Chi Yu wanted to say something, but he couldn't open his mouth.

The person in front of him is the empress dowager, the widow of the late emperor, the most noble woman in the country. He and she are like clouds and mud.

But Queen Mother Yao thought she was dreaming and murmured, "I dreamed of Mei Zhi that day. She said Gu Rui was taking care of her and she was holding Ru Yang. Look, she was so happy..."

"In fact, I really envy her. What's the point of being called the Queen Mother? I've enjoyed glory and wealth in my life, but these are not what I want."

"I entered the palace only because the Ruan family wanted a helper in the harem. No one ever asked me if I wanted to marry him..."

"Actually, I don't want to... I don't want to share my husband with anyone... I also want... a lifetime... a lifetime... to be alone..."

Chi Yu clenched his fists tightly in his sleeves. He thought: Since the Queen Mother is on her deathbed, and since the Queen Mother asked me to accompany her, I might as well fulfill her last dream...

"Queen Mother..." He spoke and walked over slowly...