Another month passed.

The first snow of this year fell quietly.

Su Zhiruan went to court as usual. She tightened her cloak, and after listening to the ministers' endless argument, she pinched her eyebrows in annoyance.

During the debate, she heard a good countermeasure, which was proposed by the top scholar selected in the imperial examination two years ago, and she made the final decision.

After all the memorials were finalized, the court was adjourned. The court officials filed out. Su Zhiruan had the little emperor taken away to continue his studies, and she followed the court officials out.

After crossing the thresholds, she coughed twice and tightened her cloak again.

The snow was still falling, layer after layer, and it was soft to step on, like a carpet.

She gathered up her furry cuffs and retracted her hands, "Let's go back to the bedroom first."

The female official held an umbrella for her and whispered yes.

Walking in the snow, Su Zhiruan thought vaguely that she seemed to have not seen Ji Xiaoyuan for some time.

It has been two months since he left. Although we have been exchanging letters frequently, even asking about each other every day, I always feel like something is missing when I can't see him.

Regarding Wang Chao, she got even more from Ji Xiaoyuan than from the secret line.

The emperor of Wang Chao was seriously ill, and no one was in charge of state affairs for a while. The princes argued endlessly, and when the foreigners learned that Ji Xiaoyuan had gone to Wan Chao to be a royal consort, they thought that he and Wang Chao had a rift, so the foreigners invaded on a large scale and even sent a secret message to Su Zhiruan hoping to work with her to destroy Wang Chao.

Su Zhiruan was only here to carry out a mission and had no intention of unifying the world. She still hoped that Ji Xiaoyuan could come back alive to be her child's father, so she sent troops in the name of Wan Chao to support the dynasty army. Ji Xiaoyuan led his troops to completely annihilate the foreigners, at least damaging their vitality for a hundred years so that they would not invade again.

In addition, he supported the Third Prince to succeed the crown prince and cleared many obstacles for him. Ever since the Third Prince went back with Princess Wan Chao last time, the two gradually fell in love with each other, and now the Princess has become the Third Prince's consort.

Su Zhiruan calculated the days and felt that Ji Xiaoyuan should be back soon, but she didn't know how he would react if he found out that he was going to be a father.

The wind and snow were howling, but in an instant, it seemed as if everything had stopped.

"...Ruan Ruan..."

A familiar voice, filled with countless mixed emotions, suddenly sounded behind her.

The sound was low and she stopped.

The voice behind me sounded again, "Ruan Ruan——"

When the female official saw the man holding an umbrella, she quietly stepped back.

The moment Su Zhiruan turned around, he was greeted by Ji Xiaoyuan's extremely familiar face.

All the solemn and murderous atmosphere, all the coldness and chill, all the wind and snow coming towards her, at this moment, turned into countless tenderness surrounding her. The black cloak opened towards her, and the man could no longer suppress the emotions in his heart. He quickly stepped forward and held her in his arms.

Su Zhiruan felt her eyes moist for some reason, "I thought you wouldn't come back."

The moment she said this, she felt a tear dripping from above and landing on her brow. She raised her head and met Ji Xiaoyuan's wet eyes.

"Why wouldn't I come back? My wife and children are here," Ji Xiaoyuan said in a hoarse voice, "When I was away, did you eat well? How come you are so thin?"

"Ruan Ruan..." He leaned on her shoulder, his big hands trembling.

"In the past two months, I have been thinking about coming back and being with you every moment," Ji Xiaoyuan closed his eyes and felt her presence in his arms, "and our child."

Speaking of the child, he gently stroked Su Zhiruan's belly with trembling hands, his movements full of piety and heartache.

"Let's go back to the bedroom first."

Su Zhiruan's bedroom was not far from here, so she walked out and arrived in just a few steps.

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There is a ground heating in the bedroom, and the room is as warm as spring.

Ji Xiaoyuan asked about her recent situation, and he finally felt relieved.

He leaned on Su Zhiruan's shoulder and said in a muffled voice, "In the past, I could only read letters. You said everything was fine, and I was always worried that you said that to coax me, but I was also afraid that I would feel bad if I saw you say it was not good."

"If someone told the former Ji Xiaoyuan that he would be worried about gains and losses in the future, I guess the former Ji Xiaoyuan would definitely not believe it." Su Zhiruan teased him. She pointed to her belly and changed the subject, "Ji Xiaoyuan, do you want to guess whether it is a son or a daughter?"

Ji Xiaoyuan put his hands on her still flat belly again. The hall was warm and the clothes were thin. With a layer of cloth between them, both of them were stunned at the same time.

Then, there was the same embarrassment.

From the surface, you can't even tell anything, especially since it's December now and she's wearing thick clothes. Plus the cloak, you can't tell that she's two months pregnant. Only by touching her can you feel the slight curve of her belly.

"Whether it's a son or a daughter, I will love you and our little home together with it," Ji Xiaoyuan leaned over and kissed her not-yet-not-so-obvious belly, "I hope it stays healthy."

"Thank you, my lady." (End of this chapter)