"His Highness the Third Prince has come to pay his respects!"
Upon hearing this, the Empress immediately stopped what she was doing and looked into the eyes of the King of Dongning in surprise, saying, "Third Prince, what is he doing here so late?"
The King of Dongning was also puzzled and paused for a moment before speaking in a deep voice: "It is late tonight, so the Empress should go back to the palace to retire first! I think the Prince must have something important to attend to before he rushed here."
However, the Empress seemed determined not to give up and continued to try to coax him in a sweet voice: "But Your Majesty, I miss Your Majesty so much, I..."
Seeing this, the King of Dongning's tone suddenly became somewhat impatient. He then sternly pushed her away from him and said, "Alright, you should go back to the palace first. Tonight is the seventh night after Lord Zhang's death, and I am not in the mood for it. Go back now!"
Upon hearing the name of Lord Zhang, the Empress Dowager paused for a moment. Realizing that she had no chance, she reluctantly but helplessly bowed to him and took her leave: "Yes! Your Majesty, I obey!"
Just as the Empress Dowager, feigning reluctance, stepped across the threshold, a clear voice from behind her rang out: "Summon them!"
Then, the announcement rang out loudly again: "His Highness the Third Prince is hereby summoned for an audience!"
Upon seeing the Empress Dowager inside, Mei Zhixuan, who had been waiting outside for a long time, immediately bowed and knelt before her, saying, "Your subject greets Your Majesty!"
The Empress Dowager looked down at him with an arrogant and disdainful gaze, as if to ask, "Why aren't you staying in your own palace in the middle of the night? Why are you rushing to Qingxin Palace in such a hurry? Is there something important that you need to do?"
Mei Zhixuan stood up, hesitated for a moment, and replied, "Reporting to Mother, actually... there's nothing special. It's just that I've been away on official business for many days and haven't seen Father. As soon as I returned, I heard that Father's health has been poor, so I rushed over to see him and pay my respects!"
The Empress Dowager chuckled coldly at him, saying in a sarcastic tone, "Hmph... Your Majesty is still suffering from a cold, cough cough..."
As she spoke, the Empress Dowager actually turned her head to cover her mouth with the handkerchief in her hand and pretended to cough lightly, then continued, "Why don't I see my son being so filial and visiting his mother in my palace?"
Mei Zhixuan was clearly speechless: "This..."
Seeing this, the Empress Dowager suddenly lost her slight smile and sternly reprimanded him: "You lowly brat, you're nothing more than the son of a lowly servant who has never been touched by the Emperor. Don't be like your mother, always doing things that are not meant for lowly servants like you. As the saying goes, 'A person's virtue lies in knowing their own limitations.' You must understand and see reality clearly. The future of Dongning Kingdom will sooner or later belong to my son. I advise you to stop making these futile, death-defying struggles! Lest one day you get burned and die without even knowing how you died!"
Mei Zhixuan listened silently, then feigned a pleased expression and said, "Your Majesty is right. I know I was wrong. I will always remember my duty!"
The Empress Dowager seemed quite satisfied with his response, yet she still glared at him fiercely, then glanced at the two young guards who had come with her, and said, "Good that you know, hmph..."
After saying that, he snorted at him, flicked his sleeves, and swaggered away.
Mei Zhixuan hunched over, looking down at her haughty, proud departure. He secretly clenched his fists and hid them in his sleeves. A sly smile suddenly appeared on his lips, revealing an indescribable grin.
After a moment of stunned silence, he composed himself, turned around, and strode confidently through the gates of Qingxin Hall.
Upon entering, he ordered the two men dressed as guards who had come in with him to wait outside the hall, while he went in and bowed to the King of Dongning who was waiting inside, saying, "Your subject greets Your Majesty!"
The King of Dongning sat upright at his desk and said in a deep voice, "Get up!"
Upon hearing this, Mei Zhixuan stood up, only to be immediately stunned by the state of the person in front of him.
It had only been a few days since I last saw him, but I never imagined that the once noble and dignified figure before me had aged so much.
His once jet-black hair had turned almost entirely white, a testament to countless sleepless nights he had spent pulling all-nighters. His once deep and wise eyes were now bloodshot, and his face was etched with deep lines, accompanied by frequent, heavy coughs: "Cough cough cough..."
Yes, his mental state is really very bad.
Mei Zhixuan couldn't help but move his lips slightly, exclaiming in surprise, "Father, your hair, your eyes, your face, how could they suddenly..."
The King of Dongning had clearly read the doubt in his eyes from the astonished look he had given him as soon as he entered, and said, "Are you wondering why Father has suddenly aged so much?"
Upon hearing this, Mei Zhixuan's heart suddenly softened inexplicably. The man before him, whom he had deeply hated since childhood, was also someone he had to admit was incredibly respected—a tall, imposing figure who had once donned battle armor, galloped across battlefields, and commanded armies with the might of a tiger. He never imagined that this man would come to this…
A thousand words were left unsaid, a mix of emotions welling up inside him, a myriad of feelings, all of which ultimately coalesced into a silent murmur from the depths of his heart: "Father..."
The room was silent.
The two lonely figures stared at each other in silence for a while. Then, the King of Dongning got up and slowly moved to the warm couch next to him. As he brewed tea, he said to Mei Zhixuan, "Come here and sit down."
Mei Zhixuan silently stepped forward, lifted the hem of his robe, and gently sat down opposite him.
The King of Dongning then pushed a steaming, almost black tea he had just brewed in front of Mei Zhixuan, saying, "It's cold outside, try this hot tea that your father brewed himself!"
Mei Zhixuan stared blankly at the face in front of him, suddenly feeling that the scene was both familiar and strange.
He reached out and slowly took it. This was the first time the two of them had sat down and talked so calmly since they were children. Mei Zhixuan suddenly remembered that it was when they were children, when their stepmother was still alive, and the scene was just as harmonious and warm.
Just then, King Ji of Dongning recalled, "Father remembers that you always loved to run around since you were a child. But later, I felt that for some reason, you were always intentionally or unintentionally avoiding me. I have always wanted to find an opportunity to have a good talk with you, but I have been busy with state affairs and have never been able to find the time."
After a moment of silence, he took a deep breath and sighed meaningfully, "Time flies, and everything has changed. But no matter what, you must take better care of yourself. Now that you have a family, you must consider others more. Yue'er is a good child, and it is your blessing to marry her. Although she is the most noble eldest princess of Western Qin, she was still willing to travel great distances to marry you, and since arriving in Dongning, she has never revealed a single secret of Dongning to Western Qin. Now, she has given you such a clever and bright son, Hai'er. 'The sea accepts all rivers, and its capacity is great.' Your father believes that he will grow up to be a promising child."
He paused, then turned his gaze to Mei Zhixuan, whose face was slightly lowered as he listened intently. He said, "Third brother, you should be content! Over the years, no matter what you've been thinking or what you've wanted, you must know that in the end, only they, mother and son, are your whole life. Some people, once missed, will never come back. Your father hopes that you will not disappoint them."
To everyone's surprise, the Dongning King's good intentions were only met with a few words from Mei Zhixuan: "Your subject understands, and thanks Your Majesty for your guidance!"
Clearly, this long-overdue conversation came far too late for Mei Zhixuan now. From childhood to adulthood, whenever he was looked down upon or bullied, the person who should have stood up for him did not protect him in the slightest.
So from that moment on, he clearly realized that he would never need anyone else's protection again in this life. Because he already knew that only he himself could protect the people he wanted to protect.
Despite feeling a little teary-eyed upon hearing such warm and caring words he had never heard before, he managed to hold back his tears and prevent them from overflowing.
Seeing this, the King of Dongning knew at a glance that Mei Zhixuan was still blaming him. He wanted to try to explain something to him, but Mei Zhixuan looked troubled, put down the black tea he had just taken a sip of, and interrupted him, saying, "This tea is too bitter!"
Upon hearing this, the King of Dongning paused for a moment, then continued, "Suffering? Suffering is to be expected; only by knowing suffering can one appreciate sweetness! 'To be the first to worry about the world's troubles and the last to enjoy its pleasures.' A ruler must endure countless hardships that others cannot bear in order to protect his vast and beautiful land. But once you forget this suffering, your kingdom and its people will immediately turn against you..."
As he spoke, he took a sip of the bitter, strong tea and said, "My son, you must know when to stop in everything. Only by being content can you find true happiness!"
"Be content!" Upon hearing these two words, Mei Zhixuan's teeth itched with hatred, and his hand, gripping the teacup tightly, trembled. He then suppressed his resentment and said, "Father, from childhood to adulthood, have you ever understood how I felt? It was as if the whole world had abandoned me. If it weren't for my stepmother taking me in, I can't even imagine what my childhood would have been like. It's a feeling you can never understand."
Upon hearing this, the King of Dongning was suddenly startled and exclaimed in surprise, "My son, you..."
Mei Zhixuan, however, said coldly, "Enough. The past is the past. Now, whether right or wrong, the consequences will be borne by the prince alone. Besides, the prince came here tonight not to talk about the past with his father. These things are no longer important to the prince."
The King of Dongning had never imagined that the rift between Mei Zhixuan and his son would reach such a level. He suddenly placed a hand on his heart, feeling a deep pang of heartache: "You... cough cough cough..."
Just then, Mei Zhixuan suddenly said mysteriously, "Father, look who he is?"
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