The news that Emperor Zhaokang passed the throne to the crown prince soon spread throughout the six palaces like long legs.

When Tao Ti heard the news, she was eating hot pot around a round table with Xu Wenchan, Qinghe, the fifth prince and the sixth princess.

The eunuch who delivered the message was reporting the good news in great joy, but Tao Ti was so surprised that her chopsticks shook, and the freshly boiled beef rolls fell back into the bright red hot pot, allowing the quick-eyed and quick-handed Fifth Prince to catch them.

"Are you sure you heard it right? His Majesty really passed the throne to the Crown Prince?"

"My Lord, the news has spread everywhere in the palace. I have a fellow countryman who works in the Golden Dragon Palace. He heard it with his own ears. Even if he had a hundred guts, he wouldn't dare to spread such a big thing." The young eunuch said respectfully.

Tao Ti was still full of surprise and couldn't calm down for a while.

It was Xu Wenchan who reacted first. He stared at Tao Ti with his round eyes as if he were a treasure. "The prince has ascended the throne and become the emperor. Then, A Ti, you are the empress. Wow! The empress is my best friend. This is too prestigious!"

Qing He pursed her lips and chuckled, "My cousin is the Crown Princess, so she is the Empress's reserve."

Xu Wenchan touched his nose in embarrassment and said, "Your Majesty is still young and strong. I originally thought that the prince would take at least ten years to ascend the throne, but I didn't expect it to be so soon!"

Tao Ti pursed her lips, her expression serious, and wondered in her heart: Emperor Zhaokang was not yet fifty years old and in good health. He could have been the emperor for another ten or twenty years. But why did he abdicate?

This happened so suddenly that the shock in her heart far outweighed her joy, and she also felt vaguely uneasy.

The spicy hot pot on the round table was still boiling, with bright red peppercorns and chili peppers rising and falling in the rich and fragrant soup.

Several people at the table congratulated Taoti and started eating again. Some had crispy pork, beef balls, enoki mushrooms and bean curd sticks, as well as duck intestines, beef, and mutton slices...

The prince was about to ascend the throne, and they were genuinely happy. But no matter how happy they were, they still had to eat the hot pot quickly, otherwise the tripe would become overcooked and not tasty.

——

It was exceptionally quiet inside the Qinzheng Hall; even the sound of pouring tea seemed too loud.

After the tea was brewed, Emperor Zhaokang dismissed all the palace servants. They all breathed a sigh of relief and hurriedly left.

The finest soothing incense was burning in the gilded copper stove with exotic beast patterns, and the green smoke curled up, emitting a calming fragrance.

Emperor Zhaokang leaned on the large pillow with a gloomy look. In just half a month, he had aged a lot. There were only a few white hairs on his temples, but now they were all white. The sharp aura between his straight brows had also dissipated for the most part. His brows were wrinkled into a "川" shape, as if his vitality had been drained away, and he exuded a decadent and old air.

Pei Yan's rough fingertips gently stroked the wall of the cup, pondered for a moment, and asked, "Father, why did you suddenly issue an edict of abdication?"

Emperor Zhaokang stretched out his hand and rubbed his brows. After a moment, he raised his deep black eyes and stared at Pei Yan in front of him, sighing, "I am old."

"Father is in his prime, and he doesn't..."

"I'm old, I'm tired, and I'm tired of sitting on the throne of emperor." Emperor Zhaokang interrupted him directly.

Pei Yan frowned and pursed his thin lips.

Emperor Zhaokang leaned back on the pillow, half-closed his eyes, and spoke slowly and lazily, "Everyone thinks it's good to be an emperor, and they fight for the throne with bloodshed and use every possible means. When I was young, I also admired power, thinking that as long as I sat on the dragon chair, I would control everything in the world, and I would be able to do anything... Haha, what about now?"

He sighed tiredly, "After all, I am still old."

When people get old, they love to recall the past and miss those ordinary yet warm beautiful things even more.

After New Year's Eve, he thought a lot.

Every day he woke up from his soft and luxurious bed, with a group of palace maids following him to serve him. He ate the most delicious food from land and sea and wore silk and satin.

Beauty, wealth, power, he has it all.

But when he fell asleep at night, looking at this magnificent yet empty palace, his heart also felt extremely empty, as if the cold winter wind was pouring into his heart, chilly and bitter.

Boundless loneliness was like an invisible and intangible monster, corroding him bit by bit and almost driving him crazy.

Emperor Zhaokang closed his eyes, extinguishing the sadness and fragility in them, and then opened them again and said to Pei Yan in a gentle voice, "Yan'er, you will be a good emperor. I believe in you."

Emperor Zhaokang was not completely unaware of Pei Changzhou's attempt to abdicate on New Year's Eve. But before he could give the order, he received news that the Eastern Palace had also taken action.

At that time he had guessed a little bit that this might be a game within a game where the mantis stalks the cicada, unaware of the oriole behind.

He knew it, but he didn't want to stop.

If he had to choose between his two sons, he would undoubtedly choose the prince.

What's more, he also wanted to see the prince's methods and character.

As it turned out, the prince did not disappoint him.

So cruel and so neat.

Since the prince is so outstanding, I can rest assured to hand over the country to him.

They were silent for a long time. Pei Yan drank half a cup of tea without saying a word, put down the celadon porcelain cup, and prepared to leave.

Emperor Zhaokang nodded and said, "Go ahead. There are a lot of things to do when you ascend the throne. You will be busy enough."

But when Pei Yan stood up, he couldn't help but call him, "Yan'er."

Pei Yan paused, lowered his eyes slowly, and said in a deep voice, "Father, is there anything else you want me to do?"

Emperor Zhaokang's eyebrows were filled with deep depression. After hesitating for a long time, he spoke with difficulty, "I did not instruct anyone to harm the eldest prince."

Pei Yan's black eyes moved slightly and the corners of his mouth tightened.

Emperor Zhaokang said, "The crazy woman Zhou said those words to deliberately stir up trouble between my father and me..."

Pei Yan said calmly, "I know."

His hands hanging by his legs clenched a little bit. After a long silence, he could no longer suppress the doubts in his heart. He looked at Emperor Zhao Kang with sharp eyes, "Is my brother really not our father's child?"

Emperor Zhaokang's eyes suddenly darkened, and his tone became a little colder, "No."

He made no effort to conceal his indifference towards the child.

He was never a kind-hearted person with a broad mind. The reason he could accept the child was simply because half of the child's blood was Yuanyuan's.

"It is impossible for me to treat him like my own son. I originally thought that when he grows up, I would send him to another place to be a leisurely prince, and I would rather not see him."

After a pause, Emperor Zhaokang said solemnly, "Although I hate his existence, I have never thought of harming him. I never thought that the crazy woman Zhou would run to your mother to sow discord..."

When Emperor Zhaokang thought that Yuanyuan had been deceived by Zhou's words and took poison, veins on his forehead throbbed and he was furious.

He hated Zhou's vicious heart and was also saddened by Gu Yuan's distrust of him. If Gu Yuan had asked him in person, he wouldn't have been so...

Seeing the regretful look on Emperor Zhaokang's face, Pei Yan sat down again and refilled his cup of tea. "Father, please forgive me for being rude, but I want to know what happened between you and my mother."

His tone was nonchalant, but his eyes were extremely firm.

Emperor Zhaokang felt guilty towards Pei Yan. He pondered for a while, raised his head, and said slowly, "Go to the antique cabinet, click the fourth carved pattern in the third row, and take out the painting inside."

Pei Yan looked at Emperor Zhaokang in surprise, and without saying anything more, he stood up and walked towards the antique cabinet behind the sandalwood table.

The carved pattern looked normal from the outside, but if you pushed down with a little force, soon a deep and long drawer would "click" open.

There was indeed a scroll inside, which was extremely well preserved.

Pei Yan returned with the painting and handed it to Emperor Zhaokang.

Emperor Zhaokang carefully took the scroll and slowly unfolded it, revealing a picture of a beauty behind a guardrail.

"Yan'er, this is what your mother looked like. Do you still remember it?"

“…” Pei Yan thought to himself, I don’t remember.

He was less than five years old when his mother passed away. Not long after, he fell into the water and became seriously ill. He had a high fever for several days and almost died.

After the high fever, my mother's appearance became blurry.

Now, after so many years, whenever he thought of his mother, there was only an unreal shadow in his memory. As for her appearance, he could no longer remember it.

Emperor Zhaokang stared at the beauty in the painting with infatuated eyes and whispered, "This is the scene when I first met your mother. At that time, I was still the crown prince, and I met your mother at the Spring Banquet..."

He had long heard that the young lady from the Gu family was known as the most beautiful woman in Chang'an, but he was not very interested.

After all, he was not interested in women.

Of course, after meeting Gu Yuan, he realized that it was not that he was not interested in women, but that he had not met her.

He was attracted by Gu Yuan the first time he saw her.

Be it love at first sight or lust at first sight, he only knew that he couldn't move away the moment he saw Gu Yuan.

She was like a frightened deer. She was obviously very panicked, but she pretended to be calm and saluted him. "Your Highness, I pay my respects to you. May your Highness live long and happy lives."

Her voice was extremely pleasant and gentle, like the catkins floating in the spring, gently falling into his heart.

After the Spring Banquet, he saw her again during the Dragon Boat Festival.

The dragon boat race on the Wei River was fierce and lively. She stood on the attic, looking towards him with a gentle smile.

At that moment, his heart was beating wildly: she was smiling at him!

But soon, his restless heart was chilled to the core.

Gu Yuan was not smiling at him, but at Wenming Yan who was not far behind him.

Wenming Yan, the eldest son of the head of the Imperial Hospital, and his childhood sweetheart with Gu Yuan.

Haha, childhood sweethearts.

As he watched this scene, two thoughts came to his mind:

First, kill Wenming Yan.

Second, bring Gu Yuan back, lock her up in the East Palace, and let her smile only at him from now on.

However, before he took action, he was sent to Jiangnan to inspect the salt industry.

After three months, I returned to Chang'an again, and it was Mid-Autumn Festival.

He heard that Gu Yuan and Wenming Yan were engaged——

He got very drunk that night, and was angry and unwilling to give in, so he climbed over the wall of Gu's house in the middle of the night.

His sudden appearance frightened Gu Yuan so much that his face turned pale.

He covered her lips, his eyes red, and said fiercely, "Yuanyuan, you are not allowed to marry him. You can only be mine."

Three days later, Gu Yuan eloped with Wenming Yan.

He was nearly mad to death when he heard the news from the secret guards. He ran out of the tutor's class without caring about anything else, and led others to chase him.

He gritted his teeth and swore that even if they escaped to the ends of the earth, he would catch them back...

He admitted that he was a really despicable bastard.

He used the lives of the Gu family and Wenming Yan as the key, and Gu Yuan eventually married into the Eastern Palace and became his crown princess.

The next year, his father died, he became emperor, she became his empress, and gave birth to the "premature" eldest prince.

He did have her, but he didn't have her smile.

Her smiles became less and less frequent, and the light in her eyes gradually disappeared, like a soulless puppet.

The last time she laughed was when she took poison and fell into his arms.

Crystal clear tears rolled down from the corners of her eyes. She smiled while crying, a relaxed smile with a sense of relief.

Yes, I feel relieved.

He and Yan'er were both a burden to her.

The memories came to an abrupt end, and when Emperor Zhaokang came to his senses, there was warmth and moisture in the corners of his eyes.

His face was gloomy, and he murmured absentmindedly, "I was wrong, I was wrong..."

Pei Yan lowered his eyes, dark colors surging in his pupils.

Once upon a time, he had the same despicable thought as his father, wanting to lock up Ati and not let her see anyone.

His fingers gently stroked the red rope on his wrist, and he secretly thanked himself for controlling his evil thoughts, otherwise...

He didn't dare to imagine the scene of losing A'ti. When he thought about it, his heart felt as if a blunt knife was cutting his flesh.

When I came out of the Qinzheng Hall, it was already dark.

Pei Yan looked up at the gray sky, and then, in a deep voice, he told Li Gui, "Father is in a bad mood right now, Chief Steward Li, please serve him carefully."

"Don't worry, Your Highness. I will take good care of Your Majesty." Li Gui agreed and respectfully saw Pei Yan off.

By the time the chariot reached Yaoguang Palace, it was completely dark.

Two palace lights were on at the entrance of the palace. Pei Yan got off the sedan chair and just walked to the door when he ran into Tao Ti who was walking out.

Tao Ti was wrapped in a snow-white fox cloak. She was petite, and the furry hat on her face made her face look even smaller. Her cheeks were a little red, like a snowball.

"Your Highness, you are back. I was just about to go look for you."

Ever since she heard the news about Emperor Zhaokang's succession to the throne at noon, her heart has been like a cat's paw, and she wanted to run to Pei Yan immediately to ask about this matter in detail.

She waited and waited, and until late at night Pei Yan still didn't come back, she became a little impatient.

Pei Yan understood her thoughts at a glance, grasped her small hand, put it into his warm sleeve, and said lightly, "Don't worry, let's go back to the palace and talk slowly."

Seeing him covering her hands as soon as he entered the room, Tao Ti felt warm in her heart. She blinked her bright eyes and said, "Well, go in first."

The two of them walked into the hall together, and Tao Ti asked Linglong to prepare a duck pot for dinner.

Soon, the eel pot was served on the table. The clear soup was a delicious mushroom base. On the other side was not a spicy pot, but a tomato pot with a rich, sweet and sour taste.

"I had spicy hotpot for lunch, and I thought it would be easy to get irritated if I ate it at night, so I had tomato hotpot instead."

Tao Ti was rinsing the fresh cabbage leaves and said, "The butter sauce I cooked tastes delicious, but it's too spicy and oily to eat at night, which is not good for the stomach. Well, I'll make it for you tomorrow, and I guarantee you'll love the taste."

Pei Yan said yes and chuckled, "Clear soup pot and tomato pot are also good, I like them both."

Through the hazy smoke, Tao Ti couldn't wait to ask, "Your Highness, did His Majesty really pass the throne to you? Why did he pass the throne to you so suddenly?"

Pei Yan did not hide the truth from her and answered her every question.

Only then did Tao Ti truly realize that her husband was about to become emperor, and she was about to become empress.

It was late at night, and after taking a shower and changing clothes, they lay down on the bed together.

Pei Yan was still thinking about the grievances between Emperor Zhaokang and Empress Gu, and could not fall asleep for a long time.

Tao Ti was tired from eating tomato hotpot and hadn't slept yet. She felt that Pei Yan seemed to be worried, so she rubbed her head against his arms and asked softly, "Your Highness, what's wrong with you?"

Pei Yan hugged her, his nose filled with the delicate and pleasant fragrance of her body. He calmed down a little and spoke slowly, "Today, my father told me a lot about my mother."

Tao Ti was stunned, and her heart was filled with curiosity. "Well, can you tell me about it?"

Pei Yan held her little head in his arms, her long eyelashes drooped, her eyes half closed, and she hummed softly.

His tone was slow and his voice was as cold as gold and jade as he recounted the past events of many years ago...

The more Tao Ti listened, the more alert she became, and her mood became more and more complicated.

The late emperor was too miserable.

This style of plundering, heartbreaking and physically abusive is straight out of the script of an old sadomasochistic drama.

Although Tao Ti did not have much contact with Emperor Zhaokang, but when she thought about it carefully, she realized that Emperor Zhaokang was indeed capable of doing such a thing.

Suddenly, she hugged Pei Yan with her hands and feet.

Pei Yan's body stiffened, and he lowered his eyes to look at the little girl who was clinging to him tightly, "Ati?"

Tao Ti buried her face in his arms and said softly, "Fortunately you didn't become like that..."

Pei Yan laughed dumbly.

Yes, he was very lucky.

Tao Ti suddenly recalled the New Year's Eve when Pei Yan hugged her and begged her not to abandon him.

Could it be because of the grudge between Empress Gu and Emperor Zhaokang?

Yes, if Empress Gu was really forced into the palace by Emperor Zhaokang, then Pei Yan’s birth was not something to be happy about for Empress Gu.

But what did Pei Yan do wrong?

Many years ago, he was just a young child who instinctively longed for his mother's love, but his mother abandoned him early, leaving him alone in the cruel palace.

Accumulated.

disposable.

A child who is not expected by his mother and even hated by her mother.

Pei Yan must be very sad when he knew this.

Thinking of this, Tao Ti felt a little sour in her nose and her heart softened.

She raised her head and kissed his chin, "Your Highness, I will always be with you."