The harem was empty, and many elderly palace maids were released. With fewer masters to serve, expenses decreased, and the national treasury was no longer under pressure.
The emperor could bear it no longer. With his mother, wife, children and family reunited, he was left alone.
The emperor issued an edict summoning Chen Miaoyi to return to the capital to take over the position of Minister of Punishments. The old minister resigned and returned to his hometown, so it was natural for her to take over.
The ministers were not surprised. The emperor's approach was to suppress first and then promote. He would send the emperor out for a few years to gain experience and then bring him back to the capital for promotion.
In December, the Queen Mother and Chen Miaoyi returned to the capital with their four children.
"Your Majesty, the Queen Mother's carriage has arrived outside the palace gate." The eunuch reminded the emperor, who had not yet left the court and stood up from the dragon throne.
"My dear ministers, you have always been concerned about my offspring. Recently, many have submitted petitions requesting adoption. Today, my biological son has returned. Come with me to greet him."
The emperor smiled proudly, straightened his dragon robe, and the eunuch sang loudly, "Dismiss the court!"
The emperor walked out of the gate of Xuan Zheng Hall, taking three steps at a time, and headed towards the palace gate. The ministers had to keep up with his pace and speed up.
Two carriages drove into the palace gate.
The Queen Mother slowly stepped down from the carriage. After everyone saw her clearly, they all bowed and wondered in their hearts, when did the Queen Mother leave the palace?
Hasn’t the Queen Mother been claiming illness and not seeing anyone for several months?
"Slow down, slow down, be careful not to fall."
What made them even more confused was that the usually serious queen mother actually smiled lovingly and took two children out of the carriage!
The emperor rushed over and asked, "Mother, this, this, is this my child?"
The emperor held up his hands, not daring to touch the children. The two children looked at him curiously.
"Hurry up, call daddy, and I'll buy you some candy." The Queen Mother coaxed the child.
"father!"
The soft and cute children's voices pulled the emperor back from his excitement, and he carefully held the two children's soft little hands.
"Hey, Dad's here."
His child, his and Chen Miaoyi's child, was held in the arms of the Queen Mother and appeared before him. His heart felt as if it were filled with hot water, and waves of endless warmth surged up.
"These are my prince and princess! They are also the crown prince of Daxia! If anyone dares to mention adoption again in the future, I will spare his head!"
The emperor said proudly to his courtiers. They looked at each other in bewilderment. Where did the emperor get the child and why did he hide it so well?
But it shouldn't be wrong to ask the Queen Mother to come back personally, right? Whatever, I'll kneel first.
So all the ministers saluted the prince.
"Mother, where is she?" The emperor held the child's hand and was reluctant to let go. He looked into the carriage, but saw no one.
"She's in the carriage at the back. She'll come out after everyone leaves." said the Queen Mother. After discussing with Chen Miaoyi, she and they both agreed that they shouldn't let everyone know that she was the prince's biological mother.
"Adjourn the court, everyone go back, the Queen Mother and I still have something to say."
"Your Majesty..." A minister was interrupted as soon as he spoke. The emperor was unwilling to spend even a minute on them. Only if they left quickly could he see Chen Miaoyi.
"If there is anything, we can talk about it in the court."
"Mother, please get on the carriage. You must have been exhausted from the journey. Come back and rest when you reach the Cining Palace."
The emperor said that as the ministers left one after another, he still had to endure the longing in his heart.
"You go first, I want to talk to the emperor for a while." The empress dowager waved her hand, and the carriage carrying Chen Miaoyi moved forward slowly. The empress dowager put the emperor down, and each of them held a child and walked along the palace road.
"Cang'er, Jing'er, this will be your home from now on. Do you like it?" the Queen Mother asked kindly.
"I like it!" The two children had never seen such a wide yard, and they were happily chasing each other. The palace servants surrounded them carefully, fearing that the newly-born little prince and princess would fall.
"Mother, I'm going to the Cining Palace first. You can take your time with the children."
After the emperor kissed each of the two children on the cheek, he quickly ran to the Cining Palace. He no longer cared about etiquette because there was no outsider in the palace anyway.
When the emperor arrived at the Cining Palace, Chen Miaoyi was playing with the child. It was her first time entering the Cining Palace.
"You're back."
The emperor hugged her, and the palace maids who were serving him quietly retreated outside the house. The child was also taken away by the wet nurse to be fed.
"Well, you're finally back, not only me, but the children as well!" Chen Miaoyi patted his back gently. The emperor had lost a lot of weight, and his waist seemed thinner than before.
"I heard that you dismissed all the concubines in the harem?" Chen Miaoyi was happy when she thought about this. She was quite good at expressing her attitude. The whole capital was still discussing the emperor's dismissal of the harem.
"Are you happy? I don't want so many people in the palace. It's enough for us to live here as a family, with you, me, mother, and the children."
The emperor's eyes were bright, and he no longer had to stand on the highest building in the palace to look into the distance every day.
"Happy, very happy, the children will be happy too."
All her life she longed for a family and a home, and finally she got what she wanted.
It was Chen Miaoyi's first time to dine in the Cining Palace of Daxia. There were not so many rules. There were five people at the table, sitting close together.
"From now on, we won't ask anyone to serve us when we eat. I lived a real life in Cangzhou, full of laughter and conversation. In the future, there will be children in the Cining Palace who can accompany me for meals."
The Queen Mother insisted that all the palace maids leave, and only the family members she recognized were here.
"Mother, it seems you are very happy in Cangzhou, but I am suffering. I am so worried every day that I can't eat."
The empress dowager took a good look at the emperor and found that he had indeed lost some weight. Her eyes were focused on the children and she did not notice the changes in her own son.
"Dad, eat this!" Chen Mingjing picked up a piece of food with chopsticks and put it in his bowl. Although it was the first time for the two of them to meet their biological father, the Queen Mother and Chen Miaoyi had taught them a lot in Cangzhou.
The two of them were not afraid of strangers, as if they were born to be close to the emperor.
The emperor was eating the dishes picked by his daughter, with a lot of thoughts in his mind. It was the first time someone called him dad instead of father.
He had never called his father "Dad" in his entire life. Now the palace was quiet and it was really like an ordinary family.
"Although I have decided not to interfere with your thoughts, I still want to hear what you think now. The emperor has already announced in front of all the ministers that Cang'er is the crown prince.
Then the prince’s biological mother must be the queen.”
The Queen Mother did not urge him directly, but the Prince's background did not allow anyone to make a fuss.
"Mother, please don't announce this matter for now. First, let's make it known that Miaoyi is a woman."
If people can't accept this, then use something more bizarre to make them accept it.
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