The sun shines brightly in winter.
As the year draws to a close, a snowfall occurred last night, covering the entire palace in a thick layer of snow, transforming it into a silver-white wonderland.
With only two months left until the coronation ceremony, today marks one month since Bai Lingxi began her postpartum recovery.
Because there was only one concubine in the harem who was about to be crowned empress, the entire harem was peaceful and quiet. The palace servants were much more at ease, at least they didn't have to worry about losing their lives because of the harem's infighting.
It was supposed to be the end of the year, and the palace should have been filled with joy and celebration, but the emperor was not smiling at all and was very serious.
There was once a foolish palace maid who tried to seduce the emperor while the concubine of Ganling Palace was unable to serve him. The emperor ordered her to be beaten to death with sticks.
Therefore, even during festivals like the New Year, the palace servants were even more careful and cautious, fearing that they might inadvertently anger the emperor and die without even knowing how.
Some of the people below speculated that the Emperor's recent mood swings were related to Consort Ganling, and this speculation was not unfounded.
Strangely enough, Bai Lingxi's health had started to recover slowly last time, and she should have been getting healthier and healthier, but for some reason, she has been getting worse lately.
Bai Lingxi seemed to realize this as well, her vitality was slowly fading, and she couldn't muster any energy. Of course, she was afraid of worrying Zhou Changling, so she always put on a brave face in front of him.
Do you know if Zhou Changling knows?
How could he not know? They'd spent so much time together, day and night, he wanted to be with Bai Lingxi all the time, but...?
Zhou Changling had no choice but to seek medical treatment every day and also to appease Bai Lingxi so as not to reveal his secret in front of her.
Since the medicine couldn't be found, Zhou Changling had no choice but to look for someone else, as that was his only hope!
Not long after all, Zhou Changling had been searching for Zhao Xueqing's whereabouts because he discovered that the vixen had escaped.
After several days of work, he finally located the other party's whereabouts, and the secret guards were unable to catch him at all.
Only Zhou Changling could easily find the other party's hiding place, and only if he was right could the secret guards barely find it.
At first, Zhou Changling was shocked, confused, and unable to understand such a mysterious matter.
Until one day, when he saw the storybook Bai Lingxi was reading, a terrible thought slowly surfaced in his mind—perhaps…?
He's like the male protagonist in a storybook; it's only right that he's with the female protagonist!
In the imperial study, the elegant fragrance of sandalwood incense burned brightly. Lately, Zhou Changling had become increasingly anxious, and he lit the sandalwood incense to calm his mind and try to quiet his thoughts as he recalled various details.
Zhou Jin pondered why Xi'er's body was becoming increasingly weak. She was almost recovered, and the imperial physician had said that Xi'er's pulse was strong and powerful.
It seems that ever since that criminal woman died, Xi'er's health has been deteriorating day by day. All the imperial physicians in the Imperial Hospital have been unable to find the cause of his illness, and a sense of powerlessness has swept over him.
Zhao Xueqing's appearance gave him hope, so he had to bring her back! If the secret guards couldn't do it, he would do it himself.
Thinking of this, Zhou Changling lowered his eyes and looked at the latest intelligence brought up by the secret guards on the table. He finally made up his mind that he would go himself tomorrow!
??
The news of Zhou Changling's impending departure from the palace spread like wildfire. When it reached Zhou Jin, he smiled slightly, finally having gotten this opportunity!
Zhou Jin had been waiting for this day for far too long, but fortunately, the perfect opportunity had finally arrived!
Ganling Palace.
at night.
Bai Lingxi was unusually lucid and in good spirits. She asked the nanny to bring the little prince over. The baby was not yet a month old, but the red skin from when he was born had already faded, and he was fair and tender, extremely cute.
"hey-hey!"
"An'er, look at the little tiger, don't you like it?"
No matter what fun things Bai Lingxi brought out, the little prince's eyes never left her. He stared at her intently, occasionally chuckling, as if he could never get enough of looking at her.
Bai Lingxi's eyes softened even more, and she seemed to radiate light. The people serving her were all stunned and speechless.
When Zhou Changling entered, the room was unusually quiet. He thought Bai Lingxi had already rested and didn't ask anyone to announce his arrival. However, he unexpectedly witnessed a scene he would never forget.
The woman was charming and beautiful, with porcelain-white skin and clear, beautiful almond-shaped eyes. Although she was already a mother, she was more delicate and charming than a young girl who had not yet married.
Her slender, white fingers teased the child, but she herself was amused first. Like a fairy descending to earth, her smile was bright and gentle, and even the candlelight seemed to favor her, shining on her face, highlighting her distinct features and skin as tender as a peeled egg.
"Xi'er."
Zhou Changling murmured to himself unconsciously, his eyes slightly red. How long had it been since he had seen such a lively person? Because of some official business, every time he saw Bai Lingxi, she was either asleep or listless. It had been such a long time.
At that time, Zhou Changling thought that there was plenty of time and that their relationship would get better and better and they would become closer and closer. Little did he know that what awaited him was heart-wrenching pain.
Perhaps his gaze was too intense, for Bai Lingxi suddenly looked up and saw Zhou Changling's unwavering eyes, his love for her impossible to conceal, plainly revealed.
Bai Lingxi sometimes couldn't understand these emotions, but she trusted her intuition. She felt that although Zhou Changling's gaze was burning, she was actually quite happy inside.
So Bai Lingxi got off the bed first, held the little prince steadily, and walked gracefully towards Zhou Changling.
At that moment, Zhou Changling felt that there was nothing happier in the world. Before him was a huge peach tree, with petals falling everywhere, and Bai Lingxi was floating towards him step by step on the flowers, with a sweet fragrance wafting through the air.
"Husband?"
Bai Lingxi looked at Zhou Changling, who was standing there in a daze, and smiled as she looked into his eyes. Their eyes met, and it seemed as if a thousand words had been spoken in that moment.
"Ahhh."
In the end, the little prince saw that his mother's attention was completely drawn to the man in front of him. He babbled a lot and waved his little hands haphazardly.
"you--"
"you--"
The two smiled at each other. Zhou Changling tried to suppress the surging emotions in his heart and took the little prince from her arms. He held the child steadily with one arm.
With his other hand, he wrapped his arms around Bai Lingxi's slender waist and asked softly, "How have you been today, Xi'er? Did this brat bother you?"
Zhou Changling had his reasons for saying that, because the little prince's cries were unusually loud from birth, and he would cry incessantly if he couldn't see his mother or smell her familiar scent after waking up.
The crying could be heard throughout the entire Ganling Palace. No matter how the nanny tried to soothe her, it was no use, so she had to bring the baby to Bai Lingxi.
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