However, Su Youran tossed and turned for a long time because of Yueyue's words.
Have you ever had someone you liked?
If you like someone, you'll miss them terribly when you can't see them, but you'll feel at peace when you can be together.
By this standard, there really is someone who comes to mind.
She discovered she was pregnant shortly after she ran away five years ago, and her feelings were very complicated.
The shadow of her suffering and death in childbirth in her previous life lingered, and she could never let go of the child who never got to see the world.
She never imagined that in this life, she would have to face the arrival of a child so soon.
During her ten months of pregnancy, she would unconsciously think of that man every time she was in the dark of night.
To be precise, it was that beggar.
When she was first locked in that cellar, she was given drugs.
The beggar was also given medicine when he was thrown in.
She was forcibly taken by a beggar covered in blood, and filled with hatred and pain, she punched and kicked him.
He didn't fight back.
Later, the old woman who was guarding her got tired of her constant shouting, so she cut out her tongue and blinded her.
He wrapped her eyes with a strip of cloth and slowly washed her wounds with clean water, which prevented them from festering.
She was in excruciating pain from losing her tongue and couldn't eat anything, nor did she want to. He forced her to chew her food and feed it to her, and forced her to drink warm water little by little, constantly telling her in her ear that she had to live.
She gradually came back to life.
Later, his wounds scabbed over, and the stench of blood on his body disappeared.
He tried to talk to her, but she had lost her tongue and could not speak.
So he stopped talking.
She doesn't know when it started, but she noticed that her stomach was swollen.
They were only given the drug on the first night...
She wept silently, pounding her stomach.
He silently protected her, holding her and comforting her belly.
The two later became each other's only support.
Sometimes when she touched his hands, she could feel the uneven scars, which were everywhere.
He would hug her from behind when she was feeling unwell, comforting her like a child.
She knew he was constantly looking for a chance to escape, and he kept digging grooves in the wall with bamboo chopsticks so he could step on them.
Finally, one day he begged the old woman who was guarding her to bring him another bowl of hot water. The old woman was too lazy to close the cellar door properly and left.
He seized the opportunity, climbed up the wall, and told her to wait a moment while he went to find a rope to pull her up.
She waited with high hopes.
But after a moment, she heard a thud.
Then came the old woman's cursing, and from the cursing, she knew that he had been knocked unconscious by the old woman.
After that... she knew nothing about what was happening outside. Not long after, she was forcibly moved to another place...
Later, she passed away amidst the excruciating pain of childbirth.
In this life, during the ten months she was pregnant with her second child, she often thought of this person.
She also thought that if it weren't for him, she might have died long ago and wouldn't have had to endure the pain of childbirth.
She was initially conflicted about whether to be grateful or hateful.
As the months went by, her body grew heavier, and especially during childbirth, when the terrible, familiar pain came, she instantly remembered how good he was.
That was one of the few good things she experienced in her final moments in her previous life.
In her previous life, her father abandoned her, her mother died early, her brother was indifferent to her, and her husband never touched her... Apart from her grandmother, Madam Yun, and her childhood aunt, she could not find a third relative who treated her sincerely...
In any case, I must find this person in this lifetime.
That beggar was the only warmth she had in her dark and desperate moments.
In contrast, Chu Heng was by her side the whole way back to Beijing.
But she felt no peace of mind; instead, she was always anxious.
She was anxious about returning to the capital and entering the deep palace behind those high walls. She worried that it would be difficult to see her child, and she also worried that once she lost the peaceful life outside the palace, the three of them would be involved in endless conflicts.
Even within the deep palace, a peaceful life is not guaranteed simply because you don't fight for power.
She was always lonely. In her previous life, she married according to her mother's dying wish, but she did not find happiness.
Later, he wandered for a thousand years as a lonely ghost, never experiencing the taste of loving or being loved.
In this life, she only wanted to protect her mother and the family she cared about, and she never intended to place her feelings on any particular man.
Does anyone have a crush on me?
She was also confused.
...
The next day, before going on duty, Su Youchen made a special detour to the Yun residence, asked You Ran for the names of the two children, and then went to the palace to request an audience.
It must be said that Chu Heng was a diligent monarch. After being away for more than half a month, he immediately resumed the morning court upon his return and dealt with the mountain of government affairs.
Su Youchen was not required to attend the morning court session every day, so he had to go to the Imperial Study to request an audience after the court session.
When his future brother-in-law requested an audience, Chu Heng was naturally overjoyed and quickly invited him in.
Su Youchen was about to kneel and perform the full ceremony when Chu Heng quickly said, "No need for formalities, Minister Su. Is there something important?"
Su Youchen came today as the future empress's brother. Without any formalities, he cupped his hands slightly and took out the name card to present it. "Youran has circled the children's names. Please take a look, Your Majesty."
Chu Heng took the papers and saw that they were two names chosen from several given by his father: Chu Yan for his son and Chu Xuan for his daughter.
He instructed the eunuch, "Send this to the Grand Secretariat, ask them to draft an edict, and make another copy for my uncle, Prince An, to be included in the imperial genealogy."
"yes."
"Please give Minister Su a seat."
"Yes." Immediately, two eunuchs brought over a grand chair.
Knowing that the Emperor also had something to say, Su Youchen thanked him and sat down.
"Your Majesty, how do you plan to bring these two children back to the palace?"
Chu Heng said, "The cabinet will draft an edict to announce to the world that they should be allowed to return to the palace openly and legitimately. If the Yun family is reluctant to part with them, they can postpone it for a few days."
"So what if the world questions a child's lineage?"
After all, the child was not born and raised in the palace, and the royal bloodline must not be confused.
"With me here, who dares to question me?" Chu Heng's tone left no room for argument. "However, you are also right. If any court officials bring it up, then Physician Gu will step forward and conduct a blood test to prove kinship, thus silencing the world."
"Yes, Your Majesty is wise." Su Youchen pressed on, "Then, what if someone asks about the children's birth mother?"
"To be honest, the position of Empress is reserved for You Ran alone! As long as she is unwilling to enter the palace, my harem will be without a mistress."
Chu Heng gave a bitter smile. "Five years ago, I made a vow in your Yun family that You Ran would be the only one in my life, and that I would never marry or take concubines if I could not find her. This vow still rings in my ears, and I dare not forget it. Half a month ago, when I found her, I also expressed my feelings to her and wanted to welcome her back to the palace with the honors due to an empress, but she has never agreed, and I dare not force her."
Seeing his resolute tone, Su Youchen felt a slight sense of relief. "Yesterday, Grandmother and Mother asked her, and she did say... she didn't really want to go to the palace. However..."
After thinking for a moment, he still voiced Yueyue's speculation, "Yueyue talked to You Ran and knows that it's not because of the past grievances with the Emperor, but perhaps just because..."
"Oh?" Chu Heng raised an eyebrow and asked when he saw him pause.
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