Xia Yixin was also dressed in black, which made her look a bit thinner.
Because of his long strides and her weight, she became slightly out of breath after only a few steps, while Qi Yu seemed oblivious and continued walking as if in a tantrum, refusing to use the imperial carriage.
A group of eunuchs and palace maids followed behind carrying two imperial carriages. Neither of their masters spoke, so they dared not speak either. They didn't know the situation, and they dared not ask.
Even the chief eunuch Cao De looked like he wanted to say something but hesitated.
The walk from Zhengyang Palace to Cining Palace was more than two kilometers.
The emperor was supposed to have a three-day rest period after his wedding, but on the second day he still had to take the empress to pay his respects to the empress dowager.
By the time Xia Yixin arrived at the Empress Dowager's Cining Palace, she was already sweating. Fortunately, she had stopped the palace maids from applying makeup to her face that morning. The original owner actually had very good skin, unlike the skin of people from the Northwest. Applying the makeup used by women here would be superfluous. Besides, the original owner wasn't particularly pretty to begin with, and applying makeup would only make her look like a poor imitation. She simply applied lip rouge and drew her eyebrows and eyeliner to make herself look more presentable.
Fortunately, when they arrived at the entrance of Cixi Palace, the arrogant young woman finally showed some conscience. She paused, caught her breath, and had the palace maids wipe away her sweat before stepping inside.
Upon entering Cixi Palace, Xia Yixin felt that Qi Yu seemed to have become more relaxed. Although his brows were still cold and stern, his tightly pursed thin lips had a slight curve, especially when he entered the main hall and saw the person who had been waiting for them for so long.
"Mother."
Even the strongest person will briefly lower their guard when facing their mother. Qi Yu, like a swallow returning to its nest, bowed to the woman and his eyes were full of tenderness.
Xia Yixin also hurriedly bowed. After the late emperor died, her father led troops into the capital and took control of the palace. When he killed the princes who were in the way, he also dealt with the late emperor's women. Some of them were forced to be buried alive with him. So now, only Empress Dowager Xiaode is in Cixi Palace, which is quiet and cold.
Empress Dowager Xiaode was only thirty-six years old. It was clear that she must have been a beauty in her youth. Moreover, she was the daughter of the Lin family, a prominent family of Confucian scholars. She had a melancholy air about her, but her eyes revealed a strong will. Her gaze towards Qi Yu was full of love. However, when she turned to look at her, she was first surprised, then saddened by understanding, but this was quickly covered up by her kind smile.
Xia Yixin could tell that her smile didn't reach her eyes.
Moreover, Xia Yixin noticed a detail: Empress Dowager Xiaode originally wanted to beckon Qi Yu over, but was interrupted by a light cough from the head nanny beside her.
She had just finished serving tea when Cao De's sharp voice came from behind her: "Empress Dowager, the Prime Minister requests an audience."
Empress Dowager Xiaode knew he had come to demonstrate his power, but she still put on a fake smile and said, "Since he is the Prime Minister, why don't you quickly invite him in?"
Xia Jingfeng, clad in full armor, stormed in, seemingly forgetting to sheathe his sword before shoving it into its sheath. But the atmosphere inside had already changed.
As he was about to bow to Qi Yu, Empress Dowager Xiaode stopped him. After a series of polite exchanges, with the Empress Dowager saying, "The Prime Minister has been kind to my son and me, and is also the Emperor's father-in-law, so there's no need for you to bow," and "No, no, etiquette cannot be disregarded," and "The Prime Minister really doesn't need to do this; you have been kind to my son and me," Xia Jingfeng ultimately did not bow.
Xia Jingfeng ignored Qi Yu and walked towards Xia Yixin, his concern evident in his eyes. However, a glance at Qi Yu was full of warning: "I heard you walked over?"
Qi Yu stood to the side, his hands unconsciously clenching in his sleeves.
Xia Yixin felt like her father was rushing to protect her when she was fighting with someone else. She nodded and said gently before Xia Jingfeng could get angry, "It was my idea. I've never been to this palace before and wanted to take a look, so I asked Your Majesty to walk with me. Besides, I do want to lose some weight."
Xia Jingfeng's imposing aura subsided slightly, and he boomed, "Don't listen to those petty scoundrels. You're just strong. This is how our people on the grasslands should be. What kind of thing is a skinny person who can be broken with a pinch!"
Empress Dowager Xiaode, who was described as "so skinny that she could break with a pinch," coughed awkwardly and said, "That's right. I don't like those who are too thin either. On the contrary, it is the Empress who is good at producing offspring for my royal family."
Xia Jingfeng immediately adopted a "I told you so" attitude, making Xia Yixin silently blush. This guy really is a warlord who commands the Northern Martial Iron Cavalry and is decisive in killing.
However, the matter of "walking to Cixi Palace" has finally been put behind us.
Empress Dowager Xiaode made an excuse, saying that the newlyweds should "have a good time to stroll around," and sent the two away. Xia Jingfeng didn't want to stay any longer, so he just took a deep look at Xia Yixin before leaving.
However, just as Xia Yixin had predicted, the system prompted, "Avoid the death ending for Xia Jingfeng -60%. Host, don't give up!"
She glanced at Qi Yu casually, and sure enough, the boy's face was tense; he was angry.
It seems the main quest is indeed related to this arrogant young man, Qi Yu. It seems we really need to start with him. However, we also need to persuade Xia Jingfeng about some things first.
With the Empress Dowager's order, the two of them actually started strolling around the palace. Xia Yixin also felt that they should figure out the "map" of the palace.
The eunuchs and palace maids followed the two at a distance.
This time, the arrogant young man did know to accommodate her pace, but neither of them said a word.
Qi Yu couldn't understand what Xia Yixin was trying to do. Logically, the two of them should be enemies, but she had just covered up something for him. Xia Yixin was thinking about the look Xia Jingfeng gave her when he left.
Sigh, she really doesn't like to act arrogant and domineering, and the original owner was completely unpredictable. It seems she needs to go and explain things to Xia Jingfeng tonight, so as not to cause any future misunderstandings.
For the first three days of their marriage, the two of them slept in the Dragon Palace. After all, Qi Yu was the emperor. After taking a bath at night, Xia Yixin spontaneously took her quilt and pillow to the couch, and Qi Yu did not insist.
Xia Yixin has already started her weight loss plan today. After witnessing how greasy the imperial cuisine was last night, she specifically asked the imperial kitchen to make some lighter dishes for dinner. Unfortunately, even though she requested lighter dishes, the imperial kitchen did not dare to serve blanched dishes directly. Instead, they made them more delicate, which meant that they did not look greasy but were actually very greasy.
Faced with the trembling head chef's question, Xia Yixin was too embarrassed to say no, but she secretly resolved to go to the imperial kitchen another day and see if she could set up a private kitchen like before.
Late at night, after confirming that Qi Yu was breathing evenly and was fast asleep, she quietly got out of bed. However, given her weight and lack of martial arts skills, it was impossible to make a sound. But she couldn't worry about that too much.
Sure enough, as soon as she stepped out of the palace gate, she saw four Northern Wu soldiers exuding murderous intent, and Cao De kneeling and waiting at the door.
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