After hearing what Emperor Jingming said, Princess Fuqing and the Fourteenth Princess looked at each other in surprise.

Emperor Jingming said, "You two go out and play."

The two princesses bowed and withdrew together.

The Queen Mother picked up the Buddhist beads bracelet and rubbed it slowly: "This is really a sudden thing. I haven't heard the Emperor or the Queen mention it--"

Emperor Jingming smiled and said, "As soon as my son made a decision, he rushed over to tell mother the good news. You are the second person in the palace to know about it besides the empress."

"Well, who was the first to know about it besides the Queen?" asked the Queen Mother with a smile.

The smile was so faint that it didn't even reach the eyes.

"The first one is Consort Xian."

The Queen Mother shook her head and smiled: "I am confused. Such a big thing must be reported to Consort Xian. Has the Imperial Clan House heard the news?"

Emperor Jingming nodded and said, "The clan leader has changed the message about the seventh son. This morning, my son told all the officials about this matter."

The Queen Mother's smile froze for a moment, then returned to normal: "Your Majesty is truly powerful and swift."

"When I think about the twists and turns you went through when you adopted me, I feel that the sooner things are done, the better..." Emperor Jingming spoke in a tone like a son seeking credit from his mother, and it was clear that he wanted to get the Queen Mother's praise.

The Queen Mother did not disappoint Emperor Jingming. She nodded slightly after listening and said, "Your Majesty did a great job. The Queen is more fortunate than me..."

"What are you talking about, mother? I am your son. No one in this palace is as blessed as you..."

The mother and son talked for a long time in a harmonious atmosphere.

"Your Majesty, please go and do your work. I need to take a rest as well."

Emperor Jingming stood up and said, "Then you should take a good rest. My son is going back."

"Hmm." The Queen Mother seemed tired, her eyelids slightly closed, and her voice became softer.

After Emperor Jingming left, the empress dowager suddenly opened her eyes, grabbed the Buddhist beads and threw them to the ground.

The Buddhist beads bracelet was thrown to the ground with great force, the string broke immediately, and the beads rolled everywhere.

"Empress Dowager—" the only old palace servant left in the room called out cautiously.

The Queen Mother seemed to have calmed down as the Buddhist beads bracelet broke. She said calmly, "Pick up the beads and string them together. Don't drop any."

"Yes." The old palace maid didn't dare to ask the empress dowager why she was angry, let alone speculate. She knelt down and carefully picked up the Buddhist beads scattered everywhere.

After an unknown amount of time, the old palace maid held up a box full of Buddhist beads and said carefully, "Queen Mother, one of them is missing—"

The Queen Mother sighed and murmured, "Forget it, what is broken is broken after all..."

Princess Fuqing walked out of Cining Palace with light steps, and pulled Princess Fourteen and said, "Fourteenth sister, let's go find our mother."

The Fourteenth Princess' eyes flickered slightly.

Princess Fuqing smiled and explained, "I guess the Queen Mother must be very happy at this moment, let's go and congratulate her."

Princess Fourteen nodded slightly.

When the queen saw the two princesses coming, she smiled and asked, "Why are you here so early today?"

Princess Fuqing bowed and sat next to the empress, smiling and saying, "My father went to see the empress, and my fourteenth sister and I came out."

When the empress heard that Emperor Jingming had gone to Cining Palace, she curled her lips slightly.

"Mother, did you really adopt my seventh brother as your son?"

"Why, are you worried that someone will compete with you for favor in the future?" The queen joked when she saw her daughter's eyes full of curiosity and excitement.

Princess Fuqing blushed slightly: "I am so happy to have a brother."

"Yes, mother is happy too." The queen said softly.

She had the idea of ​​becoming a nominal prince just for Fuqing, and she only hoped that Prince Yan would not let her down.

The news that the seventh prince, Prince of Yan, had become the empress's son went to Yuquan Palace and then to Cining Palace with Emperor Jingming, and soon spread throughout the palace like a gust of wind.

For a while, some people came to congratulate the empress, some went to comfort Concubine Xian (to watch the joke), and the palace suddenly became lively.

A eunuch hid in a deserted place, raised his hand and slapped himself in the face, muttering: "So that's how it is, so that's how it is——"

A familiar voice came: "Xiao Lezi, are you bored and crazy? Are you hiding here and slapping people for fun?"

It turned out that the person who slapped him in the face was Pan Hai's apprentice Xiao Lezi.

When Xiao Lezi saw his master appear, he bowed and said with a smile, "I suddenly heard about King Yan's affairs and thought I was dreaming. I hit myself in the mouth to see if it hurts."

Pan Hai looked at his apprentice as if he were a fool and suddenly felt tired.

He thought he could slap anyone in his dream, but he had to slap himself? After all the trouble, he accepted a stupid apprentice.

"Many people were surprised by the King of Yan, but none of them were as surprised as you. You are useless!"

Xiao Lezi laughed dryly: "Master taught me right, how can I compare with Master? Master can face the collapse of Mount Tai without changing his expression——"

"Okay, stop being poor and let's go."

Pan Hai walked in front, and Xiao Lezi followed behind, letting out a breath quietly.

He was certainly more surprised than others.

Earlier, when he was sent by the emperor to inspect Qianhe County, he discovered that the seemingly inconspicuous Prince Yan was actually a wonderful person.

It was also from that time that he began to have contacts with the King of Yan.

What he didn't expect was that the Prince of Yan was not only a wonderful man, but also a god of wealth, and soon his purse was empty.

At first the money was not much, so he felt at ease to keep it. Later, his wallet became so fat that he was shocked, but he got used to it and could not refuse.

Xiao Lezi certainly understands the principle of being grateful for what one has received and being grateful for what one has received.

Not long ago, the Prince of Yan finally came to him and asked him to arrange for someone to let the Queen listen to some idle chat in the Yu Garden.

Although he was puzzled by Prince Yan's purpose, he had no choice but to do as he was asked. However, he never expected to hear the shocking news today that Prince Yan had registered his name under the Empress's name.

At that moment, Xiao Lezi really thought he was dreaming.

Everyone else thought that Prince Yan was lucky enough to be hit by a pie, but only he knew that Prince Yan's current situation was definitely due to the arrangement made that day.

But after hearing just a few words, the Queen actually put the Prince of Yan in her name? How did the Prince of Yan guarantee that he would be the one chosen in the end?

Xiao Lezi simply didn't dare to think about it too much. The more he thought about it, the more he felt that the King of Yan was unfathomable.

Thinking about the handsome man who always had a nonchalant smile on his lips, Xiao Lezi made up his mind: No more thinking, I will follow King Yan in the future!

Pan Hai was walking in front, and when he didn't hear footsteps catching up, he stopped, turned around and cursed, "You little bastard, are you still dreaming?"

Xiao Lezi hurried over and skillfully said a string of nice words to make Pan Hai happy.

Pan Hai was delighted and smiled after hearing this.

At his position, it doesn’t matter how smart the apprentice is. What matters is that he can stay in a good mood to serve the emperor.

After walking a few steps, Pan Hai stopped and gently reminded him, "Be more polite to the King of Yan in the future, and don't neglect him."

"Yeah!" Xiao Lezi bent down. He had never responded so sincerely before.

Needless to say, the King of Yan must not neglect him. From now on, he will be considered a member of the King of Yan's pirate ship.

Do you want to give Master a reminder?

Thinking about Pan Hai's cunningness, Xiao Lezi put his thoughts aside.

Forget it. The master has better vision than him and he must know what is going on.