For Ye Zhen, the poison peak was just a minor incident.
She accompanied Xie Tingzhou to pay her respects to the emperor, intending to present the rice seeds gifted by the Pu Kingdom to him.
The emperor waved his hand, saying, "It's winter now, so we can't plant rice. You can keep those. When the crown prince ascends the throne next year and you become empress, it will be the perfect time for spring planting. You can distribute them yourselves."
In this way, the people remember the affection of the new emperor and empress, and the historical records also document the achievements of the new emperor and empress, which is beneficial to the new emperor's rule over the country.
Ye Zhen understood the emperor's plan and sighed inwardly. Apart from being confused about the empress, the old man was a good father to the crown prince.
The good father invited the two to have dinner together. After dinner, he told them about the Empress's death. Seeing that his son and daughter-in-law didn't react much, the Emperor knew that they already knew.
He then said, "Death absolves all debts. I'm thinking of giving her a proper burial. Do you all agree?"
The two nodded in unison.
Not wanting to put the emperor in a difficult position.
Sure enough, the emperor breathed a sigh of relief and said with a smile, "I am actually not very suitable to be an emperor."
Xie Tingzhou dissolved a calming pill in water and handed it to him, saying, "But you've done a great job. You're still a good father."
He heard that the emperor had not been sleeping well at night for the past two days.
Having been betrayed by his bedmate, or rather, having been schemed against by her for decades, the emperor felt like a joke and became somewhat dejected.
Xie Tingzhou was worried that he would become the second Cui Yihuan, so he prepared this medicine for his elderly father after Ye Zhen fell asleep.
As the water was handed over, a note was given explaining, "It's good for calming the mind, nourishing the heart, and relieving depression."
The emperor could not eat anything casually; everything had to be inspected.
But the emperor was touched by his son's affirmation and felt that he was not such a failure after all, so he accepted the drink and drank it.
He always trusted his son.
He told Xie Tingzhou and Ye Zhen, "When Prince Ning learned about her situation, he wanted to come back, but I stopped him."
My first stop after the New Year is to stay at the Helian family's house in the border town for a while.
That's where he came from!
He was switched at birth, his birth mother died early and he never met her, and his birth father, Prince Dingyuan, was also old. Suddenly, the emperor wanted to spend more time with him.
If, he meant, if his father were willing to accompany him to see the country, that would be even better.
He was trapped on the dragon throne for half his life, while his father was trapped in the border town for his entire life. He wanted his father to see the country he had protected.
Xie Tingzhou thought the same way, so he left Helian Qing in the capital for the New Year. "Helian Qing will leave after the New Year, and then he will guide the Emperor."
The emperor would probably be much happier if he had family around.
After talking for a while, the emperor felt sleepy and said, "Alright, you can all go back now. I should rest too."
The two went out, but didn't go far. When they saw Chen Banjun settle the emperor and return to the outer room, Xie Tingzhou waved to him.
"Father is away. What are your plans then?"
As the person approached, Xie Tingzhou asked him.
Without a second thought, Chen Banjun replied, "When I named myself Banjun, it was because I was meant to accompany Your Majesty for the rest of my life. Wherever Your Majesty goes, I will go."
"What will you do with Ping Niangzi and her child?"
I heard that Chen Banjun adored that child and would go out of the palace to see him whenever he had free time.
When the children were mentioned, Chen Banjun's eyes softened. "This old servant has already discussed it with Madam Ping. She will take the children back to my hometown for a few years."
Where no one knows her past, he will provide her with money and manpower to take care of the children.
"We'll see how things go when the children are older."
Some people who wanted to curry favor with him suggested that he take the opportunity to marry Ping Niangzi, and they also secretly advised Ping Niangzi.
Ping Niangzi refused, saying that her husband and mother-in-law had been kind to her, and she had no intention of remarrying. She also felt that she was not worthy of remarrying because of her past experiences.
But feeling guilty for eating and drinking for free, he made him many clothes and shoes, and also adopted a child from the charity hall whose parents were unknown but who seemed to have good character. He changed the child's surname to Chen and made him a heir for the Chen family.
The child is only three years old now. Ping Niangzi raises both children by herself, doing everything herself and taking great care of both of them.
She taught the children with the surname Chen to call her aunt.
Every day when he returned home, Ping Niangzi would greet him at the door with the children. The older ones would sweetly call him "Daddy" and then follow him like little tails.
Under Ping Niangzi's guidance, the child already believed that he was his biological father and was extremely dependent on him.
The younger one can only call out "Da da" for now and then spit at him, but he always dances around and seems very happy whenever he sees him.
Chen Banjun felt that this was fine. The continuation of the family line was his obsession, and he felt that he was destined to have Ping Niangzi's child, and he liked her from the bottom of his heart.
He has never lacked money in his life, but he lacked the simple pleasures of everyday life, which he now has.
As for Lady Ping refusing to remarry, he wasn't angry. On the contrary, he thought more highly of her. Although he was a eunuch, there were quite a few people who wanted to marry him because of his status and wealth.
Ping Niangzi is grateful, does not covet wealth, and has a resilient character. It would be good to recognize her as a younger sister.
In the next few years, he will have to travel around with His Majesty. It is not appropriate to take the child with him when he is too young. When the child is older and ready to study, His Majesty will have traveled all over Dayuan and will surely find a place to settle down.
At that time, he will bring Ping Niangzi and the other two to his side.
His Majesty did suggest that he stay with the mother and her two children, but in his heart, His Majesty always came first.
Seeing that he already had a plan, Xie Tingzhou said no more and returned to the East Palace with Ye Zhen.
They made love again in the middle of the night, and the next day, the two went to the residence of the Marquis of Zhongyong.
In a way, the Marquis of Zhongyong's mansion is also Ye Zhen's maternal home, so it's only right that she should return to her parents' home for a visit.
However, Marquis Zhongyong knew that his relatives from the Great Wei were all waiting for Ye Zhen at the General's Mansion, so he decided not to compete with them. He discussed with his old friend Ye Jinghong that they would go to the General's Mansion on the first day and then come to the Marquis's Mansion on the second day.
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