I was tired and exhausted after all these sufferings. But I firmly shook my head and instructed, “Ask someone to bring me the baby. I want to have a look.”

Xie Yi nodded and exited. However, a while later, it was Qi Sheng who brought me the baby. As he saw me looking at him, he gave me a bright smile, and attentively put the baby in my arms. He smiled, “Look at him, do you think he bears more resemblance to me? Everyone says he looked just like me.”

I couldn’t stand his cockiness. Everyone said it as a compliment and how come he took it seriously? When the Emperor Qianlong admitted Little Yanzi as his daughter, Concubine Ling and the others said they looked exactly the same! But how it turned out? Little Yanzi wasn’t even remotely related to Emperor Qianlong! And the mother of Little Yanzi was mistaken for nothing.

Qi Sheng gently touched the baby’s cheek with his finger. Then he said in a low voice, “Qi Hao. I should name him Qi Hao.”

I was left in a daze and before I could realize which character he was referring to, he took my hand, and slowly wrote the character “Hao” in my palm with his finger.

He wrote softly, as if it was a flirting between lovers, finger brushing my palms, and his every move landed on my heart and made my heart itchy. But he still wore a serious face and earnestly wrote it.

After some time, he finally finished the character, looked at me and asked, “Is it okay?”

A numbing and itchy feeling was still left on my palm and I was in a moment of trance. I restored myself after hearing his words. The character “Hao” had so many strokes. I thought to myself that luckily this kid didn’t need to take any tests, otherwise, when he finished writing his name, the others would have completed two multiple choice questions. He would be left behind at the starting line.

Qi Sheng looked at me and I said, “I thought you would stick to the plan of picking the name meaning lush growth of grass and trees, just like Wei’er’s name.”

He raised his eyebrows and there were smiles contained in his eyes. His eyes were gleaming and crystal clear, “You also know what ‘Wei’ means?”

Wasn’t that funny? Even if I didn’t know what it meant, I could’ve looked it up in the dictionary.

I curved my lips unconsciously but Qi Sheng smiled, asking the nanny to take the newly-born baby Qi Hao away. He helped me lie on the bed and gently said to me, “Have some sleep now.”

I immediately nodded. It was as if you finally completed a task after working overtime for a whole day and a whole night. No matter how sleepy and exhausted you were, you finally made it to when your boss came to visit you. It was time to have some proper rest now.

I have a very sound sleep. It was already the next day when I woke up. Qi Sheng was not there. A messenger came from Yunxi and it was not proper to meet the officials in my palace so he returned to Da Ming Palace.

I thought for a while, and for the sake of government affairs, I asked the servants to pack up Qi Sheng’s belongings, and send them back to Da Ming Palace.

Xie Yi tried to change my mind, “Your Majesty, why would you do such a thing? Everyone else is begging for the same treatment. Why would you push His Majesty away?”

I gave her a lesson over her false hope on a romantic relationship. I seriously pointed out that I was the Empress, the manager of the harem. So I couldn’t break the rule myself. It was acceptable that Qi Sheng lived in my palace before my labor. It could be explained as we loved each other as the Emperor and Empress. But since I had already given birth, we would be crossing the line if it continued, that would be me hogging Qi Sheng’s affection all to myself as an Empress and the imperial officials would have a lot of work to do.

Beyond was as wrong as falling short. I should keep Qi Sheng at an arm’s length and be a professional empress.

And there was another thing that I didn’t tell Xie Yi. I was already on the edge of breaking down during this dull recuperation. If Qi Sheng was by my side, both of us would get depressed!

Qi Sheng didn’t make any reactions as his belongings were moved back to Da Ming Palace. He coolly stayed there, and asked Concubine Wang to serve him at night.

It had caused a huge reaction in the palace, and the news travelled in light speed. I guess Concubine Wang might just make it to the Qi Sheng’s bed before the news arrived at Xing Sheng Palace.

I always believed that all women in the harem should not focus on the lower part of Qi Sheng’s body. Everyone knew that the upper part and the lower part of a man’s body was as intimate as brothers but they never got in the way of each other.

However, women never got to understand this.

As a consequence, Xie Yi, who was supposed to serve me during my recuperation, got depressed even before I did.

I actually understood what girls like her were thinking. She was always hoping she could see a fairy tale in Qi Sheng and me, that no matter how many women he had, he would always love me and me only. She was expecting us to fulfill her girl fantasy.

There were a lot of young girls in the harem that had such fantasies, Xie Yi, as well as Lv Li in the past. They were smart but childish, always dreaming there was something genuine in the world, that a man would love a woman with all his life.

Even though the woman wasn’t themselves, even though they were only observers, they would be deeply moved. And this kind of move would support them through this harem that would devour women’s youth and flesh.

But life was never a fairy tale.

My thoughts wandered and suddenly I felt I was being too sentimental, having such mental activities. I sighed, and secretly marveled that having too many kids brought no benefit at all.

“I shouldn’t be like this, I shouldn’t…” I muttered to myself, turned over and continued my sleep. At midnight, when I was half asleep, I felt I was approached by someone behind me and was taken in his arms. Then he hugged me tightly. In this harem, only the Emperor would dare to get to the Empress’s bed at this time.

I wasn’t afraid but I was confused. I was so sleepy that I didn’t care to turn around. I dizzily asked, “Why are you here now? Where is Concubine Wang?”

Qi Sheng didn’t say a word but rested his chin on my shoulder.

I was so sleepy that I mumbled, “How could you do this? How could you leave her in the middle of the night? You should get back to her now.”

Qi Sheng remained silent for a while, and suddenly said in a low voice, “I don’t like it… I don’t.”

I was so sleepy that I said without a second thought, “If you don’t like her, then choose someone else. Or we can pick some new girls…”

Before I could finish, I felt the arms around my waist gripped tighter as if it was a punishment.

This had made me more sober.

I felt being an empress was an extremely difficult job. I always worked my ass off, and I suffered so much during labor and now I couldn’t even have a fuss-free maternal leave. I worked on my facial expressions and then turned around, asking him in a serious way, “Are you under pressure these days? Maybe we should summon imperial doctors to give you some medicine.”

Anger could be sensed in Qi Sheng’s tone, “Zhang Pengpeng, you have to annoy me, don’t you?”

I shut up understandingly and gently patted on his arms, signaling him to relax. Then I found myself a more comfortable position in his arms, “Sleep now. I am still in recuperation!”

Qi Sheng said no more but he sighed heavily. After a while, suddenly he told me, “I think it’s time to do it.”

I resisted the urge to turn stiff. And after a while of adjustment, when I felt I was finally restored and could speak in a normal tone, I said calmly, “Do it if you like, just don’t blame me for rebellion.”

If it had anything to do with a rebellion, many people would be involved and many people would lose their lives.

Qi Sheng went silent for a long time then he gently replied, “Okay.”

In the beginning of fifth lunar month, Yang Yu led the army and defeated the main force of Yunxi rebellions, and he captured more than thirty people including the King of Yunxi, his wife, his sons and daughter. In the meantime, he had seized treasures such as treasury seals, golden plates, gold and silver. At this point, Yunxi was finally a part of Nanxia. The victory news travelled to Sheng City and everyone was raptured. Qi Sheng promoted Yang Yu to be Marquis Pingxi. And in his imperial edict, he complemented that Yang Yu was as good as General Mai.

In the eighth lunar month, Yang Yu returned to Sheng City as commanded. Qi Sheng rewarded him thousands of acres of arable land, countless golds and beauties, even a royal mansion in Cui Mountain. For a time, the Yang Family were all respected in Sheng City. Even Yang Yan, the youngest son of Yang Yu, was also rewarded. He was also promoted at such a young age.

Yang Yan became more arrogant and willful and he even dared to visit me in Xing Sheng Palace.

I was completely a housewife now. Wherever I went, I had Qi Hao in one arm, and held Qi Wei’s hand in the other. I’d better carry another one in my belly.

Yang Yan looked at me scornfully and teased, “Can you be more of a letdown?”

I ignored his provocation, went straight to the shade in the courtyard and sat down. I instructed the nanny to take Qi Wei away, and asked Xie Yi to pour us some tea. I indifferently asked Yang Yan as I was playing with Qi Hao in my arm, “What brings you here?”

Yang Yan raised his brows, “How are we supposed to make the act more convincing if I don’t come here? How will he believe that the Yang Family have no idea that our time is due?”

He used to be an insensitive and sometimes silly boy, and now he turned into such a cynic that was bitter about everything. I didn’t know what to say. After a pause, I asked, “How are you doing lately?”

Yang Yan shot me a glance, and asked me with a trace of smile, “Don’t you know I am the most popular bachelor in Sheng City now? The matchmakers are going to break the threshold in our house.”

I couldn’t help feeling sad for him seeing him like this. Outsiders believed that the Yang Family were having a marvelous time but they had no idea it was merely an illusion Qi Sheng purposefully created. And soon enough, it would be demolished in front of the world in a tragic way.

And the cruelest thing about this was that everyone in the Yang Family knew they were walking towards an abyss but they still had to march forward.