Ye Lingfeng's face darkened, his eyes flashing with a cold and sinister light, and he coldly ordered them to stop.
Unfortunately, Shi Mei and the others ignored them. They were acting on the Empress's orders, and now the Empress was their master. As servants, they had no choice, so they spoke with righteous indignation.
"Your Majesty, please do not make things difficult for us. We are acting on the Empress's orders. If Your Majesty insists on entering the palace, then step over our dead bodies."
After speaking, Shi Mei waved her hand, and several palace maids behind her knelt down, blocking Ye Lingfeng's path. Ye Lingfeng's handsome features were highlighted by his long, narrow eyebrows and his dark, cold eyes. He then suddenly darkened and gave these people a cold look. It seemed that they regarded the Empress as their master and did not take him, the Emperor, seriously. However, he was happy for Ling'er. It was a good thing to have some loyal servants. Anyway, it was already late at night, so he would go back to the study to rest first. He would find Ling'er later and ask her to forgive him. This time, he had indeed made a mistake.
With that thought in mind, Ye Lingfeng turned and left.
Shi Mei and the others wiped the sweat from their brows, their legs feeling weak. They helped each other to their feet, and while the others stood guard outside the palace, Shi Mei and Shi Lan went inside.
Hai Ling was leaning against the bed reading a book when she heard the commotion outside the bedroom door. However, she didn't move and just kept reading quietly. When she heard footsteps, she looked up and saw that Shi Mei was scared and asked.
"Your Majesty, we servants have practically walked through the gates of hell; we were terrified!"
"Nothing will happen, you guys are too cowardly."
Hai Ling spoke calmly, smiling. She said that Ye Lingfeng would never harm Shi Mei and the others; otherwise, she wouldn't have sent them to guard outside.
However, Shi Mei didn't understand. She thought the Emperor and Empress got along quite well before, so why was the Empress now banishing him from the Emperor's bedchamber after he was cured of the poison, and instead sending him to the Imperial Study instead?
"Your Majesty, this servant does not understand. Weren't Your Majesty and the Emperor doing well before? Why have you sent the Emperor to the Imperial Study now?"
Hailing put down the book in her hand, beckoned Shimei and Shilan to come over, and gestured for the two maids to sit by her bedside. Then she reached out and took Shimei's hand, speaking softly.
“Mei’er, sometimes we women can’t be too accommodating to men. As women, we must also have principles. Don’t you think what the Emperor did this time was infuriating? First, he gave me the Forgetfulness Pill, and then he sent Mu Ye from Shaoyi Kingdom to take care of me. Although he meant well, he was too selfish. Did he even consider my feelings? The reason I didn’t react earlier was because he was poisoned by the Ice Jade Cold Poison, but I must make him learn a lesson from what he did. In the future, he must consider my feelings in everything he does. Don’t think that just because a man has done something wrong, he can get away with it by saying a few soft words. If he does, it will easily happen again. If this continues, even the best relationship can’t withstand such torment.”
After Hailing finished speaking, Shimei and Shilan, who were standing to the side, opened their mouths wide and couldn't react for a long time. They found the Empress's words very novel, but upon closer reflection, they realized that they made some sense. If a woman always indulges a man, it will eventually lead to the man making mistakes again and again, thinking that every time he makes a mistake, as long as he says a few nice words, the matter can be resolved. This is indeed not the way to go.
Thinking of this, the two maids stood up and curtsied.
"This servant has remembered."
Hailing nodded, then stretched, yawned, and prepared to sleep. Shimei helped her lie down while asking curiously.
"So, how does Her Majesty the Empress intend to punish the Emperor, or will she continue to forbid him from entering the palace?"
"Let him reflect on his actions in the Imperial Study first. As for anything else, I haven't thought of anything else yet."
Hai Ling yawned again, then closed her eyes to sleep. Meanwhile, Ye Lingfeng in the palace couldn't sleep all night, racking his brains for a way to get Ling'er to forgive his selfish behavior. He truly realized that what he had done was wrong and would never do it again. In the future, he would always consider things from both of their perspectives.
Ye Lingfeng spent the whole night thinking about how to get Hai Ling to forgive him, but by the next day he knew that he had wasted his time.
Because he was not even allowed to enter the main hall of Liuyue Palace, the Empress decreed that from this day forward, the Emperor was not allowed to step into the main hall of Liuyue Palace.
Ye Lingfeng was about to go crazy. He had spent most of the night thinking about how to get Ling'er to forgive him, but he couldn't even see her today.
He considered forcing his way in, but then remembered that he had said he would consider Ling'er's feelings in everything he did. If he forced his way in now, Ling'er might not forgive him, and might even be more angry with him. So he decided to go back to the study.
The emperor then led his entourage away.
In the main hall of Liuyue Palace, Hailing was playing with a kitten. The kitten had opened its eyes and had been there for almost a month. Its head was no longer soft as before. When Hailing held it, it looked at her. The mother and son seemed to be having a heart-to-heart talk.
Outside the main hall, Fu Yue entered, bowed respectfully, and then slowly reported.
"Your Majesty, the Emperor has left."
Hai Ling stopped what she was doing, nodded, and then raised an eyebrow. It seemed he understood what she meant. A smile appeared on her lips, and she ignored him.
Three days passed like this. The Emperor came frequently, but each time he was blocked by the eunuchs and maids of Liuyue Palace. Although the Emperor's face was gloomy and cold, he did not make things difficult for the eunuchs and maids.
In Liuyue Palace, Shimei and Shilan finally felt sorry for the Emperor and pleaded with Hailing on his behalf.
"Your Majesty, the Emperor surely knows he has made a mistake and will not repeat it. Please forgive him and stop standing in his way."
The Emperor was truly patient. They had thought he would definitely lose his temper, but to their surprise, although he looked unpleasant each time he came, he did not make things difficult for the eunuchs and maids. So now they felt sorry for the Emperor.
Hai Ling smiled and glanced at Shi Mei.
"You guys are so soft-hearted."
Before she could say anything more, a eunuch rushed in from outside the palace and quickly announced, "Your Majesty the Empress, the Empress Dowager has arrived."
"Mother?"
Upon hearing that the Empress Dowager had arrived, Hai Ling quickly got up. This time, Ye Neng was able to safely cure the Ice Jade Cold Poison thanks to the Empress Dowager's blood. She had previously taken the kitten to see her mother, who was somewhat weak due to excessive blood loss. She never expected that the Empress Dowager would come over now. Hai Ling held the kitten and went to greet her.
The Empress Dowager entered the main hall. Although her face was still pale today, it was much better than a few days ago. Fortunately, Shen Ruoxuan was by her side. The blood-replenishing pills that Shen Ruoxuan had made were very precious. The Empress Dowager took them every day, which helped her recover quickly.
"Ling'er greets Mother Empress."
Hai Ling, holding the kitten, stepped forward to pay her respects to the Empress Dowager. The Empress Dowager quickly reached out to support Hai Ling, telling her not to bow, and then took Hai Ling's hand to sit down to the side.
The two women sat down and began to talk, and the Empress Dowager spoke softly.
"Ling'er, I want to ask you for a favor. I wonder if you could do me this favor?"
As soon as the Empress Dowager spoke, Hai Ling knew that she must be pleading for Ye Lingfeng. Seeing that the Empress Dowager looked weak and had not yet recovered, her heart softened, and she softly said, "Mother, please speak."
"I know that Ye did go too far this time, but firstly, he loved Ling'er deeply, so his intentions were good. Secondly, he was afraid that Xi Xiu would hurt you and your child. Xi Xiu sent a message to the palace saying that if he died, she would not let you and your child go and would torture you. That's why Ye rushed to give you the Forgetfulness Pill and then sent you to Medicine King Valley. But he forgot that these things can be faced together, and he also hurt Ling'er. That was his fault. But you have finally been reunited, so you should cherish it. Besides, if this news gets out of the palace, the court officials will be uneasy. Discord between the emperor and empress is a major taboo for the country."
Upon hearing the Empress Dowager's words, Hai Ling became more sober. Previously, she had only been focused on punishing Ye and had forgotten about the two of them. One was the Emperor, and the other was the Empress. Countless eyes across the land were watching the commotion in the palace. If news of the Emperor and Empress's discord were to spread, the people of Bei Lu would be uneasy. She had overlooked one crucial point.
After thinking it over, he nodded and agreed to the Empress Dowager's words.
"It's because Ling'er didn't think things through. Thank you for reminding me, Mother."
"Actually, Ling'er didn't do anything wrong. Men should be taught a lesson," the Empress Dowager said. She didn't blame Hai Ling, but instead felt that Hai Ling did the right thing and should be taught a lesson so that Ye would not easily abandon his beloved in the future. "I'll tell you a secret. I used to treat the late Emperor in the same way. Do you know that? The reason I was always favored by the late Emperor was because I didn't spoil him. Men, if you indulge them too much, they won't cherish you."