As soon as Ye Lingfeng finished speaking, he suddenly turned around, waved his hand, and led Shi Zhu and the others away.
The group left the palace of the Great Zhou Dynasty and headed to the city gate to meet Ji Shaocheng and the others. At the city gate, not only Ji Shaocheng and Shen Ruoxuan were there, but Nalan Mingzhu was also brought over by Ji Shaocheng's men. The group gathered together at the city gate and waited.
Upon seeing Ye Lingfeng appear, Ji Shaocheng ordered his men to take the token from the Prince Jing's residence and signaled the soldiers in front of the city gate to open it.
The group then left the Great Zhou Dynasty and headed back to Northern Lu.
Throughout the journey, Ye Lingfeng took meticulous care of Hailing, providing her with everything from food to clothing. Because Hailing was nearly six months pregnant and her belly was quite large, the carriage was moved carefully and smoothly.
On the way, Ye Lingfeng would always ask Hai Ling what she wanted to eat. Hai Ling, annoyed by his questioning, would reply...
"I want to eat green kiwifruit?"
Actually, this was something she craved when she was pregnant. She liked sour things, but unfortunately, she couldn't eat them then. Now that Ye Lingfeng kept asking her about it, she brought it up. In reality, these green kiwis are very sour, and she might not be able to eat them now, so she just said it casually.
However, Ye Lingfeng treated it as a major matter and immediately ordered Shi Zhu to send people to Fengwu City to retrieve the green kiwifruit. It was September, the season when green kiwifruit was in season. Upon receiving the order, Shi Zhu immediately sent people to Fengwu City to handle the matter without delay.
Hailin never expected that her words would cause such a big fuss, and she dared not casually say what she wanted to eat from then on.
A day later, the green kiwi fruit was delivered to her. Looking at the lush green fruit, which looked so sour, Hai Ling's teeth ached. Unfortunately, Ye Lingfeng didn't understand and was looking at her expectantly. In the end, Hai Ling could only pick a small one to eat. Looking at the eager face in front of her, she wanted to cry but had no tears. This was unfair!
It's true that one can live with the sins of Heaven, but not with the sins of man.
One bite and it was so sour! My teeth felt like they were falling apart. I really don't know why I craved this when I was pregnant.
To be honest, being able to eat this green kiwi fruit made up for her previous feelings, so she endured the sourness and took a bite. But Ye Lingfeng picked out the biggest and greenest one and handed it to her.
"Ling'er, you haven't had much of an appetite lately. Since you want to eat green kiwis, eat more of them."
Oh, oh, this isn't fair! All her teeth are knocked out, she's slurring her words. Men can be so dense sometimes, can't they? They have no common sense at all. Didn't they see how much she was moved to tears while eating? But the two of them had different levels of understanding. Ye Lingfeng saw that her eyes were wet and assumed she was happy and joyful, so he gently comforted her.
"Ling'er, I'm sorry you suffered when I wasn't in the palace. Now, tell me what you want to eat, and I'll make sure you eat well."
Hailin looked at the large green kiwi in her hand, took a deep breath, and then smiled sweetly.
"Night, I can't eat anymore. I'll put it away and eat it slowly later."
"OK,."
Ye Lingfeng had no suspicions and immediately ordered Shi Mei and Shi Lan to put away the green kiwis carefully and bring them back for the Empress to eat later.
Hai Ling prayed in her heart that the dead peach would rot soon so that she wouldn't have to suffer like this.
However, as she entered the territory of Beilu, a sense of worry arose in her heart, and she thought of the Empress Dowager in the palace, Ye Lingfeng's mother.
She had previously drugged the Empress Dowager, something that would upset anyone. Hai Ling's face immediately fell with worry. Ye Lingfeng asked her gently with concern, "Ling'er, what's wrong? Are you feeling unwell?"
"Night is approaching, and we're getting closer and closer to Bianliang City. I'm so worried."
As soon as she expressed her concerns, Ye Lingfeng knew what she was worried about. He reached out his long, slender hand and firmly grasped Hai Ling's delicate hand, his deep, magnetic voice reassuring her.
"Ling'er, don't worry, I won't leave you in the future. As for your mother, she won't make things difficult for you anymore, and I won't let her make things difficult for you either. Now that Ling'er is carrying the blood of the Ye family, your mother is the Empress Dowager of the country, she should be happy, and she would never make things difficult for Ling'er."
Hailing nodded, but in her heart she wondered, would the Empress Dowager really think that way?
Five more days passed, and the group finally entered Bianliang, the capital of Northern Lu.
Bianliang City was bustling and vibrant, brimming with life. The new emperor was both compassionate towards his subjects and shrewd in his strategies, which was a blessing for the people of Beilu. Everyone was happy, and the entire city of Bianliang was filled with a joyful atmosphere.
Ye Lingfeng and Hai Ling and the others went into the palace together. Ji Shaocheng went back to the Ji residence, Shen Ruoxuan went to Tongjitang, which Hai Ling opened in the capital, and Nalan Mingzhu also went into the palace with Hai Ling.
Now she is Princess Mingzhu of Nanling Kingdom. Although she is betrothed to Ji Shaocheng, the wedding has not yet taken place, so it is not appropriate for her to live in the Ji residence. In addition, as a princess who has been betrothed, it is also inappropriate for her to live in the post station palace. Therefore, it is inevitable for her to enter the palace. Moreover, she and Hailing have a good relationship, so it is natural for her to go to the palace to accompany her.
The Qingqian Palace, where Ye Lingfeng previously lived, was burned down. Hai Ling later lived in the Liuyue Palace, the palace where the empresses of all dynasties lived. This time when Ye Lingfeng returned, he and Hai Ling lived in the Liuyue Palace.
Upon returning to the palace, Ye Lingfeng instructed Shi Mei and Shi Lan to take good care of the Empress and ensure she rested. Although the journey was slow, the carriage ride had left her feeling extremely tired, so Hai Ling and Nalan Mingzhu went to rest.
Ye Lingfeng went to the Imperial Study to handle government affairs.
In the Cixi Palace, where the Empress Dowager resided, Granny Ying was happily reporting something to the Empress Dowager.
"Your Majesty, it's wonderful! It's wonderful! The Emperor is back! The Emperor is back!"
The Empress Dowager smiled and said, "Feng'er is back. That's wonderful."
She nodded happily, but then she thought of Ji Hailing, and her face darkened. She looked at Granny Ying and asked, "Where is the Empress? She came back with him too."
Granny Ying could tell that the Empress Dowager was not in a good mood, but since she had asked, she dared not hide it and nodded: "Yes, Your Majesty, I heard that the Emperor has untied the Empress's love knot, so the two of them have returned together."
"Okay, very good."
The Empress Dowager gritted her teeth, her hands clenched into fists, and a dark glint flashed in her eyes.
Upon seeing this, Granny Ying quickly spoke softly, "Your Majesty, didn't you tell me last time that you forgave the Empress? Now the Emperor and the Empress are very loving, and the royal bloodline is about to be born. Your Majesty, please don't be angry anymore."
Normally, Granny Ying wouldn't have dared to say these words, but she had served the Empress Dowager for a long time and had watched Ye Lingfeng grow up from a child. That child had always lived a very difficult life, and now that she saw him had a woman he loved and a child of his own, she was very happy, which is why she overstepped her bounds and said such a thing.
The Empress Dowager squinted at Granny Ying, who knelt down in a panic.
"I was too talkative."
This time, the Empress Dowager didn't lose her temper. She reached out and helped Ying Mama up. Ying Mama was from her Xi family and had followed her for many years, so she wouldn't punish her casually. But... The Empress Dowager sighed.
"I don't want to be angry with her, but look at her, she hasn't come to pay her respects to me since she came back. She clearly doesn't respect me at all."
In truth, she never intended to make things difficult for that woman. She was the apple of her son's eye; how could she possibly want to cause them trouble? But that woman was too arrogant, never taking her seriously in anything she did. Her son was her own, and the throne belonged to the Ye family, yet in the end, she, an empress dowager, was no match for that woman. How could she accept this? She had endured so much hardship to raise her son, hoping that once he ascended the throne, she would become a woman of immense wealth and honor, and the Xi family would rise to prominence. Then she could die in peace. But in the end, because of that woman, not only did her son disobey her, but she also disrespected her. How could she not be angry and furious?
Granny Ying opened her mouth, about to speak up for the Empress. She thought that the Empress was pregnant and must be very tired. She would surely come to pay her respects to the Empress Dowager later. However, before she could say anything, a eunuch rushed in from outside the hall and carefully reported.