Lu Chen thought to himself, with Great Jue now resisting the invasion of the Barbarian Tribe, it meant that the major dynasties would have no time to deal with him.
It was time to incorporate the North Land into the North Country!
After annexing the North Land, the North Country's territory would very likely surpass that of the Great Xia Dynasty. By then, if the North Country were to further develop, proclaiming himself Emperor would be no issue at all.
With that thought, Lu Chen's lips slightly curved upwards. He buried his head into Wang Qingci's Gentle Jade Fragrance once more, before continuing to sleep with his eyes closed.
At this moment, Wang Qingci said, "This concubine has finished reporting the intelligence. Do you have any orders, my Prince?"
Lu Chen asked from Wang Qingci's embrace, "Has the Qian Family been up to anything recently?"
Wang Qingci replied, "The Qian Family has been quite active lately, but they've been somewhat more low-key compared to some time ago."
Lu Chen said, "Keep an eye on them."
Wang Qingci responded, "Yes, my Prince."
Lu Chen then deeply inhaled Wang Qingci's scent and said, "Alright, if there's nothing else, then no more talking. Let me sleep in your arms."
Hearing this, Wang Qingci smiled slightly and, without another word, her delicate chin rested on Lu Chen's head as she lifted her jade arm to embrace him.
Holding the soft and tender body of Wang Qingci, Lu Chen soon drifted into dreamland.
Time flew by, and before long, it was Zhou Youyou's due date for childbirth.
Lu Chen had recently not left the Prince's Mansion, and as luck would have it, he was there on the day Zhou Youyou was to give birth, having arrived at her birthing chamber early in the morning to wait.
With Lu Chen standing by her bedside, Zhou Youyou wasn't worried in the slightest about what could happen later.
At this time, Lin Wanyun stood outside the birthing chamber alongside Chu Yuqin and the others, her thoughts in turmoil. These past days, Lu Chen had been consummating their relationship ceaselessly, attempting to get her pregnant, and she felt as though she had been thoroughly branded by Lu Chen.
Thinking about having to bear Lu Chen's children in the future, Lin Wanyun's cheeks flushed a shade of crimson, and her face burned with heat.
No, this won't do—I must quickly find the antidote and help Rongrong escape. I can't be obsessing over having children for this little rascal. By the time I get pregnant, who knows how many years it'll have been.
At that moment, Chu Yuqin, who was standing by, said to Lin Wanyun, "Sister Lin, why is your face so red?"
Snapping back to reality, Lin Wanyun hastily replied, "Oh, it's nothing. I've been slightly over-exerting myself while practicing my martial arts these days."
Hearing this, Chu Yuqin blinked in confusion.
Over-exerting in martial arts?
Then Chu Yuqin noticed the many red marks on Lin Wanyun's neck, which resembled those on Chu Qingli's neck, and said, "Sister Lin, how come you've also over-exerted yourself in practice?"
Perplexed, Lin Wanyun said, "Are there others in the Prince's Mansion who've done the same?"
Chu Yuqin replied, "Yes, Qing Li has often overdone it in the past few months. If you look at her neck, those red marks are left from over-exerting in practice."
"It's so strange; why is it that after you both practiced too hard, your necks would have so many red and purple marks?"
Upon hearing this, both Lin Wanyun and the nearby Chu Qingli stiffened. They turned to look at each other and discovered that the marks on each other's necks were indeed the same.
Seeing this, Chu Qingli inwardly scoffed, that lecherous wretch hadn't even spared Lin Wanyun.
She realized, in the inner quarters, any beautiful woman caught Lu Chen's eye, and he had no intention of sparing any of them.
She had to hasten her negotiations with Lu Chen and rescue her sister.
After her efforts over this time, there weren't many instances left in Chu Yuqin's deal with Lu Chen. She needed to step up the pace.
Although deep down they probably both knew that their bodies and hearts were most likely shaped by Lu Chen, both Chu Qingli and Lin Wanyun tacitly avoided addressing the fact. They turned their gazes back towards the birthing chamber, pretending as if nothing had happened.