Lian Hua tugged at her fingers, too scared to look anyone in the eye as she stammered, "Yes, yes, although far, will be punished, I think you were very reasonable when you said, I deeply agreed, so I borrowed it for a bit..."
Her voice grew weaker and weaker, betraying a deep sense of guilt.
"Hmm, even though far, will be punished, is it reasonable to enforce it all the way to Huaning Palace?" The Emperor’s lips couldn’t help but curve upwards.
His Little Concubine was simply too adorable; every time he saw her, he could forget many troubles, even the fury he carried with him was momentarily suppressed.
Lian Hua’s face reddened even more. She felt that His Majesty was really naughty, using her own words against her, after she had elaborated on them earnestly, he turned them back on her.
Indeed, everyone had heard it. How embarrassing.
She bit her lip, at a loss, feeling an urge to get angry, yet not knowing where to direct her anger—it was all provoked by her own grand claims, so if she had to be angry, it was at herself.
Sister Consort De laughed at her outright, and His Majesty was probably doing the same; she could already imagine it.
Thinking so, she couldn’t help it and sneaked a glance, only to see the Emperor’s face brimming with a smile, indeed making fun of her.
She couldn’t help but stamp her foot, puff up her cheeks, and, furious with embarrassment, threw herself into his arms, burying herself in his chest.
She had no shame left, since it was all gone already, and so she straightforwardly admitted, "Yes, yes, I was talking nonsense, but you, you mustn’t use this as an excuse to punish me..."
The Emperor hugged her, chuckling soundlessly to himself.
He gently tightened his arms around her, feeling her warmth and softness in his embrace, very real.
They stood silently in embrace for quite a while, after which he sighed deeply.
Looking down at her, he murmured softly, "Nannan is unharmed, and I am very pleased."
His eyes were filled with an unfathomable affection.
The words seemed to be meant for her, but also, seemingly, for himself.
Only in this moment, holding her in his arms, did he feel his heart was complete.
Since she was unharmed, he felt a joy deeper than anyone could know, with her by his side, his heart wasn’t empty.
The warmth on Lian Hua’s face subsided a bit; privately, she liked being held by His Majesty, smelling his scent, feeling very at peace.
Hearing this phrase, she felt there was something off in his tone, and she couldn’t help but raise her head, just in time to catch the Emperor’s deeply affectionate gaze, like the stars and the sea, enveloping her in it, with a barely perceptible emotion floating in it, making it hard to understand.
She keenly felt that something was off and blinked, "What’s wrong, my lord?"
The Emperor played with the hair by her ear, his voice tender, "It’s nothing." His eyes were deep, with a rising tinge of somberness.
"I see." Lian Hua felt something different about the Emperor at this moment, but could not pinpoint what it was.
With her arms around his waist, her face pressed against his chest, clinging to him, she asked, "My lord, why have you and Sister Consort De returned together now?"
Wasn’t he out of the palace? That was a quick return.
The Emperor stroked her hair slowly, his gaze drifting to the void, his eyes gradually turning cold, "I heard you were in trouble, so I came back to stand up for you."
The gloominess intensified, and the very thought of her nearly being in trouble disrupted his inner calm.
"Ah?" Lian Hua looked up in confusion; she had solved it herself.
The Emperor concealed his gloom and looked at her seriously, "The mastermind has not been found yet; this matter isn’t over. Didn’t you say you wanted to strike back? Since I have returned, there’s no need for you to act; I will strike back for you."
Anyone who dares to harm his Little Concubine and their child deserves to have their family eradicated.
"Is that so?" Lian Hua blinked. The mastermind seemed hard to find, and she had almost forgotten about it.
However, she felt that with her own abilities, she might not be able to find them, so she didn’t dwell on it too much.
But the thought of His Majesty striking back for her made her feel incredibly sweet, and she couldn’t help but smile with her eyes curved, "Alright then, Your Majesty."
She wasn’t a saint; having someone take revenge for her was of course wonderful, and if it were up to her and she couldn’t find them, she wouldn’t force it.
Suddenly, she remembered the Emperor’s expression just now and realized where it felt off. She straightened up and said, "Your Majesty, I’m actually fine, not hurt at all. It’s grandmother who was frightened, but after my comfort, she’s fine now. You can rest assured, I am quite capable."
After speaking, she blinked and looked at the Emperor, hoping to receive some praise.
The Emperor chuckled softly and pinched her nose: "Nannan has always done well."
Lian Hua instantly beamed; His Majesty really was wonderful.
While smiling, she noticed that the Emperor’s brows were still slightly furrowed, not as relaxed as usual. She couldn’t help but raise her hand to gently smooth them out.
Then she tugged at him, and the Emperor understood and bent his head down following her gesture.
She tiptoed, and her lips lightly kissed his forehead, leaving a solemn kiss.
The Emperor felt the kiss on his brow, and it calmed some of the fury in his heart.
After the kiss, Lian Hua’s lips left, her tiptoes touched the ground, and she looked up seriously, "Brother Zhao, don’t worry, I’m fine. The baby in my belly... cough, the baby is also fine, he really cherishes his Imperial Consort Mother, protecting me. That Bird’s Nest Soup which was poisoned made me nauseous, and I didn’t eat a bite. You can be reassured."
The Emperor tightened his grip on her hands and suppressed himself; he did not dare to think what would have happened if she had actually ingested it.
Lian Hua realized she’d made a misstep, bringing up the very topic she should have avoided, and it was making things worse.
She hurriedly tried to fix it, "Brother Zhao, I’ve seen through that trick now. Such tactics won’t work on me anymore. Whoever tries such things in the future won’t scare me. Look at me, I’m well, eating well, sleeping well, happily together with the little baby. Hmph, those villains who wanted to harm me will see. Actually, today’s events didn’t bother me at all; scaring people turned out to be quite fun, haha."
She spoke a few words and thought about how scared Consort Zhen was, and couldn’t help but laugh.
After laughing a couple of times, she suddenly realized and quickly covered her mouth, her eyes darting towards the Emperor.
The Emperor smiled helplessly, a true carefree demeanor, and her digression greatly relieved his mood.
Just at that moment, a cough came from outside, followed by Consort Xu De’s voice, "Sister, your courtyard really has a unique charm."
"Sister Consort De," Lian Hua’s eyes brightened as she turned to look.
"Did you finally think of me, sister?" The voice came through, and soon after, Consort Xu De appeared at the doorway, walking in with a brisk, gallant demeanor, smiling at them.
"I haven’t forgotten," Lian Hua’s face reddened again as she thought of breaking free from the Emperor’s embrace, but then she remembered something and first looked up at him.
The Emperor patted her head, nodded in affirmation, "Go ahead," and released her.
Seeing her , Consort Xu De teased, "What, you’re still worried about your Brother Zhao? No need to worry; right now, others should be the ones worried."
Lian Hua stepped away from the Emperor’s embrace and approached Consort Xu De, embarrassed by the first half of the sentence. She hadn’t expected her nickname for Brother Zhao to be heard by Sister Consort De and made fun of.
The latter part made her puzzled, "Hmm? What should others worry about?"