No matter whether the Emperor of Xiyun needed them or not, at that moment, they simply wished to fulfill their filial duties to the fullest.
As Tian Du was about to darken, and the Emperor of Xiyun had not yet emerged, Xiao Changyi asked An Jing to take the four children home first.
Yet An Jing proposed, "We should stay in the palace tonight. The Emperor has always kept Fenghua Palace for us."
At night, after An Jing had gently lulled the four little ones to sleep, she quietly left Fenghua Palace and joined Xiao Changyi outside Feng Palace to continue their vigil.
Seeing the Emperor of Xiyun , they truly couldn’t ease their minds.
Su Chengyu also arrived. He had been busy dealing with the aftermath of Su Chengjin’s death during the day but once he saw that the Ministry of Rites was capable of handling the rest, he came over as well.
Likewise, he stood at the entrance of Feng Palace, just like Xiao Changyi.
Inside Feng Palace was his emperor father, whom he deeply worried about.
It was in the dead of night that the Emperor of Xiyun finally emerged from Feng Palace. Upon seeing Xiao Changyi, An Jing, and Su Chengyu standing at the entrance, he felt a lump in his throat and a tremendous sense of relief.
After a long moment, the Emperor of Xiyun said, "Since you all are here, join me for a meal. I am hungry."
After having something to eat with the Emperor of Xiyun and seeing that he no longer isolated himself, Xiao Changyi and the others felt greatly relieved.
On the other hand, Gong Juechen, upon learning from Meng Zhuqing about Su Chengjin’s death, didn’t show much on the surface, but once Meng Zhuqing left, he went to a tavern, asked for a private room, and started drinking alone incessantly.
But no matter how much he drank, he simply couldn’t get drunk.
At that moment, Gong Juechen deeply resented his constitution of never getting drunk; drinking was as if drinking water for him.
Even if he drank a lot, he couldn’t get drunk.
Before, he could deceive others by claiming he had taken a Sobriety Pill, but now, having taken none, he wanted to get drunk, but no matter what, he couldn’t . . . That feeling was truly unbearable and infuriating!
From day to deep into the night, Gong Juechen remained completely sober. Finally, he stopped drinking, settled the bill, and returned to the General’s residence.
As soon as he entered his room in the General’s residence, he sprawled out in a spread-eagle position on the bed.
When he closed his eyes and realized he couldn’t sleep, he opened them again, gazing at the ceiling, blankly staring.
As he watched, he smiled.
And as he smiled, he began to cry. A tear slid from the corner of his peach-blossom eyes, and the moonlight shone through the window, casting light on his face, making that tear in the night even more crystal-clear.
Su Chengjin was dead...
If he hadn’t been sent out of the palace, then his fate would have been the same as Su Chengjin’s...
We are also your sons...
The more he thought about it, the more desolate Gong Juechen’s eyes became.
"Su Haoyu, your heart is truly cruel!" Gong Juechen cursed through clenched teeth, each word squeezed out through the gaps in his teeth.
An Jing and Xiao Changyi stayed in the palace for a full seven days before taking the four little ones home.
Previously, they were anxious for the Emperor of Xiyun, but now that Su Chengjin had been laid to rest, and the Emperor of Xiyun had somewhat recovered, there was no longer a need for them to stay in the palace; it was better to go home.
The Emperor of Xiyun and Su Chengyu treated them well, but the palace wasn’t just inhabited by the Emperor of Xiyun and Su Chengyu.
And it wasn’t long after An Jing returned home that she received the imperial edict, officially raising her to the rank of Minister of Public Works, a senior second-ranked official.
A woman becoming an official was already unusual, let alone a senior second-ranked one?!
In the Imperial Capital, a fourth-ranked official was already qualified to attend court sessions, but she, a senior second-ranked official?!