Ying Qionglou let out a short chuckle.

  Everyone watched Li Fei's dispy, and the emotions in their hearts were beyond words.

  Perhaps the only one who could sit back comfortably and enjoy the show without a care was Wumian.

  Soon, the banquet officially began. There were performances of song and dance, along with acrobatics—lively and entertaining.

  It seemed that today, His Majesty was determined to make Li Fei happy for the entire day.

  Wumian had already made up her mind—she would accompany them for the morning, but after lunch, she would find an opportunity to slip away. There was no way she could endure a full day of this. It was exhausting.

  Her pn was to be nothing more than a decorative wall painting throughout the event. But unfortunately, her status did not allow for such a passive approach. Even if she chose to remain silent, no matter how little Li Fei and the others respected her, they still had to speak to her. After all, with the emperor present, ignoring the empress entirely would be far too inappropriate.

  So, whoever spoke to her, she would respond with a brief reply—never engaging too deeply. That was enough to get through the day.

  Perhaps it was because she had spoken too little, or maybe for some other reason, but Ying Qionglou turned slightly to gnce at her. "Is the empress feeling unwell?"

  Wumian’s eyes shifted slightly before she replied, "Indeed, I am. After all, I only recently recovered from a severe illness. I often feel fatigued, and after sitting for too long, even my waist starts to ache… I truly hope I’m not spoiling Your Majesty’s mood."

  "It’s fine. It’s only natural if your body is still weak," Ying Qionglou hesitated for a moment but didn’t take the initiative to tell her to leave.

  So Wumian took it upon herself. "Perhaps I should return and rest for a while? Today is Li Fei’s birthday, and I truly wish I could stay and enjoy it with everyone, but my body refuses to cooperate. I hope I won’t dampen the mood for Your Majesty and my sisters."

  "If you’re feeling truly unwell, then go back and rest," Ying Qionglou said, though his heart was filled with doubt.

  "Alright, I’ll take my leave then. Li Fei, you all should continue enjoying yourselves. Don’t stop until you’re completely drunk! And tomorrow morning, don’t bother coming to greet me—just sleep in if you’re up too te tonight."

  As she spoke, Wumian gave Ying Qionglou a small bow. "Your Majesty, I shall take my leave now."

  Ying Qionglou nodded. The concubines all quickly rose and respectfully saluted the empress, sending her off.

  Ying Qionglou frowned slightly, feeling that the empress’s steps as she left were a bit too fast.

  Once she exited, Wumian let out a breath of relief. “Sitting up straight isn’t enough? They just love to talk.” She yawned. “Let’s go back.”

  She actually wanted to stroll around a bit more, but since she had already cimed to be unwell, going for a walk now would make it seem like she was fishing for attention.

  “Ever since Her Majesty fell ill, she seems to have grown much thinner,” Li Fei remarked.

  “Yes, and she looks more subdued,” Guifei said, probing. “It’s our fault, really. We should spend more time accompanying Her Majesty.”

  Ying Qionglou gave a neutral hum, not responding to their words, and so Guifei and the others dropped the subject.

  After all, she was the empress—one or two comments were fine, but saying too much would be crossing a line.

  That night, as expected, the emperor remained in Li Fei’s Pace.

  The next day, the new concubines were finally eligible for selection. But unexpectedly, at dusk, the emperor went to Fengyi Pace.

  Even Wumian hadn’t anticipated it. Given how the original host and this man interacted before, they barely met even on the first and fifteenth of the month. It wasn’t the first or fifteenth today, nor was it a holiday, so why had he come? Was he pnning to stay the night?

  Wumian thought for a moment but didn’t dwell on it. If he wanted to stay, then let him stay. The emperor was a manly man—if they were going to sleep together, it wouldn’t be a loss for her.

  “It’s raining outside. Did Your Majesty not bring an umbrel?”

  “It’s only a drizzle. I found it troublesome, so I didn’t use one.” Ying Qionglou sat down.

  “Oh, Linshui, help His Majesty dry his hair, and bring some hot tea,” Wumian instructed, then turned to him. “Have you had dinner yet, Your Majesty? Is there anything you’d like to eat?”

  Ying Qionglou found Wumian’s rexed demeanor somewhat unfamiliar, though he didn’t think it was inappropriate. “You decide.”

  Since the emperor had spoken, Wumian didn’t overthink it. She simply arranged the meal without fuss.

  Even if she didn’t say anything, the imperial kitchen already knew the emperor’s preferences—he wouldn’t go hungry.

  After dinner, since the emperor showed no signs of leaving, it was clear that he truly intended to stay.

  Well, she had known this man for six months, and now they were about to take things further. Fine, no big deal.

  Might as well enjoy it while he was still young. Who knew if he’d still be functional in a few years?

  After properly washing up and getting into bed, Ying Qionglou took the initiative to pull Wumian into his arms.

  She had indeed lost quite a bit of weight. Originally, she still had a bit of baby fat—after all, she was only nineteen.

  But that illness had cimed the original host’s life, and it wasn’t something she could fully recover from overnight.

  Besides, once baby fat was gone, it was gone forever.

  Ying Qionglou had never been fond of his empress, but she was still his wife. He knew she hadn’t been this thin before. Holding her now, he could tell just how much she had suffered through her illness.

  “You should eat more to regain your strength. You’ve lost a lot of weight.”

  “Mhm.” Wumian wrapped her arms around him as well. This man had an incredible physique—solid and well-built. She pressed closer, tilting her head up to look at him. “Many thanks for Your Majesty’s concern.”

  Zhao Wumian was undeniably beautiful. Aside from her bad personality and poor judgment, she truly had a stunning appearance.

  With such a beauty in his arms, Ying Qionglou didn’t bother thinking any further. He lowered his head and pinned her beneath him.

  The bed curtains fell, and the servants quietly withdrew.

  After a long while, Wumian’s voice came through the drapes, “Your Majesty… slower… it hurts.”

  Damn it, she had completely forgotten how painful this was in her younger years.

  Even though she wasn’t a virgin, she had barely done it a few times in recent years. And this Ying Qionglou—he was clearly… well-endowed. How could it not hurt?

  “All according to the empress’s wishes,” Ying Qionglou’s deep, husky voice replied, willing to cooperate.

  After three rounds that night, when Wumian heard the emperor waking up in the morning, she simply turned over and pretended to sleep.

  Not that she needed to pretend—she was genuinely exhausted. The moment she rolled over, she fell asleep again.

  Ying Qionglou, already up and dressing, gnced back at his little empress, who was still sleeping soundly. He didn’t disturb her.

  His attendants assisted him with changing, and before long, he left.

  Once she was sure he was gone, Wumian slept even more soundly.

  Unfortunately, only a short while ter, she was woken up again.

  “Must we really have morning greetings every day?” Wumian grumbled, sitting before the mirror with her eyes closed while Zhaohua fussed over her hair.

  Seeing her so sleepy, no one dared to speak. They carefully served her in silence.

  Once everyone was gathered, the ten new concubines knelt in perfect unison, performing a grand ceremonial greeting.

  Suppressing the urge to yawn, Wumian responded with some polite, formal remarks and waved for them to rise and take their seats.

  Fengyi Pace’s main hall was almost full.

  In previous years, whenever the empress had spent the night with the emperor, she would be particurly talkative and full of energy the next day.

  The concubines had always found this version of the empress insufferable, so today, they were mentally prepared to endure her usual antics.

  Yet instead, the empress’s expression was reduced to just two words: utter exhaustion.

  After going through the usual formalities and checking in with each concubine, Wumian decisively waved her hand. “You may all leave. The new concubines are now eligible to be summoned—just prepare yourselves and wait for His Majesty’s selection. If anything comes up, seek out Guifei.”

  As the concubines exited Fengyi Pace, they couldn’t shake the feeling that the empress was rushing them out a little too eagerly.

  And indeed—once they were gone, Wumian colpsed right back onto her bed.

  Nothing in the world was more comforting than her bnket.

  (Transtor Xiaobai: I kinda want this life tbh. I'm super zy and I would rather eat and sleep all day)