Eagle-eyed and wolf-watching

Chapter 1767 Heartless and Cold-Hearted!
Just as Ye Mingsheng was frowning in thought, another old woman rushed into the room and reported to Ye Mingsheng:

"Your Majesty, Miss Sun is crying and making a scene in her room, insisting on seeing you!"

Upon hearing this, Ye Mingsheng sighed inwardly and headed towards Sun Ning'er's room. Before he even entered, he heard Sun Ning'er crying and saying:
"Where is His Majesty? I want to see His Majesty! I want to see His Majesty!"

Upon hearing Sun Ning'er's words, the maids in the room immediately said:

"Miss Sun has already sent someone to inform His Majesty!"

"Miss Sun, please don't cry. You're pregnant now, and crying all the time isn't good for the baby!"

Despite the old women's attempts to persuade her, Sun Ning ignored them completely, even speaking somewhat defiantly:

"I'll cry, I'll cry!"

Just as they were pulling at each other, Ye Mingsheng walked into the room. Upon seeing Ye Mingsheng, Sun Ning'er, who had been crying her eyes out just a moment ago, immediately showed a look of surprise on her charming face. She instantly stood up from the sofa and rushed into Ye Mingsheng's arms.

Resting her head on Ye Mingsheng's firm chest, Sun Ning'er said with a hint of grievance:

"Your Majesty, I had a nightmare. I dreamt that you didn't want me and the child anymore! The dream felt so real and terrifying!"

Ye Mingsheng was speechless upon hearing this, not understanding why pregnant women would always have such dreams. If he remembered correctly, An Miaoyi had a similar dream when she was pregnant with Jingren, and he had gone to great lengths to cheer her up back then…

Thinking of this, Ye Mingsheng smiled and comforted her:
"Dreams are always the opposite of reality! Don't take them too seriously!"

"Ok!"

Sun Ning'er nodded slightly, but she refused to loosen her grip on Ye Mingsheng's hand, as if she was afraid that Ye Mingsheng would fly away if she let go.

Seeing that Sun Ning'er was unwilling to let go, Ye Mingsheng subtly freed himself from her embrace while smiling and asking:
"It's almost dinner time, what would you like to eat?"

Sun Ning'er thought about it carefully and said:

"The seafood congee I had yesterday was great! And the braised sea cucumber with scallions was also delicious!"

Upon hearing this, Ye Mingsheng glanced at Zhang Hu. Without Ye Mingsheng saying anything more, Zhang Hu immediately went down to make the arrangements.

Ye Mingsheng stayed by Sun Ning'er's side and said some intimate words. Under Ye Mingsheng's comforting words, Sun Ning'er's emotions gradually stabilized, and a smile appeared on her face!

Although Ye Mingsheng appeared calm and collected on the surface, he was actually quite tired inside.

To be honest, whether he was a regional warlord or the emperor of the Great Qian Dynasty, Ye Mingsheng rarely provided emotional value to others; it was always others who provided emotional value to him as emperor.

Barring exceptional circumstances, there were only three and a half women who could provide him, the emperor, with emotional support.

The first was Empress Dowager Ye Cui. As the saying goes, filial piety is the most important of all virtues. Although Ye Mingsheng and Empress Dowager Ye Cui had significant differences in their views, Ye Mingsheng always respected his mother. As long as the tasks assigned by Empress Dowager Ye Cui were not particularly difficult or matters of principle, Ye Mingsheng would generally comply...
The second one is An Miaoyi. Ye Mingsheng has complicated feelings for his wife, Ye Mingsheng. However, Ye Mingsheng still hopes that the two of them can be happy together. So, when she gets a little angry, Ye Mingsheng is willing to coax her and give her some small surprises when she needs them.

The third is Pei Zhixiu. She is Ye Mingsheng's most beloved woman. The time he spends with her is one of the few times he can clear his mind. He can stop thinking about important military and national affairs and quietly enjoy the beauty of being alone with Pei Zhixiu.

As for the remaining half, it's Murong Qingwu. Considering the contributions the Murong family has made to his career, Ye Mingsheng has always treated Murong Qingwu and Murong Xinyun, these two sisters, very well. Sometimes when Murong Qingwu is unhappy, Ye Mingsheng can also coax her.

As for the remaining concubines, they could hardly gain any emotional value from their husband, Ye Mingsheng. Ye Mingsheng was also unlikely to pay attention to their emotional changes, or rather, he simply didn't care about them at all.
Originally, Sun Ning'er's treatment was at most the same as that of other concubines, but Ye Mingsheng was only willing to coax her a little because of her pregnancy. Now that he saw that she seemed to be in a good mood, Ye Mingsheng didn't want to hide it anymore and directly told her his arrangements.

“Ning’er, I’m going to inspect Hebei and Henan next. You’re pregnant now, and it’s inconvenient for you to come with me. So tomorrow I’ll have someone arrange for you to be sent back to Yijing so you can prepare for childbirth there. Of course, if you’d like, you can stay in Qilu…”

Upon hearing Ye Mingsheng's words, Sun Ning'er, who was drinking seafood porridge, was stunned for a moment. Then, she looked at Ye Mingsheng with a mix of nervousness and grievance, her beautiful eyes welling up with tears again, making her look pitiful.

Seeing this, Ye Mingsheng continued:
"Ning'er, don't overthink it. I still have to go to Hebei and Henan for an inspection. This is a scheduled trip. You are pregnant now, and it's not suitable for you to come along on such a long journey. Finding a place to rest and recuperate is the best choice!"

Although Sun Ning'er was unwilling to be separated from Ye Mingsheng, she rationally understood that her pregnancy made long-distance travel inadvisable. Therefore, after hesitating for a moment, she said to Ye Mingsheng:
"I'm going to Yijing to rest and prepare for childbirth!"

Ye Mingsheng nodded slightly and then gave the following instructions:

"I will arrange a house for you in Yijing and find some nannies and maids to serve you!"

Sun Ning'er said with some surprise:
"Your Majesty, am I not going to the palace?"

Upon hearing the words "enter the palace," Ye Mingsheng was surprised this time. He looked at Sun Ning'er with some confusion, wondering why she would have such a thought.

Feeling Ye Mingsheng's gaze, Sun Ning'er said with a hint of grievance:

"Your Majesty, you said that!" "When did I say I would let you enter the palace?"

"You said you were going to take me back to Yijing!"

"I meant I'd take you back to Yijing, but I never promised to take you back to the palace! There's nothing good about the palace; there are too many rules and restrictions. I don't think you'd be happy living there!"

"I will arrange a house for you and find people to take good care of you. Ning'er, you can stay there and rest well during your pregnancy..."

After finishing his sentence, Ye Mingsheng's patience ran out. Not wanting to waste any more words with Sun Ning'er, he turned and left, leaving Sun Ning'er with a somewhat heartless back view. Seeing Ye Mingsheng leave, Sun Ning'er immediately stood up from her chair and tried to say something to stop him, but before she could make a sound, he had already gone far away.

Upon seeing this, two lines of clear tears immediately streamed down Sun Ning'er's charming face.

Ever since she got involved with Ye Mingsheng, she has only had one thought in her mind: to seize this opportunity, change her fate, and rise to prominence.

Sun Ning'er was very clear-headed. Her only possible path was to serve Ye Mingsheng well and try to get pregnant with his child. She believed that once she had a child, she could change her status and even make her family proud of her.

Ye Mingsheng's promise to take her back to Yijing made Sun Ning'er feel that Ye Mingsheng was promising to take her back to the palace.

During her time with Ye Mingsheng, she had learned that he had five sons and three daughters. The mothers of these children all rose in status because of their sons, becoming either empresses or imperial concubines. Sun Ning'er was very excited when she heard this news.

She felt that according to this pattern, as long as she gave birth to the child smoothly and the child was a boy, she would very likely be made a concubine, or even be made an imperial concubine like Shen Yutong!
Sun Ning'er felt her experiences were remarkably similar to Shen Yutong's. Shen Yutong was an actress, while she was a courtesan; their social statuses were essentially the same. Therefore, she believed that what Shen Yutong could do, she could do as well. However, Ye Mingsheng's attitude completely shattered her illusions, making her realize her true place in Ye Mingsheng's heart…
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Yijing Palace
After arranging for the two children to rest, Murong Qingwu strolled around the campus, looking somewhat absent-minded and lost in thought. Just then, a gentle female voice came from behind her.

"Sister, what are you doing here?" Murong Xinyun asked curiously.

Coming back to her senses, Murong Qingwu smiled at her younger sister and said:
"I just wanted to come out and have some peace and quiet!"

Although Murong Qingwu said that, seeing the worry in her expression, Murong Xinyun knew what her sister was truly worried about, and immediately spoke up:
"Sister, don't worry! Second Uncle is very lucky and will definitely be alright!"

Seeing that her younger sister had seen through her disguise, Murong Qingwu stopped hiding and let out a long sigh of melancholy. Judging from the current information, Ye Mingsheng attaches great importance to this matter. In addition to authorizing the cabinet to select an imperial envoy to inspect Qilu, Ye Mingsheng has also sent the General Investigation Office and the Inner Guard to conduct an investigation in secret.

Thinking about this, Murong Qingwu couldn't help but feel worried. Although she could influence Zhang Mang and bribe Zhang Li to find a way to join the task force and facilitate Murong Qingwu's arrangements.

However, she had absolutely no clue about the Imperial Guard. Murong Qingwu was quite worried about this most mysterious organization in the Great Qian Dynasty; she feared they had discovered her father's secret, potentially imprisoning him and his family…

Not only at this moment, but even before, Murong Qingwu had intentionally infiltrated the inner guards to keep track of Ye Mingsheng's latest movements. However, several attempts ended in failure. So until now, Murong Qingwu has not been able to make any progress with the inner guards. She can't even be sure who the inner guards are. All of this makes her even more curious about this organization.

Murong Qingwu's only hope now is that Zhang Mang, a talented young man, can cooperate well with her father and help her father and the Murong family overcome this difficulty.

Seeing her sister looking so tired and worn out, Murong Xinyun changed the subject, saying:
"Sister, Chen Rou'er set off for Tianci Nunnery at noon!"

Murong Qingwu nodded upon hearing this and said:
"Chen Rou'er may be young, but she's certainly ambitious! This is a lesson for her!"

Murong Xinyun nodded slightly. She had a significant conflict with Chen Rou'er before, so seeing Chen Rou'er forced to become a nun at Tianci Nunnery for three months, spending her days with only the dim light of the lamp and the ancient Buddha, and having to eat vegetarian food and chant Buddhist scriptures, Murong Xinyun felt secretly pleased. However, at the same time, she also had a question, so she immediately asked:
"Sister, I never expected that you would join forces with An Miaoyi to deal with Chen Rou'er this time..."

"Who said that An Miaoyi and I joined forces to deal with Chen Rou'er? Chen Rou'er doesn't deserve that treatment. I just happened to be there and added fuel to the fire!"

"Besides, I think there's something interesting about Chen Rou'er!"

"Something interesting?" Murong Xinyun asked, somewhat puzzled.

"Although Chen Rou'er is a bit spoiled, she certainly has the right to be. She has been quite favored since entering the palace, and she is currently the only one among your batch of people who entered the palace to be made a concubine. His Majesty has also spent a lot of energy on her..."

"So, Xinyun, don't you find this suspicious?"

"Sister, what's suspicious? What exactly are you trying to say?"

"His Majesty gave her dozens of times, but her belly still showed no signs of pregnancy."

Upon hearing her sister mention this, a fleeting hint of unease crossed Murong Xinyun's face, but she outwardly feigned nonchalance and asked:

"Perhaps Chen Rou'er needs to recuperate, or perhaps His Majesty has some health problem; these are all possibilities!"

“Yes! Xinyun, you’re right, these are all possible, but I still feel that this matter is unusual. Logically speaking, given An Miaoyi’s personality, if Chen Rou’er dared to betray her, she would never let Chen Rou’er go. But now Chen Rou’er is still alive and well, which is really strange!”

"What's so strange about that? Sister, didn't you just say that His Majesty dotes on Chen Rou'er? So, even if we don't care about the monk, we should at least give His Majesty some face! Do you really think An Miaoyi would dare to poison her?"

"Never underestimate An Miaoyi's audacity. This woman is far more insane than you imagine. I think she may have already done something to Chen Rou'er, it's just that none of us know it yet..."