A middle-aged emperor, childless, was blessed with a beautiful and pregnant concubine who entered th

Since the Empress Dowager passed away, Emperor Qianwu's health has deteriorated year by year.

After all, I am indeed getting old.

When he was fifty, he caught a cold and it took him two months to recover.

The imperial physician said that His Majesty has overworked himself and needs to rest.

Emperor Qianwu said nothing, but he knew in his heart that he was getting old.

He used to be able to travel a hundred miles a day by riding a horse and shooting arrows.

Now I get out of breath after walking just a few steps and get tired after climbing just a few steps.

He used to approve ten commemorative documents in one night, and he would still be full of energy the next day.

These days, when I'm working on approvals until midnight, I get a headache the next day.

He is old, but Ah Chang is still young.

She's almost thirty, but she looks like she's in her early twenties. Her skin is fair and delicate, and there isn't even a fine line around her eyes.

When she smiles, she's as beautiful as ever, even more beautiful than before.

Emperor Qianwu looked at her and suddenly felt a little flustered.

"Ah Chang, do you think I'm getting old?"

Zhou Mingyi looked up at him, smiled, and said perfunctorily:

"How can Your Majesty be old? You are in the prime of your life."

Emperor Qianwu knew she was coaxing him, but he was willing to listen.

He pulled her into his arms, resting his chin on the top of her head.

"Ah Chang, the person I have wronged the most in my life is you."

Zhou Mingyi leaned against him without saying a word.

The corners of her lips curved slightly.

"Why does Your Majesty say that?"

Emperor Qianwu remained silent for a moment, then held the woman in his arms tighter.

"I am so much older than you, it is destined that we cannot grow old together."

"Everyone shouts 'Long live the Emperor!' I also hope that I can live to be ten thousand years old, so that I can grow old with Ah Chang."

Zhou Mingyi parted her red lips slightly.

"You were born before I was born, and I was born after you had grown old."

Emperor Qianwu was taken aback, and for a moment he did not understand what Zhou Mingyi meant.

This statement isn't quite appropriate in this context, is it?

"Ah Chang?"

Zhou Mingyi didn't explain; she casually said, "Your Majesty, you're tired. You should rest more."

Although Emperor Qianwu didn't say anything more, a thorn remained in his heart.

I have a feeling that something has slipped out of my control...

But what exactly was it? He couldn't figure it out for a moment.

Or rather, he was intelligent enough to realize it, but he was unwilling to believe it.

……

When the Crown Prince was sixteen, Zhou Mingyi fell ill.

The illness isn't serious, but I'm just listless, lethargic all day, and don't want to talk or move.

Emperor Qianwu was extremely anxious. He went through wave after wave of imperial physicians, all of whom said there was nothing seriously wrong, but he was just feeling depressed.

Emperor Qianwu asked her what was wrong, and she shook her head, saying it was nothing, she was just tired.

Looking at her still beautiful face, but without a smile, Emperor Qianwu felt as if a knife was twisting in his heart.

He knew she was tired. From the time she entered the palace until now, more than ten years had passed, and she had always worried about him, about the children, and about the harem.

He made an unexpected decision in ten days.

"Ah Chang, I'm passing the throne to Yan'er. Let's go out for a walk."

Zhou Mingyi looked up at him, her eyes shining.

"Your Majesty, what are you saying?"

Emperor Qianwu held her hand, his gaze tender.

"I owe you so much in this life. I want to spend the rest of my days with you."

Zhou Mingyi glanced at him with a complicated expression, then finally turned her face away, lowered her eyes, and nodded.

"it is good."

The news of Emperor Qianwu's abdication shocked the court and the public.

The ministers submitted a memorial advising His Majesty that he was in the prime of his life and should not abdicate.

Emperor Qianwu kept all those memorials hidden and only said one sentence: "My mind is made up."

Crown Prince Xie Yan ascended the throne, adopting the reign title Yonghe, and honored Emperor Qianwu as the Retired Emperor and Zhou Mingyi as the Empress Dowager.

Emperor Qianwu took Zhou Mingyi south.

They went to Suzhou, visited the gardens, and listened to Suzhou storytelling.

I went to Hangzhou, visited West Lake, and paid my respects at Lingyin Temple.

I went to Nanjing, climbed Purple Mountain, and saw the Qinhuai River.

A smile gradually appeared on Zhou Mingyi's face.

Emperor Qianwu looked at her and smiled, feeling happier than anything else.

But he didn't realize that the smile never reached his eyes.

One day, they were in Yangzhou, staying in a garden by the Slender West Lake.

Zhou Mingyi said she was tired and wanted to rest for a while.

Emperor Qianwu told her to go and rest, while he sat by the lake fishing.

Zhou Mingyi returned to her room but did not rest. She stood by the window, looking at Emperor Qianwu by the lake for a while, and then turned away.

Shen Kuo stood behind her.

Ten years have passed, and he still looks the same—cold and silent, like a knife sheathed in its sheath.

Zhou Mingyi looked at him and suddenly smiled.

"Shen Kuo, do you think he's very pitiful?"

Shen Kuo remained silent.

Zhou Mingyi walked over, stood in front of him, raised her hand, and gently touched his face.

"You're younger than him, better looking, and stronger. Tell me, what does he have to compare with you?"

Shen Kuo's Adam's apple bobbed.

"Your Majesty..."

Zhou Mingyi smiled.

Call me Ah Chang.

Emperor Qianwu fished for half a day but didn't catch a single fish.

He put away his fishing rod and walked back.

As I approached the door, I heard laughter coming from inside.

He pushed open the door and saw Zhou Mingyi sitting by the window, with Shen Kuo standing behind her, combing her hair.

His hands were very light and steady, combing the hair all the way through in one stroke.

Zhou Mingyi closed her eyes, a smile playing on her lips.

Emperor Qianwu stood at the door, looking at the scene, feeling as if something had stabbed him hard in the heart.

"Ah Chang, you all..."

Zhou Mingyi opened her eyes, looked at him, her gaze calm.

"Your Majesty, oh no, Your Majesty the Retired Emperor, you're back? Did you catch any fish?"

Emperor Qianwu looked at her, at her smiling face, at Shen Kuo's hands on her shoulders, and felt a chill creep down his spine.

"What...are you doing?"

Zhou Mingyi pursed her lips and raised an eyebrow.

"What are you doing? Combing my hair. Can't you tell?"

Emperor Qianwu's hands were trembling.

"Ah Chang, you...you are not...?"

Zhou Mingyi stood up, walked up to him, and looked up at him.

"Your Majesty the Retired Emperor, what would you like to say?"

Emperor Qianwu was speechless.

Zhou Mingyi looked at him, at his aged face, at his cloudy eyes, and suddenly laughed. "Your Majesty, do you know? You're old. Your hair is white, your face is wrinkled, and your back is hunched. What do you have to compare with young people?"

Emperor Qianwu's face was as white as paper.

He looked at Zhou Mingyi, the woman he had loved for over a decade, and suddenly felt a deep sense of unfamiliarity.

"Ah Chang, you..."

Zhou Mingyi grasped Emperor Qianwu's hand.

"Your Majesty, look closely, I haven't changed. I've always been the same."

She turned to Shen Kuo and said, "You're very skilled. Come and help me comb my hair."

Shen Kuo remained silent, but stepped forward as instructed.

Although their behavior was somewhat inappropriate, it wasn't excessive.

This is not because Zhou Mingyi is soft-hearted.

Instead, she discovered that she wasn't used to close contact with others.

As for Emperor Qianwu, she had long been accustomed to their close relationship after decades of companionship.

The system asked her if she was willing to have a child with her enemy in order to seek revenge.

She agreed without even thinking about it.

Driven by a desire for revenge, she was even willing to have a child with her enemy.

Humans are ultimately not plants or trees.

Zhou Mingyi sighed softly.

To be fair, Emperor Qianwu treated her quite well.

Zhou Mingyi did not want to understand this hypocritical relationship in such an undignified way.

Taking revenge on one man doesn't necessarily mean taking advantage of an affair with another man.

But even after she stopped pretending, Emperor Qianwu still noticed something.

Moreover, people tend to become more suspicious as they get older.

Emperor Qianwu was no exception.

His first target was the little princess, Xie Changshu.

But the little princess looks like him.

The other children, although some of them look more like Zhou Mingyi, all resemble him to some extent.

These children could not possibly not be his.

Although Zhou's feelings were feigned, the child was real.

Once the seeds of unease were sown, Emperor Qianwu began to indulge in a frenzied pursuit of health and wellness. Seemingly to vent his discontent, he began to shower his concubines with excessive favors.

Today's beauty, tomorrow's talented woman, the day after tomorrow's imperial concubine.

But he is old. Even though he was much stronger than the average man when he was young, he is no longer as strong as he gets older.

He looked at those young faces, but his mind was on another face.

That face he had loved for over a decade, but now felt unfamiliar.

Zhou Mingyi did not stop him, but simply had someone send a bowl of nourishing soup to Qianqing Palace every day.

Emperor Qianwu drank the soup and felt his body warm up a bit.

He gradually began to rely on this soup.

Aside from becoming stronger in bed, his health deteriorated day by day. He became so thin that he was unrecognizable and needed help to walk.

The imperial physician said that the Emperor Emeritus had overworked himself and needed to rest.

Emperor Qianwu waved his hand without saying a word.

He knew he was about to die.

But he was unwilling to accept it; he hadn't even asked her why she treated him this way.

On his deathbed, Emperor Qianwu summoned Zhou Mingyi to his side.

Zhou Mingyi arrived in full regalia.

She stood by the bed, looking at him calmly.

Emperor Qianwu looked at her, his gaze gradually blurring.

"Ah Chang, tell me, did you ever love me?"

Zhou Mingyi looked at him and remained silent for a while.

"Your Majesty, would you like to hear the truth or a lie?"

Just like when they first met, she gave the same answer.

But Emperor Qianwu did not have the courage to hear her answer.

"I...I want to hear lies."

He admitted his cowardice; he dared not face it, nor did he want to believe it, that the woman he had loved for decades, who had borne him six children and helped him achieve his goal of having many children, could not love him anymore.

How is that possible?

Zhou Mingyi walked to the window and opened it.

The sunlight streamed in and fell upon her, illuminating her entire body.

She turned around and looked at Emperor Qianwu.

"His Majesty."

She didn't call him the Emperor Emeritus. "Have you ever considered that your and the Empress Dowager's unconditional doting on Chaoyang will cause the deaths of many innocent people?"

"Besides those whose names are known, how many other people have died at her hands? Do you know?"

"You gave her life, you gave her rights, but those rights became the butcher's knife in her hand."

"Did those victims deserve to die?"

Emperor Qianwu was dying and his mind was still foggy.

Speaking of the rising sun, he seemed to see it.

She was dressed in a bright red palace gown and skipped towards him.

Gradually, she transformed into the appearance of someone who was eleven or twelve years old.

The sunrise back then was innocent and carefree.

so good.

He seemed to see his mother, who was wearing the blue palace dress she wore when she was young, standing at the door, smiling at him.

A faint smile appeared on Emperor Qianwu's dazed face.

"I was one of the people who was murdered."

"I am a demon who crawled out of hell, here for revenge."

"Actually, the concubine didn't come entirely for revenge."

"Your Majesty, have you forgotten that you have no heir and have wasted decades of your life, only having one daughter, Chaoyang?"

"But I have been with you for decades and have given you six children."

"You can rest in peace now."

Emperor Qianwu's pupils were already somewhat dilated.

Upon hearing this, his face turned even paler.

He stammered, extending one hand, but couldn't say anything.

Zhou Mingyi looked at him and spoke slowly and deliberately.

"Your Majesty, I have come to seek revenge. But I have also come to help you."

"From the day I entered the palace, I have been waiting for this day."

Emperor Qianwu died.

He died on the dragon bed in the Qianqing Palace.

Fuquan knelt before the bed, trembling with sobs.

The imperial physician said it was due to emotional distress and overwork.

Zhou Mingyi stood at the entrance of the Qianqing Palace, looking at the tightly closed door, pursing her lips, slightly raising her chin, and glancing at the sky above the Forbidden City.

Lianwu, standing to the side, whispered, "Your Majesty, the Emperor Emeritus..."

Zhou Mingyi waved her hand.

"I understand."

She turned around and slowly walked back.

Just then, a cold, electronic voice rang in her mind:

"Congratulations, host, you have successfully completed the level and unlocked a new scenario. Please select..."

Zhou Mingyi paused in her steps.

She stood in the middle of the palace path, the sunlight shining down and illuminating her entire body.

She closed her eyes, took a deep breath, then opened them, and her lips slowly curved into a smile.

"A new script? Interesting."

She looked up at the blindingly blue sky.

"That palace selection..."

The wind suddenly stopped, and the sunlight suddenly dimmed.

The whole world was as quiet as a painting.

(End of the article)