After the milk ball arrived, the father who had no heirs had a string of good luck.

My name is Tang Zhinian. My mother is the Empress of the Southern Barbarians, and my father is Gu Guijun.

Isn't that amazing? I also think my mother is amazing; she seems to know everything and understand everything.

But both my mother and father were very strict with me.

Only my great-grandfather was very, very good to me.

Every time my mother got angry and wanted to hit me, it was my great-grandfather who protected me.

I forgot to mention that my great-grandfather was the Empress Dowager of the Great Xia Dynasty.

Despite being the emperor of the Great Xia Dynasty, he has always stayed in the Southern Barbarian Lands. Even though my grandfather, whose hair is gray but who is still incredibly handsome and whose good looks can shatter the heavens and earth, has tried countless times to take him to live with him in his old age, he has always refused.

At times like these, he would say, "Wherever Niannian is, I will be. I'll be content watching Niannian grow up safe and healthy."

I love my great-grandfather the most!

Life in the palace was dull and monotonous, and I had a ton of schoolwork to do.

I have to learn everything, from Chinese, math, and English, to physics, chemistry, music, chess, calligraphy, painting, poetry, and even strategies for governing a country.

I have protested to my mother countless times: why do I have to learn so many things?

My two elder brothers and elder sister are also my mother's children, so why don't they have to learn so much?

Whenever this happened, my mother would coax me like a child: "Because Chinen is the smartest! Look, the more you know, the more your brothers and sisters admire you, right?"

That's...that's true!

Actually, I don't know why I'm so smart.

Especially physical chemistry, I feel like I can learn it at a glance.

My mother sent a tutor to teach me Chinese, math, English, physics, and chemistry. I heard that he was an outstanding talent specially trained by my uncle, who was the emperor of the Xia Kingdom.

But... he's a bit slow. Even when he's clearly wrong on some questions, I always have to point them out to him.

However, despite the heavy workload, I was still quite happy.

My eldest brother is taciturn. Although he is the son of Lord Mingyue, he is more like my father. He is quiet but very intelligent, loves reading, and dislikes martial arts. What I can't understand is that my eldest brother is not close to Lord Mingyue, but has a very good relationship with my father.

Anyone who didn't know better would think that my eldest brother was my father's son!

The second prince is lively and active, just like his father Chuan. He is also very bold, knows a little bit about everything, but is not good at anything.

His only advantage is that, like his father Mingyue Jun, he is extremely skilled in martial arts.

The Third Princess was also the daughter of Mingyue Junfu, so she was much more normal.

Okay, by "normal" I mean mediocre.

Third Princess was neither clever nor stupid; compared to us, she was more like a child from an ordinary family.

The only thing she has to offer is her beauty.

The Third Princess was extremely beautiful, seemingly inheriting all the best features of her grandparents. She was stunningly beautiful, and her smile was captivating.

My mother would sometimes tease my third sister, saying, "Isn't the third one beautiful? Did she trade her intelligence for it?"

嗏

My brothers and sisters have one thing in common: they love me very much.

My eldest brother was stern and never smiled. Whenever he had time, he would repeatedly copy down the policies for governing the country and the records of peace and security. When I was punished by my mother to copy these things X times, he would give me the ones he had already copied and ask me to hand them in.

My second brother is lively and cheerful, and he's my wishing well. If I want to learn archery, he'll find me the best purple phoenix bow; if I want to ride a horse, he'll spend a fortune to find me a fine steed. Although I only have a three-minute attention span each time, my second brother never tires of it.

My third sister is stunningly beautiful. Whenever she gets any pretty jewelry or clothes, I'm the first person she thinks of. Thanks to my third sister, I have over a dozen wardrobes and countless jewelry boxes.

However, the person who loved me the most was my great-grandfather.

My mother told me that when I was born, my great-grandfather cried for a whole day out of joy.

Then he gave me all of his private assets.

When I was one year old, my great-grandfather collected portraits of all the boys from birth to five years old in the southern barbarians, and had already begun to choose a husband for me.

When I was three years old, Zhencuige also came under my name.

My great-grandfather said, "Niannian is a unique treasure in the world, deserving of the best of everything!"

It was also because of my great-grandfather that whenever my mother and father wanted to argue with me, they would eventually let it go.

But now, my great-grandfather is dying.

A five-year-old child from another family might not understand what separation by death means.

But I know!

Separation in life means never being able to see each other again in this lifetime!

Death is the permanent separation caused by death.

My great-grandfather is leaving me forever.

He was very thin; it looked like he was all bone under his skin.

He was also very short and always hunched over; it's hard to imagine that he could have fathered a man as tall as my grandfather.

He lay on the bed, barely breathing, each breath seemingly draining all his strength.

His grandparents, his mother, and his three fathers were all by his bedside.

As for me, my older brother and sister and I stood on the sidelines, wanting to help, but powerless to do anything.

Grandmother withdrew her hand and shook her head: "The oil has run out, the lamp has burned out..."

My third sister stared blankly, then turned her head and asked me, "Little sister, what does 'exhausted oil and lamp extinguished' mean?"

"The oil is exhausted and the lamp is out of oil..." As I recited these four words, my heart felt a tearing pain, and tears involuntarily blurred my vision.

"Don't cry, don't cry, I won't ask anymore..." Third Sister quickly comforted me when she saw me crying.

But I'm still so sad, so very sad...

My great-grandfather, who loved me the most, is about to die.

"Niannian..." The old emperor on the bed slowly opened his eyes, his face deathly pale, but he had surprisingly regained some of his spirit.

Tang Rui understood that this was a final burst of energy before death, and quickly waved to Tang Zhinian: "Zhinian, come here quickly!"

I wiped away my tears and walked step by step to the bedside, gazing longingly at my great-grandfather. The next second, tears welled up in my eyes again.

I wanted to cry out loud, and I really did cry: "Don't go, great-grandfather... Niannian will definitely be good and study hard from now on, don't leave Niannian..."

"Nian Nian... don't cry..." The great-grandfather raised his hand with difficulty.

I quickly moved closer and, as I had done countless times before, rubbed my head against his dry hand.

His hands were cold, carrying a chilling feeling of life slipping away, yet he still gently stroked my hair, his movements as tender as ever.

"Nian Nian, be good... Your great-grandfather... is always by your side..."

His voice was broken and weak, "From now on... you must be obedient... and grow up well..."

"Great-grandfather, don't die, don't die, please..."

I grabbed his hand and burst into tears, crying so hard that I was afraid that if I let go, he would drift away like a cloud in the sky and I would never be able to hold on to him again.

My great-grandfather's cloudy eyes welled up with tears. He looked at me with a complex expression, filled with too many emotions that I couldn't understand.

There was reluctance, nostalgia, relief, and a deep sense of weariness and relief, as if it had traversed a long period of time.

He opened his mouth as if he wanted to say something, but only managed to let out a faint whisper. He slowly closed his eyes, and the corners of his lips turned up slightly.

The hand that had been on my head fell limply to the ground.

"Waaaaah... Great-grandfather... Great-grandfather... Don't die..."

It hurts so much…

My heart felt like it was being torn apart by a pair of invisible hands.

This pain was a thousand times, ten thousand times more painful than when the Queen Mother whipped his palms with a rattan cane.

The moment my great-grandfather's hand fell limp, the entire palace seemed to freeze, leaving only my heart-wrenching sobs.

My mother knelt down and hugged me, her eyes red-rimmed: "Zhinian, don't be sad..."

"Mother Queen, I want my great-grandfather! Please let him get up, make him get up..."

"Sorry, Nian Nian..."

"Why should I apologize? Mother Empress is the Empress, aren't emperors all-powerful? Help Great-Grandfather up, Mother Empress... please..."

"Chinen..."

The Queen Mother wept silently, holding me without saying a word.

So it turns out... even emperors aren't omnipotent!

None of them could bring the dead back to life!

I cried my heart out and couldn't cheer up for a long time.

My grandfather, along with many others, brought my great-grandfather's remains back to Daxia and placed them in the imperial mausoleum.

I went with my grandfather.

Throughout the journey, I felt depressed and often stared blankly at the bright yellow coffin.

The memories of my time with my great-grandfather kept replaying in my mind, and my heart felt empty, as if a piece was missing.

My grandfather sighed and sat down beside me. "Are you still sad?"

"Hmm!" I really don't understand: "Why do people have to die? Isn't there a way to live forever?"

Never before have I hated death so much!

Grandfather smiled and ruffled my hair: "From birth to death, it's an inevitable process, a natural cycle, like flowers blooming and withering, seasons changing. Your great-grandfather has completed his long and glorious life. He protected the Great Xia, and he protected us. Now, he's just tired and wants to go to a place without worries to rest. But wherever he is, he will always care about you, think of you, and pray for you."

I think I understood, but then again, I didn't: "So, my great-grandfather can see me, but I can't see him, right? Actually, he's always been by my side, right?"

Grandfather nodded: "Yes, that's it!"

"So my great-grandfather is still with me!" I felt a little better... no, much, much better. "Then I'll definitely listen to Mother and study hard from now on. If my great-grandfather sees this, he'll be happy, right?"

"right!"

"Then... if I were to become a good emperor like my great-grandfather, he would be proud of me, right?"

"right!"

"I definitely will!"

Looking at that bright yellow coffin, I made a silent vow in my heart at that moment!

Great-grandfather, you must keep a close eye on me.

In the future, I will definitely become a good emperor.

Just like you used to be...