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

Situ Che: "..."

I've already covered my face!

Has Tang Rui been lacking food and drink at the Prince Li's residence?

They came begging for food at the palace banquet.

How embarrassing! So embarrassing!

"The Emperor has arrived! The Imperial Concubine has arrived!"

The eunuch's shrill voice rang out, and all the civil and military officials knelt down, shouting "Long live the Emperor! Long live the Imperial Concubine!"

The Emperor entered with Consort Gao, smiling, and took his seat on the high throne. He then told everyone to rise and turned to Tang Rui, saying, "I could hear Zhaohua's voice from afar. What are you saying? You seem so happy."

Tang Rui smiled and said, "Grandpa, I'm saying that the little baby in Fifth Aunt's belly is here to repay a debt of gratitude. It will be very well-behaved and very considerate in the future."

"Oh?" The Emperor then turned to Prince Rui and his wife: "Is the fifth prince's wife pregnant?"

"Yes!" Prince Rui stood up, smiled, and cupped his hands in greeting. "It has been more than two months."

The emperor was delighted: "Very well, take an old nanny back with you later, and make sure she takes good care of you."

"Thank you, Father!" Prince Rui and his wife were overjoyed and knelt down to express their gratitude.

The emperor had many sons, but he never once sent a nanny back to take care of any of his daughters-in-law when they were pregnant.

This is the first time!

Consort Gao covered her mouth and smiled, also willing to get close to Tang Rui: "Your Majesty, Princess Zhaohua's mouth is like it's been blessed; what she says must be true."

"Hahaha..." the emperor laughed, "That's for sure. My Zhaohua is a little lucky star. This child of the fifth prince's family is bound to be extraordinary."

"Congratulations, Prince Rui! Congratulations, Princess Rui!" The courtiers wisely offered their congratulations.

The atmosphere at the scene was joyful and harmonious.

Just then, a figure, surrounded by many palace maids, stepped into the hall: "I'm not late, am I?"

The courtiers were stunned, staring in disbelief at the woman who had entered.

She was dressed in a bright red palace gown, wearing a phoenix crown, exuding elegance and grace, and radiating an aura of power.

Those eyes, so similar to Situ Che's, exuded an imposing aura, no less domineering than the emperor's.

The emperor's smile slowly faded.

Empress?

It was actually the Empress?

Why didn't he receive any news?

The Empress has returned. Did she hear something?

"Your Majesty, I have returned to wish you good health and abundant blessings!" The Empress curtsied, and even with her head bowed and eyes lowered, the sharpness between her brows revealed that this woman was not to be trifled with.

The emperor forced a smile: "Rise!"

"Thank you, Your Majesty!" The Empress straightened up.

The court officials and princes finally came to their senses and bowed to the Empress.

After the Empress said that the formalities were unnecessary, the Emperor casually asked, "Why has the Empress returned?"

Upon hearing this, the Empress looked directly at the Emperor and said with a forced smile, "How could I not return for Your Majesty's birthday?"

"..." You son of a bitch!

The emperor's face darkened, and he raised his hand.

Consort Gao was originally sitting to the emperor's left, but upon seeing his gesture, she wisely got up and sat to his right.

The Empress gave a cold laugh, glanced at her disdainfully, and sat down in her seat.

Then, he immediately looked at Tang Rui, his eyes filled with hostility: "This is the rumored daughter of Che'er who was separated from her family, isn't it?"

Situ Che's expression was somewhat unpleasant. Upon hearing this, he stood up and cupped his hands in a respectful gesture towards her: "Mother, Zhaohua is indeed my daughter."

"Heh..." The Empress sneered, showing no mercy: "Even if she is your daughter, she is just an illegitimate child. From ancient times to the present, there has never been a case of an illegitimate child being able to become a princess, let alone Princess Zhaohua. Does she even deserve it?"

Tang Rui, who was inexplicably caught in the crossfire, was happily eating her meal: "..."

Hey, I have such a bad temper!

Why are you not worthy?

Am I not better than that stupid and vicious girl from the Crown Prince's family?

Tang Rui looked indignant, but Situ Che said slowly and deliberately, "If Father thinks she's worthy, then she is!"

The subtext is: Who do you think you are?

The Empress's face turned ashen upon hearing this!

The Emperor said calmly, "It was my will to bestow the title of Princess Zhaohua upon her. Is the Empress dissatisfied with me?"

The Empress smiled and said, "Your Majesty, I wouldn't dare! I'm just worried that someone might have ulterior motives and try to confuse the royal bloodline."

"I have already conducted a blood test to confirm that Zhaohua is indeed of the Situ family bloodline. There's no need to discuss this further!"

Since the emperor had said so, the empress had no choice but to give up.

She's just a little girl; there's no need to make a fuss about it.

She just wanted to cause trouble!

Seeing the tense atmosphere between the emperor and empress, the court officials were quite sensible and quickly began to present birthday gifts in an attempt to smooth things over.

As for the way the emperor and empress interacted, they were already used to it, and they had never been sure what the emperor meant to the empress.

He might say he liked the Empress, but he was very cold towards her!

If you say he doesn't like the Empress, then all his decisions are actually beneficial to her, and there are so many people around the Empress in the harem.

The courtiers couldn't understand it, and after a while they all gave up, only able to sigh that the emperor's mind was unfathomable!

Tang Rui, however, was a little suspicious.

She had heard that the Empress disliked her father very much.

But this isn't just dislike; it's disgust!

That's really strange!

What biological mother doesn't love her own child?

If the Empress is truly a cold-hearted and heartless mother, then why does she favor the Crown Prince?

Are the two sons different?

Or is it that the biological mother of one's own cheap father was not actually the empress?

This idea was immediately rejected by Tang Rui.

The Empress and Situ Che look very alike; they are undoubtedly mother and son.

But why is that?

Tsk…

I'm a little confused!

Just as Tang Rui was pondering, the gift-giving process had already begun.

All sorts of priceless treasures were presented to the emperor by his ministers as if they were free.

The emperor remained expressionless and aloof, but in his heart, the little devil was already sitting in a pile of money and scattering it around.

With so many treasures, the national treasury is going to get even richer.

Unfortunately, people can't celebrate their birthdays every day, otherwise, why would he have to worry about the national treasury?

The Crown Prince then stood up, and a young eunuch behind him stepped forward with an exquisite brocade box, saying, "Father, this is a birthday gift I have prepared for you. I wish you a long and prosperous life, and good health!"

Here it comes!

The princes immediately straightened their backs, ready to watch the show.

The emperor smiled almost imperceptibly: "Oh? What gift did the Crown Prince give me?"

"Father, please look!" The Crown Prince took the brocade box from his eunuch, opened it, and froze for a moment.

The Xiaoyao Pill that should have appeared was gone; in its place was a string of Bodhi prayer beads.

Each Buddhist rosary is as smooth as jade, perfectly formed by nature, and each is engraved with a Sanskrit character.

The princes who knew the inside story were also dumbfounded.

The emperor was about to utter the word "bold," but upon seeing the string of Buddhist prayer beads, he swallowed it back, his face turning as black as the bottom of a pot.

The Empress took in everyone's expressions, a fleeting hint of mockery in her eyes, and calmly continued, "Your Majesty, look how filial the Crown Prince is. This bracelet is a treasure of Jin Guang Temple. Each bead is a thousand-year-old Bodhi seed, which has always carried the effect of prolonging life. If the abbot had not been moved by the Crown Prince's filial piety, he would not have been willing to part with it."