Winter goes to spring, time flies.

In the midsummer of the following year, An Huaiyu gave birth to the first child of the new emperor after several days of difficult childbirth.

At that time, Mo Nan Shiyin had been in the harem for a long time, and her attention gradually turned to the relationship between the emperor and the concubine, and she also attached great importance to the child in An Huaiyu's womb.

Although it is not easy for the Protoss to give birth, the queen and the other two concubines have been in the palace for many years and have not heard good news, and Mu Chen does not seem to care about giving birth to children. In this case, Shiyin, as the queen, has to start to take care of the order of the eldest and youngest.

If she can't give birth to a son-in-law, then the position of the future prince of Chaoyan can only be handed over. Even if you have a son-in-law, you may suffer a loss in age, and your merit and talent are not as good as your eldest brother's, and now that His Majesty intends to reform the difference between the concubines, everything is difficult to decide......

Therefore, when Shiyin heard that An Huaiyu gave birth to a girl, she couldn't help but secretly breathe a long sigh of relief.

And Qing Ling, who was also in the Vermilion Bird Palace, was very excited about her promotion to her aunt, especially since this child happened to be born on the same day as her birthday!

At that time, she was preparing to attend the birthday banquet arranged for her by Mu Chen, and when she heard the news of her niece's birth, she couldn't care about celebrating her birthday, so she hurried to An Huaiyu's bedroom with the guests who came to the banquet, and couldn't wait to see this child who was born on the same month and day as herself.

The little emperor was born with white skin and black eyes, and her appearance resembled Mu Chen.

Qing Ling took the child from the nurse's hand, looked at it in her arms for a long time, looked up at Mu Chen and smiled: "It really looks like you." ”

Mu Chen's gaze stayed on Qing Ling, and when he heard the words, he seemed to be stunned for a moment, then looked at the baby in her arms again, and pulled the corners of his lips lightly, "Like me?" He pondered for a moment, "Then let's call her Xi'er." ”

Therefore, the name of the little emperor Ji is taken as "Chen's Dawn", and the correct name is recorded as Chaoyan and Xi, and the nickname is Xi'er. And in order to distinguish her from Qingling and Ajing, most of the time, the people in the palace still only call her Little Emperor.

On the day of the 100th anniversary of the little emperor, Mu Chen hosted a banquet for the royal family in Chunxi Palace to celebrate.

An Huaiyu was flattered, he didn't expect His Majesty to value his concubine daughter so much, and he was both overjoyed for a while, but also worried about attracting unnecessary jealousy.

However, on the night of the 100-day feast, she was arranged to sit at the side of the main seat, far away from the center of attention.

Next to Mu Chen on the main throne, on one side sat Queen Mo Nan Shiyin, and on the other side was the eldest emperor Ji Qingling who was smiling and teasing the baby.

Mu Chen leaned over slightly, reached out and touched the pink cheeks of the baby in Qing Ling's arms, his fingertips inadvertently touched Qing Ling, lingering and refusing to withdraw.

There are singing and dancing silk bamboos specially prepared for celebration in the hall, and the music is cheerful and festive.

Sitting in the lower emperor, Concubine Suqin's lips tightened, she endured it for a long time, and said to her mother Gu Yue, who was sitting in the same case: "Look at Qingling, it looks like the child was born by her, and she refuses to let go if she holds it!" I think she has probably been separated from her husband for too long and has no chance to have her own children, so she used to pester Her Majesty, and now she is pestering Your Majesty's children again! ”

Su Qin's dissatisfaction with Qing Ling stemmed from her resentment that Qing Ling had taken up the time and opportunity to spend time with Mu Chen, which might have belonged to her, and had no other deep meaning.

However, when these words fell into the ears of Emperor Gu Yuechang, it was a chill that made his heart tighten.

She maintained a dignified posture and reprimanded her daughter in a low voice: "If you say this in the future, don't say it again in the future!" ”

The scene when Mu Chen instructed her to secretly burn on Qingling is still vivid. Although she couldn't get to the bottom of it and inquire about the reason, she could intuitively guess and realize that there was some ulterior secret between Mu Chen and Qing Ling, the brother and sister.

And such a secret must not be told from the mouth of his own daughter.

On the main seat, Qing Ling wiped Xi'er's saliva with a silk handkerchief, and said to Mu Chen: "Let's let Concubine An come over and hug Xi'er, I heard that the mother's breath can make the child feel at peace the most." ”

Mu Chen still bowed his head and teased the baby, with a shallow smile on his lips, "If Concubine An sits on the main seat, the queen is afraid that she will not be happy, and if the queen is allowed to hold Xi'er, Concubine An is afraid that she will be even more sad, so this position, only you are the most suitable to sit." ”

Qing Ling thought for a moment, but felt speechless. In the blink of an eye, I remembered the words that Xian Xian had said before, and I couldn't help but respect her again.

Mu Chen seems to be cold and detached, but after all, he grew up in the royal family since he was a child, and in the words of Xian Xian, it is "soaking in the pile of women", and his understanding of women's minds is definitely more proficient and thorough than it seems.

And the person who is the opposite of him looks calm and chic, and speaks without leakage, as if he has traveled through thousands of flowers.

So, that kind of person......

In fact......

Isn't it......

Shiyin, who was sitting on the other side of Mu Chen, was a little far away from the two.

Since the beginning of the banquet, she has maintained the proper demeanor and expression that a queen should have, smiling gently, chatting and laughing generously with Ah Jing and Yu Jun and others, and from time to time picking some snacks for the maid to give to Mu Chen's two little royal brothers, Youning and Zhecheng.

Youning and Yu Junyi's mothers are both people of few words. Zhecheng was the youngest, and was coaxed by Shiyin's gentle words to no longer be afraid of life, and gradually revealed his naughty nature, and finally stood up and asked his sister-in-law to hug his little niece.

Shiyin glanced at Mu Chen with some embarrassment, and did not say anything.

Instead, Qingling greeted Zhecheng with a smile, "Come on, Uncle Wang." ”

Zhecheng upgraded his rank, his face was full of excitement and pride, he ran over in three steps and two steps, knelt down beside Qing Ling, and stretched out two thin arms with his eyes.

Qing Ling was afraid that Zhecheng would fall Xi'er, so he held him in his arms and held his little arm from below.

Zhecheng made all kinds of grimaces and teased Xi'er, and the giggles of the uncle and nephew came and went, and everyone on the side couldn't stop laughing.

Zhecheng raised his head and said to Qingling: "Sister Wang, don't worry, you see how stable I hold Xi'er, she is very happy to be held by me!" ”

Qingling quipped: "Yes, our little Uncle Wang holds the most steadily!" Practice more now, and you will be able to hold your own home in the future. ”

Zhecheng was teased by her, and his face turned red.

He was born in the royal family, and he was more precocious than ordinary children, and he happened to be at a young age, so he was particularly sensitive to such topics......

So he blushed and looked at Qing Ling angrily, "Sister Wang, don't talk nonsense, it's not ...... It's not the same way to hold it! ”

Qingling was even happier, "What's the difference?" ”

Zhecheng snorted and said, "Of course it's different...... That night in front of the main hall, I saw you crying into the arms of your brother-in-law, he hugged you tightly, called your name, and you two were so close to each other...... It's not like I hold Xi'er! ”

As he spoke, there was an instant silence around him.

Qing Ling was so embarrassed that he didn't dare to look at the expressions of the people around him, so he cleared his throat and diverted the topic by counting Luo Zhecheng: "Hey, why don't you tell me about your crying nose?" I know how to look at my sister's jokes...... Punish you for making Xi'er laugh ten more times! ”

Shiyin subconsciously glanced at Ajing, and saw that she was already lacking in interest, and her face was even more ugly at this time.

While Shiyin sighed secretly, she couldn't help but have a sense of superiority in her heart that made her feel ashamed. Born in a royal family, marriage is not up to oneself, and being able to marry someone you really like is an unattainable luxury for most people.

Fortunately, she and Mu Chen have experienced separation and integration, world changes, and finally came together side by side. The friendship of childhood sweethearts when she was young, and later the cooperation and trust of the world, made Shiyin firmly believe that she was always the most suitable woman for Mu Chen.

Although the betrayal of the family has caused a period of estrangement and alienation between the two, the long years of relying on each other and relying on each other in the future are enough for her to have enough time and opportunity to mend those small rifts and pains......

Thinking about it, Shiyin couldn't help but look at the man beside her again.

I saw that his eyebrows were slightly drooping, his side face was calm, and his posture revealed the same cold and respectful as always.

It's just that......

The hand placed under the case, at some point, was already clenched into a fist.

～～

It took Qingling a year to work out the initial steps of the New Deal.

Considering that Mu Chen had not long ascended the throne, she did not choose to drastically weaken the rights and interests of the nobles of the family from the beginning, but gave a certain degree of support to the demon clan and the human race in terms of taxation and selection of low-level officials.

For example, tax exemptions for demon merchants, and support policies for employing demons or humans...... Even those who actively support innovation and choose to be neighbors with demon merchants have the opportunity to get preferential rewards that should not be underestimated.

Qing Ling had studied and managed the taxation and expenditure of the Chaoyan Kingdom under the strict scrutiny of Emperor Hao, and in this regard, he was indeed quite capable, and the specific implementation plan formulated was flawless and leaky, so that insiders could not easily criticize.

However, once it was presented, it still caused an uproar in the DPRK.

The important ministers of the Protoss said that once such a reform began, it would inevitably affect the supremacy of the Protoss in ruling the Eastern Continent, shake the fundamentals, and cause civil strife.

Among them, there are also those with an agitated temperament, mentioning several battles with Jiuqiu, warning everyone not to forget the cruelty and bloodshed of the demon clan.

In the end, it was Mu Chenli who overrode public opinion, balanced the opposition of all parties, and passed down the imperial decree to try out the new policy in Chaoyan.

Qingling is the leader of the new policy, and he does his best, so he naturally hopes that the measures he has planned will be effective, and he has not debated with familiar officials in private.

In her opinion, abandoning the distinction between races and clans, quelling disturbing disputes, and allocating and using all favorable resources is indeed the best way to enhance national strength and completely eliminate the troubles of Jiuqiu.

However, the officials who argued with her, at the end of the argument, all threw out a sentence: "Emperor Ji's move is just to take into account the interests of her husband's family, right?" ”

Qing Ling was so angry that he vomited blood.

What is the husband's interest?

She hadn't been in touch with that man for a long time, okay......

Later, someone came up with an idea with Qing Ling, saying that most of the officials above the Chaoyan Dynasty were more or less involved with the Fang Shan clan who leaned towards the government and the opposition in the past, although the people of the Shan clan below were removed from important positions, but the emaciated camel was bigger than the horse, and the influence could not be ignored.

So Qing Ling hesitated for a long time, remembering that Fang Shanlei had indeed said something to himself about "the foundation that will stand for eternity", so he wrote a letter to him sincerely, detailing his reform ideas, standing in the position of building a strong Chaoyan Empire, and suggesting that he stand up and support the new policy.

Unexpectedly, Fang Shanlei replied to her with a letter with just eight words on it: The hatred of Jiuqiu will never be forgotten.