At the beginning of the dream, Zhou Youchen always stood alone in the barren and empty desert, and there was a gust of wind wrapped in gravel, and the sand and gravel easily cut his face, and he had to squint his eyes and look at everything around him.

At first, Meng Zhenglu always felt surprised, why did he appear here? Soon, green grass began to emerge under his feet, those green grasses grew higher and higher, with some kind of demonic nature, Zhou Youchen looked down, only to find that his feet had been soaked in blood, among those weeds, slowly revealed a hideous corpse, they lay there in various distorted postures, making people palpitate! It's terrifying! Soon, the corpses began to move slowly, creaking and outstretching their arms, grabbing at him, as if trying to drag him down the abyss of death!

"Ah......h

Meng Xilan woke up from the pain and subconsciously snorted softly.

When she opened her eyes, she saw that Zhou Youchen beside her was holding her arm tightly, and the force was terrifying.

Meng Xilan's heart moved slightly, and she hurriedly came to Zhou Youchen's side and called him softly: "Your Majesty...... Wake up! Emperor...... Chen'er ......"

Zhou Youchen's forehead was covered with cold sweat, his brows were tightly locked, his face was pale, and his lips were pursed, as if he was immersed in some kind of nightmare and couldn't extricate himself.

Meng Xilan had to shake him awake hard: "Chen'er, wake up, wake up." ”

Zhou Youchen finally struggled to wake up, his eyes widened, he gasped, looked at the person in front of him fixedly, and saw that it was Meng Xilan, and the whole person relaxed.

He finally let go of Meng Xilan's arm, closed his eyes and said, "I have a nightmare again." ”

Meng Xilan didn't care about her pain, hugged his shoulder and said, "It's okay anymore, it's just a dream." ”

Zhou Youchen hugged her back, his sweaty face pressed against her cool skin, and said in a deep voice: "What a scary dream, it seems to be real." ”

Meng Xilan looked up at him, looked him in the eye and said, "No, dreams are just dreams, just uneasy obsessions." ”

Zhou Youchen patted her shoulder lightly when he heard this, and then sat up, only to touch her arm.

Meng Xilan bit her lip hard.

Zhou Youchen noticed her abnormality, turned his head and rolled up her sleeves, only to realize that he had pinched her arm into a bruise.

He's crazy!

Zhou Youchen looked at her with a distressed expression, his eyes full of chagrin.

"It's fine." Meng Xilan hurriedly comforted him.

"How can it be okay? I've hurt you! ”

Meng Xilan hurriedly put down her sleeves again and smiled slightly: "It's okay, it doesn't hurt at all!" ”

Zhou Youchen looked at her stubborn smile, don't look around, he got out of bed and walked to the window, sighing deeply.

When Meng Xilan saw it, she also followed, put a cloak on his body, and then hugged his waist from behind, her cheek against his back, and said, "Don't be upset, Your Majesty, I'm really fine." ”

Zhou Youchen looked down at the hand she held in front of him, and somewhere in his heart was inexplicably soft.

"It's not the first time I've lost my temper like this, and if there is a next time, I'll hurt you."

He knew how strong his hands were. Once he is not careful, he is likely to hurt her, or even treat her as a zombie in his dreams and strangle her with his own hands......

"I already think I'm strong enough, but the nightmare still grows uncontrollably, reminding me all the time that I'm not so indestructible!"

When Meng Xilan heard this, she only hugged him tighter, and said quietly: "No one will always be strong." The emperor is in front of me, you don't have to be strong......"

She knew what it was like to be haunted by nightmares, like wandering spirits that would never let go once they got caught up with someone!

Zhou Youchen was just silent when he heard this.

Meng Xilan thought for a while, and said again: "Xu Yes, the arrival of the Turkic mission has upset the emperor. It's better to send it back early. ”

If they don't leave for a day, the depression in Zhou Youchen's heart will be difficult to dissolve.

Speaking of Kunta, Zhou Youchen's eyes flashed slightly, and his eyes were deeply displeased.

"They won't leave easily."

Meng Xilan nodded clearly: "Before, I saw two masked women in the Turkic mission, and they must also be the Turkic Khan's heart for the emperor. ”

She saw it all, and Zhou Youchen naturally saw it too. However, he didn't take this matter to heart, but he didn't expect Meng Xilan to remember it.

He turned to look at her, "What do you mind?" I'm not going to keep them around? ”

Meng Xilan raised her eyes and said, "Don't misunderstand, the emperor, I don't mean to be jealous." ”

"I don't mean to explain. Lan'er, I said that as long as I have you, it is enough. Zhou Youchen pressed his hands on her shoulders and pressed them slightly.

Meng Xilan looked at him and said, "But one day, I will be old, become old and decrepit, and no longer look good." ”

Zhou Youchen smiled lightly when he heard this: "When you are old, I will grow old with you." You're only a few years older than me, don't talk about yourself like an old man. ”

He stroked her face: "I hope to grow old with you." After speaking, he gently grabbed her wrist and kissed the bruise on her arm: "I'm sorry." ”

Meng Xilan took the initiative to lean into his arms and said softly: "Don't say sorry to me, the emperor will never have to say "sorry" to me." ”

Zhou Youchen belched softly when he heard this, and an indescribable sadness and emotion surged in his eyes.

……

Ten days later, Quinta changed her previous arrogant attitude and asked to see Zhou Youchen again.

The last time he embarrassed him in front of the ministers, this time he showed an unusually respectful attitude, and he came to the palace alone and stood outside the Taihe Gate.

When the ministers from the top to the bottom saw this, they exchanged heads and talked about it.

Zhou Youchen made him wait for three hours before letting him come to the Heart Cultivation Hall alone.

I don't know if it was to please him, or to show sincerity, Quinta deliberately changed into a Hanfu and dressed like a decent Central Plains person.

This time, Quinta honestly kowtowed to him, and it was impossible to find fault with him.

Zhou Youchen looked at him with a cold face, his eyes gloomy.

"What are you doing here?"

Kunta bowed his head and said solemnly: "Seeing His Majesty the Emperor in the next day is naturally for the sake of the alliance between the two countries and the important matter of peace. ”

Zhou Youchen chuckled when he heard this: "Now that the matter is over, do you think I will still have that leisure to negotiate peace with you?" ”

Kunta still lowered his head: "Your Majesty the Emperor, the last time you spoke disrespectfully, it was wrong. Your Majesty the Emperor is not to be angry with our noble Khan and our good people for the sake of the next momentary mistake. ”

Zhou Youchen slowly put down the fold in his hand, glanced at him and said, "Kindness? It's the funniest joke I've ever heard. ”

Hearing this, Kunta looked at him with burning eyes: "Your Majesty, is this your true word?" Do you really believe that your mother's people are savages and cruel? ”

He mentioned Zhou Youchen's mother again, which made his face change instantly.

"If you dare to mention my mother again, I will kill you right away."

When Quinta heard this, instead of being afraid, she directly ripped open her shirt, revealing her strong chest, and slapped it heavily: "I am not a person who is afraid of death. When I came to see His Majesty the Emperor today, I came with the determination to die. However, until His Majesty the Emperor decrees, please allow me to finish what I need to say. ”

Zhou Youchen's eyes were gloomy and his expression was gloomy.

"Your Majesty the Emperor, do you know why your mother came to Beiyan back then? At that time, our purpose was the same as now, to negotiate peace with Beiyan, which is why your mother came here. It's a pity that such sincerity did not impress His Majesty's father, and instead of treating your mother favorably, he broke the covenant and went to war against the Rokubu again! Has His Majesty the Emperor ever known about these old events? ”

The two countries have a long history of feuds. As the saying goes, if you are together for a long time, you will be divided for a long time, and more than a hundred years of grievances and grievances will be completely broken when you come to Zhou Youchen.

Kunta looked at Zhou Youchen's gaze with a touch of affection: "Your Majesty, your mother is the next cousin, and she is also the woman you admire the most in your heart." ”

mentioning all the things back then will only make Zhou Youchen's heart more uncomfortable. He interrupted Kunta's affectionate narration and said, "I am now the emperor of Northern Yan, the monarch of Northern Yan. I want to work for the well-being of the subjects of the Northern Yan, and whoever bullies my people, whoever he is, is my enemy. ”

Hearing this, Kunta stared at him, and seeing that his eyes were resolute, he changed color slightly and said, "Your Majesty, don't forget that you still have Turkic blood in your body. ”

"I haven't forgotten, even if I don't need you to remind me. I also know what kind of person I am! If you want to negotiate peace with Beiyan, you must show the courage to bow down, otherwise, you will always be my enemies! ”

A person who refuses to bow down to him is a person who disobeys him. Since he is not a like-minded friend or a convincing courtier, then he must be his enemy. Zhou Youchen will not change his principles, never.

His tough attitude made Quinta feel both frustrated and angry.

After all, the discussion ended in failure, and the Turkic envoys left Beijing in a hurry.

Zhou Youchen knew that they would not be good at resting, and it would not be long before they would have trouble again, and it would inevitably be another vicious battle at that time.

After the matter came to an end, Zhou Youchen's nightmare did not end, but became more and more intense.

Meng Xilan was with him day and night, and she knew better than anyone what kind of torture his heart was going through.

His anxiety, his uneasiness, and his doubts about himself.

Every time he woke up from a nightmare, the first thing Zhou Youchen did when he came to his senses was to check Meng Xilan's body. What did he know he was doing in his dreams? He was afraid of hurting her......

Her arms, her wrists, her neck...... Every time he discovers. The bruises on her body are getting more and more, and they are particularly glaring to look at.

Meng Xilan never said anything, never blamed him, and never avoided him. But Zhou Youchen was angry and hated to himself: "I am a monster at all!" Stay away from me! ”

From then on, he no longer went to Cining Palace to stay overnight, only stayed in the Heart Cultivation Palace, watching the excerpts all night long, not allowing himself to sleep, let alone being eroded and controlled by nightmares. He even began to avoid Meng Xilan, so that rumors began to spread in the palace, saying that the emperor had changed his mind and was tired of Meng Xilan. And Meng Xilan has completely fallen out of favor.