“Alright, let’s hope Xiao Ce doesn’t chase us all the way.”

The Turkic princess handed me a water flask and said indignantly, “Little Master Lu, you have no idea! Last time, when you fainted, your emperor almost put a knife to my neck. What happened to the promise of peace between two nations? That dog emperor was using a personal vendetta to scare me!”

The Turkic princess patted her chest, promising, “Don’t worry, Little Master Lu. Follow me, and I’ll make sure Xiao Ce suffers for how he treated me. If he dares to track us down, I’ll admit defeat.”

---

The Turkic princess led me along a very secluded route. We hid along the way and didn’t encounter any pursuers. Eventually, she left me in a riverside town in Jiangnan and said her goodbyes.

I spent my days there enjoying food and leisure, occasionally sending letters home to let them know I was safe. Other than my growing belly, I was quite content. That was until one day when I went to buy a sugar figurine, and someone paid for it before I could.

“… I’ll pay for his sugar figurine.”

Seeing the familiar face before me, I rubbed my eyes, nearly convinced I was seeing things. Shouldn’t this man be sitting in the capital? How could he appear in such a remote place in Jiangnan?

I turned to run, but Xiao Ce grabbed my clothes.

“Didn’t you want a sugar figurine? Why run before taking it?”

I accepted the sugar figurine from him, but he held my hand in his.

He glanced me over and gave a blunt assessment, “The Imperial Scholar has gained weight again.”

I looked at him with mixed feelings before snapping, “Gained weight? Who gains weight only in their belly? Look carefully—it’s your child!”

---

It took Xiao Ce a long time to accept that I wasn’t just getting fat but was pregnant with his child.

Late one night, I suddenly felt a chill in my abdomen. Looking down, I saw Xiao Ce pulling at my trousers.

Startled, I almost fell out of bed. “What are you doing?!”

His face turned slightly red, like a child caught sneaking sweets. “I’m just curious about how a man like you can give birth.”

His face grew redder, and his words became more awkward. “I just… wanted to take another look.”

I rolled my eyes. I wasn’t embarrassed, so why was this dog of a man more flustered than me?

I covered myself back up with the blanket.

Seeing his disappointment, I asked, “Are those secret guards you brought along off duty?”

Xiao Ce replied, “I sent them all away.”

I lifted a corner of the blanket slightly. “Then you can sneak a look.”

---

Xiao Ce and I stayed in Jiangnan for half a month. Eventually, the court sent people to urge Xiao Ce to return to the capital.

He ignored them and instead lit a grand display of fireworks for me in Jiangnan. It was something typically enjoyed by girls, yet for some reason, it stirred feelings of romance in me.

As we stood side by side, watching the fireworks, Xiao Ce turned to me and said, “Lu Ze’an, become my empress.”

I gently withdrew my hand from his grasp. “Xiao Ce, I don’t want to be the empress.”

Xiao Ce looked puzzled. “Why not?”

Lowering my eyes amidst the burst of fireworks, I said, “Because I am a son of the Lu family.”

I paused and then added, “Even if you, Your Majesty, act foolish and indulge your ministers, I must still maintain the reputation of a clear and righteous stream for the emperor and for the Lu family.”

Xiao Ce leaned against the wall behind me, hands pressing on my waist as our baby stirred inside me. “Lu Ze’an, I want the truth.”

I smoothed out my expression and bowed slightly to Xiao Ce. “The truth is, I’m not willing.”

“The men of the Lu family belong to the Central Plains, not solely to you, Your Majesty.”

---

The eldest brother, who had been sickly, did not survive the winter of that year. It was also during that winter that Xiao Ce welcomed a wailing baby prince into his arms.

The prince’s mother remained a mystery, though he was deeply cherished by Xiao Ce. However, the young prince seemed unusually close to the newly appointed young Lord Lu.

This young Lord Lu, said to be the younger brother of the former minister, was once a wayward playboy. But for reasons unknown, after assuming his role, he cleaned up the long-standing corruption in the court with the same decisiveness his elder brother had.

However, with only one prince in the palace, rumors spread among the courtiers. They began to petition for the selection of concubines to ensure the continuation of the imperial line.

Xiao Ce listened, then looked at me for help.

Already burdened with state affairs, I had no desire to be harassed by these old ministers. So I turned a blind eye and stayed out of it.

Xiao Ce, ever mischievous, pinched the little prince in his arms, making the boy cry out and run to me for comfort.

“Father! Emperor Father pinched me! It hurt!”

I sighed. “…”

The court fell into an awkward silence.

Once the officials left, I held the little prince in my arms and stormed up to Xiao Ce, “Why did you pinch Yu’er?”

Xiao Ce, however, covered Yu’er’s eyes with one hand, wrapped his other arm around me, and gave my waist a teasing squeeze.

“Lu Ze’an, you chose to be a court official. Now that I’m being pressured to take wives and have more children, shouldn’t you share in the task of expanding the family?”

“Yu’er, cover your eyes and leave.”

(End of story)