It feels so easy, the knot in my heart is untied when I speak it out!

  Jingxuan hastily left the imperial city with her in his arms, his footsteps somewhat unsteady. Perhaps it was his unusual expression that caused the slaves on the palace path to reveal their surprised emotions.

  Her body felt weightless, and Mei Li breathed in the chilly air of the first month, listening to his obviously faster-than-usual heartbeat, unsure whether this was the most confused or the clearest moment of her life.

  "Jingxuan." She called out to him, this being the first time in her life she had directly addressed him by name.

  He shuddered and even his footsteps paused for a moment.

  "All these years, you owed me, owed Yunkai." She softly nestled in his arms and finally said this sentence with a clear conscience.

  "Mei Li..." He whispered her name with such anguish.

  "I've always been afraid to say it out loud, I thought you'd think I'm making excuses, trying to deceive you. Now...I have no other choice, Jing Xuan, I just want to be selfish one more time."

  "Meili!" He trembled with a breaking voice, interrupting her. She said such words that made him so fearful and heartbroken. He couldn't bear it.

  "Jingxuan, if you feel like you owe me, then grant my wish!" She smiled at him, sweetly and persistently. He stopped in his tracks, this was the expression of the young girl Mei Li, he thought he would never see again in this lifetime.

  "You said." He stared straight at her, and suddenly wished that time would stop right there, the world would be destroyed, so... he could keep her.

  "I want to be your concubine, and Rong'er wants to be your crown prince!"

  Behind their smiles, there was a despair that both he and she understood.

  This tone, this mood... she's so familiar with it. It's as if a long, long time ago, she tightly hugged his waist, knowing he hated her and didn't even want to turn around to look at her, but she still wouldn't let go, sticking to his back and asking him to promise: "Does Brother Jingxuan like Meri or not? Will you like Meri alone for a lifetime?"

  The wish she made to him had never come true.

  "Jingxuan, in this life, can you fulfill one wish for me? What is my wish?" She looked at him, her eyes focusing on the dark point deep within his black pupils.

  His heart was crushed by her pleading into powder.

  He wanted to agree, to say yes without hesitation! Not because he was her only man, not because Yun Xiao was really his son! Perhaps these things were no longer so important in the years that had already passed. Only now did he realize that he had never fulfilled any of her wishes, not a single one!

  But he really couldn't give her a clear answer.

  His hesitation made her close her eyes.

  In fact, every time she made a wish to him, she knew better than anyone else that it was impossible to come true! Every time she made a wish to him, all that increased was despair.

  He carried her all the way to the carriage and instructed the guards and maids to escort her back to the mansion safely. Before leaving, he also got on the carriage and held her in his arms.

  "Meili, no matter what, I'll give it a try, I'll work hard for you this one time!"

  Her heart suddenly ached.

  He seemed unwilling to face her response and quickly flashed out of the carriage, disappearing into the dim palace path.

  She lifted the car curtain and looked in the direction he disappeared. He said he was willing to give it a try for her.

  Lying in her own warm and cozy bed, Mei Li stared at the flame of the copper lamp standing at the foot of the bed. He had been gone for a long time.

  Yu Kui returned from the palace, came to the house and made a scene for a while, only after confirming that her mother was fine did she follow her wet nurse back to her room.

  Until the next day at noon, Jingxuan finally walked quickly into her bedroom with a gloomy face. When he hugged her in his arms, her thin underclothes could not withstand the chill emanating from his formal attire.

  His face was very unsightly, she gently leaned into his arms without struggling, actually when he went there she already knew the result.

  The King of Qing is great, but he's still a subject under Heaven! He's still a minister. The power of the monarch... she understands it more deeply than him.

  "Meili, wait a bit longer!" He tightened his arm, "Believe me, one day I will fulfill your wish!"

  She smiled silently, one day? However, she was already satisfied that he didn't abandon her and no longer sneered at her wishes.

  The emperor issued a sacred decree, sending Jingxuan to Jiangnan on an errand, and set off immediately.

  Meili carefully packed his luggage for him, she knew that he must have had a very unpleasant time with the Emperor, so much so that the Emperor wanted to send him away and didn't want to see him for a while.

  Su Ying's attitude has also changed, from ignoring her to deliberately suppressing her. Upon learning that Jing Xuan had asked the Emperor to replace his current wife with a new one, she could no longer remain calm. In order to maintain her position as the official wife, what more could she sacrifice and tolerate? Now, Mei Li was even trying to take away the only thing she relied on - no! It couldn't be done!

  After the New Year's festivities, the Emperor began selecting suitable children from among his close relatives to be companions for the princes. On the day he was to meet with the teacher at the Imperial Academy, Yong Ke appeared somewhat excited.

  Meili was grooming him, she had confidence in her own son.

  Yun returned from the exam and was even happier, telling Mei Li that he did very well and Master praised him repeatedly. He must have passed, he must be able to study with Yun Chen together, see each other every day!

  His joy is also her joy.

  She even wanted to write a letter to Jingxuan who was far away in Jiangnan, and let him share this joy.

  When the list of companion readers was announced, Yoon-ah was selected, but Yoona was not.

  Yu Ke was very depressed, cooped up in her room and refused to see anyone. Mei Li went to the palace to ask about the situation, and the eunuch in charge replied simply: Only the legitimate sons of the imperial clan have the qualifications!

  Meili listened and didn't argue another sentence.

  On her way back to the mansion, she remained silent, and after getting off the sedan chair, she had already made up her mind.

  She went to Yun Ke's room to see him. Yun Ke was a sensible and considerate child after all, he had stopped throwing tantrums and even smiled as he nestled into her arms, saying: "Mother, I'm not sad anymore. Even if I don't study with Prince Yong, I will work hard and learn just as well as they do!"

  Meili smiled and stroked his black braid, nodding.

  It's no use even if he learns just as well... What's the point? From a young age, he was excluded from the circle of future rulers, and when he grew up, no matter how excellent he was, he would only be a Beile with an empty title, never able to grasp the power to realize his ambitions. All because... he is a bastard son!

  Yuè Mò also gave birth to a child and is now in charge of taking care of Yǔn Kě. Originally mature, she has become even more patient and meticulous with the passage of time. She knows how much unspoken resentment and pain there is in the hearts of this mother and son who put on a brave face, so she smiles and comes to pull Yǔn Kě along, "Let Master rest, she's tired too."

  Meili walked out of Yunkai's room door and stopped to turn back, Yue Mo was pouring water for Yunkai, "Yue Mo..." she called her.

  "Your humble servant is here, are there any further orders from you, Master?"

  Meili smiled and said, "Take good care of Yunkai for me."

  She didn't dodge anymore, why should she be nervous and short of breath? She just wanted to dress up properly and formally request an audience with the emperor.

  What else is she worried about? Yun Ke and her are the same, from the day they were born, there's nothing worth losing.

  Kangxi silently looked at the Eight Trigrams diagram that Mei Li personally handed over to the imperial case, and the entire study room was just him and her. He raised his eyes and looked at Mei Li standing in front of the case, she didn't kneel or lower her eyes. This Mei Li, he had never seen before.

  "Now that you've brought this picture out again, what's the point?" He sneered with a smile, he had been racking his brains to get this formation diagram, but it had actually been hidden by her for so many years!

  "Your Majesty, I didn't come to negotiate with you." Mei Li stared straight into his eyes, already committing an act of disrespect. Kangxi simply looked at her, saying nothing.

  Talk about conditions? She's certainly not qualified.

  He had been hiding this picture for so long, he would have killed her immediately, and she shouldn't have any complaints.

  "Your Majesty, Mei Li has come to see you."

  "Huh?"

  "Meili is here as a mother to beg for her child."

  Kangxi finally sighed, "Meili, I know that you have been wronged for so many years. Jingxuan also told me everything, but the emperor has his own difficulties..."

  "Your Majesty." She actually interrupted his words, Kangxi was stunned. "Before the Lantern Festival banquet, I came to the back palace to present a painting to you, and I heard your conversation with Zha Mu Lang." She smiled slightly.

  Kangxi pursed his lips, "Since you already know, why bother making unnecessary requests? Even if there comes a day when Zha Mu Lang is defeated, I will not go back on my promise to him."

  "Your Majesty, I, Meili, have heard it clearly. You promised him that SuYan would be the only one to enjoy the honor of being the Empress, and I will not make things difficult for you."

  Kangxi frowned.

  "I only implore you to make Yun Xie the crown prince. Su Yan can have all the honors to herself, because a dead person cannot compete with her for them. You also became the legitimate son after your mother was posthumously honored as empress."

  "How dare you!" Kangxi was enraged.

  "Imperial brother, don't be angry with Mei Li. Mei Li always provokes you to anger, but in the future... it won't happen again." She smiled slightly, tilting her head. "Mei Li isn't seeking an audience with you because she thinks she has the qualifications due to presenting a painting, but rather, as a mother willing to die for her son's sake, she is begging you."

  "Meili..." Kangxi's eyes dimmed, he understood her meaning. She wanted to become the empress, but not betray his promise to Zha Mulang. There was only one way... posthumous title. Meili's intentions for the child moved him deeply. His imperial grandmother, his mother, had also given up everything for him and the late emperor. "Can you bear to abandon Yongke? A mother is irreplaceable to a child." He, the sacred ruler of the Qing dynasty, was also someone who had lost his mother.

  Meili shook her head and smiled, with tears sparkling in her eyes but refusing to fall. "There are many people who can fulfill the responsibility of being a mother to Yunke, but there is only one person who is willing to die for him willingly, and that's me."