"Your Majesty, the second and third princes have been arranged at the imperial inn by this minister," Xue Xingyue said, pressing her temples as she looked at Meng Jiangming, unable to suppress a sigh.
Meng Jiangming was slightly taken aback. He looked up and saw the fatigue on the young girl's delicate face.
From the enthronement ceremony to the Qi Kingdom sending princes to celebrate her accession, she hadn't had a single good night's rest.
She was starting to buckle under the strain.
"Your Majesty, Your Majesty..." Meng Jiangming, seeing that Xue Xingyue wasn't speaking, couldn't help but remind her.
After a long silence, he couldn't help but raise his eyes and saw the young girl fast asleep.
As Meng Jiangming walked out, Ta Xue was about to enter. He said softly, "Your Majesty is asleep. Perhaps Ta Xue, you shouldn't go in for now!"
Ta Xue was startled, then nodded. "As the young lord says. Your Majesty has been very busy these past few days and hasn't had a good, peaceful sleep."
Meng Jiangming replied in a low voice, "Please take good care of Your Majesty, Ta Xue."
Ta Xue nodded. "Young Lord, you need not say this. This is what I should do."
Meng Jiangming bowed to Ta Xue and said, "I shall take my leave now!"
Watching the polite, gentle, and elegant young lord, Ta Xue couldn't help but whisper, "The young lord is truly gentle."
Wu Hen, who was nearby, heard this and walked over, saying coldly, "Gentle? Is he gentle with everyone?"
Ta Xue turned to look at Wu Hen and asked, "Wu Hen, why do you have such animosity towards the young lord?"
Wu Hen heard this and said, "You don't know, Your Highness's former fiancé was this very young lord."
Ta Xue's mouth fell open in shock. "What? How is that possible?"
"How is it impossible? I heard it from General Xie. Back then, Meng Shizi was secretly involved with his cousin and even wanted to take his cousin as a concubine when he was to marry Your Highness. It's utterly disgusting."
Ta Xue frowned. "So the young lord is that kind of person."
"Therefore, one cannot judge people by their appearance alone from now on," Wu Hen said.
Ta Xue nodded. "From now on, I won't give him a good look again." She considered anyone who had bullied Your Majesty as an enemy.
"Is Your Majesty asleep?" Wu Hen asked softly, seeing that Ta Xue was not in the hall.
Ta Xue nodded. "Yes. Your Majesty has been very hardworking these past few days. Let Your Majesty sleep a little longer!"
Wu Hen heard this and said, "I didn't realize being an emperor was so tiring?"
Ta Xue looked at the figure in the hall and whispered, "Yes, I thought it would be easier after becoming emperor."
"Shh, keep your voice down. Let Your Majesty sleep a bit longer!" Wu Hen said.
Ta Xue nodded, and the two moved further away.
At this moment, Xue Xingyue had already woken up. She had actually woken up when Meng Jiangming had covered her with a blanket and walked out.
"Ta Xue, Wu Hen!" Xue Xingyue called out to the outside.
Ta Xue and Wu Hen quickly entered. Ta Xue said, "Your Majesty, you're awake?"
"Is the banquet ready?" Xue Xingyue asked.
Ta Xue nodded. "Your Majesty, please rest assured, everything is ready."
Xue Xingyue said, "Thank you for your hard work!"
Ta Xue was flattered. "Your Majesty, please don't say that. This is what I should do."
"Since the banquet is ready, I'll go and see," Xue Xingyue said, standing up. Suddenly, she felt dizzy and had to sit back down.
"Your Majesty, Your Majesty, what's wrong?" Ta Xue was terrified and quickly stepped forward to help her.
Xue Xingyue shook her head. "It's nothing. Perhaps I've been too tired lately."
Wu Hen also entered upon hearing the commotion. He stepped forward, took Xue Xingyue's wrist, and felt her pulse for a while before saying, "Your Majesty is overworked, but there is no serious issue for now."
"It's fine. I know my own body."
Ta Xue breathed a sigh of relief. They went to the Qinghe Hall, which was almost ready. Xue Xingyue nodded with satisfaction. "Very good."
The Imperial Inn
A man in a black cloak appeared in the room. Qi Yuheng saw him and asked, "Did you find anything?"
The man knelt on one knee and said apologetically, "Third Prince, please forgive me. Your subordinate did not find any useful information."
"It's alright. After all, he is the young prince of Nanping. How could his whereabouts be easily discovered by ordinary people?"
"However, Third Prince, your subordinate did find out that the young prince seems to have bid farewell to Empress Xingjiu before!"
Qi Yuheng's interest was piqued. "You mean Qi Yuze has some connection with the Empress?"
The man in the black cloak nodded. "It should be."
"I don't want 'should be,' I want certainty," Qi Yuheng said, standing up and looking at the man coldly.
The man shivered inexplicably. He would go and investigate immediately.
Qi Yuheng walked to the window and said, "Qi Yuze, tell me, should I snatch your person?"
Soon, the banquet arrived. Xue Xingyue looked at the two princes from the Qi Kingdom below and couldn't help but praise them, saying that the Qi Kingdom truly produced handsome men, and these two were exceptional individuals.
However, inexplicably, a plain-looking face appeared in her mind. Although he was indistinguishable in a crowd, his eyes, like a galaxy, added a lot of color to that face.
As a result, even when facing these two outstanding princes, she didn't have much interest.
The Emperor of Qi had openly sent two princes, and his intentions were clear: he hoped that one of them would catch her eye. Then, with the combined strength of the Qi and Xingjiu Kingdoms, they would conquer the world.
But the Qi Emperor's plan had gone wrong. She, Xue Xingyue, never intended to unify the world by relying on others. She wanted to achieve the prosperity of her mother's era, to show her elder brother and those who had betrayed her that she had become the Empress of the world.
Qi Yuming had visited the Xingjiu Kingdom before and had met Xue Xingyue. This time, he had specifically requested the Qi Emperor to allow him to come. Back then, he had suffered many losses at the hands of Princess Xingyue. This time, he thought that if he could form an alliance with the Empress of Xingjiu, it would greatly help his future path. If he couldn't become the Emperor of Qi, he might still become the Emperor of Xingjiu.