Midnight was supposed to be a time of utter silence.
However, in the room of Wei Ying and Chu Qing in the Prince Ning's Mansion... it was a bit...
"Chaotic"....
A certain emperor didn't think it was embarrassing at all that he fell off the roof of someone else's mansion in the middle of the night.
If he fell, he just got up again.
After getting drunk, he had a peculiar habit.
That was climbing onto the roof.
After telling Wei Yi and Wei Er, Yuan Rui had free access in the Prince Ning's Mansion.
So... in a daze, he made his way to the roof of Wei Ying and Chu Qing's room.
Wei Yi wanted to step forward and persuade him, but was driven away instead.
Yuan Rui was still a bit confused at first, but when he heard the title of the Grand Empress Dowager, he instantly sobered up.
Brushing off the dust on his body in a hurry, Yuan Rui knocked on Wei Ying's door excitedly.
Wei Ying opened the door with a gloomy face. Yuan Rui then stumbled in. Before he could stand still, he blurted out, "Grand Empress Dowager? She... she..."
"There's no Grand Empress Dowager here," Chu Qing said bluntly.
Yuan Rui shook his head and said a bit excitedly, "No! No! No! I just heard it! I heard Uncle say something about the Grand Empress Dowager!"
At this moment, Yuan Rui actually used the pronoun "I" for the first time in a long while...
Hearing this, Wei Ying calmly explained, "Just now, Qingqing and I were just talking about the Grand Empress Dowager."
Yuan Rui frowned and stubbornly said, "No! I heard everything you said just now!"
Wei Ying: "..."
Yuan Rui was the only one who could eavesdrop so brazenly.
Wei Ying was about to say something more to cover for Chu Qing when Chu Qing waved her hand at him.
Then Chu Qing sighed, closed the door, pulled Yuan Rui to sit down, poured him a cup of hot water, and then slowly said, "You little rascal. You're as stubborn as ever."
Yuan Rui was startled by the address of "little rascal" and suddenly looked up at Chu Qing.
The other person was raising an eyebrow and smiling at him.
It seemed that she didn't think it was a heinous crime to call an emperor a "little rascal".
"You..." Yuan Rui was so excited that he could hardly speak.
Seeing his reaction, Chu Qing reached out and patted his head and continued, "I haven't even settled the score with you for the broken wine and the jade bracelet you gave away, and here you are, eavesdropping!"
Yuan Rui stood up tremblingly and pointed at Chu Qing stammering, "You... you... really..."
Chu Qing slapped away his finger and frowned, "Didn't I tell you never to point at your elders when you talk? Have you forgotten?"
Hearing this, Yuan Rui immediately pounced on Chu Qing and hugged her.
Chu Qing was stunned for a moment, then helplessly pulled out her hand and gently patted his back, "I didn't want to say some things too clearly, after all... it's just too incredible. But you have to know, the Grand Empress Dowager will always be your Grand Empress Dowager."
At this moment, Yuan Rui was crying like a child. There was no trace of the emperor's dignity left.
Wei Ying frowned, then reached out and unhesitatingly pulled Yuan Rui away from Chu Qing, saying rather unhappily, "She is your aunt now, and your aunt will always be your aunt."
Yuan Rui, who was suddenly pulled away, was about to get angry, but when he saw Wei Ying's cold expression, he pouted aggrievedly, "But the Grand Empress Dowager said she will always be my Grand Empress Dowager."
"Qingqing."
There was even a hint of grievance in Wei Ying's tone.
Chu Qing looked at Wei Ying in a daze, then at Yuan Rui.
She never expected that after these two knew her true identity, neither of them would find it terrifying and stay away from her.
"The past is over. I'm Chu Qing now, the Princess of Prince Ning. Yuan Rui, you just need to know it in your heart. Never let this matter spread. The common people are not like the two of you."
When Yuan Rui heard the first few sentences, his heart twitched violently. But when this sentence was finished, his heart sank.
Excitement was one thing.
This matter... was really too incredible.
To outsiders, it was nothing short of terrifying.
After thinking for a while, Yuan Rui quickly accepted what Chu Qing said.
Yes, she was the Princess of Prince Ning now, Chu Qing.
His aunt...
Well...
"Isn't this messing up the family hierarchy?" Yuan Rui couldn't help but mutter in a low voice.
Wei Ying curled his lips and smiled rather recklessly, "It's not impossible for you to regard me as your grandfather."
Chu Qing: "???"
Yuan Rui: "???"
Seeing the two of them looking shocked, Wei Ying rubbed his temples and continued unhurriedly, "It's just a joke. If we really calculate it, we can't figure it out."
Yuan Rui sighed.
Well, an aunt it was.
At least his longing had a place to rest. A living person was always better than a cold coffin.
Thinking of this, Yuan Rui suddenly bowed respectfully to Chu Qing as a junior.
Chu Qing calmly accepted it.
After that, the three of them talked for a few more words when the door was knocked again. Chu Qing and Wei Ying frowned in unison.
At this late hour...
Who could it be?
"Mother~"
The little girl's crisp voice rang out, "I... can't sleep."
Hearing that it was Wei Yan, Chu Qing immediately walked over and opened the door.
After Wei Yan entered the room, seeing Yuan Rui with a complicated look in his eyes, she asked blankly, "Why is His Majesty the Emperor here in the middle of the night? Can't you... sleep either?"
Yuan Rui scratched his head awkwardly, then grinned and said, "Yes... can't sleep... But..."
Looking at the little girl in front of him, Yuan Rui felt a headache.
The person he had always regarded as his younger sister... now...
Might actually be... his little aunt???
Seeing Yuan Rui's pale face, Chu Qing immediately understood what he was thinking wildly.
"Don't think nonsense. Go back to sleep quickly."
This was said rather bluntly, but to Yuan Rui, it sounded very familiar and kind.
"Okay~" Yuan Rui answered cheerfully, waved goodbye to Wei Ying and his daughter, and left happily.
Looking at Yuan Rui's lively back, Chu Qing felt a bit sad.
She wondered how much grievance and contempt her eldest grandson had suffered from that woman, Xiao Ran...
"Mother~" Wei Yan shook Chu Qing's hand.
"Why can't Yan'er sleep?" Chu Qing bent down to pick up Wei Yan and slowly walked towards the bed.
Wei Ying looked at the mother and daughter with extremely gentle eyes.
...
After knowing that Chu Qing had once been the Grand Empress Dowager, Wei Ying was pretty much the same as before.
But Yuan Rui... had changed greatly.
In the past, he had respected this "aunt" quite a bit, but now... he came to the Prince Ning's Mansion almost every day to pay his respects to her!
Fortunately, it was always just dawn, so not many people saw him.
But Wei Ying was extremely uncomfortable with this.
Originally, the two of them wanted to cuddle with each other for a while after waking up, but every time they were interrupted by the knocking on the door.
Seeing Wei Ying's face getting worse and worse, Chu Qing could only tactfully remind Yuan Rui that this was against the rules.
As a result, Yuan Rui said seriously, "How about... I invite you into the palace?"
Chu Qing: "???"
Wei Ying finally couldn't bear it anymore. With a dark face, he said, "Does Your Majesty want others to spread the rumor that Qingqing has disregarded the family ethics?"
Yuan Rui lowered his eyes and said carefully, "I... I'm just afraid that one day... the Grand Empress Dowager will disappear again... I didn't even get to see her for the last time."
Chu Qing's breath caught in her throat, and a surge of sourness welled up in her heart, "Silly child, I... am not as old as before. Don't worry. This time, I'll try to die after you."
"Well... it's not necessary to go that far..." The sadness on Yuan Rui's face disappeared completely in an instant.
Seeing that he had calmed down, Chu Qing continued, "You have to know that I'm now... starting a new life. You're the same. You can't always look back. In the future, you don't need to come here every day. It's not me who needs you the most, but the Great Yan Empire..."
Seeing that the other person was about to start lecturing, Yuan Rui immediately straightened his back and said seriously, "I know! You... don't need to say anymore..."
He clearly remembered how the Grand Empress Dowager had nagged in his ear about how to be a wise emperor.
He had kept it in his heart for a long time.
Seeing his nervous face, Chu Qing pursed her lips and said, "Forget it. Saying too much makes me sound like a nag. It's getting late. Don't be late for court."
"Then... this grandson will take his leave." Yuan Rui bowed respectfully and left.
Watching Yuan Rui leave, Chu Qing slowly withdrew her gaze.
At this moment, she was already in Wei Ying's arms.
"Qingqing~"
"Hmm?"
"Let's go on a long - distance trip in a few days. That kid Yuan Rui is too clingy to you."
Chu Qing raised her eyebrows in surprise and said with a smile, "Are you jealous of my eldest grandson?"
"I'm probably jealous of even Lian Huanyu and Yan'er."
"Alright, alright. We'll go out in a few days."
"Where shall we go?"
"How about..."
The two said in unison, "Go to Xiliang?"