As long as he’s a good emperor, he should share his heart with others.

"I want to meet An Ning." Lin Zichan could guess what Song Yanqing was thinking, and he didn’t want to explain now.

"It’s not easy to meet her." Song Yanqing said straightforwardly.

Lin Zichan’s eyes tightened.

"The Empress is in the Imperial Palace. It’s not easy for her to come out, and now the Emperor is willing to kill you for her, so naturally there are many spies around the Empress. If you meet, you’ll surely be discovered by the Emperor. I don’t know how deep the Emperor’s feelings are for the Empress, but I’m truly worried. What if the Empress angers the Emperor, would he possibly..."

Song Yanqing looked at Lin Zichan. He didn’t want to make him uncomfortable like this, either.

But that’s the reality.

For their mutual safety, the best way is to leave.

"You should be very clear about how attractive power can be to a person! Fu Xingyi has risen to a high position. Is his pursuit of you merely for the Empress, or does he also fear that you’ll take away this empire from him?! If his desire for power is greater, the Empress will be in danger."

Lin Zichan chose to remain silent.

Perhaps, he was also conflicted.

To him, his life might not be as important anymore.

But he couldn’t possibly disregard An Ning.

"You should rest first; your wounds will take some time to heal." Song Yanqing comforted.

Meaning there’s still some time to make plans.

Lin Zichan nodded slightly.

"I’ll go out to get you breakfast."

Song Yanqing left.

After leaving, he couldn’t help but sigh.

Although he had advised Lin Zichan a lot just now, he also felt it was difficult to force him.

If it were him, could he just leave Ruotong and his precious daughter... he couldn’t even think about it!

...

Song Yanqing had someone come to help Lin Zichan freshen up, then delivered breakfast, and went to the morning court.

Then he accompanied the Emperor in reviewing memorials, offering advice as usual.

He didn’t show any abnormalities.

Fu Xingyi also didn’t notice anything different about Song Yanqing.

Until Song Yanqing walked out of Qiankun Hall and couldn’t help but take a deep breath.

Knowing the truth, wanting to disguise oneself was not easy.

Hopefully, he hadn’t given himself away.

Song Yanqing didn’t leave the Imperial Palace directly but went to the Crown Prince’s East Palace.

Fortunately, he had the privilege to roam freely in the palace, which made transmitting messages much more convenient.

Upon reaching the East Palace, he saw the Empress was already there.

The Empress had not actually asked him to come here last night, perhaps too hurriedly forgetting to say, but today it was clear to both that they would meet here.

Song Yanqing first gave lessons to Xiao Luming.

After the lessons, he walked in the courtyard with An Ning.

"Rest assured, Your Majesty, Lin Zichan is in my residence. Although severely injured, none of the wounds are critical, and he will recover after resting for a few days." Song Yanqing reported.

An Ning breathed a sigh of relief.

She hadn’t slept the whole night, her mind filled with the bloody image of Lin Zichan.

Fortunately, he wasn’t dead.

"Have you conveyed my message to him?"

"I did, but he seems..." Song Yanqing slightly raised his eyes to look at An Ning, "unwilling to leave."

An Ning’s heart tightened.

Such a clever person as Lin Zichan must have noticed something.

"He said he wants to see you and was stopped by me." Song Yanqing said, "I feel that there must be quite a few spies around Your Majesty; a rash meeting could bring disaster."

"You’ve considered thoroughly. There are indeed many people keeping an eye on me now." An Ning said.

"Your Majesty, I dare to ask, what is your current choice?" Song Yanqing asked courageously.

An Ning was stunned.

"I’m too foolish to understand your thoughts, Your Majesty. I don’t know whether you want to renew your bond with the Emperor or if you’ve already let go of the past feelings and want to be with Lin Zichan. Without a clear choice, it’s hard to move forward, and I feel it could hurt both the Emperor and Lin Zichan." Song Yanqing spoke plainly.

Actually, he had been pondering this matter all night, wondering whom the Empress now favored more?! However, the Empress made it difficult for him to perceive her choice. Perhaps she herself hadn’t figured out what she truly wanted. All she was doing was ensuring Lin Zichan’s safety for now.

An Ning fell silent.

Suddenly, Song Yanqing’s question caught her off guard.

Up till now, she’s still torn.

If there’s no longer love for Fu Xingyi, there’s still much other feelings making it hard for her to be cold-hearted.

But thinking of Lin Zichan, pain strikes her heart.

It feels like a thousand ants tearing at her, pain with no outlet.

"Your Majesty, I think you should first decide what you truly want." Song Yanqing continued, "Lin Zichan made it clear to me this morning that as long as you want, he can reclaim everything. Although I don’t know why Lin Zichan is so confident, I believe him, that if he says he can do it, he surely can. However, achieving it would indeed require sacrifices. Your Majesty is wise; I just hope you consider everything thoroughly and give a clear answer so Lin Zichan can leave in peace."

"Mm." An Ning responded.

She understood Song Yanqing’s meaning.

Song Yanqing naturally stands from Lin Zichan’s perspective.

Last night she merely briefly asked Lin Zichan to leave, without elaborating further.

With Lin Zichan saying something like that today, Song Yanqing could sense Lin Zichan’s reluctance.

Thus, Song Yanqing entrusted him to provide Lin Zichan with a real explanation.

Not to lightly compromise and give up everything just to save his life.

Every decision, she should consider deeply and thoroughly.

An Ning left the East Palace.

Walking inside the Imperial Palace, her mind heavy.

She’s wondering if she could truly live peacefully with Fu Xingyi in the Imperial Palace all her life?!

Yet could she bear to truly let go of Lin Zichan, or rather, Xiao Jinxing.

Sometimes just thinking of his name makes her heart ache.

So more often she deceives herself by using Lin Zichan’s name, subconsciously making her feel better.

"The weather is nice today."

A familiar voice suddenly rang in her ears.

An Ning’s eyes slightly moved.

Thinking deeply, she hadn’t noticed Fu Xingyi beside her.

She turned to look at him.

"I didn’t know being an Emperor was so exhausting." Fu Xingyi stretched lazily, "Not only is it tiring, but there’s no freedom. I wanted to take you out of the palace to explore but it’s so complicated. All we can do is stroll in the palace with such beautiful spring scenery."

An Ning laughed indifferently.

Both walked together, amidst the full-blown peach blossoms in the rear palace.

Fu Xingyi would often come to find her whenever he was free, never doing anything to annoy her, mostly just accompanying her.

If it weren’t suspicious.

She really didn’t want to believe Fu Xingyi was behind the assassination attempt on Lin Zichan.

If Fu Xingyi truly wanted to kill Lin Zichan, he should have done so long ago.

Why wait until now?!

Words impulsively about to come out, An Ning still swallowed them.

First, fearing that if things turned ugly, Fu Xingyi might impulsively seek vengeance on Lin Zichan.

Second, she truly didn’t want her relationship with Fu Xingyi to turn into something she dreaded.

Towards Fu Xingyi, ultimately too much selfishness remains.

Once only focused on treating her well, while she wholeheartedly loved that big boy.

She didn’t want this to be ruined by her hands.