As the New Year drew near, the palace had entered its liveliest time again.

On New Year’s Eve, after snowing for several days in a row, the sky finally cleared.

The palace was blanketed in pure white snow, wrapped in silver, the trees heavy with ice like silver blossoms—too beautiful to take in all at once. It was just like that line: "As though overnight a spring wind had come, a thousand trees burst into pear blossom."

To highlight the festive mood, the Palace Attendants

hung strings of exquisitely made red lanterns on the branches piled high with snow, and wound ring after ring of red silk ribbons around the red plum trees that were about to bloom.

On the railings of places like the Octagonal Pavilion, Taiye Pool, and the Flowing Water Bridge, they had also hung layers of bright red drapes.

These scattered touches of festive red were like plum blossoms suddenly blooming amid the pristine snow of the palace, adding a hint of delicate charm to the pure, quiet scene so that one could hardly look away.

The Consorts, who had spent an entire winter anxious over the tense situation at the front lines, could finally relax and come out to stroll around the Imperial Garden.

After all, they’d been cooped up for a whole winter, and with the Emperor’s face dark as thunder, they hadn’t really dared to go out.

The snow view was at its loveliest; groups of beauties in palace dress, each wrapped in snow‑white fox fur, wandered the Imperial Garden in twos and threes, followed by long trails of Palace Attendants behind them.

From time to time, bursts of lively chatter and laughter floated out from the Imperial Garden, which paired perfectly with the snowy scene.

Duanning Palace.

As the Empress, Xia Ruqing had no such leisure.

She was busy bustling around with Consort Cheng and the others, preparing the New Year’s Eve banquet that night, the ancestral rites tomorrow, the palace feast tomorrow, and so on.

Even with the four consorts helping her, she herself was still run off her feet.

Not until after midday, when everything had finally been arranged, did she at last have a moment free.

As she ate her delayed lunch, Xia Ruqing casually asked a question.

"Where’s Yue Er?"

Zi Yue and Zi Su exchanged looks, both looking like they had something to say but didn’t dare to.

Xia Ruqing scolded them helplessly, half joking, half annoyed.

"Did she sneak out again? You two are spoiling her far too much!"

Zi Su hurried to soothe her.

"Empress, you know the Princess’s temper... if something doesn’t go her way she just..."

Zi Yue quickly nodded.

"My Lady, we really have done our best!"

Xia Ruqing fell silent.

After finishing lunch, she didn’t even bother with her noon rest.

Taking advantage of the time before the New Year’s Eve banquet, she hurriedly led a large group of attendants out to search for her daughter.

On the way, Xia Ruqing was full of mixed feelings.

’Yue Er is getting more and more spoiled by the day!’

’That girl has the most tricks up her sleeve. She often has the Wetnurse Sisters spinning in circles—honestly... such a headache!’

’And the Emperor spoils her so terribly on top of it all, always saying... as a legitimate‑born Princess of the Imperial Family, she should have the bearing of the Imperial Family!’

’That bastard Zhao Junyao not only won’t discipline her, he even helps his daughter make trouble—he’s simply...’

Xia Ruqing rubbed her temples; the more she thought about it, the more her head hurt.

In the blink of an eye, she arrived at the Eastern Palace.

When the Palace Attendants saw her coming, their expressions all turned cautious, and they bowed respectfully.

Xia Ruqing didn’t have time to wave for them to rise; she hurried straight into the main hall.

Why come to the Eastern Palace to look for her daughter?

That went back to when Chenchen returned in triumph with the army.

That day, when Chenchen came back from outside the palace.

Xia Ruqing had taken Henger and Yeye and Yue Er with her to the palace gate to welcome him.

Standing atop the gate tower of the Imperial Palace,

they saw from afar that Chenchen was riding a pitch‑black warhorse, clad in a finely crafted set of Beast-faced Cloud-patterned Silver Scale Armor, Purple Gold Serpentine-patterned Long Boots on his feet, a Copper-handled Long Whip in one hand and dark brown reins in the other.

His face was cold and stern; sword‑brows, starry eyes, he sat tall in the saddle, and with a smooth, handsome motion he snapped his whip and shouted in a deep, powerful voice, "Hyah!!"

The horse, stung by the lash, let out a series of ringing neighs, its powerful black body rearing up, then sped forward like the wind.

At the same time, the Imperial Forest Army Iron-Clad Guards behind him were also in full armor, mounted on warhorses, marching in neat formation. Their hooves struck the blue‑brick road in perfectly measured rhythm, the pounding hoofbeats powerful and orderly.

At the time, Xia Ruqing couldn’t care about anything else; her heart was full of joy.

After all, Chenchen had been gone so long, and he had finally come back safe and sound!

The ’old mother’ guarding her cubs could at last set her heart back in her chest.

Henger and Yeye, watching this scene, were both shocked and full of admiration; they took the opportunity to flatter their big brother a bit, hoping that in future they might get beaten a few times less at the academy. 𝑓𝑟ℯ𝘦𝓌𝘦𝘣𝑛𝑜𝓋𝑒𝓁.𝑐ℴ𝓂

As for Yue Er...

Xia Ruqing truly hadn’t paid her much mind then; she vaguely remembered Yue Er being especially quiet, barely talking at all.

Who would have thought that from that day on, Yue Er would pester and wheedle, insisting on learning to ride.

When her own mother refused, she started working on her father, the Emperor.

When her father refused, she started working on her big brother.

Chenchen doted on this only biological younger sister down to his very bones.

As long as he knew his sister liked something, he would go through fire and water to track it down and lay it all out before her.

But when it came to "horse riding"... this was the first time Chenchen refused her.

Yue Er wheedled and coaxed him for a long time; Chenchen insisted she was too young and refused to teach her.

After a while, even Yue Er began to feel it was hopeless.

So she switched tactics and started pestering her brother to tell her about the interesting things he’d seen on the road.

This request was obviously much easier.

From that day on, Yue Er would run over to her brother’s place whenever she had nothing to do—or even when she did—and pester him to tell her stories.

And once she started listening, that was that.

The more Yue Er listened, the more entranced she became, and in the end she simply moved into the Eastern Palace and wouldn’t go back.

She even had to hear a story from her brother before she could fall asleep at night!

Chenchen: "..."

Endure! Stay calm!

She was his own flesh‑and‑blood sister, after all—was he supposed to throw her out?

As for matters of propriety between men and women, Yue Er was only four years old; worrying about that was just overthinking it.

Yue Er happily settled into life in the Eastern Palace.

Xia Ruqing, however, was fretting.

Zi Yue and Zi Su tried to comfort her: "Empress, please don’t worry, no one will bully the Princess!"

Xia Ruqing felt utterly helpless.

"I’m certainly not worried about anyone bullying her!"

"I’m worried she’ll bully other people. That girl is too unruly, and Chenchen spoils her even more..."

Zi Yue: "..."

Zi Su: "..."

What the Empress said made perfect sense; they actually couldn’t refute it.

It really did seem... that the chance of the Fourth Princess bullying others was a bit higher.

"Then there’s even less to worry about!"

"Empress, don’t overthink it!"

Xia Ruqing gave a wry smile.

’There’s no such thing as not worrying. If no one keeps an eye on that girl Yue Er, she’ll probably tear the roof off!’

...

Her thoughts returned to the present.

Xia Ruqing stepped into the main hall and looked everywhere, but didn’t see a single figure.

Chenchen wasn’t there, and neither was Yue Er.

She summoned the Steward Aunt in charge here to question her.

"Where have the Crown Prince and the Princess gone?"

The Steward Aunt hurriedly knelt, shaking with cold sweat as she replied.

"In reply to the Empress, the Crown Prince and the Princess went out at the crack of dawn, before it was even light!"

"They also ordered this servant and the others not to follow!"

"This servant did send someone to follow in secret; they’ve just come back to report that... they went to the training grounds!"

"The training grounds?"

Xia Ruqing’s heart gave a jolt, and her eyes widened.

"There’s snow everywhere outside—what are they doing going to the training grounds?!"

A bad feeling rose in her chest.

Honestly, what else would they do at the training grounds besides ride horses!

There was no time to think it through; she quickly took her people and went out to look for them herself.

Zi Yue hurried after her.

"Empress, why don’t you let this servant go? This servant will definitely bring the Princess back!"