Jingli was about to give birth. At most, she had two months left.
Yue Shen had originally wanted to keep "trying," but considering Jingli's condition, she had no choice but to stop.
After all, this was the Zhao Clan's first child. There was no room for the slightest mishap.
At that moment, Zhao Linchuan, nearly drained dry, sat alone in a side hall of the Heaven Dou Imperial Palace, staring blankly at the sky outside the window.
He leaned back in his chair with his eyes closed. He looked like an old tree battered by a storm, its branches bare and its vitality sorely diminished.
"Creak—!"
The door swung open, and Qian Renxue walked in.
"Where have you been all this time? The past six months?"
She casually untied the ribbon at her waist and took off her outer robe, draping it over the back of a chair and revealing the fitted clothes beneath.
Qian Renxue walked over to Zhao Linchuan and looked down at him, a hint of reproach in her voice.
"I thought you'd abandoned your wife and child and run off."
As she spoke, she reached out, gave him a gentle push, then leaned down and kissed him.
The next morning.
Birdsong rang clear outside as a breeze brushed the treetops, making them rustle softly.
Qian Renxue knelt beside the bed, gently helping Zhao Linchuan get dressed.
First she helped him into his undershirt, then tied the fastenings of his inner robe. Finally, she picked up his dark outer robe and draped it over his shoulders, carefully straightening the collar and cuffs.
Qian Renxue's cheeks were flushed, and she looked radiant, a stark contrast to Zhao Linchuan's listless appearance.
"Why was there so much less this time?" she muttered in puzzlement as she fastened his belt. "Even