historical

"All right, Aunt Liangwei." Sensing that she was in low spirits, Lu Xue nodded.

After Lu Xue left to look for Yaoyao, Lu Liangwei turned and walked back inside.

Although they had sent out dozens of people to search for Ji'er, she would not be easily found if she was determined to stay hidden.

She missed her darling Ji'er dreadfully. She longed to see her, to hold her in her arms while explaining the truth to her and comforting her.

She massaged her forehead. Just then, an idea occurred to her, and she hurriedly asked Zhu Yu, "By the way, is Yin'er in the imperial study now?"

"Yes. I just brought him some refreshments," replied Zhu Yu.

After pondering for a while, Lu Liangwei headed to the imperial study right away.

Sure enough, Long Yin was there, seated behind the table and handling state affairs.

He was surprised to see his mother walk in, but he immediately tossed his brush aside and got up to greet her. "What brings you here, Mother?"

Lu Liangwei glanced at the mountain of Palace Memorials on the table and sighed inwardly. With the Emperor absent, all the governing had fallen on her son's shoulders.

Moreover, all the state affairs during the time she and the Emperor were away at the West Water Frontier had piled up. According to Zhu Yu, Yin'er had been burning the midnight oil for the past few days.

"Aren't you tired?" she asked in concern, caressing her son's youthful face.

Long Yin held her hand and shook his head, smiling. "No."

"If your father wasn't so distraught over Ji'er's disappearance, you wouldn't have to work so hard." Lu Liangwei sighed.

"Don't worry about me, Mother. I've grown up; I can handle this bit of work. Father ascended the throne at thirteen, you know," Long Yin said nonchalantly and even tried to reassure his mother.I think you should take a look at

Lu Liangwei smiled. "That's true. Things were really hard for your father."

Long Yin's heart ached as he looked at her face, which had grown wan and thin due to her worry for Ji'er. If his father had not instructed him to assume command of the imperial capital, he would have gone searching for Ji'er too.

"Have a seat, Mother." He helped Lu Liangwei sit down in a chair.

After settling into her chair, Lu Liangwei regarded her son's young face and said, "I'm sure Ji'er's hiding to avoid being found by us. In that case, I want you to issue an imperial decree to the entire kingdom. If Ji'er cares about me, she'll come back at once after seeing it."

Long Yin wrinkled his brow. "What kind of decree do you want me to issue, Mother?"

"Say that all this worry has taken a toll on my health and made me critically ill, so you're issuing this decree in hopes that the entire kingdom will pray for the gods to protect me," said Lu Liangwei.

"Mother!" Long Yin frowned in disapproval upon hearing her curse herself. "I don't agree with this idea."

"It's just a ruse, my boy. If Ji'er sees it, she'll come back.." Lu Liangwei said urgently, though she was also amused by her son's reaction.

Long Yin's lips thinned. He did not believe in the supernatural, but if his family was involved, he would rather believe than joke about it.

"If you won't do it, I will." Lu Liangwei made a move to get up.

"Don't force me, Mother. Besides, just think about how worried Father will be when he hears the news while he's still out there." Long Yin furrowed his brow in disagreement.

"He won't. He'll understand it was my idea," Lu Liangwei reassured him. "Be good, Yin'er—hurry up and issue that decree so Ji'er can come back soon."

Long Yin was still hesitant. No matter what, he could not bring himself to joke about his mother's health, not even for Ji'er's sake.