On this ordinary morning, Liao Tingyan woke up from her dream. She didn't remember what happened in the middle of the night yesterday, so she was quite calm. As usual, the spot beside her had long been empty. She casually glanced around the hall and was about to stretch when she suddenly heard a voice.

"Awake? Come over here."

It was Sima Jiao's voice. Liao Tingyan abruptly stopped her movement and turned to look for Sima Jiao's figure. Only then did she discover that he was lying on the couch behind that screen, with only a corner of his robe and a faint shadow visible.

Usually, he would be nowhere to be seen at this time. Why was he still here today?

Liao Tingyan walked past the screen, filled with doubts. Sima Jiao looked quite different from usual. He wasn't wearing his jade crown, his hair was casually loose, and he was draped in a wide-sleeved robe with an outer garment. One of his feet was even bare, stepping on the ground.

Most importantly, Liao Tingyan noticed the bloodshot eyes and the faint blue marks of protruding blood vessels on the back of his hands and ankles.

He had always been very pale, but today, Liao Tingyan wasn't sure if it was an illusion. She felt that his entire being seemed even more pallid, to the point where even his blood vessels were clearly visible. Liao Tingyan was somewhat startled.

She recalled that on the way to Luojing in the carriage, Sima Jiao had also been like this once, looking unwell. At that time, she had thought that "Chang You" had been punished and injured. Now that she thought about it, she had been too naive.

In the original story, there were descriptions of Sima Jiao's condition when he fell ill. Liao Tingyan still remembered that the female lead had been quite frightened by Sima Jiao, who had suddenly fallen ill and killed someone. Sima Jiao had drawn his sword and killed the palace maid who was attending to the female lead, then grabbed the female lead's arm and locked her in the great hall.

Although she suspected that his current condition was due to illness, it didn't seem as terrifying as the "descent of an evil spirit" described in the original story. So was he really ill, or just ordinarily unwell?

"Come here." Sima Jiao reached out his hand towards her.

Liao Tingyan walked over. Before she could speak, she was suddenly pulled down by that pale hand. She instinctively pressed one hand on the couch and the other on Sima Jiao's chest, her soft lips meeting his.

Sima Jiao had one hand pressed on the back of her neck, pushing her down. Liao Tingyan only felt a little breathless, and the back of her neck was very cold.

When he released her, Liao Tingyan caught her breath and felt that her maiden heart might have died. When Sima Jiao suddenly kissed her, she actually didn't blush or feel shy.

The first thought in her mind was that she had just woken up and hadn't washed up or brushed her teeth, and Sima Jiao was really not particular. But then she felt that it probably wasn't her problem, but Sima Jiao's. This person was too unusual.

In her mind, he had already transcended the categories of man and woman and could be said to be a third gender—a devilish pig's trotter. With this in mind, she couldn't fully treat him as a man, so it was no wonder she couldn't feel shy.

Sima Jiao released her and rubbed his forehead, looking very irritable. "It's not working."

What's not working? Liao Tingyan was puzzled. To be honest, she didn't know what Sima Jiao was trying to do, but she was a little scared now.

The wooden beads on Sima Jiao's hand rattled urgently against the armrest as he stared at Liao Tingyan and demanded, "You take the initiative to kiss me."

The forms of this person's illness were truly diverse. Liao Tingyan understood this request, and her heart refused. What kind of shameful daytime play was this? But her survival instinct made her submit.

She gently approached Sima Jiao, and then... she just couldn't bring herself to do it.

Sima Jiao, with his sullen face and pent-up anger, was like a large, thorny, fierce beast. Not only was he staring at her with a fixed gaze, but he also wanted her to approach and kiss the thorns on his body. She really couldn't do it, always worried that she would be pierced through.

"Your Majesty, could you please close your eyes?" Liao Tingyan asked.

Fortunately, Sima Jiao didn't say much and took the initiative to close his eyes. Liao Tingyan lowered her head and discovered that with his eyes closed like this, Sima Jiao actually looked quite like a sickly, beautiful young man, with an added touch of pitiable frailty, unlike the ferocity and unapproachability when his eyes were open.

Putting aside this terrifying thought, Liao Tingyan tentatively kissed the side of Sima Jiao's face. Actually, it wasn't too bad. As long as she treated him like the little bear child from her cousin's family, she could bring herself to kiss him.

After all, his face was still quite good-looking. Seeing that Sima Jiao didn't react, she kissed him a few more times, very gently. She had never been so gentle in her life.

However, Liao Tingyan wasn't sure if it was her illusion, but she found that Sima Jiao's aura, which had seemed on the verge of exploding just now, had eased a little. She vaguely understood a bit and steeled her heart, holding Sima Jiao's face and treating it like she was stamping a seal.

Sima Jiao opened his eyes, using two fingers to part Liao Tingyan's lips, looking at her with some dissatisfaction.

Liao Tingyan thought to herself, what are you dissatisfied about? You were the one who asked me to kiss you, and now that I've kissed you, you're pushing me away. You're really a big pig's trotter who doesn't acknowledge anything after pulling up your pants!

"You weren't serious," Sima Jiao said.

This person was really annoying! Liao Tingyan smiled. "What does Your Majesty consider to be serious?"

Sima Jiao had an expression that seemed to say, "Do I really need to teach you this?"

He grabbed her, pulled her close to himself, rubbed her head, and forcefully kissed her face a couple of times. "Like this."

Liao Tingyan touched her messed-up hair and took a deep breath. You're kissing a dog like this!

But this was what you asked for. Liao Tingyan smiled reservedly. "I see. I understand now. Then I'll give it a try."

A while later, a disheveled Sima Jiao emerged. He glared at Liao Tingyan. "The point is to kiss, not to rub my head." Liao Tingyan had a face full of innocence and gentleness. "Oh? I'm still not quite used to it. Let me try again."

When Liao Tingyan was released from the inner hall, she took her hands out from her sleeves and blew away the dozen or so long black hairs in her hands. She patted her hands, and Liao Tingyan secretly thought that if this happened a few more times, she would take the opportunity to make this guy go bald!

Similar incidents occurred twice more, and there was one time in the middle of the night when Liao Tingyan heard a sound and woke up to find Sima Jiao staring at her with red eyes in the dark, startling her. He then pressed her down and kissed her for a good while.

Liao Tingyan was trapped in the blanket, unable to breathe, and thought she was going to lose her virginity, but in the end, she was only held and slept for a night.

Slowly, Liao Tingyan discovered that she seemed to be playing the role of a firefighter. Although she didn't know the reason, she seemed to be able to alleviate Sima Jiao's terrible situation to a certain extent. In any case, the frequency of deaths in the palace had recently dropped sharply. At least when she was with Sima Jiao, he had never killed anyone in front of her.

Just like that, Guiye sighed privately while serving her, saying that because the palace had been much more peaceful recently, His Majesty didn't like to kill people much anymore, and the beauties from various palaces occasionally dared to go out for a stroll in the garden. In the past, because His Majesty was bored and liked to walk in the garden, he encountered too many beauties competing for his favor.

In the end, those beauties mostly ended up buried in the garden. No one was clear about exactly which flower or tree the beauties' corpses were buried under. They were afraid of accidentally encountering bad luck and worried about following in their footsteps, so even though the palace had such a large garden, basically no one dared to go.

"Everyone hopes that the Noble Consort can always accompany His Majesty by his side." Guiye also said with some relief and hope.

Back then, when she was transferred to serve the Noble Consort, she was extremely uneasy, fearing that if she appeared too much in front of His Majesty, one day she might be accidentally dragged down and killed by him. Later, she was afraid that this Noble Consort, who was deeply favored by His Majesty, might have a bad temper and would torture the palace maids around her.

But as time passed, she found that the Noble Consort she served was truly an easy-going mistress who neither beat nor scolded the palace servants below her and didn't have too many demands. Compared to His Majesty, they were truly two extremes.

Many things are clear to bystanders. Guiye watched the Noble Consort and His Majesty interact with her own eyes, and she became more and more determined to serve the Noble Consort well. She thought that if one day she was unlucky enough to encounter His Majesty in a bad mood and wanting to kill someone, perhaps only the Noble Consort could save her life.

Similar to Guiye's thoughts was Sima Jiao's eunuch, Jin De. He was the only one who personally witnessed what happened that night. It was also the first time he saw His Majesty recover so quickly after an episode.

Since then, his attitude towards Liao Tingyan had changed a lot, and he was truly respectful from the bottom of his heart. He guessed in his heart that perhaps this Noble Consort Liao was even more powerful than he had imagined. If things continued like this, it was possible that she could rise to an even higher position in the future.

The protagonist, Liao Tingyan, didn't have the same confidence as the bystanders. The longer she stayed by Sima Jiao's side, the more she sensed the danger in this person. It didn't come from the brutal impression in the original story, but from the feeling of interacting with him these past few days.

Sima Jiao was like an active volcano that could erupt at any time. As long as she was by his side, she could feel the danger beneath the calm.

What made her even more uneasy was that she didn't know what Sima Jiao really thought of her. If you said Sima Jiao had fallen in love with her, Liao Tingyan didn't believe it.

Did this guy even know what love was? It didn't seem like he was captivated by her beauty either. So why was his attitude towards her so different? What was the reason?

When the days passed too idly, one began to have wild thoughts and even ponder life. Liao Tingyan felt that this wasn't good. Once a person thinks too much, it becomes difficult to live. They will be filled with doubts about themselves and the world.

"Wake up, get up." Sima Jiao stood by the bed and woke up Liao Tingyan, who was still in a beautiful dream. "Today, you will accompany me to the morning court at Taiji Hall."

Liao Tingyan looked at Sima Jiao, thinking that she hadn't woken up yet. She confirmed again, "Your Majesty said to take this concubine to the morning court at Taiji Hall?"

Sima Jiao didn't feel there was anything wrong at all and nodded as if it was a matter of course, "You're idle anyway with nothing to do. I see you're very bored. Come with me to the morning court to see some excitement."

See some excitement? Do you think the emperor attending court is like going for a stroll? This fatuous ruler!

To be honest, Sima Jiao's role as a fatuous ruler was too solid. Liao Tingyan was momentarily at a loss for words. She didn't want to be some kind of wicked concubine who brings ruin to the country. She just wanted to lay low in the rear palace and live from day to day, but Sima Jiao insisted on sending her out in a high-profile manner.

What should she do now? Liao Tingyan quickly thought and made a response. She pretended to look unwell, "Your Majesty, this concubine suddenly feels unwell and is afraid she cannot attend court with Your Majesty."

Sima Jiao said, "Then let the imperial physician come and take a look."

Liao Tingyan: "No need, it's just some discomfort in the abdomen. Resting for a while will be fine."

Sima Jiao directly sat on the edge of the bed, "Then you rest."

After a while, Liao Tingyan asked, "Isn't Your Majesty going to the court meeting? Isn't it almost time for the court meeting?"

Sima Jiao: "I already said I would take you with me. Since you're not feeling well and need to rest for a bit, then we'll wait until you've rested before going together."

He turned his head and instructed the eunuch Jin De, "Let them wait."

Liao Tingyan thought resentfully: Fatuous ruler! The fatuous ruler fears nothing! You're ruthless!

She sat up with a fake smile, "Your Majesty, this concubine feels much better. Let's go now."

On the way to Taiji Hall following behind Sima Jiao, Liao Tingyan felt a bit melancholic. It seemed this country was really going to be finished. If it really was finished, she didn't know if she would still have a chance to return to Hexia.

The ministers in Taiji Hall had already arrived. Sima Jiao naturally walked in with Liao Tingyan, immediately causing a commotion. Liao Tingyan thought in her heart, dear uncles and elders, for the sake of your lives' safety, don't come up and remonstrate about the rear palace not interfering in politics at this time! Absolutely don't!

Perhaps it was because these many ministers had long been numbed by His Majesty's various outrageous actions. Liao Tingyan waited with bated breath as she followed Sima Jiao to the central position and sat down, yet surprisingly no one stood out to raise an objection. After a moment of clamor, it slowly subsided again.

The various big shots standing in the front row, for whatever reason, also didn't speak up. Everyone unanimously ignored Liao Tingyan, who shouldn't have appeared here, turning a blind eye and letting it pass.

Liao Tingyan silently wiped sweat for everyone. His Majesty's might was truly great. It seemed he had tormented these ministers quite a bit before.

Author's Note:

The female lead: Forget it, what love, as long as I can live.

This is really the female lead with the strongest survival instinct I've ever written.