New Year’s Eve had always been a time for keeping vigil.

Yun Chu and Chu Yi separately left the palace, separately entered the gates of their two courtyards, then met in Yun Chu’s warm pavilion.

“Mother!”

The two children ran in, kicked off their shoes, and threw themselves into Yun Chu’s embrace.

“Didn’t I perform especially well!”

Chu Hongyu had an expression seeking praise.

Yun Chu pressed the ice pack she had prepared early against his eye socket, laughing helplessly as she said, “Brother Yu was excellent, and Changsheng was also excellent. In the future, don’t cry like this anymore.”

Their eyes had swollen from crying, and by tomorrow they would likely be even more swollen.

She carefully used the ice pack to reduce the swelling around both children’s eyes.

After things were more or less settled, she took out two large red envelopes from her sleeves and handed them over: “This is the New Year’s money Mother is giving you. I hope you both will be safe and sound year after year.”

“Thank you, Mother!”

The two little ones said in unison, especially happy as they accepted their New Year’s money.

By the time they returned from the palace it was already quite late, and before they could make it to the hour of midnight, the two children’s eyelids drooped and they leaned against Yun Chu and fell asleep.

Yun Chu looked toward Chu Yi sitting beside her and softly said, “Let’s carry the children back to their room.”

Chu Yi nodded. The two of them each carried a child, with Yun Chu walking in front and Chu Yi following behind, one after the other walking into Yun Chu’s bedchamber.

This was Chu Yi’s second time coming here.

The first time was when Yun Chu’s mother had suddenly visited, and he was forced to enter Yun Chu’s boudoir, only daring to briefly glance around.

This time… he originally didn’t dare to look much, but discovered he had been overthinking.

Because this bedchamber was completely different from before.

On the table were the children’s snacks, on the bed were placed the two children’s dolls, the quilts and pillows were all ones the two children were accustomed to using, and on the vanity were placed a rattle-drum and slingshot…

How could this be a woman’s boudoir?

It was clearly a mother and children’s bedchamber.

For some reason, in this instant, a kind of indescribable sourness arose in Chu Yi’s heart.

What the children brought to Yun Chu wasn’t only happiness and joy.

It seemed that they had also made her lose the original Yun Chu, transforming her from herself into a mother.

Of course, she should like this kind of change.

But… life shouldn’t only have the happiness that children bring.

Chu Yi silently watched as Yun Chu carefully covered both children with quilts and lowered the bed curtains.

He said softly, “Brother Yu is already five years old. He should have his own separate courtyard.”

Yun Chu parted her lips slightly.

She had just reunited with the children, and that feeling of having lost and regained them made her especially indulgent toward the two children. She was also willing to pamper and spoil them unconditionally.

But she was also very clear that the children would ultimately grow up.

She slowly said, “Alright, then, we’ll wait until winter passes, and then let Brother Yu go live in his own courtyard.”

Perhaps the room was too cramped, as Yun Chu inexplicably felt a bit hot.

She raised her head and met a pair of intensely burning eyes. Her heart suddenly skipped a beat.

Before she could avert her gaze, Chu Yi turned his head away first, bringing his fist to his lips as he said, “Let’s go outside to talk.”

In such a small confined space, he always generated some inexplicable thoughts.

He told himself he couldn’t be so abrupt with her again.

Five years ago, he had taken her at the wrong time—this was a fatal mistake.

Now, he would soon be able to marry her and bring her through his doors.

He wanted to give her the most perfect wedding night, to make her forget the pain that night five years ago had brought…

The two walked out of the inner chamber.

The candles made sputtering sounds that were especially obvious in this silent night.

Yun Chu raised her head to look at the man before her.

Originally she might have been concerned about the great taboos between men and women, but now that the marriage was already settled, the person before her was the one who would spend the rest of her life with her—they were family.

She smiled with curved lips and said, “When I was little, I kept vigil with my father, mother, and eldest brother until daybreak. What about you—have you ever kept vigil like this?”

Chu Yi sat down on the couch and, after drinking a sip of tea, slowly said, “The New Year’s Eve palace banquet always dispersed before midnight. We imperial princes would follow our respective birth mothers to keep vigil… Later, after coming of age and being enfeoffed as princes and moving out of the imperial palace, there was no more vigil-keeping.”

Yun Chu raised her head: “Then do you know why we keep vigil?”

Chu Yi vaguely remembered that when he was very, very young, his tutor had taught about this matter, but he felt it wasn’t important, and so he had forgotten.

He said leisurely, “Then let Chu’er tell me about it.”

“It’s said that very, very long ago, there was a fierce monster called Nian…”

Yun Chu’s voice flowed like a murmuring stream, slowly flowing into Chu Yi’s heart.

Outside, snow began to fall.

Crystalline snowflakes drifted down piece by piece.

Suddenly fireworks burst forth.

Colors of all kinds flickered in Yun Chu’s eyes.

She was watching the fireworks.

While he was watching her.

The night passed without a sound.

Probably because she had already formed the habit, even though she had stayed up most of the night, Yun Chu still woke at the time she should wake.

Since it was the New Year celebration, she gave herself a holiday and didn’t need to get up to practice martial arts.

However, the two children needed to go to the palace on this day to pay New Year respects to their elders.

Yun Chu gently called the two children awake, helped them dress, wash up, applied protective oil on their faces, then sent them to the other side of the gate opening.

“Chu’er, Happy New Year!”

Chu Yi looked at her with a face full of smiles, then presented his New Year gift.

Yun Chu opened it—it was a pair of earrings that looked very exquisite.

“I also wish you a Happy New Year.” Yun Chu accepted the gift. “Thank you for your gift. I really like it.”

“Father King, is there only Mother’s gift? What about mine? What about Changsheng’s?” Chu Hongyu extended his hand. “We want them too!”

Chu Yi coughed: “These are the keys to the storehouse. Whatever you like, go pick it yourself.”

The little fellow immediately turned to ask Yun Chu: “Mother, what do you like? I’ll pick it and give it to you.”

The little girl followed suit: “My gift, also give, give to Mother.”

Chu Yi: “…”

“Alright, it’s getting late. Hurry into the palace.”

Yun Chu laughed helplessly and waved at the two children.

At the beginning of the year, she gave all the servants in the courtyard red envelopes and let them have time off, then brought gifts and prepared to go to the Yun family to pay New Year respects.

Just as she was preparing to go out, she saw at the entrance to the alley at the gate, a figure slowly approaching.

From very far away she recognized who it was—it was Xie Shi’an.

This wasn’t the first or second time Xie Shi’an had come looking for her. It rather had the meaning of persistent entanglement.

Originally, she only wanted to coexist peacefully with Xie Shi’an, to mind their own business and not create the enmity of their previous life again.

But Xie Shi’an clearly didn’t think this way.

“Mother.”

While she was thinking, Xie Shi’an had already approached and bowed to her.

“Your son is here to wish Mother great fortune in the new year.”

Yun Chu’s lips pressed together: “Do you think it’s still appropriate for you to call me Mother?”

Xie Shi’an smiled bitterly: “I heard people say that last night the Emperor planned to bestow marriage between Mother and Prince Pingxi. Mother is about to become Princess Pingxi, about to become someone else’s wife. I truly should not call you Mother anymore… I just didn’t expect that Father has been dead for less than half a year, his bones not yet cold, and Mother is already remarrying…”

Yun Chu laughed: “Brother An, are you blaming me for this?”

Xie Shi’an lowered his head: “I wouldn’t dare.”

“How could you not dare?” Yun Chu shook her head. “I intended to remain a widow for your father for my entire life. It was you who expelled me from the Xie family. It was you who made it so I had to leave the Xie family, who made me become first a widow, then a divorced woman… Now, being bestowed in marriage again, no matter who the other party is, it’s not my wish… Ha, why am I saying these things to you? No, you don’t understand. You understand nothing. You’re just like your father Xie Jingyu—selfish. You’re both cold-blooded monsters…”

Xie Shi’an’s fingers suddenly clenched tight.

This was the first time he had heard from someone else’s mouth that he was selfish, that he was cold-blooded.

Moreover, the person saying this about him was the legitimate mother he had always respected and loved…