In the hushed hours of the evening, Mei Ling found herself ensnared in the clutches of a persistent nightmare, her subconscious haunted by echoes of the past. She whispered the name "Brother Yu" in her sleep, a single tear escaping the edge of her eye as the painful memories unfolded in her dreams.
The emperor, attuned to the nuances of Mei Ling's slumber, gently kissed away the tear. The touch of his lips acted as a soothing balm, and Mei Ling stirred, gradually awakening from the torment of her dreams. The emperor, concerned for her well-being, inquired with tenderness, "Mei Ling, what troubles your dreams? Is something amiss?"
Confusion clouded Mei Ling's eyes as she grappled with the blurred line between reality and the remnants of her nightmare. She glanced at the emperor's face, but in her mind, another visage surfaced. Murmuring the name "Brother Yu," she instinctively caressed the emperor's cheek, her actions surprising both herself and the emperor.
A pregnant silence lingered in the chamber, the air thick with unspoken questions. After a few moments, the emperor, intrigued by the unfamiliar name, couldn't contain his curiosity. "Who is Brother Yu?" he asked, his eyes probing Mei Ling's.
Caught off guard, Mei Ling hastily cleared her mind, her thoughts racing to concoct a response. Choosing to shield the truth, she replied, "Brother Yu is my elder brother. We shared a deep bond in our childhood." The emperor, sensing a veiled complexity in her response, harbored doubts but chose not to press further, allowing Mei Ling the space to keep her secrets.
Deciding to shift the atmosphere, the emperor rose from the bed, his concern manifesting in action. He fetched a glass of warm water for Mei Ling, offering it to her as a comforting gesture to help dispel the lingering unease.
Meanwhile, in the intricacies of the imperial court, a mysterious plan devised by Chancellor Zhihua was quietly unfolding. The empress, upon receiving the letter outlining the scheme, erupted into demonic laughter that reverberated through the palace corridors. Servants, startled by the unsettling sound, exchanged fearful glances as an ominous aura enveloped the empress.
As the chapter concluded, the reader was left with a sense of foreboding. The complex interplay of dreams, half-truths, and the clandestine machinations of the imperial court painted a tableau of intrigue and uncertainty. The stage was set for the next act in the unfolding drama of power, secrets, and the enigmatic plans of Chancellor Zhihua.