✿

Zhu Mingli took a bath, he was back to being his old self, and that is being mushy with Yan Gen. He even requested for Yan Gen to feed him. As if both of his hands are injured.

"I miss you so bad..." He whispered at the crook of his wife's neck and inhaled deeply. Her sweet smell brings comfort to his messy thoughts. Like it was the first time he hugged her, his arms tighten around her.

The two of them are already sitting on the bed, ready to sleep or atleast for Yan Gen.

"Wa-wait" Yan Gen tried to push Zhu Mingli away when he started raining small kisses on his slender neck. Of course, his strength was no match to a real man. His small protest was insignificant "Don't you need to rest?"

What answered him was his scorching fast breaths and low groan. Zhu Mingli's rough hands started to naughtily feel his soft body. "Lan-er..." He said in a husky voice.

Yan Gen fell in a crisis. They have a lot of important things to talk about. His eldest brother is already sitting on the throne. How can he be this care free? Now that Mingli is in the capital, it will be much easier for the current Emperor to eliminate him and his family.

"Don't you want to see your son?" Yan Gen brought out the topic of their child. hoping that he would stop and think of the important things right now. Jinhai is only a few months old, what if the Emperor took him as a hostage or worse...

They can't act leisurely at this time around. What he wants was for Zhu Mingli to rest now so they can talk about this pressing matter tomorrow morning, he took in consideration that he was from the battlefield but it seems that his husband doesn't have plans to rest early.

Sure enough, Zhu Mingli stopped at the mention of his 'son' that was unknown to him until now. He raised his head from Yan Gen's chest, his thick eyebrows furrowed and his eyes sharpen while staring at the person under him.

"What do you mean? You didn't mention any son in your letters to me"

"Your imperial mother doesn't want me to mention it to you. She said that you might get distracted in the battlefield"

Yan Gen replied as soon as he asked. He's afraid that Mingli will think that it was his own decision to hide it from him or worse, he'll thought that the child was not his. Yan Gen was certain he won't have a good end. Mingli will surely vent on him. Though the word 'vent' he means *cough was different, knowing the male lead's dark side.

Mingli burrowed his head on Yan Gen's neck again. He took a several deep breaths, trying to calm himself. Truthfully, he isn't angry. He's just trying to calm his body heat.

"I'm frustrated that she didn't let you tell me about your situation but my mother is right. I wanted to go home as soon as possible just to see you, what more if I knew you were carrying my child?"

Mingli raised his head to look at his wife, his eyes look so bright as he stared at her and his reddish thin lips has a hint of smile.

His lips fell on her face, kissing her forehead, eyelids, cheeks, nose, and chin before landing on her mouth.

He kissed her for a long time until she was left breathless.

"I'm sorry I couldn't be there for you" Mingli said, resting his forehead on her.

Yan Gen sneered "It's not like you can take half of my pain"

"But still..." Mingli sighed as his hold on him tighten.

"Don't you want to see him?" Yan Gen repeated. Mingli looked down at him, a small smile tugged up on his lips "Of course I want to. However, I want to see you more"

"But you have seen me already, let's--"

Zhu Mingli shut him up with a dominating kiss. He really has no way out. Although he wants to reject his advances because of anxiety, when he remembered that he has to convince him to give up his ambition and stay far away from the imperial capital, he let him.

Perhaps if he pillow talk it to him, he'll easily agree. Thus, they tossed around in bed thrice before Yan Gen found an opportunity to address the matter, still heaving after their heavy activity.

"The first prince is now the Emperor" he said, that statement alone is enough to convey his worries to him. Zhu Mingli who has wrapped his limbs around his wife cracked his eyes open and 'hummed' a reply which triggered Yan Gen.

He raised an arm to hit the indulgent man on the chest, the latter responded with a laugh. The sound of his laugher made Yan Gen angrier "You think this is fun, huh?"

Sensing his wife's mood, Mingli held both of her hands "You don't have to worry about it"

"How can I not worry about it? The Emperor will not sit still while you're around, posing a threat to him. Zhu Mingli, you already have a family on your own. You should think of our own safety" Yan Gen stared at his eyes unwaveringly, showing him his clear stance, and in an imperious attitude he added "Since you came back victorious from a major war, the Emperor will definitely summoned you in the palace to give you rewards for formalities. You will then ask for him to let you guard the Southern border" his tone clearly told Zhu Mingli that he will not accept any argumentation.

He blinked at his wife for a few times "You don't want to become an Empress?"

"I want to live safely, healthily, and happily. I believe it won't be necessary to become an Empress to achieve that"

Zhu Mingli pulled him closer "Alright, I'll do what my wife wants." Yan Gen stared at him for a long time, he never thought that it would be this easy to convince him. He was expecting that it would take a lot of coaxing and dramas to make him give up.

"Truly?" Yan Gen asked doubtfully. Zhu Mingli chuckled and leaned down to bite the tip of his nose "There are two reasons why I want the throne. First, I thought you want to become the Empress, your clan is also expecting you to become one, and the second one is..."

He inhaled deeply before continuing "To avoid my brothes and myself from being killed. Even if I don't want to become the Emperor, there's no guarantee that I'll live so it leave me no choice but to fight for the throne. Once I asked the Emperor for me to become a border prince, I doubt that he'll easily let me go"

"He will if you show him that you have no interest to the Dragon throne! The fourth prince became the border prince when he asked the Emperor for it" Yan Gen argued, though the border the fourth prince went to isn't that much, it was located between East and West, it has no roads to the Imperial Capital and other bigger city states. No merchants passed in that border considering that there are better roads to get through. It also has a lesser population, it was a target for the raids of the barbarians before considering that it was very near the Western border.

"Zhu Hai is sickly, of course he'll easily let him go. He's not qualified to become the Emperor thus my eldest brother doesn't see him as an enemy. It's different for me"

It was the first time that Yan Gen knew the fourth prince is sickly, in the original plot, he was only described as a peace loving prince.

"There has to be a way." Yan Gen firmly said, remembering Wei Yuu who rose to the position of chancellor as soon as Zhu Deming sat on the throne. The Emperor must have place his great trust on him.