Master, don't tease me, you can't handle three of them.

Chapter 184 Will he end up like his father, the emperor?

"Song Yuanyuan, Prime Minister Song requests that I take you back to the Prime Minister's residence."

Bei Yan'an seemed oblivious to Song Yuanyuan's pitiful state and said coldly.

Song Yuanyuan snapped out of her daze, stood up, and bowed respectfully to Bei Yan'an. The affection in her eyes was gone. "Thank you."

Although six years of affection isn't something that can be easily let go of, Song Yuanyuan wasn't one to cling on shamelessly. Since the other person had clearly rejected her, she would never pester them any further.

That kind of pathetic crying, once is enough.

Bei Yuze watched the two approach and slowly lowered the car curtain. It seemed his father had already rejected them.

Judging from Song Yuanyuan's expression, she won't continue to like her father. But that's alright...

As soon as Song Yuanyuan got into the carriage, she saw Bei Yuze sitting to the side.

"See..."

Surprised, Song Yuanyuan quickly knelt down, but was stopped by Bei Yuze halfway down.

"The carriage is not large, Miss Song, there is no need for you to bow."

Song Yuanyuan thought for a moment and then realized there was another person behind her, so she stopped insisting. "Thank you, Your Majesty..."

Bei Yuze nodded, his gaze falling on what Song Yuanyuan had been holding, and he paused slightly.

"The butterfly mask in Miss Song's hand is quite exquisite."

Song Yuanyuan had just sat down on the other side when she heard this, and explained, "I just encountered some hooligans and thugs, and a young girl helped me."

Song Yuanyuan gently stroked the patterns on the mask. "This was given to me by that young lady."

"Oh?" Bei Yuze's tone held a hint of anticipation. "Have you gotten a good look at the little girl's face?"

Song Yuanyuan shook her head, somewhat embarrassed, and said, "This humble woman did not see clearly..."

This young girl saved me, and I don't even know what she looks like. It's really shameful...

Bei Yuze noticed Bei Yan'an's gaze. "Today, a little girl won the top prize in this year's lantern riddle competition. This mask should belong to that little girl."

Bei Yan'an didn't say anything, but simply withdrew his gaze. Soon, they arrived at the Prime Minister's residence.

After bowing to the two men, Song Yuanyuan alighted from the carriage and slowly pushed open the door to her home. She had assumed her parents were already asleep, but the house was brightly lit.

The usually stern Prime Minister Song sat in the main seat, and a hint of heartache flashed in his eyes the moment he saw his daughter.

"Father..." Song Yuanyuan lowered her head and said weakly.

It was her fault for making her parents worry.

"Next time you go out, remember to tell your parents." Song Song concealed his slight heartache well and tried his best to keep his tone normal.

Upon hearing this, Song Yuanyuan lowered her head even further, intending to kneel down and admit her mistake.

Suddenly, a warm, rough hand gently placed on her head.

Song Song's voice softened, "Today is the Lantern Festival, and your parents are waiting for you to eat glutinous rice balls."

"The Lantern Festival is here!" Mother Song walked in with a smile, carrying three bowls of glutinous rice balls, and placed them on the table.

"I cooked this myself, Yuanyuan, you must eat more!"

With her vision blurry, Song Yuanyuan rubbed her face vigorously.

"Ok!"

"Why is my precious daughter crying? Did you scold her?!" Song's mother slammed her hand on the table and questioned Song Song.

"No, Madam, I'm innocent! Yuanyuan, please explain for your father!"

"Hahahaha, Mother, stop it! Father's beard is going to be plucked out!"

......

royal palace.

Inside the hall, tall, vermilion pillars stand majestically, their shafts carved with auspicious patterns such as clouds, dragons, and phoenixes, adorned with glittering gold lacquer. Beside them, a censer burns with precious ambergris, wisps of smoke rising and filling the air with a delicate fragrance.

After dismissing the servants, Bei Yuze knelt on the soft cushion in the center of the hall, placed the peony lantern in his hand in front of him, leaned forward towards a portrait on the table, and slowly lowered his forehead until it touched the ground.

Bei Yuze slowly raised his head, gazing at the beautiful couple in the painting, and murmured softly, "Father, Mother, your son has come to see you..."

"As Mother mentioned in her letter, you and Father met during the Lantern Festival, all for a peony lantern. I had hoped to bring you an even more beautiful one this year, but unfortunately, I couldn't win it... However, this one is quite nice, and I hope Mother won't find it lacking..."

The woman in the painting has a radiant smile and her eyes are curved, as if she is very satisfied with the peony lantern.

Bei Yuze slightly curled the corners of his lips, "I'll just assume... that Mother Empress likes it..."

Bei Yuze no longer knelt properly. In front of the portraits of his father and mother, he lost his usual calm and composed demeanor and became more talkative.

"Father, I actually guessed the riddle... but I just find it a bit ironic..."

The man in the painting has exquisite features, a slight upturn at the corners of his lips, and a gentle light in his eyes, as if the whole world softens under his gaze. His smile carries a hint of doting, and his gaze remains fixed on the woman beside him, as if she were his everything.

"However, I don't blame you, Father... Mother is indeed too lonely by herself... It's good for you to go and keep her company..."

Although Bei Yuze said this, the desolation in his eyes was undisguised.

“My father hasn’t changed much, except he’s been a bit tired lately… He still doesn’t let me get involved in his affairs.”

Bei Yuze spoke to the person in the portrait about the recent events, "Father, I saw the face of the girl who beat me today..."

“She looks so much like my father and me… You only have one son, so could she… be my father’s daughter?”

Bei Yuze voiced his suspicions: the girl appeared to be younger than him, and his father had disappeared before he was born.

When they found her three years later, her father had lost his memory of those three years. Considering the timeline, the girl might actually be her father's daughter.

However, Bei Yuze did not tell Bei Yan'an any of his speculations.

If not, then it's just a false alarm. But if it's true, then the girl's mother...

And then there's the father; the woman who bore him a child must have been the one he loved most. But she died, still because of the father...

What will the father do when he finds out?

Will he end up like his father?

No, you can't!

Bei Yuze shook his head vigorously and looked at the portrait.

"Father, let me investigate first to see if that girl is really my sister... If she is..."

Bei Yuze looked conflicted. "Father...Mother...what should I do..."

The people in the portrait are smiling, their smiles still beautiful, but they cannot offer any answers to those outside the painting.

Everything depends on the choices made by those outside the frame...