00:00The emperor could not understand why the empress no longer loved him. She encouraged him to take
00:04many concubines but refused to get close to him herself, leaving him deeply dejected. He even
00:08consulted his ministers during court gatherings. Unbeknownst to him, the empress had fallen
00:12seriously ill and had only six months left to live. When she learned that the emperor had brought
00:16a beauty back to the palace, she felt truly relieved. She hoped he wouldn't be too sad
00:20when she was gone. The emperor had missed the empress deeply after a month apart. But when
00:24they met, she walked past him and warmly greeted the beauty instead. The beauty wondered why the
00:28empress felt no jealousy and asked if she had fallen out of love. Yet the empress said
00:32it was precisely because she loved him too much. Hearing that, the beauty admitted she
00:36had traveled from the modern world. She planned to win the emperor's heart within a year and
00:40take the empress's place. The empress immediately took her hand and said she would help her.
00:44They headed to a school outside the palace, where the emperor and empress had first met
00:47and grown close. At the age of five, they climbed up the rooftop and dreamed of the future. When
00:52they turned ten, the boy was made to kneel in punishment for neglecting his studies, and
00:55the young girl would secretly bring him food. He once invited her to roam the wide world
00:59by his side. She refused, for she feared a life of hardship. From that day on, the emperor
01:03devoted himself to his studies, vowing to make her the most noble woman in the world. On their
01:07wedding day, they argued over planting a tree. The emperor refused to grow a loquat tree, for
01:12it carried an inauspicious meaning mourning for a deceased wife. The empress angrily said
01:16she would ask someone else to plant it. Yet the next morning, she found a young tree already
01:19planted in their courtyard. The emperor told her it was a pomegranate tree instead, a symbol
01:24of abundant blessings. Five years later, the pomegranate tree actually bore loquat fruit.
01:28Later, the empress took the beauty to the kitchen. She would teach her how to make the
01:32emperor's favorite pastries. The beauty was surprised that such a stern emperor could enjoy
01:35such sweet treats. The empress couldn't help recalling the first time she made them, and
01:39she had accidentally mixed up salt and sugar. The emperor ate the whole treat before gently
01:43telling her it tasted salty. She felt discouraged, as the spouses of other royal princes were all
01:47skilled cooks, while she had no such talent at all. The emperor cupped her face and told her she
01:51never needed to compare herself to others, she just needed to be herself. With his warm support,
01:56she finally baked a perfect batch of pastries one day. They tasted so sweet, yet the emperor
02:00praised them endlessly and wished to enjoy them every day. The beauty couldn't help but ask when
02:04he had stopped loving her so much. Just as the empress was about to answer,
02:07the emperor appeared at the doorway.
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