Noble Consort Duan walked up to her son with a helpless expression, and raised her sleeve to brush away the fine snow clinging to the hair at his temples. She exhorted tenderly, "Son, there's nothing for you to do staying inside the palace all the time. If you go out and walk around, you might encounter something interesting."
Duan Yue's icy gaze only then softened as he looked down at his mother. He nodded reluctantly, "Then I won't compete with them."
"Fine, fine, fine. Whatever you want."
Beside them was the empress, who was wearing red formal attire that was inlaid with black. Her eyes flashed, and she chuckled while covering her face. "Your Majesty, look. The fourth prince has already given his word. No matter what, you should select some young elites to compete against the fourth prince once we reach the icebound snow territory.
