A while longer passed.
Qianqing Palace.
You Rong went to handle court affairs. Lin Qinghe sat on the soft couch, her brows furrowed, sighing from time to time. This made Granny Xu ask in confusion, "Empress, what is wrong with you these past few days? Why do you keep sighing?"
Lin Qinghe sighed again, waved her hand and said, "Alas… you wouldn't understand. Don't mind this palace. You may withdraw. This palace wishes to rest for a while."
Granny Xu remained puzzled but nodded and replied, "Yes, this servant will take her leave."
After Granny Xu left and closed the palace doors, Lin Qinghe sat on the soft couch, her furrowed brows not yet relaxed.
Since that day, the progress bar had been stuck at ninety-five percent and refused to budge. No matter what she did, the progress bar was like a dead thing, showing no reaction.
Although this world was so peaceful that it allowed her to be a slug every day, which was quite pleasant, she just couldn't understand why the progress bar wasn't increasing.
You Rong had regained his senses, personally dealt with Consort Xiao and avenged You Jing, and had successfully ascended the throne, bestowing the title of Empress upon her. Now, no matter how she looked at it, he loved her, and loved her to death. Yet, the progress bar refused to move?
What could be the reason?
This made Lin Qinghe agitated.
As she grew agitated, Lin Qinghe's appetite seemed to decline. She felt listless all day, unwilling to move. When it was time for dinner, You Rong placed a piece of fish into her bowl. As soon as she smelled the fishy odor, she felt nauseous.
Lin Qinghe covered her mouth and bent over, retching. This made You Rong extremely anxious, and he shouted outside, "Guards! Quickly go and summon the imperial physician! Hurry!"
"Yes! Your Majesty, this servant will go fetch the imperial physician at once!" The young eunuch waiting at the door hurried off to find the imperial physician.
The imperial physician arrived quickly. As the imperial physician took Lin Qinghe's pulse, You Rong frowned, clasped Lin Qinghe's other hand with his large one, his expression grave.
Seeing this, Lin Qinghe couldn't help but console him, "Your Majesty, I am fine. I must have caught a chill last night and feel a little queasy."
"We need the imperial physician to examine you first," You Rong said.
Seeing that You Rong's tense nerves had not relaxed, Lin Qinghe was about to comfort him again when the imperial physician stood up, cupped his hands, and said joyfully, "Congratulations to Your Majesty, congratulations to Your Majesty! The Empress is with child!"
Suddenly, both Lin Qinghe and You Rong were stunned.
You Rong was the first to recover and asked with a face full of joy, "Really? The Empress is truly with child?"
"Replying to Your Majesty, it is absolutely true. The Empress's pulse is indeed that of pregnancy, and she is more than two months along."
Upon hearing this, You Rong became even more excited. He held Lin Qinghe's hand and repeatedly said, "Good! Good… Guards, reward Imperial Physician Zhang! Everyone in Qianqing Palace today, I will bestow rewards upon them all!"
Imperial Physician Zhang and the palace attendants all said in unison, "Thank you, Your Majesty, for your reward."
You Rong excitedly asked Imperial Physician Zhang about the precautions for prenatal care. Lin Qinghe lowered her eyes, looking at her own stomach in utter bewilderment.
She had never experienced pregnancy within the system before!
What was going on? Could it be that only by giving birth to children for You Rong would the progress bar increase?
While Lin Qinghe was lost in thought, You Rong had finished questioning the imperial physician and then waved for the imperial physician and the palace attendants to withdraw.
You Rong noticed Lin Qinghe's strangeness, his brows slightly furrowed. He took her hand, brought it to his lips, and kissed it. "You… are you unwilling to bear a child for me?"
Lin Qinghe hadn't fully processed it but instinctively shook her head. "It's not that. I… I am just too surprised. After all, a child… this is my first time being pregnant. I…"
Lin Qinghe's words trailed off. She wanted to say that this was her first time being a mother in the system, but of course, she couldn't tell You Rong that.
You Rong did not suspect anything, taking Lin Qinghe's slightly incoherent speech as mere surprise.
He smiled and embraced her, patting her back. "Don't be afraid. I am here. I will be a good father and a good husband…"
Lin Qinghe's face rested against You Rong's chest. Listening to the strong beat of his heart, she inexplicably felt at ease.
She softly replied with a "hmm," and then heard the system prompt: "Progress bar increased by two percent, total progress bar is ninety-seven percent."
Time flew by, and more than seven months passed.
As Lin Qinghe got up, she felt abdominal pain. Knowing that she was going into labor, she asked Granny Xu to summon a midwife. You Rong also rushed over, his face pale as he held her hand. Seeing him like this… Lin Qinghe, who was in so much pain she could barely speak, thought that if one didn't know, they would think he was the one giving birth.
Several hours later, Lin Qinghe felt utterly exhausted. She finally gave birth to twins, a son and a daughter.
Lin Qinghe weakly closed her eyes, listening to the cries of the infants and You Rong's voice in her ear, "Qinghe, I love you. Thank you for bearing children for me…"
Lin Qinghe was too weak to speak. Before she completely fell into a deep sleep, she heard the long-awaited system prompt: "Progress bar increased by two percent, total progress bar is ninety-nine percent."
Lin Qinghe gave birth to a son and a daughter. You Rong named their eldest son You Su and decreed him the Crown Prince that very day. Their daughter was named You Yuan.
Time flew by. Thirty-five years later, You Rong left an imperial decree. After the Crown Prince You Su ascended the throne, he took the Empress to reside in the Jiangnan temporary palace.
Another five years passed. Jiangnan Temporary Palace.
You Rong, his hair now white, lay on his bed, holding Lin Qinghe's hand. His face, now lined with wrinkles, wore a faint smile. "Qinghe, our marital fate in this life has ended. In the next life, I will still find you, and we will be husband and wife again."
Lin Qinghe, whose appearance had also aged, smiled and nodded. "Mm, I will wait for you."
As You Rong slowly closed his eyes, Lin Qinghe heard the system prompt: "Progress bar increased by one percent, total progress bar is one hundred percent. Congratulations, Tasker Lin Qinghe, on completing the auxiliary mission for this world. You will now enter the next world."
Lin Qinghe lay on You Rong's chest. Before losing consciousness, the memories of her time with You Rong in this world flashed through her mind.
Lin Qinghe and You Rong had spent over forty years together. In terms of real-world time, it was only a few seconds, but in her memory, it was a truly long life.
You Rong, You Rong… she found that she was reluctant to part with him now, even though she would see him again in the next world…
Repeating You Rong's name in her mind over and over, Lin Qinghe's soul was drawn away, and she completely lost consciousness.