The Prime Minister's Darling novel Chapter 1134

Chapter 1134: 553 Merits (Second Update)

It’s not really Gu Jiao’s fault.

People have conditional reflexes, and after spending several months with the old Marquis on the frontier and on the way back to the Capital City, Gu Jiao naturally got used to putting on the mask whenever she saw him.

Now, she was wearing it prematurely.

Without it, she could still be Gu Jiao, but with it on... she truly couldn’t explain herself properly.

Gu Jiao cast a resentful glance at the Emperor in the room, incompetent at everything but unmasking people first.

Why did he have to call for her?

If he hadn’t called, she wouldn’t have turned back, and she would have had a bit more time to think.

...How rash!

The Emperor gave Gu Jiao a puzzled look: "Gu... "

"Little brother?"

The old Marquis stood up, walking toward Gu Jiao with a face full of confusion and uncertainty.

He recognized the mask; it belonged to his younger brother. After one battle, feathers on the mask had fallen off, and he personally had someone add two peacock feathers to his brother’s mask.

The figure before him was similar to that of his younger brother, the only difference being garbed in women’s clothes!

Gu Jiao’s eyes darted around before she grabbed the old Marquis’s hand, instantly getting into character: Big brother!

The old Marquis saw those hands; this is how they had identified each other at the frontier!

He then looked into Gu Jiao’s eyes, recognizing the familiar gaze!

The old Marquis suddenly became excited: "Little brother! Is it really you?"

Gu Jiao nodded repeatedly: Big brother!

The Emperor was even more bewildered.

Could someone please tell His Majesty what was going on?

Why would Gu Chao be calling his own granddaughter ’little brother’?

Why was the little genius doctor looking at His Majesty with kind eyes and a small gesture?

The Emperor was utterly confounded!

Gu Chao firmly grasped Gu Jiao’s hand and asked, "Little brother, why are you dressed like this?"

Gu Jiao’s eyes swiftly turned, and withdrawing her hand, she quickly wrote in her notebook, "Someone’s trying to kill me, I disguised myself to avoid being targeted."

The old Marquis became indignant, "Who dares to pursue and kill my little brother? Could it be that my little brother’s military merits are too grand, drawing the envy of others? How about this, little brother, move to the Marquis Residence, your big brother will protect you!"

Gu Jiao thought to herself, that wouldn’t work—how could she continue to maneuver covertly if she moved to the Marquis Residence?

Gu Jiao solemnly wrote, "Don’t worry, big brother, everything is under control."

The old Marquis considered his brother’s skills for a moment and nodded thoughtfully. Within the Capital City, unless they faced the Dragon Shadow Guard, no one could harm his little brother.

If they couldn’t win the fight, they could still run, right?

His Majesty watched this unconventional brotherly recognition with a stunned expression.

The old Marquis asked in confusion, "By the way, little brother, how did you end up in the palace?"

Gu Jiao kept her expression unchanged and, after finishing writing, lifted her notebook, "Summoned by His Majesty!"

The Emperor: "..."

So now we’re impersonating imperial edicts in front of His Majesty?

The old Marquis, holding Gu Jiao’s hand, entered the Imperial Study Room and bowed to the Emperor, "Your Majesty, you requested the presence of my little brother to bestow rewards upon him, didn’t you? I knew Your Majesty is a wise sovereign, always clear about rewards and punishments! It was my sworn little brother who snuck into the Governor’s Mansion and rescued me. He fought side by side with Grand Marshal Tang Yueshan, keeping the flag of Zhan Country and the city battlements safe. He cared for the plague victims, and he was the one who rooted out the remnants of the former dynasty! Please ensure that his contributions are not mistakenly awarded to someone else."

The Emperor: "..."

The reason the old Marquis knew all these deeds were done by his little brother was that he asked Gu Chengfeng every day where his little brother had gone.

Gu Chengfeng couldn’t fabricate stories out of nowhere, so he had to tell him about Gu Jiao’s whereabouts—how she went to Lingguan City, how she saved plague victims, and even how she accidentally dismantled the former dynasty’s lair.

But Gu Chengfeng didn’t refer to her as "your granddaughter," instead saying "your brother."

With the old Marquis confined to the ward due to severe injuries, his information mainly came from Gu Chengfeng. Since neither Tang Yueshan nor Gu Changqing spilled the beans, Gu Jiao’s disguise remained tightly concealed.

"Your Majesty, I have overheard some rumors from the cabinet and the public that Princess Ning An performed great deeds on the frontier and should be titled as the Grand Marshal Protector. I mean no disrespect toward Princess Ning An, but I really don’t understand where the merit talk comes from! At that time, I was imprisoned in the Governor’s Mansion, and I am well aware of the situation there. Princess Ning An did not coordinate an inside-out operation with me. It was he who bravely entered the Governor’s Mansion, he who carried my second son out of Lingguan City, he who joined hands with Grand Marshal Tang to fight the pursuers. My safe return to Yuegu City is all thanks to my sworn little brother!"