The Prime Minister's Darling novel Chapter 1194

Chapter 1194: 579 Maternal Love is Boundless (first update)

Princess Xinyang came out of the palace and got into her carriage.

Yujin asked her by her side, "Princess, are you going to Vermilion Bird Avenue?"

Princess Xinyang thought for a moment and said, "Let’s go to Bishui Alley first."

When the carriage arrived at Bishui Alley, Gu Jiao and Xiao Hen were turning the soil in the front courtyard, wielding their hoes with such expertise that they truly resembled a peasant husband and wife.

Princess Xinyang stepped forward and walked over.

"Mother," Xiao Hen greeted her when he saw her.

Gu Jiao called out, "Princess."

Princess Xinyang glanced at a certain someone, not quite satisfied with the address.

Xiao Hen smiled faintly and subtly grabbed Princess Xinyang’s hand, "What brings Mother over?"

"Don’t bully your wife!" Princess Xinyang gave him a stern look, brushed his hand away, and asked them, "Is the Empress Dowager back yet?"

Xiao Hen looked towards Gu Jiao.

Gu Jiao said, "She’s back, talking with Huangfu Xian inside."

Princess Xinyang asked, "Do you both know about Ning An’s matter?"

Gu Jiao nodded, "Just heard about it from Aunt."

Princess Xinyang looked relieved, "Then there’s no problem, I’ll head back first."

"I’ll see you off," said Xiao Hen.

Princess Xinyang turned and headed toward the entrance, taking only a few steps before catching a glimpse of the red-tasseled spear leaning against the bamboo and basking in the sun. She tugged the corners of her lips and said to Xiao Hen, "The courtyard is empty, why not show off a bit with the spear?"

A trace of embarrassment suddenly crossed Xiao Hen’s face as he steadied her arm to leave, "My own son, my own son!"

Princess Xinyang looked at him with a mix of annoyance and amusement, and boarded the carriage to return.

Gu Jiao, holding a hoe, looked towards the tightly shut windows of the west room and asked, "Do you think Aunt will tell him everything?"

Xiao Hen’s gaze also fell on the closed windows as he said, "I think she will."

Gu Jiao thought for a moment, "Aren’t you afraid it will upset him? He’s still so young."

Young children seem so fragile.

"You’re only three years older than him," Xiao Hen said with a mix of laughter and helplessness. Did this girl think she was that much older?

Xiao Hen said, "Of two evils, choose the lesser. Not telling him and letting him live his whole life under the misconception that his birth mother loathes him would be the greater sorrow."

Gu Jiao seemed to sense his emotions and gained some understanding. She turned her head to look at him, "Are you thinking about your own experiences?"

"Mhm," he confirmed without denial.

The most painful thing he had experienced was not finding out that he was not Princess Xinyang’s child, nor was it almost being burned alive in a fire, but the misunderstanding of Princess Xinyang’s disgust and abandonment of him.

It was a raw and gut-wrenching self-alienation.

Gu Jiao said, "Huangfu Xian mentioned that his mother seemed like a different person after she was injured; perhaps she wasn’t the real Ning An from that point on. Do you think the consort knows about Ning An’s situation?"

Xiao Hen shook his head, "Not sure, some questions will never have answers."

The Empress Dowager stepping out from the west room occurred an hour later, her expression tired with red veins visible in her eyes.

She stumbled slightly as she crossed the threshold.

Gu Jiao was tidying up the main hall and quickly stepped forward to support her, "Aunt!"

The Empress Dowager waved her hand, "I’m fine, just old. I’m going to lie down for a bit."

With that, she walked slowly towards her own little room.

Silver streaks adorned her hair; a vast sense of vicissitude shrouded her, and her silhouette seemed to hunch a bit. In the span of a single day, she appeared to have aged ten years.

Her life had been too difficult, too hard. She had preserved the realm of Zhan Country, safeguarded the emperor’s throne, and maintained the glory of the entire royal household. Yet the people she had raised with her own hands were no longer with her.

The Ning An she longed to see would never return.

The Empress Dowager lay down on her bedchamber, the room devoid of light.

Creak—

The door was pushed open.

Then another creak, as the door was closed again.

A small figure pitter-pattered to the bed, propped itself up on the edge of the bed, "Aunt!"

The Empress Dowager replied indifferently, "What is it?"

The little Monk Mengmeng asked cutely, "Do you want to sleep?"

The Empress Dowager rolled her eyes, "No, I’m lying here sprouting."

The little Monk Mengmeng widened his eyes, "Oh, should I water you then?"

The Empress Dowager: "..."

The little Monk Mengmeng then said, "Aunt, you still owe me a candied fruit."

The Empress Dowager: "The jar’s on the table, help yourself."

The little Monk Mengmeng exclaimed, "How come you’re not playing tricks today, Aunt?"

The Empress Dowager said blankly, "You’re very noisy today."

The little Monk Mengmeng tilted his little head, "Was I not noisy before?"

The Empress Dowager felt like she was going to lose her mind. She just wanted a moment of quiet to feel sad, but why was this little Monk always chattering?