Chapter 78 He always responds to everything regarding New Year's goods.

Even as she stood on the bustling street, Chu Rou could hardly believe that she had actually come out with the Crown Princess... to buy New Year's goods?

She turned her head and looked down to meet Qi Zheng's gaze. Seeing the child blinking his grape-like eyes at her, she felt a very subtle feeling in her heart. Whether it was buying New Year's goods or going out shopping, such things were too unfamiliar to her. She had been carefully protected since childhood and had never come into contact with such a lively and down-to-earth world.

Through those grape-like eyes, he saw a similar sense of helplessness on Qi Zheng's face. However, unlike Chu Rou, who had been carefully protected by the Grand Tutor since childhood, Qi Zheng must have grown up on the frontier and had never seen such a prosperous scene. Thinking of this, Chu Rou felt a slight pang of sadness.

What are you two doing?

Shen Yujiao led Yong'an ahead, but after waiting for a long time, she turned around in confusion and saw the two of them staring at each other blankly at the entrance of the bustling street.

"I...we were just now..."

Seeing the awkwardness on her face, Shen Yujiao couldn't help but smile: "Miss Chu, how is it? Have you seen the world yet?"

Chu Rou held Qi Zheng's hand, her face flushed, but she still nodded as instructed. The Crown Princess was right, and she agreed with her. She never thought that only palaces, towers, gold and jade and flowers could be considered worldly. Isn't the everyday life of ordinary people in the city full of life another kind of world?

Seeing how reserved the three of them were, Shen Yujiao thought for a moment, then squatted down and said to the two younger ones, "We have a lot of things to buy today. I'll give you the list, and you can do the shopping. Your sister-in-law and Sister Chu will follow behind you. Is that alright?"

Upon hearing this, the two children, who were not yet familiar with each other, exchanged a somewhat resistant glance and then fell silent. Seeing their reaction, Shen Yujiao looked helplessly at the two grown men standing beside her.

When He Zhiju saw that her sister was asking for help, she squatted down and said a few words to Qi Zheng. The two of them kept their voices very low, but when Qi Zheng came back from the other side, he obediently took the list.

Jiang Chen was in a bit of a dilemma. Although he knew that Yong'an might be dependent on him because of her brother, he didn't really know how to coax a child. But seeing Shen Yujiao's pitiful look, he had no choice but to bite the bullet and squat down.

To his surprise, before he could even speak, Yong'an took another list from Shen Yujiao's hand: "Sister-in-law, I can do it."

The little girl's voice was clear and melodious, which made Shen Yujiao affectionately pat her head. Then she patted the two children's shoulders to encourage them.

The two children, who had just been resistant, suddenly felt that they had a rival. Their competitive spirit took over, and without Shen Yujiao saying anything more, the two walked to the lantern stall in front and began to buy lanterns.

Although Yong'an had lived a poor life since childhood, she never had to buy things herself. Now that she lived in Kunyi Palace, she didn't need to get involved in these purchasing and other household affairs. So she stood in front of the stall, feeling a little lost.

Before the incident involving General Qi, Qi Zheng, who had grown up in the northern border, was a lively and active young man. However, the recent sudden change had made him somewhat taciturn. But when he stood in front of the vendor, he couldn't help but speak up: "Boss, I want twenty big red lanterns. Do you have any here?"

The shopkeeper had been selling lanterns on this street for more than ten days and had seen all kinds of customers, young and old, but he had never seen two little children buy so many lanterns. At first, he thought it was interesting and wanted to tease them, but after glancing at the several adults following behind the two children, he gave up the idea.

Judging from their clothes alone, those people were clearly wealthy and noble, not to mention the group of armed guards accompanying them. Such a entourage meant they were either royalty or members of a high-ranking noble family. The two children were clearly a young noble lady and a young master.

"Young master, our red lanterns cost fifty coins each. If you want to buy twenty, that'll be exactly one string of cash. Would you like to?"

"want--"

Qi Zheng turned to look at Zhu Yu, hesitated for a moment, and then reached out his hand to him. Upon seeing this, Zhu Yu quickly took out a string of coins from his money bag and gave it to him. Qi Zheng took the money and handed it to the shopkeeper.

The shopkeeper had never seen such a straightforward customer. After taking the money, a smile immediately spread across his face. He asked, "How will you take these twenty lanterns home? Or should I deliver them to your residence?"

This time, Yong'an spoke first, saying, "The servants will come to collect it in a little while, please wait a moment."

The boss was slightly taken aback upon hearing this. Although she was a young girl, her words carried an undeniable air of authority. He nodded in agreement and bowed to the two of them.

The two children had barely left the vendor's stall when the group of men approached. The leader glanced at him without speaking, but his imposing presence was enough to startle him. Without the man needing to say anything, several guards stepped forward, and the leader nodded to him: "Our young master and young lady just bought twenty lanterns from you..."

After leaving the lantern stall, Yong'an hesitated for a while before finally asking, "Why didn't you haggle over the price just now?"

"What?" Qi Zheng didn't quite understand the question.

"Those lanterns, we came across a stall there. He sold them for forty-five coins each, and there were discounts for buying more. Twenty shouldn't be too bad for us..."

"You..." Qi Zheng was about to speak when he realized that the little girl in front of him was a princess, and he paused again: "Why didn't you say so just now? This is my first time buying New Year's goods, and I don't know much about it."

"I...this is my first time out here too..."

The two little ones looked at each other, and finally Qi Zheng said first, "Well, let's discuss how to buy red paper later."

"good."

Seeing that the shopping for the two children was going more and more smoothly, Shen Yujiao breathed a sigh of relief. As for Qi Zheng, needless to say, Yong'an had been in a daze since she was brought to the East Palace yesterday. She was even very taciturn in front of her, as if she had grown up overnight after Rong Jieyu's miscarriage.

She was precocious in the past, and now I dare not treat her like a child.

Jiang Chen's gaze followed Shen Yujiao. Seeing that she was staring at the two children in a daze, he reached out and took her hand: "Watch your step. What are you thinking about?"

Feeling a warm and solid support in her hand, Shen Yujiao smiled and said, "I was thinking about our childhood. Looking at them, I feel so fortunate."

She was fortunate not to have been born into such a privileged family. They were all children who grew up in loving families with loving parents and doting grandparents. She and Jiang Chen made up for the lack of siblings, and at their age, they did not need to worry about life-or-death situations.

"After the New Year, if I am not too busy with my duties, I will often take Yong'an out of the palace. At that time, we can play together at home with the two children, or go on outings. Do whatever makes you happy."

Hearing Jiang Chen's words of comfort, Shen Yujiao couldn't help but turn her head to look at him. The bustling city at the end of the year was the noisiest, but Shen Yujiao could only hear his voice and could only see him.

"Yes!" She nodded emphatically. Although she didn't say it, she was truly happy and touched by Jiang Chen's willingness to respond to everything.

Chu Rou and He Zhiju walked side by side behind the two, her gaze unconsciously falling on their clasped hands. A faint smile played on her lips, her heart filled with both joy for them and sorrow for herself. She dared not even dream of such a relationship in her lifetime.

"Sister-in-law!" Yong'an ran back from the front, raising her right hand high, and suddenly threw herself into Shen Yujiao's open arms as she knelt down. She took out the small jade ring in her hand and showed it to Shen Yujiao as if presenting a treasure: "This is for you, sister-in-law. Do you like it?"

Looking at the little girl's bright eyes, Shen Yujiao felt very warm inside. She stood up and immediately put the jade ring on her waist. It was a small piece, not a high-quality jade, but just a string of various beads with colorful threads. However, Shen Yujiao gently stroked it with great care.

In the blink of an eye, Qi Zheng, who was following behind Yong'an, also came over. He first bowed to Shen Yujiao and Jiang Chen, and then awkwardly walked to Chu Rou's side and stuffed something into her hand.

The action looked rather mysterious. Before Shen Yujiao could ask, Yong'an tugged at her hem, and she squatted down, letting Yong'an whisper in her ear, "He bought a small jade hairpin for Consort Chu, but I think that hairpin isn't as pretty as this brocade pendant."

Shen Yujiao rarely saw her smiling, so she whispered in her ear, "Our Yong'an has the best taste."

The two were chatting happily, which made Jiang Chen unable to resist squatting down as well. He pretended to be jealous and said to Yong'an, "You only know how to buy things for your sister-in-law. Don't you have anything for your brother?"

"Fifth Brother is actually jealous of his sister-in-law! Those are things meant for women."

Yong'an ran around the two of them, while Shen Yujiao protected Yong'an with one hand and blocked Jiang Chen with the other. The three of them chased each other and had a great time. However, the market before the New Year was crowded, and the three of them bumped into someone before they had run far.

"What are you doing here, Xiao Yong'an?"

The person caught Yong'an, who almost fell, and helped her stand up. Then he stood up and greeted the group, saying, "It's quite a coincidence to run into you here at this hour."

“Brother,” Jiang Chen’s smile gradually faded. He nodded to Jiang Yu opposite him, then took Yong’an’s hand with one hand and put his arm around Shen Yujiao’s shoulder with the other: “The New Year is coming soon, and it’s bound to be boring in the manor. I was thinking of taking them out to see the world.”

Jiang Chen pulled Yong'an back right in front of him, but Jiang Yu's smile remained flawless. He still had that gentle and refined demeanor, and even patted Yong'an's head, nodding in agreement, "Yes, the market is the liveliest place at the end of the year, but it's not necessarily safe. If you've had your fill of shopping, you should head back early."

"Alright."

Jiang Chen didn't want to talk to him anymore. He nodded slightly and was about to turn and leave, but before he could move, he heard the person beside him say, "I'll take them back first. Your Highness, you and your elder brother haven't seen each other for a long time. If you have something to say, you don't need to worry about us."

Shen Yujiao and Jiang Chen's eyes met. In that instant, Jiang Chen realized that she wanted him to get information out of Jiang Yu. However, when he thought of the day he and He Zhiju were assassinated, he felt that facing Jiang Yu was pointless.

“It’s alright,” he said, looking directly at Shen Yujiao, “Brother is busy with official duties, so I won’t disturb you. Even if I had something to ask you, I’m afraid you wouldn’t have anything to say to me.”

Jiang Chen withdrew his gaze, cupped his hands in a respectful bow to Jiang Yu, and said, "Then I shall take my leave."

As he watched the group leave in front of him, Jiang Yu slowly clenched his fist behind his back. He looked at Jiang Chen and Shen Yujiao holding Yong'an's hand, looking like a family of three, and felt as if a huge boulder was pressing on his heart.

King Zhao slowly emerged from the crowd. Seeing King Huan's distraught appearance, he felt a pang of self-reproach. He tentatively began, "Brother..."

"Let's go, all the lords are waiting, let's not be impolite."

"elder brother--"

King Zhao reached out, trying to grab King Huan's cloak, but a sudden gust of wind in the winter night prevented him from even touching the hem of the robe. He stood there, watching Jiang Yu walk into the crowd step by step. He was surrounded by the bustling and lively marketplace, with countless followers behind him, but he looked extremely lonely and desolate as he walked among them.

He actually saw helplessness in such a powerful person, as if the hustle and bustle of the world had nothing to do with him.

Jiang Jin admitted that at that moment, he truly regretted it.