Everyone turned to look at the doorway.

Everyone was stunned when they saw the emperor holding a child in his arms.

Where did such a small child come from?

Even if it's a child born outside the palace, the emperor's grandson shouldn't be this young!

Looking at the people beside the emperor, on his left and right, there was a boy and a girl, respectively.

These must be the two children left behind by that imperial grandson.

As they drew closer, everyone finally saw the girl and boy's faces clearly, and they were instantly amazed by their beauty.

The girl appeared to be eighteen or nineteen years old, dressed in an apricot-yellow robe that didn't seem to be from the Northern Wei Dynasty, yet was clearly made of the finest fabric. She possessed stunning beauty, an extraordinary air, and unparalleled elegance; her entire being exuded the noble grace of an empress.

The boy on the left looks exactly like the girl. Although he looks very young, he is already as tall as the girl!

Are these two children the grandson of the emperor? They don't look like grandsons of the emperor at all, but the boy's height is definitely like that of a grandson of the emperor. His face is still childish, but he is already very tall.

Everyone stared intently at Su Xuening and Su Yun'an, even the three of them.

They hadn't expected that Helian Ci had two children outside of marriage. They had clearly investigated before and found that Helian Ci hadn't married outside of marriage, let alone had two children.

If they had known earlier that Helian Ci had married and had children outside, wouldn't they have captured those two children long ago? They wouldn't be in such a passive position now, and they would have had Helian Ci under their control much earlier.

Judging from the old man's attitude now, it seems that he loves both children as much as he loves his own!

And where did that baby in the old man's arms come from?

Such a young child couldn't possibly be Helian Ci's, could he?

For the past few years, Helian Ci has stayed in the palace, never leaving the inner palace, and there has never been any news of him favoring any woman, so this baby probably isn't Helian Ci's!

Su Xuening and Su Yun'an helped Helian Rong down the jade steps. They hadn't intended to go any further, but Helian Rong looked at them and said, "Come up with me and sit down."

Since Helian Rong had spoken, Su Xuening and Su Yun'an didn't stand on ceremony and went up the jade steps together, sitting on either side of Helian Rong as before.

The courtiers were once again stunned to see how much Helian Rong valued Su Xuening and Su Yun'an.

Even if he were truly a grandson of the emperor left behind outside, he wouldn't be qualified to sit on the jade steps.

There are usually no seats next to the dragon throne, but today, for the rare birthday banquet, these two seats have been set up. In fact, they are just for show, because one seat is for the Empress and the other for the Empress Dowager. However, the Emperor is already eighty years old, and the Empress has long since passed away, so these two seats are just for show. It is unexpected that the Emperor would let his two children sit there.

Helian Zheng and the others exchanged unpleasant glances, feeling extremely frustrated.

The three of them had never sat in the seats next to the dragon throne, yet these two little brats sat there—it's outrageous!

Upon seeing Helian Rong sit down, all the civil and military officials, imperial relatives, and concubines in the harem rose and bowed to him, saying, "Your Majesty, we pay our respects! Long live the Emperor!"

Helian Zheng and the other two didn't want to get up. It wasn't that they didn't want to pay their respects to the old man, but mainly because the two little brats were also sitting there. What annoyed them the most was that the old man was holding an infant in his arms. If they paid their respects to the old man now, it would be as if they were paying their respects to the two little brats and the infant in swaddling clothes. They were extremely unhappy!

But they remained seated, and Helian Rong, sitting on the dragon throne, dared not let the other officials rise, so his gaze fell upon the three of them.

Although Helian Rong was old, he was not yet blind. Helian Zheng and the other two could not do anything under his nose, so they could only get up and give Helian Rong a perfunctory bow.

Helian Rong didn't bother arguing with them and looked at the assembled officials: "Rise, everyone. Today is my birthday banquet, so please make yourselves at home."

"Thank you, Your Majesty!" Everyone then stood up and took their seats.

"The eldest grandson of the emperor has arrived!" As soon as everyone sat down, the announcement was made again from outside.

Su Renzhong led several Qinglong Guards into the main hall.

The Azure Dragon Guards carried a tiger skin together, following behind Su Renzhong.

When Su Renzhong reached the bottom of the jade steps, he first glanced at Su Xuening and Su Yun'an sitting next to Helian Rong before bowing to Helian Rong and saying, "Grandfather."

Helian Rong glanced at the large tiger skin behind him and asked, "Is this the birthday gift you prepared for me?"

Su Renzhong quickly bowed: "This is a game that I hunted myself, and I present it to my grandfather as a birthday gift. I hope that this king of the mountain beasts can ward off evil spirits for my grandfather, the ruler of Northern Wei. May my grandfather live to be a hundred years old and still be full of vigor and power!"

"Good! Good!" Helian Rong looked at the huge tiger skin with great excitement, as if Su Renzhong had given him some extraordinary treasure: "Ci'er is indeed young and strong, and his skills are remarkable!"

Upon hearing Helian Rong praise Su Renzhong, Helian Qin simply snorted disdainfully.

What's with all this talk about being young and strong? I'm almost forty, only about twenty years younger than them. What's there to be proud of?

Helian Qin's cold snort was quite obvious, instantly turning Helian Rong's previously happy expression dark. He glanced at Helian Qin with displeasure: "Third brother, do you have a problem with that?"

Helian Qin curled his lips in disgust: "Helian Ci just said something about being full of life, but he clearly sent a dead tiger. I think Helian Ci has ulterior motives. I'm afraid he hopes that Father Emperor can become a dead tiger!"

Helian Qin's words instantly silenced the bustling hall.

The Prince of Heng's words are truly outrageous!

He dares to say such things; he's incredibly audacious!

Su Renzhong was so angry at Helian Qin that he glared at him.

Helian Rong's face was as black as the bottom of a pot, and he glared at Helian Qin as if he wanted to strangle him!

Just as the atmosphere in the entire hall was tense, a boy's innocent voice suddenly rang out: "Great-grandfather, what does this old man mean? My father gave this tiger in the hope that it could ward off evil spirits for you. He hunted this tiger to protect you from disaster. Why is this old man so insistent on misinterpreting my father's meaning and talking about death on such an auspicious birthday? Isn't he cursing you?"

The boy's clear voice echoed throughout the hall, not only explaining the meaning of the tiger skin birthday gift to Su Renzhong, but also mentioning Helian Qin's sinister intentions!

Everyone present looked strange upon hearing Su Yun'an's words.

This boy is quick-witted and quite eloquent!

Even Helian Rong looked at Su Yun'an with surprise, a hint of joy appearing in his cloudy eyes.

This child is really amazing! He's so smart at such a young age, and he has the courage of a newborn calf not afraid of tigers. He's even more resourceful than his father!