Chapter 376 Mother (First Update)

The reason for this speculation is that Xiao Liulang told the old chief priest that Princess Xinyang also had the Dragon Shadow Guard. Regardless of the late emperor's purpose in giving the Dragon Shadow Guard to Princess Xinyang, it at least shows one thing—Princess Xinyang held a very important place in the late emperor's heart.

In fact, if the old chief priest hadn't learned from Xiao Liulang that Princess Xinyang had the Dragon Shadow Guard, he probably wouldn't have known that the relationship between the father and daughter was so deep.

Princess Xinyang's birth mother was Consort Yu, who passed away when Princess Xinyang was thirteen years old. By then, Princess Xinyang was already grown up, so there was no question of her being adopted or raised by anyone.

The late emperor did not show her any special care because she had lost her parents; he treated her no differently than he treated the other princesses in the palace…

The old chief priest shook his head.

It seems there are many things he doesn't know.

Gu Changqing and Princess Xinyang were not of the same generation, so he did not know much about the situation at the time and therefore did not have the same feelings as the old chief priest.

He simply assumed that the late emperor had always doted on this daughter, but he was unaware of it.

Considering the current situation, he said, "Princess Xinyang is not in the capital, but she is not too far away. She can arrive in a few days at a fast horse..."

“She may not see you,” the old priest said.

Gu Changqing remained silent.

He understood that what the old priest had said was true.

After the young marquis died in the fire at the Imperial Academy, Princess Xinyang was overwhelmed with grief and eventually left the capital, this place of sorrow, with her trusted servants.

She refused to see anyone connected to the capital.

It's understandable. The blow of losing her son was too great for her. She didn't want to be reminded of the past or come into contact with anyone who might remind her of her time in Beijing.

"We have to give it a try," Gu Changqing said.

The old chief priest did not refute. Neither of them were stupid. On the surface, the simplest and most direct way was to steal back the imperial edict. However, as long as the Dragon Shadow Guards were in the hands of Consort Jing, they would not be able to succeed.

Even if they knew the contents of the imperial edict, they still might not be able to succeed. But as the saying goes, "Know yourself and know your enemy, and you will win every battle." As long as they understood the contents of the imperial edict, they would know what Consort Jing's trump card was.

Gu Changqing said, "Princess Xinyang is near Fengdu Mountain, right? I happen to be going there soon, so I'll visit her on the way."

"What are you going to Fengdu Mountain for?" the old chief priest asked casually.

Gu Changqing said, "My grandfather sent me."

It was probably about that secret army, but my grandfather didn't say much more.

Strangely enough, last time my grandfather seemed to be making his final arrangements, handing over all the tokens to them, but the next day he took them all back.

The old priest's mood sombered: "If you go to Fengdu Mountain, please offer incense to an old friend for me."

“Okay.” Gu Changqing didn’t ask who his old friend was or what his relationship was with the old priest. He just asked for the address of the cemetery and then got up and left.

As he walked to the door, he unexpectedly ran into Xiao Liulang.

I don't know how long Xiao Liulang has been here, or how much he has heard, but he is not an outsider after all, so there is no need to hide it from him.

Gu Changqing nodded in greeting.

Xiao Liulang nodded in return.

After Gu Changqing left the courtyard, the old chief priest also came out. He looked at Xiao Liulang, who was thin and lonely in the moonlight, opened his mouth, but suddenly didn't know how to speak.

After a long while, he sighed with shame: "I went to see Princess Xinyang because I had some things to ask her... I'm sorry, perhaps I should have informed you beforehand, and I shouldn't have dragged Princess Xinyang into this."

Even so, even if it happened again, even if Xiao Liulang tried to stop him, he would still tell Gu Changqing that he hoped Gu Changqing would ask Princess Xinyang for an answer.

It wasn't just to bring down Consort Jing, but also for Xiao Liulang's safety.

Xiao Liulang is already caught in the trap; as long as Consort Jing is not eliminated, he cannot escape danger.

"but……"

"Teacher, it's getting late, you should rest."

The old priest and Xiao Liulang's voices rang out almost simultaneously, almost meaning that the old priest did speak first, but Xiao Liulang interrupted him after only two words.

The transition was so seamless that it was impossible to tell whether he deliberately interrupted or it was truly accidental.

The old chief priest paused for a moment, then nodded: "Alright, I'm almost done here, you should go and rest too. You must be tired from today's trip to the countryside, go to sleep early."

Originally, according to custom and given their relationship, the old chief minister would have inquired about what he had done in the countryside, since for Hanlin officials, it was often these "achievements" that truly led to their promotion.

But when the conversation has reached this point, everyone knows it's time to end it.

Xiao Liulang went back to the next room.

Liu Quan walked over from under the eaves: "Master."

"Sigh," the old chief priest sighed, "Why is he so stubborn?"

Liu Quan already knew Xiao Liulang's identity, but he still didn't quite understand the old chief priest's words: "What do you mean by that, sir?"

The old chief priest waved his hand: "Never mind, it's nothing."

...

After returning to his house, Xiao Liulang went straight to his study. He closed the door behind him and stood alone in the boundless night without lighting a lamp.

He understood what the teacher was going to ask.

Why didn't you tell Princess Xinyang that you were back?

It's somewhat understandable that they didn't tell Marquis Xuanping, since the father-son relationship wasn't close, and there's always some strange aversion and friction between men. It's not surprising that a rebellious teenager and a philandering father would become enemies.

What about Princess Xinyang?

What wrong has your mother, who cherishes you so dearly, done? What crime has she committed? Why did she have to come to this?

I used to think you didn't go to see her because you were worried that your own affairs would get too involved and implicate her.

But she has the Dragon Shadow Guard in her hands, who can hurt her?

Why did you do this, Ah Heng? Why?!

Gu Jiao went to the kitchen to boil some water and made some late-night snacks, planning to check if the men in the family had returned yet.

When she passed by the study, the door was closed and no candlelight shone through, but she didn't pay much attention as she walked past.

But she turned back after taking only two steps.

It's an intuition.

Instead of knocking as usual, she gently pushed the door open and went inside.

The faint candlelight from the corridor shone through, allowing her to see the figure standing in front of the desk, seemingly shrouded in immense sorrow.

She closed the door behind her, and her figure was swallowed by darkness once again.

But she knew where he was; she could hear his breathing.

She walked slowly over and stopped behind him.

Xiao Liulang neither turned around nor spoke.

She didn't say anything.

He couldn't possibly not know someone had come in; his lack of reaction must mean he didn't want to talk.

Gu Jiao simply cannot comprehend many complex emotions, but that doesn't mean she can't feel the emotions of others.

He was sad, very sad, very sad.

Gu Jiao recalled the scene in her mind when he gently comforted her by holding her in his arms as she was saddened because her great-aunt had forgotten her.

Unfortunately, she wasn't tall enough to pull someone into her arms like he did, letting their head rest against her chest.

She thought for a moment, then stepped forward, stretched out her little arms, and gently hugged him from behind.

Is this okay?

That way, I'll be a little less sad, right?

Gu Jiao initially hugged him very lightly, but when she pressed her cheek against his slightly stiff back, perhaps because she was so close to his heart, the sadness she felt intensified.

She tightened her grip on her arms.

In the darkness, Xiao Liulang suppressed the throbbing pain in his throat, raised his hand, and covered the hand that was wrapped around his waist.

...

This time was no different from any other. Gu Jiao comforted him considerately, but did not question him. Gu Jiao clearly felt that after his emotions calmed down a little, when she withdrew, he opened his mouth as if he had something to say to her.

Gu Jiao paused for a second.

That second was neither too fast nor too slow. If he wanted to explain, he could call her back. If he decided not to explain, the two of them wouldn't feel too awkward.

He ultimately offered no explanation.

The next day, Gu Jiao got up early and helped Granny Fang make breakfast for her family.

When Xiao Liulang came out of the west room, Gu Jiao was setting the table. She smiled at him and said, "Good morning."

It was as if nothing had happened, and everything was the same as usual.

Xiao Liulang nodded and greeted him in return, "Good morning."

Soon Xiao Jingkong also got up and went to the backyard to practice his skills. After a while, Gu Xiaoshun and Gu Yan also got up, and a lively morning began.

After breakfast, Xiao Liulang went to the Hanlin Academy, Xiao Jingkong followed the old Chancellor to the Imperial Academy, and Gu Yan and Gu Xiaoshun naturally went to Qinghe Academy.

Now the family has two carriages. Gu Yan and Gu Xiaoshun used one carriage, while Xiao Liulang and the other two rode in Liu Quan's carriage. Liu Quan first took the old man and the young man to the Imperial Academy, and then took Xiao Liulang to the Hanlin Academy.

Gu Jiao went to the clinic and received a reply from Xue Ningxiang.

Half a year had passed since Xue Ningxiang last wrote to her, but after reading the contents of the letter, Gu Jiao understood why Xue Ningxiang had taken so long to reply.

Xue Ningxiang's mother-in-law passed away on the third day after Zhou Erzhuang returned home.

Gu Jiao had shown Xue Ningxiang's mother-in-law that she was suffering from senile degeneration and that all of her organs were failing, a condition that could not be reversed by medication. It was already remarkable that she had managed to hold on until her son came back to see her one last time.

She passed away peacefully in her sleep.

Zhao Guo had a mourning system, where one had to stay at home for at least one and a half to three years to observe mourning for the deceased when an elder in the family passed away. Zhou Erzhuang was just a soldier and was not among those observing the mourning system.

But the funeral of his mother still had to be handled properly, so Zhou Erzhuang asked his companion to give him leave and stayed in the village to properly bury his mother.

This happened in the spring, and now that summer is almost over, Zhou Erzhuang should be back by now. But then another big thing happened—Dean Li of Tianxiang Academy actually came to Xue Ningxiang's door to propose marriage.

Gu Jiao was genuinely surprised to see this.

Xue Ningxiang and she weren't exactly inseparable, but neither of them mentioned Dean Li's affair with her.

Of course, the letter contained the full explanation.

It turns out that when she and Xiao Liulang were still in the countryside, Dean Li had already met Xue Ningxiang several times, and Gouwa even chased after her, calling her "Dad."

Gouwa was a toddler who was just learning to speak and didn't quite understand the meaning of "father." Seeing other children calling adult men "father," he probably thought that all such men were fathers.

This is Gu Jiao's own understanding.

Xue Ningxiang didn't explain in detail, only saying that later, Old Madam Li saw Gouwa. Old Madam Li was getting old and her mind wasn't very clear, so she mistook Gouwa for her own grandson.

Dean Li is a good person. He has a good relationship with Xiao Liulang's family and has helped Xue Ningxiang out of a predicament. Xue Ningxiang couldn't bear to see the old lady upset, so she let her mistake her identity.

Who knew that after that one time, things would get out of control. Every few days, Old Madam Li would want a grandson, and she even treated Xue Ningxiang as her daughter-in-law...

Dean Li told Xue Ningxiang not to misunderstand, and Xue Ningxiang really didn't misunderstand. Little did she know that he would come to propose marriage...

Gu Jiao knew trouble was brewing when she saw this.

Sure enough, the letter later mentioned that Zhou Erzhuang had a conflict with Dean Li, and that Zhou Erzhuang had even fought with Dean Li.

Zhou Erzhuang was a greenhorn, while Dean Li was a scholar; it's easy to imagine who would come out worse off in this fight.

Gu Jiao had long noticed Zhou Erzhuang's feelings for Xue Ningxiang, but she only found out about Dean Li's feelings today because she lacked the opportunity to discover them.

This explains why Xue Ningxiang's handwriting improved so much, and her literary talent also advanced by leaps and bounds, to the point that she no longer needed someone else to write her letters.

Xue Ningxiang is in a real dilemma. She says she wants to shave her head and become a nun, but she can't bear to part with Gouwa.

Gu Jiao could vaguely understand Xue Ningxiang's predicament. This era had a very low tolerance for women. Xue Ningxiang was a widow, and remarrying was already frowned upon. Moreover, she was going to marry either Dean Li, who was not a good match for her, or Zhou Erzhuang, who violated ethical norms.

It's a sure-fire, doomed move.

Unless she could withstand the gossip, which she clearly couldn't, she wouldn't have considered becoming a nun.

The letter ended by mentioning the medicinal mountain. The mountain had been cleared, and the medicinal herbs that Gu Jiao had specified had been planted by the villagers under Luo Lizheng's leadership.

Gu Jiao tapped her fingertips lightly on the table a few times before heading to the palace with the letter.

(End of this chapter)