Yunchao, Dunyang City.
Sunlight streamed through the window, filling the room with brightness.
Zhao Zhi turned over in bed and vaguely heard a series of hurried footsteps.
Chaoyan burst into the room, her face filled with panic, gasping for breath: "Miss...Miss, something terrible has happened! Miss, Miss, she's gone...gone!"
Zhao Zhi, still half-asleep, rubbed her eyes and slowly sat up, still wrapped in the blanket. She glanced instinctively at her side, reached out and touched the bed; it was cold, clearly indicating the person had been gone for some time.
She remained calm and said, "Shen Hanshan is gone too, isn't he?"
Asagao stared wide-eyed at her incredulously, nodding repeatedly: "Miss, you are truly a prophet! The young master and young lady have both disappeared!"
Zhao Zhi smiled softly, yawned, and her drowsiness gradually dissipated.
Just then, Zhang Wan anxiously walked in and asked if she should inform Cui Shenghe about the matter so that he could dispatch the Imperial Guards to search for the child's whereabouts.
Zhao Zhi waved her hand and said in a calm tone, "No need to look anymore. Xuan'er must have been taken away by Shen Hanshan. During this time, he has been asking me every now and then if I want to go back to Da Xuan. My brother recently regained his status as Prince Rui. With all these things connected, it is not hard to guess his intentions."
Hearing Zhao Zhi say this, Chao Yan couldn't help but angrily retort, "I never thought that the son-in-law would do such a despicable and shameless thing for his own reputation and status!" Halfway through her sentence, Chao Yan subconsciously glanced at Zhao Zhi. Seeing that she was not angry, her next words were not so intense, "He actually did such a ridiculous thing."
Seeing that Zhao Zhi was not in a hurry, Zhang Wan guessed that she must have already guessed Shen Hanshan's plan, so she was no longer anxious. She turned around and left the room, instructing the servants not to look for the child's whereabouts anymore.
The wet nurse who was looking after the child breathed a sigh of relief. Zhao Shouzhen, who had been frightened away, slowly regained his composure, and his pale face gradually returned to normal. Zhang Wan comforted Zhao Shouzhen and came into the room. She saw that Zhao Zhi had already washed up and was sitting on the bed, leaning against a soft cushion, intently looking at a piece of paper in her hand.
She approached quietly and discovered that Zhao Zhi was intently studying a map of the Yun Dynasty.
Beside Zhao Zhi's hand was half of a jade pendant named "Qingxuan" left by her birth mother, Cui Jiao.
She was so engrossed in watching that she didn't even notice someone coming in.
Only when she felt the bed beside her dip slightly did Zhao Zhi subconsciously look up. Seeing Zhang Wan, a bright smile immediately bloomed on her face, and she happily said, "Mother, you're here."
Zhang Wan nodded gently and softly reminded her, "Although you've finished your postpartum confinement, you still need to be careful with your eyes. Don't overuse them, lest you develop eye diseases when you get older."
A warm feeling welled up in Zhao Zhi's heart. She slowly closed her eyes, gently leaned on Zhang Wan's shoulder, and murmured to herself, "Mother, it's so good to have you by my side."
Zhang Wan stretched out her slender fingers and gently stroked Zhao Zhi's back, saying tenderly, "Zhizhi, your mother has no great ambitions in this life, I only hope that you can be safe and healthy."
Hearing her mother's words, Zhao Zhi felt a surge of warmth in her heart, but at the same time, she also felt a pang of guilt.
She knew that her parents had spent a long time in Dunyang City to be with her, and that her father had a deep longing for their hometown, Daxuan.
Zhao Zhi sat up straight again, held her mother's hand tightly, and said earnestly, "Mother, you and Father have been with me in Dunyang City for too long. I can tell that Father misses Da Xuan a little. I have already asked my brother to take care of our residence in Chaoyang County, which is to the left of the Princess's residence. If my prediction is correct, my brother will soon issue an imperial decree to allow Shen Hanshan to accompany the Princess back to her fiefdom."
"But, Zhizhi, aren't you in Dunyang?" Zhang Wan asked, voicing her doubts, then said as if suddenly realizing something, "You mean, they'll find someone to impersonate you?"
Zhao Zhi burst into laughter, a sly glint in her eyes. "Mother, if you were ten years younger, I would definitely recommend you to be a female official in Yun Dynasty! Your insight is truly unparalleled."
Zhang Wan feigned slight anger and scolded, "You're going to be an empress in the future, how can you not know your place when you speak?!"
When Zhao Zhi heard her mention the Empress, she suddenly fell silent. The mother and daughter sat silently for a moment, their hearts filled with sorrow.
They are separated, which is unavoidable.
"Mother, my brother and I have more important things to do next, so I need to entrust Yunxiao to you and Father." Zhao Zhi's expression was solemn, and at first glance, it seemed to carry the implication of entrusting her son to someone else.
Zhang Wan's expression tightened, and she gripped Zhao Zhi's hand nervously. "Zhizhi, do you mean to let Mother take Xiaoxiao away?"
Zhao Zhi nodded heavily. "Since Shen Hanshan likes children so much, let's leave Yun Xiao and Yun Xuan in his care."
After saying that, she suddenly chuckled softly, "Mother, do you think Shen Hanshan would be so angry if he knew that I had outmaneuvered him?"
Zhang Wan looked at her with affection, gently patted the back of her hand and said, "You, you've always been so clever and mischievous since you were little, always doing things that people don't expect."
As she spoke, her voice lowered, and she gradually choked up, "Mother knows that no mother is willing to be separated from her child; most of the time, it's just that they have no choice."
"Mother, don't be sad." Zhao Zhi took a deep breath and looked towards the door. "Perhaps, in three, five, or even ten years, Yunchao and Daxuan will be united, and we will never have to be separated again!"
Zhang Wan felt a surge of emotions as she listened to Zhao Zhi's seemingly joking words.
She concealed the shock in her eyes, slowly rose, bowed respectfully to Zhao Zhi, and said, "This humble woman will do everything in her power to wish Your Highness a speedy fulfillment of your wish."
Zhao Zhi quickly helped her mother up, her eyes slightly red, her voice carrying a mixture of determination and tenderness: "Mother, you are making your daughter suffer. Although I bear heavy responsibilities, I am still your child, and Yunxiao and Yunxuan are our precious children. This arrangement is truly out of necessity, but please believe that everything I have done is so that our family can be reunited as soon as possible and never be separated again."
Upon hearing this, Zhang Wan's eyes welled up with tears, but she held them back. She gently patted Zhao Zhi's hand and said earnestly, "Zhizhi, I know you have great ambitions, and I understand the heavy responsibility on your shoulders." As she spoke, she looked at the Qingxuan in Zhao Zhi's hand and choked up, "I know you are going to find an important item. You must be careful!"
Zhao Zhi nodded heavily.
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