"Are you saying that you were the maidservant that came with Empress Dowager Baili?!"
Xia Zhengqi felt as if his whole body was frozen.
"Yes, I am Guihua, the maid who came with Empress Dowager Baili as a dowry." The old nanny slowly raised her head and looked at Xia Zhengqi, her lips trembling with excitement.
"Your Majesty, the last time I saw you was over 30 years ago, when you were only three years old. You are already..."
Xia Zhengqi's eyes were red and his nose was sore: "I thought... I always thought that the Queen Mother's personal maids were no longer alive..."
"Back then, after the young lady passed away, this old servant and another personal maid, Shancha, were supposed to stay and take care of you."
"But a year later, Jiang... no, the current Empress Dowager, entered the palace, and this old slave and Shancha were dismissed."
Xia Zhengqi, tears welling in his eyes, leaned over and helped Nanny Guihua up. "Where have you been working for the past thirty years?"
"The old slave works in the laundry department, and Shancha works in the cleaning department. Shancha died of illness five years ago. The old slave is old and can no longer work, so he was assigned to look after the house."
Xia Zhengqi suppressed his excitement, his lips trembling, and he opened his mouth, but couldn't say a word.
The queen looked at Xia Zhengqi with pity.
She had heard of Empress Dowager Baili.
Although the Baili family was more like a taboo in the palace and was rarely mentioned, she heard Xia Zhengqi talk about it in person when she just got married.
Empress Dowager Baili, whose maiden name was Baili Qingyan, was the first empress of the late emperor.
She gave birth to two sons for the late emperor, one was the eldest prince Xia Zhengjie, and the other was the third prince Xia Zhengqi.
It’s a pity that she didn’t live long. She passed away when Xia Zhengqi was two years old.
Therefore, a year later, the late emperor married Jiang Hui, the sister of Grand Tutor Jiang, as his successor.
"Your Majesty, this is not a place for conversation. How about..." The Queen pulled Xia Zhengqi's sleeve.
Xia Zhengqi finally came to his senses: "Okay, take Madam to your Kunning Palace."
The nanny followed Xia Zhengqi and the queen to Kunning Palace.
As soon as she stepped into the palace, the queen keenly heard the low crying coming from the little princess's room.
The queen didn't care about anything else and walked over quickly.
The queen pushed open the door and saw Xia Miaoyuan sitting in bed, wiping her tears and crying softly. The nanny was hugging her with a worried look on her face.
"What happened to the princess?"
When the nanny saw the queen coming, she quickly stood up and said, "The little princess woke up from her sleep with a start. She seemed to be frightened and kept crying."
[Of course I am. I was just scared! Mom, please hug me!]
Xia Miaoyuan wiped her tears, looked up at the queen, her little face full of aggrieved expression.
I dreamed of a group of monkeys jumping on me and biting me. It was terrifying. I also dreamed of Deng Yirou's face covered in blood.
When the queen heard her daughter's voice, she felt both regretful and distressed. She immediately stepped forward, wrapped Xia Miaoyuan in a quilt and picked her up.
"Don't be afraid, Miao'er. Mother will take you to bed tonight."
The queen coaxed Xia Miaoyuan with soft words while picking her up and walking into her bedroom.
At this time, Xia Zhengqi was sitting in the small reception room of the bedroom, and Nanny Guihua was sitting opposite him. The two were chatting about the past.
The queen held Xia Miaoyuan and sat next to Xia Zhengqi.
Nanny Guihua quickly stood up and saluted.
"Please sit down, Madam, there's no need to be so formal." The Queen said in a gentle tone.
Who is this? You're actually sitting and chatting with Daddy.
Xia Miaoyuan glanced at Nanny Guihua and complained.
"What happened to Miao'er?" Xia Zhengqi asked immediately when he saw the queen carrying her daughter in.
"She was frightened by what happened during the day and had a nightmare, so I brought her here." The queen said in a light tone.
"Your Majesty, don't worry. I will just comfort her."
Nanny Guihua looked at Xia Miaoyuan with concern.
Seeing this, Xia Zhengqi hurriedly introduced: "Look, Aunt Guihua, this is my new princess this year, and she is also my only princess."
Nanny Guihua took a closer look and said happily, "The little princess looks so much like your Majesty when he was a child! Her eyebrows, her eyes, her lips."
[Hmm? Daddy as a child? Is this the person who took care of him when he was a child?]
"By the way, Madam, why were you and Shancha sent away back then?" Xia Zhengqi asked.
Nanny Guihua frowned, "Ever since Empress Dowager Jiang entered the palace and was ordered to raise His Majesty, she has been displeased with us in every way."
"Less than half a year later, Her Majesty suddenly came down with a fever. She blamed us for not caring for the prince properly and sent us away."
After hearing what the nanny said, Xia Miaoyuan woke up instantly and all sleepiness disappeared.
[Wow, isn't it? She's really the maid who took care of Daddy when he was young.]
[She was driven away by Old Lady Jiang? Could she be a maidservant beside Empress Baili?!]
Thinking of this, Xia Miaoyuan looked at Aunt Guihua intently.
"Alas, for so many years, I always thought that you were gone. When I was a little older, I tried to find the palace maids who were with my mother back then."
"But I asked many elderly fathers-in-law, and they all said they didn't know."
"Later, Empress Dowager Jiang found out and was very unhappy, so I never dared to inquire about it again." Xia Zhengqi's tone was sad.
[She really was a maid who served Empress Dowager Baili.]
[Humph, Jiang Hui is quite cunning. She drove away the maidservants around my biological mother to prevent them from telling my father about my biological mother.]
[Minimize the influence of the biological mother on the child, so that the young father will only recognize her as the mother.]
Xia Miaoyuan sucked her fingers and analyzed the situation seriously in her mind.
Seeing that Xia Zhengqi was recalling his unpleasant childhood experiences, the queen immediately changed the subject.
"Mammy, you are burning paper for Madam Baili tonight. Could it be that today is her memorial day?"
Aunt Guihua sighed and said, "So be it."
"To be honest, I don't know when her death anniversary is."
"More than thirty years ago today, this old slave received news that the old lady had died on the road to exile."
Upon hearing this, Xia Zhengqi was shocked and asked, "What? Grandmother died on the road to exile?"
[Alas, not long after Jiang Hui became the heir apparent, Grand Tutor Jiang instructed his disciples to impeach my great-grandfather, accusing him of collaborating with the enemy and committing treason.]
Grandfather sent someone to search, and sure enough, they found a token from the enemy nation in his study.
Grandfather was furious, but because he was his father-in-law, he spared his life and sentenced him to exile instead of his property.
My great-grandmother was already in poor health, and she fell ill immediately after this devastating blow.
[She was exiled after being convicted of a crime and suffered great hardships along the way. Before she even arrived, she fell ill and died.]
Xia Miaoyuan couldn't help feeling sad and heartbroken when he recalled the ending of the Baili family in the book.
[The Baili family, loyal to Daxia, was framed and their entire family was destroyed.]
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