Chapter 590 Extra - I Don't Want to Change
Lin Changning carried Yue'er in his left arm and held Lin Yuhua's hand in his right, walking straight outside. Of the Lin family's children, Lin Xi, not to mention his natural composure, was also extremely talented in studying.
With Yue'er being granted the title of Princess and Lin Changning's fierce protectiveness, there's hardly any gossip going around anymore.
Those who gossip probably want Lin Changning to come knocking on their door. Ever since they were fined three months' salary when they first arrived in the capital, these people in the capital have all figured out some tricks of the trade.
Some clever ones even recalled what happened before Marquis Wu'an left the capital, and upon returning home, they repeatedly instructed their wives not to provoke the Lin family.
Lin Changning has also learned to be smart.
For military families, Lin Changning personally visited to learn martial arts; for civil officials, Zhiyuan, the current Vice Minister of the Ministry of Personnel, visited to learn knowledge.
Speaking of Zhiyuan, he was quite ruthless. He was a scholar who could insult people without using any vulgar language, yet he managed to make several old men so angry that they vomited blood. However, they were powerless to do anything about it and dared not lay a hand on him.
Believe it or not, the Marquis of Wu'an will come knocking on our door tomorrow.
Trying to outwit him with words? But he couldn't out-argue the quick-witted Vice Minister of the Ministry of Personnel.
Behind Marquis Wu'an stands the Emperor himself.
This young vice minister also came from the Crown Prince's residence.
The officials who submitted memorials were repeatedly criticized by the emperor, but were only dismissed lightly. When they spoke too much, the Vice Minister of Personnel would block the entrance of the emperor's residence at night to demand his opinion. How frustrating! Truly frustrating!
After that a few times, no one mentioned it anymore.
It's a thankless task, and you might even offend the future emperor.
Li Mingxiu held his son in his arms and gently coaxed him. The Crown Princess looked at the father and son with tender eyes and said, "Your Highness, the school teacher is going back to his hometown recently, and An'an and A-Zheng are clamoring to go to the Marquis's mansion to find the Marquis."
Li Mingxiu nodded while sitting in his chair: "Go if you want to. Anyway, Xiao Liu is currently idle at home with nothing to do. Father has suggested that she take up a command post in the capital garrison several times, but she has declined five or six times. She's just holding a sinecure and spends her days playing with Yue'er at home. She's been spoiled rotten. You know, a few days ago, Yue'er actually beat that Qin family boy so badly that he cried loudly."
The Crown Princess burst out laughing: "I heard that the Qin family boy was quick-witted and teased Yue'er, even pulling her hair out of shape, which is why he got a beating."
At this point, the Crown Princess sighed softly, "I do wish I had a father like that. Marquis Wu'an really dotes on his children."
A pang of heartache flashed in Li Mingxiu's eyes. He placed the child back in the Crown Princess's arms and gently coaxed her, "Of course I love our child, and of course Xiao Liu loves him too."
As she spoke, she took out an exquisitely crafted jade pendant from her bosom: "Last year, Xiao Liu got a piece of ruby with a fine color on the grassland. A few days ago, she polished it into three jade pendants. She gave one to Yue'er and another to us. Xiao Liu made the designs himself. Look, there are even small characters engraved on it."
As she spoke, the Crown Princess looked at the exquisitely crafted jade pendant in her hand. When she saw the small characters inside, she burst out laughing: "How did Marquis Wu'an know Jingyuan's nickname?"
Li Mingxiu was a little confused. The Crown Princess pointed to the seal script below the jade pendant and said, "This is seal script. Sparrow Slave, pfft! There's even a little bird chick carved on it."
Li Mingxiu shook his head and chuckled: "You're so naughty! When the child is older, we'll leave him with her to take care of. Xiao Liu's martial arts skills are great for strengthening the body; even that sickly little Xi'er has developed from them!"
The Crown Princess smiled gently: "Your Highness, I have a question. It's alright with Marquis Wu'an; everyone knows that the Marquis and the Princess are deeply in love, so it's understandable that he doesn't remarry. But Duke Qi is not young anymore. My mother has asked him many times why he has waited until now?"
Li Mingxiu sighed, a hint of worry flashing in his eyes. His second son's marriage was now becoming a thorn in the side of his father and mother.
None of them are easy to deal with.
Qi Rong was sitting in a private room at the restaurant when he heard the waiter's greeting outside the door. He stood up with a smile on his face, took a few steps forward, opened the door, and his smile deepened when he saw Lin Changning.
Upon seeing Yue'er in Lin Changning's arms, he instinctively took her from him.
"You're here? The food hasn't been served yet. Today I ordered your favorite Dongpo pork."
Yue'er struggled for a moment: "Second Uncle, where's mine?"
Lin Yuhua chimed in, "Yes, Uncle Qi, what about my favorite foods?"
Qi Rong patted Yu Hua's head: "Yes, yes, yes."
Lin Changning led the children to their seats and looked at Qi Rong with a smile: "What brings you here today, Second Brother? I've been staying home taking care of the children lately and haven't had much time to go out. Yuhua and the others are about to hire a tutor, and Zhiyuan is preparing to discuss marriage. My mother and sister-in-law are both away from the capital recently, and Second Brother and the He family have gone on a long trip to check the accounts. There are so many kids at home that I've been left to deal with. It's giving me a headache every day."
Qi Rong said gently, "The teacher of the Cui clan school is going back to his hometown soon, and An'an is clamoring to go to your house to play."
Lin Changning shrugged: "Come on, it's the same whether you herd one sheep or a flock of sheep. Mr. Cui Jie said that A Zheng is also going to the capital. He said that he has been busy with state affairs recently and is afraid of neglecting the children, so he has entrusted him to me."
Now that Cui Jie has joined the cabinet, he has helped Zhiyuan a lot, so Lin Changning naturally wouldn't refuse.
We recently freed up a yard at home, so we had a carpenter build a small playground. Let the kids play there if they want.
After the food was served, the two chatted and ate.
Qi Rong seemed preoccupied. He took a couple of bites and then stopped eating, quietly serving food to Lin Changning and Yue'er.
Lin Changning sensed the slightly strange atmosphere, took a few bites, and looked at Qi Rong: "Why aren't you eating, Second Brother?"
Qi Rong smiled, shook his head, put down his chopsticks, glanced at Lin Changning with a hint of hesitation, and said to Yue'er and Yuhua, who seemed to have finished eating, "Yuhua, take your sister outside to buy some snacks."
As he spoke, he took out a gold ingot from his pocket and stuffed it into Lin Yuhua's hand. Yuhua nodded with a smile, pulled Yue'er and walked out, followed by guards and maids who ran downstairs.
After everyone left, Lin Changning looked up at Qi Rong with a hint of surprise. He figured his second brother must have something to say to him privately, which was why he sent him away.
After putting down his chopsticks, Lin Changning looked at Qi Rong with some questions in his eyes. After watching Qi Rong's face slowly turn red, he remained silent for a moment.
"Second brother, all I want is to raise Yue'er..."
Qi Rong's face visibly paled. He opened his mouth, wanting to say something, but didn't know where to begin.
Lin Changning sighed softly. In the year since she returned, she had roughly figured out that Qi Rong had feelings for her. He spent half of the month at the Marquis's residence. She didn't dislike Qi Rong, but all she wanted to do now was raise Yue'er. As for the rest, she hadn't thought about it.
She joined the army as a woman, which was already a huge taboo in this era. Before her death, Ah Shu used her frail body to secure a stable path for her and bring the Lin family the hard-won peaceful life they enjoy today.
She didn't want to change, nor did she dare to gamble on the emperor's benevolence again.
Qi Rong pursed his lips, a hint of disappointment flashing in his eyes: "Sixth Brother, I... I'll tell Auntie. I'll take care of everything. You... can you..."
Lin Changning's eyes cleared as she looked at Qi Rong calmly and said, "Second brother, that's His Majesty, the supreme ruler. You can mention it, but I dare not gamble with my family's lives. Our current life is hard-won, and I don't want any changes. Besides, second brother, I have never thought about entering the inner quarters, nor do I dare to imagine what it would be like if I did. My world should be on the battlefield, protecting my country, making achievements, safeguarding the peace of the people, and protecting my family. That is my pursuit. What you want, I cannot give you."
Qi Rong looked at the still calm Lin Changning and smiled bitterly: "I understand, it was Second Brother who misunderstood."
After saying that, he suddenly stood up: "Sorry, Xiao Liu, Second Brother is going back first."
Lin Changning glanced at Qi Rong, and seeing that he had left, sat quietly in the private room, his eyes filled with a mix of complexity and confusion.
Qi Rong fled back to the Duke's mansion as if he were fleeing, and in the middle of the night, drunk, he went to find Li Mingxiu.
Li Mingxiu could tell from the man's expression that he had been rejected. He had drunk with him for half the night, and in his dazed state, he pointed at Qi Rong and said:
"You should be more understanding of Xiao Liu. She's different from us. Her current life is hard-won, almost bought with Ashu's life. If there were any accidents, you, raised by the Emperor, wouldn't lose your life. But she... she's had a tough time. What you said is true. Who would dare to gamble with the Emperor's mercy again by risking the lives of their family members? She understands this better than you do."
Qi Rong responded listlessly, "I know, brother, I'm just feeling a little sad."
He then picked up his wine glass and drank the wine in one gulp.
He didn't know when he fell in love, only that after Changning went to war in his place, he thought about her every day and even thought about going to the frontier to find her. When they met for the first time after he returned, his heart was pounding like a drum, and unconsciously, his eyes followed her.
He knew that she had had a tough journey, and he had watched her grow step by step to where she is today. The more he understood her, the more he couldn't help but follow her. Her resilience and those shining qualities always surprised him and made him like her even more.
Qi Rong covered his face, took a deep breath, and when he raised his head again, his gaze was somewhat carefree.
It's alright, it's alright. It's good to see her, to see her happy and well every day. That's good too...
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