Chapter 701 I Love You More Than My Life
There was cloudiness in the Empress Dowager's eyes and her face was pale and sickly.
The person was still a little confused when he just woke up. When he sat up on the bed with difficulty, his eyesight had faded a lot and he could only vaguely see two figures even when looking at the door.
The Empress Dowager squinted with some effort: "Who's here?"
Lady Qin was delighted: "It's His Majesty and the young lady."
When Xiao Yan and Tang Ning hurried to the bed, the Empress Dowager finally saw their faces clearly. The old lady immediately smiled and said, "It's Sheng'er and Aning."
When Xiao Yan heard the word "Sheng'er", he knew that the Empress Dowager was awake at this time. His eyes were hot and he squatted down in front of the bed and called out softly, "Grandma."
Tang Ning hadn't expected such a coincidence. She and Xiao Yan had just arrived when they ran into the Empress Dowager who had just woken up. What was rare was that she was conscious and could recognize the people around her. She squatted beside Xiao Yan and looked up at her happily, saying, "Grandma, you're finally awake. My brother and I have prepared a lot of delicious food, including your favorite milk puff pastry. If you oversleep, you'll miss it."
The Empress Dowager was immediately delighted when she heard this and reached out to touch her little face: "Really? No wonder I woke up with such cravings. It turns out that Aning prepared something delicious."
Tang Ning smiled and said, "Grandma, please eat more later."
Noticing the icy coldness of the Empress Dowager's palms, even raising them seemed like a struggle, Tang Ning took her hand and rubbed it against his cheek affectionately before saying, "Brother, stay with Grandma and talk for a while. I'll have someone bring some food over so she doesn't go hungry."
Tang Ning knew that the two generations of grandparents had a lot to say to each other after so many years, so she stood up and pulled Qin Niangzi and Yue Jian out together.
"Yuejian, go ask the kitchen to prepare some food that's easy to digest." Tang Ning paused and turned around: "Sister Qin, is there anything that Grandma should avoid eating?"
Madam Qin said, "It's still the same, just a little softer."
Tang Ning: "What about desserts?"
Madam Qin: "As long as I can eat it, anything is fine."
The voices of Tang Ning and Lady Qin could be heard faintly from outside. The Grand Empress Dowager looked at the blurry figure in front of the door and said to Xiao Yan beside her, "Aning is a good child."
She has been in the palace for many years and has seen people's hearts and experienced both good and bad things.
She could see that Aning was not a warm-hearted person. Although her eyes were clear and her mind was thoughtful, she was not like an ordinary girl. And her constant care and kindness to her during this period were all because of her love for Sheng'er.
The Empress Dowager did not think this was a bad thing. Instead, she was grateful to God for allowing Sheng'er to meet such a child who loved him sincerely after going through so much.
"Be good to Aning and don't let her down."
Xiao Yan said, "Of course. Xiao Haitang is the great-grandson's wife I finally found for you. I don't know how many people are jealous of her. What if I treat her badly and she gets kidnapped?"
He raised his jaw slightly, and curled up the corners of his mouth with a look of pride.
Obviously, his appearance was different from Yuan Sheng's back then, his body shape had changed, and there was no trace of similarity on his body. However, the youthful spirit revealed in his phoenix eyes made her seem to have returned to the hunting ground many years ago, when the young man in bright clothes and a wild horse was riding on his horse, waving the prey he had shot and shouting "Grandma" to her.
The young boy, who had not yet grown up, jumped off his horse and strode over with the prey in his hand. The sunshine in his eyes was brighter than the scorching sun.
The Empress Dowager's cloudy eyes were filled with laughter: "Do you like it that much?"
Xiao Yan hummed, "I like it more than my life."
The Empress Dowager gently poked him on the forehead and said, "Why don't you marry her then?"
"I want to marry you, too."
Xiao Yan muttered with some dissatisfaction, and sat down on the ground with his tall figure, leaning against the Empress Dowager like he did when he was a child.
"We had already been preparing for it, and the wedding date was set, but something unexpected happened. Xie Tianyong and Queen Dowager Xuan messed up all my plans. Now that I'm the emperor, I can't just marry Tang Ning according to all the plans I made before."
"The wedding dress I had embroidered previously can't be used anymore. The empress's wedding dress can't be too shabby. We also have to open the Taimiao to offer sacrifices to our ancestors and bring the remains of my father, the king, and my mother back to the imperial mausoleum... And those concubines of Xie Tianyong's in the harem are still in the palace, so we have to worry about finding a place for them."
Xiao Yan held the Grand Empress Dowager's hand and said, "Tang Ning is too young and naive. I'm afraid she'll be bullied."
"Grandma, please get better soon. I'll be relieved to have you here to teach her."
The Grand Empress Dowager listened to his rambling complaints, like a child's mumbling. Although these trivial words were just words, they made her eyes glow with warmth, as if she had calmed down the anxiety and longing of so many years. The Grand Empress Dowager's voice was a little hoarse: "Okay, Grandma will protect Aning for you."
Xiao Yan said, "Then you can't be too partial to her. You still have to love me the most."
"Okay, okay, grandma loves you the most."
The Grand Empress Dowager was amused by his words of vying for favor, and even her spirits seemed to improve. Seeing him leaning against her, the Grand Empress Dowager stroked Xiao Yan's hair with her withered hands, and after a long while, she said softly, "You have suffered a lot these years."
Tears suddenly welled up in Xiao Yan's eyes, and he lowered his head to lean against her hand.
The Empress Dowager didn't say anything else, just gently stroked his head, again and again.
…
Tang Ning stood outside for a long time, whispering to Madam Qin about the Empress Dowager's condition. After the food was delivered from the kitchen and the two people inside had finished chatting, she led Yue Jian and the others inside with the food on the trays.
"Grandma, brother, it's time to eat."
The Grand Empress Dowager was unable to get up, so Xiao Yan helped her sit up and placed a low table directly on the bed.
After the food was served, Tang Ning skillfully held the bowl and sat next to the Empress Dowager.
"The kitchen made porridge today. They used minced meat and some vegetables and cooked it until it was soft. It smells delicious." Tang Ning scooped a spoonful and blew on it before passing it to the Empress Dowager: "Grandma, try it quickly."
The Empress Dowager looked at it and said, "Didn't you say it was a milk pastry?"
Tang Ning smiled and said, "You'll have to ask my brother. He's been so busy with court affairs these days that he hasn't even had time to eat. The imperial kitchen doesn't dare to send anything difficult to digest so late at night. So they can only let us eat this porridge with him."
"The chefs in the imperial kitchen are so busy that their heads are turning bald. If they don't eat some, they will definitely feel uneasy. So, grandma, you have to take care of my brother, otherwise we won't even be able to eat milk soufflé."
The Empress Dowager was amused by her deliberate complaint. She looked at Xiao Yan and said, "Did you hear that? Please don't let me and little Aning suffer so much that they can't even eat a piece of sweet cake."
Tang Ning sat aside and tried to make the Empress Dowager happy. After she had eaten most of the porridge, he conjured up a piece of milk pastry like magic.
"Grandma, eat quietly, don't let my brother see you."
Xiao Yan looked at her: "I'm still here, Xiao Haitang, have you become more capable?"
Tang Ning: "Grandma, he's mean to me!"
Xiao Yan narrowed his eyes and stretched out his hand to pinch Tang Ning's cheek, but she dodged him, so he could only grab the milk pastry she had placed aside.
"My sweet cake!"
Tang Ning reached out to grab it back, but Xiao Yan, who had the height advantage, teased him and made him spin on tiptoe.
Seeing the two children in front of her quarreling over the sweet cakes, and the little girl jumping up and down because of Xiao Yan's teasing, the Empress Dowager was overjoyed. She put the milk pastry into her mouth. The crispy and soft pastry melted in her mouth. It was a taste she had not tasted for many years.
The dim light and shadow fell into her eyes, and tears welled up in her eyes. The Empress Dowager lowered her eyes and murmured.
very nice.
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