Jinbai was sitting at the table practicing calligraphy. When he saw her coming, he happily put down his pen, ran over, took her hand, and shouted, "Mom! Why are you here so late today? Jinbai is so bored."
Xie Wanyun held the child in her arms, stroking his black hair and snow-white face. She could never get enough of looking at her own child.
"Mother is busy today. Also, in a few days, mother will go to the palace to visit the empress dowager and participate in the spring search. She won't be able to see you for a few days. You must take good care of yourself. When mother comes back and sees that you are well again, she will take you, Quan Ge'er, and Xiao Si and the others out to play, okay?" Xie Wanyun's tone unconsciously carried a doting tone that she herself did not realize.
Her hard heart had long been softened by these children.
Jin Bai blinked his big eyes, feeling a little unhappy. His illness hadn't healed yet, and his mother was about to go to the palace. However, he knew that he couldn't disobey her, so he nodded obediently, "I understand. Don't worry, mother. I will take good care of myself. I'll be fine when you come back."
Xie Wanyun couldn't help but pinch his little face, "Jinbai is so good."
Jinbai suddenly remembered something, and a serious expression came over her face. "Mom, I have something to ask you. You must tell me the truth."
Seeing that he had a childish face but was trying to act mature, Xie Wanyun couldn't help but want to laugh and said, "You say."
"Mom, do you like Quan Ge'er very much? Do you like him more or me?" Jin Bai waited for her answer seriously. He had wanted to ask for a long time, but he was afraid that he would not get the answer he wanted, so he had been holding back.
"Of course I like him. Doesn't Jinbai like Quan Ge'er too?" Xie Wanyun guessed the child's thoughts and teased him deliberately.
Sure enough, Jin Bai pouted. "Who likes him? He's so stupid."
Xie Wanyun couldn't help laughing out loud, ruffling his black hair with a doting look on her face.
"Quan Ge'er is registered under my name by his parents, and you are my child. He calls me Madam, and you call me Mother. Who do you think I like more?"
"Mom!" Jin Bai smiled happily and threw himself into her arms.
The next morning, Xie Wanyun dressed up and went to the Cining Palace where the Empress Dowager lived. The Empress Dowager was already waiting in front of the hall, and when she saw her, a smile appeared on her face.
"Wanyun pays her respects to the Empress Dowager and wishes her good health and longevity." Xie Wanyun knelt down upright and kowtowed.
"Hurry up, there's no outsider here, so there's no need to be so formal." The Queen Mother lovingly pulled her up, looked her over carefully, and praised her, "Wanyun, you look well. I haven't been in good health these past few years and haven't been able to take care of you. I heard that the Qin family treated you badly, but is that true?"
"Queen Mother, it doesn't matter how they treat me. I am the daughter of the Xie family. They dare not mess with me."
"That's right." The Queen Mother said proudly, "How can I allow others to bully the daughter of my Xie family?"
Holding Xie Wanyun's hand, he said, "Come and sit down. We haven't seen each other for a while. We need to have a good chat."
The Empress Dowager's temples were tinged with white, yet her hair was meticulously combed, leaving her looking gleaming. Aside from a phoenix hairpin, she wore no other jewelry. Her complexion was perfectly maintained, a snowy white, without a single wrinkle. She had phoenix eyes remarkably similar to Xie Wanyun's, though older, and their gaze lacked her sharpness.
The empress dowager went from being an ordinary palace concubine to the queen who ruled the country, and then became the empress dowager. Naturally, she was no ordinary person.
"Wanyun, you will stay in the palace for the next two days. The day after tomorrow is Chunwei's day. This time you have to win honor for our Xie family and the Duke of Zhenguo's Mansion." The empress dowager looked at her heroic niece with full of expectations.
The two chatted and before they knew it, it was lunch time.
"The Emperor has arrived!" A high-pitched announcement came from outside the door.
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