After hitting her twice more, Shen Nian'an lowered her eyes and looked at her daughter who was lying on her, her hips and legs trembling slightly. She felt sorry for her daughter, rubbed her forehead, and still spoke in a stern tone.
"Nuannuan, do you know you're wrong? If you are, go tell your father that you don't like riding horses or archery, that you don't like attending court, that you don't like frequenting the palace, that you like learning needlework, that you like doing things that daughters like to do."
She was beaten just because of this. Zhou Zhaonuan felt that as she grew up, her mother no longer understood her. Her mother knew that she didn't like embroidery, but she forced her to learn it even though she was not interested in it.
The little girl pursed her lips, raised her head, and looked at Shen Nian'an. The tears were tightly hidden in her eyes, and she would not let them flow out no matter what.
When Shen Nian'an saw this, he became even more furious. Why was this girl so stubborn?
She waved her hand and hit Nuannuan with a few more fierce strokes. Nuannuan was in great pain and bit her tiger's mouth. Shen Nian'an's heart trembled. She had wanted to force her to never learn what a boy should learn from now on. Now, even if her daughter was in great pain, she didn't say a word and just silently resisted her. The softness in her heart was instantly swallowed by anger. Shen Nian'an raised the board and smashed it down again.
It wasn't until she saw marks on her daughter's lower body clothes and heard suppressed sobs that Shen Nian'an came to his senses and realized that he had hit her too hard.
Seeing that her daughter's clothes were visibly bulging at her little butt, she hurriedly threw away the ruler, picked up her daughter, and went to the inner room.
Shen Nian'an anxiously summoned the imperial physician, and she was in the bedroom trying to apply medicine to her, but the little girl looked at her with particularly sad eyes, then buried herself in the quilt and cried inconsolably.
Shen Nian'an's hand holding the medicine froze in mid-air, at a loss, she was a little too hasty.
After a long time, she carefully walked forward, gently patted the warm quilt, and spoke in a gentle tone.
"Nuannuan, be obedient. Come out and let your mother apply some medicine on you, okay? The pain will go away soon after you apply the medicine."
As she spoke, Shen Nian'an was about to go forward and pull the quilt, but the little girl on the bed seemed to be really heartbroken. From childhood to adulthood, her father had beaten her many times, but never as hard as her mother. The most important thing was that her mother actually used beatings to force her. In Zhou Zhaonuan's heart, a cold rain began to fall, soaking her to pieces.
Feeling something unusual about the quilt, Zhou Zhaonuan's breath was choked, and he suddenly grabbed a corner of the quilt, and no matter what Shen Nian'an said, he would not let go.
In fact, Shen Nian'an could have easily taken it away, but looking at her daughter's little appearance who was struggling to resist, she suddenly realized that if she really took it away like that, she would probably push her daughter further and further away from her.
Shen Nian'an had a headache. Looking at her daughter in the quilt, she lost her mind for a moment and didn't know what to say to comfort her.
After a long time, Shen Nian'an opened and closed her mouth, speaking softly and gently, and she patted the quilt.
"Nuannuan, mother is doing this for your own good. The court is full of ever-changing situations and is so complicated. That place is not suitable for you. Besides, you are just a little girl. Given your father's love for you, the choice of a prince consort will definitely be good. After you get married, you can live an ordinary and stable life comfortably. Isn't that good? Mother doesn't understand why you have to live on the edge of a knife? Now, your father loves you, and it is hard to guarantee that he will always think about you. But Nuannuan, are you really not afraid that one day your father will no longer love you? Then, if you say something inappropriate, you may fall into the abyss."
Nuannuan felt a lump in her heart, and her breath was stuck in her throat, unable to go up or down.
She didn't know what her mother was thinking. She knew and understood that her mother didn't trust her father.
But she knew that although her father indulged her too much, he had never spoiled her into a waste. Her father spent a lot of effort on her. Even if there were any changes, she dared to bet that her father would not give up his daughter.
Under the quilt, she pressed her head tightly against the pillow and said something obediently and sensibly.
"Mother said so much, just to make Nuannuan live according to your ideas, but Nuannuan said that she doesn't like it and her ambition is not in the backyard."
Shen Nian’an: “…”
Looking at the stubborn little girl in front of her, she sighed deeply and decided to put the topic aside for now. "Nuannuan, let's not talk about this for now. Mommy will apply some medicine on you, okay? Anyway, let Mommy take a look. Otherwise, Mommy is afraid it will be inconvenient for you tomorrow."
Upon hearing this, Nuannuan shook her head. She was already ten years old, and it was embarrassing enough to be beaten like this. How could she let others see it?
What's more, she really didn't know how to face her mother now, and she didn't want to pay any attention to her, but the education she received since childhood made her know that she couldn't quarrel with her mother.
"No, no, mother, don't worry about Nuannuan. Nuannuan has thick skin and flesh. She will be fine after a day's sleep. Mother, go and do your own thing. Nuannuan can rest for a while."
Shen Nian’an: “…”
This was the first time she was turned down by her daughter. Thinking back to how sensible and considerate she had been in the past, Shen Nian'an felt particularly bad. It was all her fault for being too impulsive just now.
She stood in front of the bed in a daze for a long time, and didn't even notice Zhou Beichen coming in.
"An An, what are you doing standing here?"
After dealing with the border issues, Zhou Beichen came here directly without even having dinner, thinking that his daughter still had some unresolved matters.
Seeing the dejected Shen Nian'an, and then looking at the big bulge on the bed, Zhou Beichen knew what was going on at a glance.
He frowned, pulled Ana Shen outside, sat down, and couldn’t help asking.
"An An, is that girl making you unhappy again? Don't worry, I will teach her a lesson for you."
As he spoke, Zhou Beichen stood up. Unexpectedly, as soon as his butt left the chair, he was pulled back by Shen Nian'an. Zhou Beichen didn't understand what was going on, but he heard Shen Nian'an hurriedly say something.
"Your Majesty, please don't go. That girl and I are having a quarrel. Just now, because I didn't allow her to learn horseback riding and archery, and didn't allow her to participate in court affairs, she refused, so I beat her up."
The air pressure suddenly dropped, and the entire hall was filled with a terrifying atmosphere.
Looking at someone's expression, Shen Nian'an understood in her heart that Zhou Beichen had never been a good person. He loved her and hated her and wanted her to die. He had personally raised Zhou Zhaonuan for so many years, and he probably loved his daughter to the bone. In his eyes, it was probably Zhou Zhaonuan who could be talked to, beaten, and scolded by him, but no one else could.
Even if that person is her.
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