Princess Sheng An looked at the old Duke Residence with curiosity, suspecting that his injuries hadn’t healed, otherwise why would he have returned home so early?
The old Duke Residence grasped his old wife’s hand, "I wasn’t injured, I didn’t charge into the battlefield, I was just commanding. The Crown Prince was wounded twice, but he has already recovered."
Princess Sheng An sighed in relief, puzzled, "I heard that His Majesty personally led the civil and military officials to the city gate to welcome you. How come you are back so early?"
The old Duke snorted, "It’s still early, I was tired. What was the point of going to the palace so early with His Majesty? The one who made the most contributions was the Crown Prince. I did not want to steal his thunder. Our Duke Residence is already quite prominent, so I returned home ahead."
Princess Sheng An thought for a moment and agreed. She hadn’t expected him to return so early. So, she quickly led people back to the room, arranging for someone to fetch water for him to bathe and take care of other needs.
Madam Duke and the other ladies arrived in the main courtyard. Realizing that the old Duke had gone to bathe and change his clothes, they all sat in the hall waiting. Before long, the old Duke came out, tidy and clean, greeted everyone, and expressed his satisfaction that the family was doing well. He thanked the Princess for her hard work.
Since the peace treaty signed between Dawei and Daliang more than a decade ago, the old Duke rarely left the Capital City. This time, however, he had been away for the longest period, especially because it was a war against Dawei. Princess Sheng An and the others at the Duke Residence were quite worried.
The worry was not just for the old Duke, but also for the young men of the Duke Residence who were out fighting.
Princess Sheng An said with a laugh: "We should be thankful that all you men returned safely. The stress we women suffer while you men are on the battlefield is endless."
The old Duke said: "Now we have signed a new peace treaty. Dawei has been greatly weakened this time and will not experience any turmoil again for at least ten years."
Princess Sheng An preferred peaceful days, "That’s good."
Everyone chatted with the old Duke for a while. Knowing that he was old and tired from the journey, they quickly left him to rest.
Old Duke lay back on his bed, and Princess Sheng An sat beside him. Seeing that he did not seem to be sleepy, she said, "Go to sleep. There’s still more than an hour before the palace banquet starts. I’ll keep an eye on the time and have someone wake you up so you won’t miss the banquet."
Old Duke said, "I can’t sleep. The Crown Prince took good care of me on the road. We didn’t rush, so I’m not too tired. Don’t underestimate my health. I’m still very robust. After this battle, I only fell ill once."
Princess Sheng An also felt that this time was rather peaceful. She said, "I was scared to death. I thought that you, an old man, were leading the charge in the battlefield. A minor injury would have been a trivial matter, but what if you were not able to come back? How could this family, and I, survive without you?"
The old Duke held her hand, "Here I am, back. I haven’t witnessed my grandsons getting married yet. How could I fall? Besides, I couldn’t bear to leave you alone. Furthermore, we initiated the attack against Dawei this time. Yuan Zhao was stuck in Nanchu and couldn’t get out. The few young fellows in Dawei who were defending their territory were all inadequate. I could handle them."
Princess Sheng An nodded, saying to him, "A few days ago, I received a letter from Zhou Gu. He and Su Rong are going to have a big wedding in a few months. They asked if we could go and attend?"
Old Duke said, "I will go too."
"Ah?" Princess Sheng An was shocked, "Are you also going?"
"Why not? Can’t I go?" The old Duke was unhappy.
"Of course not, but can you afford to leave? There’s so much going on in the court..." Princess Sheng An knew very well that Daliang had indeed won the war, but it had exhausted all its resources, leaving a lot of matters to be dealt with.
"When hasn’t it been busy in court? The court affairs can never get done," the old Duke said, "If I were still in court, His Majesty would have had nothing left to bestow. Taking advantage of this opportunity, I should retire so His Majesty can bestow more rewards to the young ones. There’s no point in bestowing anything to me."
Princess Sheng An understood, "So, this is what you were considering."
"Not entirely, I’m tired and want to retire. I promised you before that I would take you out of the Capital City once I put down my armor. However, fearing that His Majesty would take advantage of my absence and seize the Duke Residence, I had to accompany the Crown Prince and be low-key and cautious. Before we knew it, several more years had passed." The old Duke said, "Don’t you want to go see your grandson in Nanchu? Let’s go together."
"If that’s what you’ve decided, then it’s a great idea." Princess Sheng An looked somewhat pleased, "Would His Majesty agree to you retiring?"
"The Crown Prince agreed, so His Majesty should not be a problem," the old Duke answered, "Now, His Majesty should value the Crown Prince’s opinions greatly."
Princess Sheng An was relieved upon hearing this, "That’s good. You, me, and the eldest daughter-in-law, the three of us will go. We should make good preparations and go with Madam Su when the time comes."
She was so excited that she could hardly sit still, "Ah, I want to leave now. I miss my little grandson."
The old Duke ignored her, "Calm down. You have more than one grandson. You’ve been sitting here for a while and haven’t asked about the others even once."
Princess Sheng An rolled her eyes, "Didn’t you see all of them? You said they are all fine, why would I worry? When the situation in Nanchu was most critical, I heard that Zhou Gu and Su Rong were both injured and almost died. Whenever he wrote letters, he only mentioned the good and not the bad. It was only through the eldest daughter-in-law’s envoy to the Qinghe Cui family and inquiry to Mr. Cui that we found out the news sent back by the Qinghe Cui family. The news that they had been close to being killed alarmed me."
Old Duke said, "I know about this. Zhou Gu mentioned in his letter to the Crown Prince that Su Rong sacrificed herself to save Zhou Gu. She let Ye Guixue accompany him and stayed on the battlefield waiting for death."
Princess Sheng An’s heart was moved, "Yes, that’s it. The eldest daughter-in-law told me that it was witnessed by the two young masters of the Cui family. Ah, that girl Su Rong, what can I say about her...at least Zhou Gu’s trip to Nanchu for her wasn’t in vain."
She said, "On this trip, I plan to stay in Nanchu for a year or even longer, what do you think? The eldest daughter-in-law also thinks the same. She said that the Duke Residence has the second son’s family, and the eldest granddaughter-in-law can handle the affairs. The matter of arranging marriages for the second and third sons isn’t too urgent either. It can wait for a year and a half. If they have anyone they like, let their mother decide on their own."
After all, it’s not about finding a wife for the eldest grandson. There is no need for them to have to look over them.
"Sure, we can stay however long we want," the old Duke had no objections.
Princess Sheng An smiled brightly, "Then we will stay for as long as we want. I’ve lived in the Capital City all my life. It’s about time I travelled for a little while when I’m old before coming back."
However, she didn’t say that she wouldn’t come back once she left, as after all, her roots were in Daliang.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
