Lady of the Minister Ye initially planned to wait for Su Rong to finish catching up before talking to the Eldest Princess Sheng An and the others, but as soon as she had said a couple of sentences, she was pulled onto the carriage in a hurry.
Lady of the Minister Ye laughed and could only lead her little granddaughter Ye Qiuying to the front of the carriage and say to the Grand Princess Sheng An, the Lady of the Duke, and Eldest Lady Su, "The snow is going to get heavier, I don’t think it’s good to detain the Princess and the Ladies in the snow to catch up, I will visit the residence tomorrow instead."
The Grand Princess Sheng An laughed and waved her hand, "We are in Nanchu, and seeing you is like seeing our own family, there is no need for courtesy."
"That’s true," Lady of the Minister Ye laughed. It had been many years since she had returned to Daliang to visit her family, and seeing old friends was indeed like seeing her own family.
Ye Qiuying tilted her little face up, "Sister Su Qi, should I address you as Princess now?"
Su Rong leaned out to pinch her little face, "Just call me sister, hurry back to the carriage. Everyone has gone home, there is no rush to talk to me."
Ye Qiuying nodded, "Okay."
Everyone got on the carriage, and the procession set off.
The Nanchu King shared a carriage with the Old Duke of Protectorate, Duke Cui, and Minister Ye, and they continued their conversation inside.
The Nanchu King explained to the Old Duke of Protectorate, "Zhou Gu and Ye Guixue are still in the Southern three states, dealing with various post-war matters, and I’m afraid it may take another ten days or half a month for them to return."
The Old Duke of Protectorate nodded, "Young people should strive to make their mark. Not long after we departed from Jibei, we received his letter, telling us to take our time, so we took a detour to Nanping on the way. Guessing the time is about right, they would have dealt with their matters, and that’s when we headed to the Royal Capital."
The Nanchu King nodded, "In such cold weather, it was hard for the Old Duke on the road, if we could have traveled quicker, you wouldn’t have had to suffer."
"Ah, what’s this hardship? Back in the day when I fought in wars, during heavy snow in deep winter, with three feet of ice, I still charged on horseback with a sword," the Old Duke of Protectorate didn’t find it difficult. "The carriage has a furnace and several layers of cotton blankets, the women and children are all warmly dressed, and there’s no hardship when we lodge at inns," he shook his head.
Minister Ye expressed his thanks, "Granddaughter Qiuying, many thanks to the Old Duke for your care along the way."
The Old Duke of Protectorate waved his hand, "Minister Ye, there’s no need for such formalities, I am already in retirement, and once I come to Nanchu this time, I’m planning on staying here and not leaving, you just need to find time to drink with me."
Minister Ye laughed heartily, "That’s truly great, drinking is easily promised."
Inside Su Rong’s carriage, the women were in good spirits, laughing and talking, occasionally intermingled with a child’s voice.
Zhou Rui was lifted onto the carriage by Su Rong, his face flushed, "Fourth Aunt, I want to stay in Nanchu, and only return when I grow up, is that okay?"
Su Rong was surprised, "Do you plan to stay that long? Why?"
Zhou Rui immediately said, "To learn skills from you and Fourth Uncle."
Su Rong laughed, "Is that so?"
She playfully pinched Zhou Rui’s chubby cheeks, "If you really learn these skills, you might not be able to leave, you’ll have to stay in Nanchu to serve as an official, and serve our court."
Zhou Rui’s eyes blinked as he seemed to be puzzled, and he turned to ask the Grand Princess Sheng An and the Lady of the Duke, "Great-grandmother, grandmother, can I also stay in Nanchu to be an official when I grow up?"
The Grand Princess Sheng An laughed, "Would you not miss your parents?"
The Lady of the Duke also found it amusing, "Watch out for your mother coming to Nanchu to drag you back."
Zhou Rui sighed and said to Su Rong, "Fourth Aunt, it seems it won’t work, I have to return to be filial to my parents."
Su Rong teased him, "When you grow up, why not bring your parents over, too?"
Zhou Rui’s eyes lit up, and he nodded heavily, "Mm."
After a while, Zhou Rui suddenly said, "Great-grandmother, if my mother gives birth to a brother, several of them, will I be able to stay in Nanchu like Fourth Uncle?"
Eldest Princess Shengan laughed, "You’ve just arrived and haven’t even seen what the Royal Capital looks like yet, and you’re already thinking about staying in Nanchu? Why?"
Zhou Rui, in his child’s voice, "Because I like Fourth Uncle."
Eldest Princess Shengan laughed, "If your Fourth Uncle heard this, he certainly wouldn’t be pleased."
Su Rong wanted to laugh too, remembering the frown and disdainful look on Zhou Gu’s face when he received the news that Zhou Rui was insisting on coming along. Little Zhou Rui certainly had no idea that his Fourth Uncle didn’t want his affection, right?
The carriage entered the city, arriving at the residence the Nanchu King had given to Zhou Gu. This residence, ever since Zhou Gu had entered the Royal Capital, had been empty as he resided in the Royal Palace. Upon learning that The Old Duke and the others were coming, Su Rong had ordered the residence to be tidied up, staffing it so that The Old Duke and his company could move in directly.
Su Rong asked the Eldest Lady, "Mother, would you like to stay with me in the Royal Palace? You don’t need to unpack your luggage then."
The Eldest Lady immediately replied, "No, I’ll also stay in Zhou Residence. What would I do in the Royal Palace? Your court affairs are busy every day; you’ll probably have no time for me. And I can’t always follow you around. It’s better if I stay with the in-laws, keeping company with the princess and the ladies."
Eldest Princess Shengan laughed, "Exactly. Such a large home, with only a few of us living in it, is still quite empty. If you miss us, you can also come out of the palace and stay for a few days."
Su Rong thought about it and agreed, "Alright then!"
Thus, the group walked toward the residence, chatting and laughing. The servants and guards took care of unloading the carriage, while the housekeeper led people to help arrange the previously selected accommodations.
After the weary travel by boat and carriage, everyone settled in. The Nanchu King and his entourage did not linger long, allowing The Old Duke and the others to rest, and waiting for Zhou Gu and Guixue to return to the Royal Capital, they planned to host a palace banquet.
Su Rong didn’t leave. In the end, the Grand Princess was getting older, and The Lady of the Duke was not as resistant to fatigue as the Eldest Lady. After everyone had rested, she accompanied the Eldest Lady to her living quarters for a private conversation.
Only then did the Eldest Lady say to Su Rong, "You scamp, at first glance, I almost didn’t recognize you. You’ve really changed so much."
Su Rong, linking arms with her, teased, "Take a closer look now, mother. Am I still me?"
The Eldest Lady tapped her forehead, scolding fondly, "Now I recognize you, still the same little troublemaker."
She grew sentimental, "Ah, I never thought, one day, I would become the mother of a Princess."
Su Rong laughed, "If you had known earlier, would you have stopped chasing me with a broom then?"
The Eldest Lady glared, "I would have hit you just the same."
After saying this, she laughed again, "Who knew you were such a scoundrel and yet grew up to be so accomplished."
She reflected, "When you left Jiangzhou, I always felt you were just a young girl. Who would have thought that upon entering Daliang Capital City, not to mention aiding the Crown Prince with so many matters, coming to Nanchu, you even defeated Dawei. Everyone in the world talks about your prowess, but I always remember your childhood in Jiangning County, how your mischief gave me headaches. I was afraid that when you grew up and married into a family, you would be sent back to us divorced."
Su Rong laughed, "Back then, I thought I’d just find a handsome Scholar to marry, and that would be it. I never thought about being divorced. If he dared, he’d be asking for a beating."
The Eldest Lady coughed, "You didn’t let Zhou Gu know about these thoughts, did you?"
Su Rong also coughed, "No."
She wouldn’t dare.
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