After a glance at her daughter, Su Rong was thoroughly exhausted and peacefully fell asleep.
Zhou Gu stayed by her side, undisturbed by the strong smell of blood in the room, and vigilantly guarded her.
The Grand Princess Shengan and others wrapped the baby securely, walked out of the room, and handed her over to the eager crowd waiting outside. Everyone joyfully surrounded the newborn baby, unanimously praising how pretty the little girl was, and predicting that she would surely grow up to be a beauty, and so on.
The Grand Princess Shengan was grinning from ear to ear, "I said it, those parents, so young, they know nothing. How else could they not see that my great-granddaughter is adorable."
The Old Duke nodded repeatedly, "Yes, exactly, the child is beautiful, much more so than Zhou Gu when he was born."
The Grand Princess Shengan shot a look at the Old Duke of Protectorate, "Are you the old thing who said I was wailing like a banshee when I gave birth?"
The Old Duke paused, then quickly said, "No."
"Your grandson said it," said the Grand Princess Shengan.
The Old Duke of Protectorate remained unperturbed, "He’s talking nonsense."
The Grand Princess Shengan scolded laughingly, "You old thing, my grandson doesn’t talk nonsense, it’s you who does."
The Old Duke of Protectorate adamantly denied it.
After watching the two bicker, Eldest Lady Su smiled and said, "The child’s name, is it decided yet? What is it going to be?"
The Old Duke of Protectorate looked at Xie Yuan.
Xie Yuan shook his head, "Zhou Gu picked one out, saying he’d decide after the child was born. I don’t know."
The Old Duke of Protectorate’s mustache twitched discontentedly, "Always dithering."
"Since that’s the case, just use a nickname for now!" the Grand Princess Shengan defended her grandson, "Naming a child is a serious matter. What’s wrong with him being cautious as a father? Where’s the issue?"
"Fine, fine, fine. He’s grown up, and you keep spoiling him!" The Old Duke of Protectorate had lost his temper.
Everyone chatted and laughed, gathering around the child in a lively and joyful manner.
The Nanchu King, having never seen Su Rong as a child, was nearly moved to tears when he saw his little granddaughter. After the crowd dispersed, he clasped Xie Yuan, unable to let go, and wept, "Brother Xie, when Xiaoqi was born, was she just like this little one? She really is adorable."
Xie Yuan was obviously repelled by him, reminding him, "Your Majesty, you’ve soaked my clothing with your tears."
The Nanchu King continued to sob uncontrollably, "I had no fortune to see Xiaoqi being born, nor her as a little child, and I deeply regret it."
Xie Yuan, annoyed, replied, "As a child, she was a wrinkled bundle, her face dark and yellow. What’s so pretty about that? Not pretty at all."
"You’re talking nonsense, my daughter, how could she not be pretty? Her mother is so beautiful," the Nanchu King retorted while crying.
Xie Yuan, frustrated, said, "Back then, her mother’s pregnancy drained her too much, she didn’t nurture the pregnancy well. Do you think the child born could have been very beautiful?" 𝒻𝘳𝘦𝘦𝘸ℯ𝒷𝘯𝘰𝑣ℯ𝑙.𝘤𝑜𝘮
The Nanchu King cried even harder, "She really suffered back then, and I, regrettably, knew nothing. It’s truly sorrowful."
Xie Yuan ran out of patience, "Enough already, she wasn’t that bad-looking, just a tiny bundle, not as pretty as the little one Xiaoqi has just given birth to. After all, she had a good pregnancy this time, unlike back then."
The Nanchu King’s crying didn’t seem to stop, "How pretty Xiaoqi is. I can’t imagine, when she was in her mother’s womb, how much suffering they must have endured. . ."
Unable to stand it anymore, Xie Yuan pulled him away, and told Li He, "Help your king to the side to cry." After speaking, he impatiently went to change his clothes.
Li He, embarrassed, hastily supported the Nanchu King. He had served him for a long time and knew him well, "Your Majesty, no more tears. It’s a day of great joy. If Princess finds out, especially during her confinement and sees your red eyes . . . "
This phrase was indeed most effective; the Nanchu King immediately stopped his tears, "I won’t cry anymore, I won’t cry anymore. You’re right; Xiaoqi is in her confinement period. We cannot let her see this."
After all, when his daughter woke up, he still wanted to visit her.
Su Rong had not been asleep for long when Zhou Gu also lay down beside her and fell asleep with her. This past year, he had been extremely tired, always preoccupied with thoughts of her even while on duty at the Ministry of Revenue. Today, he had experienced even more anxiety and fright, but now that he was finally relaxed, he also slept soundly.
When Zhou Gu woke up, it was already dark. He turned his head to look at Su Rong, who was still not awake. Sometime during the night, someone had lit the lamps. Under the dim light, Su Rong slept deeply, her face still pale. He watched her for a while, then quietly got up, tiptoed out of the bed, and walked out of the room.
Yuewan was guarding outside the door. Seeing Zhou Gu come out, she was about to speak when Zhou Gu hushed her. She immediately closed her mouth and asked in Mandarin, "Has the lady not woken up yet?"
Zhou Gu nodded.
Yuewan then asked, "Are you hungry?"
Zhou Gu shook his head and walked a few steps farther, "Where is that little one?"
Yuewan paused for a moment, then suggested softly, "Fourth Young Master, perhaps you shouldn’t call her ’that little one.’ That doesn’t seem right. She is clearly the Little Princess."
After all, the King had not abdicated yet, so she couldn’t be officially called the Princess.
Zhou Gu turned his head to look at her, "Okay, where is your Little Princess then?"
Yuewan immediately smiled happily, "The Little Princess is awake. She’s playing with the Lady of the Duke and the Eldest Lady."
"She isn’t playing with her grandmother?" Zhou Gu didn’t understand what a newborn could play with.
Yuewan shook her head, "The Grand Princess watched the Little Princess all morning and got tired, so she just went to rest. Now the Lady of the Duke and the Eldest Lady are looking after the Little Princess."
Zhou Gu nodded, "I’ll go and have a look too."
Yuewan pointed, "It’s in that side hall. You can go by yourself! I’ll stay here with the lady."
Zhou Gu nodded and turned to go.
As he approached the entrance of the side hall, he could hear the sound of laughter and conversation inside. Clearly, it wasn’t just his mother and mother-in-law; other people were there too. He walked in and saw a group of people gathered around, including Lady of the Minister Ye and Ye Qiuying, as well as the Queen and Shen Yi. The little one, surrounded by everyone and lying in the cradle, was indeed awake.
Seeing him arrive, Lady of the Minister Ye, Shen Yi, and the others immediately stood up to greet him.
Zhou Gu waved his hand, smiling, "No need for formalities, please sit, I just came to take a quick peek."
He walked over to the child, and a space was cleared for him. He looked at the child in the cradle, a strange expression on his face, "She can open her eyes?"
The Lady of the Duke chided him with a smile, "You don’t understand this, but some newborns can indeed open their eyes. Our little darling clearly is an alert and bright one."
"Little darling?" Zhou Gu raised an eyebrow.
"Yes, her nickname," the Lady of the Duke confirmed with a nod.
Zhou Gu’s expression momentarily became somewhat hard to describe, "Who came up with it?"
"I discussed it with your grandmother and your mother-in-law," the Lady of the Duke said as if it were obvious, "Why? Is there a problem?"
Zhou Gu turned his head back, "No."
Although he currently couldn’t see what was so darling about this little one, he dared not refute the nickname settled on by the trio.
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