Chapter 136 Mianmian got a beating from Xiaogua
The seventh prince took the brocade pouch, but hesitated to open it, and the pouch in his hand suddenly felt hot.
He stared intently at it, his gaze almost burning two holes in it like incense sticks.
Is this the truth he's been searching for? The Seventh Prince took a deep breath, his fingers trembling as he opened the brocade pouch and took out a folded piece of paper.
It turns out that the truth that people have been searching for can be recorded so easily on a small piece of paper.
The Seventh Prince slowly unfolded the fateful note, his expression and movements quite ordinary, as if he were just looking at an ordinary note during a regular break between classes.
The sounds of students chatting and laughing filled the air, but the note on it was not filled with idle jokes.
The seventh prince quietly read the contents of the paper, reading it for a long time and many times until he memorized all the words on the paper.
He then found a burning candle in the hall and let the flames lick the paper containing royal secrets until it turned to ashes. A gust of wind blew, and the ashes settled on the ground.
The Seventh Prince sat back down in his chair. Xie Mianmian pursed her lips and carefully observed his expression, finding that he remained calm and composed.
"Seventh Prince, what do you intend to do?"
The seventh prince shook his head. He had nothing to say. Even if he knew who his birth mother was, it seemed that nothing could change. He would still live the same life as before.
"Okay." Seeing that he accepted it well, Xie Mianmian continued, "Little Fatty just said that the Westerners want to take Aunt Lan away!"
"What?" The Seventh Prince's composed mask cracked, and he became somewhat flustered.
If Aunt Lan were to leave, the ties between the person and their birth mother in the palace would become even more scarce.
Xie Mianmian pulled the Seventh Prince up, "Let's hurry and go find Aunt Lan before the Grand Tutor returns to the palace."
At first, the Seventh Prince was pulled along by her, but soon it became him leading Xie Mianmian as they ran through the desolate Cold Palace.
Vibrant wild greenery climbed up the vermilion palace walls, and sunlight shone on the dilapidated glazed tiles, almost blinding Xie Mianmian.
Before long, the two children arrived at the gate of Aunt Lan's courtyard. The surroundings were still quiet, even the cicadas had fallen silent, and only their panting from running so hard could be heard.
"Phew, Aunt Lan hasn't already left, has she?" Xie Mianmian raised the back of her hand to wipe the sweat from her forehead.
"No, they won't." The Seventh Prince squeezed her wrist tightly. "The Fifth Prince of the Western Barbarians only arrived in the Great Zhou yesterday. They won't leave so soon."
"Seventh Prince, you hurt Mianmian." The child twisted his wrist and broke free. "It's alright, let's go inside and take a look."
As she spoke, Xie Mianmian stepped forward and pushed open the somewhat rotten wooden door. With a creak, the door opened completely, revealing the scene inside.
The courtyard was peaceful, and orange, black, and spotted cats with their tails held high, meowing softly as they approached.
"Mianmian, it's been so long since you came to visit us."
"Little miracle doctor, it's so good to have you here! Look at my bottom, why does it hurt?"
"Mianmian, I found a really nice leaf today, I'm giving it to you!"
Xie Mianmian and the Seventh Prince were almost overwhelmed by the horde of cats, frantically trying to soothe them.
Through the fuzzy patch, they saw a familiar woman sitting on a wooden stool under the big tree, doing needlework and smiling kindly at them.
Xie Mianmian carefully skirted around the group of cats, ran to Aunt Lan's side, and wrapped her arms around her. "Aunt Lan, Mianmian heard you're leaving, is it true?"
The seventh prince also walked over with difficulty, a faint hope on his face. As he walked, he accidentally stepped on the tail of a cicada.
This angered it so much that it punched the Seventh Prince repeatedly with its paw pads before walking away haughtily.
Aunt Lan put down the half-embroidered handkerchief in her hand, and used her thin fingers to tuck a stray white hair behind her ear.
Although she was quite old, her eyes remained deep and bright, and the wrinkles on her eyelids could not conceal the magnificent pearls.
"Don't worry, I won't leave. What will happen to Xian Chan and the others if I leave?" Aunt Lan took out a clean handkerchief from her bosom and gently wiped Xie Mianmian's sweat.
“I’m so old, I can’t walk anymore, and I’ve spent my whole youth here, where else can I go?”
Upon hearing Aunt Lan's affirmative words, the Seventh Prince's tightly clenched fist relaxed slightly, his palms sweating profusely.
"Oh, by the way, a pair of little blue birds have moved to the big tree. They're so beautiful! One of them is so plump it's like a ball. It's a pity they went out to forage for food, otherwise I would have shown them to you. Oh my, they're so cute..."
Aunt Lan, who hadn't seen the two children for a long time, chatted with them.
The two children didn't find her nagging at all; they listened attentively as she shared the big and small things that happened around her. They were very trivial and ordinary, but they were Aunt Lan's entire life.
After an unknown amount of time, Aunt Lan seemed to wake up from a dream and gently stroked Xie Mianmian's chin.
"Look at all I've said. It's getting late, time for lunch. Would you like to stay?"
Xie Mianmian smiled and sweetly agreed.
Aunt Lan stood up happily and walked into her small vegetable garden, which was filled with all kinds of vegetables and fruits. The rows were neatly tended and looked like a pleasing harvest.
Aunt Lan handed Xie Mianmian a small bamboo basket and told her to pick cherry tomatoes herself. It was a clump of trees as tall as Xie Mianmian, with dense branches and leaves, and full of bright red and plump fruits.
"These are seeds that I asked Eunuch Li to buy for me from a foreign merchant caravan. They are ripe now, so you can go and pick them. These fruits can be eaten after washing them, and I think you children will like them."
Aunt Lan said with a kind smile as she picked the tender bok choy.
The cherry tomato plant was located quite far inside the vegetable garden. Xie Mianmian bent over, intending to take a shortcut by passing under the trellis filled with small tomato plants.
The trellis was built very low, and under Aunt Lan's careful care, the leaves covered the bamboo trellis, where many melons grew.
Xie Mianmian walked through this sprawling greenery, first greeted by the fresh scent of melons and fruits, followed by the earthy smell unique to the compacted soil—this was the essence of the earth.
Xie Mianmian sniffed, smelling the fresh scent of the green fields. She felt her previously anxious mood dissipate, as if she had nestled into the embrace of the earth, feeling very grounded, somewhat like... her mother.
She smiled and bent over, slowly walking across the bamboo frame. "Ouch!" she cried, clutching her head. She hadn't been watching where she was going and had bumped into a round little melon.
The Seventh Prince's voice called from not far away, "What are you doing? Come here quickly!"
Oh dear, the Seventh Prince has already arrived. How come she, who takes shortcuts, is still on her way?
Xie Mianmian became anxious and rushed forward with her small bamboo basket in her arms. The further she went, the denser the green leaves and gourds became.
She walked forward with her eyes closed, and little melons kept bumping into her.
"Thump, thump, thump, ouch, ouch, ouch." It hit him all the way from head to back.
Xie Mianmian struggled out of the dense greenery, panting, and said, "Seventh Prince, it's a good thing you didn't take this shortcut. You might not believe it, but just now, Mianmian got a beating from Xiaogua."
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