Chapter 49
The Gu family's new house was bought in the most prosperous and bustling area of the capital. Although it was not as big as the house in Yangzhou, it was still good. It had four entrances and four exits.
As soon as the carriage stopped at the gate of the house, the servants who had been waiting came over to say hello and began to move the luggage from the carriage behind. Gu Yanling jumped out of the carriage and held the child in her arms. Seeing that only Hehua was at the door, she asked, "Where is my mother?"
"Master, the Madam has caught a cold these days and hasn't come over. She asked you to go to your own courtyard first and not bring the young master to her so that you can recover from the illness."
Gu Yanling asked worriedly, "How did you catch a cold? Have you seen a doctor?"
Lotus: "I have already seen the doctor. I still have a cough. It's not a serious illness and will be fine in a few days. Madam asked me to take you and the young master to visit your courtyard and familiarize you with the environment of the house."
The cub was lying on Gu Yanling's shoulder, originally drowsy. When he heard them talking, he said in a daze: "Grandma misses An An. An An will go to see Grandma later. Maybe Grandma's illness will be cured."
Gu Yanling patted his head and said, "Good boy."
But the child was still young after all. After Gu Yanling took him back to the yard, she undressed him and put him on the bed. The little guy had already fallen asleep. She asked Zhaocai to look after her son while she went to visit Su Lixiao.
Su Lixiao had just finished drinking the medicine when she saw Gu Yanling coming over. "Didn't mother ask Hehua to tell you to come back in a few days and take good care of yourself?"
Gu Yanling walked to the bedside and took her pulse to confirm that there was nothing serious. "An An has been sitting in the carriage for such a long time and has rested now. I am strong and healthy, so it is not easy for me to get sick. An An said that grandma hasn't seen us for such a long time. If grandma sees us, she will be happy, which is more effective than taking medicine."
Su Lixiao was amused by his words.
Gu Yanling: "Dad and sister are busy again?"
Su Lixiao: "They are very busy every day. The clothing store opened by your elder sister is very popular. In addition, the craftsmanship of our cloth shop is exquisite. Your father and your elder sister get up early and work late every day."
Gu Yanling didn't understand what his father and sister were thinking: "We earn so much money that we can't even spend it all, yet they work so hard at everything they do."
Su Lixiao: "Your sister likes to do business, and your father hopes that the money will get better and better, and his goal is to become the richest man in the capital."
Gu Yanling does not have their ambitions. He is not interested in doing business at all. Fortunately, his sister is capable and can help him.
Gu Lanpan had told her family clearly before that she would not marry and that she would own half of the Gu family's assets. She would marry into the family and her child would have the surname Gu and would be the young master of the Gu family. She had no objection to Gu Yanling being lazy and unwilling to do business. She would train An An and her children well, with one pursuing a career in politics and the other in business, so that their Gu family could continue to prosper.
Gu Yanling naturally had no objection. He lived a comfortable life. His father and elder sister worked hard, so he wouldn't say anything even if they only gave him a small share of the property. What's more, the relationship between the siblings was so good.
"You can't count on me anymore. From now on, you'll have to rely on An An and my sister's child."
Su Lixiao has always been happy as long as her children are happy, and she doesn't force anything else. She just feels that the house is too lonely, and the two sisters are not in a hurry to get married. Fortunately, there is now An An in the family.
"An An looks smart. He might like studying in the future. He can sit still, unlike you and Pan Er, who were too naughty when you were little."
Gu Yanling thought about how Xiao Xinghan read all day and how good his handwriting was. If An An took after him, she said to Su Lixiao, "Send An An to school in two years. Maybe when she grows up, she can really earn a job. Haha, that would be exactly what I want."
Su Lixiao felt helpless after hearing this. Her two children followed Gu Qifu and had no interest in studying.
Gu Yanling didn't stay in his mother's room for long. After talking with his mother for a while, he let her rest and returned to his own yard.
The baby is sleeping soundly and won't wake up for a while.
Gu Yanling couldn't sit still, so she went out again.
The capital city is indeed very big and bustling everywhere. Gu Yanling first went to her sister's Lanyifang. The shop was so big that it looked like several rooms connected together.
Gu Lanpan was not in the shop. The capital was full of dignitaries, and the wives and daughters of officials would not come to the shop in person. Generally, Gu Lanpan would go to the homes of powerful ladies in person to design for them, and the skirts would be delivered to their homes personally. If there was anything that was not suitable or she did not like, she would take the skirt back for modification.
Gu Yanling didn't see his sister, so he walked around the city again and bought a small candy figurine for his son. When paying, he asked casually, "How do I get to Chunjing Street?"
The vendor showed him the way.
Gu Yanling was holding the sugar man and walking towards Chunjing Street, saying to herself that she just wanted to see what Chunjing Street was like and she had no other ideas at all!
Chunjing Street is far away from the downtown area but close to the imperial palace. The mansions here are built in a majestic style and are inhabited by high-ranking officials of the court.
Before Gu Yanling reached the innermost part of Chunjing Street, she was stopped.
"Ayan, why are you here?"
After Gu Lanpan delivered the skirt and shirt, she saw her brother holding a candy man not far away.
Gu Yanling took a quick bite of the candy figurine, feeling guilty for no apparent reason. "Oh, I just went to your shop to look for you. They said you were over here, so I came here to look for you."
Gu Lanpan: "He's acting sneaky, and it's obvious he's not telling the truth."
"I came to look for you. I heard that this was where the high official lived, so I went forward."
Gu Yanling pretended to be nonchalant and asked, "Sister, I see the gate to the mansion over there is closed, and no one is going in or out. I wonder which high-ranking official is living there?"
Gu Lanpan didn't think much about it, thinking he was curious. "The innermost part is the Crown Prince's residence outside the palace. But His Highness lives in the East Palace, so this residence outside is just for decoration."
When Gu Yanling heard the name of His Royal Highness the Crown Prince, she was so shocked that she almost choked on the sugar man.
"Cough, cough, cough..."
What the hell? Your Highness?!
Gu Lanpan raised her hand and patted him on the back, "You're already a grown-up, yet you still choked while eating a candy man. You're already a father, but you don't know how to be steady."
Gu Yanling’s mind was full of the thought that Sheng Yao was actually the Crown Prince!!!
No wonder Li Youfu knelt on the ground to help him put on and take off his shoes, no wonder Chang Feng and the others were always so cautious, fearing that he would encounter any danger, and no wonder he could be so calm and composed to be served.
It turned out to be His Royal Highness the Crown Prince.
Gu Lanpan asked curiously, "What's not strange?"
How could Gu Yanling dare to stay any longer? He had deceived the Crown Prince, and even if he had ten heads, they would not be enough. And An An, his identity must not be known to anyone. If it was known, they, father and son, would be separated!
Gu Lanpan didn't understand why his brother suddenly looked so distraught: "Ayan, what happened to you? The sugar man fell to the ground."
Gu Yanling quickly picked up the sugar man and said, "Sister, let's get out of here."
Gu Lanpan was dragged away from Chunjing Street by Gu Yanling. "What's wrong with you? Why are you so anxious?"
When they arrived at the downtown area, Gu Yanling regained her composure. "I'm just a little scared. Those who live over there are all court officials. It would be disastrous if I bump into them. Sister, you deal with these people all day long, so you have to be careful."
Gu Lanpan: "If I still need you to teach me, then your sister's business for all these years will be in vain."
Gu Yanling: "Sister, please continue with your work. I have to go back. An An will cry when she wakes up and can't see me."
Although Gu Lanpan was a bit harsh on Gu Yanling, she still cared about her brother: "Are you really okay? You look a little off. Let me take you home."
Gu Yanling waved her hand: "No, it's okay, maybe she's tired from sitting in the car."
Gu Lanpan scolded, "Why don't you take a break? You're so anxious to run out and wander around. You can't wait until tomorrow?"
On normal days, Gu Yanling would inevitably argue with his sister, but now he was in no mood to do so: "I'm going back now."
The house was not far from the downtown area, so Gu Yanling returned quickly. As soon as she stepped into the yard, she heard her baby crying.
Gu Yanling hurried into the wing room. Zhaocai was coaxing his child, sweating profusely. When he heard footsteps, he breathed a sigh of relief, "Young Master, look who's coming."
The cub raised his head and stopped crying: "Daddy, where have you been? I couldn't find you when I woke up."
Gu Yanling didn't care about Sheng Yao being the prince. She took the baby into her arms and coaxed him, explaining, "I saw you were sleeping and couldn't wake up for a while, so I went out for a walk."
"I bought you a candy man—"
The boy looked at his hand and asked in confusion, "Where's the sugar man?"
Gu Yanling was too embarrassed to say that she had taken a bite and dropped it on the ground because she was too shocked: "Something happened. Daddy will buy you another one tomorrow."
The kid just woke up and wasn't very greedy: "Then tomorrow Daddy and I will go buy some!"
Gu Yanling kissed his rosy little face as he slept: "Okay!"
Although the cub was small, he could notice Gu Yanling's fluctuating emotions, "Daddy, what's wrong with you?"
Gu Yanling put him on the couch and looked for a place to hide the jade pendant. "Something bad is happening."
The cub shuddered when he heard his father's tone and clenched his hands nervously, "What's wrong?"
Gu Yanling placed the jade pendant at the innermost part of the big box in the room, covered it with something, and locked it from the outside.
The cub climbed down from the couch with his short legs, walked barefoot to the box that was taller than him, and tapped the lock: "Daddy, the jade pendant."
Gu Yanling: "Dad will buy you another one later."
Cub: "This is what my mother left for me."
Gu Yanling picked him up and said, "If your mother knew about your existence, she would take you away, and you would never be able to see your father, grandmother, grandfather, or aunt again."
That was too scary. The cub shook his head and cried, "No, An An, don't leave Daddy!!"
Gu Yanling: "I won't leave, I won't leave."
However, the royal bloodline must not be circulated among the people. Once An An's identity is discovered, he will definitely be brought into the palace. Not to mention that everyone in the world knows that the current emperor has only one son, His Royal Highness the Crown Prince, and His Royal Highness the Crown Prince has not yet taken a concubine.
From this perspective, An An is really a gold nugget, extremely precious.
The cub hugged Gu Yanling's neck tightly: "An An doesn't want mother anymore, An An only wants daddy."
Gu Yanling: "It's okay, your mother doesn't even know you exist. I was just shocked when I found out his identity today."
The cub seemed to understand what was said, but he didn't ask any further questions. He just put his little face in his father's arms.
After taking a bath at night, Gu Yanling played with the baby for a while, and after the baby fell asleep, she closed her eyes as well.
What is there to be afraid of? My elder sister has already said that His Royal Highness the Crown Prince lives in the East Palace, and that mansion is just a decoration. Not to mention that he knows Sheng Yao, he likes quietness and hates crowds the most. He will not go to crowded places and will definitely not leave the palace easily.
Moreover, he has changed his appearance now. Even if they meet, the other party will never recognize him, let alone guess that he has a child.
Thinking of this, Gu Yanling's chaotic mood finally calmed down. She would never go to Chunjing Street again!
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