Chapter 137: Starting a business?
Pei Jing suddenly closed his eyes.
It turns out that he is not unloved, nor is he an abandoned bastard, but a treasure that his mother will protect for the rest of her life.
Pei Jing choked with sobs, and his chest felt like it was being tightly grasped by an invisible hand, causing him to almost lose his breath due to the pain.
He recalled that cold winter when he knelt outside the Buddhist temple for a whole day, begging his mother to look at him, but the door was never opened until he fainted from the cold.
——It’s not that I don’t want to, but that I don’t dare.
She was afraid that if she looked at him for a second longer, she would not be able to help but hug him in her arms. She was also afraid that one look from her would arouse the emperor's suspicion of Pei Jing's background.
He lowered his head and choked up, "So, my being alive makes it so difficult for others."
"Songnian, you can't think like that." Madam Qu pulled him aside. "You are their dream. If it weren't for you, your mother would have followed your father. Do you know why King Ping named you Songnian?"
Pei Jing raised his blurry eyes and looked at her.
Nanny Qu's gaze fell on the dappled sunlight, and she remembered Prince Ping smiling as he stroked the princess's belly. He had said, "I don't know whether it's a boy or a girl, but whether it's a boy or a girl is a gift from heaven. I don't ask for my son to achieve great things or become famous, nor do I ask for her to be the most beautiful woman in the capital. I only hope that he will be safe and happy, and live a long and healthy life."
Aunt Qu choked up and said, "Ayu knew that his life was coming to an end, but he hoped that his child would live a long life. He hoped that he could live until you were born, but still..."
"You've grown up so much now. When I go down to see Ayu, I can tell him that Songnian has grown up and is very tall and healthy. He can rest in peace in his grave."
Pei Jing's eyes were red and even his breathing was trembling.
It turned out that he had been so eagerly anticipated and loved so preciously before he was born, but he was teased by fate and lived in pain and loneliness for twenty years.
No, it’s not a trick of fate, but a hand controlling the overall situation.
After Aunt Qu finished speaking, she showed a rare sense of ease. "I have lived to this day, and at least I haven't brought any secrets into the world, Songnian."
Pei Jing hurriedly held Madam Qu's hand. Madam Qu looked up at him with a smile, "My child died young, and ever since then I've always considered Prince Ping my own son. Madam, I finally get to see how you've grown up. Let me take a good look at you. I'll have to tell A-Yu all about it in the afterlife."
The tears that had been accumulating for a long time suddenly rolled down from his eyes. Pei Jing moved closer, grabbed Aunt Qu's old hand and placed it on his face.
"Touch it carefully and remember it clearly."
"Okay, okay!" Madam Qu nodded tearfully. "When I see A-Yu, I'll tell you that Songnian is even more handsome than him. You don't know, A-Yu was the most beloved son of the late emperor. It's a pity that he was poisoned when he was young and developed a chronic illness, so he never had a chance to be emperor."
"Your mother was originally the perfect choice for the Crown Princess. She and your father had been childhood sweethearts. Later, your father became ill, and the position of Crown Prince fell to someone else. However, your mother insisted on marrying your father."
Nanny Qu's fingertips gently traced Pei Jing's outline. "So many people advised her at the time, saying that marrying a sickly prince would lead to no future. But she simply said, 'As long as Ayu is alive, I will stay with him. If he really passes away, I will take care of our child for the rest of my life.'"
She began to cry again as she spoke, "But who could have known that the dog emperor was so cruel and ruthless? Although your mother left behind a bloodline for A-Yu, she and her son had to be separated."
Pei Jing clenched his fists tightly, "I will settle all the old and new grudges with him."
Aunt Qu was shocked and quickly grabbed him, "No! I'm telling you this to make you sensible, not to let you take risks. Ayu's last wish before he died was for you and your child to be safe. Now it's good enough. You are alive and well, which is the greatest comfort to them."
Nanny Qu held Pei Jing's hand tightly, her eyes full of pleading.
Pei Jing looked at the old man's trembling hands and suddenly remembered his mother's back under the green lantern in the Buddhist temple. Was she praying for his safety during those years when she recited sutras every day?
"Mammy." He slowly loosened his clenched fist, his nails leaving deep bloody marks on his palms. "Don't worry, I won't put myself in danger. It's not easy for me to survive, and I won't let her hard work go to waste."
Aunt Qu breathed a sigh of relief and patted the back of his hand gently: "Good boy, if your father is still alive, he will definitely be proud of you."
Are you proud of it? Pei Jing smiled, and that smile carried an indescribable meaning.
If his father really had a spirit in heaven, seeing how much suffering he had endured in his childhood and how he had been crazy for so many years, he would probably want the man on the throne to go to hell.
Pei Jing was silent for a moment, then said, "Mammy, I'll find you a new place to live. This place is too remote, and you're old, so... "
Madam Qu smiled and shook her head, patting the bamboo chair beneath her. "I'm used to living here. I've been hiding with Qiao Niang for years, and finally settled down here. I'm old and don't want to move. You don't have to worry about me. But you, now that you know your background, must act more cautiously. Don't reveal it under the Emperor's nose, otherwise you will bring disaster upon yourself."
"I understand." Pei Jing's eyes fell on the old locust tree outside the window. "I remember everything Madam said."
…
Pei Jing pulled the reins, and the horse's hooves raised a cloud of dust on the loess road.
Looking back, the small blue brick courtyard has been hidden by the mountain, with only a wisp of smoke rising up, which soon dissipates in the midsummer wind.
"Don't worry, Your Majesty." Duan Jiu rode forward, "I have already left some silver. It's all small change that has been exchanged in advance, so it won't attract attention."
Pei Jing stared silently in the direction they came from. After a while, he suddenly said, "Leave two people here."
Duan Jiu was stunned.
"We need a new face." Pei Jing stroked his whip, "Just pretend to be a merchant and deliver rice and flour to the village every two weeks to keep an eye on it."
"I understand." Duan Jiu understood, turned around and gestured behind him, picking out two people. After giving the order, the two guards immediately turned their horses around and disappeared on the forest path.
Silence returned to the mountain road, with only the rustling of the wind through the pine trees. Pei Jing took one last look in that direction, kicked his horse, and continued on.
"Your Highness," Duan Jiu urged his horse forward, "Now that this matter is settled, would you like to return to the capital as quickly as possible?"
"No rush." Pei Jing said lightly.
No rush?
Wasn't she rushing on the road before, asking him every day what day it was, fearing that if she returned too late, Second Miss Jiang would have secretly married in the capital, and the wedding date wasn't set there, so there was always time.
Duan Jiu looked at Pei Jing in surprise, and noticed some subtle differences. The prince seemed to be different from before, but he couldn't tell exactly what the difference was.
Duan Jiu pondered it secretly, and suddenly he understood.
The prince's calm demeanor and unfathomable eyes, could it be that he is finally going to put aside his romantic feelings and concentrate on planning big things?
He was secretly excited when he heard Pei Jing suddenly say, "Let's go into the city and buy some things first."
Duan Jiu was stunned, "What does the prince want to buy?"
Pei Jing curled his lips and said, "I promised her before leaving, to buy her some little toys to coax her."
Well, Duan Jiu's passionate ambition was extinguished in an instant, and it was all in vain after all.
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