Grandpa Gu didn't say anything.
At first, he always thought that the Empress Dowager had sent people to kill him. Later, when the new emperor ascended the throne and he also settled in Sanchakou Village, he learned that his twin brother had also not survived. So it must not have been his mother who sent people to hunt him down.
His existence was unknown even to his father, the emperor; only his mother and younger brother knew. Therefore, it was obvious who was hunting him down.
The Empress Dowager looked at Grandma Gu: "Xianglan, tell me. What has happened since Yi'er came to your village?"
Grandma Gu didn't think as much as Grandpa Gu did; she recounted everything Grandpa Gu had told her over the years.
When Grandpa Gu was fourteen, his illness improved. Then that year, natural disasters and man-made calamities struck. Before the news from the guards could reach the capital, they were hunted down.
In the end, the guard and his daughter died protecting Grandpa Gu, who then fled to Qingzhou alone with the refugees.
He was unconscious for two days and two nights in the back mountain of Sanchakou Village, and was rescued by Grandma Gu and her father who went hunting in the mountains.
Grandpa Gu had been sick since he was ten years old and had always been very thin. He lied about his age and moved into the Gu family home.
After living there for two years, he married Grandma Gu and became her live-in son-in-law.
Two years is enough time for him and Grandma Gu to fall in love, get to know each other, get married, and have children.
Not long after, she gave birth to her first son.
When she gave birth to her second son, the new emperor ascended the throne. Grandma Gu's father died while hunting. Grandpa Gu learned the new emperor's name and knew that he was not his younger brother. He was completely puzzled.
He did not leave. In the following years, Grandma Gu helped him inquire about news and learned that his twin brother had died at the age of twenty without any children, so the new emperor was chosen from among the princes.
At that time, Grandma Gu asked him if he wanted to go back.
Grandpa Gu said that going back wouldn't change anything, so he would just stay here, raise his son well, and let him study hard. Maybe one day he could see his grandmother again.
And so, Grandma Gu gave birth to a daughter and a son, and life went on peacefully.
I saw hope in my second child, but it didn't come to fruition. More than ten years later, I saw hope again, and it worked.
Grandpa Gu couldn't help but say, "Mother, I'm sorry, I shouldn't have doubted you back then."
The Empress Dowager closed her eyes in anguish. The rumors were indeed true; the royal twins would ultimately end up killing each other.
She had already vaguely suspected it, but her youngest son had also passed away. What else could she do?
After a long silence, the Empress Dowager opened her eyes, her gaze resolute: "Yi'er, Xianglan, rest assured, I will make up for what I owe you all these years. However, the throne..."
Grandpa Gu waved his hand: "Mother, I am not suited to be an emperor. The emperor was raised by you personally. As long as he is here, that's enough. It's enough to be able to see you again in this life."
The Empress Dowager sighed: "Fate is cruel! Yi'er, how about I ask the Emperor to bestow a title upon you? A hereditary title. I'll make my second and fourth sons marquises, my third son a princess, and all my beloved granddaughters county princesses."
Grandpa Gu: "...Mother, you've gotten the Emperor to bestow so many titles all at once. Even if the Emperor is willing, the officials won't be. You're just putting the Gu family out there as a target!"
The Empress Dowager's aura suddenly became majestic: "This is the Ye family's territory. Who would dare to object to the rewards bestowed upon my Ye family descendants? The grains that your family and the Zhou family grow together are beneficial to the country and the people. What would those old fellows dare to say if you were granted the title of Marquis? The Emperor is on good terms with you, so what if he makes you a King?"
Grandma Gu: ...Old lady, do you dare not say anything, not make any excuses, just say that I want his family to be kings, marquises, princesses, and county princesses?
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