"You really have a way?" Clearly, Xia Yuhe wanted Xia Ziwei to be recognized as a member of her family.
Little Swallow laughed and said, "The fact that I was able to rise from an ordinary person to become Princess Flying Swallow is enough to prove my strength!"
Little Swallow even showed Xia Yuhe her identity card, "Look, it's genuine, Aunt Xia, can you rest assured now?"
"Even so, I still have questions. May I ask, Princess Feiyan, how did you learn of my existence, and how did you know about Ziwei's background?"
Little Swallow sighed, "I learned about this by chance, so I came. As for how I found out, I'm afraid I can't tell you. Aunt Xia, you just need to answer me whether you need my help?"
Xia Yuhe fell silent. "This matter is too important for me to give you an answer right now."
Xiao Yanzi nodded, "I understand. Then I'll stay in Jinan for a few more days and come to see me when Aunt Xia has made up her mind."
After Xiao Yanzi finished speaking, she turned and left. Shi Zhu asked curiously, "Miss, are we leaving now?"
"What else can we do? We're new here, how can we expect people to trust me right away? Out of a sense of responsibility to Ziwei, she'll observe me for a few days before making a decision."
Xingchen echoed Xiaoyanzi's words, saying, "Miss is right, then let's find a place to stay for now."
After wandering around the city, the group found an inn to stay in. During the few days they stayed at the inn, she would visit Xia Yuhe at the Xia residence every day and chat with Xia Ziwei. Finally, the day came when Xia Yuhe's time was coming to an end. "Princess Feiyan, I'm entrusting Ziwei to you."
Xia Yuhe told Xia Ziwei about her background in detail. Xia Ziwei was shocked to hear that she did have a father, but that her father was of noble birth...
"Mother, won't you come with me to find Father?"
Xia Yuhe shook her head, "You can go in place of your mother. From now on, you can follow Princess Feiyan."
She knew that her story with Qianlong would definitely not be welcomed by the people in the palace, so she could not go to the palace under any circumstances. Only after her death, the deeper Qianlong's guilt towards her, the more attention he would pay to Ziwei, and the better Ziwei would live.
No matter what Xia Ziwei said, Xia Yuhe refused to go with her. "If Mother doesn't go, then Ziwei won't go either! Mother raised me all these years, I don't want to go to Father!"
She didn't want to leave her mother. Her mother had already suffered enough for her, and she couldn't leave her no matter what!
"Silly girl, your mother is too weak. You have to ask your father for me if he still remembers Xia Yuhe by the Daming Lake back then?"
"I waited my whole life, hated my whole life, thought my whole life, and resented my whole life, but I am still grateful to God for letting me meet your father and know someone for whom I could wait, hate, think, and resent. Otherwise, my life would have been like a dry well, devoid of any joy..."
After saying some heartfelt words, she passed away. "Mother, Mother..."
Little Swallow watched Xia Yuhe leave, then gently patted Xia Ziwei's shoulder, "Ziwei, you must be strong, you must pull yourself together, and fulfill your mother's last wish!"
In the following days, after Xiao Yanzi helped Xia Ziwei handle Xia Yuhe's funeral arrangements, she said, "Ziwei, I'm going back to my hometown of Hangzhou now. Do you want to come with me, or should I have the Fifth Prince send someone from the palace to bring you back?"
"Little Swallow, I want to go with you." Xia Ziwei only knows and trusts Little Swallow and the others now, so she is unwilling to return to the palace alone.
Xiao Yanzi understood Xia Ziwei's thoughts, so she nodded and said, "Okay, then I'll take you away."
After walking for two hours, the group arrived at a place called Baijiazhuang. "Ziwei, Murui, let's hurry and find a place to eat. I'm starving."
Xingchen led the way to an inn. As soon as they entered, a waiter came up to them and asked, "Gentlemen, are you here for a meal or to stay the night?"
"Give me a few of your signature dishes."
"Alright, gentlemen, please follow me."
Xiao Yanzi and the others followed the waiter to a table where there were no other customers. "Please wait a moment, sirs, I'll go and serve the dishes right away."
Xiao Yanzi and the other girls sat at one table, while Zhu Baiyu, Liu Qing, and the other boys sat at another. The dishes hadn't been served yet, and since they couldn't drink alcohol, they could only have some tea and dessert before the meal.
As they ate, they listened to the conversations around them: "What's wrong with that young master Bai? Why does he insist on taking that dirty little girl back with him?"
"I don't know, I can't understand what rich people are thinking."
"Taking that girl back is one thing, but I heard they even took her as their apprentice..."
"Why are you so slow to get the news? I've heard he's planning to marry that girl!"
"What?!" A master marries his disciple? A rich young master marries a penniless girl whose background is unknown? Are you kidding me?
"This is unheard of! As the saying goes, 'A teacher for a day is a father for life.' If he really marries that girl, wouldn't that be..."
"This is going to ruin the Bai family's reputation..."
"In the end, it's still that little girl's fault. If she hadn't appeared, would the young master of the Bai family have ended up like this?"
"Exactly, I think it's probably because that girl is greedy for wealth and deliberately seduced him. Otherwise, why wouldn't the young master of the Bai family like a girl from a scholarly family?"
"I've heard that the young master of the Bai family has a childhood sweetheart, but I never expected that little girl would beat him to it..."
"In my opinion, that girl won't be able to keep up this for long."
"That's hard to say. Maybe she really does have the ability to turn a sparrow into a phoenix!"
The more Xiao Yanzi listened, the more she associated it with Yongqi, and she almost couldn't help but start cursing on the spot.
"Little Swallow, hold back, don't cause any unnecessary trouble." After all, they were just hearing rumors and didn't know the truth at all. If they made a hasty conclusion and wronged someone, that would be bad.
"I can marry whomever I want, what right do you have to interfere?"
Xiao Yanzi and the others were also surprised that the young master of the Bai family would suddenly appear in this small inn, and they happened to overhear the people's discussion, "Don't forget, if it weren't for me, Bai Chenyi, would Bai Family Village be where it is today?"
Xie Murui whispered, "Judging from what he said, could it be that he's in charge of protecting the peace of Bai Family Village?"
Little Swallow nodded, "That should be the case. So those people are really just talking without understanding the situation. They rely on others for everything, and now they still have the nerve to criticize others..."
The little girl standing next to Bai Chenyi had a round face and looked petite. She was probably the kind of person they said was unworthy to stand next to Bai Chenyi. "Master, I'm starving."
"Waiter, why aren't you going yet?" The master and his apprentice were regulars at this inn, so they knew what to make for them without needing to be told.
Xia Ziwei stole a glance at the master and apprentice and whispered, "This young master of the Bai family looks very distinguished, and the girl next to him looks innocent and cute. Could it be that he's deliberately seducing her, as they say?"
Little Swallow smiled slightly and said, "Since we don't know the cause and effect, we naturally don't know whether their appearance is real or just an act."
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com