Tong Wanyan looked at Tong Fujin in surprise: "Mother has such good eyesight. Sure enough, I am your biological daughter. No one else knows how lazy I am."
Her exaggerated reactions made Tong Fujin laugh non-stop.
Perhaps there really is such a thing as blood ties; even Tong Wanyan herself didn't expect to become close to Tong Fujin so quickly.
"From the moment I entered the room, except for the first time when you sat up straight, you've been leaning on me the whole time. When other mothers and daughters lean on each other, the daughter is holding back and leaning against me loosely. But you, you're really leaning on me. Luckily, I'm strong enough that you didn't knock me over," Tong Fujin teased.
Tong Wanyan blushed and said, "Mother, I was just thinking of getting closer to you."
"Solving lies!" Consort Tong scolded with a playful laugh.
"Oh, it doesn't matter whether I make excuses or not, what matters most is that my mother loves and spoils me. I'm happy, so I just want to stick close to my mother!" Tong Wanyan said sweetly and coquettishly.
This feeling isn't bad; she quite likes it.
Tong Fujin wanted to cry more times than usual today, but it was tears of joy.
She said, "Yuanbao, do you blame your mother and your father?"
"No. Didn't you find me? Actually, you could have refused to acknowledge me. Acknowledging me would have brought a lot of trouble, but Father still went to talk to the Emperor. It was all to elevate my status and make my life better in the palace."
“What happened in the past was not what you and Father wanted. Now you and Father truly love me. If I blame you for other people’s mistakes, what kind of person would I be?”
Tong Wanyan was very clear-headed; she wasn't someone who couldn't appreciate good things.
Tong Fujin smiled and said repeatedly, "My Yuanbao'er, you deserve to be pampered and spoiled. No amount of compensation is too much."
Hongzhao lay on Tong Fujin's lap, not understanding why his grandmother was ignoring him.
The maternal grandmother always pestered the mother to talk, and they also wanted to talk to the mother.
“Grandmother, I am Hongzhao,” Hongzhao said, unwilling to be ignored.
His chubby little hand patted Tong Fujin's thigh; it didn't hurt, it was soft.
In an instant, Tong Fujin forgot about Tong Wanyan and lovingly picked up Hongzhao, saying, "Little prince, your maternal grandmother is here."
“Grandmother, Mother is beautiful.” These were the two sentences that Hongzhao could say most fluently.
Consort Tong hugged him and said, "Grandmother knows that your mother is the most beautiful. Yuanbao, I have never seen such intelligent and graceful children as the little prince and the little princess in all these years. No wonder your father said that the emperor dotes on the little prince beyond belief, even more so than he did on the crown prince back then."
"He's good-looking and has a sweet tongue. Apart from being a bit lazy and a bit of a glutton, he's perfect in every way. Father Emperor only has this one grandson, so it's no wonder he dotes on him," Tong Wanyan said.
As she spoke, Consort Tong took off the jade pendant of peace and good fortune that she was wearing around her neck and put it into Hongzhao's hand.
“This jade pendant was originally obtained for you before you were born, to ensure your safety. When the baby who was switched died, I inexplicably didn’t put it down to be buried with him. I just noticed that the jade pendant Tana is wearing is excellent. How about I give this one to Hongzhao, bypassing you?” said Consort Tong.
Her fingertips rubbed the jade pendant fondly, its warm luster indicating it had been worn for many years.
Jade nourishes people, and people nourish jade. Wearing fine jade that has been nurtured for more than ten years has many benefits.
Tong Wanyan had no reason not to agree: "Tana's jade pendant was left to the Fourth Prince by her cousin. The Fourth Prince always doted on Tana, so he gave it to her when she turned one year old."
"No wonder it looked familiar. Now that you mention it, I remember, this is the jade pendant that the Imperial Noble Consort wore when she was born," Consort Tong said with a sudden realization.
Hongzhao clutched the jade pendant given to him by Consort Tong, and liked it very much.
"Grandmother, this is for you." Hongzhao rummaged through his small purse and pulled out a bunch of gold ingots.
These things were given to him by Emperor Kangxi and the Empress Dowager from time to time. Little did he know that he was a little miser. He pestered Tong Wanyan to get him a purse, and he picked out his favorite few, put them in the purse, and carried them with him every day.
Fortunately, he didn't take too much. If he had carried all the gifts from Emperor Kangxi and the Empress Dowager with him, he probably wouldn't have been able to walk a single step.
"What is this?" Consort Tong looked at the gold ingots lying on the cushion beside her. Each one was uniquely shaped, truly worthy of being made in the palace.
“Hongzhao likes to put his favorite things in his purse and carry them with him. Last time when the eldest prince saw him at the emperor’s place, he teased him by saying he would trade something for him, but he refused no matter what and ended up crying.” Tong Wanyan patted Hongzhao’s head and said to Tong Fujin with a smile, “The fact that he could give this to his mother shows that he is really close to you and really likes the jade pendant you gave him.”
Tong Wanyan's words made Tong Fujin beam with joy: "Yes, yes."
"Young Prince, are these all for your servants?" Consort Tong asked in a kind and gentle voice.
Hongzhao stared with his big, round eyes without saying a word; he was bewildered by Tong Fujin's question.
My grandmother is terrifying; she actually tried to take all his things away.
Tana nestled in Tong Wanyan's arms and dozed off for a while, but suddenly woke up when she heard Tong Fujin's words.
She defended him, saying, "No, it belongs to my younger brother!"
She was the only one allowed to take her brother's things, and no one else was allowed to bully him.
Hearing the sudden, childish, angry shout, Tong Fujin was caught off guard.
"And what about my maternal grandmother?" Tong Fujin asked deliberately.
Tana looked up at Tong Wanyan and saw her beautiful mother smiling gently. She had a feeling that her mother liked her maternal grandmother very much.
So Tana patted her little chest: "Tana's purse, for Grandma!"
It's amazing that such a little girl could come up with such a good answer.
Consort Tong said that Tong Wanyan was blessed to have given birth to two good children. Not only were they smart, but they were also filial and knew how to care for their brothers even at such a young age.
In other families, having such a descendant would be a cause for celebration. The Crown Prince and his daughter are truly fortunate, blessed with a perfect pair from the start.
"Grandmother, please choose only one, not my sister's, okay?" Hongzhao looked at Tong Fujin expectantly.
With a soft voice, Tong Fujin couldn't utter a single word of dissent.
She carefully selected the smallest gold ingot and had it crafted into the shape of a gold ingot, with the character "福" (fortune) engraved on its belly.
Hongzhao watched with a heavy heart as Tong Fujin took away his favorite gold ingot, but he still magnanimously refrained from uttering a single word of objection.
"Does Grandmother still want it?" Hongzhao asked, his voice trembling with pain.
“This servant will give the young prince a jade pendant, and the young prince will reward this servant with a gold ingot. This is just right,” said Consort Tong.
Hongzhao nodded seriously, lay down on the mat, quickly put the rest of his treasures into his purse, and then tied the purse tightly.
After Hongzhao finished doing everything, Tong Wanyan explained to Tong Fujin, "Mother, you don't know, but the one you chose is Hongzhao's favorite. He's young and doesn't understand whether an object is valuable or not; he just goes by his own taste and preferences."
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
