"Ayao, there are still many scenes in the painting you haven't seen. Do you want to leave?"
Ayao fell silent, but gradually tightened his grip on her hand.
After a long silence, he spoke in a low voice: "Are you willing to leave? Zhaoyu and Zhaohe are still so young. If we leave, they might cry."
“Now that they have things they want to do, their longing for us won't be so deep. Ah Yao, perhaps what the two children need isn't a peaceful life…”
“I can see that too. They are eager to learn, curious about new things, and even have clear goals for the future. It would be more suitable for them to find better teachers than to stay in this courtyard.”
Gu Jiangli looked into his eyes and realized that the reluctance in his eyes was just as strong as her own.
However, the two also rationally understood that with Zhao Yu and Zhao He's help, they might be able to gain more.
They discerned the answer to their questions from each other's expressions, and thus tacitly fell silent.
The next day, they rented a carriage and rushed back to the palace.
When Zhaoxu saw them arrive, his eyes immediately lit up. It had been half a month since he last saw his two younger brothers.
"Father, Mother, Zhaoyu, Zhaohe, what brings you here!"
Gu Jiangli was somewhat saddened and was about to speak when Zhao He and Zhao Yu suddenly interrupted him.
Zhao Yu: "Eldest brother, Father and Mother have arrived."
Zhaohe: "They're leaving!"
Zhaoxu: "My God, Father and Mother, you're finally leaving!"
The sadness on Gu Jiangli and A Yao's faces instantly turned into a blank stare.
"ah?"
The three brothers showed no sign of reluctance; on the contrary, they seemed to have been looking forward to it for a long time.
"Wait... how did you two know we were leaving?"
Zhao Yu and Zhao He exchanged a glance and explained with a grin:
"Our eldest brother told us long ago that you wouldn't be staying in this small courtyard for long; you'd all leave sooner or later!"
"My eldest brother also said that after you leave, we will come to the palace to live with him, and Uncle Qin can teach us to read and write!"
The two brothers explained in perfect unison, one after the other.
"So every time Zhaoxu comes to play with you, it's all secretly about this, right? You've been looking forward to this day for a long time? Aren't you sad at all? You won't see your father and mother for a long time."
The three brothers exchanged glances, and then said in perfect unison:
"What's there to be sad about?"
"It's just that we won't see it for a while."
"It's not like we'll never see it again."
Gu Jiangli was rendered speechless.
He glanced at A Yao and found that the shock in his pupils was exactly the same as his own.
She patted Ayao's shoulder with a wry smile, "Ayao, we were secretly heartbroken and reluctant to part last night... We were just being sentimental."
"I thought Zhaohe and Zhaoyu would cry and beg us not to leave... Turns out we were overthinking it."
Gu Jiangli's bitter smile deepened.
Zhao Yu and Zhao He didn't look like they were about to cry at all; their mouths were practically stretched to their ears.
"If I had known this would happen, I should have left the two brothers with Zhaoxu from the beginning. Sigh, what a mistake. Let's go."
"Yeah, let's stay for two more years this time and come back, let them miss us so much they can't stand it anymore before we come back."
“That makes sense, that’s what I think too.”
The two boarded the carriage one after the other, while the three children waved their arms below the carriage to see them off.
As the carriage began to move, Gu Jiangli lifted the curtain, peeking out half his head and shouting outside:
"Stay put! If I find out you're not listening to Uncle Qin, you're dead!"
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