Seeing Ning Hongze's troubled expression, Ning Youqing looked at her brother's pale face and thin body, and a pang of heartache flashed in her eyes. She seemed to understand something.
He didn't value the family's reputation much. After all, he grew up in a temple, and family ties were far more important to him than reputation.
"The Ning family's reputation cannot be ruined any further."
However, Ning Hong was different. He was raised as the heir from a young age, and apart from the safety of his family, the most important thing was the reputation of the Ning family.
The Ning family can have useless people, can have good-for-nothings, but it cannot have treacherous officials, and it cannot have someone as infamous as him.
He believed he had a clear conscience, but whether in the imperial court or among the common people, he was universally reviled.
If they knew he was the eldest son of the Ning family, the Ning family's reputation would be ruined.
Some people might even think that Emperor Chengye was right back then.
"Youqing, from now on, the Ning family will rely on you. If you need anything, just tell me."
"Mm." Ning Youqing nodded.
She is very well-behaved.
Ning Hong then patted his head again.
Soft, black hair, not the bald head it once was.
"Stay put. If you like to worship Buddha, we'll have the butler set up a Buddhist shrine for you."
"good."
“You are getting old. In a few days, I will have some portraits of young ladies sent over. You can choose one from them. You must settle down and start a family to carry on the Ning family line.”
After hesitating for a moment, Ning Hong finally spoke.
If it were Ning Hongze, this kind of thing would naturally be no big deal, but it was one of the original owner's tasks, and he could only do his best to complete it.
Perhaps the original owner issued this task hoping that someone would take care of Ning Youqing.
Ning Youqing remained silent for a long time before nodding again.
“Youqing, you have already left the monastic life. It’s only natural for you to settle down and start a family. If you don’t want to start a family, that’s fine too. With me here, I’ll make sure you don’t go hungry. But your brother definitely hopes that you can live a normal life, get married, have children, and have a happy family.”
"I know, I understand what my brother is thinking."
Ning Youqing looked up and grinned at Ning Hongze.
“Brother, since you are unwilling to admit it, I will not force you. But can I call you Big Brother? I don’t want to call you Ninth Prince like they do.”
To my brother, those three words were an insult.
"Okay, call me whatever you want."
"Then I have one last request." Ning Youqing held up one finger.
"What?"
"Can I hug you?" He hadn't felt the warmth of his family in a long time.
He wanted to hug his brother, even though his brother couldn't recognize him right now.
“Of course.” Ning Hong opened her arms and hugged him.
The long-lost scent instantly brought tears to Ning Youqing's eyes.
Looking at the innocent and well-behaved Ning Youqing, Ning Hong frowned. Come to think of it, if his younger brother was so soft and cute, how did the transmigrated female lead manage to turn him into the gloomy and serious person he remembered?
Zhao Qingqi stood at the door, watching Ning Hong carefully embrace Ning Youqing.
I felt extremely uncomfortable.
What are you doing, hugging so intimately? Even though they're both men, these two men still need to keep their distance.
"Ning Hongze," he suddenly called out.
Ning Hongze's body stiffened instinctively, then relaxed. He released Ning Youqing and pulled him to Zhao Qingqi's side.
"This is the current emperor," Ning Hong introduced.
The Emperor's voice sounded a bit off just now; his tone almost made him think that Acha had come to arrest a woman for rape.
Upon hearing the word "Emperor," Ning Youqing's eyes widened suddenly. "Brother, should I kneel down and shout 'Long live the Emperor'?" He had once gone to see a play with his fellow monks at the temple, and that's how it was portrayed in the play.
"Your Majesty, please forgive me. Youqing has lived in a temple since childhood and is not very familiar with these formalities. I will teach him."
"I am not a tyrant. If you don't know, just learn. I won't blame you."
"Thank you, Your Majesty." Ning Hongze and Ning Youqing spoke at the same time. The two looked at each other and smiled, which made Zhao Qingqi even more displeased.
"Come back to the palace with me. I need your help with something."
In short, let's separate these two people first.
Zhao Qingqi turned and left expressionlessly.
"Brother, is the Emperor angry?"
"Don't worry, it's alright." Ning Hong patted Ning Youqing's shoulder, instructed the housekeeper to take good care of Ning Youqing, and then caught up with him.
Zhao Qingqi walked ahead angrily, and seeing Ning Hong calmly doing her own thing, he felt even more frustrated.
Why doesn't this guy care about him at all?
No, that's not right. He can't think like that. Why should he care about a dead eunuch?
Qingqi patted his face to make himself look more normal.
Are you angry?
"Why should I be angry? What is your relationship with me that I should be angry with you?"
"It would be best if you weren't angry. Your Majesty should learn to control your emotions and not let them cloud your judgment." All the lessons he taught this brat before were wasted.
"I understand." He took a deep breath, and his expression changed instantly, becoming indifferent.
She does bear some resemblance to Ning Hong when she's not smiling.
After about half a cup of tea, Zhao Qingqi held back for a while, but finally couldn't help but blurt it out.
"Hmm? Are you very familiar with him? You keep calling him 'Youqing' and 'Big Brother,' you're quite affectionate with him."
Zhao Qingqi said with a hint of dissatisfaction.
He hasn't even called him Qingqi yet.
However, the emperor's name should not be easily offended.
"Hey! Call me and let me see!"
"emperor?"
"No, call me by my nickname!" Zhao Qingqi suddenly looked over with an expectant expression.
“Acha—”
"Hey! What do you want?" In that instant, Ning Hong seemed to see a tail wagging behind Zhao Qingqi, which made him feel happy all of a sudden.
"Let's go, I'll treat you to some sugar figurines."
"Really, I want two."
"I'm in a good mood today, so eat as many as you like."
Ning Hong bought a lot of things for Zhao Qingqi, and of course, he didn't forget to give Ning Youqing a gift as well. Everything was packed and sent over.
Although Zhao Qingqi was a little jealous, he didn't say anything more.
Ning Youqing's slightly flustered heart calmed down after receiving these things.
Looking into the package, which contained pastries, sugar figurines, and even some small toys that he had never tasted before, Ning Youqing felt a surge in his chest.
Is his older brother going to make up for the share he lost in the previous years?
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