Chapter 53: Past Events
Chapter 53: Past Events
"Brother, let's go together to see mother. I just returned home and I should go to pay my respects to her." Nangong Jing said to Nangong Mu with a chuckle.
Nangong Mu knew that the Duchess had always had a grudge against Nangong Jing. Although she now had successfully found a good master because of him and did not have such strong malice towards Nangong Jing, if possible, Nangong Mu still hoped that the relationship between Nangong Jing and the Duchess could be more friendly.
It wasn't because of Xuanyuan Xingyao, it was simply because Nangong Mu felt that Nangong Jing was already pitiful enough without a mother, and he hadn't had a good life in the past few years. If possible, Nangong Mu hoped that Nangong Jing could experience maternal love from the Duchess.
Although Nangong Mu treats all of his younger brothers well, in his heart, the one he likes the most is his little brother Nangong Jing. Sometimes Nangong Mu really wishes that Nangong Jing is his biological brother with the same father and mother. How wonderful that would be.
The Duchess was preparing clothes for Nangong Mu to enter the palace in the evening when she heard the servant report that Nangong Mu had arrived. Just as she was about to smile to greet Nangong Mu, she heard the servant say that Nangong Jing had also arrived, and her brows subconsciously frowned.
The Duchess still couldn't like Nangong Jing. It could be said that whenever she saw him, she would think of Qiao Huan'er. If Qiao Huan'er hadn't been killed by those people in the backyard, the Duchess didn't know if she would still have a place in this mansion.
Moreover, given Nangong Tao's love for Qiao Huan'er, Nangong Jing's current qualifications, and his relationship with Xuanyuan Xingyao, the Duchess could not guarantee that Nangong Tao would leave the position of Duke's heir to Nangong Mu.
It was just that Nangong Mu was able to successfully become the magician's disciple all because of Nangong Jing. Even though some time had passed, the Duchess still remembered the jealous and ferocious looks on the faces of those people in the backyard when they learned that Nangong Mu was accepted as the magician's disciple.
Even though some people said sourly that Nangong Mu was just a nominal disciple and should not be taken seriously at all, it did not affect the Duchess's good mood, because everyone knew that they were just sour grapes.
The Duchess believed that if they could serve as servants to the magician, just to get a few words of advice occasionally, they would be willing to do so, let alone be registered disciples. What's wrong with being a registered disciple? They are registered disciples now, not for life.
The Duchess believed that with Nangong Mu's intelligence and talent, it was only a matter of time before he became the other party's disciple, and all this was brought about by Nangong Jing.
Therefore, the Duchess's feelings towards Nangong Jing at this time were extremely complicated.
She felt both disgust and dislike for Qiao Huan'er and gratitude and joy for Nangong Mu. However, the Duchess still remembered her promise to Nangong Mu that she would not target Nangong Jing again, so she quickly sorted out her mood and greeted Nangong Jing with a decent smile.
"Hello, mother." Nangong Mu and Nangong Jing walked into the Duchess's courtyard hand in hand. When they saw the Duchess, they both bowed.
"We're all family, there's no need to be so polite. Please excuse yourself." The curve of the Duchess's mouth was as if it had been measured with a ruler. It was so perfect, but because it was too perfect, it looked a little fake. After Nangong Jing and Nangong Mu stood up, the Duchess continued, "It's not a holiday today, why is Mu Jing'er back?"
"The palace is closed today because of the Seventh Prince's birthday. I thought my formal dress is still at home, so I came back first. I will go to the palace with my father, mother and elder brother in the evening." Nangong Jing replied.
Whenever there was a banquet in the palace, Nangong Tao usually brought the Duchess into the palace. If he could bring a child, it would only be Nangong Mu. As for concubines and illegitimate children, no matter how favored they were, they could not enter the palace. Bringing a concubine or illegitimate child into the palace would be ridiculed and would also be a disgrace to all the principal wives and legitimate children in the imperial capital.
If Nangong Jing had not been Xuanyuan Xingyao's study partner, he would not have been qualified to enter the palace. For example, in his previous life, Nangong Jing had never entered the palace with Nangong Tao to attend a palace banquet.
When the Duchess heard that the Emperor had given Xuanyuan Xingyao a day off for his birthday, her eyes flashed quickly. She knew that Xuanyuan Xingyao was favored, but she didn't expect him to be so favored. Even on the Crown Prince's birthday, the Emperor didn't give the princes a day off.
The Duchess glanced at Nangong Jing, who was showing respect in front of her, and sighed in her heart. She didn't know whether it was a good thing or a bad thing that Xuanyuan Xingyao was so favored, but she said calmly, "I see. Is the dress ready? If not, I can prepare one for you."
"Thank you for your concern, mother. I already have a dress." Nangong Jing replied in a deep voice.
The dialogue between the Duchess and Nangong Jing was nothing like a conversation between mother and son. Instead, it was more like a conversation between a subordinate and a superior, very formal.
Nangong Mu looked at the stiff and unfamiliar atmosphere between the Duchess and Nangong Jing and sighed in his heart. However, thinking back to the past when the Duchess had subtly targeted Nangong Jing, Nangong Mu told himself to take it slow. At least compared to before, there has been progress, hasn't there?
Nangong Jing knew that the Duchess didn't like seeing him very much, so after greeting her and exchanging pleasantries, he found a random excuse to leave.
After Nangong Jing left, the Duchess seemed to have been freed from her shell. She looked brighter and her smile was more sincere.
Pulling Nangong Mu over, she pointed at the dress on the table and said, "Mu'er, look at these. They are all dresses that mother prepared for you. Try them all on. I'll see which one looks best on you, and you can wear it to the palace banquet tonight. You can take the rest back and wear them when you go out socializing in the future."
Even though Nangong Mu is not very old, he has to socialize in many occasions on weekdays. Young masters from the same aristocratic families usually invite Nangong Mu to any parties or banquets.
"If a mother makes clothes for her son and any piece doesn't fit him, he doesn't need to try them on. He can just take them all away and pick any piece to wear at night." Nangong Mu said it deliberately to sound nice, but he was also speaking from the heart.
The Duchess was truly devoted to Nangong Mu. Everything she prepared for him was meticulously crafted, and anything with even the slightest flaw would never be presented to Nangong Mu.
Even though she knew Nangong Mu was deliberately saying nice things to coax her, the Duchess still smiled happily and was very pleased. However, although she was pleased, she still had to try on the clothes. After all, the dresses she had ordered this time were both more exquisite and more simple. How could she just pick any one to wear to the palace banquet in the evening?
Nangong Mu couldn't persuade the Duchess, so he had no choice but to go to the side room to change clothes. Although he was not yet an adult, he was a grown-up boy after all, and as a boy, how could he take off his clothes in front of the Duchess?
The Duchess also knew that Nangong Mu was a very well-behaved child, so she didn't say anything when he went to the side room to change his clothes.
The Duchess had ordered six dresses for Nangong Mu this time, and it took more than half an hour to change into them one by one. There was no other way, as the dresses were complicated and required two servants to help put them on. If Nangong Mu had done it alone, it would have been even slower.
"The third piece of clothing is the most suitable for you. Mu'er can wear that one tonight." The Duchess carefully adjusted Nangong Mu's collar and said gently.
Nangong Mu didn't really care what to wear at night as long as it wasn't impolite. Since the Duchess asked him to wear the third piece, then he would just wear the third piece.
The Duchess was more and more satisfied with Nangong Mu's obedience, and she couldn't help but remind him, "My son, you must be careful with what you put in your mouth when you go back. Try not to touch anything brought by people other than Dewen and Dewu."
"Is mother being too cautious? After all, we are family, how could we be like this?" Nangong Mu understood what the Duchess meant, but Nangong Mu did not take it to heart. Instead, he felt that the Duchess thought too badly of those people in the backyard. After all, they were brothers, so how could they drug him to harm him?
The Duchess looked at Nangong Mu's face which showed disapproval, and sighed in her heart, thinking that Nangong Mu was protected too well by her and was a little too naive.
"Mu'er, you have been smart since you were young, but a little too kind. Our family is not as harmonious as you think. You may have no memory of it, but your mother remembers it clearly. That was when you were three years old and a little more sensible, so your father planned to take you to the annual banquet in the palace that year." The Duchess was still a little scared when she thought of what happened that year.
When the story of that year came out, the Duchess almost fainted from fright.
"This is a good thing for us mother and son, but it is not good for those concubines in the backyard who also have children. So when your mother went to choose a dress for you for the evening party, you got into trouble. Fortunately, they were not brave enough to poison you. They just gave you some laxatives, so that you could not attend the dinner." The Duchess said angrily. Even though the amount was very small at the beginning and did not hurt Nangong Mu, the Duchess still hated the person behind the scenes.
Nangong Mu's eyes widened in shock. He had no recollection of this incident. He said in shock and confusion, "At the banquet in the palace, except for the royal family who could bring illegitimate sons and concubines, the dukes and marquises could only bring legitimate sons and principal wives into the palace. Even the eldest son of a concubine and his concubine were not allowed. Even if those people drugged me, they still couldn't enter the palace. Why did they do this?"
"Who knows? Maybe they just thought that since their children couldn't go, you couldn't go either. After you got into trouble, your father and I immediately found out the person behind the scenes. It was your second brother's concubine, Concubine Qin. Originally, according to my intention, we should have beaten her to death with sticks, but your father felt that you were not seriously injured, and your second brother was still young and needed someone to take care of her, so he only beat her with ten sticks and locked her up for three months, and the matter was over." The Duchess was still full of resentment when she talked about this, and this resentment was directed at Nangong Tao.
He harmed her son, but was only given ten beatings and locked up for a few months. How could the Duchess not hate him?
Her son was fine, but could the diarrhea he had had for two days be fake? There was no one to take care of Nangong Dao. Were all the women in the backyard dead? Anyone could take care of him. In the final analysis, Nangong Tao didn't care about them and their son.
The Duchess sometimes wondered, if it was Nangong Jing who was drugged, what would Nangong Tao do? Would he let the person behind the scenes go so easily? Haha, no way!!!
The Duchess' words caused Nangong Mu great shock. When he left the Duchess' courtyard, he felt a little dazed.
He really didn't expect that there would be so many conflicts in the Duke's Mansion, which he thought was peaceful and harmonious. But now Nangong Mu had some understanding of why the Duchess had been so vigilant and cautious over the years, and why she hated those concubines and even her half-brothers. Alas... Author's words: Thank you Bole 9492239 (9492239) for your support, muah! To know more exciting content, please leave me a message on Liancheng Reading.
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