"Zhengjun!"
"Zhengjun!"
At six o'clock in the afternoon, Mu Lige, who was taking a nap in the bedroom of Lingkun Courtyard in the East Palace, was suddenly awakened by his personal servant.
"What is it?"
Mu Lige, who was lying on his side on the bed, slowly woke up and looked at Shu Mo with confusion, who looked anxious.
He was getting further along in his pregnancy, and the date of his birth was drawing near. Unless it was something extremely important, no one around him would bother him. So, even though he was exhausted, Mu Lige slowly sat up from the bed.
"Zhengjun, please slow down!"
When Mu Lige wanted to get up, Shu Mo and Li Xiang were already supporting him on his left and right.
"Her Royal Highness the Crown Princess is back, but she..." Shu Mo hesitated to speak.
"I know that the princess went to Xiangyang Temple on the northern outskirts of the city with my third brother and fourth brother today, but what happened?" Mu Lige leaned against the head of the bed and glanced sideways at Shu Mo beside him.
"Her Royal Highness has returned with a child. Some palace maids from other palaces said... that the child was born to Her Royal Highness's concubine. But don't worry, it's just a boy. At worst, when he grows up, you can marry him off far away, so that out of sight, out of mind." Shu Mo said a little nervously, fearing that Mu Lige would be angry.
Mu Lige pinched his brows in annoyance when he heard that. Then he opened his lips slightly and asked leisurely, "How old is that child?"
"Reporting to Lord Zheng, I only saw him from a distance and didn't see his appearance closely. But judging from his body shape, the child looks to be only three or four years old at most." Shu Mo responded truthfully.
"Then do you know how old Her Royal Highness the Crown Princess is this year?" Mu Lige suppressed his inner speechlessness and asked again.
"After her birthday last month, Her Royal Highness the Crown Princess should be seventeen years old now." Shu Mo replied after a little thought.
"A child of three or four, which means he was born four or five years ago. The princess was only twelve or thirteen at the time, and she herself was still a child, so how could she have conceived a child with someone else?"
Mu Lige glanced at Shu Mo and Li Xiang and shook his head slightly. It was just a rumor, that's what it was.
"What's more...what's more, four or five years ago, I was in the countryside with the princess. I know very well whether she has had children with anyone else."
Mu Lige wanted to say that he was very sure that Hua Qingcheng's first time was with him, but in the end he didn't say it out loud.
Although Shu Mo and Li Xiang were subordinates that Mu Lige had recruited outside the palace, they were, after all, inexperienced men in a country where women were dominant. It was normal for them not to understand. It was not appropriate for him to talk about these matters in the boudoir in front of a young man.
"Please forgive me, Lord Zheng. I, I... didn't mean to frame Her Royal Highness the Crown Princess. But I heard the palace maids from other palaces talking about it, and I felt sorry for you, Lord Zheng, and I got angry for a moment..." Shu Mo then pulled Li Xiang to kneel down in front of Mu Lige.
"Get up. But, Shumo, Lixiang, you must remember to be careful with what you say and do in the future. Don't believe everything you hear, so as to avoid causing trouble." Mu Lige said sternly.
"We will follow the teachings of Lord Zheng." Shu Mo and Li Xiang kowtowed to Mu Lige devoutly and admitted their mistakes.
Shumo, Lixiang, Yuanyu, and Sangrou were orphans left behind by the war, and they were all relatively young. Shumo was thirteen, Lixiang was twelve, and Yuanyu and Sangrou were both fourteen.
A few years ago, they were adopted by Mu Lige's Justice Army. They had been living in Zhifanlin, which was located at the border between Laifeng Kingdom and Zhaoyang Kingdom. It was only recently that they were arranged into the palace and stayed by Mu Lige's side as personal servants.
Shumo, Lixiang, Yuanyu, and Sangrou were naturally loyal to Mu Lige, the leader of the Righteous Army, and Mu Lige trusted them greatly. Since entering the palace, Shumo and Lixiang had primarily taken care of Mu Lige's daily needs, while Yuanyu and Sangrou were primarily responsible for managing the internal affairs of Lingkun Courtyard.
"Shumo, Lixiang, help me wash and change my clothes."
Mu Lige, who was no longer sleepy, also wanted to go and see what had happened that would make Hua Qingcheng bring the child directly into the palace...
"Yes, Masaru-kun."
Shumo and Lixiang wanted to persuade Mu Lige to sleep a little longer, but they didn't dare to disobey Mu Lige's order. They quickly brought hot water for Mu Lige to wash up, helped him change his clothes, and combed his hair.
At one o'clock in the afternoon, Mu Lige, accompanied by Shu Mo and Li Xiang, arrived at the main hall in the front yard of the East Palace.
"Qingqing~"
After leaving Shu Mo and Li Xiang at the door, Mu Lige stepped into the hall alone and walked slowly forward.
"Brother Li, why are you here?"
Hua Qingcheng, who was sitting at the top seat and watching Ermao wolfing down his food, stood up from her seat when she saw Mu Lige coming. She personally went forward to help him to the right seat at the top seat and sat next to her.
"Brother, it's so cold today, why don't you get some more sleep?" Han Yichen, who was sitting below Hua Qingcheng, asked with concern, but his own face was still slightly pale.
"I couldn't fall asleep after waking up. Third brother, why do you look so bad? Didn't we go to Xiangyang on the outskirts of the city to see the red roses?" Mu Lige asked in confusion.
"Ugh~"
Unexpectedly, the moment Mu Lige finished speaking, Han Yichen, upon hearing the three words "Red Rose Flower," immediately began to vomit violently as a conditioned reflex...
Hua Qingcheng, quick-witted, quickly handed Han Yichen an antique vase from a nearby shelf to use as a spittoon. Fortunately, Han Yichen, whose stomach had already been emptied, only dry-heaved a few times and couldn't spit anything out.
Mu Lige:......
(Could it be that I'm getting uglier and uglier, and this third brother vomits when he sees me?)
"Brother, from now on... you'd better not mention the three words 'Red Rose' in front of Third Brother." Yu Xiaotian kindly reminded him.
"Yeah." Hua Qingcheng also nodded with a slightly gloomy expression.
Mu Lige:......
"Uncle Li~"
Just when Mu Lige was worried and confused about Han Yichen, Ermao, who had buried his head in the bowl to eat, finally raised his head, turned around and called Mu Lige.
Mu Lige:......
(Uncle Li...?)
"Who are you……"
Mu Lige looked at the child in the ill-fitting cotton-padded jacket and shoes in front of him with a look of surprise. This face was clearly very familiar...
Ermao's clothes were thin and dirty. Hua Qingcheng had them washed and then put Danyou's clothes and shoes on him. Ermao was a little over three years old, and Danyou was nine, so their clothes and shoes were definitely too big for him.
"Qingqing, isn't this Ermao from Cheng Minggui's family in Huaqiao Village? How did you meet him?" Mu Lige looked at Ermao, then at Hua Qingcheng, with a puzzled look in his eyes.
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