Chapter 114: Rare Sweetness in Life
Yun Chu woke up after a short nap.
Opening her eyes, she saw a small face magnified before her.
"Auntie, you're awake."
Chu Hongyu was leaning against the bedside, looking very well-behaved.
"Young Son insisted on coming in to watch you sleep," Liu Qianqian said helplessly with bowed head. "Young Son, may we go out now?"
The child shook his head like a pellet drum: "Auntie will be so bored alone after waking up. May I stay here and tell you stories?"
Yun Chu propped herself up slightly and touched his body: "Were you frightened last night?"
"With Auntie protecting me, I wasn't scared at all!" The little one patted his chest, then sighed. "Father says real men should protect women, but I'm too small to protect you yet. But don't worry, Auntie - when I grow up, I'll make anyone who bullies you pay tenfold!"
He stole a glance at Liu Qianqian beside him and whispered in Yun Chu's ear: "When I grow up, I'll marry you instead of Father, so I can rightfully call you Mother!"
Yun Chu: "..."
She patted the child's head. "Then Auntie thanks you in advance."
Liu Qianqian sighed inwardly - the child seemed so intimate with Chu'er that strangers might mistake them for mother and son.
"Auntie, I read a very interesting story yesterday. Let me tell you about it," the little one began. "The book said there was an exceptionally clever child who could learn anything, and his father was very proud..."
As he spoke, he climbed onto Yun Chu's bed.
It was midsummer, and Yun Chu only had a thin quilt covering her. Unbothered by the heat, the child nestled against Yun Chu through the quilt, telling his story with great relish.
Yun Chu's serious injuries hadn't yet healed. Though she had just woken from sleep, after talking for a while, her head began to feel heavy again.
Ting Shuang brought in the brewed medicine, ready to help her drink it.
Chu Hongyu climbed down from the bed: "Let me do it! May I feed Auntie the medicine?"
He scooped the medicine with a spoon, blew on it once, then again, before slowly bringing it to Yun Chu's lips.
After drinking it, Yun Chu smiled and said: "Thank you, Yu Ge'er."
Though young, when Chu Hongyu set his mind to something, he wouldn't do it poorly. With serious concentration, he actually managed to feed her the entire bowl of medicine.
After finishing, he immediately asked Ting Shuang: "Where's the candied fruit?"
Ting Shuang lowered her head and replied: "The Madam doesn't like overly sweet things, so no candied fruit was prepared."
"How can that be?" The little one frowned. "Medicine is always so bitter. Without something sweet, the bitterness stays in your mouth all day - it's awful..."
He felt around his clothes. "The nanny gave me some candied dates when I went out. Auntie, open your mouth, ah—"
Though Yun Chu didn't care for sweets, she couldn't refuse the child's thoughtful gesture. She opened her mouth, and a candied date was placed inside.
Sweetness spread throughout her mouth, and her heart seemed to soak in a honey jar, filled with sugary warmth.
Life was too bitter - she couldn't bear to swallow this mouthful of sweetness.
"Auntie, you should rest well after taking medicine. I'll leave now." Chu Hongyu jumped down from the bed and stood obediently by the bedside. "Tomorrow I'll bring Changsheng to visit you together."
Liu Qianqian was astonished.So, the Little Commandery Princess of the Prince of Pacifying the West Manor also gets along quite well with Yun Chu?
Yun Chu stays in the inner quarters of the Xie residence every day—how could she have the chance to become so close with the Young Son and the Little Commandery Princess?
Once outside, Chu Hongyu obediently walked over to Chu Yi. "Father, Aunt Yun is resting. Let's go back too."
For the first time, Chu Yi felt his son was being sensible.
He had thought the boy would insist on staying at the Yun residence and had even prepared to use forceful means to bring him back to the manor…
"Father, Aunt Yun asked how Changsheng is doing. Let's bring Changsheng along tomorrow."
Chu Yi pinched the bridge of his nose.
They had agreed to visit only once—who said anything about coming again tomorrow?
Although Lady Xie had saved the boy, visiting too often was inappropriate. There were many ways to express gratitude besides visiting the sick. As a man, bringing his son to visit another family’s female members every day would not affect him if word got out, but it would harm Lady Xie. His rash actions had already caused her trouble. If he visited the Yun residence daily, Lady Xie might suspect he had ulterior motives…
At this thought, the image of her slender, delicate waist flashed before his eyes.
When he realized what he was thinking, his ears involuntarily reddened. He coughed lightly and said calmly, "Lord Yun, Madam Yun, I shall take my leave now."
Yun Ze nodded and personally escorted them out.
Outside, a carriage had stopped at the entrance of the Yun residence.
Yun Ze frowned. His father was not in the capital, and the Yun family rarely received visitors. Why were there so many guests today?
He glanced at the carriage and recognized it—it belonged to the Marquis Xuanwu residence.
Qin Mingheng had heard that the Yun residence had summoned a female physician late at night for treatment. Early this morning, he specifically invited the same female physician to his residence to check on his wife’s health. It was only then that he learned Yun Chu had been injured in a carriage accident and was recuperating at the Yun residence.
Feeling concerned, he came to the Yun residence to inquire about her condition.
Unexpectedly, as soon as he stepped out of the carriage, he ran into Prince Pingxi.
As a non-imperial marquis without real authority, he was nothing in front of an emperor-enfeoffed prince. He immediately bowed and saluted, "Your humble official greets Your Highness."
Chu Yi stared coldly at him.
Over the past few years, he had been extremely busy—traveling far and wide to seek treatment for his two children and carrying out imperial orders to suppress bandits in various regions, rarely staying in the capital for long.
Recently, he had finally been able to remain in the capital for an extended period. He had repeatedly invited Marquis Xuanwu for tea, but the marquis always avoided him.
Just as he was planning to force Marquis Xuanwu to come to his manor, he unexpectedly ran into him at the entrance of the Yun residence. This was a perfect opportunity.
"The last time I invited Marquis Xuanwu for tea, you claimed to be ill. But from what I see, you look quite well," Chu Yi said. "As it happens, there are some matters I wish to discuss with you."
Qin Mingheng lowered his head, tightening his grip on his folding fan.
After the incident five years ago, Prince Pingxi had questioned him once.
After the two children were born, Prince Pingxi had interrogated him again.
Who would have thought that, after all these years, he would still be asking!
He followed Chu Yi to the front of the large stone lions at the entrance of the Yun residence. "Your Highness, I have long stated that the woman who was dishonored five years ago went into hiding afterward. It was only when she went into premature labor that I learned of her whereabouts. By the time I arrived, she had already died from complications during childbirth, and the two children showed no signs of life… Believing the children were dead, I dared not send them to your manor and instead left them on the path you were bound to take… If Your Highness does not believe me, you may send someone to investigate."He still couldn't believe it—those two premature infants, once shrouded in deathly aura, had actually been kept alive!
He would never tell Chu Yi that the woman back then was actually the eldest daughter of the Yun family!
The woman he couldn't have, no one else would either!
Chu Yi's lips were cold.
If he could have uncovered the truth through investigation, he wouldn't have needed to come asking.
He spoke: "What I want to ask Marquis Xuanwu is whether that woman had any other family members?"
The imperial physician said Changsheng's illness required the company of relatives—perhaps one day she would start speaking again. But their mother was already dead. Even with all his power and influence, there was nothing he could do.
In the royal family, bonds of kinship were too elusive.
He had long wanted to find the biological mother's family, but years of suppressing bandits left him no opportunity. Now he had finally cornered Marquis Xuanwu.
The woman had died in childbirth, and over the years this remained a knot in his heart. If he could find her family, he would treat them well...
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