Chapter 356 - Sowed Dissension

Shen Ninghua and Baili Junyi were not surprised by the two children’s interactions at all. They had long discovered that the two children hated books, especially Big Boy. Every time they saw books, they would tear them apart. However, it was not that they did not like to read books. These two children were exceptionally intelligent. Most of the time, Baili Junyi had only read the contents of the book once, and they could memorize them.

Due to their lack of ability to speak fluently, they couldn’t explain the contents, nor could they understand the whole content. However, their memories were excellent. The reason why they hated books was that Baili Junyi would always torture the children by repeating the same book over and over again, which irritated them.

The one-year-old catch ended in a strange atmosphere before Shen Ninghua instructed, “Bai Ruo, Qing Que, carry the two children away.”

Just as the two of them were about to step forward, they heard a loud announcement coming from outside, “Royal Prince De has arrived!”

Everyone was astounded for a moment. Royal Prince De had gone to the Northwest to help relieve the disaster. A while ago, he had just delivered a report saying that the disaster relief had been completed. The Emperor was over the moon and ordered him to return to the capital. Supposedly, it would take him about five to six days to arrive, but why did he arrive today?

Just as they were thinking about this, Baili Jinchuan had already arrived. He was dressed in an azure regular suit, wore a jade hairband, and looked charming and handsome as always. He seemed quite exhausted when he appeared. “Greetings, Father Emperor.”

A trace of dark color flashed through Baili Qingcang’s eyes, and he seemed to be somewhat surprised. “Jinchuan, why have you rushed back today?”

“Father Emperor, I heard that today is Fifth Brother’s children’s first birthday. As their uncle, I have to rush back to celebrate their birthday. I also brought gifts back to wish my little niece and nephew a happy birthday.”

“Haha, you are very considerate.”

“Fifth Younger Brother helped me a lot in Zhou City. He punished the Zhou Family and exposed such a big corruption case. I admire him very much. Besides, my little nephew and niece are also particularly adorable. It was worth it for me to rush back overnight.”

He rushed back overnight… Everyone could not help but exclaim in shock. He, a royal prince, respected Prefectural Prince Yi so much that he rushed back overnight just to attend his children’s birthday.

Shen Ninghua lowered her eyes, which were filled with coldness. How shameless of Baili Jinchuan to use her children as an excuse!

With an indifferent expression, Baili Qingcang asked, “What gifts did you get them? Why didn’t you bring the gifts here?”

Baili Jinchuan replied respectfully, “It’s inconvenient for me to bring the gifts here because they are ponies produced by two thoroughbreds. The ponies are gentle and have very beautiful fur. The two children can play with them when they are older.”

The corners of Baili Qingcang’s lips moved, and an ambiguous light hovered under his eyes. “You’re really considerate as their uncle.”

Baili Junyi confided, “Thank you, Second Royal Brother, for adoring the two children so much.”

“That’s what I should do.” As Baili Jinchuan spoke, his gaze fell on Shen Ninghua, who had lowered her eyes and had no intention to look at him. The gloominess under his eyes immediately intensified. “The sire and the dam of the ponies are exceptionally divine and magnificent. In case the two ponies were unaccustomed to the capital’s weather and surroundings, I hired two servants who were specialized in raising horses to take care of the ponies. The ponies will definitely grow up strong and smart.”

“Second Royal Brother, you are so considerate.”

“By the way, Fifth Younger Brother, these two servants are a couple. They agreed to come to the capital only after knowing that the ponies would be given to you, saying that they wanted to thank you in person for saving their lives.”

Shen Ninghua raised her head and frowned. They had saved thousands of people in the northwest, but why did Baili Jinchuan bring only two people here?

Baili Jinchuan smiled coldly. “Fifth Brother, you would give them the chance to express their gratitude to you, right?”

Baili Junyi confided, “I just did what I should do, not to save a certain few. Moreover, I executed my tasks according to Father Emperor’s orders, so they should thank Father Emperor instead. Anyway, there are many officials and guests here today, so they don’t have to come here personally in case they offend anyone here.”

Baili Jinchuan smiled apologetically. “Oh, I didn’t think it through. Father Emperor, what do you think?”

Baili Qingcang seemed to be specifically going against Baili Junyi today. “Since they wanted to personally express their gratitude, it means that they are grateful people. In that case, call them up and let me see them. There’s nothing to do now anyway.”

“Yes, Father Emperor.” A smile flashing across his eyes, Baili Jinchuan raised his voice and announced, “Bring the hostlers here.”

Soon, two men and women dressed in simple clothes were brought up. Everyone was dumbfounded when they saw them.

The middle-aged man was short and fat with a tanned face and prominent facial features. At first glance, it was obvious that he was a foreigner from the border. The woman beside him was thin and delicate with fair and smooth skin. Although she looked a little haggard, it was obvious that she was a beauty when she was young. How could these two be husband and wife? Besides, were they really the hostlers?

“Greetings, Your Majesty.”

Baili Qingcang was also extremely curious. “Are the two of you husband and wife?”

The woman replied, “Yes, Your Majesty, we are indeed husband and wife.” The man stayed silent and looked at the woman beside him with a silly smile, as if he did not understand the language.

The woman continued to explain, “I am from the Central Plains. I escaped to the border because of the chaos of war, and I almost died when I encountered the roving bandits there. My husband saved me. Later, I found that he was humble and honest, and he respected me. The northwest is quite chaotic, and he is always protective of me, so we lived together as a couple.”

Baili Qingcang looked at the woman carefully. “Escape to the border? What did you escape from that forced you to go to the border?”

The woman’s face turned pale. “Uh… I-It’s because of my identity…”

“Is there a problem with your background?” Baili Qingcang’s eyes became stern.

“I…” The woman raised her eyes and bit her lips slightly, looking hesitant and agitated. “Your Majesty, I’ll confess since you are kind and generous. My name is Qi Yuechan, and my ancestor was the former Prime Minister of the previous dynasty, Qi Rong.”

Baili Qingcang was astounded. “You are a descendant of the Qi Family? Wait a minute, the former Prime Minister, Qi Rong, has a granddaughter, but she entered the former imperial harem and gave birth to a child. She should have died a long time ago.”

Qi Yuechan smiled miserably. “I was lucky enough to survive and escaped the imperial harem with the child, but the soldiers wouldn’t let me off the hook. They chased me all the way to Qiongzhou. Disheartened, I jumped into the river with my child, but I survived. Maybe the heavens took pity on me. I did not die, but my child was missing. I searched the child everywhere, but it was impossible for me to find a seven-year-old child alone. Then, I followed the Hu merchants’ caravan to the border and later on, I got no news of my child.”

“Why are you back now?”

Qi Yuechan knelt down and bowed. Her swift and respectful movements indicated that she had gone through a formal and strict upbringing. “There was a drought in the northwest recently. My assets were robbed by the roving bandits. Thankfully, Prefectural Prince Yi gave the order to open the city gate and receive the disaster victims. He and his army even caught the leader of the bandits. His Highness saved me and my family, so I’m very grateful to them and came personally to express my gratitude.”

“You have a grateful heart.”

“Actually, there is another reason why I came here. I wanted to try my luck and see if I can find my long-lost daughter. Your Majesty, you are kind and generous, and you’ve been welcoming the descendants of the previous dynasty’s aristocrats back to the country from the day you ascended the throne. That’s why I have the courage to come back.”

“Oh?” Hearing Qi Yuechan’s words, Baili Qingcang frowned. “You have been separated from your daughter for more than ten years. I’m afraid that you won’t even know each other face to face.”

Qi Yuechan pursed her lips slightly. “My daughter was a princess from the previous dynasty, ranked the eleventh. At that time, she was young and hadn’t been bestowed with a title, so I tattooed the number eleven on her wrist. It’s easy to find her.”

Hearing this, Shen Ninghua widened her eyes slightly, and Bai Ruo, who had not yet retreated, turned pale.

There was a tattoo of the number eleven on Bai Ruo’s wrist!

Suddenly, one of the women exclaimed, “I think Bai Ruo, Princess Zhaohua’s maid, has such a tattoo on her wrist.”

Shen Ninghua suddenly turned her head. Her sharp gaze shocked the woman who spoke to such an extent that she hurriedly covered her mouth. “M-Maybe I was mistaken…”

Baili Qingcang narrowed his eyes slightly. “Bai Ruo? Ninghua, isn’t the woman standing next to you Bai Ruo?”

Without waiting for Shen Ninghua to speak, Bai Ruo plopped down on her knees. “Your Majesty, my name is Bai Ruo, and coincidentally, I have a tattoo on my wrist, but I have my own parents. Although they passed away seven years ago, I still remember them clearly.”

“Xiu’er, you are Xiu’er…” Qi Yuechan moved forward on her knees and grabbed Bai Ruo. When she saw the tattoo on Bai Ruo’s wrist, she was over the moon. “Xiu’er, I’m your mother!”

Bai Ruo calmly withdrew her arm. “Madam, you have mistaken me for someone else. I’m Bai Ruo. I’m not your Xiu’er.”

“No, no, you are my daughter! Xiu’er, your name is not Bai Ruo. Your real name is Duanmu Yuxiu. You are the Eleventh Princess of the previous dynasty. How can you be someone else’s maid? You…”

“Madam Qi, you have indeed mistaken me for someone else.”

“No, I have not! I have evidence. Look, the font of the tattoo on your wrist is a little weird. There are some patterns on the edges. These patterns were compulsory to be on the tattoos of the princesses of the previous dynasty. You will know after you investigate it.” Qi Yuechan was extremely worked up. “Your Majesty, I did not expect to meet my long-lost daughter here. Your Majesty, please allow me to bring her back.”

Baili Junyi looked at Shen Ninghua. Bai Ruo and the other girls had been with Shen Ninghua for a long time. Although Shen Ninghua was their master, they were like sisters, especially Bai Ruo, who was the most attentive and meticulous. If she was taken away, Shen Ninghua would be very sad.

Shen Ninghua looked calm, but her heart was already in turmoil. She knew that Bai Ruo had a special past, but Bair Ruo had never told her, and she didn’t ask her about it. She did not expect Bai Ruo’s background to be so extraordinary.

A thin layer of sweat appeared on Bai Ruo’s forehead. She was suppressing a strong hatred at the bottom of her eyes. She knew her past and also remembered some things. From the moment Qi Yuechan appeared, she recognized this person as her mother. However, the truth was not like what the woman had said. The woman didn’t lose her, but she sold her for five silver taels! Her own mother sold her for money! Why did she appear now? Did the woman try to dig out Miss’ information from her so that she could sell it to the Second Prince? Dream on!