Nuannuan was startled when Xiao Yunshu suddenly picked her up, instinctively wrapping her little arms around her aunt’s neck and giggling happily.
She blinked her big eyes, carefully studying Xiao Yunshu’s face before gently cupping it with her small hands.
In her sweet, childish voice, she said, “Auntie, don’t be angry!”
Xiao Yunshu spun around, looking at the little one in her arms with surprise.
“Hmm? How did Nuannuan know Auntie was angry?”
Nuannuan tilted her head and planted a kiss on Xiao Yunshu’s cheek. “Auntie, don’t be angry. Nuannuan will kiss Auntie, and then Auntie won’t be angry anymore.”
The child’s words helped dissipate much of the gloom Xiao Yunshu felt from the rumors. She nuzzled Nuannuan’s little hand and said, “You little rascal.”
“Shu’er, what happened?” Xiao Qingcang, hearing his granddaughter’s words, turned his gaze to his daughter and quickly stopped Wei Qinghan, who was about to step forward to pay her respects.
Xiao Yunshu stuck out her tongue, glanced at her sister-in-law beside her, and vaguely replied, “It’s nothing serious, just… a few disagreements with someone outside.”
Xiao Qingcang shook his head helplessly. “You! You really need to rein in that temper of yours!”
Seeing this, Wei Qinghan gently interjected, “Your Highness, Yunshu Junzhu’s sincerity is her true nature. I believe a young lady should be vibrant and lively like this.”
These words resonated deeply with Xiao Yunshu. She immediately linked arms affectionately with Wei Qinghan and proudly lifted her chin toward Xiao Qingcang. “Father, don’t scold me so casually from now on. I have my sister-in-law to back me up now.”
Seeing both her aunt and mother smiling, Nuannuan also brightened up.
She stretched out her little arms, wrapping them around her mother’s and aunt’s necks, planting a kiss on each cheek.
“I like them. Nuannuan likes everyone.”
Xiao Qingcang was touched by this heartwarming scene, his expression softening even more, though he deliberately let out a “hmph.”
“You little ungrateful one, only caring for your mother and aunt, and not your grandfather?”
Hearing this, Nuannuan immediately wriggled out of Xiao Yunshu’s arms and leaned toward Xiao Qingcang.
She stretched out her short little arms. “Grandpa, hug! Kiss Grandpa!”
Xiao Qingcang burst into laughter as Nuannuan planted a firm kiss on his slightly stubbled cheek.
The gloom in his heart from the court struggles was completely dispelled by his granddaughter’s innocence.
After the laughter and play, Xiao Yunshu remembered the matter at hand.
“Father, Sister-in-law and Nuannuan have just arrived in the capital, and their trunks don’t have many well-fitting clothes or jewelry. I’d like to take them out shopping to get some new things. What do you think?”
“It seems that with your sister-in-law here, you’ve learned some manners,” Xiao Qingcang teased, raising an eyebrow at her. “You used to go wherever you pleased without a second thought. When did you start asking your father before going out?”
Xiao Yunshu felt a bit embarrassed and chided, “Father!”
Wei Qinghan naturally declined. “Junzhu, there’s really no need to go to such expense. The Wangfu has everything we need…”
“Sister-in-law, please don’t be polite with me,” Xiao Yunshu insisted, holding onto her arm firmly. “Sister-in-law, don’t worry. Although Wu’an Wangfu is facing some difficulties now, we still have our family’s resources. A few sets of clothes and jewelry are nothing—not even a drop in the bucket. I insist, you must come with me today.”
Xiao Qingcang also reassured Wei Qinghan before turning to Xiao Yunshu.
“Shu’er, come with your father to the study for a moment.”
He had sensed that something was off with his daughter’s mood since earlier.
The matter outside is likely far more complicated than a mere disagreement.
Though he is a military man, he is not foolish.
“Speak, what exactly happened?” Once in the study, after dismissing the attendants, he spoke in a low voice.
Seeing that she could not hide it, Xiao Yunshu angrily revealed all the slanderous rumors circulating in the capital.
The rumors outside were nothing more than defaming Wei Qinghan’s unknown origins and even questioning Nuannuan’s lineage. The maliciousness of the words was simply unbearable to hear.
“Father, there is no need to pay attention to such petty talk. The innocent will be proven innocent.”
“It is not that simple.” After listening, Xiao Qingcang’s expression darkened as he shook his head. “I will have someone investigate this matter, but we absolutely must not hide it from your sister-in-law.”
“This matter is closely related to her. She has the right to know. If she hears about it from someone else in the future, it would be inappropriate.”
Xiao Yunshu was taken aback for a moment, understanding her father’s meaning. “I understand, Father.”
After making some preparations, she eagerly took Wei Qinghan and Nuannuan out.
The streets of the capital were lined with shops, and the sounds of hawking filled the air.
Wei Qinghan could still restrain herself, but Nuannuan was like a little bird that had flown out of its cage, leaning against the carriage window with her big eyes darting around.
“Sister-in-law, Nuannuan, would you like to visit the silk shop first, or go to the silver shop to pick out some jewelry? Or perhaps we should find a place to try some of the capital’s specialty foods first?”
As soon as Nuannuan heard the word “food,” she immediately raised her little hand. “Eat eat! Auntie eat eat!”
Xiao Yunshu and Wei Qinghan exchanged a smile. Seeing that they had already reached the bustling market area, she simply picked up Nuannuan and got out of the carriage. “Then we’ll listen to Nuannuan and go eat something delicious.”
The three of them walked and looked around as they went.
Nuannuan held a freshly bought sugar figurine in her left hand and a bright red candied hawthorn skewer in her right, her little mouth sticky from eating.
Wei Qinghan was initially somewhat reserved, but seeing her daughter and Xiao Yunshu’s smiles, her tense heart gradually relaxed.
“Ah-woo!” Taking a big bite of the sweet almond pastry, Nuannuan’s eyes lit up.
“Auntie, yummy yummy~ Next time give to Brother Chen.”
Xiao Yunshu couldn’t help but laugh, bending down to tap her little nose. “Our Nuannuan is so young and already knows how to think of others? Alright, alright, we’ll buy more so Nuannuan can bring some to Brother Chen next time.”
Over the past two days, Wei Qinghan had heard the name “Brother Chen” mentioned many times. She finally couldn’t hold back.
“Junzhu, who is this Brother Chen that Nuannuan keeps mentioning…”
“Sister-in-law, you don’t know yet,” Xiao Yunshu explained with a smile. “That day at Zuoxiang Fu, by chance, Nuannuan caught the eye of Huangzhangsun Dianxia. Brother Chen is Huangzhangsun Dianxia.”
“The… the Imperial Eldest Grandson?” Wei Qinghan gasped in shock, quickly squatting down to look seriously at Nuannuan, who was buried in her food.
“Nuannuan, from now on, when you see Huangzhangsun Dianxia, you must not be so informal. You cannot call him Brother Chen; you must call him Dianxia, understand?”
The thought of her daughter possibly offending a member of the imperial family made her heart tremble with fear.
Nuannuan’s little mouth was stuffed full as she blinked her big eyes and nodded. “Nuannuan knows, see Brother Chen, bow.”
But in the blink of an eye, she was drawn to a roadside dough figurine stall.
Wei Qinghan looked at her daughter’s innocent and carefree appearance, and the worry in her heart grew even stronger.
Xiao Yunshu patted her shoulder. “Sister-in-law, set your mind at ease. It’s just a matter between children; it’s fine.”
Nuannuan skipped along at the front, holding her unfinished sugar figurine high in her hand.
Suddenly, the purple dragon egg in her mind flickered.
“Nuannuan, be careful, there’s a bad guy!”
Almost instinctively, upon hearing these words, her small body shrank backward.
And as she retreated, a man dressed in ordinary cloth clothes darted out from the shadows of the street corner, reaching out to grab her.
But he hadn’t expected this little child to suddenly step back, and his grasp fell empty. Losing his balance, he fell to the ground with a loud “thud.”
Seeing the man miss and fall, Xiao Yunshu’s eyes flashed with a cold glint as she stomped her foot hard on his back.
The embroidered shoe seemed light and delicate, yet it rendered the burly man completely immobile.