“Yes, yes! Grandpa, Auntie, hurry and eat!”
Nuannuan nodded her little head vigorously.
“Nuannuan, you’ve come home now. There won’t be any bad people coming to snatch your food at home anymore. Not ever again!”
“Home?”
Nuannuan glanced at her grandfather, who was looking at her kindly, and then at her aunt, who was holding her lovingly.
Was this home?
She and Mother finally had a home!
“Come, Auntie will take you out for a walk.”
The little one had eaten so much that she needed to move around a bit to help her digestion.
Xiao Yunshu held Nuannuan’s hand and walked slowly with her.
Right at that moment, the steward hurried over to report once more:
“Junzhu, Miss Su’s people say that you must attend the Shanghua Yan. They said… the Chang Gongzhu will also be attending, and she specifically mentioned wanting to see you.”
“This…”
Xiao Yunshu felt a bit conflicted. If that was the case, she really had to go.
Otherwise, given the current state of the Wu’an Wangfu, if they were accused of neglecting the Chang Gongzhu…
“Nuannuan, will you stay with Grandpa? Auntie needs to go out for a bit and will be back very soon.”
As Xiao Yunshu spoke, she picked Nuannuan up, intending to take her to Xiao Qingcang.
“No, no!”
Nuannuan threw her arms around her neck, refusing to let go.
“Auntie, don’t go out! There are bad people! There are bad people in the Zuoxiang Fu!”
Xiao Yunshu tried to pull Nuannuan’s hands down to hand her over to Xiao Qingcang.
However, Nuannuan’s tiny hands held onto her tightly.
“Auntie, don’t go out!”
Seeing her insistence, Xiao Yunshu had no choice but to relent.
“Auntie, take Nuannuan with you!”
“Nuannuan wants to go out too!”
Xiao Yunshu hesitated. She had practiced martial arts since childhood, so breaking free from Nuannuan would be easy.
However, looking at Nuannuan’s thin, frail arms, she was afraid she might accidentally break them if she used any force.
“Nuannuan, Auntie is going to see the Chang Gongzhu. It’s not convenient to bring you along.”
“Auntie, Nuannuan is going to cry!”
Nuannuan straightened her little body and looked her in the eye, saying very seriously, “Nuannuan is weally crying!”
As she spoke, her mouth puckered and tears welled up in her eyes.
Dragon Dragon had said she couldn’t let Auntie go out.
If Auntie went out, she would be killed by bad people.
Nuannuan couldn’t stop her aunt from leaving, so she could only follow her and find a way to save her!
In the end, Xiao Yunshu couldn’t withstand Nuannuan’s tearful assault.
Consequently, she had no choice but to take her along in the carriage to the Zuoxiang Fu.
The news of Wu’an Wang bringing home a mother and daughter had already reached the ears of the people in the capital.
Originally, they had planned to use today’s Shanghua Yan to pry for information about this pair.
To their surprise, Xiao Yunshu had brought the little girl directly to the banquet.
Looking at Nuannuan’s thin yet incredibly beautiful little face, everyone was filled with curiosity.
“Yunshu Junzhu, who is this little child? She is truly too beautiful!”
“Looking at those features, she must be of the Wu’an Wangfu bloodline, right?”
Held in Xiao Yunshu’s arms, Nuannuan looked at the crowd surrounding them, all laughing and talking.
Even though these aunties were all smiling, why did she feel like they were so scary?
Xiao Yunshu felt Nuannuan’s unease and patted her reassuringly.
“Everyone has a sharp eye indeed. This is my eldest brother’s daughter, Nuannuan. She is over two years old now!”
Clatter!
The teacup in Su Wanying’s hand suddenly fell onto the table. Tea splashed all over her, but she didn’t even notice.
“You said she is… whose child?”
The crowd watched the scene in silence. Some eyes were filled with anticipation for drama, some with sympathy, and some with mockery.
Su Wanying’s affection for Xiao Yunheng had long ceased to be a secret in the capital.
However, Xiao Yunheng had been away at war for years. Although he returned to the capital three years ago, he had been in a coma ever since.
Su Wanying was now eighteen years old, but she had consistently refused to discuss marriage because she was waiting for Xiao Yunheng.
But who could have imagined that Xiao Yunheng already had such a big daughter?
Once this matter was confirmed, Su Wanying would likely become the laughingstock of the capital.
Looking at Su Wanying’s pale face, Xiao Yunshu nodded helplessly and said, “Nuannuan is the daughter of my eldest brother, Xiao Yunheng.”
Xiao Yunheng’s daughter?!
Su Wanying stared fixedly at Nuannuan’s face, which looked almost exactly like Xiao Yunheng’s.
It was true!
If she weren’t Xiao Yunheng’s daughter, how could she look so much like him?
Xiao Yunheng, how could he humiliate her like this?
Nuannuan met Su Wanying’s gaze and nervously hugged Xiao Yunshu’s neck. “Auntie, there’s a bad person! Let’s go home!”
Xiao Yunshu coaxed her softly, “Nuannuan, be good. We’ll go home a little later.”
The Chang Gongzhu had not yet arrived. If she left now, it would truly be a slight against the royal family.
“Eldest Miss, your skirt is soiled. Let this servant accompany you to change.”
Just then, a nanny stepped forward to support Su Wanying, preventing her from losing her composure in front of everyone.
Su Wanying regained her senses, nodded an apology to the crowd, and turned to walk toward the back garden.
“Why should Eldest Miss get angry over a mere brat? I see that child looks like she was born with a weak constitution; she might die young any day now. Why should you take it to heart?” Nanny Chen said in a very low voice.
“I wouldn’t care about a mere girl. I’m just angry that someone dared to climb into Heng Shizi’s bed behind my back…” Su Wanying’s gaze was full of jealousy and hatred. She didn’t know which wench had dared to seduce the man she had set her sights on.
“Then it’s even simpler. She’s nothing more than a low-born piece of trash. Once you become Heng Shizi’s primary wife, won’t she be at your mercy?”
By the time Su Wanying finished changing and reappeared, the crowd had tacitly stopped mentioning what had just happened.
“The Chang Gongzhu has arrived!”
Following the announcement, the elegant and dignified Chang Gongzhu appeared before everyone.
To everyone’s surprise, the Chang Gongzhu was accompanied by a young boy around four or five years old.
“Greetings to the Chang Gongzhu! Greetings to the Huangzhangsun Dianxia!”
The Chang Gongzhu, Mo Zhiyun, held the hand of the Huangzhangsun Dianxia, Mo Yanchen, as she walked to the main seat. Only after sitting did she wave her hand dismissively, signaling for everyone to rise.
Mo Yanchen sat beside the Chang Gongzhu. His small frame was not even as tall as an adult’s leg, but the aura surrounding him was one of noble grace that could not be ignored.
Though the baby fat on his face had not yet faded, his frozen, stoic expression was already handsome and showed a hint of sharp edge.
He scanned the surroundings with a cold gaze. If he hadn’t accidentally been caught by his aunt, he would never have accompanied her to this boring Shanghua Yan.
Just then, the figure of a small toddler entered his line of sight.
The toddler was being held by the Junzhu of the Wu’an Wangfu. She was staring at the pastries on the table, constantly swallowing her saliva.
Her eyes were sparkling, and the corners of her mouth were also glistening.
From time to time, she would clench her little fists as if making a great resolution, only to reach up and helplessly, feebly flick at the few stubborn strands of a cowlick on her forehead.