By the time they returned to Wu’an Wangfu from Zuoxiang Fu, dusk had already fallen.
Xiao Yunshu repeatedly pondered the mysterious way her weakness had vanished after Nuannuan touched her, and she thought back to the child’s innocent words over the past two days.
“Daddy’s all black…”
“Second Uncle’s all black…”
Initially, she had assumed the child was simply afraid of the sick, but when combined with the fact that she herself had been under the influence of a lust-inducing drug today, a bold idea began to take root in her heart.
Stepping off the carriage, Xiao Yunshu carried Nuannuan and walked straight toward her eldest brother’s courtyard.
She had to verify it immediately.
Nuannuan clung obediently to Xiao Yunshu’s shoulder. “Auntie, are we going to see Daddy?”
Xiao Yunshu tightened her grip, her voice exceptionally gentle. “Nuannuan, can’t you help Daddy chase away the blackness? Let’s try again, okay?”
“Mm, Nuannuan will help Daddy.”
The room was still permeated with a faint scent of medicine. Xiao Yunheng lay there as silent as ever, his face gaunt and his breathing weak.
Xiao Yunshu gently placed Nuannuan on the edge of the bed, then crouched down and pointed to Xiao Yunheng’s hand, which was resting outside the brocade quilt.
“Nuannuan, hold Daddy’s hand, okay?”
“Okay.”
Without hesitation, Nuannuan stepped forward and tightly grasped her father’s cold fingers.
The moment Nuannuan touched Xiao Yunheng, the black qi on his body once again flowed through Nuannuan’s hand and into her.
It was then greedily consumed by the purple dragon egg inside her mind.
Xiao Yunshu could not see the so-called black qi; her entire focus was fixed on her brother’s face.
However, she saw no change.
Her heart began to sink. Was she really just overthinking things?
“Nuannuan, let’s…” Just as she was about to give up, she suddenly saw the deathly grayness on her brother’s face fade by a tiny fraction.
The change was incredibly subtle.
Had she not been keeping watch day and night, it would have been impossible to notice.
Xiao Yunshu stood up abruptly and pulled the somewhat dazed Nuannuan into her arms, her body trembling uncontrollably.
It was true! It was true!
“Nuannuan, my good Nuannuan, you are… you are the lucky star of our Xiao family!”
Without taking the time to explain, she settled Nuannuan and ran toward her father’s study.
“Father!” She even forgot to knock, pushing the door open and rushing in.
“Shu’er?” Xiao Qingcang was staring blankly at a border defense map. Seeing his daughter in such a state of disarray, he was stunned.
“Father, I… I might have found a way to wake up Eldest Brother!” Xiao Yunshu took a deep breath, trying her best to calm herself.
Xiao Qingcang stood up suddenly. “What did you say?”
Only then did Xiao Yunshu recount everything that had just happened in Xiao Yunheng’s room. “Father, perhaps you were right. This child, Nuannuan… she is the glimmer of hope we have been searching for.”
After hearing this, Xiao Qingcang froze on the spot.
He stared intently at his daughter, his eyes filled with disbelief. “Are you telling the truth? Your brother… he truly showed signs of improvement?”
“Father! It is absolutely true!” Xiao Yunshu hurried forward to support her father, whose footsteps were somewhat faltering.
“Good, that’s good!” A light instantly ignited in Xiao Qingcang’s eyes, and he couldn’t stop choking back tears. “The Heavens have eyes! The Heavens have eyes! The ancestors have protected us; my son can be saved! Our Xiao family is saved!”
He gripped his daughter’s arm tightly, his strength surprising. “Nuannuan is the hope of our Xiao family! She is the one who can change our family’s destiny!”
The next day, before the Si hour, Mo Yanchen’s carriage arrived punctually at the gates of Wu’an Wangfu.
Xiao Yunshu had not expected the Imperial Eldest Grandson to come in person, so she hurriedly led Nuannuan to the front hall to greet him.
Mo Yanchen’s gaze landed on Nuannuan, who was looking up at him curiously. “Nuannuan, several new brocade carp have been brought to the Yuhua Yuan as tribute. Their colors are quite unique. Do you want to come with me to see them?”
Fearing she wouldn’t understand, he deliberately slowed his speech.
Nuannuan blinked her big eyes and immediately turned to look at her aunt.
Xiao Yunshu’s heart stirred.
Thinking of how the Imperial Eldest Grandson had spoken up for her yesterday, she felt truly grateful. At a time when most people in the capital avoided Wu’an Wangfu like the plague, his actions were undoubtedly a silent form of support.
She knelt down and spoke softly, “Does Nuannuan want to go?”
“Yes!” Nuannuan nodded vigorously without any hesitation.
Xiao Yunshu smiled slightly, straightened the girl’s collar, and gave her careful instructions. She then called for two of her cleverest senior maids and ordered them to accompany the young miss into the palace.
Mo Yanchen understood Xiao Yunshu’s concern and gave a slight nod. “Rest assured, Commandery Princess.”
His words were brief but carried the weight of a promise.
As the carriage traveled, Nuannuan leaned against the window, her small body almost tumbling out.
“Wow, such a big house!”
“Wow, such thick pillars!”
“Wow, such a shiny floor!”
Throughout the journey, Nuannuan’s “wows” were endless.
She had never seen such beautiful buildings. She had thought the houses in Wu’an Wangfu were the best in the world, but she hadn’t expected her big brother’s home to be even prettier!
The accompanying maids were filled with anxiety. Everyone in the capital knew that the Imperial Eldest Grandson was cold and disliked noise. They feared the young miss’s constant chattering would anger His Highness.
To their surprise, although Mo Yanchen remained expressionless, he showed no sign of impatience. He even gave short, one or two-word answers when Nuannuan asked questions.
“That is a water pavilion.”
“Yuhua Yuan.”
“Mm.”
When they reached the Liujin Chi in the Yuhua Yuan, Nuannuan immediately skipped forward, instantly captivated by the sight in the pool.
She gripped the white marble railing and stood on her tiptoes, letting out cry after cry of surprise.
“Wow, red fishies!”
“And golden ones!”
“Brother, Brother, the fishies are glowing! They’re so pretty!”
She was so absorbed that her small body leaned out halfway over the water.
Mo Yanchen stood beside her, maintaining a distance from which he could protect her, his gaze also resting on the pool.
“Heding Hong—entirely vermillion with a white jade-like spot on its head.”
“Qicai Xian—multicolored, a tribute from Siam.”
The head eunuch following Mo Yanchen was stunned. In all the years he had served the Imperial Eldest Grandson, when had he ever seen him show such patience toward anyone? This little girl from Wu’an Wangfu was truly extraordinary.
Nuannuan didn’t understand the names, but she felt that her big brother knew everything, and her eyes overflowed with admiration.
“Wow, so big!” A particularly large Golden Dragon King swam by. Nuannuan excitedly pointed at it but nearly lost her balance.
Mo Yanchen’s arm twitched slightly, but he quickly withdrew it.
Nuannuan wobbled a bit, steadied herself, and giggled.
While the two children’s attention was fixed on the brocade carp, the sound of tinkling ornaments approached from a distance.
The Empress and several consorts were admiring flowers in the garden. Hearing that the Imperial Eldest Grandson had brought the granddaughter of Wu’an Wang to see the fish, they made their way over.
As they drew near, they saw a little girl in a pale yellow dress chattering away at the brocade carp in the pool.
And the habitually cold and aloof Mo Yanchen was standing right beside her.
The Empress almost thought her eyes were playing tricks on her. She looked at Consort De in surprise. “Is… is that really Chen’er? When did he develop such a good temperament?”
Their voices were not loud, but they still startled the two children by the pool.
Nuannuan heard the voices and turned to see a group of beautifully dressed women.
She immediately remembered that yesterday at Zuoxiang Fu, there were also many aunts dressed beautifully like this who had bullied her auntie.
Her little face turned pale, and with a “whoosh,” she ducked behind Mo Yanchen, her small hands tightly clutching the fabric at his waist, revealing only a pair of timid, large eyes.