The woman walking ahead stopped abruptly as her heart skipped a beat. She held the soft body of the child tightly in her arms as her eyes darted about evasively. "I'm fine. By the way, what were you talking about just now?"
Yin Lan was just about to speak when she saw Huai An walking over from the side courtyard, casting her a strange look.
The two were highly attuned to each other, and with just one look, she understood his intention.
Huai An walked up with a polite smile. "Madam, please wait. The young master wants to see the young prince."
Yin Lan's mouth corners slightly pursed when she saw Gu Ying was somewhat stunned. She quickly smiled and said, "Madam, Huai An is speaking to you."
Gu Ying... No, she should now be called Chu Jiuniang.
After the chaos of the great fire, she had successfully impersonated Gu Ying and became the young madam of the Prince Who Pacifies the State's manor.
Zhao Prince had been unconscious from poisoning, and she had just given birth, so no one could discover that the real Gu Ying had already been moved out.
Therefore, she shamelessly used her confinement period as an excuse to first avoid others, and only had to deal with Yin Lan and Yanzhi.
She had been trained for so long that she could almost perfectly impersonate Gu Ying. As such, neither Yin Lan nor Yanzhi discovered she was an imposter.
Until today, when Zhao Prince awoke.
That man's aura was far too powerful... And he was Gu Ying's intimate husband.
She had endlessly rehearsed in her mind the scenes of their meeting and interacting, yet she never imagined that when facing him for real... She simply could not remain calm and composed, and almost revealed herself.
Chu Jiuniang was very flustered, still not recovering from the shock Zhao Changdu gave her. Her fingers slightly clenched, and though she did not use much strength, the exquisitely beautiful child in her arms suddenly let out shrill cries again.
When she looked into those large, tear-filled eyes, Chu Jiuniang's gaze turned sinister.
Why did this little brat dislike her so?
The child looked so much like his mother, so why did he cry whenever he was in her arms?
She was both angry and anxious. In her panic she did not react before Yin Lan directly took the child from her. "He probably misses his father. Huai An, take the young prince to see the prince first."
As soon as the little prince was in Yin Lan and Huai An's arms, he puckered his pink lips cutely, stopping his cries, suddenly becoming as well-behaved as a cherub.
Huai An looked at Yin Lan, then the little prince, frowning in confusion as he glanced at Chu Jiuniang's pale face. "Madam, what's wrong with you?"
Chu Jiuniang dryly pulled at the corners of her lips. "It's nothing. I'm just too happy that the prince has awoken..."
Far too happy that she had an about-to-cry-but-not expression?
Huai An was full of doubts, but did not say more. Carrying the little prince, he turned and left.
As Chu Jiuniang watched Huai An's departing back, she suddenly realized her palms were drenched in cold sweat. An indescribable terror rose from the bottom of her heart, gradually spreading through her limbs...
The prince had discovered she was a fake!
Why else would he be in such a hurry to have Huai An take the child away!
But she looked so much like Gu Ying. He had just awakened and was not yet intimate with her, so how could he know she was a fake?
Or could it be—
She was too frightened by the prince's imposing manner that she was overthinking things?
After all, Master Jiang had reminded her before leaving that he had deliberately created a thorn between the prince and Gu Ying.
With the prince's arrogance, it was likely he would give her the cold shoulder for some time, or even directly confront her for a divorce.
If they directly divorced, her leaving the Prince's manor as Gu Ying and Gu Ying disappearing from the prince's side would complete her mission.
If the prince did not intend that, Master Jiang told her to endure no matter what. With Gu Ying's temperament, she would absolutely not humiliate herself and beg.
If the prince was cold, she had to act even colder. Men were like that. As long as she was indifferent, Zhao Prince would surely take her bait.
Thinking of this, Chu Jiuniang steadied her mind. She also came up with another clever plan.
No matter how extraordinary Zhao Prince was, he was still just a man.
With Gu Ying's beauty, just her bewitching and charming figure, her nationally celebrated face, what man could resist her seductions?
After he recovered a few more days, she would go before him to act pitiful and shed some tears, crying a few times.
If that didn't work, she could secretly slip some aphrodisiac into the prince's food. As long as they consummated the marriage, she, this nameless orphan girl from Haizhou, could make a meteoric rise to become the young madam of the Prince Who Pacifies the State Manor, the future mistress of the manor.
No matter how cruel and cold-hearted he was, he wouldn't be vicious to his own woman and child's mother, right?
As long as she played Gu Ying well, her future prospects were limitless.
Chu Jiuniang's mouth curled into a faint smile as she recalled Zhao Prince's naturally gifted handsome looks. She also thought of how it felt to sit on the man's lap earlier.
Even though he had been comatose for so long, his thighs were still so powerful... Truly making her, someone who had tasted love's pleasures, feel itchy and tingling.
Moreover, he was a military man with a strong, proportional chest and tall, straight figure. Who wouldn't be infatuated looking at him?
Chu Jiuniang's cheeks reddened slightly, feeling restless.
"Yin Lan, Yanzhi, let's go back and pack first."
Yin Lan and Yanzhi exchanged glances again. "Yes, madam."
...
Huai An happily carried the child to the man.
"Master, here, this is the young prince."
Zhao Changdu's large hand paused slightly, his fingers curling for a moment as he took the child into his arms.
In that instant when he first held the child, he almost failed to grab him.
The little one's body was just too soft... Soft as if he had no bones.
"Goo goo, wah wah, wah wah."
The little one was born fair and delicate, his skin so tender it seemed it could be pinched to produce water. He curiously opened his pair of round eyes wide to look at Zhao Changdu, babbling something unintelligible with his pink little mouth. It made one's heart melt just looking.
The coldness in Zhao Changdu's eyes faded somewhat, his gaze also unconsciously softening. "Has he been named yet?"
Huai An said, "No, the madam said to wait for the prince to wake up before naming him."
Zhao Changdu lowered his eyes, letting the little one play with his fingertips.
He didn't know why, but looking at the lively and active little whelp in his arms, his heart was suddenly overtaken by an indescribable pain.
It was as if obtaining this child had not been easy, and he had been waiting for him for hundreds of years already.
Nian Bao...
What exactly did Gu Ying mean by naming the child Nian Bao?
Was it that she missed this child, or that she missed someone from their previous life?
The man's eyes strained slightly, a trace of inexplicable bitterness welling up as his fingers teased the cute little pink meatball wrapped in swaddling clothes. "Let's call him Zhao Yan, courtesy name still Nian Bao."
Huai An nodded and smiled in agreement at the side. "With peace as the sun sets, an extremely good name. Our little prince finally has a name now!"
The corners of Zhao Changdu's lips curled up slightly. The little whelp could not speak yet, babbling at him while staring fixedly with his shiny black gemstone-like eyes. After watching for a while, he drooped his long lashes and fell asleep.
The woman walking ahead stopped abruptly as her heart skipped a beat. She held the soft body of the child tightly in her arms as her eyes darted about evasively. "I'm fine. By the way, what were you talking about just now?"
Yin Lan was just about to speak when she saw Huai An walking over from the side courtyard, casting her a strange look.
The two were highly attuned to each other, and with just one look, she understood his intention.
Huai An walked up with a polite smile. "Madam, please wait. The young master wants to see the young prince."
Yin Lan's mouth corners slightly pursed when she saw Gu Ying was somewhat stunned. She quickly smiled and said, "Madam, Huai An is speaking to you."
Gu Ying... No, she should now be called Chu Jiuniang.
After the chaos of the great fire, she had successfully impersonated Gu Ying and became the young madam of the Prince Who Pacifies the State's manor.
Zhao Prince had been unconscious from poisoning, and she had just given birth, so no one could discover that the real Gu Ying had already been moved out.
Therefore, she shamelessly used her confinement period as an excuse to first avoid others, and only had to deal with Yin Lan and Yanzhi.
She had been trained for so long that she could almost perfectly impersonate Gu Ying. As such, neither Yin Lan nor Yanzhi discovered she was an imposter.
Until today, when Zhao Prince awoke.
That man's aura was far too powerful... And he was Gu Ying's intimate husband.
She had endlessly rehearsed in her mind the scenes of their meeting and interacting, yet she never imagined that when facing him for real... She simply could not remain calm and composed, and almost revealed herself.
Chu Jiuniang was very flustered, still not recovering from the shock Zhao Changdu gave her. Her fingers slightly clenched, and though she did not use much strength, the exquisitely beautiful child in her arms suddenly let out shrill cries again.
When she looked into those large, tear-filled eyes, Chu Jiuniang's gaze turned sinister.
Why did this little brat dislike her so?
The child looked so much like his mother, so why did he cry whenever he was in her arms?
She was both angry and anxious. In her panic she did not react before Yin Lan directly took the child from her. "He probably misses his father. Huai An, take the young prince to see the prince first."
As soon as the little prince was in Yin Lan and Huai An's arms, he puckered his pink lips cutely, stopping his cries, suddenly becoming as well-behaved as a cherub.
Huai An looked at Yin Lan, then the little prince, frowning in confusion as he glanced at Chu Jiuniang's pale face. "Madam, what's wrong with you?"
Chu Jiuniang dryly pulled at the corners of her lips. "It's nothing. I'm just too happy that the prince has awoken..."
Far too happy that she had an about-to-cry-but-not expression?
Huai An was full of doubts, but did not say more. Carrying the little prince, he turned and left.
As Chu Jiuniang watched Huai An's departing back, she suddenly realized her palms were drenched in cold sweat. An indescribable terror rose from the bottom of her heart, gradually spreading through her limbs...
The prince had discovered she was a fake!
Why else would he be in such a hurry to have Huai An take the child away!
But she looked so much like Gu Ying. He had just awakened and was not yet intimate with her, so how could he know she was a fake?
Or could it be—
She was too frightened by the prince's imposing manner that she was overthinking things?
After all, Master Jiang had reminded her before leaving that he had deliberately created a thorn between the prince and Gu Ying.
With the prince's arrogance, it was likely he would give her the cold shoulder for some time, or even directly confront her for a divorce.
If they directly divorced, her leaving the Prince's manor as Gu Ying and Gu Ying disappearing from the prince's side would complete her mission.
If the prince did not intend that, Master Jiang told her to endure no matter what. With Gu Ying's temperament, she would absolutely not humiliate herself and beg.
If the prince was cold, she had to act even colder. Men were like that. As long as she was indifferent, Zhao Prince would surely take her bait.
Thinking of this, Chu Jiuniang steadied her mind. She also came up with another clever plan.
No matter how extraordinary Zhao Prince was, he was still just a man.
With Gu Ying's beauty, just her bewitching and charming figure, her nationally celebrated face, what man could resist her seductions?
After he recovered a few more days, she would go before him to act pitiful and shed some tears, crying a few times.
If that didn't work, she could secretly slip some aphrodisiac into the prince's food. As long as they consummated the marriage, she, this nameless orphan girl from Haizhou, could make a meteoric rise to become the young madam of the Prince Who Pacifies the State Manor, the future mistress of the manor.
No matter how cruel and cold-hearted he was, he wouldn't be vicious to his own woman and child's mother, right?
As long as she played Gu Ying well, her future prospects were limitless.
Chu Jiuniang's mouth curled into a faint smile as she recalled Zhao Prince's naturally gifted handsome looks. She also thought of how it felt to sit on the man's lap earlier.
Even though he had been comatose for so long, his thighs were still so powerful... Truly making her, someone who had tasted love's pleasures, feel itchy and tingling.
Moreover, he was a military man with a strong, proportional chest and tall, straight figure. Who wouldn't be infatuated looking at him?
Chu Jiuniang's cheeks reddened slightly, feeling restless.
"Yin Lan, Yanzhi, let's go back and pack first."
Yin Lan and Yanzhi exchanged glances again. "Yes, madam."
...
Huai An happily carried the child to the man.
"Master, here, this is the young prince."
Zhao Changdu's large hand paused slightly, his fingers curling for a moment as he took the child into his arms.
In that instant when he first held the child, he almost failed to grab him.
The little one's body was just too soft... Soft as if he had no bones.
"Goo goo, wah wah, wah wah."
The little one was born fair and delicate, his skin so tender it seemed it could be pinched to produce water. He curiously opened his pair of round eyes wide to look at Zhao Changdu, babbling something unintelligible with his pink little mouth. It made one's heart melt just looking.
The coldness in Zhao Changdu's eyes faded somewhat, his gaze also unconsciously softening. "Has he been named yet?"
Huai An said, "No, the madam said to wait for the prince to wake up before naming him."
Zhao Changdu lowered his eyes, letting the little one play with his fingertips.
He didn't know why, but looking at the lively and active little whelp in his arms, his heart was suddenly overtaken by an indescribable pain.
It was as if obtaining this child had not been easy, and he had been waiting for him for hundreds of years already.
Nian Bao...
What exactly did Gu Ying mean by naming the child Nian Bao?
Was it that she missed this child, or that she missed someone from their previous life?
The man's eyes strained slightly, a trace of inexplicable bitterness welling up as his fingers teased the cute little pink meatball wrapped in swaddling clothes. "Let's call him Zhao Yan, courtesy name still Nian Bao."
Huai An nodded and smiled in agreement at the side. "With peace as the sun sets, an extremely good name. Our little prince finally has a name now!"
The corners of Zhao Changdu's lips curled up slightly. The little whelp could not speak yet, babbling at him while staring fixedly with his shiny black gemstone-like eyes. After watching for a while, he drooped his long lashes and fell asleep.
