Although Nanxing began to treat Tang Zhuyun with respect, the latter was not particularly warm towards her.
Tang Zhuyun wasn't dwelling on the past; she just felt that her expectations didn't align with Nanxing's — Nanxing wanted to be loyal to the person Prince of Jin favored.
Tang Zhuyun didn't want to gain something for nothing, without expecting anything in return.
She can be very enthusiastic and shameless when it comes to people she gets along with, like Meng Yulan; but when it comes to people she doesn't get along with, she immediately becomes socially awkward, not caring whether the other person likes her, but just wanting to keep her distance.
Nanxing was initially arrogant but later became obsequious; regardless of her true intentions, Tang Zhuyun remained unmoved.
Nanxing sensed her aloofness and couldn't help but feel a little downcast.
She couldn't help but ask Song Jingyang, "Does Your Highness particularly dislike me? Then... can I stay?"
Song Jingyang scratched his head. "No, I think the Princess Consort has been very good to you. Putting everything else aside, she saved my life, and people say they'd repay that with their bodies—that's an immense favor. The Princess Consort isn't the kind of person to hold a grudge. Sigh, we haven't had any meat to eat lately, I feel so weak..."
Huaishang immediately became alert. "I clearly brought a whole piece of meat from home! There's no more!"
Song Jingyang scoffed, "Look at how stingy you are!"
Huaishang lamented, "I've been pretending not to know anything about my hundred taels of silver. Where can I go to seek justice?"
Song Jingyang: "Look at your pathetic self. Should I ask Xiu'er to mention it to the Princess Consort?"
"That wouldn't be good," Huaishang laughed.
"It's not very good..."
"I'm entrusting this matter to you! I know you and Xiu'er are the best of friends!" Huaishang said hurriedly.
Song Jingyang: "Of course!"
Nanxing was amused by the two clowns and said, "What are you two doing here with me? Aren't you going to serve the Prince?"
Some things will be revealed over time. If she behaves well, the Princess will know.
Song Jingyang: "Wouldn't it be tactless to go now?"
The prince is perfectly fine!
The family of four were together, chatting and laughing; the prince insisted on asking Linlin about her past, which was only possible because Linlin was clever enough to remember things from when she was three or four years old. What would another child know?
The rest of the matter will have to be discussed with the Princess.
The princess seems to be in bad shape.
Tang Zhuyun is indeed not good.
When Linlin was little, her predecessor came to Beijing. It was like Grandma Liu entering the Grand View Garden – she was overwhelmed by everything and only cared about "fitting in," so she didn't pay any attention to Linlin.
When Guan Linlin was being treated, she intended to sell him for money... If the Prince of Jin found out, wouldn't he kill her?
"I've forgotten everything," Tang Zhuyun said vaguely. "I've forgotten what I ate the day before yesterday. You're asking about something from the year before last?"
The Prince of Jin glared at him angrily.
He wanted to know as much as possible about how Linlin had grown up during the five years he had missed, but the person in front of him was a complete mess.
Yanran quickly intervened, "Mother, I'm sleepy. Can you tell me a story to lull me to sleep?"
Tang Zhuyun: "Okay! Let's go back to your room."
A little cotton-padded jacket is a little cotton-padded jacket; it never lets in any drafts.
Yanran pointed to the daybed and pleaded, "Mother, I want to sleep here. I want to see Father as soon as I open my eyes. I'm afraid I'll have a nightmare and Father will disappear again..."
Seeing the fear and worry in her eyes, Tang Zhuyun's heart softened completely, and she readily agreed, "Okay."
She asked Linlin, "Would you like to take a nap too?"
Linlin shook his head. His hand was still being held by the Prince of Jin, and he was reluctant to let go, so he sat on the footstool and did not want to move.
Tang Zhuyun didn't force her. She made the bed for Yanran, helped her lie down, pulled the blanket up for her, and sat down beside her.
"Father," Yanran wasn't actually sleepy; she had only been helping Tang Zhuyun out of a predicament. So, after lying down, she looked at Prince of Jin and asked, "What happened after you fell into the river?"
She seems to have never asked that question before.
The Prince of Jin said, "My father can swim, so he swam out for two or three miles before climbing to the shore, where someone came to meet me."
Yanran said with a look of relief, "Luckily, Father can swim."
Tang Zhuyun wanted to roll her eyes. If the Prince of Jin were a landlubber, would he have been able to set up such a trap?
However, she didn't miss the opportunity and took the chance to lecture Yanran, saying, "This is what they call having many skills is never a burden, you know? If your father couldn't swim..."
She's got what she wanted now, sigh!
Tang Zhuyun paused, then, under the murderous glare of the Prince of Jin, said, "... So we still need to learn these skills properly—horse riding, swimming, practicing martial arts—they're even more important than playing the zither, chess, calligraphy, and painting..."
Yanran nodded solemnly. "Mother, I will."
"Actually, learning horseback archery would be the best," Tang Zhuyun pressed on, "It's tough training, but you'll be able to hit a target from a hundred paces away, and everyone will praise your heroic bearing, won't they?"
Yanran hesitated for a moment.
She absolutely hated archery; it made her fingers ache.
Tang Zhuyun: "Let's study together in the spring, not with my brother."
Linlin was too amazing, which made Yanran doubt herself, and this was a very important reason why she disliked studying.
The Prince of Jin replied, "I will be your teacher then."
Tang Zhuyun blinked. "Weren't you going to leave?"
You can't leave on the fifteenth of the first lunar month, are you still not leaving on the second day of the second lunar month?
Yanran reluctantly agreed.
To cheer her up, Tang Zhuyun said, "When it gets hot in the summer, I'll send all the servants away and take you swimming in the lotus pond."
Prince of Jin: "..."
How could she even think of that?
Yanran, however, had already happily agreed.
At this point, Prince of Jin simply thought Tang Zhuyun was daring, but when he heard Tang Zhuyun begin to tell a story about mermaids, a sudden realization struck him—could she be a water spirit?
Tang Zhuyun: I'm industrial saccharin, I'll poison you, you bastard!
However, Xiu'er called Tang Zhuyun from the doorway, so Tang Zhuyun went out before the story was fully told.
The Prince of Jin was somewhat disappointed, thinking that perhaps some clues could have been gleaned from the story!
"What's wrong?" Tang Zhuyun asked.
Xiu'er, Song Jingyang, and Huaishang were standing at the door, but strangely, Xiu'er was holding onto Huaishang's sleeve and wouldn't let go.
Huaishang's face turned completely red, and he avoided looking at Tang Zhuyun.
If Song Jingyang hadn't helped hold him back, he probably would have fled in panic.
"What are you doing?" Tang Zhuyun asked in surprise.
Xiu'er spoke in a clear, crisp voice, "Do you still remember the matter of that hundred taels of silver on the Huaishang?"
Looking at Huaishang, Song Jingyang said smugly, "See? Isn't Xiu'er a capable person?"
Tang Zhuyun: "I know, and then what?"
"Huaishang has been thinking about this for many years, why don't you give it to him?" Xiu'er said.
Tang Zhuyun: Why should she give it to me? Does Prince of Jin think he can get something for free? Besides, even if she returns it, she can only return ten taels of silver, okay? Does she expect me to pay her out of my own pocket?
Even if she's going to help the poor and even pay out of her own pocket, she still has to pick someone she likes, right?
She's a masochist, she dared to challenge the Prince of Jin!
Xiu'er said, "You have a broader perspective. Anyway, you already have a hundred taels of silver a month."