With the enemy already routed, Tang Zhuyun's anger subsided considerably. She asked, "Leaving the capital in three days? Why the rush?"
The matter Zong Heng was simply swept under the rug.
"I'm going to the Northwest to find someone," said the Prince of Jin. "I've wanted to go since before the New Year... That person is very important to me..."
"Okay, I understand." Tang Zhuyun interrupted him.
She wondered if it was because they had argued so fiercely today that the Prince of Jin had been completely subdued by her, and she vaguely felt that the Prince of Jin seemed to want to confide in her.
That's absolutely not allowed.
She had no desire to know the secrets in his heart.
She wouldn't mind if they spoke too intimately, given their casual acquaintance; but if the Prince of Jin changed his mind afterward and wanted to kill her to silence her, where could she turn for justice?
However, the Prince of Jin seems to have a masochistic streak; if you overpower him, he goes limp...
"Besides taking care of the children, is there anything else you need me to do?" Tang Zhuyun asked.
"Stay home as much as possible, and don't get involved with men," the Prince of Jin said through gritted teeth. "Even fake ones won't do!"
"I'm much more magnanimous," Tang Zhuyun said. "Your Highness may provoke others as you please outside, but just don't cause any deaths, and don't bring them back to the manor."
Prince of Jin: "..."
"Also, Your Highness, please make arrangements for Hongfu. I can't manage to take care of her!"
"You don't need to worry about that; someone's watching it."
"Let me think about it some more..." Tang Zhuyun said, resting her chin on her hand. "It seems like there's nothing else, as long as we come back safely, that's fine."
His greatest significance was to give his two children a father.
She can live without a man, or even better without one; but a father is still very important in a child's development. What other children have, our children must have too, even if it's just for show.
What will you do if I don't come back?
Tang Zhuyun looked at him, "Do you even need to ask about this?"
It's not like he hasn't died before.
What could she do?
Mourn and offer condolences, then organize a feast.
Why does this have to be innovative? Every time you die, you have to come up with a new trick?
She can't afford to play that game.
After all, no one knew how many more times the Prince of Jin planned to "die."
Seeing the Prince of Jin's ashen face, Tang Zhuyun conceded, "Why don't you just state your request, and I'll comply?"
"You are not allowed to remarry!" Prince of Jin gritted his teeth. "Raise your two children well."
"Okay," Tang Zhuyun readily agreed. "Marriage is a pitfall; once is enough. As for the two children, you don't need to mention them, right?"
Just as she was gloating over her verbal sparring, she suddenly heard Prince of Jin say, "Remember, Yanran's surname is Xiao."
Tang Zhuyun was so stunned by this revelation that she couldn't speak for a long time.
"She... she took her mother's surname," she murmured.
Although Tang Zhuyun never asked about Yanran's background, she had thought about it.
She suspected that Yanran was the daughter of the Prince of Jin and a woman surnamed Xiao; otherwise, how could she resemble "Miss Xiao"?
She is not my biological daughter.
Ahhhhh, Tang Zhuyun has gone mad.
Why do scoundrels set off bombs without giving anyone a chance to prepare?
His tone was so calm, without any embellishment, it was like a thunderbolt thrown directly at someone's head.
If it were anything else, Tang Zhuyun might have covered her ears and begged him to stop talking, but she remained indifferent.
But she really couldn't bring herself to ignore Yanran's situation.
"So if I don't come back, I'll have her marry Linlin in the future."
Tang Zhuyun: Get out!
So, this scoundrel of a man, whether alive or dead, only had one thing in mind—arranged marriages?
"... If she grows up to have a personality like yours, then there's no need to worry. You can help her choose a good family to marry into."
Tang Zhuyun: "Your Highness, when a person dies, it's like a lamp going out."
Please close your eyes and kick your legs without worry, don't make a fuss!
The three of us, mother and son, will be fine, so please don't interfere.
Prince of Jin: Although I know she wasn't saying anything nice, it seems I really don't have any worries about leaving the child with her.
"Besides," Tang Zhuyun said, "Weren't you going to look for someone? How did it turn into a life-or-death separation?"
If we can find it, we will; if we can't, we'll just come back.
What the Prince of Jin said didn't sound like he was looking for someone, but rather like he was going to kidnap someone, the kind of kidnapping where if he failed, he'd likely be beaten to death.
The Prince of Jin closed his eyes. "After I leave, you can go find Nanny Rong and ask her about what happened back then. Before I went to the capital to acknowledge my ancestors, I had another name, Xiao Jianqi."
He didn't want to bring up anything else, because the memories were too painful, and because he didn't want to lose his composure in front of her.
Also surnamed Xiao? And they say he's not Yanran's biological father, so is he her older brother?
"My mother's surname is Xiao," said Prince of Jin. "Yanran's biological father is my mother's nephew, that is, my cousin. She is the only remaining blood relative of the more than eight hundred members of the Xiao Family."
The Prince of Jin was so pained by having his old wounds reopened that his heart felt like it was being clenched shut.
Tang Zhuyun was utterly shocked.
What kind of hatred could lead to the extermination of someone's entire family?... They must be either bandits or... the Emperor.
But that was the maternal family of the Prince of Jin.
Tang Zhuyun dared not think any further.
In other words, Linlin and Yanran are actually cousins?
"I once thought I could turn the tide and save the Xiao Family from collapse, but as it turns out, I was too confident." Prince of Jin gave a self-deprecating smile. "And it was during that process that I met you."
Tang Zhuyun recalled Huaishang had said: at that time, the Prince of Jin was poisoned and was being hunted down...
At that time, he was only a seventeen or eighteen-year-old boy.
"Now I know there might be old acquaintances in the Northwest, so I have to go. There are also some old matters concerning the Xiao Family that I need to take care of, so I must make this trip."
What role did the emperor play in the past and what was his attitude in the present?
Tang Zhuyun was puzzled, but she didn't ask.
"Well, there's nothing I can do to help you. You can go without worry." That was all she could say.
Prince of Jin stroked the Xuan paper on the table, looked at Tang Zhuyun, and hesitated to speak.
Tang Zhuyun: Just say what you have to say. You're like someone who's constipated; it's making me anxious just watching you.
After a while, she grew impatient and was about to make an excuse to slip away when she heard Prince of Jin say, "My mother told me that I could only marry one wife in the future, and if I married her, I must never make her sad."
Tang Zhuyun stared at him with wide eyes.
Oh, so that's where she was waiting!
Before she leaves, they want her to make room for them?
"If you can get the Emperor to grant us a divorce, then I have no objection," Tang Zhuyun said. "Besides, I strongly agree with your mother's words, and for the sake of the person you love, you should try your best! But if it means Linlin and Yanran will suffer, then I won't agree to that."
She extinguished the Prince of Jin's enthusiasm.
Wasn't his confession obvious enough?
Tang Zhuyun: The question is, did you marry me? Wasn't I only promoted because you died?
"You wait for me to return!" the Prince of Jin said through gritted teeth. "Just you wait!"
"Oh."
Tang Zhuyun began to wonder if the Prince of Jin was going to find someone he liked.
Cousins, it's perfect to have them become even closer here.