Chapter 13 Your Subject Has Only One Daughter
He almost roared this sentence.
Wen Xueling didn’t speak, just gazed deeply at him.
Whether in her previous life or this life, her older brother hadn’t changed. Whenever something related to Wen Jin’an came up, he would always unconditionally side with this stepsister.
“You, what are you staring at me like that for?”
Wen Jinli felt a little flustered by her gaze. She was the one who bullied An’an first; he was merely seeking justice for the unsuspecting An’an.
Not wanting to waste more words with him, her fingertip moved slightly, and Wen Jinli instantly lost all strength.
He had to prop himself up with one hand to avoid kneeling on the ground, lifting his head to glare angrily at her, “Wen Xueling, what did you do to me!”
She looked down on the furious Wen Jinli and said, “Go back and eat more pig brains.”
Wen Jinli: “?”
No movement from outside could be heard inside Warm Fragrance Garden.
Mu Qingyu didn’t know that her youngest son was right outside the door, preferring to wait for his sister in the carriage rather than enter to see her.
There was a hot spring in the backyard of Warm Fragrance Garden, very suitable for conditioning her mother’s body. This place was originally a residence General Liang prepared for his childhood sweetheart to recuperate, but unfortunately, the beautiful lady passed away early.
That night.
Wen Xueling and Mu Qingyu were soaking together in the spring water.
She saw the old scars on her mother’s back, which was as fair as congealed fat. These were related to her mother’s memory loss from her first half of life.
“Mother, these wounds of yours......”
Neighbors said that her scumbag father found her mother by the river in Huaxi County, where she was already feverish and unconscious.
Even the village doctor said her mother was sure to die, but she still pulled through, only to lose all her memories.
Mu Qingyu gently comforted her: “Old wounds, they don't hurt anymore.”
She saw through the worry in her daughter’s eyes, and lovingly rubbed her head, “Ling’er, sometimes forgetting is not a bad thing.”
Wen Xueling suspected that her mother’s family was connected to the Xie family army that was annihilated that year.
If that were truly the case, then forgetting was indeed better than remembering.
Days flew by, and it was the eve of the Winter Banquet.
Wen Jingshu was recalled to the capital by the Emperor, and was repeatedly praised in court for raising his daughter well, making him a model for all officials.
After he learned that Wen Jin’an had saved the Empress Dowager, he was filled with relief, and increasingly felt that she was a heaven-sent blessing for the Prime Minister’s Estate.
With the comparison, he felt even more disgusted by the stubborn and unyielding Wen Xueling.
After returning, he never inquired about the Fangfei Courtyard, naturally unaware that the Fangfei Courtyard had already been burned to ashes.
Wen Jin’an was pacing back and forth in her room, extremely anxious.
She originally thought the Emperor would merely commend her, but she never expected him to specially set up a Winter Banquet. If the Empress Dowager discovered at the banquet that the person who saved her wasn’t herself, wouldn’t she be humiliated?
She found Wen Jinli, crying and saying that she had indeed saved an old woman in the plum forest, and had also given her the divine doctor’s medicine from her second brother.
“Fourth Brother, the person An’an saved might just have been an ordinary peasant woman, not the Empress Dowager. The timing is too coincidental. Now An’an has acknowledged this matter. If the Empress Dowager finds out, won’t she blame An’an for being vain and greedy for glory?”
Wen Jinli believed her.
So that's how it was! He knew An’an was pure-hearted and kind, and wouldn’t falsely claim credit. Indeed, there was a misunderstanding!
“You, you are just too kind-hearted. That medicine your second brother gave you was......cough cough, it was a top-grade good medicine refined from dozens of rare and precious medicinal ingredients. One pill can cure a hundred illnesses.”
Of course, she knew how precious this medicine was. She kept it close to her body precisely for emergencies.
But at this moment, Wen Jin’an still needed him to clean up her mess. Her eyes showed reluctance as she said, “No matter how precious the medicine, An’an couldn't stand by and watch”
Wen Jin’an’s tears fell, “Fourth Brother, do you think An’an did something wrong?”
He gently comforted her: “You did nothing wrong, you were just too kind-hearted.”
“Don't worry, Fourth Brother has arranged everything. I’ll also handle Father. You can confidently accept the palace’s commendation!”
He had already investigated thoroughly. The Empress Dowager had lived in Palace of Benevolent Heart for a long time, praying to Buddha year-round, and never participated in palace banquets.
The world knew that the one who saved the Empress Dowager was the Prime Minister’s daughter. As long as the Empress Dowager didn’t summon An’an, the Emperor wouldn’t know that the real person who saved the Empress Dowager was Wen Xueling.
Thus, An’an would be fine!
But he hadn’t anticipated that the Empress Dowager, elated after her recovery, actually very much wanted to see the courageous Wen Xueling again......
On the day of the Winter Banquet, the woman kneeling in the garden to receive the commendation was actually an unseen young girl!
The Emperor was greatly pleased to learn that his Imperial Mother had left the palace to attend the banquet, but it wasn't long before he heard the Empress Dowager’s voice questioning Wen Jin’an.
“Who are you? Where is the real daughter of the Prime Minister?”
The Empress Dowager naturally knew that the Prime Minister’s Estate had only one daughter. If the person kneeling before her was Wen Jingshu’s legitimate daughter, then who was the person before?
She was the champion of the previous palace struggle, how could she not see the trickery within it?
Not just because Wen Xueling saved her, but also because Wen Xueling’s appearance was five or six parts similar to her old friend, she was willing to lend a helping hand.
Wen Jingshu’s upward-curved lips stiffened, and he hastily knelt down, respectfully saying, “Reporting to Her Majesty the Empress Dowager, your subject......has only An’an as a daughter.”
His voice paused slightly, but then he thought, Wen Xueling, despite her peerless beauty, was narrow-minded and jealous. How could she compare to An’an?
For now, the best course of action was to protect An’an first.
“Oh? So, according to the Prime Minister’s meaning, this Empress Dowager wronged you?”
“Your subject absolutely has no such intention!”
The Empress Dowager sat regally above, her phoenix eyes filled with deterrent power, fixed on Wen Jin’an’s trembling body, scrutinizing her, “So young yet so greedy for merit, with improper conduct. In the future, it would be difficult for you to bear the great responsibility of the Marquis’s Estate’s mistress.”
With just one sentence, she plunged Wen Jin’an into an abyss, vaguely hearing the mockery of other noble young ladies.
Seeing her shed tears, Wen Jinli, eager to protect his sister, immediately knelt down and said, “Your Majesty the Empress Dowager, there is a misunderstanding here.”
He narrated in detail the excuse Wen Jin’an had given him.
The Imperial Garden fell into complete silence.
The Emperor greatly admired Wen Jingshu’s talent. Seeing that there was a misunderstanding, he also helped to speak, saying, “Imperial Mother, your health has just recovered, do not be angry. After the Winter Banquet ends, your son will certainly give you a satisfactory resolution.”
The Empress Dowager lightly closed her eyes, and said sharply, “This Winter Banquet was set up for the person who saved this Empress Dowager. If the person is not here, why hold a banquet?”
In just half an incense stick’s time, Wen Xueling had already boarded the palace carriage.
She looked at the towering palace walls before her, her eyes like deep pools, and the corners of her mouth curved into a sharp, decisive arc.
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