Chapter 145: Respect His Decision

For a moment no one spoke.

Xiaoguo did not speak as she was waiting for Shao Zhan to speak.

Shao Zhan did not speak as he was thinking about what to say.

At first, he had thought of coercing and bribing her. After all, he knew that she was from the countryside. She was not educated and illiterate. Since she had never left the village before, she must be quite ignorant. As long as he told her about Jiang Danhe’s current position and his monthly salary, it should be enough to influence her.

But at this moment, he hesitated to do so.

Judging from her dressing, her appearance and the way she carried herself, Shao Zhan had no choice but to reevaluate his opinion of her.

What he had thought of her before, didn’t quite match up to what he was seeing right now.

Xiaoguo mustered up her courage and quickly looked up at Shao Zhan. She had thought that the emperor must be someone who was consumed by sex and alcohol all the time, so she had expected him to look quite wasted.

However, he looked rather tough and handsome in person. Previously, she had thought that Xiaoyi was quite good-looking. It turned out that the boy had inherited his father’s looks.

“I heard that you were acquainted with Xiaoyi before this?”

Xiaoguo thought for a moment. She didn’t understand why he was bringing this up. She said cautiously, “We met a few times in Yonghai County. Xiaoyi… the Crown Prince and Zhuang Zhuang are the same age and they get along pretty well. We got to know each other after a while.”

Xiaoguo was going to call the boy his name, but then she realized that he was the crown prince. How could she call him by his first name?

“It’s okay. You can continue to call him Xiaoyi. Danhe and I are good friends. You can call him by his name.”

Shao Zhan noticed Xiaoguo’s hesitation when she spoke about the boy. Logically speaking, the Crown Prince’s name should not be mentioned casually. However, based on his relationship with Jiang Danhe, there was no need for them to behave like strangers.

Xiaoguo just nodded and said nothing else.

“Danhe is preparing to return to his hometown next year. What do you think about this?”

Shao Zhan didn’t know why, but he felt that if he used the carrot and stick approach, it wouldn’t work on her. Therefore, it would be good to try a different approach and listen to her thoughts.

Xiaoguo’s heart skipped a beat. She couldn’t figure out what he meant. The scene that had appeared in her mind didn’t happen. Was the emperor really so approachable?

After much consideration, Xiaoguo said, “I respect Jiang Danhe’s choice.”

Jiang Danhe must have made a decision. No matter what, she would not decide for him or affect his decision.

Shao Zhan was stunned. He did not expect her to say that. After recovering from his surprise, he chuckled.

Xiaoguo frowned, not understanding why he was suddenly smiling. However, even if she were so bold, she would not dare to question the emperor.

“You two are really united. One insists on becoming a farmer in the fields, and the other is so supportive. I don’t know what to do.”

Shao Zhan stopped laughing and sized up the woman in front of him. How was she a common villager? She was an intelligent and eloquent woman.

Xiaoguo didn’t know how to respond to his words, so she decided to keep quiet.

Shao Zhan closed the book and sighed. “Forget it…”

“Your Majesty, General Jiang requests an audience.”

Shao Zhan chuckled. “Is Jiang Danhe worried about me eating up his wife?”

“”Bring him in.”

Hearing that Jiang Danhe had arrived, Xiaoguo looked up at the door.

Jiang Danhe looked at Xiaoguo as soon as he entered. After confirming that she was safe, he retracted his gaze and greeted Shao Zhan.

Shao Zhan waved his hand and gestured for Jiang Danhe to sit down. “Stop pretending. Did you think I was going to eat up your wife.”

He had his eyes locked on Qin Xiaoguo the minute he entered. “This Jiang Danhe!”

Xiaoguo was stunned when she heard that. She looked awkwardly at Jiang Danhe, who was seated beside her after he came in.

Jiang Danhe ignored Shao Zhan’s teasing. Sensing Xiaoguo’s gaze, he turned around and looked at her affectionately.

He was indeed afraid that something would happen to Xiaoguo. As soon as he came out of the cemetery, he heard from Li Shouji that Xiaoguo and Zhuang Zhuang had been summoned by the emperor. Immediately, he got Li Shouji to send him to the palace. He only felt at ease after ensuring Xiaoguo was fine with his own eyes.

Xiaoguo looked away from him immediately, as if she had been scalded by his gaze.

Jiang Danhe was disappointed for a moment, but he immediately perked up. He would use his passionate love to win her over. He believed that she would accept him one day.

Even without looking at him, Xiaoguo could feel the spark in his eyes as he watched her. Feeling uneasy, she moved away from him. All Xiaoguo wanted to do was run away from the passionate Jiang Danhe. It was too overwhelming for her.

In the end, it was Shao Zhan who could not stand to watch Jiang Danhe. He saved Xiaoguo from the awkward situation by asking her to look for Zhixia.

Xiaoguo thanked him profusely and smiled gratefully at him. Then, ignoring Jiang Danhe’s expectant gaze, she quickly left.

Xiaoguo was certain that she had never run so fast before in her life.

Outside, Eunuch Su casually assigned a young eunuch to bring her to Kunning Palace.

Along the way, Xiaoguo admired the beautiful scenery. Seeing was believing. The scene that she had only seen in books was right in front of her now. Could this be the legendary Imperial garden?

The rock garden, the pond, the lotus flowers, the goldfish, and the colorful flowers.

Xiaoguo took a deep breath. Various scents filled her mind and lingered within her.

Along the way, the eunuch introduced Xiaoguo to the various palaces they passed by. The inner palace was huge, but it was rather empty. After all, the women who were previously residing in the harem had mostly been killed. The rest have either fled, or were exiled long ago. The current emperor did not indulge himself with a large harem, so the empress was the only one residing in the inner palace now.

When they arrived at the main entrance of Kunning Palace, the young eunuch invited Xiaoguo in first before entering himself.

“This is the main hall of Kunning Palace. The crown prince lives here. Yongshou Hall is located behind and that is where our current empress lives.”

Xiaoguo looked behind her. It was strange that the empress was living in the back hall.

“Watch the steps.”

“Oh, okay. Thank you.”

Xiaoguo hadn’t been paying attention to where she was standing. She only took notice when she heard the reminder and managed to avoid getting hurt.

“This servant does not deserve…”

Who knew that he would react so strongly to a simple thank you? Xiaoguo opened her mouth but did not speak.

The eunuch watched as Xiaoguo went through the door and left.

“Mother!”

Zhuang Zhuang was reading to Xiaoyi in the main hall. Zhixia was seated beside them.

Zhuang Zhuang’s eyes were sharp. He saw Xiaoguo immediately.

When Zhixia saw Xiaoguo, she smiled and praised Zhuang Zhuang. “Xiaoguo, your Zhuang Zhuang is really amazing. He can read so many words at such a young age. He must be a genius.”

Zhuang Zhuang put down the book in his hand and ran to Xiaoguo’s side, shyly listening to the compliments that Zhixia was giving him.

Xiaoguo was delighted. Who doesn’t like to hear praises about their children?

“Not at all. What genius? He just likes to read.”

As usual, Xiaoguo had to be polite. However, she also felt that Zhuang Zhuang was just suited for studying. He could remember everything after reading them once.

“That’s right, that’s right. Zhuang Zhuang is a genius. He memorized this poem after reading it once. If only I could be as good as him, then, I wouldn’t have to worry about being scolded by my teacher. I wouldn’t have to copy so many books either.”

Xiaoyi looked at Zhuang Zhuang with admiration in his eyes. His voice was filled with obvious adulation for his friend.

Zhuang Zhuang scratched his head shyly. “No, my mother said that interest is the best teacher.”

Zhixia and Xiaoyi looked at Xiaoguo curiously and asked in unison, “What is the best teacher?”

“It means that once a person has a strong interest in something, they will take the initiative to seek knowledge, to explore and to practice the subject. The learning process will bring about joy and a positive experience for the person.

Xiaoguo was very impressed by those famous words of Einstein. This had been Xiaoguo’s motto since she was young, so she had shared it with Zhuang Zhuang.

Zhuang Zhuang had interpreted this sentence perfectly. It was because of his initial interest in literacy that led him to develop a thirst for knowledge. It was his interest that propelled him to move forward.