Chapter 62: Father and Mother Were in Love...
The intimate atmosphere dissipated abruptly. Worried about Fang Zhixu, Yan Xuerui trembled as she dressed, hurrying away as if wolves were chasing her, leaving without a trace of reluctance.
Gu Yan stared intently at her retreating figure. Now, snapping out of his lovesick daze, Senior Tutor Gu finally sensed something amiss.
Had she truly come today to make amends with him?
After a moment of contemplation, Gu Yan clapped three times, and a shadowy figure emerged from the darkness.
"Whenever my Lady leaves the palace, follow and protect her."
"Keep me informed of her whereabouts."
The palace was heavily guarded. That night, only by taking advantage of the chaos and Ming Lan's assistance had Gu Yan managed to infiltrate the palace. Ordinary guards couldn't move freely in and out.
With his covert agents in the imperial guards and Ming Lan inside, he wasn't particularly worried about Yan Xuerui's safety within the palace. Outside... he naturally assumed that, having no relatives in the capital, she would return to the Marquis' residence.
He hoped he was just being paranoid.
The shadow guard acknowledged the order and disappeared without a sound. Gu Yan rubbed his temples and headed toward his study.
Although the Virtuous Prince was dead, he had left behind a mess.
First, there was the unresolved case of the imperial examinations. The chief culprit, the Virtuous Prince, had been executed, but many scholars remained imprisoned. Their fate, along with the rankings of this year's exams, weighed heavily on him. Gu Yan had promised Su Huaimo that he would not let the years of hard work by innocent scholars go to waste.
He was ruthless and not an upright gentleman, but he valued his promises deeply and always kept his word.
Then there was the verdict for the Virtuous Prince. The Crown Prince wanted to make the "treason" charge stick, but the Emperor was unwilling. Gu Yan cared little about the power struggle between the royal father and son; he was more preoccupied with how to discreetly eliminate the Virtuous Prince's lineage.
The Virtuous Prince had died at the hands of the brothers, and Gu Yan always ensured to root out all threats. He didn’t want some orphan of the Virtuous Prince emerging years later seeking revenge.
The Virtuous Prince's followers also needed to be eliminated one by one.
After Rui Er's little scene, the Crown Prince was both trying to win him over and guarding against him, constantly making underhanded moves.
And then there were the disturbances in the northwest...
A dull ache throbbed at Gu Yan's temples. The court's administrative duties were exhausting. He had never wanted to meddle in external affairs—it was a thankless task, and a misstep could lead to accusations of conspiring with the enemy.
He hadn’t expected that Kunmo, cunning and calculating, would have a daughter so naive and fearless as to dare come to the capital alone. The prisoners in the dungeon couldn’t withstand severe torture, and he had only learned of A Yina's identity this morning.
His eldest son had slept with the Western Rong princess... This left the ever-strategic Senior Tutor Gu in a rather tricky situation.
Lust was a dangerous thing.
Secretly annoyed by Ming Lan's lack of self-control, Gu Yan ordered in a low voice, "Tell the Eldest Son to come to my study after his duty."
Unbeknownst to him, Ming Lan hadn’t gone on duty at all that day. Just before the palace gates were locked for the night, Yan Xuerui hurried back to her palace, exhausted. She didn’t even have time for dinner and collapsed onto the bed, half-asleep.
"Madam... no, Princess Changle."
Bi He, now fully recovered from her injuries, nervously corrected herself. Madam had suddenly become a princess and even brought her from the Marquis' residence to the magnificent palace. It felt like a dream to Bi He.
There was no time to catch up. Having served Yan Xuerui for a long time, Bi He knew what the marks on her snow-white skin meant. She was about to help her mistress get ready for bed when a palace maid announced that someone had come to visit Princess Changle.
It was so late that Bi He initially intended to refuse, but when she went out to check, oh my, it was the Eldest Son. Not daring to turn him away, she hurried back to report.
"Your Highness, the Eldest Son requests an audience. Will you see him or not?"
The gauze curtains fluttered as Yan Xuerui lifted herself up from the bed, her body sore and weak. She casually gathered her silky black hair into a loose bun. Whenever she met Ming Lan, she always made sure to be properly dressed.
In the opulent palace hall, Gu Minglan stepped in slowly. His mother had snow-white skin and jade-like features. As a grown man with an overly possessive father, Minglan usually didn’t dare look directly at Yan Xuerui. But tonight, under the candlelight, she wore a hairpin adorned with a kingfisher feather and pearls, its golden tassels trembling by her cheeks, dazzling and sparkling.
It reminded Gu Minglan that his mother was now a princess of the court.
By etiquette, he should perform a formal bow to Yan Xuerui. Minglan valued etiquette deeply, but after a moment's hesitation, he bowed to her as he had always done back at the Gu residence.
"Mother."
In his heart, she was simply his mother.
Yan Xuerui, of course, didn’t care about such formalities. She quickly bid Minglan to rise and asked with concern, "It's so late. Haven’t you finished your duty yet?"
The imperial guards took turns patrolling at night, and night shifts were stricter and more arduous than daytime ones. Given Minglan's family background, he didn’t need to patrol like ordinary soldiers, but he refused to flaunt his status. Yan Xuerui had always known that Minglan’s life was not easy.
She instructed, "Bi He, go to the imperial kitchen and order some easily digestible food."
No matter what happened between her and Gu Yan, she could never let go of her children. Even though Minglan was now taller than her, she would always remember him as a small, soft child in her arms.
Minglan pressed his lips tightly together. "No need."
Then, realizing his tone was too harsh, he explained, "Palace rules are strict. I cannot stay long. I’ll just say a few words and leave."
"Alright, no rush. Take your time."
"Bi He, serve tea."
His mother's voice was as gentle and accepting as ever. Unlike his father, who left no room for argument when he spoke, his mother would patiently listen to him. Her embrace was soft and fragrant—his mother.
Gu Minglan's heart felt as if clenched in a tight fist, suffocating him.
Earlier that day, seeing his mother emerge from a man’s courtyard with reddened eyes had deeply disturbed him. He had no one to confide in, not even Gu Yuan, who had raised him.
He had shut himself in his room all day until late at night when, risking breaking palace rules, he came to Changle Palace to see his mother.
He raised his eyes, and under the bright candlelight, his cold gaze—so similar to Gu Yan’s—fixed intently on Yan Xuerui.
"Mother, you said yesterday that the separation from Father is only temporary, right?"
As a son, even though he had witnessed it himself, he couldn’t directly question or even bring up this uncomfortable subject to his mother.
He could only repeatedly confirm that it was all false, that his mother would not abandon the Marquis' household.
The smile on Yan Xuerui’s lips froze. She lowered her eyelashes and softly murmured an "Mmm," offering no further explanation.
Gu Minglan said urgently, "Father is resourceful and clever. With the Virtuous Prince dead, no one can challenge our Gu family now. Why must we resort to just this method?"
"In the future, I will inherit the Marquis' household and assist my younger brother without any resentment."
Minglan had always been calm and composed. That he was driven to utter such rebellious words startled Yan Xuerui. She quickly glanced around, relieved that no one else was present.
"Be careful with your words."
Yan Xuerui frowned. "What’s wrong with you today? Did your father punish you?"
When Minglan was young and beginning his studies, Gu Yan had been a very strict teacher, especially toward his own son. Minglan, clever from a young age, would silently seek out his mother after being punished by Gu Yan, and she could never resist pleading on his behalf.
In the entire Marquis' household, only his mother could persuade his father. Later, Minglan gradually realized that although his father listened to his mother at the time, the next punishment would be even harsher. Over time, he no longer dared to ask his mother to intervene for him.
Ming Lan gritted his teeth, his piercing gaze locked intensely on Yan Xuerui, and said, "I don't want Mother and Father to separate."
In his hazy memories, he firmly believed that his father and mother were deeply in love.
Nobody's perfect—Mother was merely confused for a moment.
He continued, "Even if it is only a temporary measure, the separation between Father and Mother breaks my heart."
His eyes were almost the spitting image of Gu Yan's. Facing Gu Yan, Yan Xuerui held her own; despite countless difficulties, she had never abandoned the thought of separation, or rather, leaving Gu Yan.
But now, under Ming Lan's intense gaze, Yan Xuerui's resolve began crumbling from the depths of her heart. Had she—made a mistake?
She was no longer young, and her children had reached marriageable age. What was she still fighting against? Wouldn't it be better to live peacefully as before?
Yan Xuerui's heart was heavy with dull pain. In the quiet palace, facing her bewildered son, she finally choked out after a long silence, "I—"
"I—"
She nearly agreed to Ming Lan's plea. Before her lay two paths: one full of thorns, where even after great struggle, she might never attain the freedom she desired; the other smooth sailing, where she need only hide behind Gu Yan—her husband, her son—protected from life's hardships.
But—but she also had people she wanted to protect—Bi He, her cousin Zhixu. She despised her own powerlessness.
She refused to be forced to drink the blood of her own sister, even if it was supposedly for her own good.
She refused to be confined even when stepping outside.
With a single word from him, she had to sever all social ties and obediently serve him within the mansion.
She simply did not want to be treated like a puppet to be manipulated at will.
These two conflicting thoughts tore at Yan Xuerui's heart. Ming Lan's gaze burned like fire, and she felt she could bear it no longer. Suddenly, in the flickering candlelight, Yan Xuerui blinked and noticed a faint red mark on Ming Lan's neck.
Unlike the sharp blade marks from before, this ambiguous crimson mark could not escape the eyes of Yan Xuerui, who was experienced in these matters.
Yan Xuerui was completely stunned. Ming Lan was not yet married!
Her beautiful eyes widened, her lips trembling as she asked, "Ming Lan, you—you have someone in your heart?"
Gu Minglan, noticing his mother's gaze, adjusted his collar slightly uncomfortably and replied, "I have taken a maid. I will bring her another day to formally pay her respects to Mother."
The household rules were too loose these days, and Gu Minglan was not comfortable letting her appear in public just yet.
Yan Xuerui did not doubt him but muttered absently, "She must be incredibly beautiful and virtuous, that girl."
She had previously introduced so many noble young ladies, yet Ming Lan had not shown interest in any of them. She understood the pride in her eldest son's heart.
Beautiful, yes—but virtuous...
Gu Minglan gave a slight smirk and nodded to Yan Xuerui, "Indeed."
He would have her taught to be virtuous, just like Mother.
Yan Xuerui was dumbfounded. The news was clearly too shocking for her. Ming Lan's wedding might be coming soon; perhaps by next year, her eldest son would even become a father.
Yan Xuerui closed her eyes and said, "You may go now. Rest assured, your father and I—will be fine."
"Choose a day and bring that girl to see me."
With his mother's assurance, Gu Minglan's anxiously suspended heart finally settled. He looked at Yan Xuerui and ventured cautiously, "These are troubled times. Mother, your safety comes first. Aside from the palace and the marquis' estate, please do not go anywhere else."
"As for Mother's concerns, there is plenty of time ahead. The men of the marquis' estate are still here—Father and Second Uncle are in their prime years, and I dare not slacken either. Please put your mind at ease, Mother."
He meant that even without taking the shortcut of "separation," and even if Zhilu could not yet be entered into the royal family registry, there was still ample time ahead.
Gu Minglan deeply felt that compared to power that's within easy reach, his mother was far more important.
Family stability is the real foundation for prosperity.