Raising a wife? The mistress of the Hou family divorced and remarried her younger uncle

Chapter 187 Kindness
Outside the window, the white snow piled up layer by layer, already covering the stone steps.

In the quiet courtyard, several palace maids were tiptoeing and carefully hanging palace lanterns on the eaves. The dim light shone through the flying snowflakes, casting a warm yellow, reflecting the rare warm scenery in the deep palace. However, Su Qingwan had no intention of appreciating it. She stood quietly by the window, her eyes full of loneliness, like a bird trapped in a golden cage, looking at the sky in all directions, feeling helpless.

The King of Southwest had been safely escorted out of the imperial city, and the spies of Southwest had already been waiting outside the city, ready to escort him all the way back to Southwest. Su Qingwan prayed silently in her heart, hoping that her father's journey back would be smooth and that her brothers would be able to pick him up in Zhongzhou smoothly.

But how could she not worry?
The emperor's mind was unpredictable, and she was afraid that he would make a move midway, so she begged Lu Jing to send someone to secretly protect her. Unexpectedly, the emperor directly appointed Lu Jing to escort the King of Southwest to Zhongzhou.

The roads were slippery in the snow, and it would take more than ten days to go back and forth. By the time he came back, the first month of the lunar year would probably be over. And she could only continue to be trapped in this palace, with only Qingyun by her side.

In the afternoon, Su Qingwan was really bored, so she left the hall and wandered around the palace.

The snow was not falling so heavily, and there was a slight chill in the air. She walked along the corridor and suddenly saw a small figure peeking around the corner.

A closer look revealed that it was the eldest prince. The eldest prince looked only a few years old, very young, wearing a furry windproof cap, and wrapped up tightly, like a chubby dumpling.

The moment Qingyun saw the eldest prince, a flash of hatred flashed across her eyes. She hated the emperor, and this hatred was involuntarily directed at the eldest prince.

Su Qingwan just smiled and waved gently. The eldest prince hesitated for a long time before running over with his short legs and calling out crisply, "Aunt."

Su Qingwan asked softly, "Why did you come out alone? Are you cold?"

The eldest prince blinked his eyes and said, "I am now fully recovered. I heard from the palace maid that it was my aunt who saved me. I have always wanted to come and thank my aunt. But my mother would not let me come and said that my aunt wanted to kill me."

Su Qingwan was startled and sighed inwardly. The struggle in the harem even involved such a young child. The eldest prince raised his little face and asked innocently, "Aunt, are you really going to kill me?"

Su Qingwan quickly shook her head and said softly, "No, they lied to you. Auntie loves you so much that she can't wait to do so." Then she asked, "Do you want to go to Auntie's Hall to drink some hot tea and warm yourself up?"

The eldest prince's eyes lit up and he nodded vigorously.

Su Qingwan led the eldest prince to the palace, thinking secretly in her heart that Concubine Lu and the emperor were really generous. They usually protected the eldest prince like the apple of their eye, but they dared to let him out alone.

The palace was filled with warmth. Su Qingwan whispered to Qingyun, "He's just a child. Don't think too much about it."

Qingyun nodded slightly and replied: "Don't worry, Princess. I understand."

The eldest prince looked around curiously and asked, "Aunt, where did you live before? Why have I never seen you in the palace?" Su Qingwan smiled and replied, "Aunt lives in the southwest. This is her first time in the capital."

The eldest prince was innocent and naive, and soon became familiar with Su Qingwan. Su Qingwan carried him to the warm bed and played a little game with him. The two were having fun, and the time of an incense stick passed in a flash, but the eldest prince suddenly stopped.

Su Qingwan asked in confusion: "Why don't you play?"

The eldest prince said seriously, "The Grand Tutor and my mother said that we should not indulge in material things and that it is time for Yu'er to go to school." Su Qingwan asked carefully and found out that the prince, who was only a few years old, had to get up before dawn to study every day and could not rest until after midnight. He could only rest one day every ten days and his life was very hard. Su Qingwan knew that the emperor had high expectations for the eldest prince and it was normal for him to be strict, but she did not expect him to be so strict. Moreover, the emperor would teach him personally. Su Qingwan secretly wondered in her heart, how could the emperor, who was so strict, teach such a cute and lively child?
At this time, Qingyun brought some snacks. The eldest prince looked at the snacks and was obviously thirsty, but he did not reach out to take them.

Su Qingwan asked: "Why don't you drink?"

The eldest prince hesitated for a moment and whispered, "My mother said that we should not eat anything carelessly when we are outside. We should only eat after someone has tasted the food."

Su Qingwan smiled and picked up a piece of cake, drank a cup of tea, and indicated that it was okay. But the eldest prince still shook his head and said politely: "Thank you for your kindness, aunt. Mother and Yu'er have an appointment, and Yu'er dare not break the appointment."

Su Qingwan did not force it and secretly admired the child's upbringing.

Not long after, the people who served the eldest prince came hurriedly. Seeing that the eldest prince was safe and sound, they breathed a sigh of relief, but their faces were still a little panicked, fearing that the eldest prince would make a mistake. The eldest prince looked calm, smiled and waved to Su Qingwan, and said crisply: "Goodbye, aunt."

Su Qingwan looked at the eldest prince's departing back, feeling mixed emotions.

Such a good child is actually the emperor's.

For several days, every afternoon, the little figure would always appear in front of Su Qingwan's palace on time. The eldest prince came to Su Qingwan like a happy little deer, jumping and skipping, and Su Qingwan was puzzled.

That day, as soon as the eldest prince sat down, Su Qingwan asked gently, "Yun'er, why do you always come to see your aunt secretly? Aren't you afraid that your mother will worry?"

The eldest prince blinked his big watery eyes and said seriously, "My father said that my aunt must be bored in the palace alone. I can come to accompany my aunt when I have nothing to do. As long as my schoolwork is not heavy, I can come to my aunt to relieve my boredom. Aunt, don't you like me to come often?" Su Qingwan smiled and said, "How can I not like it? Aunt welcomes you to come often."

The eldest prince smiled sweetly and was very happy.

Su Qingwan asked curiously, "What book are you reading now?"

The eldest prince told him everything. He thought Su Qingwan would teach him to read and write like a tutor, but he didn't expect that Su Qingwan would just play various novel and interesting games with him. Although the eldest prince was young, he had extraordinary self-control. He would stop playing after playing for an incense stick of time.

Su Qingwan accompanied him to write. Although the eldest prince's writing was immature, he was able to do it well. He could recognize most of the characters and was also very good at arithmetic. When he fiddled with the abacus, the beads jumped rapidly under his little hands, making crisp sounds. Seeing this, Su Qingwan taught him some more interesting arithmetic methods and told him about the local customs and geography of various places.

The eldest prince listened with great interest, his eyes sparkling with excitement, and couldn't help but say, "Aunt, your teaching is much more interesting than that of the Grand Tutor. How about you be my teacher?"

Su Qingwan smiled helplessly, touched his head and said, "Forget it, your father will not agree."

After the eldest prince left, Qingyun, who had been observing silently, looked unhappy and couldn't help saying, "Princess, anyone with a discerning eye can see what the emperor is up to. He is just taking advantage of the eldest prince's innocence and wants you to be soft-hearted so that he can detoxify him. But in fact, the poison has already been detoxified. I want to poison him again!"

Su Qingwan shook her head gently and said calmly: "Why bother to tell him if I know everything? I just follow his wishes. Otherwise, how could he relax his vigilance against me? We should be more cautious in this palace."

(End of this chapter)