The Prime Minister's Darling
Chapter 711 - 711 332 Misunderstanding Resolved (Two

Chapter 711: Chapter 332 Misunderstanding Resolved (Two updates) – 2 Chapter 711: Chapter 332 Misunderstanding Resolved (Two updates) – 2 The old Empress Dowager’s face turned as black as charcoal.

“Are you here to keep me company while I eat? I think you’re asking for trouble!”

The Empress Dowager was furious! The consequences were serious!

Xiao Liulang, despondent, said, “When I was a child, I never dined with my grandmother. She didn’t care for my mother, so naturally, she didn’t care much for me either.”

The fury of the Empress Dowager was stoked, then sputtered out.

About Princess Xinyang and Madam Xiao’s relationship, she had also heard. Madam Xiao had originally chosen the daughter of a wealthy family, gentle and quiet.

Nevertheless, the woman whom the Marquis of Xuanping brought home was a living Buddha statue: untouchable, resistible verbal abuse, and needed to be saluted with respect whenever one saw her.

Madam Xiao was incensed. It was said she did not like Princess Xinyang’s son much and showered much love on her two illegitimate grandsons instead.

Xiao Liulang did not mind at all. He was just playing the sympathy card.

As expected, the Empress Dowager took pity on him and, with a grim face, begrudgingly ate the vegetable she loathed.

A faint smile appeared on Xiao Liulang’s corner lips.

Then, Xiao Liulang fabricated pitiable stories about his miserable life under Madam Xiao, successfully tricking the Empress Dowager into eating all the food she didn’t want to eat.

When the Empress Dowager finally came to her senses, she discovered she had eaten half a bowl more than her usual meal.

This was her normal portion at Bishui Alley, but after returning to the palace, she ate less than half of it.

She has lost weight.

Even a fool could tell that the Empress Dowager had a more comfortable meal than before.

After eating, Xiao Liulang did not rush home but went to the Book Pavilion the Empress Dowager had built for him.

The Book Pavilion was right opposite the Empress Dowager’s study, separated by a small garden.

Eunuch Qin considerately opened the window.

As long as she turned her head, the Empress Dowager could see Xiao Liulang engrossed in studying by the window of the Book Pavilion.

The Empress Dowager’s mood settled.

The Forbidden City was a lonely place, especially the dark night. It was a kind of loneliness that could drive a person mad with frustration and desperation, a loneliness one could not escape from.

Having lived within the confines of the Forbidden City for decades, the Empress Dowager had never considered it her home.

However, at this moment, watching the figure of the young man and feeling his silent companionship, the Empress Dowager felt an unprecedented sense of calm and harmony.

The Empress Dowager glanced again at the memorandums. As the night deepened, she still had a small pile left, but she decided she didn’t want to read them.

She turned to Eunuch Qin, “Tell him that I am retiring to rest. He should go back too.”

Eunuch Qin replied with a smile, “Yes.”

All his pleas fell on deaf ears, but Xiao Liulang seemed to have a way.

“Wait.” The Empress Dowager stopped Eunuch Qin. “Send two secret bodyguards to escort him along the way. The closer one gets to the edge, the more cautious one needs to be. He’s getting too close to me. I’m worried that some people might want to harm him.”

A dark and windy evening is a prime time to make a move.

As for the return to Bishui Alley, where Jiaojiao and Gu Yan’s two secret guards were, there was no longer anything to worry about.

“Yes.”

Eunuch Qin arranged for a carriage and personally escorted Xiao Liulang to the palace gate, where he assigned two skilled palace guards to follow him.

Silhouettes flit in the nearby woods.

Fifteen minutes later, in a dark room where one could not see their hand before their eyes.

A man dressed in black said, “Master, there are skilled guards from Renshou Palace following him. We couldn’t get our hands on him.”

A figure in the darkness waved his hand lightly, “Retreat.”

The next day, Xiao Liulang bathed and rested, Guozijian was also closed.

Xiao Liulang slept late because he had stayed up late the previous night, waking up a little late in the morning. Little Jingkong had already gotten up and went to the backyard to wash up and water the plants.

When Xiao Liulang got to the backyard neatly dressed, he was surprised to find two Marquises standing in the courtyard – Marquis of Xuanping and Marquis of Dingan.

The Marquis of Xuanping was there to make the little Monk his disciple. He had figured that by doing so, he could gain legitimate entry into the alley, and when the time came, investigating Xiao Liulang’s life and pleasing his daughter-in-law would not be a problem.

Interestingly, the Marquis of Dingan also wanted to make the little Monk his disciple.

In fact, he had not left yesterday night, having fainted from fright and subsequently stayed in Bishui Alley overnight.

When he got up, he already knew that the child was his offspring and had nothing to do with the Marquis of Xuanping. The Marquis of Xuanping was here simply because he was interested in the little Monk and wanted to make him his disciple.

Normally, Lord Gu would never dare to compete with the Marquis of Xuanping, but this concerned whether he could stay in Bishui Alley or not.