Chapter 775 Coaxing Wife (One)
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She really thought he was angry with her over the trivial matter of the Wusun Princess. Yuwen Chu laughed angrily, took a deep breath, and said, “I just think boys shouldn’t be spoiled like this, especially the eldest son. Have you ever seen any eldest son in any family ride his mother like a horse?”
Mingzhu felt he was nitpicking and felt both aggrieved and sad, but she continued to endure and whispered, “What’s the big deal? When I was little, I rode on my father’s back and pulled his beard. Would playing a game ruin him? You’re making a fuss over nothing.”
“Can that be the same?” Yuwen Chu wanted to say that there had never been such a way of raising children in his family. Yuwen You was the most favored child by the emperor, right? He had never received such treatment, even occasionally riding the eunuchs like horses would make the emperor scold him severely. As for mother and son, the greatest intimacy was just a hug. Where was there anything like Mingzhu’s craziness? According to Mingzhu’s way of raising children, Zhuang Zhuang would definitely be spoiled! For sure!
“How is it different? Parents loving and making their children happy is only right and proper.” Mingzhu thought of the dirty water thrown at Millet by the Wusun Princess, feeling so wronged that her nose and eyes turned red. Afraid of scaring the children, she forcefully held back her tears, forced a smile, and coaxed Zhuang Zhuang, “Zhuang Zhuang, take your sister out first. Your parents have something to discuss.”
Zhuang Zhuang was led away by Su Lan, sobbing, and when he reached the door, he turned back to look at Mingzhu and Yuwen Chu, tears streaming down his face. Mingzhu made a funny face at him, wrinkled her nose, and imitated a tiger’s roar, “Roar…” When she saw him smiling through his tears, she let Su Lan take him away.
Yuwen Chu, seeing the interaction between mother and son, was at a loss.
Once the children left, the room quieted down, with only the small bronze pot hanging over the charcoal burner making a gurgling sound. Mingzhu lazily walked to the white wicker recliner by the window, shook it, reached out to pluck a plum blossom from the nearby vase, and crumbled it into bits.
Yuwen Chu glanced at her, walked to the side, lifted his robe, and sat down. Seeing a half-filled cup of cold tea on the table, he picked it up and drank.
“That’s mine,” Mingzhu said calmly without moving her eyebrows, “How can I let Your Highness drink this cold leftover tea? Su Lan, brew a fresh pot of tea.”
“No need,” Yuwen Chu poured himself a cup of tea, not even lifting his eyes, and gestured to Su Lan and the others waiting on them, “You all may leave.”
Su Lan glanced at Mingzhu quietly, and only after Mingzhu nodded slightly did she lead the others out cleanly.
Yuwen Chu finished his tea in one gulp and sighed, “Do you think I was picking a fight just now?”
Mingzhu stared at the ceiling. Wasn’t he? She could sense his bad mood. Why was he in a bad mood? Perhaps there were some annoying trivial matters in official business, and today’s incident must have been a significant reason.
As a man, being slandered and doubted, wearing a metaphorical green hat, was definitely not a dignified or happy thing. She understood why he was in a bad mood. But she was also in a bad mood because she had been engaged to Yuwen You, so her chastity was questioned. She was almost forced to death just because the person being wronged was her, so she was the most unfortunate one. There was no reason for her to feel like a troublemaker just because she was wronged, causing him trouble and making him worry, thus lowering her stature and appearing like a submissive person who took insults quietly.
What was once reasonable had become unreasonable, as if she were guilty, but she was justified to the extreme. Thinking of this, Mingzhu made a “hmph” sound through her nose and simply turned her back to Yuwen Chu.
Yuwen Chu was both amused and annoyed. He naturally guessed Mingzhu’s reasoning, but was it appropriate to throw a tantrum with him at this time? He calmly said, “The Wusun Princess almost died at our doorstep just now.”
Mingzhu grunted. He had encountered Dong Hui and resolved the issue with her. Did he not know what she had done? This was just a pretext to see what he wanted to say.
Seeing that she remained unmoved, Yuwen Chu continued, “The Zhongshan rebel asked the Xiongnu King for troops, and the Xiongnu King agreed.” As for telling Yuwen You about the rareness of the purple sandalwood set, he didn’t mention it to Mingzhu. That was the struggle between the Great Empress Dowager and him, and it didn’t involve Mingzhu too much.
Mingzhu’s eyes widened, “Really? Is that old traitor really going to invite the wolf into the house?”
“Do you think I would joke about such a thing?” Yuwen Chu sighed, naturally taking her hand and holding it in his palm, “Otherwise, why do you think I left you alone when I knew you were feeling uncomfortable? Instead, I went to the palace? It’s obviously an urgent matter.”
Mingzhu’s suppressed anger immediately dissipated. She hmphed, “Even if you’re not feeling well, you shouldn’t vent your anger on the children.”
“How many times do you want me to say it? It’s not venting anger. It’s not allowing you to behave like this.” Yuwen Chu was a little impatient, “These are two different things. Don’t always lump them together, alright?”
But Mingzhu’s eyes inexplicably turned red, “You’re venting your anger. You felt embarrassed, didn’t want to scold me and vented on the children.”
Well, she felt wronged and wanted to act coquettishly.
Yuwen Chu sighed, “Alright, it’s all my fault anyway.”
Mingzhu objected again, “Is Your Highness saying this on purpose to vent your anger? You’re still uncomfortable.”
Yuwen Chu sighed again, “If you want to be angry, cry, or throw a tantrum, it’s all fine. Just don’t hold it in. Today, I’ll allow you to be unreasonable. Come on.” He extended his arm to her, looking sincere, “You’ve been wronged.”
Mingzhu had been holding back her tears for a long time, and they suddenly burst out. Instead of leaning into Yuwen Chu’s arms, she turned away and looked out the window, crying silently, occasionally wiping her tears with her sleeve.
Yuwen Chu went to pull her, but she refused, her voice nasal, “Your Highness, don’t mind me. Let me cry for a while by myself. I want to be alone.”
Yuwen Chu was a bit worried and stretched his neck to look at her, “Do you really not want me to comfort you?”
Mingzhu was crying bitterly when suddenly she saw his face, which made her extremely angry and resentful. She looked hideous when she cried, so who allowed him to see her like this? She pushed his face away with her hand, saying, “Don’t look, go away! I told you not to bother me.”
Yuwen Chu smiled faintly and silently sat back down.
After a while, Mingzhu finally stopped crying and choked out, “Have someone bring me water to wash my face.”
Yuwen Chu followed her request and had someone bring hot water and a towel. Mingzhu opened the hot towel and covered her face completely, making sure Yuwen Chu couldn’t see her distressed appearance. Then she murmured, “Are you hungry, Your Highness?”
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