Princess Zheng was stunned and didn't have time to react for a moment. But when she saw Prince Zheng walk into the threshold safely, tears suddenly flowed down her cheeks. She didn't even bother to perform the formalities and ran up to him, calling him "Prince".
King Zheng pursed his lips and supported her. He responded, his eyes fixed on her for a moment and then moved away. Seeing Wei An and the child in his arms, his voice trembled a little: "You all worked hard..."
After hearing what he said, Princess Zheng burst into tears.
Wei An was also stunned and didn't know what to say.
Prince Zheng looked much more haggard, and was five years older than when he went to Jiangxi. Although he had dressed up for the audience with the emperor, he still looked much more haggard.
When Wei An thought of the days he spent in Shandong, his throat seemed to be blocked by something.
King Zheng must have had a very hard time during that period, living in fear and hiding from others... ..
Prince Zheng whispered to comfort Princess Zheng, then looked up at Wei An with a smile: "An An, don't you recognize your father?"
When he was in Shandong, no matter how difficult it was, he never thought of giving up and compromising. He was always thinking about Wei An and the unborn child in Princess Zheng's belly.
On his way back from Jiangxi, he received a letter in which he learned that the palace had been framed by someone else and that Princess Zheng had a difficult delivery. He was so anxious that he didn't know what to do. But something happened later and he couldn't even get any news from home.
By the time the situation got better and he was able to get some news that Princess Zheng had safely given birth to a boy, he was already in Penglai.
He sighed, feeling bitter in his heart. He was proud of his daughters' intelligence, but also felt guilty that he had no way to protect them so that they wouldn't have to worry about anything.
Wei An carried the child and quickly walked a few steps to him. He called out "father" and couldn't help sobbing. He quickly held the child to him and said, "Father, come and see. He hasn't been named yet, and he hasn't seen you yet."
King Zheng's hands were shaking. He couldn't help crying when he saw the child smiling brightly in Wei An's arms. He reached out to take the child and held him carefully in his arms. He choked up and said, "I have never held such a small child. When you were little, I didn't know..."
The child's body was limp, and King Zheng hugged him tighter: "Hasn't His Majesty already given him the name Rui? Since we already have a full name, let's give him a nickname, let's call him Bao Ge'er."
This child of his was hard-earned. His daughter was already married and his son was just born, so he treasured him as much as he could. Although people said that people with humble names are more likely to raise children, he could not bear to let his children be called those names.
Princess Zheng lowered her head and reached out to pinch Bao Ge'er's face: "Bao Ge'er, you have a nickname now. You must grow up safely in the future."
After the excitement subsided, Princess Zheng wiped her tears, took the child and handed it to the nurse to hold, and hurriedly asked Prince Zheng: "My Lord, did you have a smooth journey into the palace?"
Prince Zheng nodded and reassured her: "It went smoothly. His Majesty asked about some things in Shandong."
Princess Zheng couldn't help but frowning when she thought of Shandong. She glanced at Wei An and said, "Everyone knows who did it in Shandong... I just regret that we can't tell the truth."
Speaking of this, King Zheng also raised his eyebrows: "There is no need to talk about these anymore. There is no evidence, and it is useless to talk about them now. I have told His Majesty about the situation in Shandong. I have been in Shandong for a while and know the current situation there. I am afraid that I will have to go to Shandong to quell the rebellion soon."
Princess Zheng couldn't help but feel anxious again: "You just came back..."
King Zheng knew she was worried, so he waved his hand and shook his head: "After all, I have been to Shandong and I am familiar with the situation there. Besides, no matter what, only useful people can be valuable, so you don't have to say anything." He glanced at Wei An again: "I am afraid Shen Chen will have to go with us."
When Emperor Longqing mentioned it today, he keenly sensed the Emperor Longqing's intention. To be honest, going to Shandong might not be a bad thing. He said to Wei An, "Shandong has been in rebellion for a long time, but it can never be completely quelled. When the new year comes, we must send new people. What I mean is, if Shen Chen wants to go, let you get married first. Then, you can say that it's not good for a young couple to be separated, and let you go with him."
Princess Zheng frowned and said, "How can this be possible? On the battlefield, swords have no eyes, how can we let An An go?"
Wei An understood what Prince Zheng meant. This was a good time to avoid trouble for Princess Linjiang. No one knew how long it would take to quell the rebellion. If everything went well, it might take half a year or a year, but if not, it could take three or four years.
After so much time had passed, Princess Linjiang was out of reach and could no longer control them.
However, these things are still unknown, and Prince Zheng only mentioned them casually. When the time was almost right, he took Wei An and Princess Zheng to the Dingbei Marquis Mansion first.
The Dingbei Marquis' Mansion had already been prepared and the middle door was opened. The Second Master Wei, the Third Master Wei and Wei Yangqing were all waiting in the front. After they met Prince Zheng and exchanged greetings for a while, they led Prince Zheng to the back.
Princess Zheng and Wei An went to the backyard first. Old Lady Wei knew that Prince Zheng had given the young prince a name, so she called out a few times, "This is a good name. Aren't we precious pearls? We must grow up healthily."
When Prince Zheng came in and they exchanged greetings, Old Lady Wei sighed, "Finally he's back. No matter what, returning safely is better than anything else."
Prince Zheng nodded and thanked Old Lady Wei softly: "Thank you and the Second and Third Madams for taking care of our family... If it weren't for you, I really don't know what I would do..."
Mrs. Wei smiled and shook her head: "We are a family, it's too formal to say these things."
As they were talking, Prince Zhennan and Censor Chen arrived. The second and third masters came in and invited them to take their seats.
Wei An took advantage of this gap to tell Mrs. Wei what Shen Chen had said before, and whispered: "Since Shen Chen said so, I'm afraid he is right. Third aunt, why don't you ask Fifth Sister what she thinks? If..."
She didn't say anything else, but the Third Lady understood what she meant. She frowned and her expression became a little gloomy.
She really didn't want her daughter to get divorced. Both Mrs. Wei and she had decided on this marriage in the first place, and they thought the other party's family background was good. But who could have known that it would turn out like this now.
But no matter how unwilling she was, after hearing Wei An's words, she knew that the matter was probably a done deal - Shen Chen said that the family was very ambitious, and they might be involved in something they shouldn't be involved in, otherwise Shen Chen would not bother to say more.
She felt bitter in her heart, but she knew what was good and what was bad, so she nodded: "I understand, An'an, thank you and the Marquis, I will go back and discuss it with the Master in detail." (To be continued)