Extra Chapter 8
With the Little Crown Prince in the palace, time seemed to pass especially quickly.
As the scorching summer and golden autumn passed in succession, when the people of Da Liang welcomed the new year, their Little Crown Prince also turned two years old.
The two-year-old little one had grown bigger, looking increasingly sturdy with his round face. Wearing the small dragon robe specially made for him by the Imperial Weaving Bureau, he looked particularly adorable.
The little fellow's legs had become quite steady, and he would run around the palace all day, rarely falling. His speech was also very clear, and people could understand whatever he said.
On New Year's Day, the little one accompanied his parents to receive royal relatives and ministers who came to offer New Year greetings. He was both cute and gracious, politely thanking anyone who praised him, showing his excellent upbringing.
So it was obvious who had swept the snow.
When the family of three got off their carriage, they saw the divine couple waiting at the entrance. The little one sweetly called out to his grandparents and ran towards the Empress Dowager.
Yanshu hurriedly asked her idol, "Uncle, why are you so diligent, sweeping all the snow on the mountain path?"
Qi Shuguang smiled and said, "I went down the mountain this morning to buy some vegetables, and swept the snow beforehand, fearing my wife might slip."
Hearing this, Yanshu's heart melted again—aww, her idol was so good to her boss, they were so sweet!!!
As they spoke, her child had already rushed into his grandmother's arms, calling out sweetly, "Grandmother."
The Empress Dowager was so happy that crow's feet appeared at the corners of her eyes. She quickly took her little grandson into her arms and kissed him twice, then couldn't help but remark, "It's only been a few days, but Heng'er seems to have gotten heavier? Next time I might not be able to carry you anymore."
It was meant as praise, but unexpectedly, the little one in her arms quickly replied, "No need to carry me, Grandmother. Heng'er can walk by himself."
Saying this, he struggled to get down.
The Empress Dowager was puzzled and quickly held onto the little one's hand.
Before she could ask anything, the little one said to her, "Heng'er is hungry, haven't eaten yet."
Yuwen Lan: "..."
Yanshu: "..."
Because the little one usually had such a good appetite and grew so fast, Yanshu had intentionally controlled the child's food portions. Whenever the little one asked why he couldn't eat more, she would explain that eating too much might make him too fat, and then he wouldn't be cute anymore.
So, was the little one saying this now because he thought grandmother was calling him fat and wouldn't feed him?
...This child, should they call him clever or silly?
The Empress Dowager was amused by her grandson and kissed his forehead again, saying, "Grandmother will always have food for Heng'er. Don't worry, snacks are all prepared for you. Come, let's go inside to eat."
Hearing this, the little one immediately beamed with joy, skipping along while holding his grandmother's hand as they went inside.
Yanshu and Yuwen Lan exchanged glances, both showing amused yet helpless expressions, and followed them inside.
While the mountain wilderness was cold and white with snow, the room was warm and filled with laughter.
After tasting various snacks made by grandmother and various delicacies made by grandfather, the little one, satisfied with his round belly, bid farewell to his grandparents along with his parents.
"Grandmother, Grandfather, Heng'er will come again!" the little one said in his sweet voice, very seriously.
The Empress Dowager quickly nodded with a smile and said, "Good, good, then next time grandmother will make snacks for Heng'er again, and have grandfather cook chicken and fish stew for you, alright?"
The little one nodded vigorously saying yes, then followed his parents out the door and onto the carriage back to the palace.
Of course, he was still tightly holding onto the chestnut cakes that grandmother had wrapped for him.
These were from grandmother, and neither father nor mother could take them away.
On the fourth day of the New Year, after the Little Crown Prince had enjoyed a feast at his grandmother's, on the fifth day, the little one followed his mother to Duke Zhongyi's Mansion to visit his maternal grandparents.
Compared to the quiet mountain cottage, Grandma's house was much more crowded, with not only Grandma and Grandpa, but also the white-haired Great-grandma and the young, handsome Uncle.
So it was even more lively.
Of course, to avoid trouble, today mother and he came in casual clothes specifically, so there was no need for grand ceremony.
After they were welcomed inside, Grandpa had the main gate closed, and the little one began playing around at Grandma's house.
In just half a day, the little one had convinced Grandpa to fish two fish from the pond for him and caught two of Great-grandma's white cats.
More importantly, the little one had again eaten his fill of delicious food.
Unlike grandmother who was skilled at making snacks, Grandma's specialty was various flour-based foods like buns and pancakes.
Although the mansion's kitchen had put forth their best effort to prepare a table full of delicacies today, the little one's favorites were still Grandma's handmade meat buns and chive pockets.
According to mother, these were also what she loved to eat most when he was still in her belly, so it was evident that the little one had half of Ande's blood flowing through him, which was quite inspiring.
Unfortunately, the little one was still young and didn't understand what Ande was, he only knew that Grandma's meat buns and chive pockets were absolutely delicious, and before he knew it, his little belly was round and full again.
Just like yesterday, when it was time to leave, the little one again carried a small bundle filled with delicacies from Grandma's house.
On their way back to the palace, they found his father, who had been missing him, waiting in the central palace.
Yuwen Lan first hugged his little one, then asked, "Did our little one have fun at Grandma's house today?"
The little one immediately showed his white little teeth in a smile and said, "Fun!"
Yuwen Lan's heart softened, and he asked again, "What did our little one do at Grandma's house today?"
The little one answered in his sweet voice, "Seven buns."
As he spoke, he patted his round little belly with his chubby hand, and specifically explained, "Meat buns."
Yuwen Lan: "..."
Well, looking at that little belly, he really did eat quite a lot.
However, why does this little one only think about eating all day?
He's not at all like how I was as a child, only interested in reading.
Perhaps he takes after his mother more.
Just as he was thinking this, he caught sight of the little bundle in his son's arms, so he asked, "What's this?"
Hmm, it still smells warm and fragrant?
As soon as he finished speaking, the little one quickly pushed the small bundle into his hands, saying seriously, "This is for Father Emperor, buns, big buns!"
Yuwen Lan made an "oh" sound, somewhat surprised, "There's some for me too?"
Yanshu laughed from the side, "Of course, my mother always remembers what Your Majesty likes to eat. Before we left, she specially steamed some large vegetarian buns for Your Majesty, filled with chives, eggs, and glass noodles, and even added dried shrimp. Please try them while they're hot."
Yuwen Lan nodded, "Mm."
It was thoughtful of his mother-in-law, these were indeed his favorites.
He quickly unwrapped the bundle and started eating while the buns were still warm.
Mmm, the warm big buns were soft in his hands, and with one bite, they were indeed full of the fragrance of flour and incredibly savory.
He nodded while eating, "Your Grandma's cooking skills are indeed excellent, little one."
Before Yanshu could say anything, the little one on the side giggled, "Good, good!"
Buns are the best!
In the blink of an eye, the seven-day New Year holiday passed, and this year's various important matters were put on the agenda as all departments in the court resumed normal operations.
However, while immersing himself in state affairs, Yuwen Lan was also concerned about his child.
Watching the child grow day by day, only knowing about eating, drinking, and playing – how could this do?
Although the little one was just two years old now, princes traditionally began their education at three, so there was only one year left. If things continued like this, would the little one be able to learn when the time came?
This was his Crown Prince after all...
With these concerns in mind, after finishing his work that day, Yuwen Lan returned to the central palace early.
Before it was time for the meal to be served, he entered the hall to find the little one nestled in his mother's arms, looking at a book together with her.
Of course, the little one couldn't read characters yet, so to be precise, the mother and son were reading together, with Yanshu reading the words on the book aloud for the little one to hear.
Seeing this scene, Yuwen Lan was initially very pleased.
It seemed that not only was he aware of the seriousness of the matter, but his wife also knew and was actively teaching their son to read.
However, after listening for a while, he discovered that his wife wasn't reading the teachings of the sages to their son.
Instead, it was something like a storybook—
"It is said that many years ago, there was a wealthy dye house owner in Qingzhou City..."
Yuwen Lan: "???"
He immediately frowned and asked, "What is this?"
His wife replied, "A storybook, of course."
Yuwen Lan asked, "...Did you write this?"
"No, no," Yanshu quickly shook her head. "I haven't written much lately. This was written by a new talented author in the capital. I read it and found it quite good!"
Well, as a passionate enthusiast of story manuscripts, she wasn't just an author but also a reader. It was quite enjoyable to read the masterpieces of other skilled writers in her spare time!
However, Yuwen Lan didn't seem to understand her perspective and instead asked, "What is our little one doing?"
Yanshu replied, "...Reading the story manuscript with me."
Wasn't that obvious?
But it seemed someone wasn't too pleased. He picked up the little one and said with a serious expression, "You are the Crown Prince of Great Liang, heir to the great enterprise. You're already two years old now, considered a big child. You should be learning useful things, understand?"
The little one nodded innocently, "I know."
Somewhat satisfied, Yuwen Lan proceeded, "Then let father help you review what you learned the other day. The wise find joy in water, the benevolent..."
"Find joy in mountains..."
Before he could finish, the little one suddenly chimed in with his baby voice.
Yuwen Lan was stunned.
What did his son just say?
...Was it "find joy in mountains"?
Not quite sure, he tried again, "The wise..."
"Move..."
"The benevolent?"
"Are still..."
"The wise?"
"Joy..."
"The benevolent?"
"Long life."
After this back-and-forth between father and son, the little one had answered everything correctly.
Yuwen Lan was pleasantly surprised – had his son really learned it all?
Yanshu proudly exclaimed, "Wow, my baby is a genius!"
She quickly kissed the little one's chubby cheeks.
The little one giggled and repeated, "Genius!"
Three lively days passed, and on the fourth day of the new year, which happened to be the little one's second birthday and while the court was still on holiday, Yuwen Lan and Yanshu found some time to take their little one to pay New Year respects to grandmother.
It had snowed a few days ago, and Yanshu had been worried about the mountain roads being too slippery for carriages. However, when they arrived, they discovered that the snow on the path had already been cleared.
This was the back mountain of Songhe Academy, where only her mentor and idol lived. During the New Year holiday, all the teachers and students of the academy had already returned home.
