Chapter 183 - 183 Was I Wrong?

183 Was I Wrong?

Xiao Juan did not react, but Meng Xizhou was indignant.

“We tortured Prince Min and his son to complete the mission given by the emperor. But now, the emperor actually sent an imperial physician to treat Prince Min’s injuries. In this way, we’re cast as villains. Instead, the emperor has a good reputation for being tolerant and benevolent.”

Xiao Juan glanced at him with a cold and warning gaze.

“Shut up.”

Meng Xizhou wanted to say something, but when he met the other party’s gaze, he chickened out.

He shut his mouth resentfully, afraid to complain.

After Meng Xizhou left, Xiao Juan sat alone in the study for a long time.

He didn’t come out of the study until Yu Niaoniao knocked.

It was dark and there was no entertainment in ancient times.

Yu Niaoniao was about to sleep after taking a shower when Granny Xiu Yan found her. She said that Duke Lang had been in the study for a long time.

She also said that Duke Lang had a habit of locking himself in his study whenever he was unhappy. Hence, Yu Niaoniao went to look for Duke Lang.

She studied the man’s expression, trying to read his current mood, but found nothing.

This man put on a grumpy and handsome face all day and his expression did not change. It was harder to read anything from his face than to ascend to heaven.

Yu Niaoniao went straight to the point.

“Are you in trouble? If you are, tell me. Perhaps I can help.”

Xiao Juan looked down at her and was silent for a long time before speaking.

“I’m fine.”

Seeing that he was unwilling to tell the truth, Yu Niaoniao was a little disappointed, but she did not ask further.

She asked the question instead.

“Are you hungry? Let me cook you something.”

When she was upset, she liked to cook or eat.

Good food was the most soothing.

Xiao Juan actually did not have much of an appetite, but he could not bear to reject the other party’s kindness, so he agreed.

“Then I’ll have to trouble you.”

What was best for supper? Crayfish and skewers, of course.

But there were no crayfish these days, so she could only make skewers.

The ingredients in the kitchen were very rich. Yu Niaoniao chose some ingredients according to Xiao Juan’s taste. There was beef, mutton, bean rind, yellow croaker, beef tendons, pork belly, and various vegetables.

She asked Dang Gui to wash the ingredients and put them on the bamboo sticks.

While Dang Gui was packing up the ingredients, Yu Niaoniao took some rice that she had not finished in the evening, cracked two eggs, and made fragrant egg fried rice.

Then, she found a metal plate and mixed the chopped chives with sauce before stir-frying them.

Soon, the fragrance of the hot-plate chives spread out. Dang Gui swallowed her saliva.

Yu Niaoniao distributed some chives and put them into a bowl. She also scooped a bowl of egg-fried rice.

When Dang Gui was done packing the ingredients, she hugged her bowl and squatted at the side to eat the egg-fried rice and iron-plate chives.

No matter how many times she ate Miss’s food, she felt that it was incomparably delicious. She felt that she would never get tired of it.

Yu Niaoniao ordered someone to burn a small stove, with barbed wire over it in the courtyard. Yu Niaoniao placed strings of ingredients on the barbed wire, brushed them with oil and sauce, and flipped them repeatedly.

Xiao Juan sat beside her and looked at her quietly.

The firelight shone on her face, giving her a warm, shallow glow.

He suddenly remembered that the first time he had gone to the Yu residence to look for her, she had actually hidden in the house with Dang Gui to start a barbecue. The house was filled with smoke. Those who did not know better would think that the house was on fire.

Startled, he rushed into the house. At this moment, when he thought of that scene, he could not help but smile. Even the gloom in his heart was dispelled.

In the past, he had always felt that this woman was very unruly and never followed the rules. Now that he looked back, he realized that the times he spent with her were all filled with happiness.

Not only did she live happily on her own, but she also brought happiness to those around her.

Yu Niaoniao handed over the roasted beef and mutton and happened to see the fleeting smile on his face.

She couldn’t help but freeze and ask curiously.

“What are you smiling at?”

Xiao Juan had already put away his smile and returned to his expressionless face.

He took the skewer and replied calmly.

“Nothing.”

Yu Niaoniao snorted. “You’re always like that.”

Xiao Juan asked, “What did I do?”

“You don’t tell me anything. It’s not good to keep it bottled up.”

Xiao Juan said slowly, “It’s useless even if I tell you things. It will only make you worry.”

Yu Niaoniao pouted, very unhappy.

“You didn’t even tell me. How do you know it’s useless?

Besides, even if I don’t have the ability to help you solve the problem, I can at least accompany you to face it.

Don’t forget that we’re husband and wife now. We’re bound together for good or ill.”

Xiao Juan lowered his eyes and looked at the meat skewer in his hand. After a long silence, he slowly spoke.

“My mother and I did not have a good relationship. She never cared about my life and let the servants in the residence bully me. To me, the Princess’s residence was like hell. And I was in hell, living a life worse than death.

Only after the Empress Dowager accepted me into the palace did I have hope in my life. The Empress Dowager asked the Imperial Physician to treat my injuries. The emperor even arranged for me to study at Chongwen Pavilion. They saved me. I’ve always been grateful to them.”

Even though he knew the emperor was using him, he had no complaints.

Yu Niaoniao listened attentively.

She knew that Prince Lang and Princess Ni Yang had a bad relationship, but she did not expect their relationship to be so bad.

She did not understand. Why was Princess Ni Yang abusing her biological child?

That was a child she had painstakingly given birth to after ten months of pregnancy!

Xiao Juan seemed to have seen the doubt in her heart. He smiled and mocked.

“My mother was different from other women.

She was born to the empress and the only legitimate princess of the Dayan Dynasty. Her background was incomparably noble.

She loves food, and beauty. She loves to raise handsome men and enjoy a luxurious life. The only thing she doesn’t love is her children.”

With that, he opened his mouth and bit off a piece of beef. He chewed it slowly. The beef skewer was a little cold, but it was delicious.

Yu Niaoniao asked carefully.

“Are you unhappy because you thought of the Eldest Princess?”

Xiao Juan said calmly, “No.”

Yu Niaoniao asked, “Then why?”

Xiao Juan looked at the charcoal on the stove and said in a low voice.

“The emperor saved me. I should do my best to repay him, but sometimes I wonder if I’m doing the right thing.”

Now, be it the officials of the Imperial Court or the citizens of the world, they all felt that he was an evil person.

He was condemned by a thousand. Everything he said and did was a sin.

Even he could not help but be suspicious.

Was he really wrong?