Chapter 177: The Empress Dowager

Chapter 177

The Empress Dowager

The wedding of An Le was fast approaching, and lately, the Empress Dowager no longer allowed her to wander freely as she pleased. Not only that, but An Le was also subjected to rigorous beauty treatments and lessons on proper female virtues. As her beloved granddaughter, the Empress Dowager personally oversaw these preparations, leaving An Le no room to evade them.

"Grandmother..." An Le groaned. "Please, let me see the world outside. Every day, I’m tortured by your maids so much that I can’t bear it anymore."

She whimpered as she pretended to cry. Now that her father was away, where else could she find someone to indulge her whims?

“Hah! You little brat. I truly pity Second Young Master Song Ren. Look at you—who knows what kind of wife he’s getting? If I don’t train you well, the Emperor’s face will surely be shamed."

An Le pouted, her lips jutting out enough to hold a brush. Seeing her granddaughter’s expression, the Empress Dowager couldn’t help but chuckle.

"You’re exaggerating, Grandmother. There’s nothing to be ashamed of. Second Young Master is incredibly lucky to be marrying me. An Le is practically perfect. You should’ve seen his face when he found out he’d become the imperial son-in-law..."

"And what did he do? Couldn’t bring himself to refuse?"

The Empress Dowager interjected with a smile, causing her granddaughter, who was about to boast, to frown once again.

"Grandmother, you’re teasing me."

"Enough of that. Get back to studying your female virtues. Stop distracting me with your chatter."

An Le’s face twisted at the thought of resuming her studies, as if she were being forced to drink bitter medicine. Just as she was about to open her book, a eunuch entered to announce a visitor.

"Young Song Furen and her three children are here to request an audience, Your Majesty."

Upon hearing this, An Le tossed her book aside, her face lighting up with joy.

"Quick, let them in! I’ve missed Sister Nie and the children so much!"

But when she caught sight of her grandmother’s stern gaze, she shrank back a bit.

"I’m not shirking my duties—it’s just that we have guests."

The Empress Dowager, of course, remembered Nie Shuang. She was the one who had helped An Le at the Empress Dowager’s birthday banquet three years ago. Back then, the Empress Dowager had thought that this Young Furen was so beautiful. Even though she had married General Song through less-than-noble means, she was a woman of great intelligence. She had managed to build a name for herself without relying on the Song family—a rare accomplishment.

After a moment, Nie Shuang entered with her three children. She hadn’t known the Empress Dowager would be present, otherwise, she likely wouldn’t have chosen to visit today. It must have been her future sister-in-law’s doing—sending her a letter inviting her today was surely a way to escape the Empress Dowager’s strict oversight. Nie Shuang paid her respects to both the Empress Dowager and Princess An Le. Her three children, as she had taught them, folded their hands in polite greeting. Xiao Hua Hua, upon looking up, flashed a sweet smile at Princess An Le, while the mischievous Bao Bao waved excitedly and rushed toward her like an old friend. Nie Shuang was too slow to catch him. Her eldest son was growing faster by the day. He had grabbed hold of An Le’s leg, grinning up at her. She quickly bowed her head in apology.

"Forgive me, Your Majesty. My son is still young and does not yet understand proper manners."

The Empress Dowager had seen many princes and princesses in her time, but she had never encountered children as endearing as this set of triplets. Dressed identically in red outfits, each one had a sharp, adorable face with large, bright eyes and red, chubby cheeks resembling soft steamed buns. She reached out her hand to Bei Bei, who was the closest.

"Little one, come here."

Bei Bei looked up at the kind smile of the high-ranking lady and then glanced down at her slender fingers adorned with nail guards. He stared intently at the enameled, intricate nail guards, furrowing his brow in curiosity. In his household, where there were many young children, no one wore such things. This was the first time Bei Bei had ever seen something like it, so he reached out his small, round hand to grasp it, full of wonder.

Despite his usual stoic expression, Bei Bei had his own charm, especially when he made a serious face while studying the strange object on her finger. Even though the Empress Dowager wasn’t particularly fond of children, she couldn’t help but smile as she bent down to speak sweetly to him.

“Never seen one before, have you? Let go of my finger, and I’ll take it off to show you.”

An Le’s eyes widened as she watched her grandmother. Just moments ago, the Empress Dowager had been sternly making her study, but now she was acting unexpectedly gentle. Holding Bao Bao, who was sitting on her lap, An Le whispered to him, amused.

"Your brother is something special."

“Ai!”

Bao Bao responded with a proud expression.

"My grandmother gets lonely spending all day in the palace. Bao Bao, be a good boy and help cheer her up, will you?"

Seeing his beautiful older sister make such a request, Bao Bao eagerly nodded his head like a little chick pecking at rice. An Le couldn’t resist hugging and kissing him before letting him go to complete his mission. Bao Bao scrambled down from her lap and waddled over to the Empress Dowager. When she shifted her gaze from Bei Bei to him, he immediately began to use his secret weapon.

“Boo!”

Da Ge covered his face with his chubby hands and then peeked out in a playful peek-a-boo gesture, completely unconcerned about the age difference between him and the dignitary. His cheeky expression was the epitome of mischief. At home, whenever he did this, his grandmother would laugh uncontrollably. This elderly lady seemed about the same age as his grandmother, so Bao Bao was sure it would work.

The Empress Dowager: "..."

“Boo!”

Bao Bao tried again, but the Empress Dowager’s lips remained unchanged. The little chubby boy was puzzled, scratching his head and rolling his eyes as he tried to think. His awkward expression made the Empress Dowager laugh so hard that her entire body shook.

"Hahahahaha. This little one is truly amusing."

She tried to cover her mouth with her sleeve, but she couldn’t stifle her laughter. Not just the Empress Dowager, but everyone present burst into laughter until their eyes watered. Bao Bao looked around, and seeing everyone laugh so heartily, he became even more excited. He clapped his hands in delight.

“How about that, Grandmother? Do you now understand why I visit the Hou Manor so often to see these little ones?”

An Le quickly chimed in, taking the opportunity to justify her frequent visits. It wasn’t to see anyone else but these little turnips. The Empress Dowager cleared her throat and wiped the corners of her eyes.

"Who said anything about you? Young Song Furen, what are their names?"

She turned to Nie Shuang as she asked the question.

"Wuqin, Wujun, and Ziwei, Your Majesty."

"There are still three more at home, aren’t there? When they’re all grown, the Hou’s household will certainly be lively."

Nie Shuang smiled in response.

“Bring out the toys prepared as New Year’s gifts for the young princes and princesses. Afterward, have the craftspeople make new ones,”

The Empress Dowager ordered the maids, then turned to the three children. Xiao Hua Hua, understanding that gifts were on the way, beamed with joy and flapped her arms in excitement.

“This little girl understood now? How adorable,”

The Empress Dowager then instructed the servants to bring in snacks and drinks for the children, completely forgetting her original intention to tutor An Le.

Seeing the Empress Dowager preoccupied with the children, An Le seized the opportunity to ask for permission.

“Grandmother, may I take Sister Nie for a walk in the garden?”

Although Nie Shuang knew that Princess An Le wanted to speak with her privately, she couldn’t help but feel concerned about the children, glancing over at them anxiously. The Empress Dowager noticed her worry and reassured her,

“I’m here; don’t worry about them. Just leave your people to watch over them.”

With the Empress Dowager’s assurance, Nie Shuang expressed her gratitude before being pulled along by An Le out of the residence.

Once they were alone, An Le couldn’t help but vent her frustrations.

“Grandmother is treating my wedding preparations like I’m about to take the female imperial exams. She’s buried me under a mountain of ancient books and texts to memorize.”

Hearing this, Nie Shuang smiled.

“Even if you were illiterate, Second Brother wouldn’t mind.”

Instead of being embarrassed by the teasing, An Le burst out laughing in delight.

“You’re right, Sister Nie. If the Second Young Master isn’t concerned, why should Grandmother be? She’d do better to focus on preparing my dowry.”The two women, one joking and the other responding effortlessly, were as fearless as female martial artists, unconcerned with minor social conventions. If anyone from the palace overheard their frank talk about men without a hint of shyness, they would surely be shocked. But this was the Lady Boss and Princess An Le—what did they have to fear? They strolled and chatted, perfectly in sync.