Chapter 1888: The Young Really Know How to Play
Zu An still had to leave the Sang clan with a bit of face. The name Si An could be traced back to him too easily. If the truth were exposed, the Sang clan’s reputation would be completely destroyed.
Sang Hong clearly sighed in relief when he heard him say that. His daughter had always been really smart, and yet she had made such a huge error in this case. If they gave this newborn child that name, wouldn’t it just be advertising their relationship with Zu An to the entire world?
Zu An then said, “We should make her surname Sang. Everyone knows that the Sang clan’s daughter-in-law gave birth to a posthumous child. If she has a different surname, there will be all sorts of rumors.” He didn’t want to put Zheng Dan in a bad position either, after all.
Sang Hong gave Zu An a grateful look and said, “Ah Zu, thank you. Let’s make her surname Sang for now. After a few years, we’ll loook for a chance to change her surname back.”
He had planned for his daughter to birth a son at first. That son would have the Sang clan’s blood inside him and they could borrow Sang Qian’s name. But now, the child turned out to be a daughter, which meant that all of his plans were for naught. After all, there was no way for Sang Qien to give birth to another child. This child could still be considered a posthumous one, but if they had another child and used the same explanation, there would definitely be rumors going around, saying that the Sang clan’s daughter-in-law had an affair. He couldn't help but feel a bit downcast now that his grand gamble had ended up falling through.
Sang Qien was also a bit dejected. However, when she saw her cute daughter, her mood immediately improved considerably.
Zheng Dan said with a smile, “That’s actually easy enough to resolve. Just have Qienqien and Ah Zu make a few more. When the time comes, we’ll just find an adopted child for our Sang clan; wouldn’t that do?”
Sang Qien’s face immediately reddened. She exclaimed, “Dandan!” After all, her relationship with Zu An was still unclear. Originally, the plan had been for them to draw a clear boundary after the child was born. Now, it seemed as if they were trapped in an impossible situation.
Zu An chuckled and said, “If Miss Sang is willing, I won’t mind.” It was all the same to him whether the child had the father’s or mother’s surname. That wasn't even factoring in that the Sang clan had already helped him out so much.
Sang Hong’s eyes lit up. That wasn’t a bad idea. They had previously been at a dead end, and he'd wanted Sang Qian to have a son. But even without him, it would be the same if there was an heir from Sang Qien’s side.
When she saw the others' gazes on her, Sang Qien’s heart began to pound. She lowered her head and said quietly, “I’ll follow what father says.” She couldn't help but sneak a look at Zu An while saying that. He was her first man, and he was very outstanding in every way. After chatting with Zheng Dan all the time, the more she learned about him, the more she had grown to like him.
“Hahaha, good, good!” Sang Hong exclaimed in relief. His poor mood immediately improved considerably.
Zu An played with Sisi for a while longer. His adorable daughter made his heart melt. However, she was still young and quickly grew tired. Her eyes began to close, and she soon fell asleep. Zu An carefully returned her to the cradle, then found a chance to discuss the current situation with Sang Hong.
And yet, to his surprise, Sang Hong waved his hand and said, “It’s all the same if you ask Qien’er about these things. She’s already excellent in this aspect, and there are times when even I have to consult her opinion.” In truth, he wanted to give his daughter more opportunities. After all, she and Zu An had ended up sleeping together carelessly before and didn’t have a proper relationship. He had to spur on his daughter’s relationship with Zu An.
Zu An was a bit surprised. He bowed to Sang Qien and said, “Then I’ll have to trouble little sister Qien’er.”
“Big brother Zu speaks too seriously,” Sang Qien said, quickly returning the greeting.
Zheng Dan giggled, asking, “Are the two of you doing your wedding bows to each other right now?”
Sang Qien was so embarrassed she wanted to pinch her, but Sang Hong coughed lightly and said, “Ahem, I won’t disturb you youngsters then. I’ve been a bit tired due to government affairs recently, so I’ll be turning in for the night first.” He gestured toward Aunt Mu with his eyes, and the two of them left.
Sang Qien’s cheeks heated up. She said, “I’m going to put Sisi back in her room.”
Zheng Dan grabbed her with one hand and Zu An with the other, saying, “Let’s go together. None of us are outsiders anyway.”
Sang Qien pursed her lips, but she didn’t refuse. There was indeed no need to exclude big brother Zu from her chambers.
…
The group quickly returned to Sang Qien’s room. There was a delicate fragrance in the air, as well as a faint smell of milk. Zu An reflexively looked at Sang Qien’s chest. That area was now much fuller than before.
Sang Qien put her daughter into the cradle. Sisi twisted around a bit, as if she sensed that she was leaving her mother's arms. Her body moved around as if she could wake up at any time. Sang Qien immediately bent over to gently pat her, thus gradually appeasing her.
Just then, Zheng Dan grabbed Zu An’s arm and asked, “Ah Zu, just what happened during those months? Hurry and tell me.”
Zu An didn’t hide anything from her, telling her about Violet Mountain’s great competition and the secret dungeon. Of course, he excluded the details of the other women, and he didn’t tell her that he had killed Zhao Han either. After all, that affair was just too serious. It would cause a tremendous commotion if he spoke of it.
Zheng Dan said with a sigh, “Ah Zu, there’s always so many interesting things that happen around you. I really want to stay with you and experience it all together.” However, she also knew that wasn’t very realistic. She had even pretended to be pregnant in the capital before.
Sang Qien was a bit apologetic. She said, “Dandan, it’s all because of us that you can't do what you want.”
Zheng Dan was surprisingly open-minded, responding, “Isn’t saying something like that treating me as too much of an outsider? Either way, the child has already been born, so I’m free now. Now, you're the one who has to prepare for pregnancy.”
“You’re so annoying!” Sang Qien exclaimed, pouting playfully in response.
The two of them play-fought for a bit before the conversation returned to important matters. Sang Qien said with an upright expression, “Big brother Zu, you don’t know whether you should be helping the crown princess or the empress right now, right?”
“Yeah,” Zu An said with a nod. “They've both treated me really well, and I’ll end up offending whichever side I help.”
Zheng Dan had a weird expression as she asked, “Why would they treat you so well? They don’t both have a thing with you, do they?” However, even she found it inconceivable when she said that, and couldn't help but laugh.
Zu An sensibly chose not to reply.
Sang Qien said gravely, “If both sides have treated you well, don’t lay out your chips yet. Big brother Zu, you can use your status as the academy’s libationer to hide over there first and not get involved in those two’s affairs. That way, you can't possibly offend them.”
Zheng Dan couldn't help but say, “Actually, with big brother Zu’s current strength, there's no need to hold back so patiently. He could even subdue the entire King Court on the Fiend races’ side, so he should be able to do the same here, right?”
Sang Qien shook her head and said, “It’s different. The Fiend races’ relationships between the major clans are more lax, so that's why they were so easily defeated. But in the capital, all of the clans are hiding a lot of strength. The Fiend races’ resources can’t compare to our side. Otherwise, they wouldn’t have been exiled to such a barren location.”
Zu An was a bit surprised. He said, “I didn’t expect little sister Qien’er to understand these things so well.”
Sang Qien’s face was a bit red as she said, “There isn’t much I can do normally to help big brother Zu, so I tried to understand the capital’s situation a bit better.
“Big brother Zu, a tall tree that stands out in the forest will be destroyed by the wind. If you stand out now, you’ll either become a public enemy of the major clans or be used as their blade without even knowing about it. We still don’t have much intelligence, so I advise you to lay low for now and watch the situation play out first. There's no lack of ambitious folk among the great clans, and I’m sure that they can’t hold themselves back much longer. Big brother Zu, what you need to do is be more patient than those people.”
Zu An chuckled, saying, “I definitely don’t want to become their blade. I still had some hesitation before, but now that I’ve heard little sister Qien’er’s analysis, my thoughts have become clearer. You really are a Zhuge Liang among women.”
“Big brother Zu overpraises me,” Sang Qien said, feeling a bit embarrassed.
Zheng Dan rolled her eyes and said, “The two of you even have a child now, so what are you acting so polite with each other for? It only makes you two seem way too unfamiliar...
“I’ve decided! In order to bring us all closer together, we’ll sleep together tonight. Ah Zu can tell us about the things he experienced. I could tell that he didn’t give us all the details surrounding many things,” she continued. Then, she grabbed their hands without waiting for the two of them to argue, and sat straight down on the bed.
Sang Qien cried out in alarm. Her little face turned as red as a persimmon.
Zu An also found it a bit awkward. He asked, “That’s… a bit inappropriate, right?”
This was the Sang manor, after all.
“What's inappropriate about that? I’m getting a headache from just watching you two act all proper and careful around each other,” Zheng Dan said with a smile. “Sang Qien, aren’t there times when you have too much milk? Just have Ah Zu help you with that today. We can’t have the father doing nothing!”
“Dandan!” Sang Qien exclaimed, feeling embarrassed and anxious. How could she let him help with that kind of thing? She really was going to die from embarrassment.
Zu An was stunned.
As expected of the daredevil Dandan…
…
Meanwhile, in Sang Hong’s room, he could see the three figures’ shadows flickering in his daughter’s room.
Aunt Mu couldn't help but remark, “Aren’t they going a bit too crazy? How can they all stay in the same room…”
Sang Hong waved his hand and said, “This might not necessarily be a bad thing. Qien’er and Zu An can properly get close now.”
“But aren’t we letting that brat off with too much like this?” Aunt Mu asked, feeling a bit upset. She had watched Sang Qien grow up and had always seen her as her own daughter. She suddenly felt as if her finely grown cabbages were being fed to pigs.
“Zu An has helped us a lot, and he's someone who cares a lot about emotions and loyalty. Qien’er won’t be losing out by following him.” Sang Hong said in a surprisingly open-minded way. Suddenly, he couldn't help but pick up Aunt Mu and carry her over to the bed.
Aunt Mu was a bit alarmed, asking, “Master, what are you doing?”
“The young really know how to play, so much so that even I’m getting a bit excited. Maybe I can father a son myself and won’t even need Ah Zu’s help anymore,” Sang Hong said with a smile.
“You’re so annoying~” Aunt Mu said as her eyes closed. In that instant, she was also a bit overwhelmed by emotions.
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