Princess An He brought the two little ones to the main courtyard, personally bathed and dressed them, and even let the siblings sleep in the same room with her.

She played with them, told them stories.

The night grew deeper and deeper.

Princess An He finally understood why Ji Mingzhu reminded Zimu to sleep early.

This girl can really stay up!

Zishan slept near the wall, clutching a cloth tiger he had played with since he was little, already fast asleep.

Zimu slept in the middle, not sleepy at all.

Her little mouth kept chattering on and on.

One moment she talked about what they did in Yanzhou, the next about what she wanted to do when they returned to the capital.

"Aunt Liu has a restaurant in the capital and she said I can eat there without paying any silver, Grandma, let’s go there to eat for free?"

Princess An He was drowsy.

She didn’t quite catch what Zimu was saying, only the last sentence reached her ears.

Instinctively, she replied, "Our family has plenty of silver, no need for such freebies."

Zimu made a sound of understanding.

"Then I’ll ask my mom to give me some silver, and I’ll treat you to a meal."

Princess An He was amused, "I’m an adult, I can’t spend a child’s silver."

Zimu, with an air of generosity, stated, "You can spend it, my dad has used my and my brother’s silver before."

"Right, brother?"

She nudged the person beside her, only to find he was already asleep.

Zimu immediately fell silent.

She got up and watched her brother for a while, making sure he wasn’t faking sleep, then carefully tucked him in, and quietly lay back in her place.

She put up her short, chubby fingers, gesturing for Princess An He not to speak.

Speaking in a voice she thought low, "Brother needs to sleep well, or he’ll get sick, we can’t talk either."

Princess An He felt gratified that her granddaughter was so understanding and caring for her brother, yet at the same time, she breathed a sigh of relief.

Not to mention Zishan, even she couldn’t stay awake any longer.

No wonder Ji Mingzhu couldn’t rest assured; the little one’s energy was just too abundant.

Reaching out her hand, she embraced her grandson and granddaughter both in her arms.

Princess An He’s cold, hardened heart was instantly enveloped in a warm, satisfying feeling.

There were no annoying people around, only her most beloved grandchildren, this feeling was truly wonderful.

If she had known, when Ah Zhen returned victorious to the manor, she should have hurriedly pushed Ji Mingzhu onto him.

Then, Zimu and Zishan would have arrived even earlier.

Involuntarily, Princess An He thought of Ji Mingzhu’s miscarried child.

And the nightmare she had before.

In the dream, Ji Mingzhu had a difficult labor, and the child delivered didn’t survive.

Princess An He couldn’t help but wonder if heaven had pitied their family Ah Zhen and thus sent the two children back to them?

With that thought, any sleepiness vanished instantly.

A sigh escaped her, and Zimu curiously asked, "Grandma, what’s wrong?"

The room was dim, but Princess An He could still see her granddaughter’s innocent eyes.

She looked like Ah Zhen, but her eyes were just like Ji Mingzhu’s.

So purely innocent.

She stroked Zimu’s head, "Grandma is happy that Zimu and Zishan are safe and sound."

"Why sigh when you’re happy?"

Zimu wasn’t so easily fooled.

Afraid of waking her brother, she covered her mouth with her hand, as if doing so would prevent Zishan from hearing her voice.

Princess An He didn’t know how to answer her question.

She didn’t want her granddaughter to know about the unpleasant things.

Gently patting the little one to coax her to sleep, "Grandma’s just thinking that in a month you’ll be leaving again, and I’ll miss your dad, and you and Zishan too."

The little girl was quite sharp, "And my mom too, you forgot her."

Princess An He was both amused and helpless.

She thought, Ji Mingzhu truly gave birth to a wonderful daughter, constantly on her mind.

Having such a daughter, Ji Mingzhu must have done great deeds in her past life.

Reluctantly and unwillingly.

But she didn’t want her granddaughter to feel disappointed.

She could only perfunctorily say, "Yes, and your mom too. If your mom stays in the capital, would you and Zishan not leave?"

"No way, Dad’s all alone in Yanzhou, it’d be so sad, we have to be with him."

Zimu refused without a second thought.

"When my dad goes out for work, not seeing my mom for several days, he comes home sulking, asking for hugs. If my mom’s not there, no one’s there to hug him."

In Zimu’s little head, she recalled how on the way back to the capital, her father suddenly left the group for three days, returning looking unkempt and pitiable.

If they weren’t there, no one would remind dad to eat and sleep.

He certainly wouldn’t take good care of himself.

She shook her head, "We have to be with Dad."

Princess An He’s feelings were complex, wanting her grandchildren to stay in the capital.

Yet also hoping someone would be by her son’s side, making him happy and safe.

The two emotions intertwined, creating intense conflict.

Zimu comforted, "In a few years we’ll come back again, when my brother and I get older, can travel alone, we won’t need mom and dad with us, we can come back to see you." 𝐟𝗿𝐞𝚎𝚠𝐞𝚋𝕟𝐨𝚟𝐞𝕝.𝕔𝕠𝚖

Princess An He was coaxed into a broad smile.

Knowing that day was still far away, she couldn’t stop reminding her granddaughter, "You can’t travel alone, it’s dangerous outside, dad must accompany you to go out."

Ji Mingzhu was unreliable, couldn’t protect Zimu and Zishan well.

Only with Ah Zhen accompanying, could the two little ones be safe and sound.

Zimu knew her elders had good intentions.

Though she felt that when grown up, they wouldn’t need mom and dad around.

But to reassure her grandmother, she still thumped her chest and promised.

"We won’t run around recklessly."

Grandmother and granddaughter talked quietly, the sound of the candle crackling intermittently in the air.

Someone couldn’t help but remind, "Commandery Princess, it’s late, time to rest."

Princess An He wanted to sleep too, but seeing her granddaughter still vibrant, she could only stay up with her.

Once Ah Zhen finished his work, they’d have to return to Yanzhou.

When they could meet again was unknown.

While they were around, she needed to seize every chance to take a good look at them.

Staying up and up, not knowing how long it took before Zimu finally grew drowsy.

Snuggled in Princess An He’s arms, her little mouth still babbling about her mom and dad.

Holding the child’s small body, Princess An He was exceedingly happy.

She had never thought such little children could bring her such great impact.

Once Zimu was completely asleep, Princess An He let herself slip into slumber.

Perhaps it was having the ones she anticipated by her side, or perhaps staying up so long made her tired, but this sleep was particularly deep for Princess An He.

A dreamless night.

It was the best sleep she’d had in years.

It wasn’t until voices from the courtyard reached her that Princess An He awoke with a start.

By then, daylight was fully upon them.

The little one in her arms was still sound asleep, and at some point, Zishan had gotten out of bed, the room was empty.

"Mom, sister didn’t sleep last night."

Princess An He pricked up her ears, hearing Zishan telling tales to Ji Mingzhu.

She silently cursed the little rascal for betraying his sister so easily.

Ji Mingzhu had already guessed it would be like this.

She rubbed her son’s furrowed brow, "Careful, you’ll become an old man."

Zishan looked worried, "Staying up late is bad for the body."

The implication was for Ji Mingzhu to properly manage Zimu...