Chapter Thirteen
"Father, what could possibly be the matter? Why aren’t you at the office today?" Xu Qingshi stared intently at the two of them. For some reason, he felt there was something off about their behavior today.
"My lord, look—our prince is simply doting on the princess," Nanny Luo chimed in with a smile.
Hearing this, Li Zhiwei lowered her head in embarrassment. Coincidentally, from Xu Qingshi’s angle, he could clearly see the faint marks on her neck.
"Mother, did he hit you?" Without hesitation, Xu Qingshi grabbed Li Zhiwei’s hand and glared at Xu Heming accusingly.
Li Zhiwei was momentarily at a loss. She couldn’t fathom why Xu Qingshi would assume the prince would mistreat her.
"Qingshi, let go of your mother," Xu Heming said, displeased at seeing his son tugging at his wife’s hand.
"Hmph, I won’t! Otherwise, you’ll just hit her again," Xu Qingshi declared, positioning himself protectively in front of Li Zhiwei. If he were taller, he would have pointed at Xu Heming’s nose and scolded him for being inhuman enough to strike Li Zhiwei.
Li Zhiwei was utterly bewildered. When had the prince ever laid a hand on her?
"Qingshi, what nonsense are you spouting?" The Old Princess quickly beckoned her grandson over, puzzled as to why he would suddenly think her son was the type to abuse his wife.
"Grandmother, I’m not spouting nonsense! Father did hit Mother," Xu Qingshi insisted, showing no hesitation in addressing Li Zhiwei as "Mother."
"You silly child, what are you talking about?" The Old Princess wondered if he had eavesdropped outside their chambers last night.
"Grandmother, I’m not lying! Mother has bruises—Father must have hit her!" Xu Qingshi pointed indignantly at Li Zhiwei’s neck, raising his voice.
Li Zhiwei froze for a moment before her face flushed crimson with embarrassment. Good heavens, this was mortifying.
Xu Heming cleared his throat awkwardly. He blamed himself for being too rough the previous night.
The maids in the room lowered their heads, stifling laughter.
The Old Princess paused, then burst into laughter as well.
"You foolish child, don’t speak such nonsense. You mustn’t repeat this to anyone else. Your father didn’t hit your mother—it’s because he adores her. You’ll understand when you’re older," the Old Princess hastily explained.
"Really?" Xu Qingshi eyed Li Zhiwei skeptically.
"Young Master, His Highness truly hasn’t mistreated me!" Li Zhiwei replied, her cheeks still burning.
She then self-consciously adjusted the collar of her dress.
"You brat, do you really think your father is such a monster?" Xu Heming scolded again.
"Who knows? Maybe Father is a wolf in sheep’s clothing who enjoys hitting people," Xu Qingshi retorted, still refusing to trust Xu Heming.
"It seems you’re in dire need of discipline," Xu Heming growled, glaring at his unruly son.
At that moment, he was tempted to take a whip to the little troublemaker.
"Your Highness, the young master is still young. He doesn’t understand these matters. We can teach him properly in time," Li Zhiwei interceded, stepping between Xu Heming and Xu Qingshi to prevent any rash actions.
"You’re defending him?" Xu Heming was both amused and slightly disappointed that his delicate wife was siding with their mischievous son.
"As the young master’s stepmother, I am also his mother. It’s only right that I protect him," Li Zhiwei said firmly, despite Xu Heming’s visible irritation.
The Old Princess and Nanny Luo exchanged approving nods. It seemed this daughter-in-law knew her place.
"Very well. From now on, he’s under your care. But if he misbehaves again, don’t blame me for being harsh," Xu Heming relented, secretly relieved that Li Zhiwei was willing to look after Xu Qingshi.
Now that he had married Li Zhiwei, he hoped she would cherish Xu Qingshi and care for his mother. After all, when his duties kept him occupied, he couldn’t always attend to such matters.
"I will do my best to guide the young master. However, there may be things I don’t yet understand, so I humbly ask for Your Highness’s and Mother’s guidance," Li Zhiwei said, kneeling respectfully.
This wasn’t mere flattery—as a merchant’s daughter, she was unfamiliar with many of the customs and etiquette of the prince’s household.
"Li Zhiwei, rise," the Old Princess said warmly.
She then gestured for Nanny Luo to bring out a tray.
"Zhiwei, I know rushing you into this marriage was unfair to you. But I promise to make it up to you in time," the Old Princess said, patting Li Zhiwei’s hand gently.
"Mother, I don’t feel wronged at all. Marrying into the prince’s household is an honor beyond my station. The prince’s family has saved my parents and me from dire straits," Li Zhiwei replied earnestly.
"This was part of my dowry when I married your father. Today, I pass it to you, hoping you’ll one day hand it down to your own descendants," the Old Princess said.
Li Zhiwei recognized the bracelet’s significance—it must have held great sentimental value to the Old Princess.
"If Mother is giving it to you, you should accept it," Xu Heming urged.
"Thank you, Mother," Li Zhiwei said, finally relaxing.
"Your marriage to my son was rather sudden. I imagine your parents are still unaware. Should we send someone to inform them?" the Old Princess asked, concerned that the Ruan Marquis Residence might exploit the situation to extort the Li family before the news reached them.
"I’ll write to my parents immediately. Your Highness, please send someone to Li'an County to inform them. We mustn’t let the Lin family or the Ruan Marquis Residence use my name to demand money or goods from them," Li Zhiwei said, her expression darkening at the thought of Lin Jitong and the marquis’s household harassing her family.
In her past life, they had repeatedly exploited her name to extort her parents, who had ultimately met tragic ends. Now that she was married to Prince An, she would ensure such things never happened again.
"Rest assured, Princess. I’ll have this matter handled properly," Xu Heming said, understanding the gravity of the situation.
"Father, Mother, may I invite my friends to visit?" Xu Qingshi seized the opportunity to ask.
"Who do you wish to invite?" Xu Heming frowned.
"Hmph! They always mock me for not having a mother. Now that I do, I want to show them!" Xu Qingshi pouted, thinking of how Wei Herui had flaunted the puzzle rings his mother had given him. Now that he had a mother too, he could have as many as he wanted!
"Have they been bullying you like this all along?" The Old Princess was incensed. Though mischievous, Xu Qingshi was her only grandson—how dare outsiders treat him so poorly!
"Grandmother, you don’t know—Wei Herui brags every day about how wonderful his mother is, how she buys him all sorts of toys. I didn’t have a mother, so I had nothing," the five-year-old Xu Qingshi grumbled.
Li Zhiwei’s heart ached at his words. That Wei family boy was truly vile. Still, she perked up at the mention of puzzle rings—she had grown tired of those as a child.
