The Child I Raised Has Been Reborn - Chapter 28.2

Qin Tangxi fell silent. Just then, a maid arrived with the detoxifying medicine. Qin Tangxi leaned down to help the little girl sit up, took the medicine from the maid, and blew on it to cool it.

Your Highness rarely showed such care for anyone. The maid, not daring to disturb them, bowed and retreated to the side to wait.

The medicine was bitter, its mere scent unpleasant. Qin Tangxi scooped up a spoonful and blew on it.

Mingshu stared in awe. Your Highness’s body felt so warm, her shoulders so strong, and her expression so soft and gentle. It instantly calmed Mingshu’s heart.

The early spring chill was biting outside, but the bedroom was warm and cozy. With the doors and windows tightly shut and a coal fire burning, a warmth she hadn’t felt in ages enveloped her.

The room was quiet, broken only by the occasional clink of a spoon against the bottom of a bowl. The silence was finally shattered when Your Highness held out her empty bowl.

Mingshu frowned, bitterness flooding her mouth, throat, and even her heart. She instinctively glanced toward the side table, but there was no honeyed fruit to soothe the bitterness.

The bitter taste weighed heavily on her, making it hard to breathe. Her stomach churned violently, but she dared not make a sound, even as the pain intensified.

The Grand Princess observed everything but didn’t send for honeyed fruit. Instead, she helped Mingshu lie down. Under the lamplight, the girl’s cheeks were flushed, a stark contrast to her pallid complexion earlier that day.

After a moment’s thought, the Grand Princess added, “There will be a medicinal bath tomorrow morning.”

Though the poison wasn’t severe, it had entered her body. All medicine contained some toxicity, and since her body had been damaged, proper rest and care were essential.

Mingshu remained silent, turning onto her stomach. She wanted honeyed fruit but couldn’t bring herself to ask. I’m Mingshu, she thought. Your Highness won’t show much mercy toward me.

The girl lay listless. Qin Tangxi, without a word, moved to the writing couch, where stacks of official documents awaited—some to be distributed the next day.

Mingshu felt so miserable she couldn’t move, and she drifted into a hazy sleep on the couch.

After a good night’s sleep, she heard a voice by her ear: “Mingshu, Mingshu…”

She forced her eyes open, unsurprisingly finding Your Highness there. Her body felt heavy and exhausted, and she didn’t want to move. She turned her head to go back to sleep, but just as she closed her eyes, she caught a bitter smell and instinctively covered her mouth.

Qin Tangxi found her reaction amusing. She brushed Mingshu’s hand aside. “Bath time.”

Mingshu refused to believe her. Clutching her blankets, she stubbornly refused to get up. After dawdling for a while, she was finally dragged to her feet.

The bathwater was murky and emitted a strange odor. The little girl, still in her nightgown, peered into the tub and decisively shook her head. “I’d rather take the medicine.”

The maids chuckled at her antics and reached out to help her change. “Miss, please remove your clothes.”

There were only a few people in the room, so there was no need for formalities. But Mingshu glanced nervously at the Grand Princess. “Your Highness…”

Qin Tangxi understood her meaning. She stepped back and waved the maids away. “All of you, withdraw.”

The maids stifled their giggles, but Mingshu kept her eyes on the Grand Princess. “Your Highness… you’re not leaving?”

The medicinal steam rose, its heat flushing Mingshu’s face crimson, her eyes sunken deep in their sockets. In just one day, she had visibly lost weight. Qin Tangxi observed these changes silently. She stepped closer, patted Mingshu’s shoulder, and said, “Don’t you know how to undress yourself?”

The words were simple enough, but Mingshu flushed, lowering her gaze and hesitating to move.

Qin Tangxi’s lips curved faintly as she spoke through the swirling mist, “Didn’t the Manager teach you?”

Mingshu’s head drooped. “No,” she mumbled. “He taught… others… how to undress.”

The young girl’s self-incriminating admission made Qin Tangxi inwardly chuckle. After testing the water temperature, she said, “Then I’ll teach you.”

“Hmm?” Mingshu’s eyes widened. Does Your Highness know this too?

Something felt wrong. How could Your Highness know such intimate matters? She’s as pure as a goddess—she couldn’t possibly.

Ignoring Mingshu’s reaction, Qin Tangxi’s slender fingers slowly moved along her waist, gently loosening the sash. “See?” she said kindly. “Start by unfastening this.”

Mingshu wore only a nightgown. As the sash came undone, waves of pale, smooth skin were revealed, rising and falling like a tide.

Qin Tangxi, usually so aloof, allowed a faint smile to curl her lips as she watched the scene unfold. A glimmer of warmth seemed to pool in her clear eyes, a restrained indulgence in the moment.

Mingshu instinctively raised her arm, panic rising as she stared at the Grand Princess, her intentions suddenly unclear. “How… how did you know?”

Qin Tangxi chuckled. “Is it so difficult? What’s your next step? Care to share?”

“My next step?” Facing the Grand Princess’s calm yet piercing aura, Mingshu’s mind went blank. She felt as if something about Your Highness had changed, becoming somehow different from before.

Upon reflection, she couldn’t pinpoint what it was. Perhaps she had never truly understood Your Highness at all.

The young girl’s frail frame, as if she hadn’t fully grown, caught Qin Tangxi’s fleeting gaze. “I’ll tell you another time,” she said. “The water’s getting cold. Hurry up.”

Mingshu was relieved not to elaborate. Abandoning any thoughts of her next step, she hastily removed her undergarments and dove into the water, splashing droplets across the floor.

Qin Tangxi frowned but said nothing, instead studying the girl in the water. “How old are you?”

“Fifteen.”

“Has your birthday passed?”

Mingshu hesitated. She didn’t know for sure, but she knew that admitting ignorance would only make Your Highness suspect she was lying. “Yes,” she confessed.

Qin Tangxi didn’t believe it. If Mingshu’s birthday had passed, she wouldn’t have dwelled on it; she probably didn’t even know her exact birthday.

Mingshu stood with her back to Qin Tangxi, her ribs clearly visible through the thin layer of flesh clinging to her bones, revealing no sign of fat.

A droplet of water fell onto her collarbone, slowly accumulating. Qin Tangxi reached out and touched it. “Mingshu, if I bought your freedom, what would you most want to do?”

The Grand Princess’s hand was cool, yet strangely comforting to touch. Mingshu’s eyes flickered with shock at the mention of redemption. “Would you send me back?”

“No, but you couldn’t leave the Grand Princess’s Residence. If I buy your freedom, you’ll become part of the Grand Princess’s Residence. Remember this: you mustn’t become entangled with others.”

The clear tone carried an implicit threat, reminiscent of Qin Tangxi’s methods in handling state affairs.

Mingshu didn’t fully understand, but she grasped one thing: whoever held her indenture contract owned her. “I understand. I belong to Your Highness.”

Qin Tangxi smiled faintly, tapping her crimson nose with a fingertip before leaning down to kiss her forehead. “Mingshu, you’re still so young.”

The medicinal bath time was over. Servants entered to tidy up. Qin Tangxi changed into her court robes, while Mingshu, wrapped in a blanket, watched her undress without blinking.

The Grand Princess, usually refined and ethereal, transformed upon donning her icy court robes. Her gentle features gradually sharpened into cold, angular lines, imbuing her with an air that seemed to look down upon the world.

Mingshu stared in wide-eyed astonishment. Without warning, the Grand Princess whirled around and seized her. “Eavesdropping and spying? A mere reflection period won’t suffice.”

Terrified, Mingshu instantly covered her eyes. “I-I wasn’t.”

Qin Tangxi walked past her with a faint smile as ephemeral as drifting clouds. “Like covering your ears to steal a bell.”

After leaving the Grand Princess’s Residence, the carriage swiftly reached the palace gates. It advanced slowly before coming to a halt before Taiji Hall. The Marquis of Rongchang, who had been straining to walk quickly, noticed the familiar carriage and scoffed, “What’s so special about riding in a carriage?”

The carriage curtain lifted slowly, revealing the Grand Princess’s luminous hand. “The Marquis of Rongchang would never be allowed to ride. Perhaps if you wait until your next life…”

Court officials passing by, hearing the Grand Princess’s rare outburst, chose to pretend they hadn’t heard a thing and hurried into the hall.

Left humiliated, the Marquis dared not utter another word. He could only blame his own booming voice.

After the routine court session concluded, Consort Dowager An entered the palace and happened to meet the Grand Princess.

Having not seen this once-favored consort of the imperial harem in years, the court officials bowed en masse. After Consort Dowager An dismissed them, she accompanied the Grand Princess toward the Inner Palace.

Worried about Mingshu, the Grand Princess had deliberately shortened the court session today. But when her mother appeared halfway through, she stopped in her tracks, unwilling to meet the Empress Dowager. “Why have you come to the palace, Mother?”

“Are you in a hurry?” Even the most foolish person could sense something was wrong with her daughter.

Under the red palace walls, the Grand Princess’s expression turned icy. “If you’re here to plead on Qin Jianhan’s behalf, you can save your breath.”

“Qin Tangxi, are you saying you bear no responsibility in this matter?” Consort Dowager An frowned, aware that the bustling palace corridor wasn’t the place to address such sensitive issues.

“Are you implying that I am to blame?”

Consort Dowager An stepped closer, lowering her voice in front of the palace attendants. “Now that she’s dead, it’s all in the past. If you remain stubborn, you’ll only hurt yourself. If you can let go, perhaps you’ll see her in your midnight dreams. Why didn’t you think of this before? Your understanding is truly lacking.”

The Emperor, who had followed them, paused at the tense scene before hurrying over. “Consort Dowager, you must consider Sister’s position. She is no longer the little princess you can discipline at will.”

Hearing these words meant to sow discord, Consort Dowager An raised her gaze. “Has Your Majesty ever heard a common saying?”

******

Note: 

You might thought that the the Grand Princess raising three children.

The Emperor was raised by the Empress Dowager, not her.

Zhao Lan was spoiled by her, and her nature is simple.

Qin Jianhan was raised by her, but she learned to do wrong for the sake of love. The blame doesn’t lie with her.

At most, she might have spoiled Zhao Lan.

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