CHAPTER 327: CHAPTER 296: JINBAO: SO MAD! (FIRST UPDATE)

A coal mine case led to a year’s suspension due to imperial distrust.

A bandit suppression case resulted in a demotion in rank, despite an apparent promotion, losing the Prime Minister’s power.

Su Xiang felt as though a mouthful of old blood was stuck in his throat, unable to swallow or spit it out.

As he walked out of the Qianqing Palace, he glanced at Song Wei, who remained calm throughout, his expression displeased, and directly asked, "Was it you who suggested to the Emperor that I be promoted in name but demoted in power, effectively sidelining me?"

Song Wei returned a polite smile, "Prime Minister, you overestimate me. Despite my abilities, I am but a mere Sixth-Rank Imperial Scholar. If I could sway the Emperor’s decisions with a single word, what need would there be for the entire court of officials?"

Su Xiang’s expression darkened, "Being sidelined, I may never hold the position of Prime Minister again. Does this please you, Song Hanlin?"

Seizing the moment, Song Wei cupped his hands, "I, a subordinate, am happy for you, Prime Minister... oh, I should now refer to you as Lord Duke, for you have been ennobled. As a colleague, it’s true that I am pleased for your reward and title."

"Hmph!"

Watching as the Duke walked away, Song Wei then began his journey home from the palace.

As soon as Wen Wan returned, she immediately had someone prepare hot water for a bath, removed her corset, and changed into a cool and comfortable summer dress.

The trip to Ningzhou for the bandit suppression had taken nearly a month back and forth.

Wen Wan once again perfectly missed his son’s birthday banquet.

Last year, she already felt guilty for missing Jinbao’s first birthday celebration due to the Da Huan Mountain Coal Mine case, promising to be with him when he turned two. Yet...

Wen Wan moved towards the main hall.

Over more than a month, the little boy had bonded with his new older sister and could clearly call out the word "sister."

When he saw Wen Wan appear at the door, the little boy who had been playing with Song Jiao immediately turned his head aside, his previous cheerfulness retreating completely. He puffed up his cheeks, spread out his chubby legs, and sat on the bed, displaying a stance of "no one pays attention to me, I’m upset, and I’ll cry to show her."

Wen Wan held a cloth ox in her hands, with two sharp horns on its head. The body was made of dark blue fabric, embroidered with white thread patterns, and a round thin cushion sewn onto its back.

As a gift to apologize to her son, the cloth ox was bigger and more finely crafted than the previous cloth tiger, looking both vivid and lifelike.

Seeing that the little boy was already sulking, Wen Wan pursed her lips and smiled, stepped forward to sit beside him, and softly called, "Jinbao?"

The little boy didn’t respond.

Wen Wan shook his chubby arm, "Is Jinbao angry?"

The little boy still didn’t respond, his eyes looking elsewhere.

Wen Wan shook the cloth ox in front of him, "Baby, if you pay attention to Mama, this is for you to play with, okay?"

Jinbao took a glance, tempted, and couldn’t resist reaching out to embrace the cloth ox, playing by himself and ignoring whatever his mother said.

Wen Wan: "..."

Song Jiao, unaware of last year’s first birthday incident, looked confusedly at Granny Song, "Grandma, what’s wrong with Jinbao?"

The little boy seemed unhappy whenever he saw his mother.

Granny Song twitched her lips, "Last year’s first birthday, his mother went with his father to Ningzhou for the coal mine case, and this year for his two-year birthday banquet, she went again to Ningzhou for the bandit suppression. Would you be happy if it were you?"

"That’s... too coincidental, isn’t it?" Initially, Song Jiao wanted to say it was too unfortunate, but seeing her third aunt being ignored by her son, she didn’t want to spoil the mood, so she changed her wording, though she secretly found it amusing.

"It’s all my fault." Wen Wan looked at her mother-in-law and smiled helplessly, "I went to Ningzhou in late March, and originally calculated to return before the twenty-sixth, but despite rushing, I was still a day late."

Granny Song glanced at the sulking Jinbao, "This old woman doesn’t mind. It’s just that from the looks of it, you’ve quite upset my grandson."

"..." Wen Wan had nothing to say to that. This time it was truly her fault, seeing the little guy both angry and aggrieved, despite calling him "baby" multiple times, he still wouldn’t pay attention to her.

"If you don’t want Mama, then Mama will leave, okay!"

As Wen Wan spoke, she got up and pretended to walk out.

Jinbao tossed the cloth ox aside, sniffed, and was about to cry.

Wen Wan quickly sat back down, grabbed him and held him in her arms, lowered her head, and spoke softly to his soft little ear, "Okay, okay, Mama was just teasing you. Mama won’t leave, she’ll stay here with Jinbao, okay?"

The little boy probably understood and didn’t actually cry, but he pouted, refusing to speak.

Wen Wan found the room stuffy, so she planned to take him outside for some fresh air.

Jinbao lay on his mother’s shoulder, hugging her neck with both hands.

Even though he couldn’t say it, Wen Wan could feel that the little guy was worried she’d run off again.

Her heart suddenly felt both sour and bitter.

Truthfully, ever since entering Hongwen Academy, she hasn’t spent much time with Jinbao. The little guy spends the day with his grandmother, and only when his parents return in the evening does he get to enjoy a brief moment of family happiness, before his parents often have to leave for casework, gone for a month or more at a time without seeing each other.

Wen Wan thought, if only Jinbao could speak more fluently, he would have surely scolded her for being an unqualified mother by now.

When Song Wei returned, he saw Wen Wan holding their son in the courtyard, enjoying the cool breeze. His deep black eyes gradually softened. He approached and asked with a smile, "Haven’t seen each other for a month, has Jinbao held any grudge against you?"

"It’s been more than a month." Wen Wan sat on a rattan chair, holding the little one in her arms, and looked up at the man, "Mr. Song, we missed our son’s birthday banquet again. What do you say we should do?"

Song Wei’s gaze was filled with an even deeper sense of joy as he reached out to pinch Jinbao’s chubby cheeks.

Jinbao unusually didn’t cling directly onto his father as he usually did, but rather pouted and looked elsewhere.

Song Wei’s gentle voice sounded, "Is Jinbao angry with dad?"

Jinbao snorted through his nose and suddenly said, "Angry~"

When the little one ignored people, his dumpling-like face was always puffed up, which amused Wen Wan, "Does baby know what ’angry’ means?"

Jinbao added, "Really angry~"

Wen Wan laughed until she bent over, glancing at the man, "Finally, there’s a time when our son won’t acknowledge you, Mr. Song. Why don’t you stay where it’s cooler, and don’t make him cry. Otherwise, I won’t be able to comfort him."

Jinbao mimicked, "Mr. Song, really angry~"

Song Wei: "..."

Wen Wan took the opportunity to say, "Jinbao, from now on only rely on your mother, leave your heartless dad who left you for a month without care, and didn’t even bring toys to amuse you when he returned, right?"

While speaking, she sneaked a glance at Song Wei’s reaction, finding that the man didn’t have a dark expression but stood smiling beside them, looking at his son with eyes full of doting affection.

Jinbao snorted, "No need!"

Wen Wan reached out to stroke his little back, "Our baby has spoken so much today; it seems he is really upset."

After passing this episode, Wen Wan gathered her thoughts and asked Song Wei, "Husband and Su Xiang went to report back together, how did it go?"

Song Wei moved a seat to sit next to the mother and son, and slowly said, "The Prime Minister made great contributions by suppressing bandits, the Emperor rewarded him as Duke Jing, and for his years of dedicated service to the court, granted him a summer residence by Qing Lake, and let the Cabinet help him share the worries."

Today’s Wen Wan was no longer the clueless wife who understood nothing; she soon realized the truth, "So, it’s openly granting him a title while secretly rendering his power ineffective?"

Song Wei nodded.

Wen Wan did not know how much credit her husband had in Su Xiang’s success today, but she felt that the Emperor was truly frightening, praising you one moment, and leaving you without a place to cry the next. No wonder she often hears people say that accompanying a king is like accompanying a tiger, and this isn’t false at all.

"What about husband?" Wen Wan asked with concern after sighing, wanting to know the Emperor’s attitude towards Song Wei.

Song Wei said, "Did not get promoted, but was rewarded a residence as a prize."

"A residence?"

"Yes, a courtyard with five sets and a garden."

Wen Wan was taken aback, "Five sets courtyard, how big must that be?"

This, Song Wei found hard to explain, "You’ll know when the time comes to move."

Wen Wan’s eyes involuntarily scanned the surroundings. They currently lived in a two-set courtyard, which was not crowded since they had few servants and only their family staying there.

Wen Wan had been planning to find a time to discuss with Song Wei about possibly purchasing a three-set courtyard. Yuanbao was already thirteen years old and shouldn’t live in the inner courtyard anymore; he should move to the outer courtyard and also have a study with a couple of assistants.

Calculating all these bits and pieces, adding people to the household, the two-set courtyard indeed wasn’t spacious enough.

Wen Wan hadn’t anticipated not even bringing up her plan when the Emperor directly awarded a five-set courtyard because of the bandit suppressing case, and it even came with a garden.

She suddenly felt a little anticipation in her heart.

Thinking of the lady in the West Wing, Wen Wan began to feel nervous again, "Should we wait for Princess Consort Duan to leave before moving?"

Song Wei nodded, "That’s exactly what I intended."

The larger the residence, the more gaps for people to take advantage of. As it stands, Princess Consort Duan lives in the West Wing facing the East Wing, with many people in the inner courtyard. Outside, even if someone discovers something unusual and wants to act, they must first weigh their options.

"However, before moving, you can take a look and see if there’s anything about the layout inside you don’t care for, and before we move, I can have someone alter it."

"Then I’ll wait for my next monthly rest." Wen Wan said, "Still have to go to Hongwen Academy tomorrow!"

At this point, she remembered little Jinbao, lowered her head, and kissed his cheek, "I’ve only been in school for a year but have already lagged in several months’ courses. At this rate, it will take at least two more years to graduate, and by then, when I can accompany Jinbao, he’ll be four or five and starting to have memories."

Song Wei said, "If you can’t accompany the first, properly make up for the second."

Wen Wan suddenly felt her face heat up, and after a long time, she managed to blurt out, "Anyway, I don’t plan to have another during my studies."

Having Jinbao was already exhausting, adding another one, she couldn’t imagine how she’d manage.

Song Wei did not force her, "Alright, then wait till you finish your studies and return."