Chapter 475: 242 Recognition of Son (First Update) Chapter 475: 242 Recognition of Son (First Update) The wife of the Prince Consort paced anxiously in her room. She couldn’t take the intense suspense.
On one hand, she was convinced that the child was hers, but on the other hand, she worried about what she would do if he was not.
She had no idea how much time had passed; by the time the surroundings had completely darkened, lanterns were placed in the corridor, and a few oil lamps were lit in the room.
Footsteps echoed from outside the door. The wife of the Prince Consort impatiently went to answer, but before she could, the Prince Consort appeared in the doorway.
She looked at him expectantly, her voice trembling slightly, “What’s the news? Is he our child?”
The Prince Consort softened his gaze but did not deny her immediately.
This gave her a shooting sense of reassurance. “I knew it! I knew it! Our son didn’t die… He was saved by a kind stranger… I…I…”
Overcome by emotions, she covered her face and broke into tears.
Her son, Minmin, woke up due to her commotion, staring blankly at her, “Mom, what happened?”
The wife of the Prince Consort wiped away her tears, but they wouldn’t stop. They were not tears of sadness, but tears of joy.
“Minmin… Minmin!” Overwhelmed with emotion, she pulled Minmin into a tight hug, which unintentionally hurt him.
“I’m sorry… I’m sorry…” She quickly let go of him.
Everything happened so fast that it all felt surreal to her.
Deciding whether or not to keep Minmin in the dark was a difficult decision to make. She felt it would be better if she didn’t hide anything from Minmin as he was also her child. Even though she did not bear him, she had nurtured and brought him up.
Their relationship as mother and son would never change, no matter what.
But of course, she worried about how Minmin would take the news.
Minmin was not an ordinary child. He seemed easy-going but was extremely competitive. He could not stand being inferior to anyone, which at times led to sudden outbursts, like today at the Imperial Palace.
The wife of the Prince Consort wasn’t certain if Minmin could accept that a child smarter than him was his younger brother.
After some hesitation, she went ahead and broke the news.
“Minmin, actually you have a younger brother. Four years ago, when I gave birth to him, I thought we had lost him. But a few days ago, we met him again…”
She tried to choose her words carefully to ensure that Minmin could understand and accept the reality.
Minmin did not recall much about the time when he was four years old and his parents had left for a year. He had no idea about what had transpired during that time.
This was truly…an amazing fact.
Being the youngest child at home and suddenly becoming the older sibling left a significant gap in his perception.
This meant he would no longer be the child pampered by the household, his little brother would be.
No matter how his elder siblings pampered him, he would now need to pamper his younger brother the same way.
His mother’s affection would no longer be his alone.
Favoritism was always shown to the youngest child. Not only could the youngest be held by the mother, but he could also sleep with her.
That was the privilege he had when he was four years old.
“Then… who is my younger brother?” he asked with apprehension.
Apparently, he had a few guesses. The painful memory kept flashing in his mind, echoing “No, it can’t be him!”
“You’ve met him,” the Prince Consort gently told him as he cradled Minmin’s face.
Minmin’s heart shattered into pieces.
Among all the four-year-old children he met in Zhan Country, the only one left was that annoying boy.
The wife of the Prince Consort faced the tension between the two with composure and reassured Minmin, “I know there is some misunderstanding between you. But you are a good boy, and I believe someday he will see your kindness, and you too will see his good side.”
This was the right kind of reassurance. If she just said, “He will be a good brother, and you’ll understand him over time”, that would incite more resentment and jealousy from Minmin.
But by saying that the other child would eventually appreciate Minmin’s kind attitude, she ensured Minmin didn’t feel overlooked or neglected.
But still, he wasn’t sure if he could handle this new reality.
How could he lose to a toddler?
On another side, the Xu family’s official received his naughty grandson and sent the young servant, who usually took care of his grandson, to the Medical Hall to inform the family of the little monk about the incident.
The servant from the Xu family didn’t know where the little monk’s house was but was aware that the three kids often played in the Medical Hall, and the little monk’s sister seemed to be a doctor there.