knife

Chapter 440 Farewell
The little one took unsteady steps, arms outstretched, swaying and babbling as he walked forward, seemingly about to fall at any moment, yet maintaining a remarkable balance amidst his stumbling.

Not far in front of the little child, a fashionably dressed woman squatted on the ground, arms outstretched, smiling as she looked at the baby. Behind her stood an elegantly dressed, slightly plump woman with a tense expression, leaning forward. Every time the baby swayed, she would involuntarily reach out her hand.

Meanwhile, in the distance, under the eaves, another woman in black sat with a smile on her side, holding an embroidery frame in her hand, meticulously embroidering. She would occasionally look up at the three people in front of her and smile slightly at times.

The woman squatting on the ground, dressed like a young girl in her late teens, was actually over forty. However, she had lived a life of luxury and carefree living, and was very well-maintained. From her appearance, it was impossible to guess her real age; she looked even younger than the woman standing behind her.

But in fact, the two women are more than twenty years apart in age; one is the mother-in-law, and the other is the daughter-in-law.

The mother-in-law looks younger than the daughter-in-law.

The young mother-in-law was Princess Chang Le of the Great Qin Dynasty, now the Empress Dowager of the Yuan Kingdom. The woman behind her was naturally Dayuer, the wife of the Tiele people.

The woman in black embroidering under the eaves was none other than Duanmu Miaomiao, a master of innate martial arts.

And that little baby was Tiele's one-year-old daughter, Xiaoyu'er.

Little Yu'er stumbled and fell, and at the very last moment, she bumped into Princess Chang Le's arms. Princess Chang Le laughed heartily, hugged the child tightly, jumped up, spun around in place, and then tossed Little Yu'er high into the air.

Little Jade was unaware of fear. Flying in the air, she danced and giggled.

This startled Da Yu'er, causing fine beads of sweat to appear on her forehead.

She was very unwilling.

But there was nothing she could do; after all, this person was her mother-in-law.
Moreover, she was a mother-in-law in her forties who still had the temperament of a young girl.

After tossing the baby three or four times, Princess Chang Le, still feeling worried, hugged Xiao Yu'er tightly and turned to Da Yu'er, saying, "Courage must be cultivated from a young age. If you treat your child like a fragile treasure, what kind of good child will you raise!"

"Mother, Xiaoyu'er is a girl!" Dayu'er said with a forced smile.

"What about the girls? Da Yu'er, the women from our family, can compose essays with a pen, kill with a knife, and play music with a zither. She is both scholarly and martial, intelligent and beautiful inside and out." Princess Chang Le said, "Look at your mother, am I not such a person?"

"Of course, Mother is, but Xiaoyu'er doesn't have your natural beauty."

"Nonsense, this is my granddaughter!" Princess Chang Le rolled her eyes, picked up the child and walked towards the corridor. After a few steps, she turned back and said, "You're really worrying for nothing. With Duanmu here, no matter how crazy Xiaoyu is, she can't possibly fall to the ground."

Duanmu Miaomiao said from under the corridor, "Yes, as long as I'm here, the Empress can rest assured to let Xiaoyu play!"

Da Yu'er forced a smile but did not reply.

She wasn't familiar with Duanmu Miaomiao because Duanmu Miaomiao happened to be away when she married into the palace. She had been recuperating outside and had only recently returned. However, this woman held an extraordinary position in the palace. Not only did her mother-in-law, the Empress Dowager, treat her like a sister, but her husband, Tiele, also treated this middle-aged woman with utmost respect.

Footsteps sounded in the corridor. The group turned around and saw Tiele striding towards them. He looked like he had just returned from discussing matters with his ministers and was dressed very formally.

"Come here, hold your precious daughter!" Princess Chang Le laughed and tossed Xiao Yu'er directly to Tie Le. Da Yu'er, who was watching from the side, was terrified and inwardly blamed her mother-in-law for being so disrespectful to her elders.

Tiele took his daughter and gave Xiaoyu a quick kiss on the cheek. Xiaoyu resisted, pushing Tiele's face away with her hands, trying her best to stay away from his bearded face. It was too prickly.

Tiele chuckled and rubbed his long beard against Xiaoyu'er's tender face, finally making her burst into tears.

Da Yu'er quickly went over and took Xiao Yu'er from Tiele's hands, while also giving Tiele a reproachful look.

Tiele smiled at him and waved his hand, saying, "Take Xiaoyu inside, I have important matters to discuss with my mother!"

Da Yu'er nodded, picked up Xiao Yu'er, and hurried away. Just as she was about to leave the garden, she glanced back and saw Duanmu Miaomiao still sitting astride the porch, and her husband showed no sign of letting her leave. She couldn't help but sigh, suddenly gaining a new understanding of her own position.

Seeing Tiele's solemn expression, Princess Chang Le's smile disappeared, and when she wasn't smiling, the crow's feet at the corners of her eyes finally became unavoidably obvious.

"Wouldn't it be better if everyone just stayed peaceful and quiet?" she sighed.

“Mother, I want to live in peace, but can I? Li Dachui is so aggressive. It’s not just a matter of slowly boiling a frog anymore; the water is about to boil. If I don’t fight back, he’ll boil me alive!” Tiele said.

"Are you confident?" Princess Chang Le asked. "Your cousin is far superior to his father. Son, to be honest, and don't be angry, you are no match for him in terms of strategy and shrewdness."

"My son has been planning this last gamble for nearly two years!" Tiele said. "If it still doesn't work, then it's only right that my Great Yuan Dynasty is destroyed. This is my last gamble to continue the Great Yuan Dynasty. Moreover, my efforts this time are not to defeat Li Dachui, but only to ensure that I can continue to survive under his oppression."

Princess Chang Le nodded. The lower the expectations, the greater the chance of success. If one sets unrealistic goals, failure is inevitable.

“Mother, this time I used myself as bait to lure the main force of the Beiting Protectorate to surround me. In fact, my real fatal blow was to join forces with my elder brother Zhebie to strike Yandu with overwhelming force. If successful, the divided Yuan Dynasty will be unified again. Even if the Yuan Dynasty is still very weak at this time, it will not be a dough that Li Dachui can knead at will. At least I will have the power to fight back.”

How did you convince Jebe?

"I said that if I succeed, I will make his son the Crown Prince of the Great Yuan!" Tiele laughed. "As you know, I have mastered the Blood Jade Technique and can no longer have any more sons!"

Princess Chang Le looked up at the sky, and after a long while she lowered her head and forced a smile, saying, "You've always been resourceful. Now that you've made up your mind, go ahead and do it!"

Tiele knelt down with a thud.

Princess Chang Le was somewhat surprised and looked at her son, asking, "What are you doing?"

"Your son is going there with a do-or-die attitude, a fight to the death. If I succeed, I will naturally return to see you, Mother. But war is dangerous, and I am facing the powerful army of the Northern Protectorate. I am not entirely confident. If I fail, I will not be able to return to see you. Please take care, Mother. Also, I entrust Xiaoyu'er to you, Mother. You are the Princess of Qin and Li Dachui's aunt. Even if the Northern army comes here, they will not dare to show you the slightest disrespect!"

After saying this, Tiele kowtowed three times to Princess Changle, got up, and walked out without looking back.

Watching Tiele's retreating figure, Princess Chang Le said with a choked voice, "Miao Miao!"

Duanmu Miaomiao walked to Princess Chang Le's side.

"Go with him. Even if you lose, bring him back, okay?"

(End of this chapter)