Chapter 983: 462 Untie the Heart Knot (Part One) Chapter 983: 462 Untie the Heart Knot (Part One) “`
In the eastern room, under the vivid explanations and gestures of Gu Yan and Gu Xiaoshun—-with Gu Yan mainly providing explanations and Gu Xiaoshun mainly gesturing—-Gu Jiao finally came to understand the ins and outs of the incident. She had some inside information about Xiao Liulang’s origins, but deducing from the conversation between mother and son, there were hidden secrets related to Xiao Liulang’s identity and the huge fire four years ago.

Gu Jiao felt that the arsonist should not have been Prince Ning, at least not for the fire that supposedly killed “Xiao Hen”.

Princess Xinyang and Prince Ning probably both had the idea to start the fire, but neither succeeded; the former softened her heart and pulled back at the last moment, while the latter was likely stopped by Princess Xinyang before he could act.

So who could it be?

Why do this?

Xiao Hen was just an uncontentious youth; if he had offended anyone, it might have been those jealous of his talents or the Zhuang family people. However, given the power of Marquis Xuanping and Princess Xinyang, there should have been no one brazen or capable enough to harm their son.

Especially since the Guozijian was essentially old Jiuzhan and Xiao Hen’s territory. Otherwise, how could Princess Xinyang have discovered Prince Ning’s arson attempt in time?

Quiet Imperial Consort had once poisoned Little Xiao Hen, but that was because the Imperial Palace was her territory. Moreover, after that incident, Princess Xinyang and Marquis Xuanping protected Xiao Hen so well that ordinary enemies had no chance to strike.

Therefore, that great fire wasn’t set by any common enemy.

As for whether it was revenge against Marquis Xuanping or Princess Xinyang, Gu Jiao felt it was neither.

From the actions of Princess Xinyang in sending Xiao Hen away, it seemed likely that the person targeted was Xiao Hen himself.

Someone or some force had severely threatened Xiao Hen’s safety, and Princess Xinyang had no choice but to take such drastic measures to ensure her son could survive.

And judging from Marquis Xuanping’s repeated attempts to probe Xiao Liulang, it seemed even he was kept in the dark by Princess Xinyang.

Although there was little trust between husband and wife, Xiao Hen was his biological son, and his concern for Xiao Hen was real. The only explanation for Princess Xinyang’s actions was that it involved a power which perhaps even the Marquis Residence of Xuanping would have difficulty confronting.

Could it be… the power of Shang Country?

The world was divided into six parts: Yan Country, Jin Country, and Liang Country constituted Shang Country, while Zhao Country, Zhan Country, and Chen Country made up the lower countries, in addition to the Tujue, which was unrecognized by the six nations.

Since arriving here, the furthest Gu Jiao had traveled was to the Capital City, and she knew very little about the other countries, so, for the time being, she couldn’t guess which nation’s power was the more likely possibility.

But Xiao Liulang had mentioned that his birth mother was a female slave from Yan Country—-
Without any tokens, without a single word or phrase, Xiao Liulang’s birth mother hadn’t left anything that could trace his identity.

…

That evening, Princess Xinyang stayed for dinner.

“Actually, I can cook too. Over these past few years in Fengdu, I had nothing to do and learned a few signature dishes from the chefs in the mansion.”

She was a vegetarian, so all the dishes she learned were vegetarian.

She intended to show her son her skills and made a dish of cold mixed julienne, a steamed rice with red dates, and stir-fried wild mushrooms.

The presentation was much better than Xiao Liulang’s, with appealing colors and enticing aromas.

Everyone eagerly tried a bite, and then they all experienced a shudder of their soul!

Good heavens!

It was terribly awful!

Now they finally understood where Xiao Liulang got his dark culinary skills!

Xiaojingkong and Long Yi were directly revolted by the taste, rolling their eyes back and sticking out their tongues in disgust!

It’s worth mentioning that Gu Jiao had given Long Yi a new mask that covered the upper half of his face, leaving his mouth and chin exposed so that he could eat at any time.

Yujin also cooked to show her skills, and thankfully her culinary abilities were genuine. The fears dominated by Princess Xinyang’s cooking gradually dissipated with each delicious morsel of her fine dishes.

After dinner, old Jiuzhan called Xiao Liulang… who should now be called Xiao Hen, to the room next door.

He returned late, still unaware of how the mother and son had inexplicably recognized each other.

Princess Xinyang was led by Xiaojingkong to visit his little vegetable garden and his little eagle and seven chicks.

“… This one is Xiaowu, this is Xiaoliu, this is Xiaoqi, this is Xiaojiu.” After Xiaojingkong finished introducing them, Xiaoba strutted over confidently, and he said, “This is Brother Yan’s Xiaoba.”

Then he bent over and tied a bright red safflower on Xiaoba.

Princess Xinyang thought of the peacock feather on Gu Jiao’s mask, and her eyelids twitched again–what kind of aesthetic did these siblings have!

“Princess! For you!”

“`