It was as if the old lady had finally seen the person she had been waiting for. She cheerfully grabbed the hands of the person in front of her.
"Why did you come so late? Did your grandfather give you extra lessons again? He always likes to lecture people, it's so annoying to watch. Yesterday, I promised to fly kites with you... Oh, right, the kite..."
The old lady turned her head. "Where's my kite?"
When she made a move to get up and find the kite, Xiao Yan gently stopped her and said, "I had someone put it away for now, we’ll look at it later. But grandmother didn’t behave today—she didn’t take her medicine properly."
The old lady immediately pouted. "The medicine is bitter, it doesn't taste good."
Xiao Yan coaxed her softly, "But grandmother, you need to take the medicine so that you can feel better. Once you’re better, you can come with me to fly kites. Don’t you want to?"
The old lady’s eyes lit up like a child. "I want to go!"
"Then you have to take your medicine first."
Once the old lady was persuaded to take the medicine, Xiao Yan glanced at Ling Yin. She quickly brought the medicine bowl forward.
Xiao Yan stirred the soup and blew on the spoon before bringing it to the old lady’s lips.
Though the old lady was still reluctant, she obediently drank the medicine, grimacing, but still talking about flying kites. "You have to come with me, I’m really good at making big kites, and I can make tigers, butterflies..."
"Okay, I’ll go with you."
The old lady's speech was a bit muddled, jumping from topic to topic, and when she recalled something happy, she would even gesture excitedly.
The medicine splashed a little onto Xiao Yan, and some also got onto the old lady’s clothes. But Xiao Yan, who was usually meticulous about cleanliness, didn’t mind at all. He gently helped her finish the medicine, wiping the excess from her lips with a handkerchief.
The old lady continued to speak nonsensically. Xiao Yan patiently responded to each word. After a while, the old lady, who had been excitedly talking about flying kites, began to grow tired, her voice growing faint as she kept mumbling about "kites." Soon, she closed her eyes and drifted off to sleep.
Xiao Yan carefully laid her down, covered her with a thin blanket, and after making sure she was sleeping soundly, he instructed Ling Yin to stay by her side. Then, he got up and took Tang Ning and Mrs. Qin to another room.
Tang Ning was puzzled. "Brother, who was that just now?"
"That was my great-grandmother. You can call her ‘Tai Nai Nai’," Xiao Yan answered gently.
Tang Ning was stunned for a moment before Xiao Yan softly added, "Shang Yan was my father's childhood name."
Mrs. Qin, noticing that Tang Ning seemed a bit confused, explained from the side, "The old lady had a serious illness some time ago, and because she didn't receive treatment in time, her mind is a bit disoriented now. She lives in her own world and can’t recognize people from the outside. When she’s a bit clearer, she can remember things from the past, but when she’s not, she forgets everything completely."
Hearing Mrs. Qin’s explanation, Tang Ning felt a sharp pain in her chest.
Even when she is somewhat clear-headed, she can’t recognize anyone. How bad must it be when she is in a confused state?
She thought back to the old lady from just now—her face was covered in wrinkles when she smiled, but her mannerisms were like those of a child. Tang Ning vaguely felt like she had seen her somewhere before, but after thinking about it for a while, she couldn’t remember where.
Tang Ning assumed the old lady must resemble someone she had seen before. She turned to Mrs. Qin and lowered her voice. "Can’t her condition be treated?"
Mrs. Qin shook her head. "The old lady has been ill for too long. She was also harmed by someone earlier and took some wrong medicine. It’s hard to keep her health stable, let alone cure her."
If it weren’t for her acquaintance with Xiao Yan, she would have made several trips to the palace for treatment and stayed in the capital to carefully take care of her over the past six months. She had almost lost the old lady a few times, but now, just keeping her alive was already a difficult feat.
Tang Ning pursed her lips, feeling sad.
Mrs. Qin didn’t stay long and left after a few more words.
Xiao Yan, seeing how Tang Ning was downcast, softly comforted her, "Don’t be sad. Actually, this is better for Tai Nai Nai. She doesn’t need to remember people who shouldn’t be remembered, nor should she be troubled by things that are long past. If she were fully conscious, she probably wouldn’t have survived this long."
When his father had passed away, and everyone in the East Palace had been executed, if the Empress Dowager hadn’t gone mad from grief, with the love she had for his father and him, she would have never survived.
Xiao Yan pulled Tang Ning to sit beside him, noticing her melancholic mood, so he changed the subject.
"Do you know why my father’s name is Shang Yan?"
Tang Ning shook her head. "Why?"
Xiao Yan smiled lightly. "Because when my grandmother was pregnant with my father, my great-grandfather had a dream where a fierce beast was hanging from a beam. He was a man who valued both literature and martial arts, and he believed that a true gentleman, like the sage, should have a sign of greatness."
"My great-grandfather wasn’t the least bit humble. He never hid his ambitions or accomplishments, building a vast family business and making the family strong."
"To stabilize the hearts of the people below him, he had to act a bit more refined, but even though he raised my father in the ways of a gentleman, he secretly hoped my father would become an unstoppable beast. That’s why he named him Shang Yan."
‘Shang Yan’ is an ancient term for a sage, also meaning someone above everyone else.
Tang Ning remembered Xiao Yan’s previous words about his father—how his father was greatly favored by his great-grandfather, and even though he was chosen as the heir early, this caused resentment in his grandfather, who eventually grew jealous, leading to his father's death.
Now, after hearing Xiao Yan, Tang Ning began to understand more clearly why his father had ended up in that situation.
Shang Yan...
With such an unreservedly grand name, it was inevitable that a person of exceptional talent and brilliance would draw jealousy.
As Xiao Yan spoke of the past, his voice softened.
"When my father was young, he hardly had any free time. He got involved in the family affairs early, and Tai Nai Nai was always concerned about him, trying to entertain him with all sorts of activities. But my father grew up fast and knew he had heavy responsibilities. He matured very early, and Tai Nai Nai used to say that my great-grandfather had spoiled him. She even once pulled my great-grandfather’s ear for my father."
"When I was born, Tai Nai Nai doted on me immensely, as if trying to make up for the childhood my father never had. Even though my father disciplined me, until I was ten, I was a carefree and unruly child, never once facing any dissatisfaction."
He inherited his father’s intelligence but did not take after his father’s strictness or formal demeanor. Combined with his unique nobility, those years, people even called him the tyrant of the palace.
He lived recklessly and joyfully for twelve years, until...
Xiao Yan’s expression froze. His eyes darkened, and he softly said, "Let’s fly kites together. Just in case Tai Nai Nai remembers when she wakes up."
Tang Ning hesitated. "But I don’t know how to make kites."
"I know. I’ll teach you."
Xiao Yan took Tang Ning to the bamboo forest next to the manor, cut a few bamboo poles, and had paper brought to them.
Tang Ning watched as he skillfully used a soft sword—one he had once used to kill—cutting the bamboo into thin strips, preparing the bamboo frame. When he finished shaping the kite, she clumsily followed his instructions and attached the paper to the bamboo frame.
"How’s my drawing?" Xiao Yan turned his head.
Tang Ning blinked. "I think... it’s okay..."
"Then, one for each of us?"
After a nod from Tang Ning, Xiao Yan took the brush and ink, and without discussing it beforehand, they both began to draw. In the end, one kite was a tiger, and the other, a butterfly.
When the paint dried and the kites were complete, Tang Ning saw the vivid tiger Xiao Yan was holding and laughed out loud.
"How can there be a red tiger?"
She raised her own butterfly kite. "Mine is beautiful."
Xiao Yan smiled softly. "Yes, yours is beautiful."
The sky outside had darkened. As they lit the lamps inside, Ling Yin came in and said the old lady had woken up.
Tang Ning hurriedly urged Xiao Yan to bring the kites over, but when the old lady woke up, she no longer remembered what had happened earlier. She looked at Xiao Yan holding the butterfly kite, her expression filled with confusion.
"Who are you?"
Seeing the old lady in the bed, even though Tang Ning knew she was ill, the overwhelming sadness at that moment made it hard for her to breathe.
Tang Ning hugged the tiger kite in her arms, pulling Xiao Yan forward and smiling brightly at the old lady in the bed.
"Tai Nai Nai, this is Yuan Sheng, and she is Tang Ning. We’re here to fly kites with you!"
"Yuan Sheng..."
The old lady tilted her head. After a moment, her eyes landed on the butterfly kite in Tang Ning’s hands. She clapped her hands joyfully. "Kite, let’s fly the kite!"
Xiao Yan felt the warmth of Tang Ning’s hand in his, and in that instant, the coldness in his heart seemed to melt away like wind scattering the frost. His brows softened.
"Alright, let’s fly kites." He took Tang Ning’s hand in his. "We’ll fly them together."
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You can read ahead to chapterr 400 (100+ extra chapters) here
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