Cold-faced Empress

"No, my father never expressed any longing for his biological parents."

After thinking for a long time, Fu Siying's tightly furrowed brows slowly relaxed.

Since her father didn't care, why should she worry about it? In the end, she was given away or sold by her biological parents, so there was nothing to regret. It was just that her father's biological parents were unlucky.

Thinking of her father's attitude and seeing Bai Qingyu's inability to let go, Fu Siying couldn't help but advise, "Although you are not the biological son of Master Bai and Madam Bai, you are better than their own. I don't think you need to get caught up in this useless sorrow."

Bai Qingyu smiled bitterly, "No, I'm not distressed, I just want an answer. Do you know that I was seven years old when my birth mother sold me? I really want to ask her face to face, how could she be so heartless?"

Upon hearing this, Fu Siying was surprised and slowly shook her head.

The seven-year-old child was already old enough to remember things, and being sold by his mother was naturally a huge blow to him.

“There must be a hidden story. You were young then, and your mother couldn’t tell you.”

Her words of comfort could not console Bai Qingyu: "I have never known my biological father since I was a child. I depend on my biological mother for survival. She is healthy and makes a living by doing needlework and embroidery. She only has one child, and our family is not so poor that we can't even afford to eat."

Fu Siying immediately fell silent, her lips pressed together. No wonder he didn't say he wanted to question his birth mother about why she sold him, but only said he wanted to ask how she could be so heartless. He probably guessed that his birth mother was likely abandoning him because she wanted to remarry, and that she thought he was a burden.

“I was unaware of the truth and just spoke my mind,” Fu Siying apologized. “Fortunately, your birth mother sold you to a wealthy family like the Bai family. Otherwise, you wouldn’t have developed such knowledge and refinement. In that sense, she was doing it for your own good.”

"Heh," Bai Qingyu gave a wry smile, "If that's the case, then I should thank her?"

Fu Siying sighed softly.

Bai Qingyu took a big gulp of wine, his drunkenness now quite pronounced. He stood up and said, "Thank you for listening to my troubles. I've never told anyone about such sad things before, and it makes me feel much better to talk about it."

Seeing that he was swaying slightly, Fu Siying immediately got up and helped him up, saying, "I'll help you out of the garden. You can go back to your room and rest."

"No, no need for help. How could I let a young lady help me, especially since your foot is injured?"

"I'm much better. The medicine you brought me the other day was very good..."

Xia stopped abruptly before she could finish speaking. The whole incident of him bringing her the medicine yesterday had been quite embarrassing for her; she should have chosen a more appropriate time to explain it in a more relaxed manner.

Fu Siying remained silent, and Bai Qingyu was also speechless.

The two walked out of the garden one after the other. A servant rushed to help his young master. Bai Qingyu had only taken two steps when he suddenly stopped, his tone leisurely: "What Madam Fu said yesterday made a lot of sense, you..."

He turned around, his eyes, slightly tinged with drunkenness, fixed on Fu Siying's surprised face.

He said, "I hope you will consider this carefully."

“Me!” Fu Siying paused, then stammered, “My mother is talking nonsense, please don’t mind her.”

One nonsensical remark caused the slight embarrassment and expectation on his face to vanish. He lowered his head and remained silent for a moment before solemnly saying, "I was being presumptuous. Please don't be alarmed."

She involuntarily lowered her head, twirling her fingers, and whispered, "It's nothing."

“I should be cautious and serious about this kind of thing,” Bai Qingyu suddenly emphasized, her tone becoming serious. “I will make a formal request to you after I am fully prepared.”

"Ok?"

Fu Siying was so startled that she parted her lips slightly, watching Bai Qingyu's receding figure, and hesitated for a long time to guess the meaning of his words.

Wait until he is fully prepared, then?

Ok? !

……

The Ji family's apology banquet was even grander than the Bai family's welcoming banquet. Since the Ji family was a merchant family, the guests they invited to accompany them were also merchants.

The family members, mindful of their status, only allowed Madam Fu the Second to bring Fu Fangwei to the banquet as a formality, while Prime Minister Fu brought his entire family.

The moonlight was gentle, the night was soft, and the guests in the garden were toasting and chatting, creating a lively atmosphere.

Although banquets hosted by merchants are generally much more lavish, Prime Minister Fu, as a court official, would hardly have the privilege of enjoying them. Putting aside everything else, the constant stream of toasts alone was enough to scare him away.