The Eldest Daughter Returns: Imperial Uncle, I'm Pregnant!

Despite her discomfort, Gu Hanjiao went forward to tease the wolf cubs. Actually, Gu Hanjiao only thought they smelled a bit bad, but otherwise they were fine. Although these two were wolf cubs, in people's eyes they were just two little dogs, nothing to be afraid of.

Even after their mother died, the two wolf cubs lingered by her side, reluctant to leave. Gu Hanjiao's approach made them extremely nervous, and their fur stood on end.

Seeing that the two little creatures weren't making any extra movements, Gu Hanjiao wondered if she should reach out and pick them up, but then she saw her white clothes and decided against it.

Little did she know that in that moment of distraction, the two little creatures suddenly jumped up and knocked over the plate in Gu Hanjiao's hand.

"Ah!" Gu Hanjiao cried out.

"Guards! Guards! Take these two little beasts away!" Even Consort Yu, who was not far away, was startled.

However, this remark made Prince Hulun's face turn ugly again. After the King of Chu had just made a hint, why did a concubine have to imply that he and his sister were two little beasts?

But the emperor was very happy.

The Third Prince rushed over and helped Consort Yu to her feet, asking, "Mother, are you alright?"

"It's nothing, nothing, I was just startled," Consort Yu said, clutching her chest.

"Mother, please return to your seat," the Third Prince said in a low voice to the Imperial Concubine. "I see that Father is somewhat displeased."

When Consort Yu looked up, she saw that although the Emperor was smiling, the displeasure in his eyes was all too familiar to her. Consort Yu quickly took Amber's hand and returned to her seat, not daring to say another word.

However, Gu Hanjiao was in an awkward situation after Consort Yu returned. Due to her recent dieting, she was a little weak and unsteady on her feet, and fell to the ground. The Third Prince had saved Consort Yu, but he was unable to save Gu Hanjiao, who herself fell to the ground.

At that moment, the two wolf cubs were crouching not far from Gu Hanjiao, baring their teeth at her.

Gu Hanjiao was a little scared. Even if it was a dog, being bitten was no joke. In this era, there was no rabies vaccine. If she got infected, wouldn't she die? Even if she didn't die, she would be left with scars that would be difficult to heal. Gu Hanjiao looked at the Third Prince next to her with trembling eyes and pleaded for help with tears in her eyes.

Upon seeing the chaotic scene, the guards rushed over to catch the two wolf cubs. As soon as the wolves left, Gu Hanjiao collapsed to the ground. Wang Ruyan quickly came over and took her daughter back to her seat.

Prime Minister Gu's face was grim, but with so many people in front of the hall, he really couldn't say much.

The wolf cubs ran all over the hall, causing everyone inside to scream in alarm. The guards who came to capture the two little creatures were in a difficult position, as they couldn't actually sneak among these nobles to catch them.

"Prince Hulun, your gift is truly a delightful surprise, even though we didn't see it."

“Your Highness, I never expected things to turn out this way. However… when we captured her, the mother wolf hadn’t given birth yet; she gave birth on the road. I was quite surprised.”

"Please forgive me, Father. It was my negligence that caused this disturbance." The Third Prince hurriedly stepped forward to apologize, disregarding everything else.

"What did the King of Chu say?" the Emperor asked, seeing the King of Chu adjusting his sleeves.

"Just as the Imperial Concubine said, they are nothing but two little beasts. Their lack of manners is nothing more than an attempt to attract attention. Your Majesty, just treat it as a spectacle; it won't cause any harm."

"You!" Princess Nazha was so angry that she was about to stand up and argue, but Prince Hulun held her hand tightly, signaling her not to make any rash moves.

At this moment, the chaotic hall quieted down, and the guards who had been capturing the wolf cubs stopped at their seats in front of the Duke of Ningguo's mansion. They looked at each other, feeling even more troubled.

"What's wrong?" the Empress asked, leaning forward. "Have those two little creatures been subdued?"

"Your Majesty, no...it is..." The leading guard looked at Gu Qingwan with some difficulty.

"What's wrong? Is there some difficulty?"

"No, it's those two little wolves that crawled under Miss Gu's skirt and are clinging to her, refusing to come out."

Everyone was surprised to hear this. They all looked over and saw Gu Qingwan standing there awkwardly, while Meng Yanran next to her was extremely anxious, unsure whether to go over or not.

"Qingwan..." Madam Ning and Madam Meng stood together, calling out to each other in a worried whisper.

Xiao Jingchen's face darkened. He stood up and strode over, frowning as he stared at the little things at Gu Qingwan's feet. Seeing them next to Gu Qingwan's palace dress, he was immediately displeased.

"Come out here!" Xiao Jingchen said in a low, hoarse voice to the two wolf cubs.

The two wolf cubs bared their teeth and let out low growls.

Gu Qingwan crossed her hands in front of her lower abdomen, looking rather helpless: "Your Highness..."

"Qingwan, what should we do?" Madam Ning asked anxiously.

Gu Qingwan looked down at the little wolf stepping on her palace dress and said with a smile, "You two can't do this."

The little thing was quite cute. It stared at Gu Qingwan with its big eyes, tilted its head, and carefully sniffed her. Then it rubbed its big head against her palace dress, instantly getting the hem dirty.

Xiao Jingchen was even more unhappy.

"You guys... want to follow me?" Gu Qingwan asked in a low voice.

"Awoo awoo awoo".

"Your Majesty, look, these two little wolves seem to have a particular fondness for Miss Gu?" the Empress said with some surprise.

"I was quite surprised to see that these two little wolves were so friendly to Miss Gu," the Emperor said with interest as he led the Empress down to stand beside the Prince of Chu.

Seeing that the Emperor had come down in person, Gu Qingwan could not remain indifferent. She had to come out from behind the table to greet him and respond. However, as soon as she moved, two little creatures grabbed her dress and acted quite shamelessly, making Gu Qingwan drag them along. After taking two steps, Gu Qingwan stopped and looked at the Emperor with some embarrassment.

"Your Majesty, look at this..."

"Haha, this is really interesting."

Prince Hulun already had a good impression of Gu Qingwan. When he saw that this woman was not frightened like other women when she saw wolves, but was very calm, he knew that she was no ordinary woman.

"Your Majesty, we have heard that wolves only become so obedient when they recognize their master. It seems that these two wolf cubs have recognized their master and submitted to him," Prime Minister Gu said thoughtfully, stroking his beard.

The Emperor looked at Prince Hulun and Princess Nazha, his expression clearly pleased. At this moment, the Crown Prince stepped forward and said with a smile, "Prime Minister, you are indeed learned and talented. If they have truly submitted, I believe we should treat them well."

"Oh? What does the Crown Prince think is the best way to treat them?" the Emperor asked.

"Your Majesty, since these two wolves have recognized Miss Gu as Prime Minister Gu has said, why don't you give these two little creatures to Miss Gu?"

“Brother, isn’t this inappropriate?” the Third Prince said. “This is, after all, a gift from the Northern Rong delegation to Father. How can you give it to Miss Gu on your own initiative?”

"Yes, does the Crown Prince look down on the gifts from the Northern Rong?" said the Northern Rong envoy.

“My lord, you are mistaken. The Crown Prince did not mean to look down on us. As Prince Hulun just said, what was given to our dynasty was that she-wolf. These two were born unexpectedly, so it can be considered a pleasant surprise. How can it be considered looking down on us? Furthermore, my elder brother, the Crown Prince, was only making a suggestion to Father. Third brother, there is no need to make such a big deal out of it.” The Fifth Prince stepped forward to speak in support of the Crown Prince.

"Fifth Brother's explanation is rather far-fetched, isn't it? After all, Father hasn't said anything yet," the Third Prince said.

"Alright, stop arguing." The Emperor disliked nothing more than discord between brothers, especially in front of outsiders.

The Crown Prince secretly tugged at the Fifth Prince's sleeve.

"What does Prince Hulun think?" the Emperor suddenly asked Prince Hulun, who had been watching the show.

Prince Hulun stepped forward and said, "Since it is a gift to the Emperor of Daqing, it is naturally up to the Emperor of Daqing to decide. The Prime Minister is right, he is indeed very talented and learned. However, I have some regrets. I originally wanted to give it to His Majesty, but now I have accepted a little girl as my master."

These words were rather malicious. This Northern Rong prince was indeed no good. What did he mean? Was he saying that the emperor was less dignified than a young girl? Was he mocking the Emperor of Daqing?

Gu Qingwan noticed that the King of Chu's expression was not good. Of course, she was also very unhappy that the prince had dragged her into this mess, as well as her father. He was probably going to kill her, Gu Qingwan.

"Your Majesty, I do not think so."

"Oh? Tell me."

"I believe it was Your Majesty's imperial might that kept the two little creatures away. During my years of recuperation outside, I have heard that small animals in the mountains or forests are very intelligent and rarely approach truly powerful beings. If such a powerful being comes, they will only cautiously hide in the shadows."

The emperor nodded.

"Pfft." A laugh came from the crowd, and Gu Hanjiao walked over with lotus-like steps: "I think these two little beasts have just lost their mother wolf, so they probably think of you as their mother, sister? Besides, you lived in the mountains for a period of time, so you must still have a familiar scent on you."

"Hehehehe," someone in the crowd laughed.

Gu Qingwan knew that Gu Hanjiao was mocking her for having a rustic, unrefined air about her, which she felt was unfit for high society.

"Hehe, what my sister says makes sense." Gu Qingwan didn't care that Gu Hanjiao would come up and mock her without considering the occasion, but she was happy that the Emperor was unhappy.

"Your Majesty, I also feel a strong affinity with these two little creatures. Last time, His Majesty said he would reward me with them, so I dare to ask Your Majesty for these two little creatures." Gu Qingwan knelt down and asked for the gift.

"Qingwan!" Madam Ning quickly stepped forward and knelt beside her: "Your Majesty, please forgive me, Qingwan spoke without thinking."

As Gu Ziming's eldest daughter, Gu Qingwan wouldn't truly ignore him even if she didn't like him. Moreover, she didn't understand why his most beloved daughter, Gu Hanjiao, not only didn't help her sister but also undermined her. Didn't she know the principle of shared prosperity and shared loss?

"Your Majesty, please forgive me. I have failed to properly educate my daughter, and she has been spouting nonsense in the main hall."

"It's alright, it's alright. Miss Gu is right. I did promise. So be it. These two little creatures will be given to Miss Gu. However..." The Emperor paused, "These are animals after all. Miss Gu is not familiar with their habits. Prince Chu is more knowledgeable about them. Let's have Prince Chu tame them first, and then Miss Gu can take them back."

After saying this, the Emperor gave the Prince of Chu a wink, as if to say, "See how considerate your brother is?"

The King of Chu did not react at all, as if to say, "Mind your own business."

"Your Majesty, I am deeply grateful for your grace," Gu Qingwan said, bowing respectfully.