The princess was ordained by Heaven.

Actually, she hadn't planned to come in person, but considering that they delivered food to her every day, it would be impolite for her not to show her face.

She has moved on from the illusions created by her identity as Sweet Fruit and the transference of affections, but the Sixth Prince and Consort Xian clearly have not.

The sixth prince lowered his eyes, his somewhat childish appearance revealing his true age, making him look rather pitiful.

He said in a low voice, "You used to call me brother."

He was her only brother, not some sixth brother.

Zheng Xun remained silent.

The sixth prince, being quick-witted, soon understood her thoughts.

He reached out and gently wrapped his arm around her wrist: "Shall we talk?"

He didn't use much force, but Zheng Xun still couldn't break free.

Consort Xian looked at her son, then at Zheng Xun: "Xun'er, you talk to Si Nan first. Aunt Ping will go and make you something delicious. Don't rush off."

She wanted to say, "You used to love Aunt Ping's homemade snacks the most," but she didn't say it out loud.

She left in a hurry, taking the palace servants with her.

The sixth prince pulled her to sit by the window. On the small table next to them was a sky-blue vase with two lotus flowers in it. The window was well lit, and the sunlight streaming in gave the lotus flowers a soft glow.

"What does Your Majesty want to say?"

"I know you're not a sweet fruit."

Zheng Xun remained silent, his expression unreadable.

The sixth prince didn't need her answer and continued speaking on his own.

"Sweetie is a very gentle person, lively and cheerful, but she hasn't experienced much hardship. You and she are completely different."

Zheng Xun glanced at him sideways: "Yes, yes, she's soft, I'm rock hard."

Sixth Prince:......

Zheng Xun smiled and said, "You can continue. I won't disturb you."

The sixth prince smiled and turned his head to look at the lush greenery outside the window: "I have been in poor health since childhood and have suffered from illness for many years. In fact, my personality is twisted and wicked."

"But I have a wonderful mother who shut out the palace gates and cut off my favors. She personally studied pharmacology, prepared my three meals a day, and gave me tender love day after day for decades."

His eyes were gentle and soft, and his voice was incredibly soft: "So, I slowly began to learn to control my bad temper."

The mockery on Zheng Xun's face gradually faded.

Indeed, having seen the former Consort Xian, who would believe she would become like this?

Even the Sixth Prince probably doesn't know how fiery and volatile his mother used to be. When he was a child, Jiang Weiguo asked her to look after a relative's child, and out of impatience, she punched the child unconscious. As she grew older, she became even more ruthless; after entering the palace, she was a ruthless woman who dared to fight with the Emperor and even slap someone.

Who would have thought that after having a child, she would become such a virtuous wife and loving mother? Even the concubines in the harem who had witnessed her past behavior still couldn't believe her transformation.

The sixth prince clenched his fist, pressed it to his lips, and coughed lightly twice, actually trying to hide the smile on his lips.

But gradually, the smile on his face was replaced by bitterness.

My mother, who was so willful, had her edges smoothed out and she put herself into rules and regulations because of him.

To avoid burdening him and to prevent him from overthinking, she restrained her true nature and reserved only for him with gentleness and patience.

He knew very well how painful and depressing this would be, because he had done it himself.

It must be said that they are indeed mother and son.

"However, as my health deteriorated, it became increasingly difficult for me to maintain the appearance."

"That day, I was feeling very irritable. Suddenly, a stray cat appeared out of nowhere. It was playfully chasing after the butterflies, but I could barely get up. I found it so annoying that I almost reached out and strangled it."

[Cat: You're so high and mighty, you think you're so great, why don't you pinch yourself?]

The sixth prince closed his eyes.

How did she know he hadn't strangled her? Countless nights, he had nearly met his end...

"But before I could put those dark and disgusting ideas into practice, I met Sweet Fruit."

"That small, innocent little girl, with her clear eyes, looked at me in surprise."

I snapped out of my daze, and a wave of fear and self-reproach washed over me. I felt as if I had returned to the human world.

I almost took an irreversible step.

My inner demons almost broke free of their cage.

I was very grateful to this little girl who suddenly appeared, so I treated her a little better, and we, who were blood relatives, became friends at that moment.

[Cat: How can you be so hypocritical? We're both weak, pitiful, and helpless, but you pity her while trying to strangle me.]

The Sixth Prince: At this moment, even if a demon or monster were to emerge, he would feel pity for it.

He felt helpless, but he wasn't angry.

In fact, thinking back to the time when he hadn't fallen into the abyss or lost his conscience, he only felt fortunate.

"When my mother learned that I had a playmate, she was very grateful to Sweetie, so she always did her best to treat her well."

"But she was always very anxious, as if she didn't know how to respond to that tiny bit of kindness."

[Actually, this was originally a story of mutual devotion. Back then, weren't the Sixth Prince and the Virtuous Consort also a form of salvation for Sweet Fruit?]

The little girl was as lonely as a ghost in the palace. The palace servants were reluctant to get close to her because of her status, and the relationships between relatives were too weak. She carefully stayed in her own quarters, and even going out required careful consideration. Although she was not usually so quiet, the palace was too big and too dangerous, so she could only be a lively little sprite in her own place.

Perhaps it was fate, but that day she left the princess's residence, followed by a kitten, and came to the sixth prince. From then on, they had each other's company.

The sixth prince was stunned and thought: Is that so?

Oh, I see...

He wanted to cry and laugh at the same time. What he wanted most was to share his surprise and joy with his sister.

However, his sister was no longer alive.

He wiped his face and exhaled deeply.

"Tianguo'er is a very sincere person. She knew that my knees were bad, so she picked up a needle and thread and sewed knee pads for me herself. Every time I was feeling down or unhappy, she would hold my hand and smile softly at me."

“At that time, I didn’t have a name yet. Because I was weak since I was a child, I was afraid that my fate would not be able to be suppressed if I was given a name. She and my mother searched for a long time and gave me the nickname ‘Sinan’.”

"She planted many flowers in my yard, afraid that I would feel down if I didn't see bright colors."

"She is never unhappy in front of me because she doesn't want to affect me; she only wants me to be happy."

With his mother's meticulous care and Tianguo'er's long-term companionship, his health improved more and more. Although he was still weak, he lived to be this old.

He thought that with his physical condition, he would be the first to die, but unexpectedly, it was Sweetie who had the accident first.