The Empress Dowager remembered that Xiao Lan’s hands were very nifty. Her needlework was no less inferior than the palace staff who worked in the Embroidery Workshop. It turned out that this little girl’s handiwork was muchly influenced by her mother.
In fact, there was no shortage of items in the palace, but to be able to obtain something that was personally crafted by someone else evoked a rather sense of owning something precious and dear.
The Empress Dowager closed the box and handed it to Liu Zhi. Then, she spoke with a voice that was much softer than before, “I like it very much.”
The little girl was happy for a while. The slight rigidness and tension that seemed to cling onto her small frame when she arrived at the palace in the morning no longer remained. She smiled as she tugged onto the Empress Dowager’s hand, “Imperial Grandmother, I can even use petals and honey to make hand creams. Everyone who used them really liked it!”
Although the Empress Dowager was mindful of her appearance and kept her skin well-maintained, her hands were getting older and wrinkly. At this time, her fingertips trembled when they were grasped by the little hands that were soft yet warm.
Each of her grandchildren were terrified of her. They couldn’t even talk to her without trembling in fear, much less hold hands with her.
She looked closely at the little girl next to her.
The little girl smiled very cutely, causing her adorable dimples to appear. Her brows were slightly crooked but her eyes were natural and clear— the epitome of an innocent child.
It’s just that under the Empress Dowager’s scrutinising gaze, she suddenly became a little nervous. Her lightly pink nose wrinkled slightly as her eyelashes drooped a bit before she shyly retracted her hand. Instantly, she reverted back to the prim and proper appearance that she initially maintained that morning.
The Empress Dowager calmly took her hand again and pulled her back, “Really now? Next time, do send me a box of that as well, then.”
A sweet smile formed once again on the little girl’s face.
Lin Zhanyuan, who was chasing the butterfly nearby, ran back as he shouted excitedly, “Little sister! Little sister!”
He ran to her with sweat drenched on his forehead and gleaming eyes. He held his hands together and stretched them out in front of Lin Feilu as if he was unfolding a treasure box. He shouted once more, “Little sister!”
As soon as he let go of his hands, two blue butterflies flapped their wings and flew out. In the morning sun, the sight of the butterfly wings resembled that of streams of sunlight and it was very beautiful.
He happily asked, “Does my little sister like it?”
Lin Feilu pursed her lower lip before she replied with a happy and firm tone, “I like it!”
The Empress Dowager remembered the way the girl had asked her if she liked the gift. Almost immediately, her icy heart that had been hardened for many years suddenly started to thaw and soften.
She glanced at her silly grandson, deliberately asking, “Where’s mine then?”
Now only Lin Zhanyuan just remembered that there was someone next to him!
He stood up at once and his expression became nervous. He spared a few glances at the Empress Dowager, who looked a bit intimidating. Though scared, his facial expression had a good mix of edginess and cuteness.
His facial features were already great. But when she looked closely, his appearance looked a bit like the Emperor himself when he was a child.
The Empress Dowager didn’t care about individual fame as much as Emperor Lin did, so she didn’t hate this foolish prince like he did. Seeing him frightened by her, she couldn’t help but soften the tone of her voice and changed her method of questioning, “Your sister gave me gifts; did you not prepare anything for me?”
When Lin Zhanyuan heard that his younger sister had presented her a gift, how could he fall behind!